San Fransokyo

Episode 12: Reverse Culture Shock

Vivian Qu — Mon, 16 Mar 2020 15:43:52 +0000

“This is maybe is just kinda mean—What most people talk about on the street or in a cafe or something, is just kinda… dumb.” — Dru

This is our longest episode yet — here are a few highlights of what we cover:

- Why did we come back? Plus discussions of the optimal time to leave Japan
- The argument for not becoming fluent in a foreign language
- Japanese vs. American bureaucracy
- Different levels of cleanliness and ease of public transportation in Tokyo and San Francisco
- Circle of influence vs. circle of concerns
- Long term vs short term reverse culture shocks

SHOW NOTES

Check out Bic Camera walkthrough and Bic Camera ads that were used for the background foley work at 11:20.

While we won’t be recording more episodes, I’ll be publishing more travel information from our time as locals in Japan 🛩🧳🇯🇵🏯

MUSIC LIST

Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Shibuya by Bad Snacks
Mizuki by Bad Snacks
Dreamy Flashback by Kevin MacLeod
Tribal War Council by Doug Maxwell/Media Right Productions
Dark Alley Deals by Aaron Kenny
Spy Suite By Quincas Moreira
Half Day by Bad Snacks
American Frontiers by Aaron Kenny
Saving the World by Aaron Kenny
Easy Saturday by Bad Snacks
Delightful Life by Jekk

Bonus Episode! Unintentional Background Noise

Vivian Qu — Fri, 31 Jan 2020 16:09:58 +0000

“There's some audiophile somewhere who's like 'oh god this is going to give me ear cancer' ... the audiophile appreciates good foley work, it's unintentional background noise that's--I mean, I'm not an audiophile but if I was, that's what I imagine the snobbery to be.” — Dru

SHOW NOTES

Next episode will be our final episode! Stay tuned for our final thoughts and reflections about Japan.

MUSIC LIST

Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Wallflowers by Bad Snacks
Delightful Life by Jekk

Bonus Episode! Smack in the Face

Vivian Qu — Mon, 30 Dec 2019 20:31:23 +0000

“It was like Dennis was trying to smack this woman in the face. She recoiled in fear as if he were attacking her.” - Dru

This time, we tell stories about:
- New hobbies that we’ve picked up (like wagashi!)
- Japanese beach vacations
- Dealing with food spoiling and small refrigerators
- Visiting the Tokyo Treasure Islands (specifically Oshima)
- How well humor translates
- Angry Japanese waitresses
- Making fun of our friend at Disney Sea

SHOW NOTES

Stay tuned for one more bonus episode coming up, plus a final wrap-up episode that will be a send-off for this podcast (😢)!

We have taken both the Buddha Bellies Wagashi - Japanese sweets and tea-making lesson class and Simply Oishii’s Wagashi (mochi) course in Tokyo.

Check out our wagashi attempts on our instagram @sanfransokyopodcast by clicking here.

MUSIC LIST

Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Cherry Blossom - Wonders by Kevin MacLeod
Easy Saturday by Bad Snacks
New Moon by Bad Snacks
Island Coconuts by Aaron Kenny
Away by Geographer
Wallflowers by Bad Snacks
Christmas Village by Aaron Kenny
Mizuki by Bad Snacks
Delightful Life by Jekk

Episode 11: Slow March Into the Grave

Vivian Qu — Mon, 19 Aug 2019 04:00:00 +0000

“This is going to go down as one of the--if not the best--year of my life. It's all downhill from here. Just... a slow march into the grave.” — Dru

We discuss:
- Terrace House as a metaphor for what we learned about living abroad
- Discounting the fear of moving abroad and being more risk-seeking
- “Distinctly” vs. “typically” Japanese
- Our time in Japan as a “time of chaotic growth”
- Storytelling and whether or not to care about having impact on others
- The difficulty of learning Japanese and our current language ability after one year
- What we think will change once we get back to the US

SHOW NOTES
This is our longest episode yet! Keep a look out for an upcoming bonus episode with outtakes and discussion topics that couldn’t make it into this episode.

You can watch Terrace House: Opening New Doors on Netflix. Vivian is currently watching the latest season of the show, Terrace House 2019-2020.

The style of the intro and autro commentary inspired by the great host of the Imaginary Worlds podcast, Eric Molinksy.

MUSIC LIST
Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Take It Easy by Bad Snacks
Trying by Eleventyseven
…Ready For It? by Taylor Swift
Smile by Jeremy Blake
Delightful Life by Jekk

Episode 10: Diametrically Opposed

Vivian Qu — Fri, 31 May 2019 12:00:00 +0000

“There are a lot of moments where people start to develop one mental image of Japan and then they just get hid by something that seems so diametrically opposed to that. You get a lot of people going, ‘Huh?’ It builds up an expectation and then knocks it down, much more than other countries I’ve been to.” — Dru

In this episode we cover:
- The existence and mingling of zen and weird Japan
- “What Japanese people think American people think Japanese is like”
- 1,000 year old trees in Omiya Bonsai Village
- Otakus and weaboos channeling the true spirit of Japan
- Japan creating all our favorite childhood pop culture

SHOW NOTES
Here are links to the articles and videos that I used as reference in the ending section of the episode.
- “Bonsai” [Quartz Obsession]
- “Kodawari” [Medium]
- “An Unusual Way of Speaking, Yoda Has” [The Atlantic]
- “Lots of Harry Potter Books in China, Not All By the Author” [New York Times]
- “China Cracks Down on Foreign Children’s Books” [The Guardian]
- “The Death and Resurrection of Japan’s Used Panty Vending Machine” [Tech In Asia]

And, as promised, here is the summary of “Harry Potter and the Big Funnel” (from NYT):

“After six years at Hogwarts, Harry Potter becomes an intern sorcerer and is assigned to teach at the Honiton School. Harry has a painful time in his aunt’s house, as Dudley has met a belly-dancing girl. As Harry prepares to report to his job, Bat Bug warns him disaster awaits.

At the school, his students become wooden stools one after another. Harry doesn’t know whether an evil student is behind this, or if his old benefactor Hagrid is making a mistake, or if the shadow of Voldemort has returned. Did it have something to do with the big funnel?”

MUSIC LIST
Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Half Day by Bad Snacks
Powerup! by Jeremy Blake
Star Wars Cantina Theme (8Bit Remix Cover Version) by 8 Bit Universe
Harry Potter Soundtrack - Hedwig’s Theme 8-Bit by Miles_Metal
Delightful Life by Jekk

Episode 9: The Color Plink

Vivian Qu — Wed, 08 May 2019 11:41:33 +0000

"It's a very light plink... it's almost like a whitish color." - Vivian

In this episode, we cover:

- What a cherry blossom season actually looks like
- How it is different living here versus visiting during spring
- Our ranking of the best seasons to come to Japan
- The long-awaited Huel mid-roll ad

To try out Huel yourself, use our referral code at bit.ly/sanfransokyo-huel. (DISCLAIMER: Huel does not actually sponsor us)

MUSIC LIST
Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Leveled Up! by Bad Snacks
Gaiety in the Golden Age by Aaron Kenny
City Night Lights by Bad Snacks
Delightful Life by JekK

Episode 8: One Year Left to Live

Vivian Qu — Tue, 09 Apr 2019 03:20:44 +0000

In this episode, we cover:

- How to maintain health and fitness while hosting visitors
- Cultivating a sense of wonder for the place you live
- Resetting habits/routines when moving to a new country

MUSIC LIST
Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Space Racer by Bad Snacks
Delightful Life by JekK

Episode 7: Shower for Your Butt

Vivian Qu — Mon, 18 Feb 2019 03:04:26 +0000

In this episode, we cover:

- missing a utility bill payment
- traveling salesman-slash-milkman
- possible credit card scams, and
- the wonders of Japanese toilets and bathrooms.

MUSIC LIST
Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Kawaii by Bad Snacks
English Country Garden by Aaron Kenny
I Knew a Guy by Kevin MacLeod
Enigma by Kevin MacLeod
Delightful Life by JekK

Episode 6: A Spork for the Ground

Vivian Qu — Fri, 11 Jan 2019 01:52:33 +0000

This episode focuses on convenience and the concept of “Galapagos” technology. We talk about:

- The inability to pay for bills and health insurance online
- SF startup named “Bodega” (recently renamed to Stockwell)
- The ubiquity of vending machines
- Hot corn soup and diner coffee
- Recycling culture and trash cans (or lack thereof)
- Communal cleaning / neighborhood responsibilities

MUSIC LIST

Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Mizuki by Bad Snacks
Shibuya by Bad Snacks
Delightful Life by JekK

Episode 5: Raging Lunatics

Vivian Qu — Sun, 18 Nov 2018 10:35:38 +0000

We discuss what it’s like to bike in Tokyo and how bikes are viewed fundamentally differently in Japan. We’ve found that Tokyo has city infrastructure optimized for biking and that our commutes are some of the best times in our day.

This episode contains real recordings of children running around the streets in our neighborhood and the sounds of our bike bell (although the bike pedaling sounds come from the Youtube Audio Library). The video referenced in the show is Why Beautiful Things Make Us Happy by Kurzgesagt.

MUSIC LIST
Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
One Summer (Spirited Away) by Ghosting
Minyo San Kyoku by Doug Maxwell/Zac Zinger
April Showers by ProleteR
Mizuki by Bad Snacks
Delightful Life by JekK

Episode 4: Dumpster Fire

Vivian Qu — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 13:20:44 +0000

Episode 4: Dumpster Fire San Fransokyo Podcast Download

Studying japanese in the morning while cuddling with a puppy is important to our schedule

Dru and Vivian reflect on the move and what went (hilariously) wrong in their move to Japan. We also talk about our three-day weekend in Kanazawa and how the trip was how we imagined living in Japan would be like.

“There were a couple areas that were miserable... mostly and almost exclusively sleeping on a rug under a pile of my own clothes like just a walking, talking dumpster fire of a human being for a week.”

— Dru

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MUSIC LIST

Venetian Blinds by Ping Pong Club
Music from the Kanazawa Jazz Festival
Delightful Life by JekK

SHOW NOTES

You can learn more about Kanazawa and the Kanazawa Jazz Festival.

Episode 3: 30 Years Later

Vivian Qu — Wed, 05 Sep 2018 02:01:44 +0000

“You will never have something you can never cross over, basically. Any difficulties at one point it's nothing when you look back.” - Mom

The inspiration for this interview came from a show we watched in San Francisco. In Vietgone, the newest play by Qui Nguyen, there is a scene where the playwright does a funny, heartfelt, emotional interview with his immigrant father.

Episode 2: Exit Interview

Vivian Qu — Thu, 16 Aug 2018 15:00:00 +0000

This episode was recorded on June 29th, 2018.

Episode 1: Welcome to the city

Vivian Qu — Mon, 30 Jul 2018 00:00:00 +0000

“Can you feel it? You guys, do you feel this? Our origin story begins. We're gonna be superheroes!” - Fred, Big Hero 6

We discuss the city that Disney created in the movie Big Hero 6 and how it inspired us to imagine a world where our favorite parts of San Francisco and Tokyo are combined. This episode was recorded on June 29th, the day before Dru left for Japan.