Hello Tokyo!
Ladies and Gentleman, Children of all ages, Boys and Girls around the world. LLLLLLLLET'S GET READY TO SUMOOOOOOOOO!!!!It's Aug. 28th which means only 1 thing: 363 days till my birthday meaning it's a good time to give my annual "State of my life" address.
My first year in Chicago was really good. I learned a lot at work, made a bunch of friends, live in an awesome neighbourhood, explored some of Chicago life, travelled to Seattle and NYC and kept my weight reasonably steady (I guess that's a good thing). I'm pretty happy so far in Chicago and can see myself there for a couple more years.
In my opinion Chicago's a really awesome city. As I normally tell people, it reminds me of a much larger version of Winnipeg. And to all you Toronto foks I think Chicago is a better city that Toronto in some respects!!! People are really friendly in Chicago and the pace of life suits me perfectly. Unlike cities like NYC or London that are always "rush rush, go go" Chicago takes its time. People work hard and play hard but just play differently. Organized rec leagues are a plenty and well run in Chicago. People have their choice of plenty of pubs, bars, clubs, lounges, etc. There's A LOT of amazing restaurants to check out. And don't even get me started on all the festivals during the summer. Honestly, during the summer Chicago is probably one of the best cities to live in!!!!
But here's the ironic part. Right now I'm in Tokyo!!!! There's a project at work I've started working on and the client requested there be a presence in Tokyo for a month so here I am! ONE MONTH in Tokyo!!!! Lucky me :D
So far I haven't seen or done a lot in Tokyo. And for all of you who keep asking me no I didn't have a wild and crazy bday. It was pretty tame actually. Half of it I was flying over the Pacific. When I did finally get settled into the hotel my colleague (Wendy) and I went out to see a Kabuki show. But I was soooo tired from the travel and jet lag I fell asleep five mins into the show!!!
Here are some thoughts on Tokyo so far though
- The subway in Tokyo is amazing. Clean, comprehensive and on time!
- Japanese people are very respectful. Everybody pretty much bows to each other and is willing to be as helpful as they can.
- Japanese food is very fresh! It's nice actually to have meals that aren't uber heavy and greasy.
- Before every meal you're given a wet towel to wash your face and hands. Very refreshing.
- Just like Singapore people drive on the left. As a result people stand on the left on escalators, and cross each other on the left if walking towards each other.
- Soooo bright from all the neon lights!
- Japanese people like to be clean.
I took a few pictures and I'll put them up later. Sayounara!
posted by Arvind @ 12:13 AM
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