Where do you currently live?

Where are you currently living?

I thought this was a slightly strange question in some ways. There is, of course, nothing wrong with it. However, I am not so fond of the word ‘currently.’ Since I own an apartment in Japan (almost) in which I live with my wife I have no intention of moving anywhere else during the remainder of my life. So, for me, the question really should be the simpler version: ‘Where do you live?’ Having said that, I can understand why the question was asked in this particular form. After all, we foreigners living in Japan do move around a great deal. Certainly, when we are younger we are very much at the mercy of whatever job we can get!

For what it’s worth, I live in Nagoya. It’s a fine city with a lot of great people. It has a number of attractions that are worth visiting such as the castle. This is especially beautiful during the cherry blossom season. Then there is the aquarium and the Planetarium. I believe the Planetarium is one of the biggest of its kind in the world. The show is certainly spectacular but the seats are so comfortable I slept through most of it. Apparently a lot of people also fall asleep during the performance. This is not surprising since our bodies do want to go to sleep if they think it is night. time! However, once you have done all the major attractions (there is easy access to the new Ghibli Village, too) then there is not actually that much to look at. It is more a question of enjoying things on a smaller scale: nice restaurants; concerts; shopping malls or whatever else you enjoy doing. I certainly have no reservations about my plan to spend the rest of my life here.

Stay warm and keep your electric bills down.

Happy New Year,

Buri