Well, I’m back in Canada after all these years.
The last time I visited was about six years ago. During my first three years in Japan, I visited once every year but after that third time, I decided that the fourth time wouldn’t be a visit but a permanent return.
My body’s still a bit of a mess from the jet lag but it’s not as bad compared to the last three times. I suspect the main reason why I couldn’t get used to the jet lag before was due to the fact that I knew that my time was limited in the country and I couldn’t rest. I had this much time to do this many things in a short period of time. Plus the stress of reverse culture shock is always stimulating.
Finally being back, I’ve realized my world is quite puny. Besides the few people that know that I’m back, I haven’t gotten in touch with “everyone” (and that’s not that many people) yet. Slowly, I’ll start getting in touch with various people.
I went out a couple of days ago as I had to take care of various things.
I woke up late and realized that I should probably get down to business. I knew that I would have to get my driver’s license sooner or later. I checked out my face in the mirror and realized that I probably needed a shave for my mug shot. Without any shaving cream and razors I decided to take a fifteen minute walk down the street to the local pharmacy.
Walking through the old neighborhood I didn’t notice too much change. There were a few new crosswalks here and there but the Starbucks, fruit shop and liquor store were still there so that was all good.
The pharmacy that I went into seemed a bit run down compared to what I’ve seen in Japan. All the products seemed to look a little bit “cheaper” looking but I was glad to get a big bag of ten razors for $10. I was glad to find that there were about twenty different types of shaving cream. Japanese men tend to use electric shavers since they don’t have as much facial hair as western men (of course, it depends on the person) so the selection of shaving cream can be limiting. I chose the Gillette “sensitive” foamy shaving cream. It’s actually pretty good stuff.
Well, I had $40 in my pocket. One of the twenty dollar bills was an older version. It was nice that the middle aged Chinese cashier made sure to check whether it was a counterfeit bill. I guess she’s just doing her job.
I also decided to drop by the liquor store and buy a beer. It was nice to see a half decent selection of local and imported beer. After nine years of living in Japan and drinking the same boring five types of beer over and over (there’s a wonderful monopoly in Japan), I was glad to be able to do some beer shopping at a reasonable price. After selecting the beer that I wanted I nervously went to the cash register. I realized since I didn’t have my driver’s license, I had no photo I.D. Luckily, the cashier didn’t ask.
I walked back to my house and decided to take off to the bank to take care of a few things. I had some Japanese yen that I wanted to exchange into Canadian dollars, I needed a new debit card, etc, etc. The banker was an east-Indian woman around the same as me and we made a bit of small talk about Japan. I can’t ever remember making any small talk at a bank in Japan.
After that, I went into the downtown area by Skytrain (Vancouver’s monorail). The weather was nice and I reached downtown rather quickly. Renewing the driver’s license was a cinch and it took only about fifteen minutes.
The time was around 4:30 and I decided to walk around the downtown area just for fun.
Robson street was busy as ever and I noticed a lot of Korean language students walking around. I went to a McDonald’s to order a hamburger and what a rip off that was (something like $6.40 just for the burger). Being away so long, I forgot how to count Canadian money and I completely forgot about how the tax is added onto prices (this is not done so in Japan). After eating that overpriced hamburger (it had a funky looking bun that wasn’t very soft and the sweetness of the pickles didn’t go very well with the sandwich), I crossed the street and continued on my way. While crossing the street, I realized that I was looking the wrong direction (Japanese cars run on the opposite side). It’s going to be tough to reprogram my brain...
Walking down Denman street I noticed a lot of Japanese restaurants. I wonder how many of these places are actually tasty and Japanese owned.
Reaching the beach and the ocean, I could see Vancouver’s best point. I don’t think I came to this area so much when I lived here before. I would always go to other points that were a bit quieter. There’s definitely something special about seeing this kind of scenery in Vancouver.
Seeing the beach I decided it was about time to head home. I stopped by a department store and bought some socks, underwear and a few shirts. The sizes are completely different from Japanese sizes (much bigger) and I think my size might be between S and M (hit me, please). I noticed that the Vancouver Art Gallery has a “Matisse and Modern Master’s” exhibition going on now. I misread the sign and thought that the gallery might be open until 9 p.m. (the coffee shop is open until 9, not the museum) and I tried to unsuccessfully open the entrance door. An employee walked to the door and told me in a friendly way that the museum wasn’t open. Most of the workers in Vancouver seemed to be genuinely friendly where ever I went.
Well, that was my day out in Vancouver. While I’m sad that I’m out of Japan, I’m glad that I’ll be able to experience many new things over in Canada. My new life begins.
