Day 6 (17/12) - Narita (Part 3)
I wonder if melon-flavoured food in Japan is naturally flavoured. If so, maybe they blend melon skin to extract the flavour, perhaps with the help of liquor.
I'm curious about the statistics on eating disorders in Japan and how they compare to Singapore and Hong Kong.
Leaving the temple, we proceeded to lunch.
We got Green Tea at lunch. Hah.
Mother's lunch
Mine
We each had a lunch special - 1000Y only (nett). My father had Unagi; probably because it was more expensive, there was no fruit salad or udon (then again, maybe it's because it came on a larger bowl of rice). It was also the first time I'd had a candied cherry with a seed in it.
Biscuit man
Funny shop
As I walked by a cheesecake place, I noticed that it seemed to be playing what sounded like a Mozart string quartet. Then I noticed it was coming from the PA system.
Classical music in Narita. Presumably the same PA system was what was playing the carols earlier.
I also had a Milk soft serve ice cream. McDonalds soft serve (hardly milk, let alone vanilla) will never taste the same again. Though for some reason, all the ice cream cones (3?) I had in Japan were sugar cones (like in McDonalds) - thin and flavourless.
I saw a black woman in Narita!
"Jet Lag Club". Uhh.
We'd been walking from the Old Town part of Narita (probably reconstructed) to what was the equivalent of the New Town:
and the Newer Town:
(I distinguish them by the traffic lights and building heights and the Makudonarudo at the boundary)
Long list of Don'ts at the train station: "No running to board the train. No lying down or sitting on the floor no drunkenness. No soliciting donations." Looks like Flag Day is a nono.
Back at the hotel I saw another block woman, and a latina.
"Hotel Chapel Christmas" - as an Ang Moh on the shuttle bus commented, it was finally the right season for the hotel.
At the airport they had hand-held crepes, eaten with spoons. Instead, I went for Takoyaki (only Octopus was on sale, no bacon. Pity):
I also had some Dipper Dan gelato (despite the name, it's Jap). It was "Yamanashi Hakuto (Peach)", but wasn't good - it had a very weak taste. Perhaps Japanese peach does not translate to gelato well.
"Famous Nathan's" which said it was "America's most favorite hot dog" had Yakitori, Jap curry, Udon, Ramen and more - ie it was mostly Jap food. Gah.
Handea and Chitose airports were hi-tech sanitary-wise, but Narita was disappointing. Maybe it was to stop gaijin transiting through there from experiencing what they'd heard so much about, and force them to explore the country.
At the airport there were at least 2 shops well-stocked with Shiroi Koibito (one of which had a video going "Only available in Hokkaido!"; curiously they were the same price as what I'd paid despite being tax-free - maybe I got a bulk discount). Foreign visitors must be pampered, even in the face of shortages!
They had "Kamikaze", "Ninja" and "Ichiban" baseball caps, but I decided that my Kamikaze headband was more impressive than a mere cap.
They were selling Crystal Geyser water for some reason. Maybe it's because they idolise the Americans. Then again they also have Evian.
At security screening there was one Indian girl staff member who spoke English with a Jap accent. There were also quite a few PRCs working at the airport.
I saw one girl in scarf, sweater and hot shorts (with no stockings). I thought she was PRC or Taiwanese. Then I saw her Singapore passport. Gah.
"Utamaro. 'Twelve hours in the Gay Quarters'"
Wth stick - "Iyashibo" ("Iyashi-Bo Healing Log by Sega Toys"). This is a fake piece of wood that emits the sound of rushing water, birds and woodland animals. Supposedly it can help healing, relaxation (while you're on the toilet bowl), 'feeling easy' and be used to surprise people with its '3D sound'. Damn Japs.
Wth toy. "What's 'Rocobo'? 'Rocobo' is living on the desk/table. He/She is so tiny!! But, he/she is not only robot but also acting like animals, getting hungry, going to bathroom, getting illness etc. He/She like you touch their head and sing for them. However, he/she very afraid of lonliness, if you leave them alone for a while, he will feel very sad. From today, you are the owner of 'Rocobo'. Please take a great care to 'Little Rocobo'."
There were some 'I♥日本' T-shirts. I wonder if there're 'I♥Singapore' and 'I♥Bolehland' T-shirts.
In the shuttle to the Narita satellite terminal: "Do not use mobile phones". What, do they interfere with the shuttle's navigation systems?
'Fine boys' magazine had a guy on its cover, but he didn't look like a girl. Amazing. 'Popeye' did have an androgynous person on its cover, though.
Manga title: "Don't kill my volupture". Wth.
Royce' chocolate ad: "Hokkaido's land, clean air and climate are close to that of Europe, the motherland of chocolate and cookies. Royce' was born from these Nature's gifts, and since then, has been dedicated to expressing the essence of Hokkaido in its products. To pursue chocolate and confectionery enjoyment, Royce' has been carrying out exhaustive research around the world to obtain the best ingredients and authentic". I wonder what they'd say if the Europeans tried to make Jap stuff, saying that Europe's land, clean air and climate are close to that of Hokkaido.
Restaurant: "There is a smoking section in the depths"
"Chinese noodles". These look pretty Japanese to me.
Gift shop with stuff from all over the world: the USA (in general), Hawaii, Guam, Las Vegas, Italy, Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Spain, Belgium, Switzerland, Vietnam, Singapore, China and more. I've had this idea before!
I was looking through some magazines, and in view of my nosebleed the previous night I resolved to stay far away from the sealed ones and stick to safe stuff. Imagine my shock when I flipped one open to see a bare bosom. Softcore stuff must be thought innocuous enough to be left unsealed. I thought of getting one for the 24 year old virgin, but he should wait till he learns enough Jap to understand his existing copy.
I saw a few Hispanics at the airport as well as an Indochinese girl - but she was with an Ang Moh guy.
At the gate, the information monitor provided information not only on the destination and flight number, but also the flight time, local time at destination, meals provided and the plane type. How helpful.
The JAL safety video warning about alcohol consumption is cute - it features a business man with his tie around his head as a headband and swaying down the aisle with a bottle.
Ground crew waving
Safety breach - the maintenance supervisor is wearing a cap, which is dangerous.
They like his cap a lot
They really like him
Yet they don't let him wear a helmet, unlike his lackeys. Maybe it's to give the latter a chance to fill the former position if the supervisor dies or is incapacitated in an accident.
JAL meals are 'quality and safety guaranteed'. Hah.
More interesting bits from the JAL pre-flight video: the Stewardess and maintenance staff member shake hands the moment the airplane's door is open enough for hands to pass through it.
"Guys who bet on Tuna" - name of a Jap documentary. Uhh.
Before landing they played a STB documentary in Japanese promoting Singapore with the words "food" (okay), "culture" (hah) and "tradition" (HAH). It also mostly featured Ang Mohs walking around (then again it works for the Japs, seeing their TV commercials). Many Japanese restaurants were featured, as was Meidi-Ya supermarket; why would Japs go to Singapore to eat Japanese food and shop in Japanese places - are they that parochial (maybe it's paid advertisements)? Fortunately, unlike on MAS, they didn't blare the audio track (if any) over the PA system at all (let alone loudly), and didn't screen it on the personal video monitors (and you wonder why MAS is losing money).
The flights to/from Singapore have Singaporean Chinese stewardesses doing announcements in Chinese. They should let them do the English ones too, since they're much more fluent than the Japanese stewardesses. I bet it's a racial hierarchy thing.
The automated passport clearance was closed when we returned. Gah. Maybe it's only open at certain times when there's someone available to help people use it (how ironic).
If you bring cash or the equivalent of it worth >S$30,000 into Singapore, you are required to make a report to immigration. They proclaim that this is not a currency control measure but nonetheless inform you that it's an offence if you don't make the report. Wth.