Weirdos in Wadayama

Overdue

2007-12-03T10:44:00.001+09:00

It's been four months since I left Japan. Aaron n I've been busy with--

*moving into a new aparto
*planning and holding a wedding reception
*finding jobs
*family vacation
*catching up with old friends

But who cares about that? Everyone wants the scoop on how we're adjusting back to US life, culture shock, enlightenment, etc. So...

Reverse Culture Shock hasn't really been a problem. I didn't expect to return the exact person who left. I expected friends, family, life in general to have marched on without me. Just as when I'd visit home from Uni, many things would be the same, but there were always plenty of little changes. Also, 2 years away didn't wipe away 24 years of American culture.

Some little things that did stand out when we returned---

*There are plenty of non-Asians around, and the odds are high that I do not know the person. As part of the foreigner pool in Hyogo, if I saw a foreigner, odds were good that I knew him/her. It took me a few days to realize that I probably don't know that redhead over there.

*So many body types and personal styles.

*People talk too much and about incredibly inane things. I'm sure this was true in Japan, but it was easy not to listen in on others' convos. But since Ams tend to talk loudly [and I'm fully fluent in Eng], I hear EVERYTHING.

*American serving sizes are ridiculously large.

Privatized!

2007-12-03T10:41:00.000+09:00

Ha Ha! The Japanese Post Office was privatized a few months ago. I don't know how that exactly played out in terms of changes, but I am comforted imagining a new improved Post Office humming along efficiently.

Evil Post Office

2007-08-27T05:17:00.001+09:00

The post office was the worst fiery hoop Aaron n I had to jump through in Japan. I'm always reading ex-pats saying how living abroad is exciting because everyday things become an adventure, like going to the post office. Now, I like the adventures I find in the grocery stores, but when successfully navigating the post office is deemed a major triumph, I get pretty grumpy.

The trouble-- the post office handles lots of transactions; paying bills, money orders, mail. When A n I first arrived, we determined to send money home by the post office. Horrible! The postal worker had no idea how to do it. When he finally figured it out and gave us the forms, I made a mistake on one of the forms. Shouldn't be a problem, right? Oh, no. See, in addition to filling out a new form, I had to redo the forms that had no mistakes. See, the P.O. money orders were for set amounts; each form covered roughly $700. And those forms had to filed in numerical order. So when I goofed on form #2, I had to start all over. And then the P.O. said they didn't have enough forms. Ugh. Our second trip for the money order went no better, despite no mistakes on our part. The P.O. workers were not impressing me, but I was sure the fault was mine. So I pulled out the big guns and brought a teacher. Didn't matter, still took an HOUR.

Soon thereafter, all money was sent home by a remittance company.

Various encounters for sending boxes home were very hit and miss. Not as traumatic as the money order experiences, but annoying enough that we'd dread going.

As I prepared to leave, I agonized about the fate of our library. Aaron n I love books, and like to keep books for rereading. And our small Japan library had still grown to a considerable size. Disheartened, I searched for a media mail option. And I found one! I was so excited! I memorized the vocab, took the books to the larger P.O. and asked about the media mail...
"Eh, what? We don't have anything like that."
"Well, what about the book bags?" [the media mail utilizes special book bags bought at the P.O.]
"Oh, here's an envelope. They're $1 each."
"No, it's a special bag. Y'know, for sending books."
"No, we don't do that."
"Hmm, well I saw it on the P.O. website."
"Fine, I'll check." [surfs internet] "Oh, look at that. Well, we don't do that here. Sorry."

Since I didn't have the books boxed, as I'd needed to buy the special bag, Erika [my gracious friend who was helping me run these last errands] and I leave to go get a box from home. We then go to the smaller P.O. which is staffed with nicer ladies. The smaller P.O. has fewer services, which is why we'd gone to the larger one first.

The ladies were nice, and when I asked about sending the books media-rate despite not having the bag, they went into action mode. Started calling around, asking about how to do that. They informed us that the media-rate is only available in larger cities, but that they could send my box to Himeji, and do media-rate from there. But for some reason they couldn't do that from this smaller post office. Oh, no-- they told me to return to the larger P.O. and do it from there. Ugh. Ok, but can I send these other non-book boxes from here? Why would I do that? It's almost closing time, and I should just go to the larger [more evil] P.O. So Erika and I slog off to the other P.O.

I get a new lady-- a trainee. I try to explain the situation and she just stares at me. Then the horrible man from before comes over and inserts himself into the situation. Again, I explain. He tells me the mumbo-jumbo from last time.
"Ah, but I was just at the smaller P.O. and they called here. They talked with someone about how to do it."
"No, we can't do anything like that."
"Well, they called just 5 minutes ago. Could we ask who they spoke to?"
"They talked to me, but I still have no idea what you want or how to do it."

Grrrr! Obviously, I was pretty frustrated at this point. It was 2 days before I left Wadayama, I needed to ship all this stuff, I didn't have a car, so I'd need to inconvenience another friend to help me... Instead of trying any more, I shipped the easy boxes, and decided to bring a big gun [re: Japanese person] the next day to figure it all out.

And when I did, the ladies asked why I didn't go the larger P.O. like they'd told me.

Here's hoping they get around to privatizing that sucker like the gov's been planning.

Perfect Sushi Bar

2007-08-26T10:01:00.000+09:00

Exhausted, I tried reading on the bus to Kobe. Instead of being caught up in my novel, I gazed out the window, watching the countryside slide by. No introspective thoughts came to me. Nothing earth-shattering. No feeling or thought to indicate this was my last ride.

That shifted as the bus entered Kobe. Suddenly it was clear I was leaving-- never to wander Kobe's little shops, find comfort in the import shops. There were so many things I wanted to see that I'd never had the chance to.

I met Joy in the goofy Rock Park. We found a fantastic sushi shop-- the kind I was always seeing in movies and reading about in guides; the kind I never could find in Wadayama or whenever I was looking for one. We ordered the special and damned if it wasn't just that.

Unglaublich

2007-08-26T09:47:00.000+09:00

My contract ended on July 24th, a Tuesday. For all intents and purposes, school ended July 19th, a Thursday. July 21st Harry Potter #7 was released. Now, my last day at Barnes & Noble before coming to Japan was the release party for HP #6. I'm usually not into the whole "Full Circle" thing, but I do like my Harry Potter, and this would be the last one ever, so...

Like a mad woman, I managed to prep for my successor, thoroughly clean the aparto, have last dinners with friends, pack all remaining things, navigate the evil post office, all the while doing my full load of classes. There was a fair amount of slipping home to clean in my free hours, but that's just a good use of time! I left Wadayama on the 4:37 pm bus on Thursday, July 19th.

To leave a sweet taste at my school, I bought all the teachers cups of Haagen Daaz and gave a nice, complimentary speech. I wrote up some thank you cards for particular teachers, took some pics with my students. When the time came to leave, many teachers came to see me drive off in Matsuda sensei's car. I was so happy that Matsuda was willing to take me home and to the bus station-- she was my favorite teacher, the one who shared the most of herself and her ideas with me, and hers was the last face I wanted to see.

As we pulled up to bus station, I saw a group of women loitering... they were from Aaron's n my convo class! Many of them had sneaked out of work to come and wait at the bus stop with me. It was so nice! There were a lot of hugs, pictures, and a few teary eyes as I boarded the bus.

Cringe

2007-08-25T06:34:00.001+09:00

At my farewell enkai, the teachers were all waxing poetic about how Japanese I am [see previous entry on this and its complimentary status]. So when one teacher asked which city is my favorite, another teacher replied "Oh, it'll be Kyoto, of course!" But when I declared my love for Kobe, the teachers wanted to know why. "It's beautiful, sandwiched between the mountains and the sea, there are many interesting shops, I like the museums, and since there have been foreigners there for some time, people don't stare at me so much."
"Ah, since there are other foreigners, you don't have to feel so ashamed."

******

Talking with a few wonderful friends who are planning to come visit Seattle. Japan is a cash society, with most people carrying hundreds of dollars in their wallets at any given time. My friends know that Americans use credit cards, but they weren't sure what they were going to do... "Well, we can't bring money in the suitcase, in case the luggage is lost. And we shouldn't carry it because someone might rob us.... But Seattle has a lot of Japanese people, so I'll feel safe there."

Konnyaku!!

2007-08-23T02:16:00.000+09:00

Wadayama doesn't have any culinary specialties, yet is graced with a from-scratch konnyaku restaurant. Konnyaku is a jellied Devil's Tongue, and is popular in Japan for its texture and its beneficial digestive properties-- mainly, there's not much to it, and it pushes other stuff out with it. Makes you want to eat it, huh?

A lot of people find the chewy rubberiness off-putting, but not me! I looove konnyaku in my bento or in oden. One of my students had worked at the restaurant [before she graduated], and I'd always wanted to go, but the restaurant kept strange hours and was reported to be expensive.

But with Yukiko and Colleen in town, we decided to check it out for lunch. True to Japan's prefered restaurant style, the konnyaku restaurang ONLY served konnyaku. We each ordered the bento and were treated to a stunningly beautiful and tasty meal. Everything had konnyaku! Konnyaku in the miso soup, konnyaku sashimi, deepfried konnyaku, and even konnyaku rice. The rice was tricky-- it was topped with konnyaku furikomi, but as we were eating, we noticed some of the rice grains were a translucent blue... tiny bits of white konnyaku. A delicious and super healthy lunch.

Adult Dress Up

2007-08-23T02:06:00.000+09:00

As my days slipped down, I found myself very popular. This was unusual, but I took full advantage! One of my adult students asked me to come over as she wanted to give me a yukata! Sooo sweet!

Chika picked me up, and we drove to Yasuko's daughter's house, where Yasuko and Mineko were waiting. I was given several choices, and settled on a navy one with a bright floral pattern. Yasuko trussed me up [seriously, those things have to be tied tightly]. Feeling a bit fancified, I insisted and got Mineko and Yasuko to dress up as well.

Despite the A/C, we were boiling in the yukata, so we returned to streetwear. Well, Mineko and Yasuko did. I was tested on putting on the yukata solo. Yukata aren't as difficult as kimono to wear, but it's still challenging and a bit of a lost art. I pleased my teachers on the second go, and then I was taught the proper method to fold and store yukata. This is Japan; there is a proper method in which to do everything.

Then Yasuko's daughter announced dinner, which was a wonderful surprise to me! What I'd imagined to be a short visit stretched out to 4 hours with my wonderful ladies. Yasuko showed us photos of her travels to the US and China; Mineko talked about the unique Osaka fashion sense. It was a nice night.

Inconveniencing

2007-08-06T11:57:00.000+09:00

My Jamaican friends once asked a Japanese friend, "What's the biggest sin in Japan?" The answer: "Inconveniencing other people." To be seen as a person who inconveniences others by being late, asking too much, etc. will get you a bad rep.

Somehow, saying "no" or "I don't know" fell into this category of inconvenience. Therefore instead of being told that you can't have your vacation days, you're told "I'll think about it." Learning to read between the lines becomes a necessity.

My least favorite time this pops up is with directions. It's very rare to find someone who will just tell you "Oh, sorry, I have no idea where that is." Instead, you're given a healthy dose of directions, and you only learn the directions are completely wrong when you've spent hours searching. I can't understand how giving false directions and wasting someone's time is seen as less inconvenient than a simple "no."

Julius came up with a great way to foil this; when asking where something is, point to the direction you know for damn sure it is not and say "Is it that way?" If the person says "Yes, that way, so many blocks..." you can just disregard anything they say. Brilliant!

Lucky 7s

2007-08-02T01:31:00.000+09:00

July 7th found Jade and me in Kyoto for Tanabata. Tanabata is a star festival celebrating the annual meeting of Vega and Altair. Most cities celebrate it on the 7th day of the lunar calendar, but Kyoto obliged me by sticking to July 7th.

As we walked up to Kiyomizudera, we saw tons of classy B&W posters featuring Kiyomizudera with the print "The New Wonders." Not only was it 7/7, it was 7/7/07! Obviously extraordinarily lucky, it was also the day the New Seven Wonders would be announced. And we were at one of the locations! How cool! So we each snagged a free poster and continued up to write wishes to tie on bamboo.

In addition to confessing our wishes, we saw another rite; write a trouble on tissue-thin paper, then put the paper into a deep bowl of water. When your paper dissolves, so will your troubles! There was a woman ahead of us, so we waited for about 5 minutes before noticing she had a stack nearly 2 inches thick! So we slipped around her and slipped our trouble-laden papers into the water.

After lunch, Jade and I went to Heian Shrine [seen in Lost in Translation]-- it was fantastic! If we'd known just how cool it was, we would've planned more time, but as it was, we did a whirlwind tour of the garden, walked across the stepping stones, and then left.

We tried to find the 6 floor handicraft center, but were treated to a multitude of wrong directions [more on this later]. Frustrated, we gave up and headed to the bamboo forest. As is often the case, the beautiful pics in the brochures had been heavily cropped-- the forest was still interesting, but not as deep or as thick as we'd expected.

Having seen the sights and bought the omiyage, we headed home.

Whassaaabbiii

2007-07-09T09:17:00.000+09:00

Wasabi is that lovely green pasty stuff in sushi. It's a type of horse radish, and often brings that sinus-clearing nose burn. Now, true wasabi affienados claim that true wasabi is much more subtle, with less of the burn.

Real wasabi, the kind still in the original root, is quite expensive. For about $5 you can get a few inches of wasabi root. As I am a cheapskate, I have made do with the powder.

But!! When Aaron n I ate lunch at a soba shop in Kansai Airport, we were given an entire wasabi root to grate into the soba! The extravagence continues-- each table has a stack of little wasabi root-sized take-out bags! Yes, you can take home your wasabi root and continue the luxury. So cool. Probably can't get it through immigration overseas, though.

Train Send Off

2007-07-09T09:05:00.000+09:00

Aaron n I had to catch a late train the night before his flight. We had the kaiwa class before leaving; obviously the last one for Aaron. Most of the class we ran as usual, but at the end a few students shared some of their memories.

Chika took us to the train station where we found more of the students-- our core group had all come down to wait with us for the train. There were quite a few presents, and some teariness.

When we left to board the train, they said to look out the windom when the train rolled past. We saw a line of our friends-- they'd all turned on their keitais and were waving goodbye to us in the dark.

Land Lobsters

2007-07-02T21:01:00.000+09:00

I had taken a few days vacation, so June 25th Aaron n I were in Takeno. Julius had to go to school, and the weather was sketchy, so we didn't hit the beach. Instead, we finally hiked up the mountain. You can see this mountain from the beach, and it juts out into the water, a bastion of green.

It wasn't far to the first point, but there were several challenges. The trail seemed to be moving. Upon closer inspection, we discovered massive numbers of strange insects. Aaron n I term them "land lobsters" while Julius prefers "sea cockroach." There were so many that you could hear them skittering under leaves and over rocks. It was like being in an Indiana Jones movie, but without nazis or treasure.

Grillin Indoors

2007-07-02T20:53:00.000+09:00

All my attempts to wrangle a BBQ near the Ikuno waterfalls came to naught, as Sunday was swimming in rain. Damn! I wanted to catch another giant salamander!

Luckily, one of the guest graciously offered his house, and the grill party became a grilled cheese party. Yes, I grilled up a mess of grilled cheese sammiches. Tim was magically on my wavelength, and showed up with a batch of his own.

It was a great time, and very relaxed. Aaron got to see and say goodbye to a lot of folks. A few of my favorite, party-shy people showed up, which meant a lot. And there was a lot of food, which makes everyone happy.

After the party, Aaron n I headed up to Takeno with Mari n Julius. Mari n I finally managed to beat the boys there, hurrah! Dinner was at the amazing okonomiyaki place, which was very full-circle and satisfying.

Himeji Yukata Matsuri

2007-07-02T20:32:00.000+09:00

Aaron n I've been super busy recently, what with prep for his return to the states. Many nights were last dinners, and the others were desperate grabs for sleep to fuel the busy schedules. But that's not fun, so I'll skip to the fun stuff.

June 23rd was the Yukata Matsuri in Himeji. Perfect timing for Aaron to fit in one last matsuri, and I snagged free tix to the art museum, so the day looked set. And then Travy emailed me, and we set up a carpool with Travy n Ailey. Even better! People and matsuris! The four of us met up with Ailey n Travy's pals, and then the group of us headed into the matsuri.

It was scorching. And the afternoon wasn't too packed, as this matsuri is famed for night stalls. We searched around and discovered this crazy Italian guy, Mario, whom Ailey met on the beach awhile back. Mario seems to be the living, breathing stereotype of Italians. He leers and touches the beautiful ladies. He makes pizza. He plays the accordian. It was kinda surreal.

We also found a stall that seemed to be selling baby chicks. No idea what kind- the sign used a different word than the usual "baby chicken." The chickies were so cute, but methinks there will be a lot of bird deaths in the coming weeks.

The Prefectural Art Museum shockingly doesn't do weekend hours, so Aaron n I split off from the others in order to make the 4:30 final entrance. The exhibit was very Japanese in concept-- "The Beauty of the Four Seasons" For those of you who don't know, a fair amount of Japanese people believe that only Japan has 4 distinct seasons. I find this funny, as the two rainy seasons should make the tally 6... Anyways, the exhibit was very hit or miss. But it was nice to escape the heat and the crowds a bit.

Drain Thing

2007-06-23T23:17:00.000+09:00

Aaron here

We’ll be heading back to the U.S. and A. in a little bit, but I wanted to share some part of our regular day to day life here. This is my most hated aspect of Japan. It is our shower drain. It’s a strange gouge in our shower room about two feet long, one foot wide, and one foot deep. There is no grate over it, and the water from the shower head falls right into it so you have to straddle this hole to receive any of the precious cleansing liquid. The ground is made of smooth concrete and can get a bit slippery when the soap starts to flowing. There have been a couple of times when my foot has slipped in there and luckily I fell backwards and was able to bend my knee. If I had fallen sideways I might have snapped my shinbone in half.

We were freaked out by this thing at first, and balanced these squat wooden pallets (you’re supposed to put them in the closet. They allow air to circulate under your futon mat…one of the many delightful futon accessories) over the chasm. This would allow for a nice shower without the anxiety of a possible broken tibia. Unfortunately, these things are made out of soft untreated wood, and they don’t take kindly to multiple daily immersions in water. We pretty quickly had to decide between a dangerous canyon, or standing on rotten moldy wood that gave off a wicked stench that seemed to linger on the soap. I was tired of smelling worse after the shower than before and decided to toss out the wood.

Now, if you’re any student of Japanese society you may be thinking, “In Japan you are to sit while showering. So stop yer moaning and get to squatting”. A valid point, but the tallest shower stool is quite short, and being a little tall I find it uncomfortable to shower with my knees next to my ears.

The discomfort of the bathing is a slight annoyance next to the terror while cleaning this damn hole. All of the drains (except for the toilet) end up emptying into our nearest river so they don’t want any “chunkys” leaving the house. So, the drain at the bottom of the hole has a circumference of a medium sized pancake. In this pancake is what I can only describe as the top of a bell. This “bell” barely fits inside the “pancake” and will only allow a small drizzle to pass through, blocking anything bigger than two atoms mating. This is where the depth of the hole comes in handy because it’ll usually take a couple hours for all the water to drain out of its tiny passageway, and it’s nice to have it contained in one handy gorge. Since nothing bigger than liquid passes through I have to regularly snap on a pair of heavy duty cleaning gloves (they don’t make them thick enough for this duty) start to scooping all the soap scum, hair, and dead skin cells off the top of the “bell”. But hey, I’d much rather kneel on cement with my butt wiggling in the air as I stretch myself down into a filthy scum box, that can never be fully cleaned, than risk the chance that some poor duck might choke on some of my diseased human skin.

This may sound quite whiney (you’re right) but remember. This is a first world country, the second largest economy in the world. If I encountered this in a Thailand or Cambodia I’d say, “It’s all they could afford”, but we live in teacher housing and it’s proof that America isn’t the only first world country that can treat their teachers shabby. There are many things in this country I’ll miss, but this isn’t one of them.

Amanohashidate

2007-06-21T21:02:00.000+09:00

We finally made it up to Amanohashidate! This land formation is fairly close, but just far enough to be a bother, so we kept putting it off. Finally, we made plans to go, and Mari n Julius joined us.

We drove out from Toyooka and ventured into Kyoto Prefecture. We stopped at a conbini on the way and found Pepsi's Ice Cucumber. Of course we bought it! But it didn't taste much like cucumber.

We reached the tourist trap, followed the lines of people, boarded the chair lift, and found ourselves in a large crowd of tourists. We tossed some clay disks at a stone hoop, hoping for eternal happiness. Alas, none of us are meant to be happy. Then we did the big Amanohashidate thing--

Turn around, bend over, and peer through your legs at the opposite mountain. Doesn't it look like it's floating? It must be a bridge to heaven! Anyhow, it was fun, everyone looks really silly, which just adds to the fun. We took in a few views, wandered the town a bit, generally goofed around. Then we headed back to Takeno for the night, and set off fireworks.

A small roadtrip with great friends, good food, and silliness. It was one of my favorite days in Japan. And there was beachiness the next day! Really, the weekend couldn't have been better.

Melting Students

2007-06-21T20:58:00.000+09:00

It's getting warm. The teachers have officially changed over to summer wear-- short sleeved button up shirts. If you were wearing short sleeved shirts before the change, well, golly, weren't you cold?

Now everyone feels entitled to mutter "Atsui" every few minutes.

The students are slowly slipping closer and closer to their desks every day. Thinking is difficult. Being lively is difficult. Soon, they will be puddles with uniforms.

Big Beetle

2007-06-17T21:53:00.000+09:00

This guy was found in Morigaki's classroom one morning. He gave it to Ishii-sensei, as I-s is the Bio teacher. And as I sit next to I-s, I got to play around with the bug. Many teachers enjoyed telling me insect tidbits, notably how if you have a stag beetle and a rhino beetle, the rhino beetle will flip the stag beetle several meters. Happy childhood memories shone through their words.

Later that day I returned and found the box empty.

"I-s, did you free the beetle?"

"Hmmm?"

"The beetle's gone..."

I-s looks around, lifts up the box, shuffles aside some papers, shrugs, and chuckles.

I spent the next few hours eagerly listening for an unsuspecting student or teacher to find the beetle...

Trauma, High School Style

2007-06-10T17:16:00.000+09:00

As I walk to class on Friday, Sayuri comes up to me.

"Marlene, I am having a bad day!"

"Oh, no! Why"

"Pool. The school bad pool." She was so grumpy that she quickly switched over to rapid-fire Japanese.

Seems swimming lessons will soon begin. This means the students have to wear suits in front of other students.

"Oh, I'm sorry. But at least girls and boys are separated, right?"

"NO! We have to swim with the boys!"

"WHAT?! But PE classes are always separated. Boys are never with girls!"

"But swimming is together!! It's soooo embarassing!"

And to add to the insult, the pool's been having technical problems recently, so the students thought they escaped swimming this year. Sayuri quickly spread the stories, so my Oral Communication class were angry and rebellious and distracted all afternoon. Poor students!

Effective Lesson

2007-06-09T22:16:00.000+09:00

I am so happy! I did a sound effect lesson with my students, and it went over pretty well. For homework they had to create a comic illustrating using sound effects. Here are the results!

Babies Abound

2007-06-09T21:49:00.000+09:00

Babies are everywhere this year. Ishii, Summer [in the states], an expecting friend in the states, and Jamila. Since Jamila's here in Japan, and an Eng speaker, Aaron n I learned loads about Japan and babies...

Firstly, mothers aren't encouraged to gain much weight. Jamila [and a few other foreigners I've met who've had babies here] were often reprimanded for gaining too much. The ideal is to put on 2x the weight of the baby. This does make it easier to lose the post-pregnancy weight, but Jamila said many Japanese mothers have difficulty breastfeeding as they don't put on enough weight.

Secondly, Japanese men seem to absent themselves from a lot of it. Typically, the husbands aren't in the room when the baby is born. [Oh, yeah, and women are told not to yell or be too loud when in labor] Most men don't have paternity leave [I don't think it's super common in the states, either]. Ishii's baby was born on a Sunday. He was at school as normal Monday morning. The mother is usually in the hospital for a week after birth to rest and learn how to breast-feed and bathe the baby-- Jamila said she really liked this, as she was so tired after the birth. Fathers might visit once or twice, but rarely more than that. Jamila said she was so happy to see one husband come every single day to visit.

Thirdly, Japanese women go to their parents' house for a month after having a baby. This is to receive more help and instruction from the new grandmother, as well as resting up. Depending on the distance, the husband might visit on the weekends.

Jamila and many foreigners frequent the Hidaka hospital, which is very flexible and allows frequent visitors, husbands in the delivery room, noise- you know, things we take for granted.

Interesting random notes..
*Babies are "akachan" in Japanese. "Aka" is red and "chan" is a diminutive for something cute or friendly. "Cute little red thing!"

*Pregnancy is counted in lunar months, with 1 month being exactly 28 days. So they say "10 months and 10 days." It means that the last month of a pregnancy only has ten days, that is, there are nine 30 day months, and then the last month is just ten days (9*30+10=280 days, a regular pregnancy).

Demon Mukade

2007-06-09T21:40:00.000+09:00

We have been visited by our 4th mukade. Maybe the same one I saw the other night, maybe one of his pals.

Aaron was putting some clothes in the wash. He picked up a towel and found... a mukade. The mukade was all relaxed at first, which means stretched out to a hideous length. Then he freaked out and contracted, laying his armored plates closer together. Aaron pinned the mukade underfoot, I got some scissors, and we stood victorious over the squirming bits.

But mukades in the laundry... this is a new phase of warfare. Clearly diabolical and underhanded.

Night Creatures

2007-06-07T21:58:00.000+09:00

Fireflies are back. And early-- we were told the 10th [Japanese can be very specific about dates]. So Aaron n I went out and watched them swirl over our little river. There are far more than last year. We're hoping to head out to a nearby spot reputed for great viewing.

Walking home, we caught a little frog to put in our garden. But once we reached the garden, he wriggled free and escaped. Now our herbs are doomed.

Looking down, I saw sinuous movement. Thinking it was a worm, I bent down to inspect it. It was a demon mukade. It slithered off, and I am hoping he doesn't make his way into the aparto.

And of course, our window lizards are still gracing us.

The Not

2007-06-07T20:48:00.000+09:00

Doing an opposites lesson recently, I had to explain that Ams think sour is the opposite of sweet. Japanese consider bitter to be the opposite. And when I said I agreed with the bitter preference, my JTE chuckled and said "Yes; you're Japanese."

This isn't the first time a teacher has commented on this. Expressing my enjoyment of watching snow fall while in the onsen. Enjoying certain foods. Certain habits. Appreciation of aspects of Japan. Knowing certain phrases or terms.

On the surface, this seems wonderful and welcoming. Hey, they think I fit in; I'm one of them!

But then you come up against the problem-- they don't think of you as an American, at least in that area. Which means they don't see you as an example that other foreigners can do Japanese things, enjoy Japanese culture, be culturally sensitive. Or, if they can, it's only because of the influence Japan has exerted on them. No one from another culture could possibly understand the uniqueness of Japan without being Japanese. When I first arrived, a JTE said of my pred, "Oh, yes. He understands everything. He's Japanese." To which I said, "Well, he studied a lot and worked hard to understand Japan, but he's a white boy from the Midlands." "NO. He's Japanese."

Turning Japanese and Not

2007-06-07T20:36:00.000+09:00

Interesting physical changes / body challenges resulting from life in Japan:

*Rogue black hairs are popping up in my otherwise light brown hair.

*Athlete's foot. I blame this on the humidity here. I've never experienced this until Japan. And judging by the front-and-center displays during rainy season, it seems to be a common ailment in Japan. It translates as "Water Bug" in Japanese.

*Soy sauce, vinegar, and green tea combos for deadly breath.

*Rice twice or thrice daily can be hard to digest. Let's leave it there.

*Scurvy. Just teasing. But it's almost surprising I haven't come down with it, given how expensive fruit is and how rarely I buy it.

Blubbering

2007-06-06T16:48:00.000+09:00

The International Whaling Committee once again rebuffed the attempt to implement commercial whaling.

Whaling is a big deal in Japan, or at least, a small group wants it to be. Japan has a long history of whaling. Ahem, ok, only a few areas have a long history of whaling. The rest of the country experienced whale meat in the 20th C. Still, some vocal players shrill "Tradition!" and bemoan how bullied Japan is by the world. Currently, Japan takes roughly 1,000/year in the name of scientific research. To impress on the current generation just how traditional whaling is, a lot of the meat is served to school children. Leftovers are made into pet food.

Personally, if Japan wants to whale in its own waters, using traditional methods, I think that's fine. That is, after all, tradition. But Japan wants to go down to Antarctica and use modern conveniences.

Finally, finally, I asked one of my teachers about this. I made a point to ask a science teacher. And he says that whaling is ok. I ask about whaling outside of Japan's waters. He squirmed a bit, but said that the whale population is strong, and the whales won't die off, so whaling anywhere is ok.

Thievery

2007-05-30T12:14:00.000+09:00

A shocking headline to reveal a quiet article. Just wanted to mention that it's lovely that I can leave things on a table while I use the toilet, and find them when I return. Or I can leave my jacket in my bicycle basket when I run into the conbini.

The only real exceptions to this are bicycles. Bicycles should never be left unlocked, expecially overnight at a train station. Not because people maliciously steal them, but because drunken salarymen mistake them as their own bicycle and drunkenly ride them home.

Exer-mer-cise

2007-05-28T17:02:00.000+09:00

When it rains, the school's dirt sports fields look like a swamp.

Nothing to do but make the kiddies run inside.

Beer Garden

2007-05-28T16:41:00.000+09:00

Our friend Ian's bday is upcoming, so he organized a beer garden party in Kobe. Ah, city life. We drove down with Johanna, who has the scoop on the quick, cheap route. She had errands to run, so we split up for a bit. Aaron n I met with Yukiko for a great Italian lunch. A different Italian place, with better prices and no snotty waiters. Had a great time with Yukiko, and then Aaron n I did some serious shopping. Kobe is a great shopping city. It's probably a good thing we don't live there.

Then we met back up with Johanna and the three of us headed to the rooftop beer garden. Rooftop beer gardens seem to be the height of cool in Japan, where outside seating is very rare. For a flat fee, you gain access to all you can drink/eat. The food was ok [the onion rings were great], the beer was so-so, but the company was great. Lots of people, a good time, a big sing along Happy Birthday. And then it was off for an hour or so of karaoke. I like the karaoke, but my singing isn't so great. And I always pick songs that are too challenging for me. Good thing other, better singers join in! And then it was a drive home to sleep in our own futons.

Kite Season

2007-05-28T16:30:00.000+09:00

April and May are quite breezy. And the wind really tears down the rivers in our mountain town. Many people take advantage of the wind and put out "koi no bori," those spiffy carp kites. The kites undulate in the wind, and really do look as though they're swimming.

Retraction

2007-05-25T14:16:00.000+09:00

Japanese Poodle Scam Revealed as Hoax
The Japanese poodle scam - wherein thousands of gullible buyers were sold lambs instead of the dogs they were expecting - was first reported in UK Sun newspaper. The story went that rich women were buying cut-price poodles from a company named Poodles For Pets, and were astonished to find later that they were sheep.

The story itself was immediately dubious (aside from being in The Sun, which tends to be somewhat lax in the fact-checking department), when you consider snippets like:

The scam was uncovered when Japanese moviestar Maiko Kawamaki went on a talk-show and wondered why her new pet would not bark or eat dog food.
She was crestfallen when told it was a sheep.

Then hundreds of other women got in touch with police to say they feared their new "poodle" was also a sheep.
One couple said they became suspicious when they took their "dog" to have its claws trimmed and were told it had hooves.

The story unravelled when police in Sapporo, where the company was claimed to be based, said they had never heard of the scam. The talk-show story was not as it seemed, either. It appears that Kawakami had told a story about a lamb being sold instead of a poodle. However, she'd said that it had happened to a friend of hers.

It seems that nobody had heard of the scam - it hadn't been reported in any Japanese newspapers.

The final nail in the coffin? The original article claims that the scam "capitalised on the fact that sheep are rare in Japan, so many do not know what they look like."
In fact, Sapporo has had a sheep farm since 1848.

I am so sad this turned out to be a hoax. I admit, there were tons of suspicious parts [I knew that Hokkaido is the only area in Japan where sheep are common, and therefore a ridiculous place for shoppers not to recognize a sheep]. It was just so fun to imagine anyone being so silly. But I must be responsible and print acknowledgement of the hoax instead of misleading all you loyal readers.

Usagiya

2007-05-19T21:48:00.000+09:00

There is an awesome little Kissaten [coffee shop] in our town. We discovered it last fall, on our way to the conversation class. The coffee's good, the cakes are good, the presentation is amazing.

But far better than the snacks is the inventory. While Usagiya is a kissaten, it sells a lot of pottery, cloth, and rotates local handicrafts. So many fun, gorgeous items. Of course, said items are a bit pricey... so we're particular about what we buy. Currently eyeing some magical cups. The cups claim to "make beer more delicious!" I chuckled about the sign, and asked the owner about it. Seems the interior is a bit rough, so the bubbles grasp onto the sides, ensuring your beer is fizzy longer.

Yeah, I know, I don't really like beer, but the cups could change that!

Tendaki

2007-05-19T21:27:00.000+09:00

After our fantastic time in Kobe, we had an active Sunday planned. The plan: hike up the "Heavenly Waterfall" with Chika and Mineko. It was a nice hike, only a bit over 1K, but pretty steep. There was a couple just ahead of us with 3 dogs-- 2 walking and a teeny puppy being carried by the woman. As we hiked on, sometimes passing, sometimes being passed by the couple, we saw that one of the walking dogs had joined the puppy-- the poor woman was holding a dog under each arm! Hahaha!

The view was great, and when we reached the fall, we walked down along the hill a ways to get some pics and relax.

Then it was off to the Fuji Matsuri, which is really just a large garden of wisteria. Pretty nifty and it smelled fantastic.

To wrap the day up, we went out for dinner. Mineko's husband owns a factory, so they're quite well off. She chose the Sun Route restaurant, on the 7th floor of the Sun Route hotel. I'd been there before, and the lunch prices were reasonable. Gah! Dinner prices were not! But we sucked it up, had a nice dinner with the ladies. Chika especially enjoyed it, as she said that whenever her family eats out, her teen boys always insist on something like yakiniku or yakisoba [which I'd almost suggested and was so thankful I didn't!]. And then Mineko surprised us all by taking care of the bill!

Rock Paper Scissors

2007-05-14T18:24:00.000+09:00

Known as "janken" in Japan, this handy game solves all problems...

There was a huge Tajima-wide sports tournament Sat 12, Sun 13 for all sports. Pretty sure it was to determine ranking in Tajima. Sounds fun, but I guess I thought it'd be fairly easy to maintain up-to-date wins/losses/rankings.

Anyhow, the Wadayama SHS baseball team did really well, but was tied with another team. Instead of playing more innings or another game, the win was determined by janken!! Yes, Wadayama SHS coulda been 3rd in Tajima, but lost the janket and so were doomed to 4th place.

Guess they shoulda gone with rock.

Puri-Kura

2007-05-13T20:13:00.000+09:00

Puri-Kura is everywhere in Japan. Digital photo booths that are swarmed with girls posing and hamming it up. Various backgrounds can be chosen, and after the photos download, you can customize them with frames, writing, random icons, really just about anything. For $4 you get 6 pics, with 4 customized. The students in JHS n SHS collect these suckers to no end. Between classes, students crowd around and pore through their albums.

I avoided these as dangerous money-suckers. And as being too damn cute. And as collectable, something that is inherently money-sucking. But as it is a super-Japanese thing to do, I went the day before my bday back in Feb [so I have a pic of my last hours as a 25 year old!], and then Johanna convinced us all to hit a booth after Spider-Man. Watching her work on the customizing, I realized how much fun puri-kura could be if you were good at it. Which takes practice. Which takes moula. And a willing partner-in-crime, and with Mari n Aaron opposed to it, I can breath easy knowing our 500-yen coins will stay in our inoshishi bank instead of being fed into the booth to fund a new hobby. Whew!

Mission: Movie

2007-05-13T20:01:00.000+09:00

Saturday the 12th was a fantastic day. Here is part two.

Movies are expensive. Such is the nature of the beast. I remember those long-ago $3 matinees, and the discount theater that showed oldish movies, 2 for $5. Seattle is a cruel city-- 3 major Unis and no student discounts. Still, going to the movies was a reasonable treat.

Hahahah! Then I came to Japan, land of the $18 movie. Sure, they have a ladies night, but since theaters are only in big cities, that's not much of a consolation. And they get foreign movies pretty late. Still, Aaron n I were determined to treat ourselves to one movie here. We waited, and waited, and waited, bypassing the easy hype of King Kong, Superman, and Narnia. We were waiting for .... Spider-Man!!

Bizarrely enough, Spider-Man opened earlier in Japan than in the US. We thought about going during Golden Week, but decided to wait and do a group thing.

And so it was that the four of us converged on Spider-Man in Kobe. The tickets were expensive. The seats were assigned. The caramel corn bucket was indeed a bucket. The seats were large, red, and luxurious. The movie was pretty good.

As tickets are assigned, you don't have to show up super early in order to get 4 seats together. And outside food is allowed, so smuggling isn't a worry.

After the movie, we hit a purikura booth, then a conbini, and then had a easy ride home. Asago-ites, well-fed, cultured, and up to date on the current movies.

Blanc et Noir

2007-05-13T19:39:00.000+09:00

Saturday the 12th was a fantastic day. Here is part one.

Carpooled with Johanna down to Kobe, where we found easy, cheap parking. Took a bus into Sannomiya with no problems. Met up with Patrick for Italian. We had a minor snafu with the snotty waiter, but then Ken and Yuko joined us, and the tiramisu soothed all stress.

Ken and Yuko were off to their bday party, and we remaining four tramped off to the theater to check the times. We'd just missed the show, but bought our tickets for the next one. Then we found Ian, who'd been caught up in lame-o hospital bureacracy for hours. Walked and chatted a bit, but our secondary goal had been put into effect: Attend final day of Rodin exhibit. So Ian left to score some chow, and we continued walking.

How many times have Aaron n I missed Rodin in Japan? Twice. The first time was in Tokyo, where an ORIGINAL!! cast of the Gates of Hell is located in Ueno Park. We kinda saw the gates, but since the museum was closed, we certainly didn't get a good look. The second time was in the fall-- there was an exhibit in Himeji that my parents saw, but Aaron n I missed it somehow. So I was determined to finally see some damn Rodin, and Saturday was the last day.

After hiking a bit, we grabbed a taxi. This guy was the best, most polite taxi driver ever! So friendly and very hospitable. Yeah, that's weird to mention, but he was def great.

At the museum, Aaron, Patrick, and I received free tickets, so we split her attendence cost as Johanna was paying when we received the tickets. Then we wandered the exhibit. All 190 pieces were originals from the Musee Rodin, with 59 being plaster, which apparently aren't loaned often due to their delicate nature. Many of these pieces were reductions of figures on the Gates of Hell. Obviously, most were under glass, but a few large bronzes were scattered throughout the rooms, begging to be touched. Don't worry! Somehow I restrained myself, but really, large bronzes just beg to be stroked-- and the tactile look of Rodin was so tempting...

Rolling Your Own

2007-05-13T19:31:00.000+09:00

We've gotten pretty good at the whole sushi-at-home thing. This was greatly driven by the closure of our favorite cheap sushi place, Shijaaku. It reopened around Dec as the classier Kaishumaru. The sushi cuts look better, but not enough to justify the price hike. And while the tank of doomed sea creatures is pretty cool to watch, rumors of a legless octopus floating around depressed me.

Then Ishii-sensei had us over to his house for temaki-zushi. And we caught the bug.

Now we indulge ourselves fairly often. Two blocks of good fish, some avocado, cucumber, rice and trimmings, and you've got a fantastic dinner. A little miso soup rounds it out nicely.

Now to learn the art of blow-torching so we can make those seared nigiris.

Pic: I stumbled across this nattoh-maki in the conbini. Don't worry, I didn't buy it.

More Depressing Bits from the News

2007-05-09T20:38:00.000+09:00

Tojo's granddaughter is running for office. She wants to enshrine all military dead at Yasukuni.

Ishihara was reelected for a 3rd term as Governor of Tokyo. Tokyo. The largest, most cosmopolitan city in Japan. An international city...

When giving a speech to the Self Defense Force in 2000, he said''Atrocious crimes have been committed again and again by sangokujin and other foreigners. We can expect them to riot in the event of a disastrous earthquake.''

Ishihara stated in a 2001 interview with women's magazine Shukan Josei that he subscribed to a theory that "old women who live after they have lost their reproductive function are useless and are committing a sin," adding that he "couldn't say this as a politician." He was criticized in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly for these comments, but responded that the criticism was driven by "tyrant" "old women."

Note: The rioting foreigners comment is horribly ironic, as hundreds of Koreans were killed by Japanese mobs following the Kanto Earthquake in 1923 due to lovely rumors about the Koreans being responsible for the disaster.

Bit o' Politics

2007-05-09T20:21:00.000+09:00

Not as much fun as the poodle/lamb scam, this news is more political. Prime Minister Abe, whose accomplishments include:

*Requiring history books to instill a sense of patriotism [AKA white washing]

*Pushing for constitutional revision, as a prelude to rearmament

*Defending his colleague's "Women are birth-giving machines" comment

can now add "appeased the nutso right-wingers" to his list. Abe had refused to comment about any visit he may or may not make to Yasukuni Shrine. For those of you who don't know about the shrine, why it's controversial, or why riots in China n S. Korea break out whenever a Japanese PM visits said shrine, read here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasukuni_shrine

Anyhow, Abe didn't actually go to the shrine. Instead he donated a $500 potted plant and signed it as the Prime Minister. While I completely am against Yasukuni, at least Abe is fairly upfront about his support. The lion-haired Koizumi talked one way, then shamelessly acted in another, all to please the scary right-wingers.

note: Yes, they deserve the title "scary" as the extreme right-wingers have shot more political figures than the Yakuza.

Spring Stuff

2007-05-01T19:46:00.000+09:00

In anticipation of spring, jogging was reinstated about a month ago. Jogging is painful, jogging is agony. But not jogging brings anxiety-- the solitude [well, we go together, but his long legs keep Aaron a good bit ahead], the scenery, the healthiness demand to be fed. So we jog. Our neighbors seem to think this is adorable. They get broad smiles as we stride out, and call out "Healthy, aren't you?"

The healthiness is also being fed by salsa. Yes, there are salsa lessons here! The teacher is a short Japanese woman who has learned the tantalizing step of Latin dancers. Her rear, typically flat, maneauvers saucily. I don't know how she can walk down the street without cat calls.

The bugs are returning. Horrifically, there are even a few early cicadas. Reassuringly, the frogs are asserting themselves. With the paddies being flooded, their ribbits are a thrumming purr of contentedness. I like to imagine each ribbit brings death to a bug.

Straight From the News!

2007-04-28T22:46:00.000+09:00

Thousands of Japanese have been swindled in a scam in which they were sold Australian and British sheep and told they were poodles.

Flocks of sheep were imported to Japan and then sold by a company called Poodles as Pets, marketed as fashionable accessories, available at $1,600 each.

That is a snip compared to a real poodle which retails for twice that much in Japan.

The scam was uncovered when Japanese moviestar Maiko Kawamaki went on a talk-show and wondered why her new pet would not bark or eat dog food.

She was crestfallen when told it was a sheep.

Then hundreds of other women got in touch with police to say they feared their new "poodle" was also a sheep.

One couple said they became suspicious when they took their "dog" to have its claws trimmed and were told it had hooves.

Japanese police believe there could be 2,000 people affected by the scam, which operated in Sapporo and capitalised on the fact that sheep are rare in Japan, so many do not know what they look like.

"We launched an investigation after we were made aware that a company were selling sheep as poodles," Japanese police said, the The Sun reported.

"Sadly we think there is more than one company operating in this way.
"The sheep are believed to have been imported from overseas - Britain, Australia."

Many of the sheep have now been donated to zoos and farms.

Ways to Die in Japan

2007-04-22T16:07:00.000+09:00

Mochi: Every year people choke to death on the sticky stuff due to the New Year traditions of ozoni [mochi soup] and mochi pounding. The tally for 2006; 16 dead. 2007 is much lower at 4.

Fugu: No surprise here, the stuff is dangerous! 8,000 dead since 1887.

Eel: The eel-eating contests of summer brings on more choking deaths for Japan.

Yakuza: Usually a low risk, last week's murder of Nagasaki mayor Ito shows that yakuza are killers and not the helpful businessmen they like to be perceived as.

Ninja: There has been no verified death by ninja recently. But really, how would you know?

On the serious side, here's Japan's top 8 causes of death for 2006:

1. Cancer
2. Heart Disease
3. Cerebrovascular Disease [stroke]
4. Pneumonia
5. Accidents
6. Suicide
7. Liver Disease
8. TB

Note 1: Japan categorizes deaths a bit differently-- they have a nifty time limit. So if you're in a horrible car accident and die from the trauma within 24 hours, you're a car accident victim. After 24 hours, and the COD is something different. So the Nagasaki mayor technically died from blood loss, not a gunshot wound.

Fun with Food

2007-04-22T15:47:00.000+09:00

After eating your freshly grilled fish, put the skeleton back on the fire. Crisp nicely and eat.
Verdict: Tasty and cruchy

Place hard, non-sweet mochi over fire. Watch as it first puffs, then splits. Once the interior has spilled out a bit, remove from heat, pull apart like taffy, then eat with soy sauce.
Verdict: Like mugwort-flavored marshmallow. Ok.

Make sweet soup with red beans. Put non-sweet mochi into bowl. Allow mochi to soften
due to heat of the soup. Eat, being careful not to inhale mochi-- it can kill.
Verdict: Very delicious in cold weather. But due to appearence, best eaten in the dark, alone.

Goodbye Enkais

2007-04-22T15:04:00.000+09:00

Consider the fragile cherry blossom-- how delicate, how uplifting, yet how short is its life. Truly, life is the same.

Sakura season is also when all the teachers get jerked around to new schools. Which of course means enkais abound. Before the SHS enkai, we had an assembly for the teachers who left. It's always kinda fun to place bets on which teacher will cry, or how long until the tears and snuffles overwhelm the speech. My first year saw the big, tough PE teacher sobbing like a baby, but this year's teachers were made of sterner stuff. Of course the ladies teared up, but they continued on through the tears. But the true heartbreaker was the students-- holding onto each other, eyes streaming as they mourned the leaving of their teacher/coach.

But the enkai is definately livelier. Lots of drinking, lots of jokes, and lots of food. Everyone mills around, chatting. I chatted up my departed VP and JTE, and had a decent time for an evening of social niceties.

And two days later we had our farewell enkai with our Conversation students. Three months early, as they wanted the sakura backdrop. We went out to a Buddhist temple with a restuarant attached. And we ate. and ate. We ate for a continuous two hours. I was actually tired of the act of eating! We dined on freshly grilled fish, soba, steak, wild plant tempura [includes dandelions!], sakura ice cream, and more I can't remember. Our musical student bullied us into serenading the restuarant with Spring songs, and we were rewarded with sashimi.

After our steady eating concluded, we were off to the Yakuno highlands to take in some sakura. We wandered the groves, took some pictures, and then... it was off to Lilac for ice cream! During our 6 hour outing, we gleaned many interesting things about our students-- but they're secrets, so I can't share!

Technology in Japan

2007-04-22T14:56:00.000+09:00

Uniqlo has created the ultimate white pants for women. By infusing special spirits into the white mesh, the resultant textile will allow women to wear... COLORED underwear beneath their white pants! Women everywhere rejoice.

And... for those eco-girls who still want to feel sexy:

Necessary?

2007-04-16T14:42:00.000+09:00

I was sitting at my desk, diligently working. A knock was heard, followed by an "excuse me for interrupting." A student walked by. Then another. And another. Intrigued, I turn to look. An entire 1st year class was being drilled in the proper manner to approach the teachers' room:

1. Knock
2. Enter and bow.
3. Loudly pronounce "Excuse me for interrupting."
4. Close the door behind you.
5. Walk the length of the teachers' room, all the while noting where their homeroom teacher's desk is.
6. Before exiting, turn to face the room.
7. Pronounce "Excuse me for having interrrupted."
8. Bow and exit.
9. Close the door behind you.

Takeda Castle Matsuri

2007-04-12T18:08:00.000+09:00

The morning after our glorious feast we were picked up earlyish and whisked away to Takeda for matsuri enjoyment with our conversation class. Takeda is a suburb of Wadayama and has many traditional homes. The few times we've been there, the town feels empty-- all closed up. But on the 8th the doors were opened wide; the better for viewing the doll displays. There were many antique displays, including one from the 1850s!
This is unusual, as Japan has many superstitions about inanimate objects becoming alive and aware on their 100th birthday. Dolls, having human form, have even more superstitions attached to them, and there were specific rites carried out to dispose of dolls, rather than passing them on to a new owner. You can still find these ceremonies at a few shrines.

We then met up with Fujio, who was having a great time with his grandkids. His neighbors welcomed us, chatted a bit, and gave us delicious okonomiyaki. Mmmm! Then it was time to wander, have some matcha, visit a temple, appreciate the cherry blossoms. Finally the main event was about to start.

Chika maneuvered us into a great position. We waited, jostling to maintain our prime position. Then, from the South we spotted the Akamatsu clan in red. At the same time, the Yamane clan entranced in blue. The Asago-shi mayor was the head of the Yamane clan. He made a nice speech, of course mentioning the blooming cherry blossoms, and then gave the official go. The gunmen shot their rifles. Then the foot soldiers charged. Finally, it was the swordsmen's turn. Judging by the whiff of alcohol and the broad grins, it looked like the reenactors had a great time.

Death by Pufferfish

2007-04-12T17:21:00.000+09:00

We finally did it! We ingested the uber deadly blowfish! Well, drank it, actually. See, fugu is really expensive. And we're really cheap. Oh, and the whole poison aspect. And to clinch it, several people told us the taste is quite bland, except for the slight tingling the poison graces you with. $100 for bland but deadly fish flesh.... gee, how wunderbar.

But we found fuguzake-- a jar of sake with a fugu fin inside. Clearly, this would be the better way to go. We held onto this jar for a few months, waiting for the perfect moment. So when Julius and Mari came down for a Grand Japanese Cuisine Night, we finally opened it. First Aaron took a drink-- tastes like sake. Second was me-- tastes heavy and sweet. Third was Julius-- tastes like dried fish. Last was Mari-- She skipped through the three flavor stages and hit the end result of "Blech."

I cannot see her tonight.
I have to give her up
So I will eat fugu.

Two Old Ladies

2007-04-06T14:24:00.000+09:00

In my first year here, I took a certain route to school. This route was favored by students, so I'd be biking alongside many walking SHS and Elem students. There's an old lady whose house in on this route. She likes to stand outside when the students are walking by. When she first saw me, she was very excited and waved me over. She chattered very quickly, about coming to visit her house which she indistinctly motioned at. Other times she'd berate me for biking amongst walking students, and made me get off to push the bike. As I was never sure which house was hers, and her attention was a bit stifling, I never went to her house. I've always felt a bit guilty about this, but when she cornered and chastised me at a community concert, her husband had to gently pull her away and apologized for her exciteable ways; apparently she does this sorta thing often.

Then I discovered another route. It's much more direct, follows along the river, making it more scenic. And there are fewer students to dodge. After a few months of using this route, I noticed another old lady. She likes to greet me on my way home from school. She stands by the cherry trees, bows, and says a cheerful hello. At first I was sure it was merely a coincidence, but now I can see her waiting when I leave school. She's facing the school and the river, but when I pass her, she's turned around so she can greet me. Also, if I chance upon her at the vendy in the morning, she won't be out that afternoon.

Just an interesting slice of small town life-- old ladies on the road.

Upstart

2007-04-01T16:25:00.000+09:00

A lazy weekend. We went to my school's soccer game. The team is terrible-- we've been to a decent amount of games and not only have they never won, we've never even seen them score a goal. But then, the two coaches have never played soccer before. And the students man the sidelines and sometimes even referee. Interestingly, there are rarely any parents at the games. We've only seen one mother once, so when we attend, we really stick out.

After the game, we fought the wind and biked out to the recycle shop and Gyomo Super. Went home, did the weekend clean, had dinner, watched "The Dirty Dozen."

Sunday we went out to lunch with Mari, where the other patrons gawked at us. Two years, and still lots of gawking. We decided the gawking meant we deserved ice cream, so it was off to Lilac where we sampled sakura [cherry blossom] ice cream. I saw a flier for Upstart, a local teen band. The guitarist had asked me to go, but I'd completely forgotten. Luckily, it was today, so we went and watched. Not bad, pretty fun, and it was great seeing all the students in their real life clothes. Hilariously, the boys lined one wall, while the girls took the other. Not much mingling in Japan.

The rest of the lazy weekend will be spent watching movies and reading. And tomorrow I meet the new teachers.

Sumo, March 23

2007-04-01T15:56:00.000+09:00

Once in Osaka, we slept in our sketchy hotel, then woke up early to attempt to procure sumo tix. We exited the train station, followed our directions, picked up some breakfast to eat in line. As we approached the gym, we heard incredibly loud drumming. We scanned the area, but couldn't place it. Finally, as we reached the gym, we realised the drums were on the roof of the gym-- a summons to sumo!

And we were happily surprised to find ourselves 4th in line just before 8. Obviously, we felt sure we'd not only get seats, but also some decent ones. And we were right! As we were only allowed one reentry [which we saved for lunch], we went into the gym about an hour before any bouts started. The matches are held on a raised platform made of clay, in the center circle. This circle was being continually swept by broom-boys. Occasionally a different broom-boy would water the circle, and the others would set about sweeping it. At one count, there were seven broom-boys engaged in sweeping...

The morning matches were the lower level players. Some were ok, but many seemed to be just going through the motions. But the upper-lower level players had some fire! THe gym was fairly empty until 3:00 when the higher divisions started. These are the players who get to enter ceremoniously, wearing a fantastic apron, and throw salt before their matches. While they are definately better players, I can't imagine spending so much on tix just to show up for a mere two hours of sumo. We got to see crowd favorite Kitazakura, whose beautiful salt toss was met with wild cheers. Julius-named Robocop [due to his stilted walk] was adored by the crowd, but bitch-slapped [literally!] by his opponent. And we saw the ranking yokozuna [that's the highest level] Asashoryu knock Kotooshu out in a very anticlimactic final bout.

Interesting notes:
*While sumo is the quintessential Japanese sport, in many ways it seems completely against Japanese tendencies; it's one-on-one istead of a group sport and strength matters more than spirit [you can debate this, but generally the bitty guys get tossed around].

*Because it's so traditional, you'll see many women wearing kimono to the matches.

*Seeing sumo guys out on the street is quite surreal. They can't go incognito due to their size, and seeing them peruse the electronics aisle seems at odds with their traditional lifestyle [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumo]

Contemporary Happenings

2007-03-30T11:31:00.000+09:00

Have to take a quick break from vacation stories to relate up-to-date news.

Around this time, teachers are reassigned to new schools. While it's typical to stay at a school for 3 years, sometimes the duration is much longer [if they can work out a deal with the administration] or much shorter. Accordingly, one of my favored teachers is leaving to head all the way down to Akashi. Waaah! And my beloved Kyoutou-sensei [VP] is leaving after only a year! I am in complete shock about the VP! When he first arrived, he made me incredibly uncomfortable by using his 10 stock English phrases on me everyday; "You changed your hairstyle-- how beautiful." Which is really nice, but hearing it every single day made me feel like the butt of a joke. As the months progressed, he became more comfortable and expanded his English usage. He became one of my favorite people-- he's friendly, always polite, interesting, and has a sense of humor [often lacking in Eng/J language exchanges]. And now he's leaving! It's horrible!

The only plus at the moment is the whole seat change thing. See, the teachers can't keep their usual seats-- if a teacher is becoming a 2nd year homeroom teacher, he needs to move the the 2nd year hm row. This means my L teacher will no longer be my neighbor. And since the teachers were all worried about me "needing" an English speaker, they're giving me Ishii-sensei! Hooray!!! Here's hoping it's not an empty promise.

Ninja!!

2007-03-27T21:30:00.000+09:00

The next day we were off to... Ninja Town! Yes, there is a ninja town in Japan! Annoyingly, it takes awhile to get there. But at least your train is ninja-themed!

In Iga, we hiked up the mountain to reach the ninja house and ninja musuem. There are guides dressed in day-glo pink [girls] and dark blue [boys]. You get a spiffy tour, with demonstrations of trick doors, secret hidey-holes, etc. We got the chance to try out the spin door [think Indiana Jones 3]-- the middle-aged lady who went first was adorable! She slid up quickly, moving her hands quickly in vertical strokes, giggled "sha sha sha," and used the door with great speed. Then it was my turn. Yeah, I am not made to be a ninja. I was pretty slow- but funny, judging by the laughter.

We then toured the ninja museum, gawping at the spiffy tools and giggling at the demonstration video. So fun! Aaron n I bought some ninja-etched sake cups to add to our collection. While we didn't spend more than a few hours, this was one of the funnest things I've done in Japan. Goofy smiles for the rest of the day.

Kiyomizu-dera

2007-03-27T18:08:00.000+09:00

After our quick tour of Seoul, it was back to Japan. But not back to school! Oh, no- I used some vacation time to pad out a Nat'l holiday. We were on the go for a good week. First up: Kyoto

We hit the Toji Flea Market and bought some fun stuff. Gorged on food stalls- mmm! Then we met up with Julius, who was joining us for the next few days.

Off we went to Kiyomizu-dera, one of the finalists for the "New Seven Wonders." Kiyomizu-dera collects a main temple with several smaller shrines. The main temple has a very sheer drop, which affords a nice view. The Japanese equivalent of "To take the plunge" is "to jump off Kiyomizu-dera's stage." And yes, people actually used to jump off it. If you survived, your wish would come true.

The main attraction is three channels of water. Visitors use a long-handled ladle to drink from one of the streams; love, health, or wealth. But the guide lady insisted all the waters were the same! As we each chose a different stream, we're hoping we're covered.

And one of the best parts of our Kyoto day-- maiko! Maiko are apprentice geisha, and wear flashier kimono, and are paraded around for special events. Hooray for the Nat'l holiday! Even with the ridiculous crowds, I was so happy to finally see the expected, yet elusive, maiko.

Seoul Impressions

2007-03-26T19:53:00.000+09:00

Hmmm. We really didn't have enough time. 2 days plus a couple hours just wasn't enough, especially as many things shut down on Sunday. The markets seemed fun, but we just weren't in the buying mood. The street stalls were great, and the soju [Korean liquor] was smoother than what we find in Japan[shochu].

The people were more direct and seemed quite confident compared to Japanese. In only 2 days, we were openly approached and chatted up in English several times. One man came up and told Aaron he must be "Jew-ichi" because he has a big, long nose. Hahahah! There was also more jostling and general pushiness, but this might just be big-city living.

As a big city, I think a guide or some good advice is a necessity. Or just more time. I can't explain how disappointed we were with our 2 dismal restaurant meals [seriously- it's all about those tasty side dishes]. And we had no idea where to go for liveliness-- we just wandered about, which was fun, but not too enlightening. All in all, it was definately worthwhile and interesting, but I just feel that we missed out on a lot.

Seoul, March 19 & 20

2007-03-26T19:42:00.000+09:00

Our last real day in Seoul, so we hit the traditional shopping area for souveniers-- Insadong. Found plenty of beautiful paper, prints, pottery. Of course we bought a bit too much, but we needs it! Really! The only downside was lunch. We were pressured into a restaurant by one of the waiters. The pics outside showed a huge spread of side dishes and reasonable prices. So we were less than pleased to find a very expensive menu, and received a measly 4 side dishes. Lame. After that, we stuck to the tasty street stalls.

More shopping around-- went to COEX, a huge mall. Found a Uniqlo shop, but the selection was the same as in Japan. All in all, a day full of window shopping, and gawking at new things. We desperately searched for my ginger cookies, but could only find unglazed cookies. I fell in love with beauty chain called Skin Food that had tons of fun lotions, masks, etc. I'm hoping they go international very soon.

We had to be up early the next day to head to the airport. On the bus, we saw so many things that looked fun, but of course it was too late. But I've noticed things always seem more exciting by the speed of the bus or train. Once you're on foot, you see it's just like where you were.

Seoul, March 18

2007-03-26T19:23:00.000+09:00

Up earlyish on Sunday, we wandered out, looking for breakfast. But we were stymied by an endless river of runners. Seems the Seoul Marathon was in full swing, and directly in front of us and breakfast. Hrrmmm. We waited a good 8 minutes, looking for the end-- no dice. As more impatient people Frogger-ed through, Aaron n I decided to do the same. It took quite awhile to get my nerve-- I was sure I'd trip somebody and ruin their marathon. But I eventually made it through, and we walked up to the next street, only to find the marathon was doubled back on this street as well! This time there were subway stations, so we were able to go down and over, instead of through.

I really like encountering these everyday events. I know I'm a tourist, and that most events I find in other cities/countries are ones I specifically travelled to see. But things like the marathon reminds me that I'm not a part of this city/country-- that it has concrete things for its citizens besides the flashy sites.

For breakfast we headed to the foreigner area in hopes of finding a British style breakfast place. A big, heavy breakfast sounded so great... but we settled for some bagel sandwiches. For our dining entertainment, we watched a drunk man drag a chair a good 30 feet, to thwack it against a police car. The police then had a fun time trying to maneuver him into the car. The entire street just stopped to watch this guy wrap his arms around a telephone pole and push the cops away. After breakfast, we toured Changgyeong-gung. We walked around, saw the buildings, sat and watched some crazy ducks, read a bit.

Then it was time to hit the markets. We found our way to the oldest open-air market in Korea, some 600 years old. We didn't buy much, but we did eat the super-fresh octopus! We'd hoped to find a place with the living, whole baby octopodes, but instead we found this easier option. Take 1 living adolescent octopus, pull him outta the water, chop thoroughly, and serve with sauce. Yes, the plate is filled with squirming bits. And the bit are delicious!! The sucker cups grab onto the inside of your mouth as you chew, making for a very interesting time. But seriously-- it's really tasty!

Seoul, March 17

2007-03-26T19:06:00.000+09:00

Hooray! Finally, finally, we made it to Korea. We've been planning to go ever since we learned we were headed to Japan. And with only 4 months to go, we zipped over for a very short weekend.

We arrived at Incheon Int'l Saturday evening. As we walked through the airport, there were pottery and art displays from the Silla, Paekche, Koguryo kingdoms, followed with others from the Choson dynasty. With this artistic welcome, I was surprised to then find soldiers armed with sub-machine guns patrolling the airport.

We bused into Seoul, found our hostel, and went out to find dinner. We resisted the tempting street stalls, hoping to find a sit-down restuarant replete with those tasty side dishes. We finally settled on one, had some great fish soup, but were saddened with the kimchee options-- not the best.

We wandered around, stumbling down little alleys advertising hostess bars. Found my beloved candy-coated sunflower seeds [the ones in Japan have too much choco], and discovered coffee flavoured gum. Then it was back to the hostel and sleep.

Wadayama Idol

2007-03-26T18:08:00.000+09:00

Given tickets by one of our kaiwa students, Aaron n I attended a local singing show. Basically, it was American Idol, but with a clap-o-meter. Judging by the "EEEeehhhh!"s of the audience, clap-o-meters are hot stuff. After sitting through an agonizing intro-- hosted by a typical mc wearing a typically tacky jacket, accompanied by the typically deferential show lady-- the show began.

It was a VERY mixed bag. There were a couple good singers, and one of my HS students was a contestant! But most of the contestants were retirees singing old traditional songs [enka]. Enka are ok for average male singers, but a female singer needs to be good to navigate jumping all over the register. There was a variety of stage presence styles, and a few singers had organized cheering sections. But after an hour or so, we ducked out. The contest was expected to run 3 hours, and enka just aren't worth it.

Still, it was nice to go out and see what the average Wadayama-ite does on the weekend.

Kosher Sushi

2007-03-15T11:15:00.000+09:00

Cuisine is an easily accessible slice of culture. Who doesn't love to try out a new restuarant, sample new flavors, and walk away feeling somewhat less mystified by a country?

But there are those devious restuarants claiming to be [country name here] restaurants, but serve adulterated food. Sure, the changes are made for the local palate, to encourage customers and stay in business... but that's twisting what should be a pure, pristine offering of traditional cuisine.

The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture is spending taxpayers' yen to send officials to L.A. in order to rate so-called "Japanese" restaurants as truly Japanese. Seems there are a lot of American Japanese restuarants serving food that proper Japanese would have trouble recognizing. Guidelines will include origin of ingredients [guess its better to fly in Japanese fish than serve something local and fresh].

This is hilarious because 1. The government is paying for it!! and 2. The Japanese are notorious for twisting cuisine to suit the Japanese palate. Pizza regularly comes with corn and mayo. Or this lovely matcha-flavored eclair.

In the interest of fairness [and my stomach], I will entreaty the French and Italian governments to follow Japan's lead.

To read the full article:

Snow!!

2007-03-12T10:56:00.000+09:00

What an incredibly wimpy winter. After last year's record fallls, we were totally let down by the warm weather this year. Still cold, but not very. And sadly, only a few isolated days of soon-melted snow.

But now that everyone's already switched out their snow tires, the snow cometh! The "First Gales of Spring" swept in some seriously frigid days, and today I awoke to a beautiful layer of snow. Happily, the snow is still falling!

My love of snow alternately amuses, confuses, and annoys my coworkers. I have little sympathy for their "driving" motive-- the snow here is usually very wet, there's no black ice, and the average speed limit is a whopping 35 mph.

I'm crossing my fingers for a full day of snow-- then I can relax after work by making a snow totoro!

Variety!

2007-03-11T21:25:00.000+09:00

Japanese food is tasty. The only drawback is the lack of variety-- nearly everything is seasoned with the same base ingredients [soy sauce, dashi, mirin are the top 3, with vinegar and sugar rounding out the top 5].

But the flip side is the crazy rotation for snack foods. Puccho introduces limited flavors every season; Ozacks potato chips do as well. After getting hooked on the chocolate tofu, I was disappointed to find it'd been replaced by gooey-and-not-tasty kinako/kuromitsu flavor. Last week I just found a seasonal coffee-in-a-can.

How many Kit Kat flavors do you want? Here you've got original, adzuki bean, white chocolate, strawberry and melon. Spring's new flavor is Cherry Blossom Breeze, but I think that's a yearly flavor. You can usually find Fruit Parfait and Bitter Chocolate. Too bad Kit Kats are inherently evil.

The Fireflies' Light

2007-03-11T21:16:00.000+09:00

Third year's graduation seemed a bit easier this year. Not as cold, fewer sleeping parents, but still lots of tears and bowing. Instead of walking to Carpenters, it was a nice classical piece. After the typical speech [all graduation speeches are the same, regardless of language], we all sang the school song, the national anthem, and the nifty "Fireflies' Light."

Hotaro no Hikari is set to Auld Lang Syne's tune. But instead of old reunions, this song is about a dedicated student who studied by the fireflies' light in summer [and the moon shining off the snow in winter]. Now he is moving onto to bigger and better things-- so of course it's a tradition at graduations.

After the graduating students and their parents leave the gym, the remaining students and teachers scramble to clean up. It's actually kinda fun, and there's definately a sense of community. Once the clean up's done, you can track down your fave 3rd years, fresh from their homeroom goodbyes, and snap some pics.

Deep Sea Sushi

2007-03-08T15:10:00.000+09:00

Japan has some amazing Oceanographers. And situated near some deep sea trenches, there are always plenty of ugly fish that occasionally find their way into Tokyo Bay. Recently, a goblin shark and a frilled shark were discovered, then thrown into a nearby aquarium. After only a few hours, the exhibits died. I suspect their bodies were not left for science...

To support my theory, I present evidence: Dr. Mori was one of the researchers responsible for capturing the giant squid on camera. The photo-ed squid lost a tentacle to the procedure. Turning up his nose at the fresh treat, Dr. Mori declared that a previous experience determined giant squid to taste horribly bitter. Note: This photo-ed squidy was the first one seen live. That means any sampled giant squid were scavenged.

No food is wasted in Japan...

Patriotism

2007-03-08T15:05:00.000+09:00

This is old news, but last yearJapan passed a law requiring textbooks to instill patriotism in students. Also, given their declining international test scores, Japan's considering reinstating longer class hours. Personally, methinks the schools should have a grade-minimum before allowing students into the clubs. Watch the baseball team's grades rise!

Sumo-sized Frustration

2007-03-08T14:55:00.000+09:00

Accomplishing things can be incredibly difficult in Japan. Remittance? Only an hour-long ordeal at the Post Office. Even after several visits [and even accompanied by a Japanese person], the process never became easier.

Case in point: sumo. The Osaka Sumo Tournament is this month, and we really want to go. Julius also wants to go, so we have 3 people. But the super-cool box seats seat 4. Practical, we sought out a 4th person before buying the tickets. Such a mistake! See, advance tickets can be reserved by phone form Feb ?th to March 4th. And we missed the deadline. Now in order to buy tickets, we must go all the way to Osaka [3 some hours and over $50 rndtrp] and buy the tickets at the actual stadium. No other ticket venues. And the truly ridiculous part is that these stadium-sold tickets won't be sold until March 11th. There's a week where you can't buy tickets at all! Gah! Dude-- it's sumo! Y'know, the incredibly popular sport with only 4 tournaments a year? Seriously, this is not cool.

Ikebana Update

2007-03-05T09:52:00.000+09:00

My lovely flower club deserves an update all its own.

When I last mentioned my kadoh, the teacher was constantly telling me that my arrangements were substandard, and that as a non-Japanese, I would never truly understand the principles involved. This treatment continued for a good 4 months. It was exceptionally frustrating, as there are two newbies in the club, and their arrangements would be redone even more than mine, but without the criticism.

But I stuck with it, and eventually, my suspicions were confirmed. It was less about my lack of ability or even my non-Japaneseness. The teacher assumed I would lose interest after a few sessions, and she was uncomfortable around me. Once she realised I was sticking around, and that I was serious about the club, she relaxed. And now I seem to be her favored student. Apparently I have a natural knack for the flower arranging. Still raw, of course, but since my mother's into roses, I must have inherited a flower talent. Or so the reasoning goes.

A Jumble of Updates

2007-03-05T09:20:00.000+09:00

Reading old posts, I realised that a few ongoing stories have now been wrapped up. To finalize this wrap up, here are a collection of updates:

*I passed level 3 of the JLPT. Thank goodness, as I would've been completely humiliated if I failed this year. This doesn't mean much, but it's a nice, small milestone for me.

*I officially said no to another year in Japan. Aaron n I will be back in the states by the end of July, although Aaron'll probably head home a bit earlier. I've always been open about our 2 year timeline, so I was nicely surprised that a few of the teachers sweetly tried to convince me to stay "Think of all the new adventures you can have. And all the puccho flavors you can try!"

Hmmm. I thought there were more. Aw well, I can just throw them up if these mystery stories come up.

Peachy!

2007-03-05T09:16:00.000+09:00

Spring has started early, and the stores are filled with the latest seasonal flavor-- peach. Now I can enjoy peach puccho [!!], peach tea, peach Fruits Therapy, and peach blossoms. Feeling pink, new, and energised.

Falling Leaves, No Young Cows

2007-03-01T14:51:00.000+09:00

This is for all you Japanese movie and manga buffs. Oh, and history lovers, too.

Our local yakiniku [bbq] place is called Ushiwakamaru. In kanji, the name [牛若丸] reads "Cow Young Complete" which I figured had to do with all the tasty young beef served at the restaurant. BBQ restaurant, "young cow" it all makes sense, right?

But a little wikipedia set me straight. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ushiwakamaru Seems Ushiwakamaru was the childhood name of Minamoto no Yoshitsune, legendary [but real] samurai from the late Heian Period. Know all those scenes with samurai training by slicing falling leaves? Apparently this is the guy who started it all.

Appropriately for a true samurai, Minamoto was neck-deep in the political intrigues of the time, betrayed, and forced to commit seppuku. After which, of course, he forgiven. Love that gut-cutting.

So Sexy!

2007-03-01T14:38:00.000+09:00

When I'm really busy and another student is asking for me, I tend to say "uh-huh." Y'know, as a "I hear ya, be there in a sec." indicator. I do it a lot. And after ignoring the resultant giggles and parrotting for ages, I finally asked what was so funny.

Hee hee

Apparently "uh-huh" sounds REALLY sexy to my students. All bedroom and big eyes.

Marlene, resident sexpot teacher.

Izakaya

2007-02-27T10:15:00.000+09:00

An izakaya is a small, local Japanese style bar. Usually very small, walking into one immediately presents you to the regulars and the staff. There is no place to hide. As a local watering hole, the whole point is to be a part of that particular izakaya's in-group.

All of which adds up to a daunting task. Do you want to become a regular, knowing it will take many visits before you are greeted warmly, instead of with disdain and teasing?

Aaron n I decided to kill some time with Jade at an izakaya near our train station. We'd been there once before, somewhat successfully fended off the stares and pointed questions. This time was a bit more interesting...

The three of us walk in, immediately exciting the barkeep and the regulars. The barkeep cannot keep his eyes off us. Out and out staring. [Note: staring is just as rude in Japan as it is in the US] Then the questions. The fun part being the drunken regulars, who were too shy to ask us directly, so used the waitresses as messengers. Upon learning that Aaron n I were hitched, they cheered and toasted their own intuition. Then the attention turned to Jade: Boyfriend? Yes- Japanese? No- ALT? Ah, all the ALTs date each other. Here's my phone number! Oh, and mine! Yes, you just said you had a boyfriend, so? Hey, wifey- don't let her throw out my number!

Interesting times at the izakayas.

Kitties

2007-02-23T13:53:00.000+09:00

Cats say "nyah nyah."

Two is pronounced "ni."

February 22nd is Japan's Cat Day- nyah nyah nyah!

Loving

2007-02-19T19:04:00.000+09:00

Nure ochiba zoku-- clammy, fallen leaves or a retired husband who, having retired, sticks to his wife like a sodden mass.

Many wives find the newly ever-present husband an extreme annoyance. Some develop Retired Husband Syndrome [seriously! This is a diagnosis!] while others choose divorce.

But hope is not lost! Read on:

Japanese men turn on charm
By HIROKO TABUCHI

TOKYO — Mitsutoshi Fukatsu has been with his wife for
three decades, but their lives have grown apart. As
a busy stationmaster in central Japan, he has usually
come home only to eat, bathe and sleep.

Now with retirement looming, he wants to get to know
his wife better. He calls her by her name, Setsuko,
instead of just grunting. And he says he recently
learned a new phrase: "I love you."

Fukatsu, 56, is among a small but growing group of
men who took part in Japan's second annual "Beloved
Wives Day" last week in hopes of salvaging their marriages
by doing something different — paying attention to their wives.

"For about a year now, I've been starting to help out
with the housework," Fukatsu said. "I can't stay at
my company for ever. I have to return home. But right
now, I don't feel like I have a place there."

 Last year, the Japan Adoring Husbands Association
set itself up and designated Jan. 31 as a day for men to
return home at the unusually early hour of 8 p.m.,
look into their wives' eyes, and say, "Thank you."

On Wednesday, the village where the association is
based held a renewal-of-vows ceremony for a local
couple in their 50s and handed out prizes to three
top "doting husbands."

The movement is small — about 230 people posted
messages on the group's Web page about this year's
event. But it represents quite a change for a
generation of Japanese men taught to care about
their companies first and their wives a distant second.
Among the forces driving the change are demographics and money.

This year, the first postwar baby boomers will reach
60 and retire, meaning an unprecedented number of
men will have to abandon their home-away-from-home — the
all-consuming office — and spend more time with their wives.

Meanwhile, an impending law change gives a housewife a
bigger share of her husband's pension, which could
trigger a surge in divorces as women take the money and run.

Japan's divorce rate is relatively low — 2.08 per
1,000 couples — but the number has increased more
than 60 percent since 1985 to 261,917 in 2005, according
to government statistics.

Divorce among those married for more than 20 years
has grown the fastest, nearly doubling since 1985 to
more than 40,000 couples in 2005 — with separation more
likely to be initiated by women. That leaves their
ex-husbands to face a lonely old age in a country
where the average male lifespan is more than 78
years, one of the world's longest.

Sadao Ito, 67, wishes he had been more sensitive to
his wife's feelings. She left him seven years ago,
just as he was facing retirement from a busy office
job in the northern city of Sendai. Even the
couple's daughter and two sons blame him for the breakup, Ito
said.

"My wife took care of me so well. She made me
breakfast every day, and did all the housework. But
I never did anything in return," he said.

Ito now acts as a volunteer adviser to the Adoring
Husbands Association, which was founded in 2005 in
Tsumagoi village, north of Tokyo.

"Repent, repent, repent. That's what I do every
day," Ito said. "My wife didn't take a single family album
with her. I realized then that I had driven her
away."

Tsumagoi, whose name sounds like the words "wife
love" in Japanese, is marketing itself as a romantic
destination for married couples.

Last year, it invited couples to an event called
"Shout Your Love from the Middle of a Cabbage Patch"
— where husbands took turns hollering romantic
messages against a backdrop of Tsumagoi's wide open fields.
About 100 people came.

That was where Mitsutoshi Fukatsu finally told his
wife, Aishiteru (I love you) — rehearsing it 20
times.

"I had never told Setsuko I love her — not like
that. But now I want to say it more often. ... It feels
nice," he said.

Touch Ok?

2007-02-19T18:51:00.000+09:00

Apparently my pheromones were shooting out like stars in a meteor shower-- within the same week, I had a plethora of students caressing my hair, patting my stomach, and asking about my cup size. After chatting about the differences in Japanese and American bust measurements, my girl student asks "Touchy ok?" I looked around, buying time, when a series of open-palmed punches were delivered. Good thing I like my bras padded.

Games to Play at School

2007-02-13T10:38:00.000+09:00

1. Walk to and from class with your JTE. Instead of your usual role as conversation supplier, be silent. See how long until your JTE will initiate a conversation. Discussing the weather does not count as a conversation.

2. Hide behind a corner. When students pass by, fall in with them, keeping pace. See how long until the students notice you. Points for eliciting "Bikkuri shita!" [You suprised me!]

3. #2 variant. Hide behind a corner. Just before students pass by, jump out at them and yell. Points given for each girl who collapses on the floor laughing, for each step taken backwards, and every 30 sec consumed by students fighting for breath and saying "Bikkuri shita." Extra lively crazy points for wearing a tiger mask.

4. Tell your school of a problem at your house [waterbox, no screen covering the hole in your wall, etc]. See how long until the problem is addressed. Then see how long until the problem is fixed. No points if the issue is solved within a week.

Natto Scandal!

2007-02-10T17:25:00.000+09:00

One of our kaiwa students told us how she watched an infotainment show lauding natto. This show claimed that eating natto twice a day would help dieters lose weight, as well as just giving your body lots of helpful nutrients. She was so convinced to increase her natto intake that the very next day she went out to buy some. And all the stores were out! ALL of them!

Later that week the TV producers of this show owned up to fabricating info on this natto diet.

I feel for all the poor people who actually ingested this stuff.

Name Game Jikaku

2007-02-10T17:04:00.000+09:00

The bio teacher, Ishii, invited Aaron and I over for dinner. We were super excited, Ishii is really fun, and we'd get to meet his wife [they got hitched back in Aug]. We had a great time, rolling temakizushi [the cone-style sushi] and looking through their Italian honeymoon pics.

As Reika is already pregnant [and due in May! Guess Italian food is fortifying!], they've been looking into baby names. Ishii's first name is Yoshitake, and his total name kanji have 25 strokes. Therefore, this 25 is a propitious number of strokes for the baby to have in her name. They want to name the baby Sayako, so they're tearing through kanji, looking for kanji reading Sa Ya with many strokes.

Confused? To clarify: Think of the name TOM, and imagine that each letter is taught to be written only one way: the T is a two-stroke letter, the O is only one stroke, and the M has four strokes. If you add them up you get seven, a lucky number in many cultures. The characters used to write Japanese can get much more complicated, with some having many strokes, but the number of strokes is known for each one and never varies, and the total number of strokes that make up both the given name and the full name is usually considered when choosing a name for a new baby. There are books that can tell you by the total number of strokes in your name whether it's lucky, unlucky, or neutral; and not only that, they'll tell you in what way it's lucky or unlucky.

Whew! Super interesting, but I just imagine the never-ending chain of father to child, with the strokes becoming more and more numerous until they rise up and crush you under their weight.

Thailand Accomplishments

2007-02-10T16:50:00.000+09:00

Two cooking classes equals gloriously full tummies and culinary secrets.

Muy Thai is cool.

Outdoor eating has been much missed in Japan. Also, frog is tasty but does not taste like chicken.

[picture deemed unworthy for viewing]
Sleeper trains are cool in theory, but the reality is nowhere near as cool as shown in "North by Northwest."

New Year's!

2007-02-10T16:32:00.000+09:00

After sampling Bangkok and Koh Chang, we headed up to the mountains of Chiang Mai. We spent a great week there, had some clothes made, wandered the Night Market, took some cooking classes, and generally lounged around.

Every night we could see a trail of orange lights in the sky. There were so many, that it looked like a creamsicle Milky Way. After a few days of wondering, we finally chanced upon a source. See, the Thais looooove their king. There are pictures of him in every restaurant, every hostel, on the backs of tuk tuks. And this year was a big anniversary, so even though the anniversary had past, citizens were encouraged to remember the king by wearing yellow [royal color] and lighting lanterns on New Year's.

New Year's was pretty organized, with countdowns and fireworks. A drunken ex-pat at our bar tried to send off one of the lanterns. But she didn't plan well, and the lantern got stuck in the utility wires above the bar. Hilarity ensued as people tried to swipe at the lantern with a broomstick 8 feet too short. Eventually the wind freed the lantern to join the sky parade.

Aaron as an Album Cover

2007-02-05T22:27:00.000+09:00

These red trucks are a crossbreed of taxis and buses. Tuk tuks are more famous, but the drivers are more likey to fleece you. The red trucks run general routes. You just flag one down-- if they're heading your way, you agree on a price and hop in. Often times they have family or friends riding along for a ways. We had fun watching one read his English phrasebook at every stoplight, while another's kid was goofing around with dino toys. Nice slice of everyday life in these trucks.

Grooming

2007-02-05T22:08:00.000+09:00

Love, love, love the Thai grooming sensibilities. As a 3rd world country, Thailand is pretty damn dirty. But the dirty surroundings only accentuate the cleanliness and style of the citizens. And to help in the upkeep, grooming services are damn cheap! Aaron and I each had 2 haircuts, a teeth cleaning, and 3 massages. The only sad part is that while we look awesome, we don't really look like ourselves...

The stylishness extends to the animals. Neutering hasn't really caught on in Thailand, but neither has animal control. There are piles of dogs and dog poo everywhere. But when a dog is a pet, it is immaculate! And usually clad in a T shirt.

Koh Chang

2007-01-26T22:50:00.000+09:00

After the crush of Bangkok, we wanted some beach time. So off we went to Lonely Beach, at the southern end of Koh Chang. We'd been told that there were treehouses you could stay in on the beach!! Sadly, our source was misinformed-- there is a beach community called The Treehouse... so we had to settle for one of those cool bungalows that look like huts.

Lonely Beach is pretty tiny, and there's not much to do, so it was beach and books for us. Gee, how trying! Swimming each day, lots of reading, fantastic food, and there was even a kitten to play with! The owners are a Thai woman and her German boyfriend. The Thai girl is still in Uni, and her boyfriend works in China, so they come down to check on the place a few times a month. They were exceptionally friendly, and the hostel's central area, a giant deck with a raised thatched roof, was a great place to hang out.

The only tough part was the shower. As hinted before, many Thai people prefer cold showers. The hair stylist I visited lectured me on the benefits of cold showers. So our hut didn't have a water heater, and we were shaded just enough that you had to wait til noonish for a shower. But since that was when we'd come back from swimming, it was actually perfect!

And for the first time, I got to sleep under a mosquito net that wasn't merely for decoration! Foolishly, we forewent the net the 2nd night, and I was eaten alive. But no malaria, so it's all ok.

Touristy

2007-01-16T17:25:00.000+09:00

We hit the major tourist sites in Bangkok on our first day. The Imperial Palace has a beautiful mural of the Ramayana that was being touched up. Watching the painters delicately daub on the wall was strangely enjoyable. Photos of Thailand always show deep, lush colors. But I was struck by how most objects' colors seemed washed out. Not dingy, but worn. The humidity must ravage paint, so seeing the careful touch-up made me feel more appreciative of the efforts to preserve treasures.

Then it was off to Wat Pho, which houses the largest Buddha in the world- also known as the Reclining Buddha.

Wandering Bangkok, you are constantly stopped and chatted up by friendly people. That is, friendly, money-loving people. Their goal is to send you to "the lucky Buddha" which is only ever open one day of the whole year! And that day is today! Oh, are you going to Wat --? Didn't you know that's closed today? Why don't you go on this special tour? There's a tuk-tuk waiting right there to drive you! Dodging these people soon takes on video game qualities. But you can power up at any of the convenient food stalls!

Thailand!!

2007-01-16T17:07:00.000+09:00

Instead of huddling around in the cold weather, Aaron and I took off for 16 days in glorious Thailand!! As expected, it totally rocked! For entertainment purposes only, let's do a bit of compare n contrast:

90% Buddhist, 90% Shinto, Japan is 99% Japanese. The Japanese like their baths boiling hot, their food cold, their temples earthtone, and their Emperor is no longer a god.

95% Buddhist, Thailand is 75% ethnic Thai. The Thai like their showers cold, their food damn hot n spicy, their temples ornate, and their King is so beloved he might as well be a god.

Christmas fun

2007-01-16T13:01:00.000+09:00

Flashback to mid-December.

With a slew of Christmas concerts in town, foreigners were in hot demand to play Santa. Accordingly, Aaron guest starred as Santa at two parties for some young 'uns. Delighted to avoid being Mrs. Claus, I was happy to join up as a reindeer for one of his shows. We taught the kids how to handjive and play London Bridge. Not seasonal? I'm sure you're mistaken... Later that day we watched a joint concert between Wadayama JHS, SHS, and Ikuno SHS. Jim from Ikuno broke Aaron's Christmas monopoly, and entertained the audience as Santa. But even better than the boys playing Santa was Ishihara-sensei...

Japanese snowmen [yuki daruma] have 2 balls instead of 3. Sitting on the stage for most of the concert was a large Japanese-style snowman, with a gigantic orange cone for a nose and a floppy red hat. During a medley, red legs are revealed! The snowman rises and tries to dance. But due to mobility issues, the dancing was pretty much just bending her knees.... All of which added up to a giant chicken bobbing on the stage. Hooray for the Christmas Chicken!

Holiday with the Conversation Class

2006-12-18T17:43:00.000+09:00

We love, love, love our conversation class! It is so wonderful to interact with people who actually want to learn English, plus they can answer our questions about Japanese society n stuff, and they just rock in general.

We have a variety of levels, but since most of the students are really advanced, we cater to that. Since they have a variety of interests, we've covered: homosexuality in the US, beard styles, idioms, guns in the US, airports, and more! One of our students types up a review of the previous week's lesson to give to everyone.

As we are in the holiday season, they requested a Christmas party. How could we say no? And since they'd never had turkey, we ordered one online and roasted it for the party. And thanks to my Boston Market experience, I wowed them all with my ahem, amazing carving ability. Seriously, they were silent while I dismembered the bird. Everyone liked the turkey, which almost disappointed us because we wanted all the leftovers! ;) The students all brought some food, so we had a great mix.

After dinner we did a White Elephant exchange- the style where you can steal another person's present. Not surprisingly, everyone was too polite to swipe a present, so it was up to Aaron and me to start the scandal. Man, the look on Kazumi's face when I took her thermos! Then the hands started grabbing! So much fun... and Kazumi was eventually reunited with her thermos. Happy ending for all.

Control in Theory

2006-12-18T17:32:00.000+09:00

So why is teacher's control given the "in theory" caveat? Because the teachers really don't have any control over students. Students have a legal right to be in class, which means the teacher can't kick a misbehaving student out of class. There doesn't seem to be suspsension. There doesn't seem to be detention. And the kicker-- even sport or club participation cannot be withheld. So any disciplinary action only works against the kids who're easily swayed by authority figures-- y'know, the kids who normally aren't causing any problems.

Grades in Japan are pretty interesting. See, in order to advance into high school, students must pass that high school's entrance exam. Same for university. Grades don't factor in. So many JHSs simply let the kids slide through classes, presuming that the kid will either prove themself by passing the exam, or learn a lesson by going to a lesser school.

How to Stay Warm in Japan

2006-12-14T15:20:00.000+09:00

The Japanese don't use insulation in their buildings, which leaves the students to come up with ways to stay warm.

* Baba shaa-tsu -- Grandma shirts. Like long johns.

* Hot Cairos -- Little hot packs. Some are sticky, so you can heat your belly!

* Hiza Kake -- "Knee Pulls" Pretty much lap blankets

* Loose Socks -- Leg warmers. Quite fashionable here.

* Kettles -- Since the Japanese can't stand dry air, they put kettles of water on the kerosene stoves.

The girls aren't allowed to wear pants, and aren't supposed to wear tights. So instead they wrap their lap blankets around them and shuffle through the hallways. As most of the lap blankets are emblazoned with Disney characters, I find this method the least aesthetically pleasing.

Control

2006-12-14T15:12:00.000+09:00

In the Winter Vacation, hoardes of High School students staff the post offices. New Year's is a major holiday here, and the custom is to send out New Year cards to friends, business contacts, family, and even the ramen truck man, to concrete friendly relations. And since the cards simply flood the post office, the post offices make use of the temporarily-free students.

Now, in order to work as a student, the school has to give permission. I presumed this had to do with maintaining good grades, but when I finally asked about it, I learned I was waaaay off.

The only factor the school considers is money. As in, how much does the family have. Does the family really need the income from the student?

Since grades aren't considered, I asked why it was up to the schools to make the decision. Said question did not compute with my teacher. In theory, teachers and school have a lot of control over students inside/outside the classroom. Teachers often patrol civic events, to prevent bullying or smoking. Teachers often visit students' homes to talk with parents.

But this can lead to some trouble, as many parents are leaving behavioral instruction to the schools. There have been a lot of student bullying cases recently, and many parents are coming out to say that the teacher should be regulating students behavior, while the teachers are saying that parents should be teaching their children moral guidelines.

Inoshishi

2006-12-09T17:53:00.000+09:00

When my parents were here, in the autumn, I was noticing an awful lot of inoshishi [wild boar] things; figurines, pictures, cards, etc. I wondered if inoshishi were a fall staple, the way rabbits represent the harvest moon, and therefore are everywhere for a few months in early autumn. I was a bit surprised about the inoshishi, as I didn't notice any last year. But then again, we were so busy and culture-shocked last fall that we must have just missed it.

Well, the mystery has been solved. 2007 is year of the boar, so of course inoshishi things are everywhere. I felt a little silly for forgetting about that. And to tie into the whole boar thing, we finally saw one! Driving back from Takeno on Turkey Day, a big ol' dirty pig scampered across the road in front of us.

Tests All Around

2006-12-08T22:35:00.000+09:00

On Dec 3rd, I again attempted the JLPT. Overall I felt much better this year-- I felt I was understanding the content, but I also know I made a myriad of small mistakes. Just have to wait until March to find out exactly how many of those mistakes I made. But my overall goal of not losing the keitai was realised!!

And once again it's testing at the school. We have testing about every six weeks, with the students getting half days. I'm not really sure what purpose these tests serve; I'm told by my teachers that they want an average score of 60%. I'd thought that the idea is to see how well the kids do, and go back and review/redo/relearn any trouble areas. But my teachers don't even like to review the test in class. So far, my impression is that the tests are really just postmarks-- that now we can move onto new things.

This testing cycle I really upped the tests for Oral Communication. Instead of the incredibly weak and wimpy interview session [weak because the teacher wouldn't allow a seperate meeting time-- we had to interview 37 kids in the middle of their 50 minute test], their speaking portion is a speech. Now, this shouldn't seem shocking or revolutionary, but I assure you it is. My JTE was pretty reluctant to go forward. But I prevailed! And several students have actually sought me out to help with the speeches! Again, that shouldn't seem shocking, but it is!

Squishy

2006-12-06T18:03:00.000+09:00

We found this in one of those quarter-toy machines at a recycle shop. It's like a stress doll, but it's a boob. I guess if you're lonely...

Holidays in Japan

2006-12-04T13:53:00.000+09:00

Yeah, they're long gone, but we did manage to throw together a Halloween party and a Thanksgiving gathering. Not surprisingly, the Halloween party got kinda out-of-control... lots of foreigners + lots of alcohol = interesting evening. Thanksgiving was much more sedate, likely due to overeating and the resultant contentedness.

Cooking holidays make for a unique challenge in Japan. Japanese food typically falls into one of three categories: raw, pickled, or deep-fried. Yes, there are a few other categories, but those are definately the top three. Notice that these methods do not require a lot of space, unlike, say, an oven. Baking has no traditional place in Japanese cuisine, so few people have ovens. Luckily, we foreigners can usually scrounge up an oven. So while it took a lot more work and creativity than a typical Turkey Day, we triumphed.

Stinked!

2006-11-26T20:52:00.000+09:00

Fall is Kamemushi season. Kamemushi are Japanese stinkbugs, and after October, they are everywhere. By all accounts they like white things and bright things, so you often find them hanging out on your laundry or on your kitchen lights.

The Japanese hate them. I mean, they REALLY hate them. Class will stop dead if the kids see a kamemushi. They are paralyzed with fear. Most foreigners are a little mystified with the high level of fear these little things induce. I mean, they're just bugs, right? Maybe they stink a little, but is it really that bad?

Last year, we never managed to get a whiff of stinkbug stink. And given the amount of bugs we hassled onto papers [to move outside] or trapped with a glass, you'd imagine we wouldn've ticked one off. Nope. But this year was different. Aaron accidently stinked himself when he smacked a mosquito on his neck. Whoops, not a mosquito. But it faded pretty quickly. I got my first whiff a week ago at school. Apparently someone stepped on one in the hallway, leading to many whines of "Kusai!" [stinky] Did the stench live up to its reputatation? Nah. I thought it smelled like windex mixed with celery seeds. Not great, but not gut-wrenching.

Another reason the Japanese hate seeing these bugs-- apparently they're harbingers of winter. The more you see, the more snow will fall. Life is interesting in Japan.

Puccho!

2006-11-26T20:39:00.000+09:00

Puccho is a fantastic candy. A lot like Mambas, but with little jelly bits. Orange, grape, and cola flavors are available year round, but one of the best things about Pucchos [and many Japanese snacks] is the seasonal flavors. Yep, just in case autumn leaves don't do it for you, you can thrill to the new candy flavors! And to make Puccho-lovers even more neurotic, there are regional flavors. So Okinawa has pineapple [yes, I made my kids pick some up for me], Hokkaido has melon, and Kyushu has strawberry. Annoyingly, Shikoku, the only other island we've made it to, does not get a regional speciality. Which is all well and good according to Matsuda-sensei who opines that Shikoku's Puccho flavor would likely be udon [type of noodle].

Here are some of the flavors I've encountered:

*Aloe and yogurt

*Cinnamon Apple

*Grapefruit

*Melon Soda

I occasionally go to the Puccho site, but it only depresses me-- so many flavors are out of my reach! Gotta... taste... them... all...

Crab Soup

2006-11-19T17:59:00.000+09:00

The event-packed fall continues... Nov 11 and 12 was the Eco Festa at the Tajima Dome. Even more exciting, our friends Mike and Colleen were coming up to see it with us! Hooray!

True to form, they brought inclement weather with them. Refer to the blog's history to rediscover their weather-changing tendencies.

But unfortunately, Aaron and I'd both been sick. Aaron recovered right before they arrived, but I was pretty out of it Saturday. Since scheduling gets pretty complicated here, there was no way we were going to cancel. So I toughed it out, and we all went to the Eco Festa with Mari.

In general, the Eco Festa is a lot like an expo. Lots of booths, many with similar items, lots of food, etc. There was also a flea market that we had fun picking through. There were a few craft booths were kids could paint some wooden figures. Very small time, but still fun.

The Eco Festa also features a speciality soup. Winter is crab season, so you can buy a bowl of broth with half a crab inside. And lucky you-- all the tasty innards are there for the slurping! Aaron ignored the guts and just sucked out the leg meat. Mari thought it was hilarious as that style of crab is selected specifically for eating the insides. MMmmm, crab guts.

Izushi Castle Matsuri

2006-11-19T17:41:00.000+09:00

November 3rd is National Culture Day, so I had the day off. Yea!! And Izushi, a nearby town, was celebrating their Castle Festival, so we were determined to go. Now, as we don't have a car, we were going to have to learn the bus routes. But then, our fantastic friend/student Chika from our Kaiwa class invited us along with her and her friend, Uenobo. Hooray for not having to learn the bus route!

Uenobo is an English teacher at the JHS and can be a bit domineering, so we were a little worried. Despite our concerns, Uenobo seemed very relaxed, and watching her and Chika interact was really sweet-- you could see what good friends they are.

Izushi is absolutely adorable! A beautiful town, filled with cute shops and tons of soba restuarants. Soba, buckwheat noodles, are popular in Japan and an Izushi speciality. Izushi has only maybe 10,000 people, yet has over 30 soba restuarants. We ran into one of the Izushi ALTs, so we all went to lunch together. THe soba is served on many small plates-- each person is given about 7. You mix together raw egg, green onions, dashi [a stock made from fish], soy sauce, wasabi, and tororo [taro goop] in a cup, then dip each bite of noodles in the mixture. It's really fun and quite tasty. After eating, we ordered soba-yu, the hot water the noodles are boiled in. The noodles give some flavor and starch to the water. You add the flavoring mix to the soba-yu and drink it down. It's pretty tasty, but the egg white and the tororo are a bit too slimy for me to swill easily.

Then we went off and found dessert. Now, we love our ice cream place, Lilac, but the Izushi shop had a wider variety of flavors. Hello mangosteen, chestnut, soba!!, spicy [red pepper flakes, cinnamon, and black pepper], plus all the usual suspects. There were pics of the store's cows, so you could see which wonderful cow provided you with amazing ice cream!

Let's see, we also wandered around the castle walls, browsed the booths, pounded a bit of mochi, and then we settled in to wait for the main event. Izushi men slowly parade through town, carrying these tall poles. Every so often, they stop, take a few choreagraphed steps, then toss the poles to another man. Yes, they are "very adept at handling their poles." Ahem. I believe that's in their official brochure...

On our way to the car we found a soba making shop, and were treated to watching a man make the noodles. Looks like a lot of work. I know soba making clubs are pretty popular in Japan, and in Izushi in particular. I wish Wadayama was famous for something edible... all we're known for is furniture.