The Audio Blog of Steven Sirski

Steven Sirski

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PLACES & TRAVEL

The daily musings of an expat in Beijing.

13H AGO

SSAB - May 18, 2026

Hey Happy Birthday to me… podcast! Welcome to Nagasaki! What a trip! Forgot the PIN to my credit card so it took a little work to get everything booked. Cashier only took cash or card, no tap. Luckily another service staff member helped me book the ticket online. That way, you enter the card number and a password then use that same card to pick up the tickets at the station. A run around but it got done. Maybe should have taken the night bus Why Nagasaki? Very good question. Why not? The bomb exploded here and I wanted to see what the city was like these days. I was in Hiroshima ten years ago so figured Nagasaki would be a good complement. Got in very late, bad planning on my behalf. But I wanted a full day in the city, guess I could have stayed overnight in Osaka and then taken the first train out in the morning. Stayed at Toyoko Inn, good for the late check in, but to renew was expensive so I found a hostel down the street at half the cost. Not only that, Belleview hotel was locked when I got in and later in the morning when I checked they said book it on the app, it’s cheaper. Mostly digital checking out and amenities are left at the front desk. Atomic bomb museum, how was it? Gentle. They do make it a point to show how the bombs destroyed human lives, but they also put it in the context of why it happened: the Japanese were expanded their empire in the Pacific and that put them in conflict with a bunch of other countries. The city was largely rebuilt after the bombs were dropped, shown by a pair of pictures showing the city after the bomb and then again in 1950. It’s hot here, and that bomb was dropped in August. I can only imagine how much worse it would have been. Not only that, a lot of the declarations and policies weren’t signed or put into effect until the 1980s or later… the US was testing a nuke every week for the last forty years! And hey, how was the rest of Osaka? -Got the Osaka Castle run done! Twelve kms all up in 1hr 27min. -Got kicked out of a bar! Nihongo? Nope. Out. Sorry! So kept walking and found a taco bar. Stopped there for a feed and a few. -Then found another okonomiyaki place along the main road. The cook/owner knew some English as did one of the older patrons. So we sat and tried to communicate. -I forgot to tell you about the bird at Osaka Castle! What have you been eating? -Soft boiled eggs from the Family Mart -Milk -McDonalds Samurai Burger -Starbucks coffee, cinnamon bun and donut -Sushi and vegetables from the store -Okonomiyaki = fried pork and squid yaki = fried soba = noodles teppan = flat iron board Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Hope you have a great one!! 00:00 Birthday Bench Intro 01:56 Osaka to Nagasaki Missteps 03:41 Late Arrival Hotel Shuffle 06:35 Why Nagasaki Matters 07:39 No Japanese No Problem 08:43 Ticketing PIN Disaster 11:35 Train Staff Saves the Day 13:54 Transfers and Shinkansen Notes 17:47 First Impressions of Nagasaki 19:07 Atomic Bomb Museum Visit 20:33 Rebuilding and Hard Reflections 23:47 Museum Context Matters 24:22 Japan’s Imperial Past 26:03 Nuclear Tests Aftermath 27:10 Climate Change Rant 27:47 Donations And Wrap 28:08 Hypocenter Landmarks 30:10 Livestream At Ground Zero 31:49 Green City And Safety 33:55 Next Stops Itinerary 35:14 Osaka Bar Rejection 37:11 Late Night Food Crawl 41:13 Whiskey Gift Hunt 43:23 Osaka Castle Birders 45:05 Five Years Of Podcasting 46:21 Final Sign Off

48 min
2D AGO

SSAB - May 15, 2026

Up early-ish and out the door for a 7 km run. Ran a lot quicker today than previous days. Made my way through Utsubo Park, very nice peonies I think they were. Osaka Castle for the afternoon. What’s next? Starbucks vanilla donut?? How was it? Not worth it! Bought some summer clothes from Uniqlo! UV protection gear. Nice and breathable! And I think I figured out a simple way to do Chinese subtitles in FCP: just export the default captions! Should speed up production a little bit. Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Hope you have a great one!! 00:00 Morning Run Recap 00:35 Podcast Bench Setup 02:42 Utsubo Park Roses 04:12 Running Castle Loop Plans 06:38 Subway and Castle Ticket 07:18 Inside Osaka Castle 09:23 Osaka in One Day 12:52 Where Next in Japan 17:13 Starbucks Donut Rant 19:03 Uniqlo Summer Gear 20:12 UV Gear Shopping 21:36 Arm Sleeves And Hat 22:15 Luggage And Uniqlo 23:06 Air Quality And Trump 23:57 Stocks And Disclaimers 26:10 New Channel Plans 29:30 Bilingual Captions Problem 33:10 Green Screen Subtitle Hack 37:09 Descript Costs And Goals 39:36 Hostel Teacher Talk 41:30 Foreigners And Opportunity 45:00 Wrap Up And Links

46 min
4D AGO

SSAB - May 14, 2026

Out for a run but it was hard to get going! Didn’t get last night’s episode up until around midnight. Hope you enjoyed the talk with Art after yesterday’s episode. His website is artimax.com Logistics of running! Japan obeys the rules and that means stop lights! And there are quite a few of those in the neighbourhood! Found it a bit difficult to navigate, not least of all because everybody was on their way to work. More live streams! YouTube and TikTok, both through Shinsaibashi. Starbucks has donuts here! And how is the food? What have you been eating? And how much is all of it? And the shocking realization… that I’ve been here before. WHY?? Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Hope you have a great one!! 00:00 Botched Cold Open 00:16 Osaka Street Setup 00:45 Lost a Day 01:39 Late Upload Fallout 03:26 Osaka Déjà Vu 05:33 Street Recording Gear 07:56 Running Rules Japan 09:20 GoPro TimeWarp Runs 13:08 Gym Costs and Options 14:17 Laundry Fail and Costs 15:57 Livestreaming Both Platforms 17:47 Why Live Over Curated 19:24 Podcasting for Mom 21:19 Socials and livestream plan 22:19 Osaka walk and districts 23:43 Starbucks taste test 24:31 Meals and money talk 26:44 Hostel limits and groceries 29:23 Soft boiled egg discovery 30:41 Grungy hostel reflections 32:34 Live podcast or edited 33:35 Next stops and fingerprints 37:11 Job change and travel doubts 38:38 Wrap up and links 40:26 Final goodbye and street noise

41 min
5D AGO

SSAB - May 13, 2026

And hello from Osaka! Finally booked the flight last night… completely forgetting about the idea of taking the boat! Darn! Lemon Cass, not bad. Had a few of those and some soju with the other hostelites. And I’m reminded why I don’t drink with people nor hang around 20 yr olds! Flight was uneventful, but getting to Osaka Station was a bit of work. I didn’t realize you could just take the airport limousine bus from T2. Also, customs searched EVERYTHING! And how’s the hostel? Not really as advertised, but it’ll do for now. And a special interview with Art from ArtiMax Freight Solutions! A fascinating look into the world of logistics! Oh, and Trump visits China with Jensen Huang, Tim Cook and Elon Musk, market pop?? Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Hope you have a great one!! 00:00 Hello From Osaka 00:53 Hostel Reality Check 02:11 Airport To Hostel Walk 03:45 Osaka First Impressions 06:38 Korea Night Out Lessons 09:39 Lemon Cass Breakdown 13:22 Japan Entry Surprises 16:50 Customs Search And Gold Signs 22:19 Content Plan And Livestreaming 24:10 Trump China Visit Market Talk 27:29 Meet Art Logistics Nomad 31:45 Art Runs Three Trucks 32:44 How Art Got Into Logistics 35:05 Working US Hours In Japan 35:25 Finding Clients Abroad 37:52 What He Ships And Learns 39:44 Cradle To Grave Logistics 41:16 Commodity Rules And Risks 42:18 Consumer Complaints Ripple 43:16 Warehouse Mistakes Happen 43:40 Driver Liability Rules 45:07 Drop Trailers Cabinet Runs 45:47 Seeing Your Freight Everywhere 46:52 Everything Ships Supply Chains 48:14 Learning the Industry Fast 49:06 Starting Import Export Tips 51:01 Coffee Beans Logistics Breakdown 55:35 How Brokers Make Margin 58:44 Spot Market vs Contracts 59:56 Winning RFPs and Bids 01:03:10 Information Is Currency 01:08:07 Finding Clients Without Social 01:09:39 Website Plug and Wrap Up

1h 11m
6D AGO

SSAB - May 12, 2026

Staying one more night? Why?? Cause it's so quiet! Walking around Hongdae again, did one live stream on YouTube... I think I have a new content creation idea. Met up withthe Korean lady we met back in Australia! She lives in Gimpo so came over to Hapjeong for tea. Tried some BBQ, but not samgyupsol, some sort if pork barbecue. And I'm missing Trump again! Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Hope you have a great one!! 00:00 Seoul Visa Run Update 01:01 Why Stay In Hapjeong 02:13 Livestreaming Vs Editing 03:59 Street Recording Setup 07:37 New Content Workflow 13:53 Last Day Hongdae Walk 18:26 Meeting Korean Friend 21:51 Korea English Tests 25:28 Duolingo Reality Check 27:50 Cafe Dreams And Business 33:52 Korean BBQ Solo 39:03 Missing Trump In China 42:14 Wrap Up And Links

44 min
MAY 11

SSAB - May 11, 2026

Happy Mother’s Day! Did you remember to call? If not, do it today and you can blame the time difference! Still in Seoul, South Korea, most likely flying out tomorrow to Osaka. Need to find a finger printing place and then need to apply for a police background check somehow. Seriously doubting this job application. How has Seoul been? Very quiet! Only 9 million people here contrast that with Beijing. And it’s definitely not as hot! Walking around Hongdae and saw a local band playing on Sunday afternoon. Quiet nights in the hostel because… they aren’t getting back until sunrise! Oh, how I remember those days! And how was the gym? Getting the workouts in? YES! Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Hope you have a great start of week! 00:00 Hostel Check In 00:48 Audio Gear Troubles 01:44 Visa Run Delays 02:00 Subtitle Editing Rage 02:37 China Paperwork Reality 04:43 Fingerprints And Apostille 05:49 Mothers Day Call Home 07:14 Osaka Plans And Party Hostel 08:14 Sleepless Nights Hostel Life 09:57 Gym Under The Bridge 15:33 Seoul Feels Open 20:27 Lost Finding Groceries 22:28 Hongdae Walk And Livestreams 25:55 Live Band Ticket Debate 30:41 Korean Chinese Language Links 36:06 Runs Workouts And Getting Older 38:18 Next Stops Fingerprints 40:22 Wrap Up And Links

41 min
MAY 9

SSAB - May 8, 2026

Dae ha min guk! Clapclap clapclap clap! Arrived! BARELY got onto the flight! I completely misjudged the time it would take to get to T2 and when we got to the airport the check in was closed. Since I only had carry on, I asked if I could just get the boarding pass. He said no, it closes an hour ahead of departure. The papers have already been sent to immigration. Interesting. Gf chimes in and tells him that my visa expires today he has to leave. I was then ushered through. Now, that could’ve been avoided if we had left earlier AND not purchased cheap airport express tickets on Xianyu. And offered a night out, so we go! A German guy who’s been backpacking for the last month, French girl who’s studying Bahasa Indonesian in Bandung (full scholarship), and. New Zealander doing a search for his roots in China. Windy and cold! How’s the hostel?? Cheap, but… now I’m reminded of how small the rooms are and… gritty. And now… an interview with Morgan and Amos from Australia! Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Safe travels!! 00:00 Back in Korea 00:59 Cheap Ticket Chaos 02:31 Check In Cutoff 05:35 Flight and Arrival 07:05 Six Month Surprise 08:49 Hostel Life Mapo 12:28 Logistics and Gym Talk 16:37 Meeting Hostel Travelers 17:46 Fried Chicken Night 29:28 Seoul Versus Beijing 34:12 Interview Setup Aussies 37:23 Morgan and Amos Intro 38:56 Travel Plans and Teaching 43:24 Canada Visa Fee Rant 44:58 Brexit Visa Headaches 45:41 Working Holiday Age Limits 46:45 Why He Chose Teaching 48:20 Rural Placement Bonuses 50:41 How Rural Is Rural 51:55 Family Roots Wales to Oz 55:29 First Impressions of Seoul 56:35 Next Stops Gyeongju Busan 58:40 Seoul Highlights and Neighborhoods 01:03:22 Why Korea Over Japan 01:05:28 Food Expectations and Budget Eats 01:09:29 Night Tents Soju Bombs 01:10:55 Soju Gets You Fast 01:11:41 Next Stops Beyond Seoul 01:12:32 Museum Fatigue Ancient Pots 01:13:48 Learning Korean Basics 01:16:02 Eating Like Locals 01:18:48 Planning Routes By Train 01:22:08 Monolingual Aussies Abroad 01:23:28 Hostel Life Digital Nomads 01:26:08 Minimalism After Van Life 01:28:19 Korean Beer Cass vs Terra 01:33:06 Techno Nights Live Music 01:36:19 Next Trip Sri Lanka Debate 01:38:40 Wrapping Up The Chat

1h 39m
MAY 7

SSAB - May 7, 2026

OMG! DON’T WORKOUT AND THEN EAT CAROLINA REAPER BEEF JERKY! OWWWWIEEEE! Each idea unto itself was good, the beer, the jerky, the curry. All together? OUCH! “Like menstrual cramps”. Streaming and broadcasting, thinking… a comprehensible English podcast? A relaunch of the Language Vlog Podcast but intended for language learners. Do I have to do this? Or do I vibe code some website? Ready to go? Seoul baby! Am I excited? Not really! Let’s hope this doesn’t fk up! And an article on using Claude in China… everyone is using it and the government won’t stop them. Besides, KYC out of Cambodia?? HS! Article: https://substack.com/home/post/p-196186465 -“On September 5, 2025, Anthropic further prohibited access from any entity more than 50% owned, directly or indirectly, by companies headquartered in unsupported regions like China, regardless of where that entity operates.” -“The Worldcoin black market offered a documented precedent, with iris scans harvested from KYC merchants in Cambodia and Kenya, sold for under $30.” -Italian airports are stealing MacBooks and credit cards… I seem to recall this happening in Manila, too. -“A user selects Opus 4.7, but the proxy can silently route to Sonnet, Haiku, or, in the worst case, GLM or Qwen, and fraudulently relabel the output.” -“Every request that passes through a proxy — full prompt, full response, tool calls, iterations — is sitting on the proxy operator’s server. For AI coding agents, those logs contain long reasoning chains, real engineering decisions, repository context, and human-verified correct outputs.” Donate to the show! PayPal link below! https://www.paypal.me/stevensirski?locale.x=en_CA *** Show notes n tracks up on stevensirski.com And on Notion: https://stevensirski.notion.site/SSAB-The-Audio-Blog-of-Steven-Sirski-00acfe344e164bfab191d3cddf6952b2?pvs=4 Newsletter over at stevensirski.substack.com Language vlog on http://www.youtube.com/@stevenslanguagevlog Google Stock Tracker Sheet https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kbpCC2cieuq23zYyr0-WznPRogVX0aS86BF4_vPvgMY/edit?usp=sharing Hope you have a great one!! 00:00 Reaper Jerky Regret 00:35 Visa Countdown Seoul Flight 02:40 Packing Light Travel Risks 04:44 Insurance And Gear Choices 07:51 Content Workflow Burnout 15:11 Comprehensible English Pivot 18:53 Vibe Coding Reality Check 22:56 Claude Code In China 25:39 KYC Evasion Black Market 27:55 Passport Forgery Markets 29:28 Airport Theft Anxiety 30:10 Travel Safety Mindset 31:27 Proxy Basics Explained 32:25 Token Spoofing Scam 33:53 Proxy Logs Are Gold 37:02 Cybersecurity Arms Race 37:59 Vibe Coding Confession 38:12 Carolina Reaper Regret 42:44 Waves Of Stomach Pain 46:55 Aftermath And Lessons 48:36 Wrap Up And Links

50 min

TRAILER

The Audio Blog of Steven Sirski (Trailer)

The Audio Blog of Steven Sirski

07/29/2021

•

1 min

The daily musings of an expat in Beijing.

Creator

Steven Sirski
Years Active

2021 - 2026
Episodes

1.3K
Rating

Explicit
Copyright

© Steven Sirski
Show Website

The Audio Blog of Steven Sirski