Out of the Country

There is nothing like being out of the country to derail my attempts at a consistent blog, but here it is, a blog from Japan. I have been visiting friends and relatives for the past week, and will start travelling to different cities as a tourist starting tomorrow.

So far it has been a very enjoyable trip. Japan in November is like Vancouver in October, not too hot (average 15-20 degrees Celsius) with about 70% humidity. So if it does get around or above 20 degrees, it does feel warm, but not unbareably warm. Not like September or summer in Japan which can reach 35 degrees with 80% humidity, making it feel like 40+ degrees.

A few places we went to include Shinanomachi, the SGI headquarters, Shinjuku station and Tokyo City Hall with its scenic view towers, Shibuya, a 20-something area with a number of high-end stores and building called Roppongi Hills (aka Beverly Hills). The entire building is like 15 stories high, not including the hotel and condo complex which is a skyscraper. It is hard to explain, so when I have the pictures ready, I can show you.

We also went to the Meiji Shrine on Nov. 14, which happens to be the day where kids 3, 5, and 7 years of age come to celebrate their birthday. They dress up in kimonos and traditional dress and go to the shrine. Many kids were very cute in their outfits, and many allowed their kids to be photographed by tourists like us.

So much to say, so little time, but suffice it to say, it's been a very eye-openning experience so far.

Next is Osaka for a few days, Kyoto and Hiroshima.

American Election Day is at Hand

Today's a significant day for the world as Americans go to the polls to decide who will be their next president. With the race being so tight this year, it's hard to say who will win, but I look forward to hearing the results come in once the polls close across America.

Like most Canadians, I'd like to see Kerry win. At the start of the election, the reason for choosing Kerry was based mostly on the thought that "Anyone is better than Bush." But that PBS Frontline documentary about Bush and Kerry informed me with a much better reason than simply being "better" than Bush.

Kerry, unlike Bush, has actually been around the world. It's an interesting fact that I did not realize until watching the PBS documentary; Kerry fought in Vietnam, while Bush remained in the reserves in the U.S.

While most would simply focus on the military record, when I heard this, I realized that Kerry has a more concrete and realistic view of the world having traveled around the world in his life. Bush, on the other hand, rarely, if ever travelled around the world before becoming president. And according to Michael Moore in Fahrenheit 911, he spent almost half his time in the first eight months as president on vacation until September 11 happened. Bush is also the one who said Mexico was one of America's largest economic partners, when in fact it's Canada - the other country in North America (which happens not to border his home state of Texas where he was governor).

It's interesting that we did not know any of the interesting facts about Bush before he became president, and now I wonder if the knowledge we have gained after four years of Bush Jr.'s presidency, will influence the outcome of this year's elections.