David @ Tokyo

Hahaha, this is the funniest thing I could possibly have to read on a Sunday morning - New Zealanders eating meat in Tokyo.

Well excuse me! I had a whale steak lunch in a Shibuya restaurant a couple of months ago just before I went back to New Zealand. I totally concur with Eugene Rees - the whale steak certainly did taste like beef and the food sure was dead. A lot of foreigners come to Japan and sampling whale meat is not something people shy away from. And Rees is also correct that what Japan does in it's exclusive zone is it's own business, although more accurately, what Japan does related to whaling in international waters in accordance with the International Whaling Commission's rules is also their own business.

As far as the criticism of these New Zealanders - since when was New Zealand a fascist state where individuals aren't allowed to disagree with the (in this case ludicrous) position of their government?? Hopefully this will spark a little further debate. It would be great to see Rees, who seems to have his head screwed on right, go head to head with Chris Carter (a nutter, who should grow up and stop embarassing his country) on a TV debate (something like Holmes). New Zealand's position is totally indefensible in any rational debate, and Carter would surely be on a hiding to nothing - just like the NZ government's stoopid "NO WHALING" policy.

Clean at last 

To those of you in Kiwiland who don't know quite how it is to live in Tokyo ... not so bad! Actually, my kitchen is bigger than this room...

Space to relax 

Also to those in Kiwiland, as you see, so long as I keep my place clean I have plenty of space to relax. After all this effort (cleaning in the 35 degree heat is hard (>_<)) I've now got to make the decision whether to go and see the All Blacks v Springboks game tonight. It starts here at 10pm Tokyo time, and with tennis tomorrow morning I don't think I have the energy. Maybe I will just listen to the internet commentary from home...

Second Bledisloe cup match coming up tonight, and I've got a bad feeling that Australia are due for a stunner. Looking back in recent times they always seem to play well when it really matters. Think back a couple of seasons to when John Eales sunk us at the caketin in his final hurrah in the final seconds of the game... Tonight George Gregan plays his 101st test, Matt Burke plays his last game for Australia on home soil. Looks like it could be a nasty mix, but on the other hand the All Blacks must be looking forward to the dry conditions...

I'm off to see the fireworks in Itabashi tonight, but I might be able to get down to a sports cafe to watch the game live.

UPDATE: The fireworks in Itabashi were great! But I came home to see my uneasy feeling was well placed. Ah well, on to South Africa!

Working in the securities industry IT field I've developed an interest in stock exchange systems.

Last year when I first arrived in Tokyo I took a trip to the Tokyo Stock Exchange, thinking I would see a whole load of people running around the floor making trades like the scene at the CME in Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Instead I found that the TSE building was almost deserted (the security
seemed surprisingly laid back - just a couple of elderly security guards at the doors who I'm sure I could have taken!). The reason for the apparent lack of activity at the TSE was that they totally computerized their trading systems about 5 years ago. Now instead of a trading floor they just have this Market Center with big screens showing numbers changing every few seconds, and a handful of human drones looking at computer screens below.

Apparently the NYSE's plans to follow suit (somewhat) by expanding their electronic trading systems. Kind of surprising that the NYSE is so far behind the TSE and other exchanges here, but perhaps being the world's most important exchange the NYSE is more adverse to change.