Nature vs concrete 

Nature fights back 

Sprouting through the layers of concrete 

Flowers with fence support 

Miyu searching the river shore, whilst I play at being a peeking Tom 

Miyu in the distance 

A single track railway track on the Tama River 

Signed, sealed and delivered

Relief at last. We have finally signed on the dotted line for our new home in Nakameguro (You can cheer). We went to Shibuya to the estate agent (called Livable but sounds like Liverpool when spoken by the Japanese. I couldn't understand why we were going to Liverpool when Miyu said that's where we were going, especially as we hadn't packed any suitcases for the transcontinental journey).
Anyway, it was all very posh. Livable is part of the Tokyu group, who own a few train lines, department stores, finance companies, shops and Livable. The service was impecable - the sort that makes you sit up straight in your chair and speak proper (a far cry from most of the other agents we visited). We were served tea and really pampered, whilst our agent went through the contracts in minute detail, in order to ensure we were aware of everything.
They're now reforming the interior of the apartment, and we'll go to check on it in a couple of weeks, and then, all things being good, we'll move-in on the 10th September.
I'm really happy with this. The location is great, a walk away from Ebisu and Meguro and a bike ride from Shibuya, and it adheres to Miyu's requirement of having a place to live high in the sky (the 7th Floor - she believes Tokyo's cockroach community cannot live above the 7th floor, although I'm a tad sceptical).
So, it's all very good. Work is beginning to get busier at Phoenix. I had a chat with the president yesterday, to discuss a couple of my new projects. He seemed like a good egg. Half Japanese and half American. He said I should always make sure I keep my two passports. He said his kids have three passports.
Right, must be off.

Light at the end of the tunnel

It's been a while since my last, rather bitter, posting but there's been a lot happening since.
First, it looks like we have found a new place to live. As it hasn't yet been finalized, I'm not going to say too much, lest it all fall through again. Very briefly, the place is in Naka Meguro (again), on the 7th floor of an old mansion block, 3LDK (66m2) and overlooks a hospital!
Anyway, we'll find out this weekend if we're "approved" by the owners, and I'll let you know how that goes.
Secondly, I've started a new job. Phoenix Associates are a corporate training company, who have an impressive client list of top international companies. I'm going to be a Specialist Instructor teaching things like meeting skills, business English and tailor made programs which will utilize my experience. They're very well organized, and work like a consultancy outfit, where I'll be assigned clients for (usually) 3 month "projects", after which I'll move onto a new assignment. Should keep me on my toes and give me a lot of exposure to top tier businesses in Tokyo.
Lastly, I had a brief obon holiday in Miyu's hometown. Very relaxing and great to get out of the big smoke. We went river swimming (brrr), partied at some friend's house (yummy food), went to the Niki museum in Nasu (dedicated to Niki de Saint Phalle, a brilliant artist), bathed at a super onsen (the sake bath in a sake barrel being the highlight) and ate and drank to bursting.
I think I'm going to be increasingly busy for the rest of this year, but it feels good and I'm looking forward to it. Also getting excited by the imminent return of a close friend, Mr Joseph Tame, who'll be spending a year studying at a local university. I'm hoping to be contributing a snippet to his podcast, so watch this space for further details. Also on the horizon (October, to be more precise), is my brother Toshi and his partner, Hannah's visit to Japan. Toshi's last visit was about 18 years ago, and Hannah's never been. They're both fantastic company, and I'm so looking forward to showing them around the many delights of Tokyo.
Right, that's all for now. I'll keep you posted on the housing situation, but in the meantime, hope this finds you all jolly and enjoying the summer.

Foiled by 302

Gaahhh, those damn estate agents and their confusion with numbers!! It has cost us a home and I'll never forget it. If only if it wasn't for you meddling kids and that imbecile dog...whoops! Sorry,, I just had a bit of a Scooby Doo flash back there.
Hmm, well, my last post told of the good news about our wonderful new apartment in Nakameguro, how lucky we were and how quickly we'd found it. I knew it was too good to be true.
We went to sign all the remaining documents and pay the wedge of 10,000 Yen notes to the agent last Sunday, so that we could finalize the contract and move-in on the 18th August. we'd already booked a moving company and I'd contacted work etc to change our address.
So, after the paperwork and our pockets had been significantly lightened, the agent drove us to meet the landlady so that we could get our keys. She turned out to be a jolly cheerful woman, and things were looking pinky.
The agent then suggested we check out the apartment to make sure everything was in order, which we thought was a spiffin idea. We skipped up the steps of the "mansion" building (how the Japanese rather endearingly call apartment blocks), beaming away and taking in our new surroundings. When we came to the 3rd floor, we turned right to apartment number 301, the one which we had gone to view. The agent, however, turned left to number 302. Hold on a minute, I thought, what's going on here then?
I made a polite cough, thinking he'd made a mistake, and suggested maybe the heat had made him forget which apartment it was. He looked confused, and then opened the door to 302, saying there had been no confusion. Oh, hell!
Miyu and I were speechless. Something was very, very wrong.
We followed the agent into a much smaller apartment, or rather a room with a kitchen attached. The place we'd seen had three rooms and a bigger kitchen and robot toilet! This one didn't. We were in shock, and from our gaping mouths and slightly shellshocked demenour, the agent twigged something was up (a sharp one, he was).
"Is everything OK?" he asked rather nervously.
"Erm, this isn't the place we saw." we said and then proceeded to tell him what had happened last week when we came to view the place by ourselves.
Another agent had drawn us a map and had written the number of the apartment as 301. As it happened, both 301 and 302 were empty, but 301 had already been rented out, and was been cleaned for the new tenent, hence it been open. The cock-up rested firmly with the agent, and luckily the one in the room with us admitted this and apologised, saying it was no problem. We could cancel everything and we'd get a full refund.
Well, too right! I thought, but didn't actually say this as I was still in shock. We then marched down to the landlady, explained what had happened, gave her back the keys, drove back to the agency, ripped up a whole forest of contracts and then got our money back.
In retrospect we should have made a bigger stink about it, but due to the sudden swing in events, didn't really feel up for a big confrontation.
I suppose I have to believe there was a reason for this, and that it actually means there's a better place out there, just waiting for us to discover - which we will hopefully do when we venture out today.
Wish us luck!

Robot dog in a bicycle basket, at a railway crossing. 

New pad

After what seemed like a very long time, but was in fact only two weeks, we've found ourselves a new home!
Last Sunday, Miyu and I spent a few frustrating hours looking at apartments in Gakugeidaigaku, but all the places we went to see were pretty rubbish. Nothing really stood out or there were too many bad points (like no air conditioning, which is just silly if you live in Japan). So, two very grumpy people decided to go back home and drown our sorrows in some cheap wine. We were on the Toyoko line going into Shibuya, when we stopped at Naka-Meguro. Miyu suggested just quickly popping in to the agent by the station which we'd sighned up to a couple of weeks ago, and then walking into Ebisu for some dinner, just so the day wasn't a complete waste.
Well, that turned out to be a moment of inspiration and very good fortune.
As we entered the fudou-san's (estate agent) office, the chap who had been helping us before spotted us and quickly waved us over, looking excited. He quickly finished his bowl of noodles, and rushed over to us. They's just this minute got a new apartment come in, hot off the press which he thought was perfect for us. It was only 10 minutes away, so did we want to go and see it? This guy is so enthusiastic about everything, and he's so damn fast in everything he does (talk, eat, walk, sleep and f***! That's just a guess ; )) Wouldn't know by looking at him - just seems like a ordinary looking late 40s salariman, but oh no! It's Mr Swifty!
He'd already photocopied a map and marked it in red felt tip pen and ushered us out onto the street before we could think about it. As we walked toward the apartment, we joked that maybe he was keen to get home so had sent us out just before closing time (it was now 5.30pm), and as it would take 10 minutes to get there, 10 minutes to look around the place and 10 minutes to walk back, he'd be heading home just as we returned!
Anyway, we got to the building. 4 storeys, red and a huge range of pot plants placed in a very fetching way all up the stairs to the 3rd floor, where we found the door to no. 302 open. We headed in.
It didn't take us long to realize this was it. "Tom, this is it, isn't it?" said Miyu, and I said "YES! We found it. Whoo-hooo!" and then I grabbed Miyu in a bear hug and twirled her around the living area. We were both laughing, but then I had to stop because Miyu thought she'd be sick from the dizziness, and it wouldn't leave a very good impression if we left a pile of sick on the floor of our new apartment!
Size wise it's about 40m2, has a large living/sleeping area, a study/spare room, seperate kitchen (rare in Japanese apartments), bathroom and an intelligent toilet(!) Lots of storage, wooden flooring and for some reason chandeliers for lighting!
We rushed back to the fudou-san, hoping he didn't have a hot date and was already zooming down the street for a bit of slap and tickle. Got back, and he was still there, beaming like a Cheshire cat when we said we'd take it. We then had to fill-in about a hundred forms and a very long contract, sign it with my fingerprint, as I hadn't brought my hanko (personal seal), and then have an approval meeting with the top agent, who was happy with our looks and dependability (although I had to explain exactly what it was I did at the badger college). He seemed happy, so he rang the owner, who quickly said yes after gettign the summary of our interview from the head agent. All within an hour of stepping into the office feeling gloomy and somewhat dejected.
Now we have to get the money together for our deposit, key money (a kind of thank you to the owner, of 2 months rent!) and agent fee (one month rent). Get Miyu's dad to co-sign the contract as a guarantor, and then the place will be ours! Then comes the moving, but that's another story.
Just goes to show really that what ever happens, things can quickly change for the better, so it's always worth trying to find what it is you're looking for. Amen ; )