~ bcos it's Japan ~

juz tot i wanna share some of the interesting things and news here in Japan.

Illegal Parking
when i first arrived in Japan, i was quite amazed at how my boss can simply park his car anywhere, such as right in front of a restaurant or at the side of the road. little did i know tt those were actually the last few days of this kinda luxury. starting from 1st June 2006, the Japanese govt enforced a new law tt cars are to be parked at allocated parking lots onli, and ppl who are caught for illegal parking gotta pay a fine of ard ¥15,000! so now, whenever boss bring us out to eat, he'd be looking out for his car from time to time to check tt no traffic police are in sight! =P

Price Hike for Cigarettes
cigarettes which are sold so cheaply (ard ¥300) and conveniently (vending machines) hv resulted in a high number of smokers in Japan. but from 1st July onwards, there'd be a 10-30yen increase on all cigarettes due to a tobacco tax hike. of cos this is still considered super cheap as compared to Singapore. but hopefully it also can help discourage some of the Japanese ppl from smoking.

Develop Copies of Photos for Free
i hv come to realised why many ppl r still using film camera here despite digital cameras being so much more handy. there's a shop called "しょうちゃん" which actually develop free copies of photos, regardless of the quantity required! so tt means one onli needs to pay for the initial development, and he can enjoy countless copies of photos from tt roll of film for free! a really good idea to distribute photos taken from parties, esp for the elderly ppl who r not so tech-savvy.

Chinese in Kobe
i didn't know this b4, but there r actually a large number of Chinese ppl in Kobe! other than the many Chinese restaurants ard and Nankin Machi (Chinatown of Kobe), there's also a Chinese School which is the largest Chinese school in Japan. apparently, it is a very popular school bcos many Japanese parents hv come to realise the importance of equipping their children with more than one language ability. i've also heard ppl talking in Mandarin quite a few times outside, and everytime i'd feel like making conversations with them, but didn't dare to. =P anyway, this little Chinese flavour has certainly made mi feel much more at ease with living in Kobe. =)

ok... tt's all for now but there's still lotsa interesting stuffs abt Japan tt i'm discovering everyday. will share again! hee~