Had 2 batches of friends from overseas over the course of last Christmas weekend.
Random memo:
Queued 70 mins (13:30- 14:40) for having a Ramen @ Mutekiya (無敵家) in Ikebukuro (池袋)
Since any food is good enough in Japan and I don’t distinguish the spectrum of deliciousness beyond my generously-low threshold of tastiness, I don’t see the point of queueing for foods (or everything else) in Japan (or anywhere else). I just hate to queue and people who blindly follow whatever popular/trendy etc.
Nevertheless, having friends to catch up with, alleviates the pain of queueing.
Mutekiya Ramen (the one recommended best) is tasty during the initial several scoops, but it gets too greasy to eat (unless you like a greasy and thick-tasted ramen, as I do). It would be wise to choose a ramen with a different soup other than the most orthodox one (as in the case of Mutekiya Ramen).
Visited Koishikawa Korakuen (小石川後楽園) with another friend.
Koishikawa Korakuen (小石川後楽園)
Not much of serenity (due to the adjacently located amusement park and baseball stadium), but the varied configuration of Edo-era artifacts/structures and vegetation/ponds in the center of Tokyo are worthy of paying 300 yen entrance fee (as of Dec. 2017).
Located next to Tokyo Dome
The space of 6 years+ makes it difficult to recognize a friend who does not have a Facebook account.
Recent quality-related scandals by Japanese companies could be an indication of the shift of how Japanese companies started to assign the glut of employees (who are immune to lay-off due to the life-time employment practice) to the auditing/compliance functions (or whatever institutes designed to eliminate the non-conformance of the set standards) . The increased deployment of manpower (and the morale of such re-purposed employees) has led to the application of rigorous standards (which might be too stringent) and that might have contributed to the increase in deviations from the heightened standards.
In short, the increased disclosure of scandals does not necessarily reflect the decline of corporate governance in Japanese companies. However, the already-attracted social attention would probably call for some mechanisms to enhance the “corporate governance”, and it is likely to accelerate the zeitgeist of endorsing “compliance vigilantism” (facilitated by the diligence and fastidiousness endowed in the Japanese) .
In my skewed opinion, the recent focus on compliance has become too excessive to the point of hindering the wholesome culture of product/service creation.
Lately there has been an abundance of news related to the major Japanese corporations who have been revealed to have conducted some form of falsification or omission of quality-control/assurance processes.
The general reaction to this recent chain of scandals is somewhere along the line of: “The rock-solid quality standards/products of Japanese manufacturers has become a thing of the past, and can no longer be trusted”, or similar forebodings lamenting the general decline of trust toward the good-old Japanese corporations.
While these views have a point and the deterioration of quality standards of Japanese companies is indeed a concern that unnerves the long-lasting trust in Japanese manufacturers; however, my concern lies at a different aspect: Disproportionate focus/resources deployed to ensure compliance, (as opposed to product/service delivery).
As the delivery of products/services always precedes the quality control of delivery processes, the emphasis on auditing (or process control) is a likely indication of how mature and sophisticated the industry has become.
Meanwhile, the notable downside of “auditing” process (or whatever institute designed to enhance companies’ capacity to conform to designated standards) is that it more or less requires the allocation of resources that could have been otherwise dedicated for creation of products/services. Inherently, it is costly to place quality control measures (unless such measures effectively remove the flaws/inefficiencies of delivery process). This is why we don’t expect much of quality when it comes to low-cost products/services, and it would be fair to conclude that there is a general decline in how Japanese companies place priorities in quality assurance (to reduce the costs associated).
However, it is worth revisiting the fact that pointing out flaws (or points of improvement) in the delivery process is relatively easy, compared to making products/services, and moreover such auditing could be never-ending, especially considering the complexities of modern delivery networks and the litany of points that could be potentially improved.
My intention is neither; deny the importance of quality control nor enumerate empirical evidence to advance my view, but I sense that the zeitgeist of “compliance” has become too domineering to the point of creating some Japan-specific phenomenon: Emergence of senior Japanese salarymen (who had been once dispirited and astray along their life-time career), with the newly-found mission of “rectifying” the non-conformance of production/delivery processes.
Based on my skewed, yet first-hand insight/experience of working in one of such Japanese companies, the expansion of auditing/compliance departments (or whatever authority which triumphantly identifies and preempts potential deviations from the specified rules and standards) has become more conspicuous in recent years. The increase of senior salarymen assigned in such departments is correspondingly evident, and more is the case for the morale of these “compliance crusaders” whose rejuvenated enthusiasm seems to be occasionally in conflict with the primary business objective of delivering product/service. With all due respect to the auditing/compliance functions, but too much of it becomes “nitpicking”, which is easy for anybody to do, but unworthy of consuming time and manpower.
Given the difficulty of retrenching workforce in Japan (low labor mobility) and the plenitude of employees who passively benefit from such lack of risk of job loss (with less exposure to meritocracy), it has always been a task for Japanese corporations to come up with ways to motivate and deploy these “fixed” workforce (on top of rightsizing workforce by adjusting handily-disposable contract staff).
As exemplified by “Madogiwa-zoku” (“Window ledge tribe”): a term referring to a cluster of employees (usually senior) with little chance of career advancement, thus assigned to some obscure department in a company, the excess of career-stagnant employees has been somewhat a hallmark of big Japanese companies. With the increasing societal/industrial demand in compliance/auditing however, assigning such previously adrift workforce to these types of functions (be it internal department or external agency) appears to serve as a quick fix for mitigating the surplus of employees because of rigidly defined tasks (what needs to be done is clearly set), diligence & meticulousness of Japanese employees (under the clearly defined rules and guidelines), relatively attainable sense of achievement/improvement, authority over other departments/parties, etc.
Nevertheless, ensuring the compliance is essentially not intended to “create” products/services. Amid 2-decades-long economic stagnation, what Japan needs more is “creation” of new products/services/industries, rather than “improvement” of (already highly mature) existing delivery/manufacture processes. Even though, the revelation of recent scandals seems to suggest the need to further strengthen the auditing mechanism, but I would argue the strengthening of auditing mechanism has already taken place in Japan, and it inevitably leads to the increase of more cases of deviation from the heightened standards (which is the reason for the recent increase in the “supposed” scandals in Japan). Again, it is not my intention to downplay the severity of the issue, but misconducts are not only prevalent in Japan but also in other developed countries too. Besides, some scandals were utterly self-imposed (identified as “unfit” as per the internal standard). Perfecting the quality control is laudable, but it can never be achievable. Moreover the incremental improvement in quality (which could be negligible after a certain point) shall be evaluated in the context of resources that need to be deployed (people, time, cost etc.).
Instead of rambling on further, my conclusion is summarized in the first 3 bullet points in this post.
Combination of following chain of events/circumstances that pushed me to start something new:
Obscure, yet growing sense of urgency for letting the life pass me by. (aka. quarter life crisis)
My diminishing memory capacity, which nowadays prevents me from recollecting what I ate in the last evening.
Changing life circumstances (e.g. marriage, having a baby, growing old/sick, passing etc.) of people close to me, which reminds me of the transience of life.
Growing preoccupation with rock climbing and chronicling its progress (or non-progress, more often than not), which had intensified my pre-existing penchant for recording trivial details of everything.
Deteriorated motivation for work (after the failed attempt to negotiate the salary increase + conversion to non-contract employment status), which had inclined me to dedicate more of my mental resource and time to workplace distractions/daydreaming.
Intent (as of Dec. 2017):
Compilation of encyclopedia of my first-hand experiences and thoughts (which are more or less influenced by secondhand input from others) to capture whatever ephemeral/frivolous muses that would otherwise go un-externalized (therefore forgotten).
Archive of thoughts and records related to rock climbing.
Nonchalantly attempt to establish an alternative revenue source to supplement my meager wage as a disenfranchised contract worker (who failed to step onto the path for becoming a conventional Salaryman with a dedicated loyalty and guaranteed life time employment)
Reactive/Proactive treatment for my supposedly premature, but increasingly manifest amnesia & recurring insomnia (which often prompts mind-wandering before falling asleep at night)
Avenue for ventilating highly skewed views for no other reason than satisfying my ego
Improve (or mitigate the decline of) my English writing skills.
It was hardly surprising to see how city has changed, but much more surprising was how little I remember how things used to be after a long space of 5 years+. Nonetheless, it was good to see how people I met haven’t changed much despite different circumstances we have gone through (with exceptions of slight business-like demeanor of YSH, which was actually very courteous and sleek). It was indeed a good brief getaway to indulge in my nostalgia attached to this country. Now that I am no longer young and energized enough to travel abroad just for the sake of traveling, attendance to a wedding became a good justification to go.
Memorandum (chronological);
1. Departure on Friday after work is doable and efficient, provided that you are dexterous enough to secure 3-4 hours of sleep despite intermittent interruptions during the flight.
2. In strict accordance with my preference to price over convenience, Air China was the cheapest choice at the time my reservation. Despite offering the cheapest fare, Air China was pretty good and decent in terms of; 1) allowing 2 hand baggages + check-in baggage (which I didn’t ask), 2) spaciousness of seats, 3) politeness of CAs and 4) offer of in-flight meals (even within the short distance between Tokyo and Beijing).
3. More often than not, people say that in-flight meals are not good or unworthy of eating, but I denounce such pomposity. On the other end of spectrum, my impulse to eat whatever served and offered, is not helping me either.
4. Changi is always comfy and accommodating, and I’m always tempted to take more than 1 candy at the immigration.
5. It’s refreshingly impressive to see different varieties of people (as in appearance) in the MRT.
6. Of course never heard of Downtown Line when Circle Line is under construction in my mind.
7. Whoever came up with drawing red and green arrows (for incoming & outgoing passengers) on the MRT platform floor is a genius. The competition and mess surrounding the train arrival seems to be much moderated (if not non-existent) . Singapore is ingenious in designing & institutionalizing systems that nudge people to do intended behaviors (whether people like it or not)
Arrows in MRT Platforms
8. Should have hurried to set aside the time for check-in & taking shower after arrival, but i didn’t risk it. Better to be sweaty and oily than late though.
9. Every MRT station is immaculate. Contrary to popular perception, stations in Japan are not as good as MRT.
10. UNESCO is adding world heritage sites like giving out freebie nowadays, but Botanical Garden is a good hideaway from the hustles and bustles and deserves accreditation.
Botanical Garden
11. The venue of wedding was the church to which I was taken to once by the groom. As I only knew his family (parents & brother), it was somewhat awkward to be in such a ceremonial mood. but it was an audacious move of striking a conversation with an auntie who happened to sit next to me that brightened up my congratulatory vibe.
12. Without exaggeration, I was deeply impressed by the number of genuinely smiley faces who showed up for their big day (200+) and how virtuous and lovable the bride and groom must have been to magnetize each of attendee. Witnessing such a jovial mood had solidified my determination not to throw a big wedding (if at all), considering how self-absorbed and individualistic I have been for others to even care.
13. I always wondered how the bride and groom look alike like siblings, but it turned out that it wasn’t only me.
14. I like how TT tends to be portrayed as clumsy.
15. (It was the case for every speaker on the stage, but particularly) the Pastor was a really good orator. The tagline of the wedding was “Two is better than one”, and the pastor nailed the pointlessness of pursuing solitary achievement. (forgot the details)
16. Eventually I ended up relatives’ table for lunch. It was very nice of them to have me on the table and loop of chatting. Singaporeans do it naturally and easily, but it is remarkable how they switch languages as soon as they spot the presence of people who don’t speak the local language (Even if the talk is not directly addressed to such non-local speakers). LKY (& heterogeneous communities he instituted) should deserrve the biggest credit for having made this possible even among uncles and aunties , but the attentiveness of Singaporeans is simply admirable.
17. TT’s mother is 4th among her 5 siblings, and 3rd uncle and his wife kindly took me to my hostel by car. Later, he also gave the ride back to my hostel after the dinner. It is such a shame of me to forget (or didn’t try to remember from the outset) their names.
18. Despite how much I had enjoyed thus far, 2-hour nap was an inevitable consequence.
19. It took me a while to realize that Lavender (nearby from my hostel) was where I applied my residence permit back when I arrived Singapore In 2010.
River near Lavendar
20. I am grateful again for the relatives for having let me in at their table during the dinner session.
21. It must have taken a lot of planning and rehearsals, especially for the dancing part where the groom’s dancing skill is described as “atrocious”.
22. It was probably the 1st time for me to eat Sea Cucumber over the course of previous 10-15years, and I came to like it much better than the initial encounter.
23. Overall, it was an exhausting, yet fulfilling 1st day.
Wedding Album
24. As it took me an almost an hour from Lavender to Kent Ridge (inclusive of 20 mins walk), Singapore is much bigger than I had remembered.
25. Upon exiting Kent Ridge, I could barely feel that I had been there once, but couldn’t recognize where it was at all. The downward slope to PGP was indeed recognizable, though.
Slope leading to PGP
26. Many bits of PGP still remain as I knew, and it was reminiscently enjoyable walk through PGP. (I don’t even remember what PGP stand for)
PGP Canteen
27. NUS bus still emits rubber-ish artificial smell, which gives me a slight car sick.
28. Climbing gym nearby YIH which I used to go every other day, was no longer there.
29. We walked through YIH > Central Library > Art’s Canteen > library again > U Town (to eat lunch).
NUS Central Library
30. I feel left behind and detached from the recent trends, but seem to be able to care less. What I can assure is dumb phones are better not only in terms of battery life, but also how they make life easier and convenient.
31. Ice Kachang: 1.5 SGD @ food court above Kent Ridge.
32. Spontaneous visit to the newly relocated Google office was possible because Google.
Google Office @ Singapore
33. Google (& its office and culture it embodies) is anything but what I know of corporate life and its bureaucracies .
Again, this is an effing office..
34. I shall learn to moderate my frankness that sometimes goes too far. Though (I think) I am capable of conducting myself with maturity and sufficient political correctness like a decent human being under the formal/normal context, but I seem to assume the level of frankness positively corresponds with that of friendliness. Anyhow, I should have refrained from using “pretentious” to describe a friend that I hadn’t met for some time.
35. However I relish eating at hawkers, suggesting to dine at a hawker with a young lady was not a good idea, and I realized this when we went to a hawker in Bugis and almost got splashed some gravy from the leftovers of the preceding diners on the table.
36. “Fluxx” is on the shopping list for my next Singapore trip, however later it might be.
37. In general, there isn’t much point of holding onto the past. But occasional indulgence in reminiscence is how I replenish my energy to crawl forward, and this trip was full of nostalgic remnants. Aside from the emotional attachment, it is always pleasant to drop by this island as I get to take glimpse of multi-cultural communities and vibes.
The trip has given me lasting impressions on how fabulous it is to get together with friends after long years + despite different circumstances (And how exorbitantly pricey and small Hong Kong real estates are).
Attendance to a wedding is always a valid justification for getaway to overseas, so I am looking forward to squeezing my schedule again to be present at such a big event, wherever it may be.
Somewhat hackneyed view of Hong Kong Harbor
2-Sep:
As my last-minute preparation before travel has been well entrenched into my psyche and I underestimated how distant (700m) the Narita’s budget airline terminal is located from the main one, I was almost rejected from getting onboard as a penalty for being 2 minutes late after the designated time (50 mins before the departure). Thanks to the overboard of my sweat after the running of that 700m (outside: non-aircon), I was permitted with a slight reprimand from the staff, who would have rejected me had I gracefully walked in without helluva sweat.
Taking a budget airline after some space (3-4 years) has made me realize that the maximum bearable flight time with an cramped seat would be somewhere around 6 hours (which approximates to Tokyo – Spore). Beyond that would be torturous for me (or pretty much anybody else, considering my cheap-ness inclination at the expense of comfort), but the 4.5 hour confinement in a upright seat was reasonably tolerable this time.
Mainly because of my accelerating forgetfulness, it was refreshingly exciting to see piles of containers, ginormous loading arms, high-rise buildings with tiny compartments (windows), bamboo scaffolds, signboards sticking out from buildings etc, as I approached to the city center.
Humongous Loading Arms and ContainersCluster of residences with tiny windows (which implies tiny living space)From double-decker bus
After figuring out the 3 dimensional maze of “Chungking Mansion” where a bunch of non-HK folks hang around, to reach the guesthouse, I was stunned to step into a literally 4 sqm (1m*4m, inclusive of a tiny bed and unit bath) room with a bare minimum living space for 1 person. Having actually slept 2 nights in such a confined space under the pitch-black darkness (sunlight doesn’t come in even in the morning) has re-defined how I see how difficult for HK residents to afford a place to live, especially for the young. I had some idea, but it surpassed my prior expectation by a large margin.
Hostel in Chunking MansionFrom bed side
Inside Chungking Mansion
Anyhow, the first night was marked with a small pre-reunion with NUS folks and it was kind of them to introduce me to the local delicacies (congee with pidan, Chinese doughnut with pork liver, black sesame soup, glass jelly soup with sago etc). Despite the space of approx. 5 years and changing circumstances, it was good to see how we haven’t changed.
Chinese doughnut with pork liver
3-Sep:
Waking up without any trait of arrival of the morning was a strangely interesting experience. There was no natural clue to grasp the sense of time. After a short brisk walk to see the Victoria Harbor, I suited up and went to HKU (香港大學) as a gathering point. Even after taking a glimpse of the outlook of hill-rich HKU campus we arrived 1 hour early, and the church wasn’t yet open, so we climbed up to the adjoining residential area to have a short tea break at a cafe. The church was crowded by the time we returned 30 mins later and the decorations and giveaways (brochures & photogenic cards etc.) had been set up, waiting for the appearance of bride and groom. As I had little idea of how the Christian ceremony would proceed, I noticed that with the exception of relatives and groomsmen, I was probably the only person suited up. it is always better to overdress than underdress, nonetheless.
After a notice of the bride & groom’s late arrival due to traffic congestion (everyone laughed), The groom came in first to have some final checks, followed by appearance of the heroine with that recognizable fanfare.
As much as I would like to tell how fabulous the ceremony was, I was somewhat oblivious to what was happening amid the mix of Cantonese & Mandarin (and occasional English) procession, which reignited my passion for studying Mandarin (probably this motivation won’t last long). The ceremony ended with group photo sessions with smiley faces.
Randomly ostentatious car outside the church
As we had a few hours to kill, we headed to Central to have a noodle lunch, then have a nap at the lobby of another friend’s hotel. Though some others were dozing off, it was a somewhat daring attempt to take a siesta as a non-guest, so I bought a snack to compensate the sense of guilt.
With a refreshed mind, we headed to Times Square where we were supposed to meet with other NUS folks. After a brief moment of reunion and photo shoot, we went up to the dinner’s venue: Heichinro (which is also famous in Japan). As we gathered much earlier than we were invited to, we had a plenty time to celebrate and chat with the couple, which wouldn’t have been possible had we arrived at the designated time.
With over approx. 200 guests, the celebration commenced with a cake cut (we could barely see from our seats though), and we enjoyed a lavish dinner course (including abalone, which happened to be the first time for me to eat in 10-15years).
abalone at Heichinro
With the help of partial English translation and visually changing cloths, I wasn’t as oblivious as I was in the church. The ceremony was not much different from Japanese ones, and we also enjoyed a videoclip of their life footage and re-union conversation.
As somewhat anticipated from a bunch of Asians’ get-together, a lot of picture were taken before extending wishes to the couple at the end of ceremony. On our way home, we took a group photo for the last time, in front of Times Square, wishing the future reunion again.
4-Sep
We are supposed to go up to the Peak, but the slight rain and a thick layer of clouds forced us to reconsider and we ended up going to the Big Budda in Lantau Island, instead. The ropeway to the Budda from the nearest station was under repair, so we took a 30 mins bus ride to reach the bottom of Budda.
Big Budda in Lantau Island
After a comfortable 100+ steps, the hilltop Budda was not as far as it appears from distance. After climbing down, we ate Doufuhua (豆腐花) at a stall and that summed up my short, yet memorable trip to Hong Kong. As I had a budget air (Vanilla Air) flight in a few hours, we headed right back to MTR station, where we ate a brief lunch and I hopped on to the bus to the airport.
Expense Memorandum:
1 HKD = 13.4 JPY
Vanilla Air Flights (Narita – Hong Kong): 28,630 JPY
Hotel * 2days (Room of 4 sqms): 7,674 JPY (3,837 JPY/night)
Bus (Airport – Tsim Sha Tsui): 33 HKD (442 JPY)
high-end Mooncake (Aroma)*6: 175 HKD
Snapshots from the last days in Doha (over the course of 3 years’ stay):
(typically bizzare shapes of) Doha SkylineGrand MosqueView from Grand MosqueIconic Sheraton at the edge of Corniche2016 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Asian Cup @ DohaJapan won the final (@ 2016 AFC U-23 Asian Cup)ZekreetClimbing in ZekreetSunset @ ZekreetSouq WaqifAlleys in Souq (Market) WaqifMain Street (usually crowded) in Souq Waqif
