Matsuri

Matsuri

Sent: Sunday, July 25, 2004 9:31 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

This week was the Summer Matsuri (festival) at the offices where I work. They carry a portable Shinto shrine called the Mikoshi around the block after drinking sake. Then you drink more sake and eat a lot while having a party. At the party you do traditional things like pounding rice with a huge wooden mallet and then making it into a rice ball desert. Or you stack cups into pyramids and the first one to finish gets a toy Winnie the Pooh bear. That pretty well describes it. So attached is a picture of the Mikoshi - note the traditional blond hair style of the one guy carrying it (just kidding).

The heat has been oppressive. It got up to 100 degrees on the day before the summer solstice. On that day, you are supposed to eat "unagi" which is a type of eel. I asked my secretary about this but couldn't really understand - it is supposed to give you strength on really hot days or something. According to my secretary, the eel is imported from China because "Japanese eel is too expensive". I think it is fresh water eel but I am not sure. The eel they serve in the sushi shop is conger eel and is called anago.

Hope you are all well. Stay out of the heat if you aren't able to get any unagi...

Back in Japan

Sent: Sunday, July 18, 2004 5:53 PM
Subject: Back in Japan

My flight got in an hour early so it was a good flight. I let an Exxon guy who was in Tokyo for a while when I was gone borrow my apartment and he left me a good bottle of wine and some chevre (goat cheese) - he is a Frenchman - so my pantry is stocked better than it was when I left.

I enjoyed seeing you all when I was home....

Tanabata

Tanabata

Sent: Sunday, July 04, 2004 8:25 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

Hello to all and I hope you are doing well. This week I went to a festival called Tanabata which is based on an old Chinese tale converted to Japanese. There are lots of festivals in Japan during the year but this is one of the more famous ones. It is frequently translated as the "Star Festival" and the story is something like Romeo and Juliet depending on who you hear it from. If you are interested, here are some websites:

http://www.internet-at-work.com/hos_mcgrane/holidays/akie.html
http://www.geocities.com/shunkomuroya/nihongo-memo/nenchugyoji/tanabata.htm

I went to the festival at Hiratsuka which is just south of Tokyo, in the Kamakura area. I've attached two photos from that festival. Basically you wander down the street with a million other people and look at the lanterns and decorations. And then you stop at one or more of the stalls and eat and drink. It goes on for blocks and blocks and blocks. A lot of girls wear kimono (really they are wearing yukata which is a simpler lightweight cotton kimono - kimono are too heavy and expensive to wear to a summer festival) and there are lots of families. It was fun.

The end of FEED party went well and all the Chiyoda (Japanese), Qataris, and expats seemed to have fun. I made a pretty good mistake before the party trying to speak japanese. But if you don't make mistakes you aren't trying. Anyway, my boss from Doha told one of the Japanese that a plate was pretty. So I translated it as "Kirai desu" but this means "He hates it". The correct translation is "Kirei desu". But one of the japanese guys laughed and said are you sure about that? I caught my error since I knew both words. Another one along the same line that I messed up once is "Karei desu" which means it is spicy. An "r" sounds more like an "l" to us a lot of the times so these words are pronounced:

kirai (key-lie-ee) - hate
kirei (key-lay-ee) - pretty
karei (ka-lay-ee) - spicy

Muzukashii desu ne - Hard isn't it? A lot of Japanese jokes are based on plays on words. You would have to be careful what you said to a Japanese girl or you could call her spicy or tell her you hated her.

So, next week I am going to a cryogenic heat exchanger fabrication shop in New Jersey and then to Houston for a week so I won't write for a while.

Sumo

I went to see a Sumo exhibition. The Grandchampion (Yokozuna), a Mongolian, won but there was some excitement in that a young Japanese wrestler got close. An interesting thing about it is that you order a huge lunch before hand and pick it up when you get there. There is enough food for four people. For a westerner, the seats are small. The ones closest to the ring are on tatami mats.

There is a lot of tradition and pageantry associated with it. Every move and throw has a name. Salt is thrown by the wrestlers to purify the ring and traditional hairstyles, clothing, etc. are worn.

Boss Coffee

Sent: Monday, June 28, 2004 9:34 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

This turned out to be a very busy week. My boss flew in on Saturday and we worked through a number of things that needed to be handled which is good. But I didn't get out much.

Here is one thing I figured out this week though. Those of you who visited might remember the coffee in the vending machines and especially "Boss" coffee which had a picture of a girl holding a brush like it was a moustache. Everyone asked me about that but I couldn't answer. It turns out that Boss coffee has a sales gimmick like Juan Valdez with a moustache. So the girl is trying to look like Juan while she drinks the coffee. That is the best I can describe it.

This week we have our celebration for the end of the first engineering phase and it will be done Japanese style. We will have a cask of sake and it will be in a nice hotel. That is tomorrow. I'll have to make a little speech and say a few words in Japanese as well as English. Should be fun.

That is about it - have a great week!...

Yakiniku

Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2004 9:37 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

It was nice to be home and see family. David and I had a nice trip to Maryland and in general it was relaxing to just be at home. I got back to Japan last Sunday and it has been nothing but work since. I had almost 700 emails waiting for me at work. I normally get 60 to 70 per day. It slacks off a little bit over the weekend but not too much because Friday emails from Houston arrive on Saturday and they work Sundays in Doha. Anyway, I worked yesterday and today and got caught up.

The project is just finishing up the technical part of ordering the LNG tanks so the group celebrated by going out to a Korean BBQ Friday. The Japanese name for a Korean BBQ is Yakiniku which means roast meat according to my dictionary (my secretary translated it as burnt meat). This is appropriate since what you basically do is sit in front of a charcoal fire and roast meat.

That is it for me, I hope you are all doing well.

Gogo no Ocha - Japan, the land of cute.

Gogo no Ocha

Sent: Sunday, May 16, 2004 9:37 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

This was an interesting week. I had to work late on three days to get our package out. We got it out on Friday, one day early. A major success.

My Japanese is getting a little better but is still bad. I can order food, shop, and sometimes get directions. It is a difficult language to learn though. I am trying to force myself to speak it more. Today I was able to ask the cost of a ceramic "koi" fish in a shop window and understand it was just a display and not for sale. Another major success.

One night I was walking home late from the train station and not paying attention. Lots of times I go a slightly different route just to see if I can see anything new. I was going a way I had not taken before, was tired, and thinking about something else. I walked for a while and looked around to see I was "lost". This has happened once or twice before. The streets are narrow, windy, and in some respects look all the same. Of course I wasn't really lost, but I had to take a few minutes to get my bearings, head towards a main street, and then get a landmark. No problem.

Attached is a picture of the latest advertisement to show up on the train - kind of like Kan-Kan the dog who was selling Sapporo beer earlier this year. Only this girl is dressed in a bird suit and selling Gogo Tea. Gogo means afternoon in Japanese so it is afternoon tea. It is green tea so without the mixture of Japanese and English in the name it would be called Gogo no Ocha (really). Note the clock showing 3 o'clock (Sanji desu). I have no idea why she is dressed in a bird suit and holding a stuffed baby bird. I asked one of the secretaries and she looked at me like I was silly for wanting to know.

Hungry Koi

Irasshaimase

Sent: Sunday, May 02, 2004 10:15 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

This has been an interesting week for me and I hope it has been for you also. Happy birthday to Megan - I can't believe it has been 21 years. And you have turned out nicer (and different) than I ever imagined.

One of the things everyone kept asking me when they visited is what are they saying when they greet you in the store. It means of course "welcome", but also has the meaning "can I help you" when they use it in the store. I never could remember to ask how it is spelled until the other day. It is spelled "Irasshai-mase" and when pronounced sounds closer to "rah shee mah say..." when I hear it. The "i", which is pronounced "ee" at the beginning is very soft.

Another one people ask about is when the train pulls in they say "Ma mo naku" or "soon". Then they say something like "ichi bahme sen - Shinagawa, Tokyo". This means Soon, 1st track, (a train for) Shinagawa and Tokyo. That is the Japanese lesson for this week.

If you are interested, my project made the ExxonMobil Annual report this year and you can see it at the web site. Here is a short-cut to the particular page: http://www2.exxonmobil.com/corporate/files/corporate/ARtechno2003pdf. The "state-of-the-art turbines, compressors, and heat exchangers" are going into our LNG plant in Qatar and are the first application anywhere in the world. We go out with our tender on May 15th so I expect to be pretty busy until then. Hopefully a little rest after that.

This week is "Golden Week" in Japan. It is a week where the "Former Emperor's Birthday", "Law Day", and another "Girls Day" all line up. In between they have a holiday just to have one so that everyone gets a week off. The trains and such are not crowded at all when I go to work because everyone is on vacation or visiting family. We are about the only ones working.

I went to Kawasaki today to look around because I had never really done that. I found the symphony hall which you can see from the train I go to work on and is very nice. Then I checked out the shopping district and such. This has to be the most consumeristic place on earth. It is difficult to imagine that there are so many huge stores and so many shops here. And they really love techno-gadgets. There must be 30 different electronic dictionaries (mostly japanese-english) that you can buy. There is one that is english oriented with an english keypad and I finally bought it. I was looking at it so long the guy finally offered me a discount on it, probably to get me out of the way, and I couldn't pass it up.

Megan and David: Remember that giant sculpture that looked like a moving monster castle we saw here? That's what it is - a giant monster castle called "Howl's Moving Castle". They have a movie coming out about it. Megan, if you still have that picture with me in front of it, please send it. The latest movie poster you see pasted all over the place here is "Kill Bill" with Uma Thurman holding a samurai sword and wearing a wedding dress - seems plausible enough to me.

Well, that is about it. Hope your week has been interesting.....

Azaleas

Tsutsugi

Sent: Tuesday, April 27, 2004 9:37 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

Just a quick note this week. I went to the national gardens at Shinjuku Goen this last Sunday because the azaleas were in bloom and also to see the last of the cherry blossoms. In Japanese, azaleas are called Tsutsugi and cherry trees are Sakura. Anyway, that was very nice and I have attached a picture of the last of the cherry blossoms. This one is a "double" pink which are the late bloomers.

Last night several of us when and ate Sukiyaki which is meat and vegetables cooked at your table in a soy broth. Very good. Other than that it has been a week mostly of work. The big effort will be over the next two weeks.

USC Concert at Disney

Awesome concert - we all enjoyed it. See David playing bass on the far left?

Los Angeles

Sent: Monday, April 19, 2004 12:01 AM
Subject: Weekly Email

This weekend I am in Los Angeles with Mother to attend David's concert in the new Disney Concert Hall. I had a good flight to LA on Friday and David and I went down to Malibu for dinner on Friday evening. No real problems with jetlag, I must be getting used to trans-Pacific crossings

Saturday we picked up Mother about noon and went to the Los Angeles Museums that are next to the La Brea tar pits. They were very nice, especially the section on American art and furnishings. Last night we ate dinner at a seafood restaurant on the beach.

The Walt Disney Center is nice so we are looking forward to the concert. David and I walked by it on Friday.

Will tell you how it was next week.

Hatta-san and I

Office Politics

Sent: Sunday, April 11, 2004 2:11 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

Happy Easter - I hope you are enjoying the day. Today is a really nice spring day in Tokyo, clear, and short sleeves weather. I've been working on the income tax but plan to get out shortly. I have picked a fairly famous garden that I plan to go to.

This week I thought I would tell you about the office politics instead of the standard description of the cherry blossoms, temples, shrines, or festival. There are office politics in Japan just like I suspect there are in every country. It is fun to watch them here because it is a bit like a silent movie - you can't understand what they are saying but you can deduce what is happening.

All of the engineers, and therefore guys, work on the other side of the building and you have to walk over there. As soon as you walk in you are out of place and accordingly there is nothing to see. But on our side it is much more interesting. We have Japanese secretaries, all women. They speak the best english at least partially because they are more frequently around westerners. The men are always called by their last names and add -san which is the typical sign of respect, similar to calling someone Mr. Smith instead of Jim. But the women we call by their first names and add -san. And they call us by our first names so I am Frank-san. If we were following standard Japanese protocol we would all call each other by our last names.

On Thursday I went to dinner with Hatta-san who is my project manager counterpart in Chiyoda. They know I will eat about anything and he took me to a specialty sushi restaurant in Tsurumi where we work. I had eaten everything there before, so not only did I not leave anything on the plate, I spouted off the names and told the owner how good it was in Japanese. This impressed her to no end and she spent about 15 minutes telling me how wonderful I was to eat fried fish head, sea urchin, and beach clams. Hatta-san was translating and it was just like in the movies. She would speak about 90 seconds and then Hatta-san would say "She said she has never seen an American who likes sea urchin". And I would wonder how come it took 90 seconds to say that.

Anyway, I used all the polite Japanese I knew and the staff followed us out of the restaurant. Most of them wanted to shake my hand and I got plenty of bows. The next day I was semi-famous at work and one of the Japanese engineers told me that even he didn't like sea urchin. Actually it isn't too bad - it is just mushy and doesn't look too appetizing.

I finally went to the seafood market here in Tokyo last Sunday. They were "butchering" a huge tuna at one place - it was as big as a cow. So I said to the guy "Maguro desu ka?" which means "Is it tuna?". They love this and you usually get about 2 to 3 minutes of reply in Japanese of which I catch very little. But this guy kept it simple and I caught some of it - he ended up giving me a piece to take away. Even knowing a little bit of a language can go a long way.

Well, I have put off the income tax long enough. I also have to get ready for the trip to see David in LA.

Have a wonderful Easter.

More Flowers

Sent: Sunday, April 04, 2004 9:43 AM
Subject: Weekly Email

This week the sakura petals are starting to fall. The trees are still pretty much covered with blossoms but in some areas there is a light pink carpet on the ground. When a gust of wind comes there is a shower of petals. So by next week it will probably be pretty much gone. When I walked to work yesterday the Zo-jo-ji temple was flooded with blooms and they were having a festival of some sort. The azaleas are starting to bloom right behind them and right now the weather is really beautiful. All of the Japanese were out and walking about yesterday.

All the visitors I had told me I needed to watch the movie "Lost in Translation" about Bill Murray in Japan. I'm not much on movies but one of the guys at work had it and let me borrow it. It really enjoyed it. I think it must be a bit hard to identify with if you have never been dropped in a strange country but I could identify with a lot of it, especially since it is set in Tokyo. You can see my apartment building in it. After seeing it, I still can't tell you where the dinosaur building is - maybe Ginza - I'm not sure. The Family Mart is out of the Sapporo Beer Dog - I'll go back and look today.

We have been working on getting our FEED (Front End Engineering & Design) package ready for bidding the job. Last Wednesday it went out. Our management was in Japan just prior to release and I spent 3 days briefing them. Prior to today I had worked straight days since Teresa, Megan, and David left. Yesterday I only worked a couple of hours and today I am taking off. I can feel the release of tension already. But tonight I will try and get the income tax finished.

The project that I am working on produces liquefied natural gas (LNG) for transport and sales. It is the same gas you use to heat your house and cook on. The process refrigerates the gas down to about -260 degrees and turns it into a liquid. At that temperature, the LNG can be stored and transported since it reduces in volume down to about 1/600th of what it would be at the burner tip. It weighs about half what water does so the special tankers that transport it don't draw much draft. In the process we make propane, butanes, condensate, sulfur, and if we want, helium.

The LNG trains that we are designing are about twice as big as anything built before. Each train is about a kilometer long and uses three GE Frame 9 turbine-compressor-generator sets. Frame 9s are the "big boys" of gas turbines and this is the first application in this kind of mechanical service although there are a number of them in generator service. It now looks like we may build 6 to 8 more trains. If this is done, the trains that we are designing will produce a third of the world's LNG. The size of each train is such that the financing of one train alone will be the second largest project finance in the world today.

When our management was here they asked me to be project manager through start-up on the first train which is about 3 and a half years from now. I have been working hard to put myself in a place to be considered for that so I was pleased. You don't get many opportunities like that in a career - it will change the way LNG is produced and shipped and have an impact on a world scale. There are details to be figured out but it is something I would like to do. In any event, I have agreed to stay in Japan an additional 3 months to do post-FEED technical work and oversight of the technical bidding.

So, this has been a big week. I am trying to arrange to go see David in concert at the Walt Disney auditorium later in the month. It was really great to see everyone here and I look forward to getting back home for a while.

Sakura and Pagoda

Hanami and Sakura

----- Original Message -----

Sent: Sunday, March 28, 2004 10:46 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

The cherry blossoms (sakura) are in full bloom now. Today was probably close to the peak day. The blooming of the cherry trees is a major event in Japan and is called Hanami. The way to celebrate it is to get a plastic tarp (in the old days a blanket or tatami), a picnic box (bento), and some sake, and go to the park. There you sit under the cherry trees and view the blossoms, talk to your friends, eat, drink, and be merry. If you don't want to bring your food and drink you can buy traditional snacks from a stall and eat them.

We have been working extra hard but yesterday one of the Japanese guys I work with invited me to his home for dinner. Before we went to dinner, we went to the park. The park near his house is a famous one for cherry blossoms called Inokashira Park. There is a nice lake there with koi in it. You can rent a boat shaped like a swan if you want to also. We got some yakitori (chicken grilled on a skewer) and an Ashahi beer and enjoyed the sakura on top of sakurayama (cherry blossom hill). Then we went to his house where his wife fixed a very nice meal.

He lives in a duplex next to his father. The house is small but very nice and uncluttered. His wife was a fan of classical piano and she had a piano as well as a large collection of classical recordings which we listened to. As an appetizer we had salmon and a japanese pickle dish which I made the mistake of putting in the same dish. She fixed an excellent meal of beef bourgeon and a kind of salad. They slurped their salad when they ate it which is considered good manners. Anyway it was a very nice evening.

I ended up working today because we have a package going out tomorrow and we had to get it prepared. My boss is coming in tomorrow evening so this will be a busy week. Then I need to try to get the income tax completed. After that things may slow down.

Best to all, write if you get a minute.

Happy hanami and enjoy the blue bonnets (get a blanket, take some chicken and some beer, and sit and enjoy life)....

Nikko in Snow

Nikko

Bonsai Museum

Sent: Sunday, March 21, 2004 6:54 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

Well, the third and last wave of family for a while left yesterday. We went to all the usual places in Tokyo plus Kamakura and Nikko. The day in Nikko was especially nice in that the weather was perfect and we were able to see most of the main shrine complex. The cherries are just barely starting to bloom and we had great weather right up to Thursday evening. Friday was pretty cold but we ended up going to the museums at Ueno and staying out of most of it. I think Teresa, David, and Megan really enjoyed it. I enjoyed all of you - it is really quiet now.

I have made the observation that shopping was one of the great draws for Tokyo for all the visitors. The department stores are incredible and there are some good souvenir type shops as well. Besides the shrines and temples, the other great draw is the food. If you are willing to try something different, the Japanese cuisine is really good. If I get back here and there are visitors again, we will have to go to Kyoto. It is known for the culture, including food and temples.

Every group that visited left me some kind of unexpected "gift". Mother and Aunt Pauline left some bath soap. Cody and Kathye left cookies, snacks, and anti-wrinkle cream. David left a box of half eaten chocolates in my back pack and Megan left a Japanese Cosmopolitan. All will be put to good use.

Saturday I went into work for a while after Teresa and the kids have left. Unfortunately it is all still there pretty much as I left it.

Today I did my laundry and I've started income tax. To get out, I decided to go to the Bonsai Museum. This turned out to be quite a trek - it was the first time I was unable to navigate on the train. I couldn't find the local train and got on an express that went right by my stop. Then I tried to turn around and got on the wrong train. Finally I ended up taking the subway but had problems with that because my map was labeled wrong. When I finally got to the station I couldn't find the place because the building wasn't on the local map they always have at the subway door. I ended up having to ask the policeman who didn't speak english.

When I got there, it was a really nice museum but small. They don't have much room for display but some of the specimens were incredible. You could see the whole thing in an hour and study each tree individually (7 minutes if you are Jessica). The most impressive one was 350 years old and about 4 feet tall. Anyway, I probably wouldn't take visitors there unless they are really into such things. The cherry trees in that part of Tokyo are right down by the river and were already in pretty good bloom. Really nice.

Well, that is about it for this week. I am blessed to be able to live in such a place and have family enjoy it with me.

Take care all...

Frank

White Day

Sent: Sunday, March 14, 2004 2:14 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

Dear All,

I leave for the airport in a few minutes to pick up Teresa, Megan, and Dave. We are starting to get a lot of work done, but more on the way, on my project. So last week was busy.

Today is "White Day" in Japan. I may have already explained this but on Valentine's Day girls give guys something. Then on White Day, guys return the favor. The weather has really started to turn nice. It is in the 60s today and sunny. The plum trees are starting to get past their full bloom but the cherry trees are really starting to show buds. Watching the cherry blossoms fall is a big deal in Japan and in about two weeks we should be in the thick of it.

I got an espresso machine last week on my rental allowance. And it really makes great coffee. I'm still learning to froth the milk with the steamer for a cappuccino though. My effort this morning wasn't too bad.

I haven't heard from Teresa and the kids about what they want to do (except Megan wants to go to museums). So I think we will go to the National Museum first which is at Ueno. What all the visitors really seem to want to do is shop. So we'll go to the museum shop and then on Tuesday I'll take them to the Oriental Bazaar. And then we can take a trip outside Tokyo to somewhere like Nikko or Kamakura.

Well that's about it. Happy White Day!

...Frank

Sushi Menu

Electric Town

Sent: Sunday, February 29, 2004 8:20 PM
Subject: Weekly Email

As you can see I have my computer working. If you are a computer geek it is a Toshiba Satellite 30 series. I think I'm going to like it OK but I was trying to get the built in microphone working and have failed. That is somewhat important because I'm trying to use the Internet for long distance dialing. If I get it working I'll let you know because it works out to be only about 2 cents a minute for me to call the United States with it. The neat thing about this computer is it has an extra wide screen and also built-in wireless LAN. The other cool thing is that I got it "free" by renting it on my living expense account. At the end of this it willl be paid off and I can keep it. Anyway, so much for that - it mostly works.

I didn't do a whole lot this week. I ended up going to Akihibara "Electric Town" today. It is an area that is filled with electronic, electrical, and appliance stores. You see a lot of westerners there and computer geeks. But really, there is a large "Best Buy" type store not far from where the apartment is that I like better (by the way, prices are better in the United States - even on Japanese goods. I can't figure that). It is considered something of a tourist place and is crammed with people so I went ahead and looked around. Like a lot of things here, you can get overwhelmed by the crowds and the noise and flashing lights.

I learned something new about sushi. You can get vegetable sushi. Today I had okra sushi.

I'm looking forward to Cody, Kathye, and girls coming later in the week. Then Teresa, Megan, and David follow soon after. So I'll be taking some days off.

Best to all