When I got back from work today the "ADSL" led on my modem was burning with a bright green color. Meaning the phone company switched my subscription from my old address to the new one. And even faster than they said they would (they told me I could use the internet again from the 4th of August).
Seems the connection here in Kutchan is also better than in Asahikawa. My upload speed has tripled. ^^ Haven't really had a chance yet to test download speed, but I guess that will be ok also.
Tomorrow I'm driving back to Asahikawa after work. It will be the last night I spend in Clione (that's the name of the マンション where Kazumi and I live in Asahikawa). The movers are coming on Saturday to take our things to Kutchan. Kazumi and I will then go to visit her mother in Sapporo. And after that we will go to Kutchan.
There's a festival in Kucthan on the 1st and 2nd of August. I hope we'll be able to go see the fireworks on Saturday evening.
donderdag 31 juli 2008
maandag 28 juli 2008
Just another day in Kutchan/Hirafu
It's Monday again. The start of what without any doubt will be another exciting week. (^.-)
Very quiet day at work today. I'm alone in the office and only 2 peeps in the building across the street (the offices are spread through the town of Hirafu). Been doing some basic system administration duties. I arrived early this morning, so I'll be leaving a bit early also. Going straight to Max Value (local supermarket) after work to buy me some dinner and ingredients to bake some bread.
Don't think I wrote about that before. But I bought a bread maker real soon after arriving in Japan. Most Japanese buy bread in the supermarket. But I don't like the supermarket bread that much (it's different from Belgian supermarket bread). And hence I decided to bake my own bread. Been experimenting with various stuff available here (normal flour, rye flour, raisins, yogurt, ...) and most of the time the result is acceptable. ^^
At the moment I'm still living alone in Kutchan and as a consequence I don't really feel like cooking dinner. That's why I buy dinner at the supermarket. It's not that bad actually. ^^
Very quiet day at work today. I'm alone in the office and only 2 peeps in the building across the street (the offices are spread through the town of Hirafu). Been doing some basic system administration duties. I arrived early this morning, so I'll be leaving a bit early also. Going straight to Max Value (local supermarket) after work to buy me some dinner and ingredients to bake some bread.
Don't think I wrote about that before. But I bought a bread maker real soon after arriving in Japan. Most Japanese buy bread in the supermarket. But I don't like the supermarket bread that much (it's different from Belgian supermarket bread). And hence I decided to bake my own bread. Been experimenting with various stuff available here (normal flour, rye flour, raisins, yogurt, ...) and most of the time the result is acceptable. ^^
At the moment I'm still living alone in Kutchan and as a consequence I don't really feel like cooking dinner. That's why I buy dinner at the supermarket. It's not that bad actually. ^^
zaterdag 26 juli 2008
I went back home
after work on Friday. And so here I am posting on my blog in my favorite chair.
My first week at West Canada Homes was without problems. The work is interesting and the colleagues are all very friendly and helpful.
During the weekend I'll be preparing our move to Kuchan. Still need to pack up a lot of things. Also need to notify the post office, phone company, internet provider, ... So I'll be pretty busy.
Going out to buy a new washing machine tonight. Our new place doesn't really have a lot of space to dry our clothing, so we need to buy a washer/dryer combo. This is going to hurt my wallet. ^^; I'll also need to buy a new fridge. But I guess that can wait for a bit. Our current fridge is working fine, but it's a bit small. That's no real problem if you have time to go grocery shopping every day, but unfortunately that won't be the case once Kazumi starts working in Kuchan also.
At the moment Kazumi is still working at Bestom (this is a rather large supermarket in Asahikawa). She'll quit working there on the 31st of July. We both hope she can find a job soon in Kuchan. She's very confident that this won't be a problem though. ^^
My first week at West Canada Homes was without problems. The work is interesting and the colleagues are all very friendly and helpful.
During the weekend I'll be preparing our move to Kuchan. Still need to pack up a lot of things. Also need to notify the post office, phone company, internet provider, ... So I'll be pretty busy.
Going out to buy a new washing machine tonight. Our new place doesn't really have a lot of space to dry our clothing, so we need to buy a washer/dryer combo. This is going to hurt my wallet. ^^; I'll also need to buy a new fridge. But I guess that can wait for a bit. Our current fridge is working fine, but it's a bit small. That's no real problem if you have time to go grocery shopping every day, but unfortunately that won't be the case once Kazumi starts working in Kuchan also.
At the moment Kazumi is still working at Bestom (this is a rather large supermarket in Asahikawa). She'll quit working there on the 31st of July. We both hope she can find a job soon in Kuchan. She's very confident that this won't be a problem though. ^^
woensdag 23 juli 2008
Lunch break
Having my lunch break at work and decided to write something on my blog. Now what to write about. Hmmm... Let's talk about work.
I started working at West Canada Homes yesterday. At the moment my primary task is to take care of the IT infrastructure. Been going around the company and checking computers for anti-virus software and such. Basically just getting used to the system. Luckily my predecessor left me some information to work with.
Today I'll also be visiting some project sites. Learning how to make reports about progress and such.
Something else. It rained this morning. Not just normal rain, but like we say "it rained cats and dogs". I had gone to the bathroom for like 5 minutes and when I got back a small flood had already occurred. I'll have to remember to close the windows if I leave the house. It's different from our previous home in Asahikawa where I could just leave open most windows without much harm.
I started working at West Canada Homes yesterday. At the moment my primary task is to take care of the IT infrastructure. Been going around the company and checking computers for anti-virus software and such. Basically just getting used to the system. Luckily my predecessor left me some information to work with.
Today I'll also be visiting some project sites. Learning how to make reports about progress and such.
Something else. It rained this morning. Not just normal rain, but like we say "it rained cats and dogs". I had gone to the bathroom for like 5 minutes and when I got back a small flood had already occurred. I'll have to remember to close the windows if I leave the house. It's different from our previous home in Asahikawa where I could just leave open most windows without much harm.
maandag 21 juli 2008
Internet connection
A consequence of my move is that I won't be able to access the internet for a while. I'll have to sign up for an ADSL contract at my new place. Not sure how long this will take. I'll probably be able to access the internet at work but for obvious reasons I'm not going to be posting on my blog while at work. I'll give information about my work email address on a need to know basis once I have one.
Final Fantasy XI
I've been a dedicated FFXI player for the last couple years. But to all good things comes an end. I decided to quit the game and concentrate fully on my new job and family. Perhaps I'll get back to the game at a later time (perhaps during the long cold winter), but that is still left undecided.
I'll be moving to Kuchan all by myself (; ;) today. Kazumi still has to work at the supermarket till the end of July. She will be moving to Kuchan somewhere near the beginning of August.
I'm really lucky to be able to move to our new place already. We received the keys even though we didn't sign any contracts yet. This is highly unusual and we probably should thank my mother in law for this. She's the one that contacted the real estate agents in the first place and made it very clear to them that we were very urgently looking for a home.
Everything went very smoothly. Get a new job on Thursday, make phonecalls to real estate agents on Friday and Saturday, have a look at the available places on Sunday and then already moving in on Monday. Don't think I ever did that so fast before. ^^
I'll be moving to Kuchan all by myself (; ;) today. Kazumi still has to work at the supermarket till the end of July. She will be moving to Kuchan somewhere near the beginning of August.
I'm really lucky to be able to move to our new place already. We received the keys even though we didn't sign any contracts yet. This is highly unusual and we probably should thank my mother in law for this. She's the one that contacted the real estate agents in the first place and made it very clear to them that we were very urgently looking for a home.
Everything went very smoothly. Get a new job on Thursday, make phonecalls to real estate agents on Friday and Saturday, have a look at the available places on Sunday and then already moving in on Monday. Don't think I ever did that so fast before. ^^
zondag 20 juli 2008
New home
Me and Kazumi went to Kuchan today to look for a new place to stay (one that's a bit closer to the offices of my new job). And we found one.
First we had a look at an apartment above a 7 Eleven in Niseko. The place was very spacious, but had no air conditioning and wasn't very clean. Marks on the walls, bit smelly toilet, ... So we decided to have a look at 1 more apartment (there were only 2 available in the area).
Over the phone we were told that this one had "bad light". So we weren't expecting too much. However, it turned out to be a very nice one. A little bit smaller than our current apartment, but lots nicer than the more spacious one above the 7 Eleven. This one is clean, has air conditioning, toilet with washlet, ... The light indeed isn't the best in the world since the windows are facing the wall of our neighbours. However, this has as an advantage that the rooms won't heat up so much during summer either.
Rent is 61000 Yen/month and 67000 Yen/month during winter. It's more expensive during the winter because someone has to come to clean the parking lot. Yup, you read that right. Clean the parking lot. Because there's lots and lots of snow in winter.
I'll have to get used to snowy winters. I did experience some snow in Belgium, but you cannot compare that to the amount of snow they get in this area of Japan. 2 meters of snow versus something like 5 cm in Belgium...
First we had a look at an apartment above a 7 Eleven in Niseko. The place was very spacious, but had no air conditioning and wasn't very clean. Marks on the walls, bit smelly toilet, ... So we decided to have a look at 1 more apartment (there were only 2 available in the area).
Over the phone we were told that this one had "bad light". So we weren't expecting too much. However, it turned out to be a very nice one. A little bit smaller than our current apartment, but lots nicer than the more spacious one above the 7 Eleven. This one is clean, has air conditioning, toilet with washlet, ... The light indeed isn't the best in the world since the windows are facing the wall of our neighbours. However, this has as an advantage that the rooms won't heat up so much during summer either.
Rent is 61000 Yen/month and 67000 Yen/month during winter. It's more expensive during the winter because someone has to come to clean the parking lot. Yup, you read that right. Clean the parking lot. Because there's lots and lots of snow in winter.
I'll have to get used to snowy winters. I did experience some snow in Belgium, but you cannot compare that to the amount of snow they get in this area of Japan. 2 meters of snow versus something like 5 cm in Belgium...
vrijdag 18 juli 2008
Busy days coming up
Starting a new job far from my current address of course means that I have to move to Kuchan. I'm not going to spend 8 hours a day commuting, that's for sure.
View Larger Map
Had a quick look on the internet yesterday, but unfortunately not a lot of information about real estate for rent was available. However, my mother in law made some quick calls and as a result we're going to check out some places on Sunday. Hopefully we find something nice so we can start preparations for the big move.
I'll be living in Kuchan by myself for a short while since Kazumi cannot quit her current job before the end of July. Not looking forward to being alone by myself again, but I'll hang in there. After all it's only for a short while.
View Larger Map
Had a quick look on the internet yesterday, but unfortunately not a lot of information about real estate for rent was available. However, my mother in law made some quick calls and as a result we're going to check out some places on Sunday. Hopefully we find something nice so we can start preparations for the big move.
I'll be living in Kuchan by myself for a short while since Kazumi cannot quit her current job before the end of July. Not looking forward to being alone by myself again, but I'll hang in there. After all it's only for a short while.
donderdag 17 juli 2008
Kris has a new job!
Had to drive 500 km through pouring rain in order to visit the company West Canada Homes in Hirafu. But it was worth every single kilometer. I got hired. ^^ I'll start working there next Thuesday.
My main tasks will be taking care of the IT infrastructure and working on project progress reports.
There's a trial period of 3 months after which my contract will be evaluated. So let's work hard!
My main tasks will be taking care of the IT infrastructure and working on project progress reports.
There's a trial period of 3 months after which my contract will be evaluated. So let's work hard!
dinsdag 15 juli 2008
New software
Today I'm learning to work with Microsoft Publisher. I decided to use the very popular trial-and-error method. I'll need to use this program if I get the job with West Canada Homes. So I downloaded the 60 day trial version from Microsoft's website and dived right in. So far it seems simple enough. ^^
I'll probably also have to use Autocad, but seems I cannot download a trial version while being in Japan. No idea why the trial version is only available in certain locations. Guess I'll just have to learn to work with this program when I get the job.
I'll probably also have to use Autocad, but seems I cannot download a trial version while being in Japan. No idea why the trial version is only available in certain locations. Guess I'll just have to learn to work with this program when I get the job.
zondag 13 juli 2008
zaterdag 12 juli 2008
Job interview
Today I had an interview with the president of West Canada Homes. It's a Niseko based company and I hope I can work for them in the near future. The initial interview went fine I think. Next Thursday I'll be visiting the company so I can meet some of the people working there and have a general tour of the company.
They are looking for a Junior Project Manager. That basically means someone to assist the Project Manager with different duties. I really would like to take on this challenge with both hands and work hard for my future.
Of course working for a company in Niseko would mean that I have to move out of Asahikawa. And Kazumi would have to quit her current job. Well, we're not that far yet. Let's first wait and see how things evolve.
They are looking for a Junior Project Manager. That basically means someone to assist the Project Manager with different duties. I really would like to take on this challenge with both hands and work hard for my future.
Of course working for a company in Niseko would mean that I have to move out of Asahikawa. And Kazumi would have to quit her current job. Well, we're not that far yet. Let's first wait and see how things evolve.
vrijdag 11 juli 2008
Gelukkige verjaardag papa!
Het is wel een beetje vroeg, maar gezien ik morgen niet thuis ga zijn, zal ik u nu al maar ne gelukkige verjaardag wensen!
dinsdag 8 juli 2008
Video
Very short self introduction in Japanese for those who never heard me speak Japanese before. ^^
And here's the transcript:
こんにちは。クリスと申します。
ベルギーから来ました。今旭川に住んでます。
趣味はパソコンとアウトドアズです。
よろしければ友達になりましょう。
よろしくお願いします。
And in English:
Hi, I'm Kris.
I'm from Belgium. I live in Asahikawa for the moment.
My hobbies are the PC and outdoors.
Let's become friends!
And here's the transcript:
こんにちは。クリスと申します。
ベルギーから来ました。今旭川に住んでます。
趣味はパソコンとアウトドアズです。
よろしければ友達になりましょう。
よろしくお願いします。
And in English:
Hi, I'm Kris.
I'm from Belgium. I live in Asahikawa for the moment.
My hobbies are the PC and outdoors.
Let's become friends!
maandag 7 juli 2008
It's hot out here.
Haven't posted a lot recently (or should I say not at all). This is because life is just going on slowly without any special events. Just the daily routine of preparing lessons for the English conversation classes, go out for grocery shopping, prepare food, cleaning, ...
And of course also try to find a more steady job. I actually have a meeting with a company on Saturday. The company is called "West Canada Homes" and it's based in Niseko. Let's hope I can land a position with this company.
As you probably could have guessed by reading the title, it's very hot in Asahikawa at the moment. The temperature rises to approximately 30 degrees celcius every day. And it's not only the temperature, but also the humidity that contributes to a not so comfortable feeling.
Here's a site with frequent updates for those curious about the weather in Asahikawa.
And of course also try to find a more steady job. I actually have a meeting with a company on Saturday. The company is called "West Canada Homes" and it's based in Niseko. Let's hope I can land a position with this company.
As you probably could have guessed by reading the title, it's very hot in Asahikawa at the moment. The temperature rises to approximately 30 degrees celcius every day. And it's not only the temperature, but also the humidity that contributes to a not so comfortable feeling.
Here's a site with frequent updates for those curious about the weather in Asahikawa.
Abonneren op:
Posts (Atom)