I just got back (well, actually I got back a while ago but I've been downstairs so I just got back in my room) and I thought I'd drop a quick note about today before going to sleep.
Today I had two major events: the TOEFL test and the Japan Philharmonic concert.
About the TOEFL I can be brief. It was long, it was boring, but I think it went well. I was finished well ahead of everyone else and fortunately they let you leave immediately. It still took me nearly three hours. No surprises here though. I'll get the result in fifteen days, or so I've been told.
Then the concert. As I said previously, this was the first time I've been to a classical performance. I can tell you though, it will not be the last. It was amazing! My seat was on the third floor almost entirely in the back, but I still had a very good view (the way the hall was constructed I don't think there were any really bad seats).
They played two pieces, both by Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto no. 3, and Symphony no. 2, in that order. The first is a favourite piece of mine, and this was an excellent performance. The pianist, Koyama Michie (Japanese name order, so Koyama is her last name), is my new hero. She put such energy, such zest into this piece, it was almost like she was performing a play behind her piano at times. She also made it look and sound so effortless, and that's saying something since Rachmaninov's piano work is the most complicated I know. It was very obvious she enjoyed the piece a lot, and that the audience enjoyed it a lot as well. When they started the final parts of the third movement, nearing the end, I was hoping they'd reveal a previously unknown fourth movement or something, I didn't want her to stop! But after 45 minutes it was over, and followed by a well deserved round of applause that lasted nearly 10 minutes. She came back on stage five times because people just wouldn't stop applauding. :)
I've got several different performances of this Piano Concert on my computer; this is now my favourite one (ok, so I'm biased cause I saw it live, who cares :P )
Then there was a fifteen minute intermission, followed by the Symphony No. 2. They played the 60 minute symphony in its entirety (it is often shortened). It was definitely very good, but Rachmaninov without piano is like a café without beer. Nothing bad about their performance, I just like the first piece better than this one. Still, I enjoyed it a lot.
Random notes:
It is a widely known fact that my primary music preference lies with rock, heavy metal, and associated genres. This isn't however to say I don't also enjoy other types of music, quite on the contrary in fact. It is not so widely known that I also enjoy classical music a great deal (as well as contemporary symphonic music, such as movie soundtracks).
Currently my favourite composer is without a doubt Sergei Rachmaninov. His most well-known piece is Piano Concerto's number 3, which is among my favourites as well.
Yesterday evening I happened to stumble upon an upcoming performance of this piece, along with his Symphony No. 2 (which is also very good), by the Japan Philharmonic Orchestra, on July 7th in Yokohama (less than an hour from here). I have never actually attended a classical performance before (although I have wanted to on a few occasions, I never got around to actually doing it), and this seemed like an ideal opportunity.
My initial plan was to wait until today (it was quite late yesterday when I found this) and ask around if somebody else wanted to go as well (I know several people here who would most likely be interested). Only, then I found out that tickets for the concert had been on sale since January, and that there were only two seats left! And these were in completely different sections, so even asking one other person to come would be a bit pointless.
On a whim, I ordered a ticket anyway. It was too good an opportunity to pass up. And it was probably a good thing too, because I checked this morning, and now it's sold out completely. Yes, I would've preferred to go with someone else, but better luck next time.
So next month I'm going to see this concert. Should be cool! Tanoshimi ni shimasu! (I'm looking forward to it)
Raymond Chen talks about using very long e-mail signatures, and on the most part I agree with him.
However, he makes one complaint that I must object against. In particular, he says "we already know your name and email address since it's in the message header". Yes, you do, but isn't it common courtesy to sign a message with your name?
The addressee knows his/her own name too, but I still think it's a good idea to start with "Hello X" or "Dear Y", or "Dear sir/madam" if I'm not sure.
Personally I think most people treat e-mail very loosely, at least in the Netherlands. If I send e-mail to a person or company that I don't know, I will treat the e-mail as if it was a letter. I will open with "Dear sir/madam" etc. But invariably I get a message back starting with "Hi Sven". Now I don't mind that sort of thing, but it's a strange assumption to make. Certainly if it was a letter people wouldn't automatically assume they could be so informal.
The Japanese live at the other end of the spectrum. Using first names is a big social faux-pas anyway over here (especially fun since no one here can pronounce my last name), except among very close friends. But many Japanese break Raymond's rules even more drastically by telling me my name, their name, the message, and then their name again.
Typically the messages will end up looking something like this:
"X-San
Y here from the office of Z.
Message goes here.
Regards,
Y"
Well, at least there's no doubt over who sent the message. :)
Just now, at June 2nd 2007, 14:45 JST, I felt another Earthquake. This one lasted a lot longer, about 10-15 seconds, and felt a bit stronger than the last one.
Up to date information will be available at the JMA for a limited time. The quake had magnitude of 4.6, and a seismic intensity of 4 at the epicentre (about 55km north east of here). The seismic intensity here at Setagaya was 2 (which confirms my feeling that it was stronger than the last one; that one was only 1).
Today, I finally got two items I wanted to get for some time. A commuter pass and a PASMO.
I got a student commuter pass from Seijogakuenmae to Shinjuku, for the Odakyu line. This covers one half of the route to the Hongo campus I have to take three times a week, and it also covers the route to my lab (then I get off before Shinjuku, but that doesn't matter, it still works). Plus I can use it whenever I need to go to Shinjuku for something else (and since that's usually the first stop no matter where in Tokyo I want to go, that happens a lot). Despite the fact that most people told me I couldn't get a student pass as long as I was only a research student, I still managed to get one. Which is good, since it's a good deal cheaper than a regular commuter pass. I waited so long to get one because I wanted to at least try to get a student pass, so I had to wait until I had my student ID card.
I considered also getting a pass for the second part (from Shinjuku to Hongo-sanchome with the Oedo line), but I only do that three times per week, and there's far less chance of incidental trips that way than on the way to Shinjuku. The commuter pass would cost almost as much as the single tickets would, so I didn't do it. Plus this affords me the freedom of using alternative routes, such as the Chiyoda line, if I want to.
It should be clear from this little explanation that the biggest problem with Tokyo public transportation is all the different companies. You pretty much have to buy a ticket every time you transfer. So far I've been using a passnet pass, which is a magnetic ticket which you buy in advance. It's not any cheaper than individual tickets, but you buy a fixed amount in advance and can use the pass until it's empty (then you must buy a new one). Passnet works on Odakyu and most subway lines (including the Oedo and Chiyoda lines), so it was fairly convenient. It does not, however, work on the JR lines. JR uses a system called Suica, which is a rechargable IC card (chip card), but that doesn't work for anything besides JR (or at least it used to).
A few months ago they introduced the PASMO. It's a rechargable IC card which works on (afaik) every single train and subway company in Tokyo (even JR; the PASMO and Suica can be used interchangably) and even in most buses. Like Passnet it's not cheaper but it is considerably more convenient. What's more, you can also put a commuter pass onto a PASMO, so I can now use this one pass where ever I go in Tokyo, even for the commuter pass route!
I would've gotten a PASMO a great deal sooner, but the PASMO was far more successful than originally anticipated (apparently they sold over 3 million in the first month; they had predicted only 2 million). Because of this currently PASMO's can only be bought in combination with a commuter pass; "normal" PASMO sales have been halted. But now I have one, which will make things much easier. :)
PASMO official site (in English).
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