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Stranger in a Strange Land Newsletter July, 2004

Stranger in a Strange Land Newsletter July, 2004

Folks,
Here it is: the Stranger in a Strange Land Newsletter. I admit I'm a little ashamed of how late I'm sending it (Sunday, August 15th). At the same time I'm a little ashamed of feeling ashamed about the punctuality of this humble, e-mail based, travelling newsletter. Who am I to presume that the lack of something as small as this will be noticed by anyone? But someone did a few days ago on the phone: "Hey, you didn't send your newsletter last month." I was convinced that I do in fact, need to write this e-mail. Then, tonight, the urge, as well as the time and energy, have come to me and though I lack sleep and it be already past midnight, I write onward!

So, how have you all been? This summer has been amazing and will continue to be, I'm sure.

Bali was cool. They ride entire families on one motor cycle. No joke: I regularly saw a man, woman, and child on one motor cycle on a street three or four lanes wide. Sometimes I saw two adults and two small children on a bike and our Balinese guide said that three children were also allowed. The best part of the country was the art. Forget Europe and its fine art: go to Bali. Your Average Joe on the street could create beautiful wood sculptures and sell them for less than $10 dollars. The rich become richer and the poor sell nice crafted items for less than ten dollars. This brings me to the saddest part of Bali:

Yes, the sculptures (wooden and stone), the paintings, and the nature are all beautiful. But the only place that didn't look dirty, run-down, and in need of repair was the HOTEL AREA. The only large well kept lawns were in the hotel area. It was the poorest country I've every seen. I don't have that much to say, I was only there for a few days, except that I do need to go and stay in a place like that to understand some things better.

Alright, but I erred: the best part of Bali was not the art but the fact that my girlfriend was there. Worst thing about Osaka right now: my girlfriend is not here. Her name is Tomomi by the way. She's quite beautiful and sweeter than sweet but I don't know who she is and she doesn't either: so she's going to stay in Okinawa (an amazing tropical island far south of Japan but part of it) until September. Maybe she really does know who she is; she only wants to have an excuse to stay on a tropical island for the summer. Probably not.

I do not know what will become of us.

Well, as a poor substitute, but nevertheless great companion, my little brother Andrew is staying with me for a couple weeks until the end of August. It's great to see my brother again, and see how he's reacting to Japan and hear what's new with him over the last six months. We've been "chatting" about all sorts of heavy subjects as Gerzons can do at times. For tourism, we got a Rail pass so we can travel all over Japan on the super fast Shinkansen ("Bullet Train"). It's great to be able to show someone around for once (I'm the one shown around usually) but I don't want to overwhelm the kid or show-off with my OK knowledge of Japan. I think I've failed on both fronts so far but we'll try to have a chill time and still see and do a lot of cool stuff. These "cold metaphors" are doubly difficult in the sweltering climate of an Osaka summer. Oh man, I tell ya in the 90s F, in the 30s C and so humid...

Well, you take care in your summer climate and give someone a nice big sweaty hug. Sign-up for the Gerzon Weekly if my musings amuse you.

Really, take care of yourself readers,
all the best,
Eli

p.s. hey, there's just a couple of you I haven't heard from in awhile and well, it'd be really cool to get an e-mail and hear how you're doing, you know!