Sunday, May 31, 2009

Weekly McDonald's Discount Coupons

Don't you ever get sick of eating domburi, sushi, yakiniku, miso soup, takoyaki, and above all... RICE! Every... effing... week. Obviously not. How stupid of me to ask. But I think it's only natural to crave something as repulsive as big, grea... juicy Double Quarter Pounders with fries after countless weeks of noodle-slurping and fine-tuning chopstick skills as an ascetic hermit in the misty mountains of Hyogo.
Friday, May 29, 2009

Quick Guide to Teaching English in Japan

It's easy to start earning some pocket money in Japan by teaching English. All you really need is email and a mugshot of yourself. There are several teacher-student matching services online that you can employ without cost. Signing up is easy but how do you make your profile effective?
Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Cheap Gaijin House in Osaka

There are various cheap housing options available in Japan: hostels, guest houses, capsule hotels, homestay families, dorms, et cetera. Although I've never tried any of those, I did stay in a gaijin house for seven months. It was the perfect first home for me in Japan.

In September of 2007 I came to Osaka for my exchange program, and wanted to get an apartment of my own. Not a dorm room where I'd have a curfiew, or a host family that I'd have to call everytime I wouldn't be back for dinner, but an affordable private room with no babysitting bullcrap or other annoyances. Of course I had to sacrifice some things such as getting my laundry done by the host mom or getting two meals per day in the dorm cafeteria. But what I really wanted was a place that allowed me to be independent.
Thursday, May 21, 2009

Cute Stray Kitten Rescued in Osaka

I was going through my daily stuff in the afternoon when I noticed Kai, our younger cat, looking startled and meowing towards the balcony. We had the balcony door open to cool down the room, and at first I thought she was just curious about the birds chirping nearby. But soon we realized that the ruckus was being raised by cats - or abandoned kittens to be exact!

My girlfriend rushed outside with her friend to check on the kittens, but only one of them remained. I went down shortly after and saw the girls holding a small lump of fur in their hands. The other one had already been picked up by another lady who had come down there to see what was going on.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Tower of the Sun

The Expo Memorial Park in Suita City is home to the 65-meter Tower of Sun (Taiyou no Tou). It was built by Taro Okamoto to symbolize the Expo '70.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Swine Phobia Hits Osaka

As the number of pig flu infections in Japan topped 170 yesterday, cotton masks have become nearly impossible to get ahold of. I noticed that one convenience store in Yamada had a note on their door saying that they had run out of them.
Monday, May 18, 2009

Links

A collection of Japan-related links

FindStudents.net Teacher-student matching service
Japan-i: Enjoy the best in Japan travel! Explore the secrets of travel in Japan–adventure, culture, fashion, shopping, food, arts and more!
Kansai Flea Market Online classifieds
Jorudan Train route finder

Other

part of my world My girlfriend's blog about being an exchange student in Finland


Self-Learner My other blog about self-learning and personal improvement.
Sunday, May 17, 2009

Christian Weddings Blasphemous in Japan

You'd be surprised how significant it is for a Christian wedding ceremony in Japan to have a foreign wedding minister. The funny thing is, no one really cares if the minister actually believes in the Lord God Almighty.

I like to occasionally skim through the Kansai Flea Market ezine (it's a decent place to find jobs btw) to see if there's anything interesting on it. Every now and then I run into an ad where a chapel is looking for "reliable Christian men" to perform wedding ceremonies. For fear that I will be punished divinely, I haven't been able to muster enough courage to apply, but a friend of mine did. And he gets hefty sums for making couples and families happy.
Saturday, May 16, 2009

How to Get Japanese Music from iTunes Store

Do you have an iTunes Store account but can't connect to the Japanese section of the store? If your credit card was issued outside of Japan, there's no way to get your hands on Japanese songs directly.

The only way to gain access to iTunes Store Japan (without a Japanese credit card) is to buy pre-paid music cards that, once activated, will have credits deposited into your iTunes Store account. You can then use those credits to buy Japanese music online. Read on to get iTunes Store Japan Music Cards...
Friday, May 15, 2009

Blog Reborn

It may be awkward to hear but this blog isn't as new as it may seem. I actually started it almost two years ago.
Thursday, May 14, 2009

Join My Blogroll

Do you have your own blog or website about Japan? I would like to get to know you and exchange links!
Thursday, May 14, 2009

About

Once Upon a Time in Osaka is written by Eric, a Japanese half-blood who will be talking to you from Osaka about his life in Japan as a (half) foreigner.

The main topics of this blog relate to mundane things that, as a matter of fact, probably aren't very mundane to most Westerners. I like to think about this place a lot, and there are so many phenomena on this island that are unique, partly because of its isolated nature. Although I can clearly feel the local Yamato blood flowing in my veins, so much of the customs, traditions and mentality is still shrouded in the mist...
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