Masochistic Environmentalism

"We don't need the air-conditioner. Let's just leave the windows open. With the breeze, it's cool enough."

Cool. Yeah, freaking cool. It's 35゜C out there. Jeez.

Never mind if you're soaked in sweat working in the lab. No a/c, please. Global warming, remember? Reduce CO2 emission! Do your part in energy conservation!

Welcome to Japan. This is where people really do care about saving the environment. It's not about saving endangered whales, though. (I doubt anyone misses the dodos.) Japanese environmentalism is all about climate change. After all, no Japanese would want to see the archipelago become the second Atlantis. Which is why the nation is determined to cut CO2 emission by 25%.

Summer Internship

In my first year in university, I spent my summer holidays working like a horse; the second year, travelling around Japan; and the third year - which is this one - going for a summer internship.

Outside Japan, internship may be synonymous to "disposable cheap labour" but here, things are as different as heaven is from hell.

The company I went to is Amada, which makes sheet metal machines. Not only does Amada hold the biggest share in Japan, it's also the number two biggest maker in the world. Its biggest vision now is to dethrone the German company, Trumpf, its archrival. The competition is fierce, as can be seen in MF-Tokyo - Trumpf's blue-and-white machines and Amada's black-and-red machines dominate half of the exhibition area. (I'm looking forward to receiving my invitation to the event which is to be held from 14 to 17 October this year.)

Getting to the Bottom of the Barrel

Take a look at the signboards of three of the biggest convenience store (kombini) chains in Japan - 7 Eleven, Lawson, AM/PM. What do you see in common?

Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe convenience stores - as the name suggests - are there for the sake of convenience and also for times of emergencies, especially. Like, say, when you run out of midnight snack, or when your girlfriend runs out of tampons. When you frantically run around in the neighbourhood searching for the nearest convenience store to buy cup noodles or a pack of tampons, all you need to do is to look out for the beacon of hope that shines in front of every kombini. So if I were to open a kombini, I'd put up a big signboard which says, "Food/Tampons".

Kanamara Matsuri かなまら祭り

This is the wildest Japanese festival I've ever been to! Giant dicks parading the streets! And I mean it literally!

What: Festival of the Steel Phallus (An annual Shinto fertility festival)
When: First Sunday of April (Procession starts around noon)
Where: Kanayama Shrine, Kawasaki-shi (川崎市金山神社)

The Kanamara Matsuri is centered around a local penis-venerating shrine once popular among prostitutes who wished to pray for protection against sexually transmitted diseases. It is said that there are divine protections also in business prosperity and the clan's prosperity, easy delivery, marriage, and married couple harmony. There is also a legend of a sharp-toothed demon that hid inside the vagina of a young girl and castrated two young men on their wedding nights with the young girl before a blacksmith fashioned an iron phallus to break the demon's teeth, leading to the enshrinement of the item. ~Kanamara Matsuri, Wikipedia

The train to Kawasaki Daishi (川崎大師) was crowded, although not as fully-packed as during the hanabi's. Hey, you don't get to see portable penis shrines all the time! Just the mere thought of it was kinky. No one bothered to make the effort to hide the naughty grin on their face.

There were three penises in the procession.

Firstly, there was the steel phallus, known as the "Kanamara boat portable shrine", donated by Hitachi Zosen Corporation.

Second in line was the one that stood out the most, the pink phallus, known as the "Elizabeth portable shrine" donated by a cross-dressing club in Asakusa by the same name. While the other two portable shrines were carried by the locals, this one was mainly carried by guys in female clothing, chanting "Kanamara! Dekkaimara!". (Steel phallus! Big phallus!)

Last but not least, there was the wooden phallus, called the "Kanamara Big Portable Shrine". This is the oldest of the three.

For some reason, the black penis is smaller than the pink one... The wooden penis, the smallest...


People went wild during the festival. Rushing forward to touch the penises, licking penis and vagina candies, old ladies showing off big Chinese pao's in the shape of a penis, cross-dressers everywhere...

There were obscene souvenirs too. A toy that when you wind up the guy, humps the girl from the back, for instance. And a handkerchief featuring different sex positions, selling at a price of 1000 yen. Also, penis and vagina key chains which are unfortunately too small to satiate your sexual desires.


Yes it was a wild festival indeed. I mean, could you have imagined seeing a girl harassing a guy with a dick?

Note: For more photos on the festival, see Kim's blog.