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41.4km (25.7 mile) run around Tokyo’s Yamanote loop line
Sun, 7/02/10 – 18:40 | 3 Comments

Running the Yamanote - Hachiko (Goal at 41.4km)Hachiko, Shibuya, where the run started and finished.

Quiet an achievement for me today – I circumnavigated inner Tokyo by running the Yamanote train line, visiting every station along the way. The 41.4km route took me almost 5 hours to run, and was quite painful towards the end – but worth it for the sense of achievement, and for the new perception I have of how the city fits together.

I didn’t actually think it would be that far. Yesterday I did a rough plot with Google maps, and measured it at 34km. Then, when I was running, I thought it was only about 39km ish – but then when I got home and checked the route as uploaded by my iPhone (was using Everytrail, the GPS tracking app) I saw that actually, it was a bit longer. Like 0.3 of a mile off a full marathon (I’d done a bit of twittering along the way – everytrail only adds ground covered when the app isn’t active after you upload to the site) My time was pretty crap, but then I did take a lot of photos along the way, and also, I’m not a ‘runner’ as such.

Here’s the route and slideshow. It looks better in full size on the Everytrail site (flash required).

41.4km Tokyo Circumnavigation


Map your trip with EveryTrail

In other totally dull techy news – I now have my own custom short URL domain (woo!). I can automatically shorten domains system wide on the mac, and in my twitter client on the iPhone to start ‘http://jpta.me’ – how exciting is that (my middle name is ‘Peter’)?! I’ve also bought my own name – http://josephta.me, which I again rather sadly thought was pretty cool. I’m going to use that for my email address domain too, although emails sent to my old addresses will still be delivered.

And, got paid another 120 dollars for linking two words in an 8 year old blog post to someone else’s site. This website thing is actually starting to not be a complete money waster!

Righty ho, on with the show.

Have a good week all!

Joseph



blog »

Summer 2010: exploring Japan By Bicycle
Sat, 6/02/10 – 20:34 | 3 Comments

The first section of this blog has been gratuitously copied from a post I just wrote a moment ago for Dannychoo.com

Being an Apple fan boy, my initial reaction to the iPad was ‘I want one!’ then ‘I’ll get one!’ I mean, I find *Twinkle*s iPod touch really sexy, so a BIG iPod touch must be Exceedingly sexy – like a giant Apple pie made by Mr. Kipling, drowning in Ambrosia custard.

But then I started thinking about how much time I spend in front of the screen already – I almost always have an iPhone and MacBook Pro on me already – do I really need another screen to look at?

These thoughts came to me whilst I was out running, training for the Tokyo Marathon. I thought about how much I’ve enjoyed exploring the city on these runs – but also how I’ve found it a bit frustrating that I can never explore beyond the distance that my legs can take me within a couple of hours.

It was then that I made the decision – I’d use the money that I’d put aside for the iPad to buy a touring bike, and spend my free time during the spring and summer exploring Japan.

Joseph on his bike Jungfrau

Used to do a lot of cycling when I lived in Switzerland

As a teenager I absolutely loved cycling, and covered some pretty long distances. It was such a great way to see places, to travel far from home for free, to feel the thrill of travelling at high speed (at least when going down steep hills). The summers I worked in Switzerland saw me doing quite a bit of cycling too – it was tough going but boy was the scenery beautiful.

Thinking about this a couple of days ago got me all excited, especially as I can now combine cycling with other passions, such as photography (using my Nikon DSLR) and tracking my trail (with a GPS app on the iPhone). I feel it’s important to know my surroundings. That’s one thing I really take from our runs – the knowledge and feel of how places on a subway map link together, of where I am in relation to other places I know, of how I can get from A to B to C when the earthquake strikes and there’s no public transport system left.

Japan by bicycle

So, although I haven’t even got a suitable bike yet, yesterday I ordered the iCrew – a waterproof iPhone holder to attach to the handlebars. I’d had a look at the other bicycle/iphone holders on offer, but wasn’t all that impressed. They seemed pretty dangerous really, liable to catapult your iPhone onto the road if you stopped too suddenly or jumped off a kerbstone.

Whilst I’ve obviously not tried it out on the road yet, I like it already – it’s very sturdy, and can be rotated so you can easily watch YouTube movies whilst pedalling along (OK, maybe not such a good idea). Although totally sealed, the power and home buttons can be pressed thanks to flexible rubber bits, and the touch screen is as sensitive as it is on a naked iPhone. There’s a rubber stopper in the top that you can pull out if you want to plug your headphones in.

Next on the list is the bike itself (complete with rack and panniers), a helmet, and glasses. That should do the trick. I see myself going on long weekend trips, blogging / live streaming when out and about (phone signal permitting).

It’ll be great to see more of Japan outside of the city. It’s something I’ve missed these past 18 months – about time to put it right. I hope to be able to do some mega-long trip, like Tokyo to Hokkaido, around Hokkaido and back to Tokyo – we’ll see.

Bicycle training will begin once the marathon is out of the way at the end of the month!

Tomorrow I’ll be attempting to set a new distance record – 20 miles – it’ll be the furthest I run before the marathon itself.

Ganbarimasu!



Photo-tour, blog »

Snow fall in Tokyo
Tue, 2/02/10 – 1:43 | No Comment

It snowed tonight – and settled – for the first time this winter. We seem to have had about 8cm-10cm.

What a treat! *Twinkle* and I couldn’t contain the children within us, and so at 11pm went out for a late night play in the park…

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*Twinkle* in the snow in Himonya

Snow in Tokyo

Twinkle says STOP

Snow in Himonya

I love →

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Summer 2010: exploring Japan By Bicycle
Sat, 6/02/10 – 20:34 | 3 Comments

The first section of this blog has been gratuitously copied from a post I just wrote a moment ago for Dannychoo.com
Being an Apple fan boy, my initial reaction to the iPad was ‘I want one!’ …

Snow fall in Tokyo
Tue, 2/02/10 – 1:43 | No Comment

It snowed tonight – and settled – for the first time this winter. We seem to have had about 8cm-10cm.
What a treat! *Twinkle* and I couldn’t contain the children within us, and so at 11pm …

Rodger Swan
Fri, 29/01/10 – 0:11 | One Comment

It was with shock and sadness that tonight I heard that Rodger Swan had passed away. Whilst I had never met Rodger, like many of those who followed his life in Japan through his videos, …

3 weeks of my life in Twitter Speak
Sun, 24/01/10 – 14:27 | No Comment

Howdy punks.
So, it’s been about three weeks since my last update here – shocking how cavalier I am towards my blogging responsibilities.
Mind you, in that time I have posted 3 Audioboos, done a fair bit …

Ten years of life in 2000 words
Fri, 1/01/10 – 16:28 | 15 Comments

Hello 2010. Hello new decade!*
Looking back at my 2000s, I’m very happy with what I accomplished. In a way, the millennium celebrations don’t seem all that long ago, but then, if I think of where …

Thoughts on this and that
Mon, 28/12/09 – 0:38 | 2 Comments

Thoughts on: Christmas Cards
It’s a little late, but I have a card for all you Mumblers!
Home-made elephant don’t you know!

Thoughts on: Twitter
Is is just me, or has Twitter use by English speakers in Japan peaked? …

Sitting in Cafes and watching DVDs in bed
Sun, 20/12/09 – 23:32 | 3 Comments

What on earth is happening to the Tame Gone Wild?
You know what he did yesterday? He got up late (it was a Saturday), then he went to a spa and soaked in an outdoor pool. …

Japanese Maples
Sat, 12/12/09 – 14:56 | 4 Comments

Nature never ceases to amaze. Autumn may come every year, but every year I can be found in a hypnotic daze staring at the beauty that it brings.

The end of the Livestreaming in Beta era – Marathon update
Sat, 12/12/09 – 11:15 | No Comment

(Momiji montage created by the iPhone)
The release of the uStream live video broadcasting app for the iPhone (followed by Qik’s own version for non-jailbroken phones) has me me to rethink my plans for the …

The line between work and personal life in an online world
Fri, 11/12/09 – 1:57 | 4 Comments

The more involved I get with my work over at White Rabbit Press, the more I find myself wondering where the line should be drawn between my online-work and my (non-work) online-life. Being responsible for …

Quick update
Mon, 7/12/09 – 22:16 | 5 Comments

I like this video.
Life has changed a fair bit since I last posted. As many of you know, the change revolves around my work-life – I’ve left The Japanese Company and joined White Rabbit Press.
It’s …

Media Tectonics Wordpress Website Workshop – Sun 6th December
Mon, 30/11/09 – 22:04 | 7 Comments

On Sunday December 6th from 2pm to 5pm I’ll be running a Wordpress workshop for complete novices “From idea to online in three hours”. It’s aimed at those who have no prior experience of creating …

New personal distance record: South Tokyo half-marathon
Sun, 29/11/09 – 11:34 | No Comment

Tom and I continued our training for the Tokyo Marathon 2010 this morning with our longest run yet – 22.5km around the south of Tokyo.
It was great fun, as we weren’t following any prescribed route, …

Like father Like son
Sat, 28/11/09 – 22:17 | 4 Comments

Some people wonder where I get the inspiration from to dress up as a woman…
Meet my father a.k.a. ‘Honey Bun’.
This was his costume for a recent charity fundraiser he took part in!

A Lesson from you: Everything will work out for the best
Wed, 25/11/09 – 21:35 | 2 Comments

My recent discovery of a forgotten email account attached to this website has given me the opportunity to travel through time through the lives of visitors to my website.
I’ve recorded a brief personal podcast …

Autumn in Himonya Park
Mon, 23/11/09 – 15:53 | 2 Comments

A few photos I’ve just taken in the park outside the house.
Despite it being Autumn, this is actually Sakura (cherry blosssom). The tree is called ‘October Sakura’, and it flowers twice a year (as explained …

1 week until a change of occupation
Mon, 23/11/09 – 14:06 | 2 Comments

Howdy punks.
I headed on down to the Make: Tokyo Meeting 04 yesterday, held at Tokyo Institute of Technology. It’s a kind of interactive DIY tech fare. I shot a short video (embedded below) – and …

My new job
Sat, 14/11/09 – 14:46 | 4 Comments

[This entry was first published briefly 1 week ago. I chose to take it down for personal reasons, but can now put it back up]

Let’s have a picture of the moon as seen from our …

The making of Japan Podshow
Sat, 14/11/09 – 13:19 | 2 Comments

Hello there. Joseph here. In a cafe in Shibuya, opposite Sakuraya and that bright pink real estate agent on Center-gai. I have an hour to spare before meeting *Twinkle*, so thought I’d pen a few …

Big changes part 1
Mon, 9/11/09 – 22:58 | 3 Comments

Hello. It’s been a while.
With so much going on I’ve not been able to devote any time to blogging round here of late, although I am posting fairly regular audio diaries now in my podcast …

Filming at the Ritz-Carlton Tokyo
Mon, 26/10/09 – 22:12 | No Comment

Quite a memorable day today.

*Twinkle* and George

*Twinkle* and I
For our final episode of this series of Japan Podshow we knew we had to do something pretty special. We wanted to celebrate. Celebrate in Style.
A mysterious …

Tokyo Marathon 2010 – The Big Plan
Sun, 18/10/09 – 23:34 | 4 Comments

Some of you *may* recall that in the spring of 2009 I ran the Tokyo Quarter Marathon with an iPhone strapped to my head, which broadcast live video throughout the race. It also enabled viewers …

iPhone apps, Study, and Japanese TV
Tue, 13/10/09 – 0:00 | 5 Comments

Ahh, what a cute Yamanote train. Taken and (poorly) tilt-shifted on the iPhone.
Been a good day today. Finally updated www.iphoningjapan.com with a re-write of the Tokyo Metro app, now includes my take on using the …

A week of important decisions and output
Sun, 11/10/09 – 22:59 | 2 Comments

There is something about the corner of this 50-storey building that thrills me.
It’s so sharp. So determined to cut through the air. So confident. You can’t help but admire an attitude like that.

It’s the corner …

Cabbages, containers and doggy-do
Sun, 4/10/09 – 14:02 | 6 Comments

* I just posted my interview with Rob and Matt of myGengo.com over at Making it in Japan. Anyone interested in translation should check it out – they have some great new services on the …

The Ballad of Vicki and Jake
Thu, 1/10/09 – 19:24 | No Comment

The other night I met documentary maker Ian Thomas Ash. He’s a nice guy, with some interesting stories, and an award winning documentary under his belt – filmed in St Pauls, Bristol,  just down the …

Just Focus on the Penguin
Wed, 30/09/09 – 0:40 | No Comment

Just Focus on the Penguin, originally uploaded by Joseph Tame.

Taken when pepe visited the world’s largest freshwater lake, Baikal

Ritz-Carlton Tokyo project: Suta-to!
Tue, 29/09/09 – 0:56 | No Comment

Today was a very good day.
It started off as most Monday’s do – volunteer work at city hall. I went extra early today, in order to finish early and meet George an hour before our …

Namaste India Festival 2009, Yoyogi Park Tokyo
Sun, 27/09/09 – 17:44 | 6 Comments

After listening to Alex Brooke’s podcast recorded during Day 1 of the Namaste Indian festival 2009 in Yoyogi Park, I decided to head on down there for day 2.
Here’s a short video of some of …

The perils of being a techaholic
Sat, 26/09/09 – 16:10 | One Comment

I’m at the most dangerous shop in Tokyo – Yodobashi Camera in Akihabara.
Why is it so dangerous? Well, it’s one of Japan’s biggest electronic’s stores, and once you enter through it’s sliding doors you will …