21 March 08 - 02:39Return to your rental discs to Tsutaya BOX, not inside shop!
Tsutaya, Japanese video rental chain is pretty attractive place to rent movies, because even the smaller shops have pretty good selection of Japanese movies. Foreigners with Gaikokujin Toroku (alien registration card) can obtain the Tsutaya card which enables you to rent movies. Making of the card costs 300 yen. It's no big deal.Now, there is one thing, when they say you have to return the DVD to the shop before 10am next day, it really literally means BEFORE. Exactly 10.00AM when the shop opens is not before. You should drop it into the post box from outside and not wait until the shop opens. The box however is hard to discover if you are renting the movie first time and this might make you think that you have to wait until the shop opens in order to return it.
If you don't follow this rule you have to pay 200 yen for penalty fee. It's kind of embarassing if you have to pay it for one minute's sake.
So make sure you use the box, and be wiser than me, ok?
20 March 08 - 22:13Food Crises
Two months has passed since the Chinese made gyoza accident occurred. Twice, serious food poisoning occurred when people ate gyoza dumplings which had large amount of pesticide. When interviewed, Chinese farmers admitted that they cannot eat the vegetables from their own farm, as they must fight the pests by using illegal chemicals in order to get bearable harvest. How are Japanese consumers feeling now about it? (more)18 March 08 - 05:28Arura Members gathered
In our small wedding party. We got mixer.18 March 08 - 03:59Japanese Youtube?
Have you ever heard of: http://vision.ameba.jpI recommend to check it out. They have pretty good quality content, especially Japanese video shows. But now that Youtube is all over the Japan too, it could be that sites like these just won't get the attraction they need to grow.
14 March 08 - 14:04Broken Arrows - Slow Moves
You know those moments in your life, when an old memory reaches to you, in most unexpected moment?Well, recently I had my own, kind of a miniscule flashback. It's hard to explain the feeling really, but I will try.
(more)
14 March 08 - 02:17Niigata.
Have you ever been stopped by those volunteer workers in street who are collecting money for Niigata earthquake or Hiroshima atomic bomb survivors? .. (more)11 March 08 - 23:25Japanese female athletes
They are truly the people who I admire. I haven't met any professional athletes here in Japan personally, but all what I've seen, read or heard from them, is something comparable to an ancient samurai.. (more)11 March 08 - 00:57Terrorist video.
Sure as what, it was on youtube..Enjoy! *grin*
10 March 08 - 22:00Terrorism.
Visiting the immigration office made me a bit surprised this time. In Yokohama Immigration Bureau's office, they play a video on repeat which show's WTC attack, and most recent history of terrorist attacks, then fading into the fingerprinting of foreigners in the airport.. (more)09 March 08 - 10:22Fans of Kawase Naomi..
I've met several of them over the years, in Finland and in Japan. I'm surprised, because there is something common that seems to connect us.. (more)09 March 08 - 04:05Moe no Suzaku
Yesterday I went to Tsutaya to hunt for a good movies. I found Moe no Suzaku, Kawase Naomi's earlier movie which I've wanted to see for a long time.It was really beautiful, fantastic, lyrical masterpiece. Read the article in Hanami Web here.
08 March 08 - 06:58His name really was Tony Takitani
A movie what I've been looking forward to see so much. Miyazawa Rie and Issey Ogata, great pair.If you haven't read the story by Murakami Haruki, I recommend. It's in his book "Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman". The movie is adaptation of this.
08 March 08 - 04:40Shipwrecks
What's going on? Someone give me explanation. Why there has been so many ship accidents recently? (more)05 March 08 - 22:35It is just wrong.
Yeah, I wanted to write about Finnish Embassy in Japan. Recently I got some questions to them regarding my wife's koseki and the translation of it into English because I need to send them that. Well, not only they were unable to provide any proper answer by email, they asked me to call them. And some reason, I noticed that calling the Finnish Embassy in Tokyo (from Yokohama) is really expensive, ten minutes costed me 500 yen, which is more than normal fee calling to landline. I have reason to believe that they charge their customers, which is a common practice in Finland.No wonder they asked ME to call them. Later because the guy was unable to write understandable email, he said "it's so difficult to communicate by email, it would have been so much easier if you just called us". Doesn't it stink a bit?
But this is not all. In their homepage they mention few "translation offices" which they "recommend". I sent email to every of these offices and asked how much translation of koseki will cost, and how long it takes. Only one of them replied, and said a single A4 shall cost approximately 35.000 YEN containing the cost of delivery of document and "it shall take two weeks". That SHALL be approximately the price of a new iPod (with the touch).
I just can't be satisfied with this. The Finnish embassy asks me to call them, and then all what they do is tell me a link to commercial company's website. As far what I knew before, the Embassies should be not engaged into commercial business.
There has to be better way. I really don't want to pay 35.000 yen for a translation.
And Finnish Embassy is last place I'm going to ask for an advice because so far they haven't given me any, except the one involving expensive payments.
Even legally speaking as far as I know any embassies are not allowed to engage into commercial business like this, and it is illegal for them to provide links to commercial sites in their homepages, I'm pretty sure about it. And isn't it just wrong? Because embassies should be there to HELP YOU who ever you are.
And in addition, aren't they supposed to help the citizens of Finland, should they have a related question? I always knew customer service in Finland sucks big time, but I didn't know it would suck that much.
Of course I am aware that in questions regarding matters here in Japan I should call to embassy of Japan in Helsinki, but am I going to make expensive international call to them from here? And mind you, Finnish guys in Minato-ku, my questions were not related to matters here in Japan but matters there in Finland.
But I have reached the conclusion that it is waste of time to send them email, no matter how much I try, they always manage to misunderstand my question.