Birthday Party

[Oyaji]

Recently one of my sons had a birthday. For his party we had hot dogs with Polish sausages and all the works (everything bought at Costco). The boys drank Dr. Pepper (Costco) and my wife and I enjoyed some Guinness (Costco). The cake was an ice cream cake (Baskin Robbins) which my wife and I enjoyed with coffee (Starbucks) (there are Tullys and Seattle's Best Coffees nearby as well). For his presents he got a game for his Nintendo ds (Toys backwards "R" Us) and a sweat shirt (The Gap). The day we bought most of this my wife and I had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe.

None of this sounds too unusual, unless you consider we live in one of the most rural areas of Japan, and all of those places are within an hour of our house.

Of course the boys are just as likely to want sushi or yakiniku for their birthdays as hot dogs, and don't worry, by default our lives are far more Japanese style than American. But for a long-timer, having these things nearby does make life a little easier.

When I first came here, every month or so I would drive an hour and a half for a Big Mac, and that was about all there was.

[clay]

That's great! I remember shouting for joy the day I discovered a store that actually carried flour tortillas.

[kanadajin]

lol clay..


Let me get this straight, you drove an hour just to go to mcdonalds.... WHY?

[Oyaji]

kanadajin wrote:
lol clay..


Let me get this straight, you drove an hour just to go to mcdonalds.... WHY?

It does sound strange doesn't it.

When you live in a foreign country long term, there are times when you want something familiar from your home country - anything. I rarely ate at McDonalds in America, but sometimes that craving is just there.

I had a friend from Germany who, when he first got here, thought I was crazy for going to Macs. After a few months he was going with me.

It appears that for many foreigners in Japan, McDonalds has been replaced by Starbucks as the most popular place for that "familiar taste of home."

[w the cat]

lol:D

[AJBryant]

When I lived in Japan, it was much harder. There was ONE store -- I can't recall where, now, but it was downtown somewhere in Tokyo -- that was basically a "foreign food" store. The only place to get decent cheese, American peanut butter, and so on.

Shortly before I left, a couple of companies started up mail order businesses of foreign food in bulk. Now, with the internet, I think one could live anywhere in Japan and still get the staples of foreign food life.

But it's nice to know that there are more brick and mortar places to go, as well.


Tony

[Infidel]

I can see Oyaji walking into McDonalds,　　looking around, a single tear flows down his face.

なつかしいぃぃぃなぁぁぁ

[Oyaji]

Infidel wrote:
I can see Oyaji walking into McDonalds,　　looking around, a single tear flows down his face.

なつかしいぃぃぃなぁぁぁ

Twenty-some years ago that was my reality.

Tony wrote:
When I lived in Japan, it was much harder. There was ONE store -- I can't recall where, now, but it was downtown somewhere in Tokyo -- that was basically a "foreign food" store. The only place to get decent cheese, American peanut butter, and so on.

That would be National Azabu Supermarket, no doubt. I made many a pilgrimage back in the day. My coworkers always wondered why I needed such a large suitcase for a one day trip to Tokyo.

Shortly before I left, a couple of companies started up mail order businesses of foreign food in bulk. Now, with the internet, I think one could live anywhere in Japan and still get the staples of foreign food life.

The Foreign Buyers Club is probably the most popular. I remember their first catalogue: a photocopied print out. Like you say, you had to order in bulk, and it took at least a month to arrive. Now they have a good selection of single items that arrive in a couple days of ordering, of course from the internet.

But it's nice to know that there are more brick and mortar places to go, as well.

I honestly never imagined it would change as much as it has.

[Harisenbon]

My friends and I sometimes make a pilgramage down to the Kobe costco all the way from Gifu. We get my mother-in-law's van, drive down there, shop till we drop, and come back with 300 dr peppers and 14 roast chickens and stuff like that.

I'm always surprised at the number of import food stores, even in the middle of inaka. Every mall that opens up now-adays seems to have at least one, and they're good for getting your small fixes of sodas and tortillas and whatnot.

hmmm.. now I've started wanting tacos...

[hyperconjugated]

Tasty food samples every saturday
at price club/costco. I had no shame.
"i'll have one more, plz"

[two_heads_talking]

i remember walking into a macdonalds and ordering the meal and realising that i still needed to order the drink and fries seperately.. it was the oddest thing.. nearly 1100 yen for the meal too.. then i bit in, thinking oh thank heaven for mac..

"what the frag this burger tastes like fish:....... and that was teh last macdonalds i had.. mosburger had better burgers in my opinion.. lol..

[keatonatron]

two_heads_talking wrote:
it was the oddest thing.. nearly 1100 yen for the meal too..

That is odd. It doesn't cost nearly as much nowadays. Maybe you're dating yourself (might want to be careful about that!) B)

**Dating as in "showing how old you are"

[two_heads_talking]

i am 39 and i have posted that up many times.. i have no issues with it.. but it seems you might..

[battousai]

!

[two_heads_talking]

trolling is so much easier than winning a pissing match as well.. sorry, move along..