Night Attack: Crazy Man in My Apartment :S

Sorry, it's been a while since I updated this... amazingly some of you have even emailed to ask what's going on. Either you are very sad, bored individuals... or maybe what I write is actually interesting. I am going to be nice to all concerned and assume the latter.

So... something happened last night that certainly deserves a blot entry. First of all to give you some background I need to establish how tired I was (and thus validate the mistake I made that allowed the below events to ensue).

Yesterday was a usual nasty and very early Monday morning, and the entire day was equally nasty with issue after issue. On a positive note it went so fast as I literally had no time for myself and as I walked through the door it felt as if I had only left 10 minutes earlier. Anyway, so I got home around 10pm (straight from work... no drinks honest!) took off my shoes and dived into bed for a little rest before intending to get back up and 'do the necessary' as some of my Singapore colleagues say (basically shower and clean my teeth). No surprises I fell straight asleep without doing any of this... 'oh the morning breath' I hear you say... but not to worry... as I was to be very rudely awaken only a short hour later.

So as I am happily sleeping away in my suit pants and business shirt, suddenly a tall dark figure bursts into my apartment, kicks my shoes into the hallway ('oh no, not the shoes' I hear all my Japanese friends say) and then proceeds to trip over my laundry basket and fall onto my kitchen floor. I jumped out of bed not knowing what had happened... remembering I do live in Roppongi so there are lots of freaky people around... but my building has 3 security guards... so I had no idea what I was facing.

So I jump to my feet and switch the light on... all I see is this big Caucasian guy flat on his face on my floor, clearly very drunk without that faintest idea of where he is (was nice to notice I wasn't the only one dumping in my pants). I was a literal hysterical and went for the cricket bat in my closet (yes I have one and had played with local Aussies in Yoyogi on a few weekends). By the time I had it in hand he was back on his feet... and then I realised it was my neighbour, now looking very worried on account of the fact that I was holding a wooden killing stick of some sort that he has never seen before (he's from the US). He apologised and very quickly left my apartment.

Turns out I had forgot to lock my door after getting home so tired... and I am just assuming that my neighbour was very drunk and went for the wrong door... what a relief (even more so that I was so appropriately covered in clothing). As luck would have it I bumped into my neighbour the next morning as I left for work... the nasty bastard saw me, didn't say a word, and promptly returned to his room so he didn't have to endure taking the lift with me. Needless to say, I will be locking my door (all three locks) henceforth.

Time for bed... work in 5 hours :(

Hong Kong Heat Wave

Well not much has changed since I last posted here... still living to work as opposed to working to live :( Just got back from a week-long trip to Hong Kong. It was a really interesting trip and I got to see the 'outside of work' side of two very senior traders who I work with on a daily basis. If you ever get the chance to go to Hong Kong you should jump at it... it's an amazing city with so much to see, do and eat!! I will just give a brief run through of the highlights of my trip... then outline the dos and don'ts of going to HK.

So it all started on a Sunday afternoon when I rocked up to Narita (you know, that lovely airport which services Tokyo but just happens to be 3 days journey out of town). I made my way through ticketing and customs to the Cathay Lounge where I bumped into an old friend (overtly gay) who works at a rival bank and who I hadn't seen in ages. We were having a good old chat about all things that drive us inane (so yes, a conversation mostly about work) when one of the senior traders came long. He introduced himself to my mate, after which he proceeded to eye me over in a very strange way... made me wonder what he was getting at. Anyway, later on the plane he revealed the reason behind his look... you are not talking to [INSERT BANK NAME HERE WHO TRIED TO POACH ME IN FEB] again are you? Phew... I thought he was going to ask something else ;) Told him I was just getting some insider info (which I had indeed done) and put that one to sleep.

Now for HK... arrived and shot through Customs in no time... then proceeded in style to the new Mandarin... what a fantastic hotel!! Checked in, showered, changed and head out on the town with the rest of the crew. Had an awesome time aside from the preemption of the hang over I would have the next day. Woke up next morning at 4am... sure enough head pounding and not wanting to do much. Breakfast arrived at 4:30am along with three Tylenol to help get me off to work. Went to the HK office and met all of my colleagues, and then embarked on a day of meeting clients. Was an awesome day... getting the chance to see how business is done in another country (i.e. NOT Japan - yay!) was a lot of fun... we were received well and for just a moment I was able to feel proud about the amazing brand I work for and almost forget how I am enslaved in a financial sweat shop ;)

Anyway... the next 3 days were pretty much the same, so not going to bore you with the details. On to the fun stuff... each night the crew and I had the chance to eat at some amazing places... of course there was Chinese, but also lot's of other stuff like Brazilian and Spanish - YUMMY! But even better than the food was the wine... awesome stuff - a much better range than what I am used to in Japan. Better than all of this though, was the time I got to spend with the senior traders. I'm not one to be scared of people at work (it's usually the other way around) and I am by no means scared of these guys... but there has always been a tangible barrier here. Well not anymore! Absolute great bunch of guys and am confident I can go back to work and join them for drinks (leaving all the other scaredy cats to do even more overtime than me).

Finally about HK:

Good points...
- food is AMAZING (had Chinese, Italian, Brazilian, Spanish and more Chinese... YUMMY!!)
- bars are very relaxed but also classy (and they mix a MEAN mojito!)
- the view of HK island is amazing... such an organic city in term of it's growth and shape (does that make sense?)
- the people are very friendly and professional
- there is plenty of cultural stuff to see and do... and lots not in the guidebook to ensure a day of just getting lost will be a lot of fun
- the shopping is amazing

Not so good points... (have to be careful here as I have a lot of friends from HK)
- you are very lucky if you get to see the abovementioned view through the 364 days of smog that seem to overrun the city
- it is so damn hot and sweaty, and the smog sticks to you and makes you dirty (stay inside!!)
- people need to take lessons in lining up and not pushing in (this one drove me crazy, but I learned fast that I can just go to the front an no ones says anything)
- the credit card debt after you get home from the amazing shopping (not looking forward to that at all)

So overall a very fun and productive trip... as said, if you ever get the chance definitely go and see it.

Time for bed... work in just over 4 hours :)