Big in Japan: Japanese worker logs 780,000 porno hits at office

by Matthew Firestone on

The Japanese are anything but prudish, especially when it comes to pornography or AV (adult video). Here in Japan, the AV industry pumps out literally hundreds of new videos each day, featuring pretty much everything that your sick little mind can imagine. I would expand more here on some of the more unusual varieties of Japanese adult entertainment, but for the sake of our sponsors at AOL – and out of respect for my dear mother! – I’ll let you discover them in your own free time.

With that said, if you’re going to scour the web for the latest and greatest in Japanese porno, it’s probably best not do it while you’re in an office cubicle. In fact, that is precisely what happened this week in the city of Kinokawa in southern Japan ,where a council employee was discovered looking at almost 10,000 pages containing explicit content per day! Over a nine month period, it is estimated that the 57-year old man logged more than 780,000 hits on porno websites.

And who says Japanese bureaucracy is efficient – in my opinion, it takes some serious dedication to log in that many hours of porn viewing in one day!

According to sources in the city council, the man was allowed to keep his job in public service, though he was demoted, and his wages were cut by about 20,000 yen ($200) per month. In porno terms, that’s about ten new-issue DVDs, or about a fifteen month online subscription to your favorite fetish site.

Mind you, not that I watch porno, or anything of the sort! (^_^)

The report goes on to describe how the man would turn up for work every day, though failed to maintain the same level of productivity as his fellow co-workers. Apparently, his incessant porno habit peaked last July when he is estimated to have logged 177,000 hits in a singly month!

In the end, the man was only discovered after his computer was infected with a virus, which prompted the IT team to access his web history. Foolish – he should have just deleted his web history like the rest of us!

Mind you, not that I watch or porno, or anything of the sort! (^_^)

As you would imagine, the city council was highly embarrassed by the incident, and was forced to comment on national television as to why it took several months to catch and reprimand the distracted worker. According to one official, employees’ desks were separated from one another, so it was impossible to monitor everyone’s web behaviors.

Of course, this seeming bit of nonsense has to make you wonder. If the guy has a healthy enough sexual appetite to spend all of his working hours searching for porno, he probably needed to, well, relieve himself at some point – perhaps the first clue that the guy had a porno habit should have been the frequent line outside the men’s restroom!

On that note, I think I’ll go back to doing something more productive instead of blogging about porno…

** All images are of the famous Anna Ohura, the half-Japanese, half-French AV sensation who is regarded as having the largest natural breasts (metric I-cup, 100cm) in the Japanese adult film industry **

Big in Egypt: Five things you can do in Egypt that don’t involve Pyramids

by Matthew Firestone on

This week, Big in Japan is on vacation in the Middle East, and will be bringing you travel news and happenings from around this often misunderstood region.

Home to the last remaining wonder of the ancient world, namely the Great Pyramids of Giza, Egypt is the original tourist destination. While the Greeks were writing epics and the Romans conquering civilizations, powerful Egyptian dynasties had long come and gone. Indeed, ancient Upper and Lower Egypt were some of the most sophisticated and complex civilizations to have ever existed on the planet.

The Great Pyramids are nearly always at the top of the most tourist itineraries in Egypt. Indeed, a camel trek through the desert plains of Giza is a memorable experience, assuming of course you ignore the fact that pyramids themselves are now located across from a KFC!

But, there are plenty of things you can do in Egypt that don’t involve pyramids. Although this list is by no means expansive, here are our top 5 suggestions for getting the most out of your Egyptian odyssey.

1) Cruise the Nile – The lifeblood of Africa is the Nile River, which has fostered civilizations for several millennia. Generally regarded as the longest river in the world (though the Amazon may in fact have it beat!), a cruise along the palm-fringed banks of the Nile is a quintessential Egyptian experience – particularly memorable is the stretch from Aswan to Luxor.

2) Visit Abu Simbel – While you’re down in Aswan, don’t miss Abu Simbel, two massive rock temples that were carved out of a mountainside by Pharaoh Ramesses II and Queen Nefertari in the 13th century BC. Remarkably, the entire complex was relocated in 1the 960s following flooding caused by the construction of the Aswan dam. The temple is also located near the Sudanese border, which definitely gives you some serious travel bragging rights!

3) Summit Mt. Sinai – Regardless of your religious beliefs, few can resist the magnetic attraction of the fabled mountain where Moses is reported to have received the Ten Commandments. Start your climb in the late evening (bring a flashlight!) so that you can reach the summit in time for what will most likely be the most spiritual sunrise of your life!

4) Dive the Blue Hole – Also on the Sinai Peninsula is the backpacker friendly town of Dahab, which has been dubbed the ‘Koh Samui of the Middle East.’ Even if you’re not a die-hard fan of banana cakes, the SCUBA diving here is tops, especially the infamous Blue Hole. The site of an enormous limestone sink hole, the Blue Hole drops to dizzyingly deep depths that challenge even the most advanced divers.

5) Visit the Pyramids – OK, we lied…well, not exactly. While most tourists in Cairo are dodging touts at the Great Pyramids of Giza, savvy travelers are exploring the ‘Other Pyramids,’ namely the Bent Pyramid and Red Pyramid at Dahshur. Located in the Giza Plateau beyond the Cairo city limits, these remote pyramids are virtually untouristed, yet in many ways are more striking than their more famous counterparts.

Intrigued by the Middle East? Want to know more about this often misunderstood region? Check out previous posts on the top sights in Dubai, a how-to-guide for would-be travelers in the Palestinian West Bank, reasons why Jerusalem is holier than thou and how to reenact Indiana Jones at Petra in Jordan.

** Big in Japan will soon be returning home to Tokyo, so stay tuned for more on the weird, wonderful and wacky world of Japanland **

Big in Jordan: How to reenact Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade

by Matthew Firestone on

This week, Big in Japan is on vacation in the Middle East, and will be bringing you travel news and happenings from around this often misunderstood region.

With the world premiere of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull scheduled for May 22, 2008, it’s no surprise that the internet is buzzing these days with Indy-related travel themes. After all, who wouldn’t want jet-set across the world in search of mythical treasures, assuming of course that in the end, you get the girl and defeat the Nazis!

Well, considering that today’s column is about Jordan, that surprisingly peaceful speck of a country that is bordered by Israel, Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia (there goes the neighborhood!), I thought it best to give into the Indy hype. After all, one of the newly minted New Seven Wonders of the World, namely the ancient city of Petra, happens to be the location of the Holy Grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Interested in reenacting one of the greatest moments in cinema history? Go grab your trusty bull whip and keep on reading.

In the climax of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, the Joneses, Sallah, and Brody race across the world to reach the temple housing the Holy Grail, which is located in the Canyon of the Crescent Moon in Hatay near İskenderun. You don’t need to be a geography major to realize that Hollywood got a bit carried away with the names, especially since the the temple housing the Grail is a very real place. In fact, we’re talking about the Treasury, which is located in the Siq Canyon in Petra near Wadi Musa.

So, how do you reenact the Last Crusade? Actually, it’s quite simple. Wadi Musa, a small village in the south of Jordan, is the base town for exploring Petra, and home the area’s hotels, restaurants, cafes and tourist-related services. From here, the entrance to the ancient city is just a quick cab ride away.

Petra, a ‘rose-red city half as old as time,’ was hewn from towering rock walls of multi-colored sandstone by the ancient Nabataeans, Arab traders who dominated the region in pre-Roman times. The city’s most iconic building, and the film location of the Last Crusade, is the fabled Treasury or Al-Khazneh, a masterpiece of Hellenistic craftsmanship that is near perfect in size, scope and symmetry. Sadly, the interior of the building is empty, so you can abandon any hopes of falling rock bridges, grail cups and the search for everlasting youth.

The Treasury is approached via the Siq, a long and narrow slot canyon of multi-colored sandstone. In the final moments of the Last Crusade, the Joneses, Sallah, and Brody race down the Siq on horseback with the Treasury to their backs, fading off into the distance. If you’ve brought along your Indy hat and leather jacket, this is where you’re going to want to snap that classic screen shot. Fortunately, the local Bedouins have all seen the Last Crusade a few hundred times, so there is no shortage of horses on hand that can be rented for a small negotiable price!

Sure, it’s touristy, but once you’ve gotten the obligatory Indy snapshot, you can take comfort in the fact that Petra is one of the most stunning archaeological sites in the whole of the Middle East, yet sees a mere fraction of the tourists that swamp neighboring Egypt. So, wear plenty of sunscreen, clean up your memory card and don’t be afraid to call out your favorite Indy lines while trekking across the desert!

Intrigued by the Middle East? Want to know more about this often misunderstood region? Check out previous posts on the top sights in Dubai, a how-to-guide for would-be travelers in the Palestinian West Bank and reasons why Jerusalem is holier than thou.

Big in Israel: Why Jerusalem is holier than thou

by Matthew Firestone on

This week, Big in Japan is on vacation in the Middle East, and will be bringing you travel news and happenings from around this often misunderstood region.

Few places in the world can rest on their laurels quite like Jerusalem, the Holy City of the Promised Land that is home to some of the most sacred sites in Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Not unlike that really, really hot girl you bump into at the club, everyone seems to be fighting for a piece.

So how holy is Jerusalem you say? Well, let me assure you that it’s certainly holier than thou. While it’s difficult to fully appreciate the historical and religious significance of Jerusalem without ever actually setting foot there, today’s posting will hopefully shed some light on some of the old city’s most storied buildings and monuments.

Disclaimer: This is a travel blog, not political commentary. I certainly don’t have a solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, though I can certainly understand, on all sides, why Jerusalem is worth fighting for.

The Western or Wailing Wall – The western retaining wall of the Temple Mount is regarded as the most sacred site in Judaism, especially since it once surrounded the ‘Holiest of Holies,’ namely Herod’s Temple. However, following the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans in 70 AD, Jewish worshippers have mourned their insufferable loss by wailing in front of the wall. A more modern practice involves slipping prayer slips into the cracks of the wall.

Dome of the Rock – Here is where things start to get a bit more complicated. In the centre of the Temple Mount is the Dome of the Rock, the oldest Islamic building that just happens to be resting on the former site of the Second Temple. Due to the sacred nature of this site, Jews are forbidden by rabbinical law to ascend to the top of the Temple Mount. However, Muslims regard the mosque together with adjacent Al-Aqsa (see below) as the third holiest site in Islam, primarily because the rock at the centre is from where Muhammad ascended to heaven.

Al-Aqsa Mosque – Here is where things start to get even more complicated. Also on the Temple Mount and adjacent to the Dome of the Rock is Al-Aqsa, a mosque from where prayers are 500 times stronger than at any other mosque outside of Mecca and Medina. Prior to his ascension to heaven, Muhammad rode on a winged horse from Mecca to the ‘farthest mosque’ or Al-Aqsa in Jerusalem.

At this point, the answer to your question is yes – the third holiest site in Islam literally sits on top of the holiest site in Judaism.

Church of the Holy Sepulchre – As if all of this wasn’t complicated enough, just around the corner is one of the most important churches in Christianity, especially since it is built on top of Golgotha or Calvary. From atop this hill, Jesus was crucified by the Romans, and later buried at its base. Since the 4th century, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre has existed as one of the most important pilgrimage sites in the Christian religion.

Needless to say, there is no quick and easy fix for the problems in Israel and the Palestinian territories short of more peace, understanding and dialog on all sides of the debate…

Intrigued by the Middle East? Want to know more about this often misunderstood region? Check out previous posts on the top sights in Dubai, as well as a how-to-guide for would-be travelers in the Palestinian West Bank.

Big in Palestine: How to travel safely in the West Bank

by Matthew Firestone on

This week, Big in Japan is on vacation in the Middle East, and will be bringing you travel news and happenings from around this often misunderstood region.

Today’s post will give you some tips on traveling in the West Bank, that swath of land sitting between Israel and Jordan that one day might compose the vast bulk of an independent Palestine. Please keep in mind that the security situation in Israel and the Palestinian Territories changes daily (sometimes hourly), so please use this guide as a general reference, and always seek local advice before doing something that your mother certainly wouldn’t approve of!

The once and future spark to the great powder keg that is the Middle East is Palestine, a historic geographical region located on the southern east coast of the Mediterranean Sea. The name itself actually dates to 135 AD when the Romans changed Judea to Palestine in order to incite tensions between Jews and the Philistines. Needless to say, not much has changed in the subsequent two-thousand years…

Today, Palestine refers to the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. You would need to have a serious malfunction to even consider stepping foot in Gaza, though traveling in the West Bank is a lot safer than the media would have you believe.

So, here’s how you do it:

From East Jerusalem, which is the large Palestinian neighborhood that sits beyond the ancient walls of the Muslim Quarter, take any Arab bus bound for Bethlehem, which sits on the other side of the security wall separating Jerusalem and the West Bank. Note that Jewish buses do not run to the security wall for obvious reasons. Once at the security wall, you must pass through a heavily militarized checkpoint, and you should expect some serious questioning by Israeli army and police.

Once on the other side, expect to be bombarded by taxi drivers. Even if you’re a fiercely independent traveler, it’s probably a good idea to strike up a bargain with a friendly-looking soul. Having a local guide, which shouldn’t cost more than US$30-50 a day, will buy you some serious peace of mind, and will provide some candid insight into the Palestinian situation.

Prior to the start of the infitada (uprising), the West Bank was a major tourist destination, especially since it’s home to the birthplace of Jesus, namely Bethlehem, as well as the ancient city of Jericho. Hebron and Ramallah, historic Palestinaian cities, are also extremely interesting destinations, as are the temples, monasteries and palaces scattered amidst the deserts of Judea and Samaria.

Although this should go without saying, it’s probably not a good idea to wear any obvious Judaic signs in this part of the world. However, most Palestinians you meet in the West Bank are extremely receptive to tourists, especially since they want their story to be told to the outside world. However, do keep in mind that emotions run high, so best to keep your politics to yourself, regardless of where they may lie. After all, traveling in the West Bank can be eye-opening experience, so best to come with a soft heart and an open mind.

Intrigued by the Middle East? Want to know more about this often misunderstood region? Check out yesterday’s post on traveling in Dubai.

** Special thanks to my mother for maintaining a fair measure of her sanity despite my love of adventure travel in dangerous places**