John Galliano

Watch Paris Colleciton 2003 Spring/Summer on WOWOW (a satellite TV channel in Japan). It's too late to see, though...

Among many brand shows, John Galliano's one is the best for me. It's said to feature Indian spring festival. But it seems to me that what he's trying to do is to incorporate Europe, Hindu and Islam, and East Asia (this theme is what I'm really sensitive to since I started living in London) because his collection reveals elements of each culture. Also the clothes are really colourful and stimulating and out of control in a good way. Furthermore, the background music is Bhangra beat, Indian-flavored club music, which I'm now really into. So I like the show very much.

Shimokitazawa - okonomiyaki

Go and see Kondo-san's live performance at Shimokitazawa Club 251. She looks cool while she's drumming. I like seeing a woman who's doing what she really likes.

After the performance, I eat okonomiyaki (Japanese pizza) for lunch with Kanaya-kun at Kadomae (its review in English). As I can't cook okonomiyaki myself (this is because my mom's okonomiyaki is not tasty so I don't feel like learning how to cook it from her), it's a good opportunity to have one. If you pay just 800 yen (4 British pounds, 6.65 US dollars), you'll be full and satisfied with the taste. This is totally impossible in London.

Then I go to the Marui department store at Shibuya. This department store specialises in young casual wear and it's been a place to go for me to buy fashionable clothes. I'm amazed at seeing lots of nice menswear there. This is impossible at menswear stores in London. I've never ever had an experience of wondering which clothes I should choose to buy in London. Here in Tokyo, I've got lots of clothes I want to buy. I can't believe such a huge difference between Tokyo and London. In London, shopping around is just an agony. In Tokyo, shopping is a fun!

Then I go to the Tower Records Shibuya Branch. There I find out the title and artist of the reggae tune I like:

Wayne Wonder - "No Letting Go"
First I like the track (called "riddim" in Jamaica) itself. I get to know this riddim is called "Diwari". Many DJs in Jamaica sing versions of Diwari. But Wayne Wonder's song is the best. His voice is smooth and cosy.

Japanese women's pro-wrestling

Go to a local library to borrow Chikyu no Arukikata (the most popular overseas travel guidebook in Japan). I need to decide via which city I go to Cambodia. As I'm a member of the Virgin Atlantic Airways' frequent flier programme (called the "Flying Club"), and the Virgin Atlantic's partner airlines include the Singapore Airlines and the Malaysian Airways, I have two choices: Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. I read Chikyu no Arukikata - Singapore. This city seems nice.

Watch Japanese women's pro-wrestling matches on satellite TV. This is what I cannot do in London. Well, I guess the term "women's pro-wrestling" creates a lot of misunderstanding. First, pro-wrestling in Japan is totally different from the one in the States ever since the WWF gets popular there. The WWF pro-wrestling is more like drama rather than sports. Pro-wrestling in Japan has both elements of drama and sports. Second, "pro-wrestling" is totally different from amateur wrestling like the one you see in the Olympics. Amateur wrestling is purely sports while pro-wrestling has an aspect of drama. Finally, women's pro-wrestling is totally different from "catfight". Women's pro-wrestlers are surprisingly skillful, and on top of that they are entertainers. (I don't know much about "catfight". The only thing that I know is it's a form of porn.) A brief introduction to women's pro-wrestling in Japan can be found here though it's a totally superficial explanation.

Club Harlem

Plan a trip to Cambodia. There are many flight routes from Tokyo to Cambodia as there's no direct flight. Via Bangkok, via Ho Chi Minh City, via Singapore, and via Kuala Lumpur. Which one is the best choice for me?

Meet Takeshi in the evening. Go to Bobby's Cafe (one of my favorite restaurants/bars in Tokyo) at Shibuya. Talk about many things.

Then go clubbing at Club Harlem, Tokyo's no.1 hiphop club (If you like hiphop and happen to be in Tokyo, this is the place to go. Friday is the best night). I really enjoy music and dancing tonight. DJs play the hiphop and reggae tunes that I'm familiar with by listening to BBC Radio 1 programmes. DJ Kaori, a Japanese female hiphop DJ in New York, happens to be in the house.

Also one thing makes me happy a little bit tonight. While one of my favorite tunes (Joe Budden - "Pump It Up") is being played and I'm enthusiastically dancing, a guy in the club said to me like "Your dancing is cool!" He looks like a dancer, or at least one of those guys who practice break-dancing a lot. I'm not a dancer. I haven't learned how to dance. I just let my body follow the rhythm. I never try to impress other people by dancing. Still, someone who's sort of a professional dancer praises my dance. That's wonderful, isn't it?

Back in Tokyo for the First Time since I moved to London

I arrive at the Narita Airport at 10:30 am. What impresses me first is how clean and neat the airport building is compared to London Heathrow.

I take the Keisei Limited Express to get home from the airport. I feel like the train became wider than before. Obviously this is not true. It's just because the trains of London Underground are narrow.

When I arrive at my home, my parents happily welcome their son. I feel like I'm taller than before. This is because desks, wash basins, etc. in our house are designed to fit Japanese people, who are in general not as tall as Western people.