On September 18th, Mama will be starting a new business. She will be selling bigas at a small store she had built at my grandparent’s place. Mama was a Bulacan grade school teacher, while Papa was an electrician. They both quit their jobs in 1977 to start a business together. They made embroidered products –…
86th Nikke All Japan Tennis Tournament
I just got an email from Ticket Pia announcing tickets are now available for the 86th Nikke All Japan Tennis Tournament. It will be held from November 5th to the 13th this year at the Ariake Tennis Forest Park. This is a tournament organized by the Japan Tennis Association to choose Japan’s top players and…
US Open 2011: Federer vs Djokovic
It couldn’t get more exciting than this — the greatest of all time (GOAT) against the greatest at the moment. The last time these two met was at the semifinals of the French Open and the GOAT won, giving Djokovic his first of only two losses this year. If Federer wins, he will have a…
Tokyo Sports Facilities User Card
To be able to reserve public tennis courts in Tokyo, you will need the Tokyo Sports Facilities User Card (東京都スポーツ施設利用者カード), issued by the Tokyo local government. You can apply for this card at any of the Tokyo public parts that have tennis courts, including Hibiya Park, Shiba Park, and Kiba Park, and Ariake Tennis Forrest…
Minamisenju Haircut
There are several places in Minamisenju where you can get a haircut. There’s Luft Hair in Bivi, Mignon in Branz Tower, and of course QB House (1,000 yen 10 minute haircut) in Lala Terrace. For 3,675 yen, I get mine from Ichi BDO a minute north-west of the station. The place is owned by Takamatsu-san,…
United States of the Philippines
Why not switch to a form of government where we divide the Philippines into smaller, more manageable states? Each state can then have their own governor, their own laws, their own budget, and their own state language. Recognizing the different sub-cultures in the country, I believe the best way to split the country is by…
The New Livre Keisei
Dropped by Lala Terrace this morning and I noticed Livre Keisei (リブレ京成) is now adding some more finishing touches in preparation for the grand re-opening tomorrow (September 7, 2011). The entrance are still closed but there were lots of people inside and the doors are still covered so it’s hard to see what’s happening inside….
Sumida Fireworks from Minamisenju
On Saturday, Tokyo Shitamachi celebrated it’s biggest event of the year — the Sumida Fireworks 2011. Minamisenju, through the Shioiri park riverbank, offers an amazing view of the fireworks and thus, hundreds of visitors, dressed in their summer yukatas, come to see the spectacle every year. I went over to buy some food at Lala…
Tennis at Ojima-Komatsugawa Park
Tomorrow, I’ll be playing tennis at the Ojima-Komatsugawa Park in Edogawa ward, for the first time. Looking at Google Maps, the park looks massive with lots of open space and sports facilities. It looks like they also have a jogging path so I might use that to warm up before playing. It is also next to…
The Three Trains of Minamisenju
Minamisenju, though a relatively minor, mostly residential area, is lucky enough to have three train lines stopping at its station — JR’s Joban line, Tokyo Metro’s Hibiya line, and the Tsukuba Express. JR basically connects you to the massive JR train network, the Metro connects you to all the small corners of Tokyo, while the…
Five Kilometers
I started a few weeks ago, jogging a kilometer or two on a treadmill. Then I started jogging a few kilometers outside, along the river (Sumida River). Then yesterday, as it was raining outside, I decided to go back to our building’s trusty gym and before I knew it — I finished my first 5…
From Tokyo to Minamisenju
Right now if you want to go from Tokyo to Minamisenju by train, all your options would require you to change trains at least once. If you prefer JR, you can take Yamanote/Keihin-Tohoku lines but you will need to switch to Joban line at either Ueno or Nippori stations. If you prefer the Metro, you can…
Enrico in Tokyo 