Osaka dome
The Osaka Dome, not far from my place. Interesting architecture, kind of otherwordly.
St. Patrick's Day in Osaka
Just a photo to show Mom that I packed a green shirt for the occasion. :-)
(or, the Japanese smiley emoticon, (^_^) )
I actually did see several Japanese people wearing green. Like my grandmother used to say, everybody's Irish on St. Patrick's Day.
Tomorrowland
Apparently a clothing store. Love the name; for all it's connection to the past, Japan is also in some ways "Tommorrowland", first to embrace new technologies. Trying to understand how they stretch from the ancient past to "tomorrowland" is part of why I'm here.
The right of self-defense: Parker v. District of Columbia
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recent struck down D.C. gun laws that pretty much prohibit private ownership of firearms; this piece in The Weekly Standard by Erin Sheley gives a good look at the story.
karaoke, Japanese style
Word trivia for the day: "karaoke" means "empty orchestra", and is
written with the same kanji "kara" as "karate", "empty hand".
Going out on the town in Japan means making a decision: to head back
early, or to miss the last train (which runs around 11:30pm) and either
walk, take an expensive cab, or stay out until the trains start up again
about 5:30am (many places stay open all night to take your money while
you're waiting).
Last night I decided to stay for the end of Eric's gig, which meant
missing last train. I thought I might shell out for a cab, but somehow I
got talking with a few local musicians who were going out for karaoke, and
got invited to tag along.
ukuleles in Osaka
At The Cellar, a pub Shinsaibashi. Eric is playing later with "The Tardy Boys". I came down early, to find a ukulele recital.
Drinking Guiness on St. Particks Day (yes, I'm wearing green, as are several Nihonjin here) in a pub in Osaka, listening to ukulele recital, with songs sung in English and Japanese. Am I a world citizen yet?
Osaka: a port city
Osaka is like Baltimore in one way: it's easy to forget that it's a port city. There's not a "nice" waterfront like our Inner Harbor or Fells Point, at least not that I've found so far, but biked down to the port area and found a place where I could get up to the water for a few photos.
