Bowling and Keitei (携帯)

This weekend we decided to go bowling. It is one of those things that is fun to do once or twice a year. And we were curious to see what it is like in Japan. We wanted to "break down the pins and get hot communication." ;-) I love Engrish: http://www.engrish.com/


All in all, about the same as the US, except the atmosphere felt a bit different. The only thing that came to mind for me was that the entire area was lit up. I think in the US normally only the lanes themselves are quite bright, and everything in the back is kept at a lower lighting level. At the end of the game(s), one gets a print-out with a mark-up of each frame bowled showing what pins were knocked down. On my first game I bowled a 141, with 2 strikes and 4 spares. The second game was not as good . . .

Afterward, the girls played a little taiko drumming.

This weekend I finally got a Japanese mobile phone, or keitei (携帯). I received my foreign registration card so I was able to get a phone with a contract. I think in the long run it will be cheaper than going the pre-paid route.

But, if you think the cell phone plans in the US are confusing, then watch out for Japan. I am sure the lack of language ability complicated things, but even with an English brochure, I found the plans confusing. There seems to be quite a number of different options, combinations, discounts, limits, etc.

And, on top of that, even if one decides on a specific company, e.g. Docomo or AU, then the offers vary depending on the store one visits. Apparently, the store owner has some discretion as to what he can offer. In fact, I went to three different AU stores before getting the phone. The second store did not have the phone I wanted on sale, so I walked across the street (literally) to another AU store which had it on sale. And their overall price was cheaper than the first store I visited . . .

But, the phone I got is a really cool Sony Ericsson. I am sure it will take me forever to figure out all the options. And they were able to let me pick the last 4 digits of the 8 digit phone number. Once I chose the last 4 numbers, I was presented with what was available for the first 4. So for my last 4 digits, I picked the street address number of my childhood home in New Orleans.

And I also get an email address associated with the phone. So that is really cool too. Apparently, here SMS, or text messages, are not so popular. It is only allowed between people using the same mobile company. Instead, everyone uses email to send text message and pictures.