It’s time to wrap up the words of this year. As I do every year at the end of the year, I’m looking back at what has happened to me and what I have encountered over the past year, and I’m listing them up in a few short words.
The words of 2023 are flight simulation, fitness, TOEIC, and voice recognition.
(more…)A few weeks ago, I visited Hong Kong to deposit part of my fixed amount savings, deposited in Japan’s post office and matured last month, in HSBC Hong Kong, where I’ve had my bank account for 13 years, and to buy some gold, which was a bit less expensive than what you buy in Japan. Since nobody can predict what will happen to Japan and its economy in the future, I think it is reasonable to diversify assets both nationally and internationally to reduce the risk of loss due to possible economic uncertainty.
I found out two notable things through this trip. One is that Kagoshima is, in fact, one of the important gateways to Japan for some foreign travelers. From a Tokyoite’s point of view, Kagoshima looks like the southernmost far end of Japan, but for some people, it is not. I heard that a sales clerk at Chow Sang Sang’s Central store was selling me a gold necklace, saying she had been to Japan for leisure, entering Japan at Kagoshima Airport, then traveling east to Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo, where she departed. She also said that it was a golden route for travelers from China and Hong Kong. Those facts suggest that cities like Kagoshima, Nagasaki, and Fukuoka should look at Asian countries rather than Tokyo to survive in the future.
The other thing is my lack of ability in English conversation. When I talked to the sales clerk or any other people in Hong Kong, all I could say to those people was one-to-two-word sentences like “Yeah,” “No,” “Thank you,” “Oh really?” or something like that. Response speed in English was apparently slower than it was a few years ago. Clearly, it was because I hadn’t used English so much for years, as it is now irrelevant to me in the workplace. All I can do (and need to do) is to at least have my home Englishized to get accustomed to the English environment and to help me live in an English way.
Continued from the previous entry:
On the third day, I checked out of the Heathfield B&B on a rainy morning. Since it was a weekday, Keighley Worth & Valley Railway was out of service. The mistress took me to the nearest bus stop on Rawdon Road and told me to wait there for the bus to Keighley.
While waiting for the bus, an old lady talked to me. She asked me where I was going. I answered that I was going to London. Another lady joined us, and they and I talked a bit until the bus was coming.
On the bus, I sit on the upper front seat, and the ladies stayed downstairs. Arriving at Keighley bus terminus, I got out of the bus. The train station was a bit distant from the terminus, so I didn’t know how to get there.
Then the lady who had talked to me first at the Rawdon Road bus stop found me standing there and told me to follow her to the train station, as she was just going shopping nearby. How kind of her! I was able to get to the Keighley train station with her help.
Continued from the previous entry:
Breakfast served at Heathfield Bed & Breakfast was very British, with a fried egg, fried potatoes, and mushrooms; a fried tomato cut in half; two slices of bacon; two sausages; cereals; slices of bread; a glass of orange juice; and a cup of tea. I have a good appetite for breakfast in England because when it’s breakfast time in England, it’s time to have dinner in Japan, where it’s nine hours ahead.
(more…)
Visiting England is one of the things I want to do in the future. I planned a trip there in the middle of September. I purchased air tickets to and from London and booked hotels there. To my sorrow, however, I was forced to cancel all of the reservations because of the hectic work I had been doing for almost two years. The British Hills is one of its alternatives, but I get tired of it as I have visited there many times. One day, I heard about such a place in South Korea that mocked English streets. That’s why I visited South Korea this month, though I didn’t understand Korean at all.
(more…)
I visited the British Hills for the first time this year because the snow melted and it became accessible by car.
(more…)