Bubble tea, bubble tea, everywhere; value differ from place to place

Value is decided by demand.
Some affordable things in a country have great value in another country.
It happens because some common things are rare in a different place.
For my small example, when I visited a night market in Taiwan, I got attracted to a charge cable for iPhone. The cable was covered with knitted fabric. I'm not sure whether you know of it, but it was like a cable for Kotatsu (table with electric heater).
I haven't seen the cables for iPhone in Japan.
Although they were in a too plain and dull package, the fabric knitted with two colors was lovely enough for me to feel like I could sell it for a higher price in Japan.
At that time I bought 20 of them at a discounted price, and tried to sell them after removing unsalable packages and named the Kotatsu cord through C2C service.
Eventually, they could sell out for a 5 times higher price than in Taiwan.

Sigh. Taiwan reminds me of another thing, my favorite, bubble tea.
I want to have a bubble tea there. They have enormous sorts of teas and they mix the tea and tapioca or something nice on the spot.
Buying it, and drinking it during walking. It makes my mouth water.
I drank them twice every day then. The drink will lead me to Taiwan...
I wonder why no one imports such a flavoursome drink, especially because the initial cost seems cheap, and all you need to start the business is one certain machine and recipe.
However, it should be expensive at all even if it's imported into Japan.
Or better yet, should I import the machine?

Bubble tea, bubble tea, everywhere (in Taiwan) nor any bubbles to drink (here).

Thanks to Andree and Haiiro 's revision.

Speed of light, my perception

All my bags are packed...

I'm leaving the Philippines on a jet plane.
Beyond the ocean, it takes only a few hours from the Philippines to Japan by plane, but if I were light, I could get there within one-tenth of a second provided that the runway for light was not crowded.

Light is the quickest thing in the world. I know that, but I really don't feel that.
I admire the person who noticed that light has speed or who doubted whether light is omnipresent.
It's obviously a thing, like presence or absence, that's all for me!
Who noticed light travels 'a path' from a light source to our eyes?

I've never felt light itself, though I've felt light sources like lamps and things light shines from.
It's understandable that sound has speed because we can feel it, but regarding light, if I could live a 100 times, I wouldn't doubt it.

Some geniuses will notice and clarify things that are too normal to tell like emotions, distance, time, the difference between animate and inanimate, et cetera.
Whereas I'm taking an airplane while I don't know how it was made, how it flies, and where it'll go.

Oops, I know the last one.
But I don't know when I'll be back again.

Thanks to SY, Danielle, and Haiiro's correction.

Bohol and Kagoshima; Colonial Style houses from a long distance

I visited Bohol island.

I spotted this distinctive style of house many times on Bohol Island, Philippines.

They have big windows on the façade side, and the handrail under the windows is made of wood, but curved, resembling embellished pillars.

It reminded me of the old building I saw in Kagoshima, Japan. I felt that there were similar features on those two buildings from a long distance.

The building in Japan was built in the 19th century for British engineers' accommodation.

If my memory serves me well, the style was called 'Colonial Style' which was created based on European houses but adopted to a tropical climate.

Kagoshima area is the southern most area in Japan, so it might be built in that style.

I feel odd that I remember Japan rather than Europe when I see a style that came from Europe.

Which do you think is Kagoshima's?

Thanks to Chibi-lang and Madox's correction.

At an airport; To deal with remaining local currency

Ummm, what a convenient box. Have you ever seen it before?

I saw this unfamiliar machine in Manilla's airport. And that was what I want!

It said my left over local currency can be transferred into a PayPal deposit, iTunes credit, Skype credit and so forth (anyway many kinds).

By using this, it seems I don't need to visit currency exchange or be concerned about remaining small bills. I have several countries' small bills because they are not accepted with in Japanese exchange shops.

Isn't it futuristic?

What I was amazed was this kind of machine in an airport, although exchange stores must have been against for it.

I was a bit concerned about the commission fee, but just I tried to transfer all my money, 1000PHP, to PayPal but the message "'it's unavailable in your country"' truly disappointed me.

Japan fell behind...

(PayPal is not unavailable but iTunes and Skype are okay)

Although it is invalid in my country, I feel that currency exchange services might disappear in the near future.

Instead, that kind of service could be used as an international bank to withdraw and deposit money. There might be no need to bring much cash abroad, I hope.

Thanks to Zahnsan's revision

***

I checked the service later and it turned out it's called TravelersBox, and they have Japanese brunch but haven't started the service. It seems they've been running less than 10 machines on the globe, mainly in Middle East. The Philippines is the only country they conduct service in Asia as of now. The company was founded in 2012, based in Turkey (wow!).

Which Way is East? (and What Happens in the Outer Space)

<The world map>

When I say western culture, I'm confused because Europe is west from Japan but America is east.

Looking at a world map, the American continent is located far East from Japan...

You may be puzzled too.

The cause of this question is that types of world maps differ from countries.

It was not until I went to Canada that I knew the map I had known was not the global standard.

I figured out why this area is called Far East then.

<The world map I know>

North, south, east and west are useful but relative index.

East from here is west from further east.

Come to think of it, this index is functional just on the earth. As you know the directions are based on magnetic field of the earth. What will happen in the space age? There is no north. What will be the guide of the sea of outer space? The earth or sun cannot be the pointer because all things being are in flux endlessly. Will people make an absolute coordinate?

In that case, it will also be hard because everything is moving as I mentioned. For example, my existence address is changing every one millisecond because I'm on the moving earth and the moving earth is in an expanding universe.

My address is moving at over 1000000km per hour, I'm totally not exact, though.

It's funny to think that moving as fast as the earth means 'still' on the earth. If we saw the absolute-coordinatly still thing, it obviously looks like it's moving, too fast to be obvious.

I'm no expert so I can't think about it further but I realized NSWE is a really convenient index as long as we won't leave the earth.

Yes I'd rather say "please go to north for 1km" instead of "go to the point which is 2633as23,3868hs67,3765go96,2578as09 at 76767754443 milliseconds sharp later."

Hahaha.

Thanks to Lavender's correction.

Gustavo Speridião; Adding a word, Making it art

Adding a word, Making it art

Several words are roughly written on a picture.

This is the artwork by Gustavo Speridião which I saw in the Kyoto city museum.

The picture itself was not taken by him but came from a magazine, LIFE.

He made it as an art by just writing or drawing on a published picture to add another meaning.

On the right picture, he drew the line between two youngsters and wrote 'new and old' and mentioned the class war.

By the line, two close friends are turned to people from different classes, and the person on the left seems to be trying to take another person from the old class to the new one.

Possibly it might be the opposite, it implies that they cannot be friends because they are in different classes.

A cheerful scene is suddenly turned into a picture with serious theme.

The left picture looks like it was taken from a moving vehicle.

Originally, the forefront building is clear and the rear ones are blurred but by adding just two words, the picture becomes the one that expresses modern society. Everything is changing.

It seems the buildings are literally moving and also seems like a fast-forwarding of history, like life flashing before your eyes.

What is more thought-provoking is that the blurred buildings are mostly high rises but the clear one looks traditional.

Does being still mean isolation or an immovable value?

Just by scribbling words, the artist can totally change the inherent meaning of a picture.

Thanks to MauricioEiji's revision.

Crouching Pollock

This is a contemporary artwork called "Crouching Pollock" by one of the most famous Chinese contemporary artists, Cai Guo-Qiang, transcribed in Chinese character 蔡國強.

Two shabby robots are spattered with vibrant-colored paints. There's a canvas but it's being splashed with pink paint. As you can see, it seems the electrical chords are connected to the robots to supply electricity. 

What for?  Of course, to enable the robots to do the painting. Using their mechanical hands, the robots are able to splash paints on the canvas from a paint container held by the other hand.

From the name of this artwork and the method of painting, you may realize that this style imitates Jackson Pollock, who is one of the most influential abstract painters in the 20th century and whose style is famous for spattering. The heads of the robots have pictures indicating Pollock in action.

Having the robots do the painting in the same as the renowned artist do his artwork is a radical criticism to his masterpiece.

The artwork questions the value of the artwork. I'm not exactly sure but  every Pollock masterpiece costs not less than 1 million dollar  (I'm sure the most extravagant of all is over 100 million dollars, which can be compared to the GDP of a small country). On the other hand, paintings done by the robots sold on the spot at about 50 dollars. Although they have similar method, and appearance, nevertheless there is no comparison between the values. It clarifies the usual but forgettable fact that the price of art is perceived not by its beauty but its value in the market in capitalism, in other words the demands. How famous its painter is, and how popular the painting is determines the value .

After you are stimulated intellectually, let's enjoy another aspect of this artwork. It is very lovely that the robots waving their hand and splattering innocently without caring of getting stained by spattering colors. Lovely! 

Crouching?  Pondering?

Thanks to Ezro's revision.

Trying translation of novel, 山月記 Sangetsu ki

I tried to translate my favorite novel which was written 70 years ago!

I hope I managed to translate it without misinterpretation!

Sangetsu Ki by Nakajima Atsushi

<Summary>

( During the Tang dynasty in China, a man named Richo got a job in a government office but he looked down on the job and he pursued his dream to be an acclaimed poet. He left his job but he didn't achieve his goal very soon, so he got employed again. However he couldn't stand the job eventually, so he ran away into the mountains. Few years later, his colleagues encountered a tiger in the deep mountain but it actually turned out Richo. He transformed into a tiger.)

<Extract>

              The remaining moonlight was chilly, glistening dew fell around the earth. Shivery wind through trees foretold that the dawn was near.

The witnesses quietly lamented the fate of this poet without thinking of how bizarre it was.

Richo continued to speak.

              "I said I don't know why I had such a fate, . Having said that, there are some things that come to mind. When I was a human, I tried to avoid having a relationship with people. People said I was arrogant and presumptuous. They didn't notice that these behaviors due to shyness per se. Of course, I, who was said to be a genius in my hometown, can't see myself that I had no pride. However, this pride should be called coward's pride. Although I aspired to make a name for myself, I didn't become an apprentice of a school nor did I study hard by competing fellows who have the same aim for the advancement of poetry. Nevertheless, I couldn't live in a routine world. Both originated from my cowardly pride and arrogant shyness. Because of my misgivings, I noticed I am not a diamond, I put off to polish my talent. Because of my useless confidence, I couldn't stand living as a common person. I have gradually grown distance from the world, from the people, and then my regret and resentment increased my cowardly pride in the end.

              Every man is a tamer and his beast might be his own personality. In my case, this cowardly pride is my beast, a tiger. The tiger harmed me, made my family suffer, hurt my friends, and eventually it transformed my appearance into a tiger which is appropriate for my personality. Now that I think about it, I swallowed up my little talent wastefully. I continually grumbled that life is too long to do nothing but too short to achieve something. In fact, all I had was the apprehension that people would discover my lack of talent, and the laziness that I was loath to do hard work. There are countless acclaimed poets who had originally less talents than me but have polished it intently. I noticed it after I became a tiger.
When I think of it, I still feel like I am being burned. I no longer can live as a human. Even if I compose a dazzling poem in my mind, how can I make it public? Furthermore, my mind has been becoming a tiger day after day. What in the world do would I do? How can I manage my wasted time? It's intolerable. When I feel like this, I climb up the boulder over there and roar toward the uninhabited valley. I want someone to know I am choked up, but animals are just scared of my roar. The mountain, trees, the moon and dew, anyone sees me as a roaring tiger with rage. Likewise, no one understood my nervousness when I was a human. The reason why my fur got wet was not only night dew."

              The darkness is slowly disappearing. A sound of an animal horn is heard which announces that the dawn is coming.

I appreciate Abby and Madox's correction.

好きな小説の好きな部分を訳してみました。まずもって意味を崩さず訳せているといいのですが。

＜Summary＞
中国の唐代、李徴という男がいて宮仕えを始めたものの、役人の仕事を軽んじ、詩人になることを思い立ち、役人を辞した。しかし、年を経ても大成せず、李徴は再び役人になる。しかし結局仕事に耐えられず、山野に逃げ込んだ。何年かのち、彼の同僚が山深くで虎に出会った。その虎はもともと人であった。李徴であった。李徴は虎に成り果てていたのだ。

Original, Japanese version
<Extract>
時に、残月、光冷やかに、白露は地に滋く、樹間を渡る冷風は既に暁の近きを告げていた。人々は最早、事の奇異を忘れ、粛然として、この詩人の薄倖を嘆じた。李徴の声は再び続ける。
　何故こんな運命になったか判らぬと、先刻は言ったが、しかし、考えように依れば、思い当ることが全然ないでもない。人間であった時、己は努めて人との交を避けた。人々は己を倨傲だ、尊大だといった。実は、それが殆ど羞恥心に近いものであることを、人々は知らなかった。勿論、曾ての郷党の鬼才といわれた自分に、自尊心が無かったとは云わない。しかし、それは臆病な自尊心とでもいうべきものであった。己は詩によって名を成そうと思いながら、進んで師に就いたり、求めて詩友と交って切磋琢磨に努めたりすることをしなかった。かといって、又、己は俗物の間に伍することも潔しとしなかった。共に、我が臆病な自尊心と、尊大な羞恥心との所為である。己の珠に非ざることを惧れるが故に、敢て刻苦して磨こうともせず、又、己の珠なるべきを半ば信ずるが故に、碌々として瓦に伍することも出来なかった。己は次第に世と離れ、人と遠ざかり、憤悶と慙恚とによって益々己の内なる臆病な自尊心を飼いふとらせる結果になった。人間は誰でも猛獣使であり、その猛獣に当るのが、各人の性情だという。己の場合、この尊大な羞恥心が猛獣だった。虎だったのだ。これが己を損い、妻子を苦しめ、友人を傷つけ、果ては、己の外形をかくの如く、内心にふさわしいものに変えて了ったのだ。今思えば、全く、己は、己の有っていた僅かばかりの才能を空費して了った訳だ。人生は何事をも為さぬには余りに長いが、何事かを為すには余りに短いなどと口先ばかりの警句を弄しながら、事実は、才能の不足を暴露するかも知れないとの卑怯な危惧と、刻苦を厭う怠惰とが己の凡てだったのだ。己よりも遥かに乏しい才能でありながら、それを専一に磨いたがために、堂々たる詩家となった者が幾らでもいるのだ。虎と成り果てた今、己は漸くそれに気が付いた。それを思うと、己は今も胸を灼かれるような悔を感じる。己には最早人間としての生活は出来ない。たとえ、今、己が頭の中で、どんな優れた詩を作ったにしたところで、どういう手段で発表できよう。まして、己の頭は日毎に虎に近づいて行く。どうすればいいのだ。己の空費された過去は？　己は堪らなくなる。そういう時、己は、向うの山の頂の巖に上り、空谷に向って吼える。この胸を灼く悲しみを誰かに訴えたいのだ。己は昨夕も、彼処で月に向って咆えた。誰かにこの苦しみが分って貰えないかと。しかし、獣どもは己の声を聞いて、唯、懼れ、ひれ伏すばかり。山も樹も月も露も、一匹の虎が怒り狂って、哮っているとしか考えない。天に躍り地に伏して嘆いても、誰一人己の気持を分ってくれる者はない。ちょうど、人間だった頃、己の傷つき易い内心を誰も理解してくれなかったように。己の毛皮の濡れたのは、夜露のためばかりではない。
　漸く四辺の暗さが薄らいで来た。木の間を伝って、何処からか、暁角が哀しげに響き始めた。

　

Japanese Religious Belief; No religion?

              Some people from different countries or even Japanese themselves say that Japanese people have no religion. Despite the results of statistical study which shows 72% of Japanese people believe Buddhism and 76% believe Shinto which is Japan's indigenous religion, Japanese people tend to say "I don't believe in any religion".*

              However, is that sure enough? I'm somewhat skeptical about the perspective. I assume that they say like that because of unawareness of current Japanese religious situation and different definitions of "religious belief" between Japanese people's mind and others.

              When the word "believe" is mentioned in religious way, it implies Christianity or other monotheism religion for Japanese. It is possible that most Japanese people misconstrued the principle of religious belief for the belief of monotheism especially when they talk to someone in English. If the definition of religious belief is following doctrine, I'm pretty sure that most Japanese don't have the belief because Shinto doesn't have specific doctrine, but it's certain that the definition is not like that.

              The evidence is that Japanese people who say "I don't have any religion" actually feel the existence of gods including other religions' gods, sprits, or something supernatural power. You may be perplexed with the definition of "no religion". Does "no religion" mean "no god"? We, Japanese people are not concerned about it.

              We think ourselves as people who have no religion but we go to cemetery to pray for our ancestors' sprits and visit shrines to wish for our success to gods' supernatural power. When a Japanese person watches some news that someone was murdered, he may fell the victim's soul will lose the way to heaven because of grudge.

We normally think good behavior will be rewarded and bad one will be punished by fate. That was one of the wisdom in Buddhism but we no longer remember where it is from. I'm sure that things above are not seen as religious feelings for most Japanese. We don't realize our culture is based on religions. 

Are they entitled to call people as people with no religion or agnostic? 

As I mentioned, if having religion needs to follow a doctrine, then they are. 
We may say, yes, they are, so I suppose "religious belief" means following some doctrine for Japanese.

              Meanwhile, religious practice of Japanese is certainly not active. That kind of practice in each household is becoming extinct. In a sense, it is becoming expected that we think and see ourselves that we are people with no religion.

               As I see it, a suitable expression for Japanese religious situation is thinking something slightly that supernatural exist but our practice is not that active like other religion's people. We pray for supernatural things in seasonal events but we don't realize these are religious gestures. Compare to other group of religious people, we feel ourselves that we usually do nothing so we often say we have no religion. It's true but it is hard to explain.

(*The total of percentage will be over 100 but it is not an error. This matter is related to other aspect of Japan's religions but it'll stray to the point so I didn't mention it in this essay.)

Thanks for Sheree's correction.

A pier and a shoal, 遠浅

I walked on a pier jutting out from a shallow beach on Mactan Island.

The pier jutted out so far offshore that its end couldn't be seen at from the beach.

The pier consisted of concrete blocks with gaps so I could see under the pier while walking.

As I walked toward offshore, the water became clear and emerald green.

Although I was at several hundred meters from the beach, the depth was still shallow enough to see the bottom.

In a shoal, occasionally eccentric sceneries attract me, trees in an offshore and emerging a pathway towards the sea, for example.

I spotted a stair leading down to water at the end of the pier and went down to soak my foot.

The water was lukewarm unlike my hometown's lake that I tightly braced myself to dive there.

Surrounded by the sea, the sky, the shore in far distance, time passed slowly.

I returned that way thinking about swimming there after lunch.

The next time I went there, the tide had ebbed and the color of emerald green was lost.

I tried to swim regardless of the darker water but was prevented from swimming because of the rapid current.

Thank you Zerr and Madox!