Archive: 2003-08
Life in Brussels
I’m now in my third week of my new job in Brussels. Although the two languages of the city are French and Dutch, my work is done entirely in English and Japanese. That’s good since I’ve forgotten a lot in French (although I am confident that I’ll get it back with regular exposure) and I’ve never been able to speak Dutch. My employment contract is in Dutch, though I don’t think there are any nasty surprises hidden away in there. I hope.
London’s Burning
I’m in London. It’s hot here; not quite as bad as Japan, but almost. I’m not really suffering from jetlag. I slept from 11pm to 8am local time, and I’m not feeling completely knackered yet.
Mr Donut
I’m upstairs in Mr Donut on Showa-dori in Akihabara in Tokyo, using a free wireless LAN provided by CyberSPOT, a nearby shop. The first time you browse, you get an advert for the shop. After that, all data passes through perfectly. Excellent stuff, and exactly the way it should be. Unfortunately, there’s no signal downstairs, and upstairs is the smoking section, so I’m trading my lungs for internet access.
Seoul
This is my long-delayed account of three days in Korea last month. That’s South Korea, of course; the North Korean tourist industry has never really got off the ground, although it does sound a fascinating, if scary, place. South Korea is different enough from everywhere else I’ve ever been that it’s worth observing some of the little things.