May 2007

Italian food (20070501)

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Today I met a cousin of one of my friends. He works in Tokyo, where he has an apartment of almost 8 square metres! Unsurprisingly, it is cheap. We had raw ham with mushrooms and chocolate sauce. Very Italian...

Thai food (20070503)

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Today I went to a Thai restaurant with two Japaneses and a Taiwanese. There was a discussion of whether the rice was coconut flavored (as the Japanese people thought was eminently clear) or not (as we foreigners believed). After being taunted about the weak sense of taste of foreigners, the waitress was asked to explain what was the case. It was completely normal rice, no coconuts had come near it. Also, a bonus photo of Japanese green chocolate (tastes a little like Japanese macha (a type of green tea)).

Expensive (20070504)

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For some reason, you can now buy reproductions of samurai stuff like helmets and swords, made in gold, in one of the department stores. There is a special guard there all the time, who also tells you that you are not allowed to take pictures. The sword was only 30,000,000 yen.

Dancing in the streets (20070504)

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I met an acquaintance from Bolivia who was watching three small girls dance around in the park today.

Long time no see (20070504)

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I was called over to play the role of the exotic (crazy) foreigner today, when a friend had some long time friends over for dinner. I was however called over after they ate the delicious dinner, but at least I was given spaghetti, with garlic. Maybe not the most exciting thing ever, but still. Then I crushed all opposition in Scrabble, since the three people there (apart from me) had all met in Canada, where this Scrabble game had been bought (and indeed used so much so as to cause people to be too late for the ferry).

Swedish picnic (20070505)

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I was sent an e-mail saying "we are in the park, we expect you here soon" today. I was still sleeping and had no idea there was anything planned for me (since no one had told me). Well there I found no need to be babysitter, since at first Japanese kids were more interesting than me, and later the nearest group of drunk grownups were forced to play ball for two hours (Japanese people do not seem to be able to say "no" when ordered around, at least not to European kids). Of course, they all thought I was her father, so I kept an eye out to see if they wanted to lynch any parents. I did get stalked though, which was fun.

Why Sweden never take medals in figure skating (20070505)

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Maybe.

King king (20070505)

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I rounded of the day by meeting a real life Bond villain (or at least someone who was always described by a behind the curtains plotter type) and eating "King King's Viking".

Sitting on Sweden (20070506)

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Someone was using the Swedish flag for sitting on, so as not to get the clothes dirty.

What could be the point? (20070506)

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On top of a large bridge is a smaller bridge. But what is the point? And why did I have to ride two bicycles at the same time today? And why did the cherry trees not blossom fully yet?

Best research investment (20070508)

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One of the new guys will research automatic multi-language translation in computer games domains. So he will have to buy Final Fantasy XI and have people play it for him.

Snaps (20070508)

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In Sweden "snaps" are not photos, it is strong alcohol. Not so in Japan.

Baby, sitting (20070508)

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On account of the mother having had knives carving in her skull, I was once again called in as babysitter. We spent an hour or so trying out the most expensive massage chairs. Nothing broke as far as I noticed.

Corporate sponsorship (20070509)

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In Odori park, there are flower arrangements. Everyone of which has a sign with the name of the company that paid for it.

Really short shorts (20070509)

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This guy was jogging on the university grounds when I was going to lunch.

Not really mistaken identity (20070509)

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A friend seems to be hell bent on abusing the internal mail system of the university. Today I was sent a rolled up paper with a neatly printed address of the university (though in English, which is chancy with the postal workers). One more note was attached, with my name written in Swedish sloppy style. There was also a note from the postal workers saying that they thought this might be for the "Djonnas Shabaagu" that was at Hokkaido University about a year ago. He was in the same lab as I currently am, so it was sent to us. Of course, that student was me, so in a sense they were correct. But who would send stuff to someone who went home 16 months ago?

Gingis Kahn-Hana mi-Nomikai (20070511)

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Today we had a party (nomikai) with our lab, welcoming new people. It consisted of barbecuing lamb in garlic sauce (Gingis Kahn), watching flowers, more specifically cherry blossoms of which you cold see some on the university ground where we were (hana-mi). Someone suggested barbecuing marshmallows, an idea which most people were sceptical about. I said that this was common in America and Europe. Of course, I also informed them that in Sweden the normal thing is to eat them while the flame is still burning on the marshmallow. There was some scepticism about this statement, so I had to do it a few times to convince people. Though some were still not convinced. I also liked the "let's just use a gas burner to fry this piece of intestines" approach. Though it mostly resulted in people eating cow guts that were raw on the inside and charcoal on the outside.

The second party (20070511)

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After barbecuing and drinking for a few hours, the food and drinks ran out. It was thus time for the second party, 2 hours of free drinks and ordering large amounts of food. Such as potato-mochi and bread-wrapped ice cream.

Too much studying (20070512)

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I was trying to improve upon a magic trick at 3 in the morning. Everything becomes cooler if you add fire (I learned this from Ghost rider, haha). But it turned out that it mostly made me press a wildly burning match into my flesh, which stung quite a bit. Left a cool mark, though, so I was not completely wrong.

(Very much) more barbecue (20070512)

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Despite bad weather and no cherry blossoms, several thousands of drunk Japanese people were barbecuing lambs in Maruyama-park. It is normally forbidden to light fires (making barbecuing difficult), but since this time of the year everyone really wants to there is an exception.

Nun-chucks (20070512)

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All Japanese people are of course required to learn how to fight with nunchaku. Here are some people taking their exam in front of the camera.

Trip (20070520-31)

I went to a conference in Estonia, and on the way stopped over in Tokyo and Stockholm (since there were no tickets available to go directly to where I was going).

Tokyo (20070520)

First stop was Tokyo, where I had to spend an afternoon and a night, waiting for my next plane. I went to the park near Meiji jingu shrine, where young people often gather during Sundays.

Tokyo fashion (20070520)

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Tokyo is of course at the forefront of deciding what is cool to wear. Such as doll-like dresses, grey makeup, pilot clothes or why not a Picachu pokemon outfit!

Free hugs! (20070520)

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Who can resist asking for free hugs from a man in a dress?

Elvis! (20070520)

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Elvis lives, and is dancing in the park in Tokyo.

Sword fight (20070520)

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These guys looked like they were fighting with swords in the park. It turned out to be a lame act in front of a camera though.

Music (20070520)

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There was lots of free music available.

TV (20070520)

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A TV crew was following some old guy with lots of luggage around, filming him buying stuff and crossing the street. Very unexciting.

Stockholm (20070521-23)

Next stop was Stockholm, where most people I know live. I can also stay for free!

Sweden style fruits (20070522)

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When I finally arrived in Sweden, I snapped a photo of how fruit is sold. In Japan, all apples are huge, perfectly shaped and identical in all ways. In Sweden, there is just a pile of different sized/colored/shaped ones lying around.

Sweden style highway (20070522)

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Sweden has an abundance of nature. This is on the road to where my parents live.

Traditional Swedish food (20070522)

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This is very traditional and quite good. I have been told that few foreigners appreciate the beans.

Swedish fashion (20070522)

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Funny t-shirts are ... funny.

Swedish non-falling construction (20070523)

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Why do Japanese bicycles always fall over? Maybe they should use this type of construction, since Swedish bicycles never fall over (though we rarely have storms etc. that could probably defeat even this).

Common Swedish food (20070523)

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Swedish pizza. Larger and cheaper than Japanese ones, which is rare when it comes to food.

Boat to Estonia (20070523-24)

I took the ferry from Stockholm to Tallinn to get to the conference in Estonia. Flying is cheaper and faster, but lacks the cultural vibes.

Computer systems (20070523)

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The information system of the boat wanted to do a virus scanner update, but no one seemed to notice, since the message was there the whole 16 hours.

Swedish custom: drinking tax free alcohol on a boat (20070523)

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In Sweden, alcohol is very expensive (most things are), and is taxed very heavily. This has made boat trips to neighboring countries popular. People get on the boat to Finland (or Estonia or someplace else) and start drinking the tax free alcohol available. When the boat reaches Finland, many people just stay aboard, waiting for the ship to go back (then drinking some more). You can find many very drunk Swedes on these boats. The scenery is nice, though.

Singing and dancing (20070523)

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Aboard the ships, there are also shows to watch, as well as night clubs to visit etc.

Karaoke (20070523)

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Karaoke in Sweden means singing in front of people you do not know (the rest of the customers at the bar or restaurant). In Japan it means locking yourself up in a soundproof room with your friends (and unlimited free drinks, which would never work in Sweden).

Tartu (20070524)

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Once I got to Estonia, I tried to find the bus station in Tallinn. After recovering from getting lost, I got on the two and a half hour bus to Tartu, where the conference was held. Tartu is a very beautiful town, where everything is within walking distance. There is also an Irish pub started by some guy named Wilde, which features statues of two other Wildes outside.

Signs of Sweden (20070524)

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There are many signs of Sweden in Tartu. Such as the statue of the Swedish king who founded the university and the "Uppsala house". Uppsala is a town in Sweden, which is a sister-city of Tartu.

Work (20070524)

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Being in Tartu to work, I had to start already on the first day. Mainly by going to a former cathedral and cramming down free food and drinks, but still.

Signs (20070524)

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I like the "warning, people with saxophones will disturb your meal here"-sign.

Breakfast (20070525)

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I stayed in a very nice hostel (cheap, despite me having to pay for two since I had a huge room). The breakfast was very impressive (though only a small part is shown here).

More work (20070525)

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Today I had three research presentations.

Even more work (20070525)

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After the research presentations were finished, it was again time to eat huge amounts of free food. Some people came by boat and launched fireworks. There was also free wine, which meant that the Swedish people refused to leave for the next event while there were still free bottles left. At my table, where four or five people were drinking, at least 12 bottles of wine were emptied. Quite impressive.

Never ending work (20070526)

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Everyone from the conference was given a free ticket for a night club, so we continued over there. I asked for something to drink without alcohol. They gave me something with orange juice, apple juice, pineapple juice, hard liquor (no alcohol?) and whipped cream. Not that great. Hard to get through the straws too.

Going home (20070526)

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When trying to get to the bus station of Tartu, I ran into about a gazillion of small kids riding bicycles, and policemen stopping me from crossing the street.

Funny words (20070526)

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The first picture is an Estonian list of things to buy. One poodle of coca-cola or one ear cleaner of tea? The second one is related to my research into erroneously splitting Swedish compound words into small words with different meaning. Perhaps not as funny as "kul turk-rock", but still.

Ice cream-o-grams (20070527)

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Back in Stockholm, my brother had received an ice cream-o-gram. I want one too!

Cooking (20070527)

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A very common Swedish dish. Make a sandwich with lots of stuff, shove it in the oven. Two different strategies, mine on the left and my brother's on the right.

Swedish countryside (20070527)

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In Sweden you can live in the countryside. It is beautiful, but you can rarely see your neighbors house, because it is too far away. Also, mowing the lawn is hard work.

Sigtuna (20070527)

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Sigtuna is an old town in Sweden. It has many old buildings and is popular with tourists.

Swedish things to do (20070527)

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Things to do in the countryside in the summer: feed stuff or eat stuff.

Flowers (20070527)

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Made of wood.

Runes and ruins (20070527)

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We have rune stones from the viking age, and churches from the same time. The new one here is only 800 years old or so. The ruined one is older, but in less useful shape.

Swedish architecture (20070527)

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These is stereotypical Swedish houses. Red, with white corners. Also, we have the steering wheel on the left side of the car, unlike Japanese cars.

Relative (20070528)

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How come everyone thinks I am an insane nerd, while they think my brother is a nice, normal, intelligent and serious person?

High tech (20070529)

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The entrance to one department at my old university has an animated character guarding the door. If he recognizes your voice as an employee there, he opens the door. Otherwise you can speak to him and if he understands who you are looking for he will call them for you.

Going back (20070530)

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When I finally got rid of my jet-lag it was time to go back. Used to Swedish time, there was no possibility of sleeping on the plane. I spent some time practicing Japanese with the girl photographing the clouds. I also spoke to a Japanese stewardess who claimed to love salmiak (a black candy that Japanese people normally hate, but Swedish people like).

Japanese fashion (20070531)

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Finally back in Japan, where everyone dresses like this.

Me (20070531)

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This is candy called European pears, which is what the Hokudai engineering department Japanese teacher called me (since it is pronounced Yoonas in some parts of the country, and he thought that was funny).