Chan Maneesilasan

Mail in the UK

2011-01-28T22:39:00.001+11:00

OK, I've had it with the mail service in the UK.

I've had a number of packages waiting for me at the Post office. Waiting for me to pick up, as I wasn't home when they tried to deliver. I don't have a problem with that. What I have a problem with is not being left a card, to let me know this is the case.

I've never had that happen to me in Australia and I've never had any packages lost in the mail in the 7 years that I've been on eBay and doing online purchases. That was until I started buying things online in the UK.

Over the last 3 months:

Service	Expected	Received/Carded	Picked up but not carded	Missing	Notes
DHL	3	3	0	0	All packages were received in the leadup to Christmas. Top job DHL.
Parcelforce	1	0	1	0
Royal Mail	18	11	3	4	One package was missing but ended up being returned to sender

I'll let you do the maths but those aren't great odds.

And yes I know there's been bad weather and Christmas is always a little crazy. But I've done transactions in Australia around Christmas time and I've NEVER experienced any losses.

In the 5 months that I've been in my new address in London I've received 2 letters for someone else. This doesn't include past residents but letters that have a different address, different post codes. It's almost like the sorting office just sent random mail to random addresses.

Just last night my friend in Australia informed me that one of her parcels which she sent to me in November 2010 has just returned to her in Australia. Indications are a delivery attempt was made on 14 Jan 2011. And then it was sent to the post office for collection. But I never received a card. She received it back in Australia on 28 Jan 2011.

She sent another package earlier in Jan which luckily she had tracking for. Again delivery was attempted on 24 Jan 2011. But I never received a card.

I actually think this is criminal. There are some fundamental issues with the UK postal service. But it seems it's all too hard to fix.

I tried to submit a complaint to Royal Mail via their website. I've been told to send it in writing to:
Royal Mail
Complaints Department
PO Box 740
Glasgow
G22 6WW

So save yourself some time and send it in writing to the above address if you are fed up with Royal mail.

I'm going to send a complaint to Parcelforce later today as well:
http://www.parcelforce.com/portal/pw/content2?catId=2500046&mediaId=19900226

Travel Tip: Aussies travelling overseas

2010-08-12T10:44:00.004+10:00

Ok so I packed up my life and headed off on my big adventure. I'm going to write about stuff that I think will help other travellers who might be following in my foot steps.

The main concern for most travellers is currency exchange. Do I exchange to cash, traveller's cheques or use my card?

Well it's always good to have a main source and to also carry a backup.

So I took cash as my backup and I have a "Wizard Clear Advantage" Mastercard. It's a no frills credit card. Which has minimal fees but their customer service isn't particularly great. What they do have is no "foreign transaction fee". Which means you can purchase something overseas and not get slogged with an extra fee. Another thing you can do with this card is withdraw cash overseas. You can do this without incurring interest or fees by overloading your card with your own money.

So hypothetically lets say my credit limit is AU$2000. I would pay the credit card up so it has a $0 balance and then load up an extra AU$500 for my trip. So when I log into the credit card's web site I would see Available cash: $2500. I would then rock up to any ATM which accepts Mastercard and then withdraw the funds I needed.

One thing to note, some ATMs will charge you a fee. I wasn't fully aware of this before I landed in Thailand. Most ATMs in Thailand will charge you a 150baht fee. But there is one bank/company which doesn't. Look for AEON ATMs they are usually near Lotus supermarkets. They didn't charge me a fee when I withdrew money from their ATM. But all other ATMs that I used did.

Having said all that. Thailand and Malaysia do have very good exchange rates in those small booths. So bringing cash works quite well in those countries. Countries like the UK and Japan don't have great exchange rates out on the street and for these countries I would recommend my Card method of exchange.

The exchange rate at Aussie exchange booths back at home are terrible. They're ok for small exchanges but if you are going for a long period then I would use the card method. Having said that it's always good to have a little foreign currency to get out of the airport. As exchange booths at airports are far worse.

Another thing to take note of and research are vaccinations. You can just go to your family doctor and get jabbed for everything but you might find that you don't actually need them. Do the research and you might save yourself some money (and a little pain).

The cheapest travel insurance that I have been using over the last 6 years is "Defence Health" travel insurance. I found them while I was serving with the Army Reserves but they also sell policies to civvies. They are the cheapest for international travel insurance (that I could find). But again do your own due diligence. One thing of note, especially for those heading over for long periods like myself. They don't refund your policy pro-rata if you return early. And your policy ends when you set foot back on Australian soil. So if you have a 12 month policy and you come home to visit family 6 months in. Your 12 month policy ends and you don't get any refund for the unused portion. You will need to take out another policy before you return overseas. So what you can do is take out a short policy and then extend the policy up to 12 months. But please check this as their policies might change.

Make sure you read the fine details of your insurance policy to cover you against the activities you plan to do. I know it sounds like simple common sense. But you'll be surprised at what activities you are NOT covered for.

More to come...

Chan's trip since 1st July 2010

2010-07-10T14:34:00.002+10:00

Ok, sorry for not posting earlier but internet access was somewhat slow off GPRS.

My flight from Melbourne to KL on 1 July 2010 was pretty uneventful. But it was late by about 30mins which ate into my 2 hour transfer time to my next flight from KL to Bangkok. Luckily that flight was delayed due to weather anyway so I had plenty of time. But LCCT, KL airport's budget terminal can be a bit of a nightmare for the uninitiated even for the veteran traveller. I'm happy to report that AirAsia's new seats are a big improvement over the previous version. More room and you can actually lean your seat back. Although they don't have power points for every seat anymore. Which for an IT guy is a bit of a pain. Luckily I have 5 mobile phone batteries and 2 seasons of Lost to keep me sain. The lay flat seats were actually lay flat. Close but not quite. I'm considering upgrading my seat just for the power point so I can watch movies on the flight from KL to London. I'll have to see how my finances are like.

My flight from KL to Bangkok as mentioned was late due to weather which was a blessing and a pain. It meant my Aunty and Uncle had to wait until about 11pm for me which obviously isn't good. And the approach to Bangkok airport was some what turbulent so much so that the flight host/hostess's had to drop to the floor and there were a few screems from the passengers. It was actually kinda fun. Oh and the lady sitting next to me had a bottle of water in her handbag which exploded due to the decreased pressure. This of course meant that there was water dripping down from teh overhead compartment. Fun and joys of traveling through south east Asia I suppose.

I spent 6 days with my Aunty Namtip, uncle Bong and cousin Tana. I have high hopes for Tana. His English is pretty much as good as a native speaker and he's a bright kid. My time with my family was quite busy. My grandfather was in hospital recovering from an operation so we spent a bit of time with him there. I also spent a bit of time wondering around central Bangkok window shopping and also checking out the damage caused by the recent riots. I'm glad to report that there isn't any more unrest and things are pretty much back to normal. Although there are some buildings that were burnt most places are up and running as per usual.

I attended a ceremony for my father on the 6th of July. It was a very quick one as my step mom and sisters had to go to work and school respectively.

I met up with Jocelin and Adrian on the 6th of July for our flight from Bangkok to Koh Samui. The flight was in a turbo prop plain which means the propellers were exposed. This is my first time in this kind of aircraft so it was a little exciting. It was a pretty small plane but it did the job.

We arrived in Koh Samui and were picked up by the resort transfer guy. We stayed in a resort called "The Kala". It was a pretty flash resort. I think I will be taking Anna back there at some stage. Although there were two things that weren't so good. First was the location being a few kilometres from the nearest eatery and there was no Wifi internet. But the views were to die for. Definately made the trip that much easier.

We expected good diving off Koh Saumi. But we found that although there were heaps of dive shops there wasn't actually any dive sites off Koh Samui. It appears people use it as a launching point to go to Koh Tao. We did how ever do one day of diving from Koh Samui on a site called Sail Rock. It was ok but the vis was poor by my standard. Joz and Adrian loved it though. We also spent half a day snorkelling off Lamai beach. I sustained a few cuts when I slipped off some rocks but nothing that a few days of healing won't mend.

So we've now arrived in Koh Tao. We took the Lomprayah Catamaran from Koh Samui to Koh Tao. It made two stops in between where some of the passengers got off. Apparently one of our bags which contained all of our snorkeling gear was mistakenly offloaded in one of these stops. So the lesson learnt was to keep an eye on your bags and make sure it's not offloaded. I was hoping the crew would know what they were doing... But this is South East Asia... We arrived in Koh Samui at 10am and they told us to come back at 3pm to collect the bag. Oh well. Lets hope it is in fact our bag... And it arrives.

We are currently staying in a place called "Simple Life Resort". So far it's been good. It looks clean and spacious.

More to follow....

Crazy couple of weeks

2010-06-30T22:58:00.003+10:00

The last couple of weeks have been something else. Little sleep. Lots of packing and cleaning. I've got way too much stuff for my own good. I'll definately choose wisely before I buy my next gadget.

I still can't believe I got it all done. I sold my Nissan Pulsar today just in time. I didn't get as much for it as I would have hoped but I suppose you have to take the good and the bad.

I'm currently staying at the Hilton Melbourne Airport. Not bad, kind of small and the blinds need maintenance. But acceptable to my standards. That's not really saying much though.

My flight plans are as follows:
Melbourne to KL:
Flight: D72725
Departing:
Melbourne (MEL)
Melbourne Airport
01 Jul 2010
1225 hrs

Arriving
Kuala Lumpur (KUL)
LCC Terminal
01 Jul 2010
1840 hrs

Then dash for the connecting flight:
Flight: FD3576
Departing:
Kuala Lumpur (KUL)
LCC Terminal
01 Jul 2010
2055 hrs

Arriving:
Suvarnabhumi International Airport (BKK)
01 Jul 2010
2155 hrs

I hope there aren't any delays. I might have cut this one a little close...

Wish me luck everyone!

SMS Spam

2010-06-10T14:18:00.003+10:00

How annoying. I got two SMS's last night at about 3:30am (+10 GMT). Both from 19706970

First SMS:
>REPLY with OK<< 2get porno name! SP GlobalBilling.help1300558851$5.00 pmsg 2p/week Mobile VIP subscription signup $10.00 Txt stop 2stop >>REPLY OK<

Second:
(FreeMsg)>>>Reply with YES<<< to confirm your mobile number! >>>Reply YES<<< Mobile VIP SP Global Billing.Help1300558851$5p/msg 3p/week to sub

What should you do if you also find these a nuisance? Report them to the ACMA: http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_310294
By forwarding the SMS to: 0429 999 888

I'm a MCP!

2008-01-09T16:28:00.001+11:00

Woohoo. I passed... I completed my 70-536 exam yesterday. I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get over 900 but 894 isn’t too shabby. Some of you are probably thinking “what’s he on about?”. Basically it means I passed a Microsoft Exam. Microsoft will now vouch that I can develop applications using the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0

Realistically it doesn’t mean a whole lot. I’ll need to do at least one more exam before it’s really worth anything. So I’ll again hit the books. But probably not today...

For anyone else thinking of doing any of the Microsoft exams and need advice. Drop me a message. I’ll assist if I can.

FYI. MCP: Microsoft Certified Professional.

Big Move

2007-06-11T22:48:00.000+10:00

Wow what a week. I've been furiously moving my stuff across to my new place. Today was the big move with most of my stuff coming over. There's about one more car load and then I'll be well and truly done.

It's a strange feeling having my own place. It's bigger than my last place so I kind of feel lonely. It's a strange feeling. I'm generally a very solitary kind of guy but I think all this extra space makes me want to fill it.

Today was somewhat stressful. Fadrian, Media and Victor helped me pack and move some of my stuff. Leave the larger stuff to Charlie (the Boga recommended removalist). Charlie was fast, efficient and most importantly he has a big truck. As for Fadrian and Media... Well they were the "professional" movers (having done it quite a few times between them.

I'm somewhat lazy. I take things slowly but not Fadrian and Media. Once they have a task to do then they just get to it. Grab the lot and find a box... Wham bam thank you maam... It did get the job done but I think it made it a little harder for me to unpack as I don't know what's in which box. Although I do need to do a big culling of my junk.

At the moment my second bedroom is full of stuff. And so is my living room. I've got to move things around to get around. Oh and I'm on dialup. Man I never thought I would ever be back on dialup. But hey here I am.

I'm still waiting for someone to offer me ADSL2+. TPG gave me the run around. First telling me they do have ports and then later telling me they don't have port. I've recently signed up with ComCen. But I don't have much hope there I think as I've been told there's only one port left at my exchange... Oh well them's the breaks. I might have to stick with regular ADSL and wait for ADSL2+ to be available.

Oh well that's it for now. (I wonder who would actually be reading this?).
PS. Man my neighbours are loud... There's some chick scream at some guy next door I think... I hope this isn't the norm.
Signing out, -Chan

Microsoft Ready Launch Tour 2005 Melbourne

2005-11-25T11:12:00.000+11:00

The Ready Launch Tour 2005 was held at Melbourne’s Sofitel hotel which was a great venue for the event. Very comfortable seats and great catering.

The event was very well organized (as compared to the Security Summit 2004). This year we didn’t have to line up to register. Everyone received a barcode in an email, on arrival you scanned your barcode and your Id would be printed out.

The sessions were very informative, catering for all spectrums of the audience. Although Will and myself have attended a lot of the community launches and information sessions, a lot of the information and demonstrations were repeats for us. But that’s more because we’re pretty active in the .NET community. I’m sure most of the audience would appreciate the demos and the information presented.

As per usual the 3rd party vendors were there giving away promo stuff in exchange for your details. From this session I collected a nice Calculator and Pen in a really nice case, a small portable radio and a few pens.

Attendees received:
DVD package which includes5 DVDs:
SQL Server 2005 and Visual Studio 2005 Core Hands-on Labs
SQL Server 2005 High Availability Hands-on Labs
Visual Studio 2005 Team System Hands-on Labs
BizTalk 2006 Server Pre-Release Hands-on Labs
Microsoft Launch 2005 Resource DVD (containing: Sample code, Web casts, Training, Videos, White Papers, Microsoft partner solutions and more)

An Exam Voucher which entitles the holder to one of the following exams:
70-431 TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 – Implementation and Maintenance
70-536 TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 – Application Development Foundation
70-551 UPGRADE: MCAD Skills to MCPD Web Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework
70-552 UPGRADE: MCAD Skills to MCPD Windows Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework
70-553: UPGRADE: MSCS Microsoft .NET Skills to MCPD Enterprise Application Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework: Part 1
70-235: TS: Developing Business Process and Integration Solutions Using Microsoft BizTalk Server 2006

The 34th Issue of “International Developer”

And other informative bits and pieces.

All in all it was a good day. My only suggestion for the next event would be to have tables and chairs for people to sit down and relax for lunch. Although this would discourage people from moving around and mingling but I find that most IT people don’t really mingle all that much in the first instance.

I'm back. Part 2

2005-08-09T00:09:00.000+10:00

So I worked in FinPa for a total of 3 months. While I learnt a lot in that job I must admit that I didn't enjoy the work.

After leaving FinPa I spent a good month sending out my resumes and cover letters. Making phone calls and contacting friends. For a good month I had received no replies what so ever. Then in mid June over a space of a week, I attended 5 interviews and recieved 3 job offers. I was a little shocked and a little puzzled.

The first job offer was for a 3 month contract with a Software company in the CBD. Very high profile but for me 3 months is a very short time and I wanted a little more security.

The second job offer was for a full time position with a small software house. The position was very exciting. I didn't feel comfortable with the environment. Partly because of my experience with my last job. I really wanted a large company which could provide me with more support and guidance.

The third job offer was from Metricon. The pay was good and so was the working conditions. Not to mention it's very close to home, so there's less pressure on me to get a car.

I've been working for Metricon since the 25th of July 2005 and I'm loving every minute of it. It really is a great company to work for. The people are friendly and the job is really interesting.

I'm doing a lot of research at this stage to get myself familiar with SharePoint. There's a lot of information but out there. But it's finding the specific information relating to the problem which I'm encountering which is the hard part.

I work in a small development team of 3 developers. Consisting of myself, Stan and Navpreet. Stan started work about 3 weeks ago and Navpreet started yesterday. We all have veried skills and I think we all compliment each other. There's also a fourth person in our room, Jame. He's a multimedia person. He actually belongs to the Marketing department who's trying to get away from the Marketing work and trying to concentrate on the company's external web site. Unfortunately I don't think he can escape that easily.

Well that's it for today. Keep an eye out for another update.

I'm Back!...

2005-08-08T23:51:00.000+10:00

Well actually I've always been around. It's been a while since I've posted an update so here it is. A lot has happened since my last post.

In Febuary I landed myself a job with a small Multimedia/Software development house in Kew called FinPa. I worked there as a Graduate Developer for 3 months. I have to admit I didn't enjoy that job. It was long hours and not so good pay. But Seako was there and helped me along the way.

While working at FinPa I met some really interesting people. Take Sebastian for example. He's from Puru and he works as a Multimedia designer? Anyway he's really good at what he does. He works like there's no tomorrow and he always looks tired.

Mukesh, now that's a great guy. Always happy and also really good at what he does. He's a contract Developer. Great for a laugh and all round nice guy.

Dat, Mukesh's "side-kick" he landed a job at FinPa after some convincing by Mukesh. Also good for a laugh and good at what he does (also a Contract software developer).

Sneha, was my Senior. Very quite woman. She came to Australia with her husband who works for InfoSys. I wander how she's doing. She was with child before I left.

Richard, the Development manager for FinPa. He's also a Director. Always busy but always has a smile. Also works like there's no tomorrow. He's some what of a mentor for Seako.

Tracy, Multimedia artist. Very talented and very bright. Great girl but never on time... She's in Taiwan at the moment with her boyfriend.

Roe, a Director. Very kind woman but when she needs to get things done, she gets them done.

Damian, an interesting man. Forever singing the praises of "Landmark Education". I wasn't much of a fan myself but I've heard some good things.

Brendan, a great person. With great interpersonal skills. A great guy to be around and I'd wish I had to opportunity to get to know him more.

Well those were the people I met while working at FinPa. I'd work there for a total of 3 months. I learnt a lot while working at FinPa. Not only about IT but about the Industry in general and about people too.

New Start

2005-01-10T13:35:00.000+11:00

Looking for a job isn't an easy task. Especially in the IT industry. So from today I'm going to be doing a bit of work to try to increase my employability. I'm going to be working on a portfolio of applications. I hope that employers will be impressed with my work and hopefully I'll get employed soon.

-Chan

Chan in Melbourne Update: 8-Oct-2004

2004-10-08T14:42:00.000+10:00

Hi All,
Well I'm back in Melbourne and I'm fine. A little hayfever but I've got some pills for that.

Ok, so I'm back in my "home" city and I've got to start getting my life back together. I've now got to find a job, buy a car and then move out. Oh not to mention I've got to clean up my room... Since I've been back I've made a big mess... (It looks like a bomb went off in my room).

There's not much to say really.

Since my Last post I travelled through Malaysia and stayed with Patrick Pincon for 2 days. Then I went to Singapore and stayed with Julian for a night. The next morning the Heng family picked me up and took me around Singapore. After that I went to Indonesia for 2 days and stayed with Fadrian and his family at his home town. That was fun and a little more culture shock. By this stage I was EXHAUSTED I really was. I was looking forward to going home and sleeping for a very long time. After Indonesia I back tracked and took a boat from Indonesia to Singapore and from Singapore I took a bus to Malaysia. Where Patrick picked me up from the Bus terminal and I stayed the night with him. The next morning to took the 06:00 (am) bus to the airport.

I then flew from KL, Malaysia to Sydney Australia. Where Anna (my girlfriend) was waiting. So I stayed in Sydney for two and a half days and then flew back to Melbourne, Australia (my home city).

But it doesn't end there folks, the next morning I took a bus up to Mt. Buller where myself, Alan and Tomoko hired some Snowboards and went snowboarding. It was great fun but I really was exhaused. I picked it up fast and had the basic skills that I needed by the end of the first day. By the second day I had the basic technique mastered. But by the third day I was so exhaused that I found it really hard to get back up after each fall. So I called it a day at about noon and headed back to the apartment for some R & R and waited for the other two to arrive back.

So my whole trip finished on the 29th of September 2004 when I arrived back from Snowboarding. I've spent the last week and a half cleaning, shopping and lazing around... I needed a rest after my LONG trip...

I hope you have enjoyed my Blog up to this point. From here there won't be many stories to tell. So I'm not sure what's going to happen from here...

I will keep you posted with that's happening with me but I'm not sure if that's going to be all that interesting.

Take care and keep in touch,

Chan in Melbourne

Chan Update: 23-Sept-2004

2004-09-23T06:20:00.001+10:00

Hi All,
I'm sorry if you have tried to visit my site in the last week or so. But it's been down. I haven't been able to get the main site up but I have managed to salvage the Blog.

Here is a link to my pictures:

http://www.imagestation.com/member/index.html?name=chan83&c=201

When asked for the username and password enter these:
Username: chansguest
Password: moo

Take care,
Chan "no longer in Japan"

Chan Update: 21-Sept-2004

2004-09-23T06:20:00.000+10:00

Hi All,
I've spent the last day and a half with Fadrian on his home island of Tanjungpinang. Tomorrow morning (22-Sept-2004) I'll be taking a 07:00 (GMT+07:00) ferry from this island to Singapore. From there I will be taking a 12:00 bus (called the "Nice" bus) from Singapore to Malaysia. I'll arrive in Malaysia at approximately 17:00(GMT+08:00) where I'm hoping Patrick will be free to pick me up. Otherwise I'll have to find some other kind of accommodation. But I will have to meet up with Patrick at some point to give him Julian's public transport card and give him back the mobile phone which he lent me.

My current plans after that is to take a Malaysia Airlines flight from Malaysia at 09:45 (GMT+08:00)at KL airport. I will arrive at Sydney at 19:35(GMT+10:00). I will meet up with Anna and then spend the next 3 days with her in Sydney.

After that I will travel back to Melbourne on a Qantas flight departing Sydney at 14:00(GMT+10:00). I will then go home. Unpack, wash my cloths, get some sleep. Then repack and go snow boarding with Alan on the 27-Sept-2004 for 3 days and 2 nights (as far as I know).
After that I have to find a job and be a normal member of Australian society. And leave my life as a professional tourist behind. :)

Take care,
Chan "no longer in Japan"

Chan not in Japan Update: 18-Sept-2004

2004-09-18T11:11:00.000+10:00

Hi all,
I'm writing this blog entry for both my own blog and Patrick's. If you don't understand what's going on then check out my blog at: it should all make sense after that.

Basically my name is Chan. I've been travelling around Japan from the end of August to mid September. But I'd worked in Japan for 5 months before that. But like I said check out my blog if you are interested.

Today is the 18th of Sept 2004. I've spent the last 2 and a half days in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia with Patrick Pincon. Today I'm leaving KL for Singapore to meet up with Julian and at some point Joleen. I have a 11:15 bus to Singapore from KL and a return bus leaving Singapore on the 22nd at 12:00 noon.

I arrived in KL on the 15th of Sept. And stayed in the "Bestotel" but it wasn't that good. It's been a bit of a culture shock being in KL. I've come from a society which is seen as a very polite society (Japanese) into Malaysian society. It really hit me when I got on the bus from the airport. I'd asked the bus driver something and he just kind of grunted at me. Then when I got to the hotel the lobby staff were pretty rude. But it's all good. Just have to get used to it.

Since I've been here I've met up with Joa Quim, Patrick and Patrick's friend Albert. The first thing we did was go to a Mamak to eat Magi Mee and Milo Ice… heheh… Very nice… I had like 3 or 4 Milo Ices. They're damn good. Since then Patrick has been showing me around. On the 16th he took me to KLCC, I have no idea what that stands for but it's at the base of the Petronas Towers. Yesterday (17-Sept) he took me the "markets" where they sell all the pirated CDs and DVDs. They're not as cheap as I was hoping they where. Then we went out for Japanese food… Yeah yeah I know… Um, but it was interesting to see Japanese food in the eyes of Malaysia. It food was similar but definitely not the same.
And how today I'm heading to Singapore.

Sorry my site has been down. My server closed all free accounts which included mine. :'( But if you are reading this that means that my site is back up and all is well. So for those in Melbourne I'll be seeing you in a little while. For those of you in Japan, good luck, I hope you are safe and well.

Best Wishes,
Chan

Chan in not Japan Update: 15-Sept-2004 Part 2

2004-09-17T06:08:00.000+10:00

Ok, well here are the details of the last 36 hours or so. Yesterday, Tuesday the 14th of Sept. Takako's dad drove me around for most of the day. He showed me a few of the interesting spots to the South East of Nagoya.

I also cancelled my mobile phone that day but I had hope that the phone would be cut at the end of the day and not on the spot. So for the rest of that day I didn't have a working mobile. Which is extremely inconvenient, especially in Japan. As Taki would testify. (He told me himself that he's the sort of guy who wouldn't get a mobile while he was in Australia, but he was forced to get one in Japan).

So I had to arrange to meet up with John with only the use of pay phones. Ek. But I eventually met up with him, had dinner at "Coco ichiban" which translates to Coco number one. It's a popular "curry on rice" chain. The Japanese really love the curry on rice. I have to admit I love the curry on rice as well. But it's not the traditional curry that you would find in India. The Japanese curry is a little more watered down.

After that we met up with Ryoko at the Nova Imaike branch. And headed to the local Izakaya for a few drinks and food.

I then headed for Takako's place (where I was staying for the last couple of days) to clean up and pack for my trip today. I was kind of impressed at myself actually. I had sent most of my stuff home. I think I brought over about 40kg to Japan and I left with only about 20kg. This doesn't include my laptop which easily weighs about 7kgs with the external hard disk. I sent everything else home. But it's only going to get there after a month. So I ll have to wait a bit for it but that's OK. I really don't want to be lugging it around south east Asia. I've got what I need and that's enough.

My plans for the next few days are as follows:
16 - 17 Sept. Explore Malaysia.
Night of 17th, travel via train from Malaysia to Singapore
18 - 20 Sept. Explore Singapore.
20 - 22 Sept. Spend time in Indonesia with Fadrian
Night of 22nd, travel back to Malaysia for my 11am flight on the 23rd.

Oh and somewhere in between there I have to contact Malaysian airlines to see what they're going to do about my phone. But again I don't care about the phone it's all the contact details that I really want. Oh well... These things happen. It's my own stupid fault, I should have been more vigilant.

23rd of Sept. fly to Sydney, Australia and meet up with Anna. Spend a few days with her. 26th of Sept. fly back to Melbourne from Sydney.

Then once I get back to Melbourne I'm going to show and then sleep for 24 hours straight. So to all my friends in Melbourne, please don't call me. I ll call you :)

I'll organise some kind of party or something once I get back and get some rest.

Well that's it for now.

Take care all,
Chan

Chan not in Japan Update: 15-Sept-2004 Part 1

2004-09-17T05:40:00.000+10:00

Hi All,
Well I've arrived safely in Malaysia. Unfortunately I can't say the same for my mobile. My Japanese mobile was stolen from my baggage. Which I wouldn't really care about normally because I can't really use it for anything now that I'm out of Japan. But I was kind of using it as my phone book. So now I ve lost almost every email and phone number of everyone I met from the 1st of August onwards. That really sucks.

I'm just hoping that most of you who I met are checking out my journal. Because I have no way of contacting you otherwise.

These are some specific messages for people:
Reichell, could you please send your postal address to my internet email? So I can send you those animes. Could you also send me Melissa's contact details as well?

John Clark, could you please tell Ryoko and Belinda to send me a message to one of my internet email addresses please. I don't have their contacts.

Mayu, please send an email to one of my internet email addresses. I don't have your contact details at all.

Basically everyone I met at camp who I have been in contact with since I now no longer have you contact details. So if you could send an email to ozziesan2004@yahoo.com.au that would be great. This email address is my junk mail box. I'll reply to you with my other email address once I get a message from you.

Thanks and sorry for the inconvenience,
Chan (no longer) in Japan

Chan in Japan Update: 14-Sept-2004

2004-09-14T18:24:00.000+10:00

Hi All,
Well tomorrow is the big day. I'll be leaving Japan and will be headed for Malaysia. I'm not sure how often I will have access to the internet so please be patient if you send me messages.

Take care,
Chan in Japan (but not for much longer)

Chan in Japan Update: 13-Sept-2004

2004-09-13T09:17:00.001+10:00

Hi All,

I leave Japan in 2 days. I'm looking forward to coming home. I'm exhausted. I've been in Nagoya for the last 3 days. Doing some final admin and sending back a few boxes of stuff. There's really not much to say.

The plan for the next leg of my trip will be to spend two days in Malaysia, two days in Singapore and two days in Indonesia with Fadrian and his family. I've booked the hotels for Malaysia and Singapore.

In Malaysia I'll be staying in "Bestotel" (http://www.bestotel.com) for the nights of the 15th and 16th. The next night (17th) I'm planning to travel to Singapore via train so I'll be sleeping on the train. On the night of the 18th and 19th I'll be staying in Singapore at a place called "Boon Wah Hotel Singapore". Then I'll travel to Indonesia to meet up with Fadrian on the 20th. I'll stay with him until possibly the 22nd or maybe only to the 21st depending on how long it takes for me to get back to KL (Malaysia) to catch my flight back into Australia.

Well those are my current plans. I have to admit that I'm really exhausted at this stage... I'm looking forward to coming home and just sleeping for a long, long time...

Take care,
Chan in Japan

Chan in Japan Update: 07-Sept-2004

2004-09-13T09:17:00.000+10:00

Hi All,
It's now 11:20am on Tuesday the 7th of September 2004. I'm travelling from Tokyo to Fuji Yoshida. I won't be climbing Mt.Fuji I'm just going there to take pictures and to kill time. I'm hoping that accommodations will be cheaper now that is out of season to climb Mt.Fuji. But as always I have no idea what's going to happen. I tend to just rock up at a city, go to the information office and get a map and a hotel list. Goto the Hotel/Ryokan/Hostel and drop off my bags and then start exploring the sights. But I'm really just looking forward to getting to a bed and sleeping. I've been traveling for a long time now and I'm really tired.

I spent the last 2 and a half days in Tokyo with Melissa nd Reichell. It was great. It really wasn't what I expected. It's a lot more fun. I was expecting to arrive is a huge concrete jungle and just be really bored with it all. But it was HEAPs of fun. I think the fact that we had all you can eat for lunch for the last two days kinda helped me enjoy it more. And having friends in a city really helped things. I'm pretty sure that without the girls I would be really lost. I'll have to post up a train map for Tokyo at some stage you then you guys will understand.

I've posted up all of the pictures from Tokyo. I think the most interesting ones are from my second day in Tokyo (Tokyo 05-Sept-2004) with the pictures of the "Cosplay" people in Harajuku. Cosplay is a short for Costume Play, it's the name for the people who wear those strange cloths. I think it's pretty cool. Although it was kinda raining that day so not so many where out.

Tokyo would be a pretty good city to live in. There's always something to do. It's not just a concrete jungle, it also has a lot of character (and characters). There are also a lot of interesting shops and resturants. I now understand why people like Tokyo so much.

In my trip so far I think my favourite cities are Kobe and Tokyo. Mind you I think it has a lot to with me having friends there and them being able to show me around, that really made it a lot of fun.

I'm typing this message as I travel on the train to Fuji Yoshida. I'm not sure when I can actually post this message. I'm hoping that I can get a accommodation at some place with Internet access so I can send this and also keep in contact with the outside world.

Oh and I kinda felt an earthquake in Tokyo on the 4-Sept-2004. But it was really small. Or the building really took most of the energy. Cause I couldn't really feel anything but the girls were telling me we were in an earthquake. I'm sure I've been in heaps of earthquakes but I just have noticed them. But the one in June was pretty strong. That was my first noticable experience with an earthquake.

Ok, I think I'll leave you guys with that for now. I hope I can send this message to you guys sooner rather than later.

Take care,
Chan in Japan

Would you like to be kept updated on what I'm up to?

2004-09-07T02:10:00.000+10:00

If you do then go here and type in your email. This will send an email to you every time I update this blog.

http://www.botablog.com/botthisblog.php?blog=http://bluechan83.europe.webmatrixhosting.net/atom.xml

This link was from William but I'm not sure if everyone saw it the first time. (Thanks again Will)

Take care all,
Chan in Japan

Chan in Japan Update: 04-Sept-2004

2004-09-07T02:01:00.000+10:00

Hi All,
Well I have my laptop back now so I can write longer messages again. It is now 08:52 on Friday 4th of September 2004. I'm really appreciating Australia right now. Don't get me wrong Japan is great but travelling alone for 9 days really drains you.

I'm currently travelling from Nagoya to Tokyo to meet up with Melissa and Reichell. I met these two girls at the Summer camp in August. I might have already talked about the camp before but not in much detail. The camp is organised by JR Shikoku (Japan Rail Shikoku), Shikoku is one of the many islands off the main islands of Japan. As some will already know Japan is made up of many Islands. In August I worked on a small island called Awashima which had a population of 350 people.

The camp (01-Aug-2004 to 25-Sept-2004) had Two sessions or two groups of kids. Each staying for 1 week. The camp had about 20 staff and 30 or so kids for the first session and 16 kids for the second session so the camp increased the poplulation of the island by a considerable amount. At the camp I was a Mountain Bike instructor. It was a whole lot of fun. But very exhausting. And because there was no information from the previous instructor, I had to make up all the lesson plans from scratch. I thankfully had a good knowledge of Cycling both Mountain and road so I at least knew what I was talking about. But there were no off road trails on the island. And I was specifically told that I could not go off road. So I was really a Cycling instructor not a mountain bike instructor. But I found ways to make things a little more interesting. For example, I couldn't find any rough downhills so I used some some stairs and a bits of rough ground that I found along the way.

Being a Cycling instructor was great though. Cause I had to explore the island for trails early on and this ment I got to know the island pretty well. I travelled on every road on the island, traveling from one end to the other.

One thing about Japan that is pretty noticable is the amount of rubbish on beaches. This was particularly noticable on the Awashima. It made me so sad to see what would be absolutely beautiful beaches ruined by garbage. Another thing which is different from home is the way the Japanese dispose of rubbish here. In Australia mainly have 3 bins. One for general waste, one for plastic and glass and one for paper. Here in Japan waste is seperated into the following categories: Burnable, Non-burnable, PET bottles (plastic drinking bottles), Aluminium and glass. And at first this seems to be a really responsible thing to do but if you noticed that the first two categories were burnable and non-burnable? So yeah they burn their rubbish here. Some people furn it themselves but most send this rubbish off to facilities to have it burnt.

On Awashima many residents burnt their rubbish on the beach. Yep that's right they pile up their rubbish on the beach and set it a blaze. And as I travel across Japan I see shafts of smoke rising into the sky. Not just one or two but hundreds. This occurs more in rural areas but still this can't be good for the environment.

After the camp at Awashima I travelled to Kobe (26-Sept-2004) to meet up with Coco. I met Coco in Melbourne when she went there to study. She's a really nice girl. She had an accident a few years back, she was paralised, unable to speak, read or do much at all really. Now looks like a million dollars, although she admitted to me it's only a persona and she still has a bit to go before she is fully recovered.

Kobe is easily my favourite city in Japan. It really reminds me of Melbourne. It's very multicultural and it's not over crowded. I think I like it because it's not grey like most cities. It actually has a bit of colour and it appears to be a little more relaxed.

As most of you would know Japan has a very dense population. I experienced this in Osaka (27-Aug-2004) where I met up with Taki (thanks again Taki). I don't want to go back to Osaka. It's way too crowded, it's crazy. I know it's strange to say this while I'm heading for Tokyo the biggest city in Japan. I'm mainly going to Tokyo to meet up with the girls and one of the kids from the camp, Ma-chan. He's the cutest and brightest little kid I've met. This kid will go places once he grows up. Anyway, everyone has told me I have to visit Tokyo because I'm in Japan and it's the thing to do. But I'm not looking forward to being wedged in with the mob of people like a sardine.

After Osaka I travelled to Kyoto and done the whole Kyoto thing. It was good but very touristy. Not really my thing. I mean once you' see one temple you've seen them all. I know what you're thinking, "you should appreciate the culture and the history". That's all well and good to say that but you don't understand how touristy it is there.

I stayed in Kyoto for 3 days (29 to 31 Sept 2004). On the first day when I was travelling to the Ryokan where I was staying. I was asking the bus driver about the stop where I had to get off. A family group (Ryuta, Kayo and Kiyoko) who were also traveling to the same bus stop overheard and invited me to join them. They took me to an old Japanese spa and a huge shrine which was really close to where I was staying.

After Kyoto I went to Nara (01-Sept-2004). I liked Nara it's nice and small. With a few places where you can sit down and just relax. Nara also has some pretty good food.

My next stop after Nara was Osaka (02-Sept-2004) to pick up some stuff that I left at Taki's place and while I was there I went by Kobe again to spend the day with Coco.

On 03-Sep-2004 I went back to Nagoya to drop off some items and to pick-up my laptop. My laptop is a heavy brick but I need some kind of entertainment on this trip. The TV here is pertty ordinary not to mention I don't understand any of it. One thing though. In most places I've stayed there is a pay per view thing. Usually you stick in 100 yen and you get like 10 minutes of porn. Interesting. But the Japanese porn isn't like the porn we have at home. The girls scream and scream and make weird noises. And all the good bits have been fuzzed out due to the Japanese censorship laws. So I got over the whole porn channel thing pretty quickly.

The food here is pretty good though. Even if I don't know what it is. Sometimes I get adventurous and pick a random thing from the menu. So far it's been OK. But my favourite food chain in Japan is a place called "Matsuynoya". The most popular dish is thinly sliced pork on rice. But the reason why I like this place is it's my only regular source of salad in Japan. I usually get a set meal which has some kinda meat on rice, miso soup and a small bowl of salad. So I try to go there once every 3 days or so. But I have eaten there for all three meals on some days.

I think I've typed enough for now. If you have read this far then you really are interested in my trip. I probably would have given up on the second paragraph.

Sorry it's so long but it's been a while since I've had access to a normal keyboard and my computer.

Remember if you want to send me messages please send them to my mobile email: chaninjapan(AT)c.vodafone.ne.jp (replace the (AT) with @).

Take care,
Chan in Japan

Heading back to Nagoya

2004-09-03T12:33:00.000+10:00

Hi All,
I'm currently in Kobe and I'll be heading to Nagoya on the 12:10 train. Since my last message I have travelled to Kyoto and Nara. I will post up the pictures as soon as I can. I can't do it now because I have a train to catch :)

My current plans are to go to Nagoya, crash at Takako's place (thanks Takako). Repack my stuff (get rid of half the junk that I've picked up along the way. Pick up my laptop and then head to Tokyo the next morning. Meet up with Melissa and Reichell and see some sights and then crash at their place (thanks gals). Then after that I'm not sure perhaps I'll keep heading north to Sapporo.

But I have to admit I'm exhausted. I am really looking forward to coming home. Arhh! running out of time (in this internet cafe). Ok, um... Well I'll post again soon...

-Chan (on the run)

Chan's Adventure 28-Aug-2004

2004-08-28T21:21:00.000+10:00

Hi all,
Well I'm in Osaka at the moment. Since my last post I've been back to the camp on Awashima Island and completed the second Session. I'm now roaming around Japan, getting into what trouble I can find.

I departed Awashima on the 26th at 7:50am. I arrived in Kobe around 13:00 on the same day. Coco met me and took me to a Hotel called R&B, where I checked in my bags and headed out for lunch with her and her mum. We ended up eating curry at an actual Indian resturant. Kobe is a really multicultural city. It reminds me of Melbourne. Later that day Coco took me out to a Universal Studio Japan, staff party. Basically they're all performers so they had unplugged performances. It was pretty cool, they were very talented.

Yesterday (27-Aug-2004) I spent the day walking around Kobe, exploring.

I then moved all of my stuff over to Taki's place in Osaka and that's where I'm staying tonight. I'll be heading over to Kyoto tomorrow but I'll be leaving some stuff at Taki's. I'll stay over in Kyoto and go to Nara on the next day. Depending on how things go I might stay in that area for a little while it depends on how nice Kyoto really is. My plan after that is to head back to Nagoya and fix up a few things and then head over to Tokyo and then maybe head over to Sapporo.

I'm posting up pictures as usual. So please head over to my pictures section to see all the new pics.

-Chan in Japan

Update: 16-Aug-2004

2004-08-16T23:18:00.000+10:00

Ok, sorry for not updating my blog. But I have had some technical difficulties. Ok so far this is what's been happening. I have finished my training (aka Pre-camp) and I have been a Mountain Bike Instructor for the last week for the first group of kids. It was great fun and I look forward for to the next group.

I've been taking pictures like there's no tomorrow. Which wasn't a problem in the past but it's a bit of a problem now that I don't have regular internet access. I've been basically spending the last 3 hours uploading pictures.

My current plans are as follows. Finish the camp on the 26th of August. Head over to Kobe the next morning and meet up with Koko. And the rest is very flexible at the moment.

I'm exhausted. I'm sorry I can't type anymore...

Take care all,

"Chan in Japan"

Chan in Hiroshima

2004-08-16T22:34:00.000+10:00

Hi all,
Well I'm in Hiroshima at the moment doing a little sightseeing. I've been here for 2 days now and I'm leaving tomorrow morning.

On the first day in Hiroshima I was invited by Akiko Suzuki (a Japanese girl who stopped me for no apparent reason) to do what I thought was at first some kind of cult activity. But lucky it wasn't. It ended up being an activity for Peace. Yep that's right Peace. You see here in Hiroshima there's a strong anti-war feeling because of what happened in the war.

OK, so activity was basically building a dome out of plastic sheets. It sounds easy but it actually took a little bit of work and precision taping. I'm in the process of uploading the pics now so for those who have no idea what I'm rambling on about just check out the pics.

And today I went to Miyajima. This is where the "Floating" Torii lives. It's basically a big gate that was built on a marsh. At high tide the gate looks like it is floating on the water. Again I'm in the process of uploading the pics so please spend sometime checking them out.

There were a lot of really tame deer there they were just walking around amongst the tourists. But again pictures say a 1000 words so just check out my pics.

-Chan in Japan

Pictures of where I'm working.

2004-08-11T23:09:00.000+10:00

The JR Shikoku company has a web site where pics are being posted. If you want to see what I'm up to go to this website:
http://ptc.jrscomware.com/canada/scr/board/QBoard.asp?DispKeyword=&Action=%82%B3%82%AA%82%B7&DocLimiteSel=0&ChkDispLink=&DispCategory=%82%B7%82%D7%82%C4%82%CC%8Cf%8E%A6&DispLink=ON&DispImg=&SearchFolder1=&DocLimiteNo=0&DefLimNo=1&DocLimite=&Keyword

It's all in Japanese so for those who don't understand Japanese (myself included) just have a look at the pics. I can't post any of my own pics up yet as we are on a dialup connection. So you guys will just have to wait for a little while.

I have limited access to the internet. An my email Blog posts don't seem to work for some reason. So for this leg of my journey I won't have much posted up.

Good luck and Take care all.

I will post messages as soon as I get to an internet cafe with a decent connection. Not to mention all the pics.

-Chan in Japan

TYPHOON!!! 31-JULY-22004

2004-08-03T14:11:00.000+10:00

I'm stuck in a place called OKAYAMA. It's the city which connects the main island of Japan to SHIKOKU. There aren't any trains or ferries going to SHIKOKU tonight. So I've had to rent a room for the night. This leg of my journey is already eating into my funds. GRRR. I know that doesn't sound very adventurous but I'm on a stricted budget on this trip.

The other problem is I have to be in Takuma by 10am tomorrow morning but if there are no trains then I can't get there on time. But I'm sure it'll all work out.
-Chan in the typhoon :(

Chan has left NAGOYA (31-July-2004)

2004-08-03T14:07:00.000+10:00

Hi all,
I'm on a train bound for HIMEJI. And I've just been informed that the ferry to AWASHIMA island has been cancelled due to the typhoon. So it looks like I'll be staying in TAKUMA tonight. After packing all of my stuff I'm carrying about 20kg on my back. That's after sending home 16kg and leaving my laptop and about 15kg worth of stuff with Takako (Thanks again Takako). I think at some stage I will have to send back another box.

The Japanese landscape is really beautiful. With rolling hills and these rice patties. Even in a typhoon. Actually it looks pretty good when the wind blows over the rice fields. It actually creats waves, very nice.

I experienced my first earthquake on Tuesday morning at 01:55 NAGOYA, JAPAN time. It was only a small one. But it was enough to shake my bed and other items in my room. I was just hoping that it wasn't going to get worse. There were 3 small earthquakes in a row. But no damage was done so all is well.

I just wish I paid attention in the Japanese classes in High School. Oh well.

Chan in Japan signing off.

Update: 29-July-2004

2004-07-29T15:05:00.000+10:00

Hi all,
Well on Saturday 24-July-2004 Takako and her boyfriend took me to Nagashima Spaland. It's basically a big amusment park near Nagoya. It's got some really great rides. My favourite was the "Giant Frisby" I've posted up the pics from that day up on my gallery as usual. I've also posted a link to my gallery on my homepage so if you don't want to sign up to "Image Station" you can use my guest username and password. So yeah.

On Sunday, 25-July-2004 I went to Toyota city for the "Oiden" which means Welcome. So it was a Welcome festival? Well yeah it had heaps of fireworks. The only problem was that I was so close to the fireworks some of the fragments fell on me and the people around me. Of course the fragments weren't big or dangerous but they did stain. So now my nice white t-shirt has a whole bunch of little yellow dots. Which wouldn't be such a problem but I've only got a limited amount of cloths here in Japan. But all is well. I'm in the process of posting up those pictures right now.

I hope you like the pics. Some are average but there are some really nice ones there I think. Well you be the judge.

My current plans are as follows:
08:53 31-July-2004
Depart Nagoya from Kanayama train station on a JR train using the Seishun Juhachi Kippu (discounted all day ticket)

15:55 31-July-2004
Arrive in Takuma and then I have to find my way to Awashima Island. It should be fun :)

The rest is up in the air. I plan to visit all the major sites of Japan but I'm on a pretty tight budget so I'll have to see how I go... I might have to sleep in the park every now and then...

But all is well. This has and will be a great adventure for me.

I hope you're all taking care of yourselves...

-Chan in Japan

First Post!

2004-07-19T00:18:00.000+10:00

Hi All, Well thanks to William I have started this Blog. Blog stands for weB LOG. It's basically an online Journal. This one allows me to make updates using email. So I don't even need access to the internet just my Japanese mobile phone and wala, updates from anywhere in Japan. Neat Ha? Thanks again Will for the address of this service. I owe you a big one. Ok, I have a little bit of news. I'm in the process of changing my flights around so that I can spend a few days in Malaysia, Singapore and if I have the time and the money I might to Indonesia to visit Gogo. But nothing is firm as of yet. And I plan to fly to Sydney when I come back and not Melbourne as originally planned. I'm going there to meet up with Anna. I've been spending so much money lately, but it's because I'm getting ready to leave Nagoya and actually travel through Japan. The only worry at this stage is that I might run out of money before the end of my trip. But at the moment I've budgeted approximately AU$160 per day for everything including transport. I hope that's enough. I've got a few backup plans... Fish net stockings and a few school girl uniforms and such... heheheh... Perhaps not. But I've got my credit card and AU$1000 in cash for emergencies. I should be OK... I've given up on going to Mt.Fuji as I just don't have the time. I will have to conquer that bump in the earth on my next trip. And I plan to go to Hiroshima in my break from the job in Shikoku. I hope 2 days are enough to explore Hiroshima. Well that's about it for now. I hope you are all taking care of yourselves...