The Energon Pub

great topic Stormrider

How tall does someone need to be to fit comfortably in the canister hotel?
Also, is there any type of window shade or can you just look inside and see watch people sleeping?

Also it is interesting that we think that Japanese women are running around in skimpy bathing suits but actually aren't. I used to work for a Japanese owned subsiderary here in the states and the native Japanese workers who were over thought American was like Dynasty & Dallas.

Neko wrote:Hey Stormrider,

I've always been curious about the schools in Japan. I know you go to school for like 240 days and you go to school on saturdays, but could you tell us a little bit about the schools and stuff? There's not much in depth info on the net about it.

http://www.gaijinsmash.net/archives.phtml
more info on schools and school childeren then you could ever dream off.

Neko wrote:Hey Stormrider,

I've always been curious about the schools in Japan. I know you go to school for like 240 days and you go to school on saturdays, but could you tell us a little bit about the schools and stuff? There's not much in depth info on the net about it.

Hi Neko,

I typed out a long explanation but got the error "Page does not exist" when I posted it. I'll explain a few things now and then add more if you're interested.

The school systems are said to be modeled after the U.S. school system, but I don't see too much resemblence. From a Westerner's perspective, the Japanese school systems need an overhaul. But from the Japanese perspective they seem fine.

Cost is a big problem. Japanese parents pay money to send their child to public schools (yup that's correct). If their child is not smart enough to enter a private school, then the parents must pay more money to send their child to a private school.
-So public schools are for smart kids.
-Private schools are for dumb kid. (usually)

Japanese parents will also pay to send their child to cram school, which prepares the student for the college entrance exams. There isn't a standardized test. Each college has their own entrance exam so there is a lot of studying.
The average cram school costs $1500/month

Cram schools have become emphasized by students and parents, while regular schools (public & private) are de-emphasized. That means that students do not value learning to gain knowledge. Instead, their goal is to take a test to get into college, everything else is secondary and unnecessary.

Unknown things about the Japanese public schools:
1. It is impossible for a student to fail a class. If a student fails a term exam, then they simply retake it until they pass.
2. The term exam is the only grade that is counted. Projects, presentations, quizes, and participation are not counted.
3. Students can sleep through all their classes as long as they do are not absent more than 22 times per year per class.
4. The Saturday school program is being phased out, which was twice a month for a half a day.

Spoon wrote: http://www.gaijinsmash.net/archives.phtml
more info on schools and school childeren then you could ever dream off.

Yeah, that has some great eye-awakening stories.

SnapTrap wrote:great topic Stormrider

How tall does someone need to be to fit comfortably in the canister hotel?
Also, is there any type of window shade or can you just look inside and see watch people sleeping?

Also it is interesting that we think that Japanese women are running around in skimpy bathing suits but actually aren't. I used to work for a Japanese owned subsiderary here in the states and the native Japanese workers who were over thought American was like Dynasty & Dallas.

The capsule can fit very tall people without a problem. Each cubby has a roll down shade. The deluxe ones have doors.

Interesting thing about the Dynasty & Dallas comment. I can see that happening easily. The Japanese are very sheltered with their knowledge about the rest of the world. They actually know this and many feel very ashamed. There have been more programs to push world knowledge into the school systems lately, which the students appreciate.

Stormrider wrote:Interesting thing about the Dynasty & Dallas comment. I can see that happening easily. The Japanese are very sheltered with their knowledge about the rest of the world. They actually know this and many feel very ashamed. There have been more programs to push world knowledge into the school systems lately, which the students appreciate.

That just made me think about the episode of Excel Saga where they go to America.

Anyway on to my question. I've heard that there are a lot of vending machines in japan selling all sorts of things, whats the bigest item and whats the strangest thing you've seen for sale in one?

What do they think of American Comics and superheros because obvious;y Japanese stuff has a following over here is the inverse true (i know Tom and Jerry and some other shows are popular in japan, heck one website i browsed showed a lineup for their shows and the new TMNT cartoon is going to start over there), do they know about Captain America's death or other stuff that we american nerds hold dear?

Unchrasimatic wrote:

Stormrider wrote:Interesting thing about the Dynasty & Dallas comment. I can see that happening easily. The Japanese are very sheltered with their knowledge about the rest of the world. They actually know this and many feel very ashamed. There have been more programs to push world knowledge into the school systems lately, which the students appreciate.

That just made me think about the episode of Excel Saga where they go to America.

Anyway on to my question. I've heard that there are a lot of vending machines in japan selling all sorts of things, whats the bigest item and whats the strangest thing you've seen for sale in one?

Yeah, Japan seems to be the vending machine capital of the world. They sell nearly everything. Some of the unique ones include:

- Batteries (up to small batteries for your motorscooter)
- Milk (A whole vending machine dedicated to milk)
- Rice (sold in 5 kg, 10 kg, and 20 kg. You must bring your own bag or bucket to collect it though).
- Eggs
- Beer, Wine, Sake, and Whiskey (these seem pretty common now)
- Ice Cream
- Dirty magazines.
- I've heard rumors about the panties, but I heard that it only exists in the raunchiest parts of Tokyo.


Even stranger, things you won't see in a vending machines:
- Candybars
- Gum
- Mints
- Snacks and chips

Sun Runner wrote:What do they think of American Comics and superheros because obvious;y Japanese stuff has a following over here is the inverse true (i know Tom and Jerry and some other shows are popular in japan, heck one website i browsed showed a lineup for their shows and the new TMNT cartoon is going to start over there), do they know about Captain America's death or other stuff that we american nerds hold dear?

They seem to know very little about Western Comics. Japanese students often reply- What is a Marvel? X-Men was a comic book before it became a movie? They seem to know Batman and Superman, but most students have never seen a comic book of those characters before.

Some of the hardcore fans in Japan will read Western comics but at a huge cost. The typical Transformers comic costs around USD$12.

Cool topic. I've always loved Japanese culture, and would love to go to Japan one day. I also love their entertainment industry, such as anime and manga I heard that school is a major cause of suicide in Japan. Is it THAT hard? I mean you did say students can never fail, so I don't know what's wrong. Oh, and another question, you LIVE in Japan right; you aren't just visiting. Two more questions. How is the hype for the new Transformers movie coming out, and what is their reactions of the heads

One of the best threads I have read in a while. I always wanted to visit Japan.

Jetfire Masta wrote:Cool topic. I've always loved Japanese culture, and would love to go to Japan one day. I also love their entertainment industry, such as anime and manga I heard that school is a major cause of suicide in Japan. Is it THAT hard? I mean you did say students can never fail, so I don't know what's wrong.

Good questions. Yes, Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. Why? Partly because a Japanese person's life is very demanding and their lives are controlled from the day they are born until the day they retire.

It's true that a student cannot fail, but they are constantly pressured by their parents and teachers to study.

The typical daily schedule of a student is astounding:
5:30 - 6:00 AM Wake up and eat breakfast w/your father (this is usually the only time they will see their father during the day).
6:30 AM Commute to school. Some students have 2 hour commutes.
8:30 - 3:30 PM Classes. The only break is lunch time.
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM Sports, clubs, and bands (every day). Practially every student belongs to one or two clubs.
6:00 PM Dinner
7:00 - 9:00 PM Cram school
9:00 Commute home
10:00 PM -12:00 AM Do homework
12:00 AM go to bed

There is very little free time for students to relax and/or play. Even on the weekends, they do club activities and cram school.

Students are not the only people who commit suicide. Workers do too. Workers are never fired even if they do many wrong things. Instead, they remain in the same position for the rest of their careers and everyone shuns them (which can be a worse punishment to them).

Some of the other factors, which attribute to suicide:
1. Being shunned from the group. It is very important to be part of a group consisting of your peers. If a Japanese person is kicked out of the group, their life often becomes miserable. (Individuality is a foreign concept in Japan).
2. No support for people with overwhelming workloads or people with mental disorders. (Support groups, psychiastrists, and medicine for mental illnesses do not exist).
3. Their lives can often seem very bleak to them. They are constantly studying or working, with very few holidays and vacations to relax.
4. Living with shame can more painful to them and their family than death.

One of the most frequent ways to commit suicide is by jumping in front of a moving train. Occassionally the president of the train company will make public speeches asking people to use other means to kill themselves instead of slowing down their transportation system.

Jetfire Masta wrote:Oh, and another question, you LIVE in Japan right; you aren't just visiting. Two more questions. How is the hype for the new Transformers movie coming out, and what is their reactions of the heads

I've been living here for about 2.5 years. I really haven't too much buzz about the Transformers movie in Japan. I haven't seen any posters or commercials.

Well i've heard of Sake, but what is it really, i know its alcoholic, but what is it most like(Whiskey, gin, etc)?

Oh and is there such a thing as a Sake Bomb (as heard in the D4 song of the same name)?

Powersurge wrote:Well i've heard of Sake, but what is it really, i know its alcoholic, but what is it most like(Whiskey, gin, etc)?

Oh and is there such a thing as a Sake Bomb (as heard in the D12 song of the same name)?

Sake is made from rice. It's hard to discribe the taste. It's usually mellow.

Sakes that are cheap and full of impurities and can taste like rubbing alcohol at room temperature. They are usually served hot in order mask the taste. On the otherhand, a sake that can be served cold is usually considered of good quality.

Stormrider wrote:Good questions. Yes, Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. Why? Partly because a Japanese person's life is very demanding and their lives are controlled from the day they are born until the day they retire.

It's true that a student cannot fail, but they are constantly pressured by their parents and teachers to study.

The typical daily schedule of a student is astounding:
5:30 - 6:00 AM Wake up and eat breakfast w/your father (this is usually the only time they will see their father during the day).
6:30 AM Commute to school. Some students have 2 hour commutes.
8:30 - 3:30 PM Classes. The only break is lunch time.
4:00 PM - 6:00 PM Sports, clubs, and bands (every day). Practially every student belongs to one or two clubs.
6:00 PM Dinner
7:00 - 9:00 PM Cram school
9:00 Commute home
10:00 PM -12:00 AM Do homework
12:00 AM go to bed

There is very little free time for students to relax and/or play. Even on the weekends, they do club activities and cram school.

Students are not the only people who commit suicide. Workers do too. Workers are never fired even if they do many wrong things. Instead, they remain in the same position for the rest of their careers and everyone shuns them (which can be a worse punishment to them).

Some of the other factors, which attribute to suicide:
1. Being shunned from the group. It is very important to be part of a group consisting of your peers. If a Japanese person is kicked out of the group, their life often becomes miserable. (Individuality is a foreign concept in Japan).
2. No support for people with overwhelming workloads or people with mental disorders. (Support groups, psychiastrists, and medicine for mental illnesses do not exist).
3. Their lives can often seem very bleak to them. They are constantly studying or working, with very few holidays and vacations to relax.
4. Living with shame can more painful to them and their family than death.

One of the most frequent ways to commit suicide is by jumping in front of a moving train. Occassionally the president of the train company will make public speeches asking people to use other means to kill themselves instead of slowing down their transportation system.

Getting depressed just reading this.

After reading Gaijin Smash... Am I a horrible person for thinking up how a "Kancho Machine" would work? I don't have a blueprint or anything, but...

I can visualise it. I see it so clearly. It's... made out of brass and has gears. Moving gears. There's a key at the end of the handle. You turn it to start the Kancho Device (because "machine" implies that the process is automatic).

Azura introduced me to Gaijin Smash last night and I really enjoyed it. I had no idea that sort of thing could happen to young people. Mind you it sounds EXACTALLY like my college.

Anyways, excellent topic Stormy, very enlightening and one of the first threads where no ones fighting

The Sushi you displayed at the beginning of the topic made me order very overpriced and low quality Sushi. Either way, it was satisfying I can't really think of any questions in realation to Japan. Oh wait, yes I can. What made you decide you wanted to move to Japan and do you ever see Smooth around?

Stormrider wrote:

Powersurge wrote:Well i've heard of Sake, but what is it really, i know its alcoholic, but what is it most like(Whiskey, gin, etc)?

Oh and is there such a thing as a Sake Bomb (as heard in the D12 song of the same name)?

Sake is made from rice. It's hard to discribe the taste. It's usually mellow.

Sakes that are cheap and full of impurities and can taste like rubbing alcohol at room temperature. They are usually served hot in order mask the taste. On the otherhand, a sake that can be served cold is usually considered of good quality.

I tried sake and I hated it. I'm not a fan of alcohol of any kind. My friend drinks sake and says it tastes like cooking Cherri.

Neko wrote:

Stormrider wrote:

Powersurge wrote:Well i've heard of Sake, but what is it really, i know its alcoholic, but what is it most like(Whiskey, gin, etc)?

Oh and is there such a thing as a Sake Bomb (as heard in the D12 song of the same name)?

Sake is made from rice. It's hard to discribe the taste. It's usually mellow.

Sakes that are cheap and full of impurities and can taste like rubbing alcohol at room temperature. They are usually served hot in order mask the taste. On the otherhand, a sake that can be served cold is usually considered of good quality.

I tried sake and I hated it. I'm not a fan of alcohol of any kind. My friend drinks sake and says it tastes like cooking Cherri.

I myself have a slight taste for Sake. I've had very nice hot sakes or very cold and unpleasent sakes. There was one time I tried a Sake that tasted like yellow cake mix. It was great the first few sips then was just awful afterwards. Waaay to sweet for a rice wine.

So in The Toxic Avenger 2, half of it takes place in Japan.
In one of the scenes this guy is making some type of biscuit or other food in a fish shaped food mold. A guy is just making them in a little cart on the sidewalk.
Do you know what these are? What do they taste like. They look good.

DISCHARGE wrote:So in The Toxic Avenger 2, half of it takes place in Japan.
In one of the scenes this guy is making some type of biscuit or other food in a fish shaped food mold. A guy is just making them in a little cart on the sidewalk.
Do you know what these are? What do they taste like. They look good.

Those fish cakes are good! And I'm not a fan of fish either. They sell small ones in a box at the Tokyo Supermarket in Birmingham Al.

Neko wrote:

DISCHARGE wrote:So in The Toxic Avenger 2, half of it takes place in Japan.
In one of the scenes this guy is making some type of biscuit or other food in a fish shaped food mold. A guy is just making them in a little cart on the sidewalk.
Do you know what these are? What do they taste like. They look good.

Those fish cakes are good! And I'm not a fan of fish either. They sell small ones in a box at the Tokyo Supermarket in Birmingham Al.

Yeah, those cakes shaped like fish are great. Yup, they're a popular treat that you'll find on the streets in cities and during festivals. The cakes are filled with a sweet red bean paste (Azuki beans), which tastes like sugar.

Another popular little cake is the one filled with chestnut.

One fun thing about Japan is that every city claims to specialize in a certain type of food.

Nagoya specializes in chicken wings, miso sauce, grilled eel,
Osaka specializes in Takoyaki (tasty fried batter filled with octopus), Okinomiyaki (Japanese pancake), traditional Japanese vegetables, big servings, and standing bars.
Kyoto specializes in old style Japanese food and small portions.
Tokyo specializes in sushi.

Neko wrote:

Stormrider wrote:

Powersurge wrote:Well i've heard of Sake, but what is it really, i know its alcoholic, but what is it most like(Whiskey, gin, etc)?

Oh and is there such a thing as a Sake Bomb (as heard in the D12 song of the same name)?

Sake is made from rice. It's hard to discribe the taste. It's usually mellow.

Sakes that are cheap and full of impurities and can taste like rubbing alcohol at room temperature. They are usually served hot in order mask the taste. On the otherhand, a sake that can be served cold is usually considered of good quality.

I tried sake and I hated it. I'm not a fan of alcohol of any kind. My friend drinks sake and says it tastes like cooking Cherri.

A good quality sake will be smooth like water. There will be hints of various flavors and aromas that might remind you of sherry. Your lips and throat will tingle slightly.

Avoid the bad sake, which often tastes like bad vodka.

Down_Shift wrote:Azura introduced me to Gaijin Smash last night and I really enjoyed it. I had no idea that sort of thing could happen to young people. Mind you it sounds EXACTALLY like my college.

Anyways, excellent topic Stormy, very enlightening and one of the first threads where no ones fighting

The Sushi you displayed at the beginning of the topic made me order very overpriced and low quality Sushi. Either way, it was satisfying I can't really think of any questions in realation to Japan. Oh wait, yes I can. What made you decide you wanted to move to Japan and do you ever see Smooth around?

I haven't seen Prof. Smooth yet. He actually lives on another island in the south.

Excellent info so far. That whole school system bit gives me the shivers, though.

Anyway, some time this spring, the Aikido Dojo I attend is going to be playing host to a number of Japanese students, along with a very high ranked instructor (Ths son of Gozo Shioda, founder of our style, if that means anything). Is there anything in particular that an average Westerner might be prone to say or do - casually or otherwise - that they might find offensive? I'm led to believe that the majority of them will be young-ish women, in particular.

Stormrider wrote:

Neko wrote:

DISCHARGE wrote:So in The Toxic Avenger 2, half of it takes place in Japan.
In one of the scenes this guy is making some type of biscuit or other food in a fish shaped food mold. A guy is just making them in a little cart on the sidewalk.
Do you know what these are? What do they taste like. They look good.

Those fish cakes are good! And I'm not a fan of fish either. They sell small ones in a box at the Tokyo Supermarket in Birmingham Al.

Yeah, those cakes shaped like fish are great. Yup, they're a popular treat that you'll find on the streets in cities and during festivals. The cakes are filled with a sweet red bean paste (Azuki beans), which tastes like sugar.

Another popular little cake is the one filled with chestnut.

One fun thing about Japan is that every city claims to specialize in a certain type of food.

Nagoya specializes in chicken wings, miso sauce, grilled eel,
Osaka specializes in Takoyaki (tasty fried batter filled with octopus), Okinomiyaki (Japanese pancake), traditional Japanese vegetables, big servings, and standing bars.
Kyoto specializes in old style Japanese food and small portions.
Tokyo specializes in sushi.

MMMMmmmmm! Sounds tasty. + I like octopus and squid.

Not a fan of the Calimari. And most sea food in general.


One thing I always wanted to ask was why do women alsways cover their mouth when they laugh? Is it a custom or something?