Festive Drinking

Goes on quite a lot. I got very drunk on Sunday, did the whole leo thing and ended up playing pool at about midnight in Shinjuku, I think. Monday morning wasn't pleasant.

Then extravagant quantities were consumed last night at the Shingawa Prince Hotel's 39th floor city view bar. A marvellous place that again has the benefit of a nomihodai, which means you turn up, give them a tenner and they let you drink as much as you want for two hours. Life doesn't get much better. This morning wasn't pleasant either.

And then tomorrow evening I have to go out again - oh the hardships of the christmas season. And then I'm holiday until the 3rd, wonder what that will throw into my path...

Other stuff

Finished the Julian Barnes, quite amusing, quite interesting, but nothing to write home about (even though this is a bit like writing home about it...sort of...) Golf Playing Going to be a Father Brother said I should write some more about Japan, so here's another strange one for you.

When you buy a bicycle in Japan it must be sold with a bell. All well and good, probably the same in England I suspect. Oddly enough bikes aren't allowed to be ridden on the road here, only on the pavement, which makes the whole bike-with-the-bell-thing very sensible. But here's the thing, Japanese people do not use the bells on their bikes. It is considered rude, according to my guru of Japanese things/wife. So Japanese people will cycle along behind you, sort of trying to get passed but resolutely not ringing their bells and then getting angry if you don't move out of the way (tricky if you are plugged into your walkman). And even weirder is that if you, as a gaijin, have the temerity to ring your bell to get some random Japanese pedestrian you will be subjected to the blackest of looks. Even though you cannot buy a bike in Japan without a bell.

Probably says a lot about the Japanese pysche I reckon.