Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Seat Selection

Today's Route

     Our train was going down to the south. The sky was clear and I was expecting beautiful scenery, but the window wasn't clean and was against the sun. It was so regrettable that I couldn't take pictures of the scene that I saw for the first time from the window. Next time I will reserve the seat, so I have to think about the side of the seat. There were few tunnels and bridges during about two hours' ride. I thought that the construction fee would be lower than that of the Shinkansen. A passenger who was seated on our right side got off in Offenburg and I could take picture from the right side window. I was wondering if the mountains over there might be French. As for the ride, the Shinkansen was more comfortable than the ICE.

A Trip Plan

Today's Route

     Suddenly the train started. The time was just on time. The reason that I wrote "suddenly" despite the  scheduled departure was that some announcements are usually done just before the closure of the doors in Japan. Anyway, we started for Freiburg.
Shortly after the departure, a brochure that is shown in the picture was delivered to all seats and it stated the time schedule of ICE373 and the connections at each station on the route. It was very convenient. Another thing that I was surprised at and admired was the electronic signboard above each seat. The picture was of our seats and it said that our reservation was between Frankfurt and Freiburg. It must be useful for not only the passengers but the conductors.

(Vocabulary)
electronic signboard  電光掲示板

Inside Of The ICE

Today's Route

     I had about 30 minutes to go before the departure and took pictures inside. There were no passengers except us. We took second class seats and the first picture was the second class coach. Some seats have a table and there was a space for large bags. I thought that the width of the seat was a little wider than that of the Japanese superexpress, Shinkansen. The next picture was of a compartment which accommodated six persons. The third picture was of the toilet. I felt it easier to use than that of the Shinkansen. The next picture shows the doorway, which was wider than that of the Shinkansen and I liked it. The fifth and sixth pictures show the litter boxes and coin lockers. The litter boxes were just like those of the Shinkansen, but I think that the Shinkansen has no coin lockers. When you want to sleep deep or be away from the seat, for example going to the buffet, these coin lockers are helpful. The last picture was of the buffet. A staff member was preparing it.

(Vocabulary)
be easy to use 使いやすい
doorway 出入り口

ICE (InterCityExpress)

Today's Route

     We were going to use the German superexpress to move to Freiburg that was called ICE on this day. I was afraid to be lost in the strange station and checked out of the hotel an hour earlier than needed. Our train was ICE 373 that was displayed on the 4th line on the schedule board. Though this station was really big, we could find the track easily. While I was taking pictures around us, ICE 373 came in on the track. The name of the destination was painted on the car and it was "Interlaken". I'd never been to Interlaken, but I knew where it was situated. If we couldn't get out of the train in Freiburg, we could get to Interlaken. If we didn't have the reservation of the hotel in Freiburg, we might have changed our destination. We had 30 minutes to go, but got on the train to see the inside thoroughly.
     The third and fourth pictures are of our ICE. I took them when it had just arrived in front of us. I felt uneasy to see the grime attached to the face of the ICE and this worry came true later. Additionally, I felt the difference between ICEs. The ICEs in the last picture were more modern than ours. Our ICE might not have been the most up-to-date type. Anyway, let's get into the car.

(Vocabulary)
strange 《通例[名]の前で》 見知らぬ, なじみのない
Meryl was all alone in a strange city. メリルは見知らぬ町で独りぼっちだった．
thoroughly 入念に, 丁寧に
feel uneasy 気になる
grime (-aim) すす, あか, 汚れ

Savoy Hotel

Today's Route

     We used the Savoy Hotel in Frankfurt because it was located near the station. I didn't want to choose a cheap hotel from the aspect of the security, but I also didn't want to splurge on a hotel. This hotel was ranked into the middle class, but the price was surprisingly high. The price of hotels, including other hotels, varies up to three times as high from the bottom. It seemed to be common in Frankfurt. I knew that the International Motor Show was being held in Frankfurt just before leaving Japan. That's why those high prices were set. I thought of visiting the show on the flight, but I didn't have enough time. Our L-shaped room was as below and not bad. I was complaining all the time about the high-season price due to the Motor Show, but it disappeared on seeing the breakfast. It was really good. I'll show you the first serving. Needless to say, I had another helping again and again. A sufficient breakfast after a good sleep made me happy. We checked out and went to the station.

(Vocabulary)
splurge
[自] (ふだん以上に) ぜいたくをする, 奮発する
splurge on sth ＜…＞に奮発する
[他] 〈金銭〉 を派手に使う
splurge sth on sth  ＜金銭＞を＜…＞に奮発する

Dinner

     We checked in at the Savoy Hotel near Frankfurt Hbf at first and went out for a walk. It was crowded just in front of the station, but the street from the station to the Altstadt (old city) wasn't. The street was not so clean and I felt that this street might not be good for security at night. Anyway, we wandered from our hotel to the Altstadt, the main sightseeing point. I took lots of pictures and I stuck some of them on the map. You can maginify the map. Try it. http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro09/Osaka_Frankfurt.html
     The first picture is Frankfurt Hbf. I wondered when this station had been built. The wall clock showed 16:35. We arrived at Frankfurt airport at 15:30, so it meant it took only an hour from the airport to here. The airport was really convenient, I thought.
     While we took a walk in the Altstadt, we decided to have our first dinner in Germany in Roemer Platz. The second picture was the menu of the restaurant. The beer and dinner on this night, next. I don't remember the names of the dishes, but they were delicious. The vehicle in the following picture was driven by man-power. People in the vehicle were pedaling over a beer, though some were goofing off. I was afraid they really enjoyed beer. The moment I saw them, a tram was just coming and they were forced to pedal at maximum power. It was funny. We came across a motorcycle on the way. It was a BMW, which I wanted. It was natural. That was BMW country! The last picture was of a hotel that we just happened to see and it looked very gorgeous.

(Vocabulary)
goof off  （仕事などを）さぼる

Frankfurt Hbf

Today's Route

     We got to Frankfurt Hbf in ten or fifteen minutes. I saw the train schedule board by us and was surprised to know the variety of its destinations. Trips by trains in Europe must be fun without hyperbole. I like to watch cable TV programs featuring trips. On cable TV, programs on trips by trains in Europe were frequently aired and this scene was what I'd always seen on the screen. However, actually viewed, the magnificence of this station was overwhelming.
     By the way, we hadn't met any conductor in the train. Was it ok? We didn't need to buy any tickets, did we? Come to think about it, the number of ticket vending machines was a whole lot smaller than that of passengers. If a conductor wanted to check tickets, it would be almost impossible to walk through the packed train. There was no entrance and exit of the platforms either here.

(Vocabulary)
without hyperbole  掛け値なしに
hyperbole = exaggeration
conductor （バスや市電、列車の）　車掌
Come to think about it  そういえば

Platform

Today's Route

     The picture shows the platform where the S-bahn (train) to Frankfurt Hbf starts. After getting our tickets, we directly came here without having our tickets checked. There was no entrance gate to the platform.

Ticket-Vending Machine

Today's Route

     It's fun to recall things about our trip. I often took pictures and notes during the trip. This is also for this blog.
     We got through the exit and went down to Flughafen Regionalbahnhof (Airport regional station). Destination boards were simple and understandable, but the ticket-vending machine was hard to use. To tell the truth, this machine was in our guidebook and I had read and understood how to deal with it. I pressed Yuri to read it before leaving Japan, but she didn't seem to have done it. I asked her to get our ticket from the airport to Frankfurt Hbf. Getting back from taking pictures around there shortly afterwards, she was gazing at two young ladies. She was going to learn from them, but to the consternation of Yuri, they were also strangers there.
     I showed her how to input the number of our destination from the list on the left and choose the type and number of ticket and lastly put money into the machine. It was just the opposite of the Japanese way. By this she could fully understand this machine.

(Vocabulary)
ticket-vending machine  券売機
destination board  行き先表示板
shortly afterward(s) ((フォーマル) そのあと少しして
consternation 非常な驚き, ぎょうてん
to sb's consternation   ＜人＞がひどく驚いたことには

Feel German Most

Today's Route

     What is the most German-like stuff? If you ask me this question, I'll answer that it's Porsche and there is no substitute. While walking to the baggage claim in Frankfurt Airport, I found Porsche. Something that has a high potential is beautiful. I really love this car though I can't affort it.
     On the other hand, my daughter looked happy to be surrounded by the German language. She had been learning German for more than two years. She would be the boss in this country.

Landmark

Today's Route

     I expected to see many landmarks between Japan and Germany though I didn't know the exact flight route. I had a rough idea about the route like the Korean Peninsula, Eastern Siberia, Mongolia, the Urals and Eastern Europe. I picked up some places that were thought to be seen from the plane. I memorized the shape of the land and their terrain, but in vain. I couldn't see the Great wall of China and Lake Baikal. When the plane reached the north of Lake Baikal, I looked for something recognisable below, but clouds were hanging low. I could only see the mountainous area in the north of Lake Baikal. I tried to find something for about ten minutes. I was not sure, but the area that was seen to be like a white plain might be Lake Baikal. Judging from the flight information that was shown on the screen, I believed it. However, I could see the cold desert of western Siberia breaking through the clouds. The flight was very smooth and comfortable.
     I had something to worry about. It was the setting of my data logger and its software. This device had to record two types of movement in one day. One was the moving that moves smoothly at a speed of up to 1000 km/h and never stops and turns at a right angle. The other was a man's walking that sometimes stops and turns in every direction and its speed was only up to 6 km/h. This data logger was set to record the position every second and the software displays the route on the screen after thinning out the data. This procedure of thinning out is necessary for ordinary personal computers. It takes a huge time to plot all the data on the screen. I haven't achieved mastery of this software and can just use it automatically. I'll post the route of this day here: http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro09/Osaka_Frankfurt.html
     As I expected, the radiowave from the GPS satellites was unstable in the midst of high buildings, trees and underground. I think the data might be modified to some extent, but it's beyond me now. I'm showing our trace from now on and understand it sweepingly.

(Vocabulary)
terrain  (ある特色を持った) 地形, 土地
difficult/rough/mountainous/rocky terrain
困難な地形［起伏の多い土地，山地，岩地］
recognisable すぐにそれとわかる, 見覚えがある
hang low 雲が低く垂れ込めている
plain  平原
cold desert / tundra 〔通例the ～〕  ツンドラ
breaking through the clouds 雲の合間から
at a right angle  直角に
thin out  （苗木などを）間引く
achieve [acquire, gain] a mastery of  ～に精通する
to some extent/to an extent   ある程度
sweepingly  おおざっぱに

Flight Information

Today's Route

     I sometimes took pictures of the screen of the flight information. I only knew many names of places, but I felt happy to think that I was just near those places. When the places I knew were coming near, I looked down from the window, but I didn't find anything that would be some landmark like Lake Baikal or the Great Wall of China.

(Vocabulary)
Lake Baikal  バイカル湖
Chinese Wall / the Great Wall of China 万里の長城

Rice Balls

Today's Route

     The picture is the beer that I drank with a rice ball. Rice balls were served whenever I wanted them all the way. Rice balls are called "Onigiri" in Japanese, but is this word "Onigiri" well known in the world? The menu says so in the part of English and German. I heard of some apparently German ones called "onigiri". It might be possible because the German people in this plane must have stayed in Japan for a certain number of days or years.

Lunch

Today's Route

     The menu in the picture was delivered two hours after the boarding. What do you think of this menu? I didn't expect much because an in-flight meal was an in-flight meal. It had been cooked a few hours before and would be ready only by heating just before serving. I didn't think that it could be delicious, but I was wrong. The lunch was not bad. I had a small bottle of beer and two cups of red wine. I enjoyed them and thought of Germany that I'd never been to.

(Vocabulary)
in-flight meal 機内食

Toilet

Today's Route

     The pictures show the toilet in the center of the fuselage. Do you know where it was? It lay under the cabin. It was interesting to me and I took pictures. Some attendants looked at me and were smiling. "OK, All right, I'm a country boy," I mumbled with a smile.

(Vocabulary)
fuselage  (飛行機の) 胴体, 機体
country boy 田舎者
mumble [他] …を［と］もぐもぐ言う, つぶやく

 

A340-600

Today's Route

     The title is the type of the plane that we boarded. "A" might stands for Airbus, the European aircraft maker. I didn't have any experience to use this type, and so it was also my pleasure to get on this plane.
     When I saw the inside, my first impression was neat and tidy. This plane had just arrived from Frankfurt, but it was kept clean. I'd used Air Canada and the former Canadian Airlines four or five times totally but I didn't feel like this. Something trivial like this made us happy.
     The thing that I was astonished at next was its audio system. I could pick my favorite movie out of like twenty movies also on Air Canada, but they seemed to be running all the time. That was to say, I couldn't start watching them whenever I liked. Naturally I couldn't pause them. However, Lufthansa's was different. It looked like every seat had their own DVDs and a DVD player. I could start watching movies anytime, and could pause it anytime. When something was served or I was spoken to, this function was gratifying.

(Vocabulary)
pause  [他] 〈CD・ビデオなど〉 を一時停止にする

Lufthansa

Today's Route

     We got to the airport. As usual, I took the FOMA card out of my usual cell phone and inserted it into another cell phone, M1000. The FOMA card was a kind of IC card in which my ID was imprinted. My usual phone can't be used overseas and I had to change the phone. After that, we changed our money into Euros. I saw Euro bills for the first time. The thing that we did next was to get an outlet adaptor. The shape of the Japanese outlet is different from that of Germany. But for this, I can't plug in any electrical devices. Additionally, the German voltage is 230V to the Japanese 100V. Most of my rechargers of my mobile PC, electric shaver, cell phone and digital cameras were made for use between 100V to 240V. I knew the reason at that time. It means that it was produced for world common usage.
     In the following several entries, I'm going to write about my impression of Lufthansa, the plane itself, meals and the route of the flight.

(Vocabulary)
outlet (米) (電気の) コンセント, 差し込み口
plug in  コンセントにつなぐ
recharger 充電器

GPS Receiver

     We were showed into a first class cabin. This trip was a precious opportunity and I didn't want to lose it. I mean, I was afraid of the theft of our luggage. It was the main reason that I picked this room. This room was designed for two people equipped with bunk beds and wasn't bad, but I'm sorry, I forgot to take a picture of this room.
     I set the GPS Data Logger on at first. Next, I changed my clothes into yukata (simple kimono) and had a light meal and a beer in the restaurant. The Data Logger is a device for recording your position. The data that was recorded by it will be shown below. This is from when I switched on off the coast of Matsuyama to when I exchanged batteries into long-life ones at the Kansai International Airport. The discontinuity is due to battery exhaustion. When I happened to wake up, I found it and exchanged them. After getting off the ship, I took a tram at the port and next got in a taxi to the nearest station of Nankai Railroad. The driver made a mistake and this device recorded it. I think you can find where he made a mistake. The picture shows our ship. Our route from Matsuyama city to Kansai International Airport was like this: http://kumo.typepad.jp/Euro09/Home_Osaka.html

(Vocabulary)
bunk beds / double-deck bed  二段ベッド
bunk
[C] (列車・船などの) 寝台, 寝棚
[C] 二段ベッドの一方 = bunk bed

Digital Camera

Today's Route

     Our plane will take off at 10:20 on Sep. 26th from Kansai International Airport(KIX). There's a flight from Matsuyama that arrives at KIX at about 9:00, but if something happens and the domestic flight was delayed, we can't get on the plane. Thinking about this, we chose the ferry as a sure transportation between Matsuyama and Osaka.
     I usually do the overseas trip preparations to divide our possessions into three parts. The first is the suitcase. It's for the stuff that I don't need in the plane and can live without for a few days. The second is the daypack for carry-on. As I wrote before, I got a new one the other day. This is always with me and essential stuff are put in. Lastly, I carried some necessities; a wallet, credit cards, a watch, a pair of glasses, a cell phone and so on into my pockets. Just when I was doing this, my parents visited my house to give their granddaughter, Yuri, 500 Euros. While we were chatting with them, I failed to put my digital camera in my pocket.
     My wife sent us to the port and when we were about to get on the ferry, I found I didn't have my digital camera. I was so surprised and asked my wife to fetch it. It's about fifteen minutes' drive between my house and the port. The depature time was 21:10 and it was 20:30. She went back in haste and came back at 21:05. I received it on the street and ran and ran and ran to the ferry. It was a breath-stopping run.

I'm Home!

     I'm writing this article on Oct. 4th in my office. I came back to Japan yesterday and started working today, but I'm suffering from serious jet lag now. Fortunately, it is Sunday and the ward is stationary. I can take a nap. When I visited Canada before, I was always like this for two days. The flight toward the east seems to be worse for me than toward the west. When I was going to Canada, I usually tried to sleep enough during the flight so as to enjoy skiing from the first day, but this time I took it lightly and didn't sleep well to see the scenery from the window of the plane. Under the light of the moon, from the jet plane moving at the speed of 900 km/h, I took pictures. What are they like? I'm going to post them after specifing their locations from the data of the GPS.
     I took rough notes during the trip and I'm going to write up articles from them and post them at the time and the date when I recorded those notes. Now, shall I start to write about the incident that happened when we were just about to leave Matsuyama city.

(Vocabulary)
take it lightly  軽く考える
specify the location of ～の場所を特定する
write up the report レポートを清書する