japan :: tokyo :: general

[Guest jmatsu]

Really? For me the numbers and getting the first date it the hard but, it's all down hill from there. But I aint no B.A.L.L.A.

Do you mean 'the whole nine yards'?

bbc...billionaires boys club?

whole nine yards is taking a bitch back to your place and beating her at nintendo wii golf.

[skistar]

how much money would i need to have saved up to live 6 months in Tokyo without having to work...

is such a trip even possible? /would I be able to find a place to live?

[prima]

Most times I've been at the club there's always a foreigner with a skanky japanese girl and they're the only people like, bumping and grinding and shit and making out and it's really obvious and funny as shit. Me and some of my friends start making a big deal out of it and pointing them out, and the guy thinks were giving him props when we're laughing at him. Then we try to get them to do more stupid shit and don't leave them alone until they go to a different part of the room or leave.

It's fun.

that's your idea of a good time? you sound cool.

[so-so]

Im way fucking cool.

[2000dB]

how much money would i need to have saved up to live 6 months in Tokyo without having to work...

is such a trip even possible? /would I be able to find a place to live?

Finding a place wont be too hard at all, but unless you're really loaded I don't see how one could survive without working anywhere. Why do you want to go to tokyo for 6 months for anyway? I did it personally, but it's probably not that great of an idea.

[herpsky]

how much money would i need to have saved up to live 6 months in Tokyo without having to work...

is such a trip even possible? /would I be able to find a place to live?

this question gets asked repeatedly...

i don't think anyone has the right answer.

live in a park for 6 months = free

stay @ park hyatt for 6 months = $$$$$$$$$$ * 10^10

[jcotteri]

how much money would i need to have saved up to live 6 months in Tokyo without having to work...

is such a trip even possible? /would I be able to find a place to live?

would you consider selling your arse as not working?

[Guest jmatsu]

[thomas_highstreet]

matsu san..

LATE PASS!!!!

[Guest jmatsu]

matsu san..

LATE PASS!!!!

why? it's on friday...

[djrajio]

The bankers who risk death in Tokyo

IT IS JUST AFTER 9pm on Friday and in one of the clubs at the foot of Roppongi Hills it’s already a major struggle to reach the bar.

Expensive suit jackets have been slung over the backs of chairs or jammed through the handles of designer briefcases. Silk ties have been loosened, the partying has spilt out on to the warm streets and the champagne-fuelled flirting is in full swing. The Western investment bankers are on the town, and they have a very big night ahead of them.

One of the larger groups is joined by a stockbroker who has come straight from his office a little further down the road — a Japanese securities house which employs a smattering of non-Japanese staff to schmooze its foreign clients. On his arrival, he surreptitiously taps his nose with two fingers. Everyone who spots this gesture knows exactly what it means: the cocaine part of the evening has all been arranged.

“This little strip of Tokyo must be one of the world’s biggest parties right now, and when city bankers party seriously that always means cocaine,†says a red-faced New Yorker sloshing a colourful cocktail around his glass.

“Everyone standing here has a stack of spare cash, is probably single — or pretending to be — and has absolutely nothing to do tomorrow except recover from the night before or play a round of golf.â€

Everybody from nightclub owners and DJs to strippers and lap dancers confirms that the good times are rolling again in Roppongi. After ten unhappy years in the doldrums, stocks and shares are resurgent and the old bubble spirit, dormant since the crash of 1990, has returned. Bonuses among foreign workers have started to reflect the recovery of market fortunes and suddenly there is a large number of foreigners in town with enough disposable income to crack open a £220 bottle of champagne for the hell of it and spend £300 a gram on cocaine.

Towering above this scene is Tokyo’s newest — and most desirable — office block. Its glittering list of tenants includes big Wall Street banking names, international law firms, TV companies and boutique financial houses. As the evening draws on, more and more suits stream out of its doors and head straight down to join the throng in the bars and clubs of Roppongi — the undisputed party capital of Tokyo and the heart of a new cocaine boom.

“Bars along the main Roppongi strip have become the prime spots for Western city boys looking for someone to fix them up,†says Hamish, a barman at one of the nightspots. “This is a complete import from London and New York — when the Japanese want to have a good time they hit the booze and perhaps some speed. Cocaine is pretty much exclusively for guys with work visas and expat wallets.â€

But with that boom has come a chilling chain of incidents all centred on the same small Roppongi area. Over the past three months, the free-spending expatriate community has been rocked by four drug-related deaths and a string of 12 near-fatal overdose comas. A rogue drugs dealer, say police, has been mixing heroin into the cocaine, and some who have snorted the mixture have paid with their lives. The dealer, thought to be an Iranian, remains at large.

Rupert Littlewood, a young bond trader with joint British and Australian nationality, made his purchase from the dealer in April. He did not know it but by then the cocaine-heroin cocktail was already responsible for the deaths of a Canadian and a Brazilian. Littlewood was lucky — he only fell unconscious. When he awoke in the Hiroo hospital, which has one of Japan’s few specialist departments for drugs overdoses, he was immediately arrested for possession. More of the bizarre mixture was found in his pocket, and there was almost three times more heroin in his bloodstream than cocaine.

His trial for drugs possession opened two weeks ago, and the verdict came extremely quickly by Japanese standards: having pleaded guilty, the 32-year-old received a suspended sentence — a result regarded by his lawyers as a significant victory given that the traditional Japanese outcome of such cases is three years’ hard labour.

But while his lawyers may be pleased with the result, the high-octane life that he built in Japan is now in tatters. Within a couple of hours of the verdict on Monday, arrangements were being made for Littlewood to be deported, and he will not be able to return for an extremely long time. When he was arrested in April, he had been working for just a few months for Morgan Stanley, the US investment bank with offices not far from Roppongi. He had moved to Tokyo in 2001 with Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, the Anglo-German investment banking house, where he built a reputation as a man who enjoyed everything the expat life had to offer. Previously he had worked in their Sydney offices after completing a PhD in applied mathematics at the University of Sydney where he was very highly regarded by his professors.

One of his former DKW colleagues said: “He’s a great guy, but he knows the risks and still takes them. Was he doing anything more than any other trader on a Friday night in London? No, but I think you can lead such a comfortable life here that you forget how much trouble you can get into in the blink of an eye.â€

There is no bail for suspected drug offenders awaiting trial in Japan, so when Littlewood could not turn up for work after his arrest, Morgan Stanley was forced to sack him. A career that would reliably have delivered years of mouth-watering bonuses and generous salaries was suddenly crushed.

Just three minutes’ walk from the dive bar in which Littlewood bought those few grams is hard evidence of what he lost — his sprawling, luxury apartment nestling among embassy buildings and chic restaurants. Normal Japanese office workers cannot hope to afford such a flat in the very centre of Tokyo, where the only apartments are constructed for the super-rich. The average daily commute for Japanese workers in the financial district is more than an hour each way. But a great benefit of the massively subsidised expat life is that non-Japanese investment bankers can afford to live perhaps 15 minutes from the office in flats that would comfortably house a Japanese family of six.

On the same day as Littlewood’s overdose, two Americans also bought the cocaine-heroin cocktail. In 33-year-old Tim Kelly’s case, the level of heroin was fatal. His friend and colleague, Billy Philips, managed to stagger back to the corridor of their glittering apartment building in Atago Hills before collapsing into a coma. The two men worked for the same company, an American flight simulator manufacturer that had recently signed a massive deal with Japan Airlines and posted the pair there to work with the clients. They had plenty to celebrate, and Roppongi was where they naturally headed.

A recent newsletter sent around by the American Embassy in Tokyo warns residents to be particularly wary of the Roppongi scene, and that overdosers on heroin “may have believed they were purchasing cocaineâ€. The letter went on to remind Americans that “the risks of possessing, purchasing and using illegal drugs abroad include accidental deathâ€. But many think the message has so far failed to sink in. One embassy insider says: “These warnings go out but there is a certain community out here where the culture is just too ingrained.â€

The other victims have all come from equally high-flying sectors of the economy: financiers, consultants and senior executives have all fallen prey to the rogue dealer’s mix. A Canadian man who died from the mixture ended his life as so many visitors end their nights out in Roppongi: in a Chinese massage parlour.

“We can clearly see whether they have been drinking or snorting coke when they come here,†says one sex worker at a club just off the main drag. “They used to turn up so drunk that they could hardly walk. On coke, they think they are porn stars.â€

Nobody has yet explained the exact motive for the string of heroin cocktail sales. Some believe that they represent a straightforward instance of robbery: the drugs dealer would add the high levels of heroin to the cocaine knowing that within minutes users would overdose. Once the users were in a coma, he could then steal their wallets and passports.

Drugs experts believe that the incidents may also represent the first appearance in Japan of a notoriously dangerous practice that has claimed lives across South-East Asia — an attempt by dealers to make cocaine more addictive by creating a dual dependency on heroin. Police are working on the assumption that the rogue dealer simply concocted this mixture wrongly.

[djrajio]

The rise of Roppongi as Tokyo’s cocaine capital coincides exactly with the soaring number of foreigners arriving in Japan to work. The trend is particularly noticeable in the financial industry, where many institutions have recognised the need to bring in experts from abroad. But that flow has brought its own culture with it. Across Japan, drug abuse — along with general crime levels — is extremely low by international standards. Speed and a few designer drugs have their followers among a small cross-section of salaried workers and students, but cocaine, say Roppongi police, has thrived only because the place is crammed with people who used it back home.

Roppongi’s longstanding reputation as a ghetto for foreigners has given it an equally long immunity from serious police activity. Government-led anti-crime drives have always tended to focus on the Kabukicho district of Shinjuku, where Japanese are more likely to be both the victims and perpetrators of crime. But the deaths and comas have startled the authorities into an unprecedented burst of action — last week a raid was mounted on one bar, where four staff and a customer were arrested on drugs-related charges. One employee was charged with dealing in cocaine from behind the bar itself.

Roppongi regulars reported only a brief interlude in the party spirit as word of the raid spread. Phillipe Carina, who works as a tout for a hostess bar, says: “For one night, things were really quiet. People avoided all the usual places because they thought nowhere was safe. But they have come back — this is where they want to be.â€

Sure enough, one night later the old haunts were throbbing once more. Graham (not his real name), a 31-year-old equities broker who has worked at a major-name investment bank in Tokyo since 1999, explains the picture.

“Traders will do coke just because they have the cash, but with brokers it is different. I’m not saying that I was hired to score coke for my clients, but my job is certainly to show them a good time. The whole business of client entertainment operates on an incredibly intense level out here in Tokyo — far more than back in London or New York. In the City there will always be a few clients who want to go to a strip club. Here, everyone wants that. Debauchery is just part of the pattern,†he says.

He goes on to describe a typical Thursday or Friday night out with clients, and adds that in the four years he has been here, the past three months have involved the hardest partying of all. Some, he says, live in Tokyo anyway, others are over to visit Japanese companies or are on some other business. Either way, they will want their night’s route to include at least one lap-dancing club and plenty of bars.

“There is a killer combination of what is on offer in Roppongi and that total sense of freedom that comes from being thousands of miles from home,†says Graham. “The clients expect us to make their night a memorable one, and the whole area is completely geared towards that. By two in the morning, the fun is just getting started and some bars are only just opening. Everyone is having a great time and soon enough, someone will ask whether there is any coke about. If the client is important enough, you do what you have to do.â€

He pulls from his breast pocket an elegant silver business card holder, embossed with the well-known logo of the investment house at which he works. He opens the lid to reveal a perfectly mirrored interior and grins: “I couldn’t swear it, but I think my boss was smirking when he gave me this. It only has one use, and it isn’t holding business cards.â€

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/article455491.ece

[thomas_highstreet]

theres already been a couple narzi[spicy 's'] nights

you gonna go? i know this girl in london who shoots for Durian, and she is good friends with those TFR/tOkYO Nu RaVE [lol] peoples, im so gonna try sex hulia.

why? it's on friday...

[Guest jmatsu]

theres already been a couple narzi[spicy 's'] nights

you gonna go? i know this girl in london who shoots for Durian, and she is good friends with those TFR/tOkYO Nu RaVE [lol] peoples, im so gonna try sex hulia.

yeah i know that there has been narzi shit already. tokyo salon/etc.

i can't go i aint in japlandz. why you wanna sex yulia? i mean i would, but she ain't all that.

[thomas_highstreet]

i know.. she not all that,.. but they are all hot.. nakao has that bipolar vibe but kimorih is the best.

[DEPHT]

Hey djrajio (or anyone that works in japan), how hard is it to break into the ibanking/strgy consulting industry in Japan? A couple people I know are hooking me up with an internship at Mckinsey and possibly BCG in the states but I was thinking of asking them to send me over to the tokyo office instead (if it was even possible). I want "international business experience" (no matter how much it reeks of bullshit sometimes) before I go back to school later. Basically, I want to work and live outside the states for a few years.

I've heard everything from "it's competitive but manageable" to "they won't hire you if you aren't japanese"

any insights?

[englandmj7]

Hey djrajio (or anyone that works in japan), how hard is it to break into the ibanking/strgy consulting industry in Japan? A couple people I know are hooking me up with an internship at Mckinsey and possibly BCG in the states but I was thinking of asking them to send me over to the tokyo office instead (if it was even possible). I want "international business experience" (no matter how much it reeks of bullshit sometimes) before I go back to school later. Basically, I want to work and live outside the states for a few years.

I've heard everything from "it's competitive but manageable" to "they won't hire you if you aren't japanese"

any insights?

I can't speak much for Japan, but I've interned abroad and I can tell you that 99% of the time, it isn't worth a corporation's efforts to get an intern the proper work visas involved in a foreign internship. This is more so the case with large multi-national corporations who are obliged to handle things the 'correct way.' For instance, I have interned in Asia twice, but both times it was basically under the table on a 3-month visitor's visa. In addition, I would probably guess that a basic understanding of Japanese would be a prerequisite to them sending an intern over there. But who knows; McKinsey is a global consultancy and probably has internship programs in place specifically to expose potential hires to life and work abroad.

You'd also probably have to have a pretty legitimate reason for asking that they send you there considering the extra costs involved on their part (stipends, insurance, risk, etc). Telling them you want to shop in Harajuku on the weekends and eat Ramenzz probably wouldn't go down so well. He heh.

[djrajio]

My man england is pretty much on the ball with this. But just to add a little color. If you wanna work in Japan, you need to speak Japanese! Unless you have a Ph.D. in physics, finance, or something amazing that will counterbalance the non-native language skills. Most of the ex-pats here are pretty senior; transferred over to leverage the talent/skills they developed in NY or London. That said, I have two friends that work at Google and Bain that started at their US offices and asked to be transferred to Tokyo for a year. Both didn't speak a lick of Japanese. But both guys are smart as hell and there was a relevent business need for them to be here.

*Here's what you do: Get McKinsey. Do a year in the US and asked to be transferred. I know McKinsey also has a global division. I have a good friend that has been all over Asia and Europe in the last two years. It's good for the "international" aspect but its hell on your non-existent social life.

[Analyst]

I can't speak for the IB side but as for getting international experience in strategy consulting, working with McK/BCG/Bain should offer the best chance for engagements in Europe/Asia. If you're trying to target a particular region/country, then it's possible to transfer but it might not happen as fast as you would like. I'm not too sure about working in Japan, but might be able to share a little bit about the broader Asia Pac region.

Most of the firms will have established global development programs which will let you migrate to an overseas office for a specific period (~2 yrs) with the understanding that you will return to your respective home office. In these cases, there is usually a minimum requirement to qualify varying by firm: minimum senior consultant/associate level (sometimes manager/project leader), 2 years with the firm, etc. This will differ by firm and is often very competitive.

To be hired into a entry-level business analyst position, firms usually require local language fluency or a high level of proficiency. That, or as djrajio indicated, you have a very unique skillset or background that fills a local need. Basically, at the BA level, they usually have no problem finding qualified candidates coming home after graduation from target schools.

Another way is to get hired into a highly-regarded boutique/specialist firm that is doing a lot of work in the region. For example, Mercer Oliver Wyman does not "officially" have an office in Bangkok but due to need in the local financial services industry, they have around 20-22 people here on the ground. So in this case, you may have more chances to be staffed on an overseas engagement with MOW, for example, due to their reputation for risk management and Basel II implementation in Asia.

I suggest doing anything to secure the McK opp, which should have the best name brand cache in the region and allow excellent exit opps. Work your ass off during your internship/business analyst role. M/B/B will have up-or-out policies so everyone is gunning during this time. Even if you can't transfer as soon as you like, McK's name opens a lot of doors and you might able to find very interesting roles with foreign/local firms (i.e., international business development, chief-of-staff to CEO, etc.) Perfect for rounding out your resume for B-school and getting the international exposure you desire.

[poly800rock]

My man england is pretty much on the ball with this. But just to add a little color. If you wanna work in Japan, you need to speak Japanese! Unless you have a Ph.D. in physics, finance, or something amazing that will counterbalance the non-native language skills. Most of the ex-pats here are pretty senior; transferred over to leverage the talent/skills they developed in NY or London. That said, I have two friends that work at Google and Bain that started at their US offices and asked to be transferred to Tokyo for a year. Both didn't speak a lick of Japanese. But both guys are smart as hell and there was a relevent business need for them to be here.

*Here's what you do: Get McKinsey. Do a year in the US and asked to be transferred. I know McKinsey also has a global division. I have a good friend that has been all over Asia and Europe in the last two years. It's good for the "international" aspect but its hell on your non-existent social life.

I can't speak for the IB side but as for getting international experience in strategy consulting, working with McK/BCG/Bain should offer the best chance for engagements in Europe/Asia. If you're trying to target a particular region/country, then it's possible to transfer but it might not happen as fast as you would like. I'm not too sure about working in Japan, but might be able to share a little bit about the broader Asia Pac region.

Most of the firms will have established global development programs which will let you migrate to an overseas office for a specific period (~2 yrs) with the understanding that you will return to your respective home office. In these cases, there is usually a minimum requirement to qualify varying by firm: minimum senior consultant/associate level (sometimes manager/project leader), 2 years with the firm, etc. This will differ by firm and is often very competitive.

To be hired into a entry-level business analyst position, firms usually require local language fluency or a high level of proficiency. That, or as djrajio indicated, you have a very unique skillset or background that fills a local need. Basically, at the BA level, they usually have no problem finding qualified candidates coming home after graduation from target schools.

Another way is to get hired into a highly-regarded boutique/specialist firm that is doing a lot of work in the region. For example, Mercer Oliver Wyman does not "officially" have an office in Bangkok but due to need in the local financial services industry, they have around 20-22 people here on the ground. So in this case, you may have more chances to be staffed on an overseas engagement with MOW, for example, due to their reputation for risk management and Basel II implementation in Asia.

I suggest doing anything to secure the McK opp, which should have the best name brand cache in the region and allow excellent exit opps. Work your ass off during your internship/business analyst role. M/B/B will have up-or-out policies so everyone is gunning during this time. Even if you can't transfer as soon as you like, McK's name opens a lot of doors and you might able to find very interesting roles with foreign/local firms (i.e., international business development, chief-of-staff to CEO, etc.) Perfect for rounding out your resume for B-school and getting the international exposure you desire.

what if i say i really love anime?

[djrajio]

what if i say i really love anime?

Then you apply here --> http://www.nova.ne.jp/

[artificialsky]

what if i say i really love anime?

thread over.

[sushijerk]

what if i say i really love anime?

This is the secret shame of this entire thread. Fuck Roppongi, can I get cocaine hook up at the maid cafes?

[Guest jmatsu]

This is the secret shame of this entire thread. Fuck Roppongi, can I get cocaine hook up at the maid cafes?

no you can't.

[DaBestSpoona]

this cocaine must be from Hokkaido

[DEPHT]

sound advice from everyone.

Just curious though, are the hours for IB as bad as those in the states? I got a friend over at JP Morgan and all he does when we (if we ever) meet up is bitch about how he has to pull 90+ hour weeks....

[djrajio]

sound advice from everyone.

Just curious though, are the hours for IB as bad as those in the states? I got a friend over at JP Morgan and all he does when we (if we ever) meet up is bitch about how he has to pull 90+ hour weeks....

Its worse here. You got the Japanese-can't-leave-until-your-senpai-leaves mentality here. I had a friend who did IBD at MS here, pulled 9 AM to 3-4 AM workdays nearly everyday for two years. Two of her collegues after 6 months collapsed due to exhaustion and took one month of sick leave, another two just simply disappeared and couldn't be contacted ever again. But she pulled in a $150k salary here first year and made nearly $200k by the second year plus now she can write her ticket to any hedge fund/private equity shop she desires...

[BBC]

another two just simply disappeared and couldn't be contacted ever again.

Jumped in front of the Yamanote Line?

I have a mate that is here and is in charge of sorting that mentality out, getting them to leave work at reasonable hours. He said it's hard work trying to convice them to leave at a reasonable hour.

[DEPHT]

yea, that's what I figured. It's like that to some extent in korea as well. Only reason i'd ever do IB would be for the exit opps but I'd rather go through consulting because I heard m/b/b etc. hours aren't as bad (still pretty bad though) and they place well into m7 MBA's which is what actually really matters.

Anyway....random ass question. What is appropriate in terms of an omiage these days? Friend is letting me crash at his place for a week....I got the usual beef jerky/movies/candy and coffee/vitamins for the parents but....I don't think it's enough.....tips?

[dizzhizz]

yea, that's what I figured. It's like that to some extent in korea as well. Only reason i'd ever do IB would be for the exit opps but I'd rather go through consulting because I heard m/b/b etc. hours aren't as bad (still pretty bad though) and they place well into m7 MBA's which is what actually really matters.

The consultants here in Korea work much longer hours than any of the guys here in IB. Probably moreso than equity research and thats a fucking lot!

My colleagues/friends at Bain/MCK/BCG/AC Kearny/etc dont even see the sunlight and constantly bitch.