I know I have been out of touch with the posting here. I've mainly been updating facebook and my youtube channel, to which I am putting the link below:
Vash's Youtube Channel
It's been a very busy month or so. Way too much to summarize in any detail, but I'll grab some of my recent facebook updates/events and let them tell the story:
6/24/10: Fun! Fun! Fun! Erin's 2010 Birthday Bash!
6/26/10: Last Night at Fever, and that means Mucho Dancing. Pregame Nomihoudai Karaoke at Fushimi. Hooked up with Andrea and met Rina-chan. And yes, I was in a Red Bull Commercial. If there's anyone on this planet that doesn't need an infusion of Red Bull, it's me! (note: summary of events, not true facebook update)
6/27/10: Nagoya Adventure Evening -- Another fun filled night of Karaoke, dancing and all around good times!
7/1/10: Salsa Party at TIA in Toyota City Japan!
7/3/10: Perfect summer breakfast: cold miso topped with fresh cut peaches, apples, bananas, yogurt and bran flakes plus half bagel with creamcheese, tomato and avocado, side of chai. Also, today is not that hot! I actually just have my deck door open to let in outside air. No aircon!
7/4/10 - (afternoon) : Happy Fourth to all! It's odd celebrating this in a country where it really doesn't matter. But Erin and I had a rousing picnic and later we're going to set off fireworks. I downloaded 2CDs of "Songs of America" so we're gonna annoy the river with patriotic gusto. And YES WE CAN buy fireworks in Japan at the DOLLAR STORE!
7/4/10 - (late-night): So after buying fireworks and 24 patriotic songs for under $8, Erin and I opted not to blow up Toyota Staduim and instead just used hand sparklers while singing such hits as "Glory Glory Hallelujuah" and "Grand Old Flag" at the top of our ever loving lungs. Andrea also made a phone cameo for a "Born in the USA" reprise. All in all, great 4th here in Japan!
7/8/10: I'm going to be in Nagoya on Saturday if anyone wants to hang out or party! Message me if you want to get together!
7/14/10: Yesterday: roughest game of Fruits Baskets ever. Before we even got the kids in a circle, four were in tears. Today was much better. Managed to sing an entire song about Fruits without making anyone cry.
7/16/10: Ron's Going Away Party at Outback!
7/17/10: Mie and I got to see Miyazaki's newest movie 借りぐらしのアリエッティ("Arriety's Life of Borrowing/The Borrower Arriety") today on opening night! Brilliant film, in the running for my favorite Miyazaki film (which is saying something). It was beautiful, surprising and emotionally resonant. And I'm betting it's even better with subtitles! See this when it hits your country!
7/20/10: Summer Vacation!!!!!!
7/21/10: First earthquake today! Woke this morning to my futon shaking beneath me, climbed down off the loft, tried to stand in the doorway between my main room and hall, realized it was not a load bearing wall, tried to get out on the deck, turned around, ran out the front door and then stood like an idiot outside for five minutes while nothing happened. At that point, I doubted it had been an earthquake at all.
7/24/10: Ichinomiya Tanabata Festival!
7/25/10: Toyota's fireworks display tonight was two hours of awesome! Wow!
7/26/10: 明日東京へ！楽しみよ！
And today, I am finishing last minute packing and trying hard not to cough out a lung as I prepare for the next five days in Tokyo! I spent last night printing out maps and Wiki-travel information as well as packing (making sure I had decent toothpaste and the like). I'm soo excited to go to Tokyo! With Andrea and I kickin' it Philly style, as well as Izumi-chan (who I met in Ichinomiya) and hopefully the opportunity to hook up with Susannah (who arrived in the land of the Rising Sun yesterday, I think) we should be having nothing but the good times! I just wish I'd fully kicked this stupid cold...
There's a song by Ketsumeishi called "Tegami Mirai/手紙～未来" and for the longest time, I thought one part of the lyrics of the chorus were "Mirai no orera no tokyo ha!/未来の俺らの東京は"
I thought this meant "in the future we'll all be in Tokyo."
Not only was I dead wrong about what the lyrics actually were "Mirai no orera no joukyou wa!?/未来の俺らの状況は!?" ("What will our future be?" -- thank you Karaoke and the internet), but truthfully I don't think even if I was right the version I heard would mean what I thought it did (or anything coherent). But even knowing one is wrong, the feeling is there, and so I have the song on my playlist as I finish my last minute packing and breakfast and dishwashing. Accuracy is overrated, ne?
手紙～未来 Video Below:
What will the future bring? For the immediate future, we'll be chillin in Tokyo? After that, wakanai!
Jaa ne!
Showing posts with label navigating japan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label navigating japan. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Chiryu Bicycling and Muryojuji Temple Adventure (with video)! Bonus: Musings on Goodbyes, Japanese Style!
Today I got back on my bike and made my way to Chiryu City! While this was, according to Google Maps, a mere 12.2 kilometers away, and walkable in about two hours and 27 minutes, it took me on my bike about two hours to get there. Maybe I got lost?! I've noticed, in general, that distances that usually take me a very short time to traverse in the States take a hugely long time here. I'm not sure why. For example, last July, I did a 10 kilometer run in a little over an hour, but a 12 kilometer bike ride took me almost 2x as long. This is kind of weird, and it makes me wonder how accurate Google is in regards to distance (or how badly I'm getting lost...or how much the hills are slowing me down, or how badly out of shape I've become...not sure which, but wondering with active interest). I'm just going to say it felt like it was a lot more than 12 km to get there. As usual, the way back took me significantly less time, about an hour and a half, not counting my stop at Jusco for vital food supplies (like bran flakes).
But back to the bike to Chiryu. This was by far the easiest long distance bike ride I've made here. For the most part, the path was clearly marked. This is because I was going from one metropolis to another, on a main road. For a portion of the middle of my ride there, I even had on my ipod as I was going...it was one of the least interesting roads as compensation for it's relative ease of travel.
The video tells the story:
In fact, I had no real problems until I actually got into Chiryu proper. At that point, I realized that (of course), I'd totally lost track of my google maps directions (and probably overshot my mark to a significant degree). Entering Chiryu city was a bit like entering the outskirts of Camden, without the terror.
Video Here:
If I hadn't seen the tiny sign just below the stoplight that read 知立, that's Chiryu in Kanji only, I wouldn't have even known I was in a city. (the sign is too small to see in the video, but I think I took a picture of it). As a word of advice for navigating Japan, always memorize (or at least print out or write down clearly) the Kanji for where you live and where you are going. While the blue road signs are in English and Kanji, the local signs are not. (especially for the fun things you're looking for, like Temples, and onsens and the like) If I hadn't done this, I'd never have found the onsen yesterday, and certainly not the Temple today.
After asking for directions (showing the map, this is where Google Maps is highly useful because it gives you the name of the location, vaguely where it is located in the city, and it is written in both English and Kanji) I followed them and found a sign for the Temple (as I'd had the vague idea the person who gave me directions had asked me to look for, but only after I spotted it).
This was very exciting for me, so of course I took video:
Note: if you can't memorize the exact name of the onsen or temple in question, it's worth it to at least get the general Kanji for Onsen or Temple (tera). Onsen = 温泉, literally “warm/hot” + “spring”. You also know by looking at the left side of the first kanji that the warm/hot has to do with water, as the radical on the left is water. And the top left is a sun. There's a plate on the bottom, which may be the sound element, or have something deeper to do with the meaning. I don't really know. And honestly, this level of Kanji dissection is totally from what I've taken from Heisig and how I've thought about it. I'm no expert, so take it for what it's worth.
Temple = 寺. Temple is also the right side of some really useful kanji including time = 時 (sun + temple = とき), wait = 待つ（ちょっと待ってください = wait a second, please) and the slightly more obscure poem = 詩 (し), among others. If you google Heisig's “Remembering the Kanji” and go to the direct site (nanzen something.com), you can get the first 1/3 of the book which includes this Kanji. I have the link to it on my Kanji Movie Method blog that only has one entry: http://kanjieiga.blogspot.com. I highly recommend Kanji Movie Method; I just didn't have enough time to do it and write about doing it at the same time. And Heisig's method is amazingly helpful. I recommend doing Kanji Movie Method, but after you've read Heisig's introduction and worked through a little of the book so you get a feel for how to create effective mnemonics.
Then it was a relatively short jaunt (less than a kilometer) to the Temple itself, which in addition to being beautiful, also had a wonderful performance going on of young girl's doing fan dance. I took two videos of it: first the older, more skilled girls, and then two younger girls who were giving it their all (and would totally have kicked my ass in a fan dance contest, I'm sure).
Video 1:
Video 2:
I also had the privilege of sharing the same bench and thus enjoying a conversation with a wonderful older man, answering questions about my life in Japan as well as learning that the Irises had come up early this year. We sat, surrounded by beautiful irises and trees, talked for a bit, and then, as is the norm with Japanese people as I've noticed, an abrupt conversational end where he jumped up, shook my hand and wished me luck before leaving. This took less than five seconds, and was right in the middle of what I thought was a conversation.
When first coming to Japan, I used to get so worried I'd offended someone when they did this (and still hold that niggling fear), but it seems to more of a cultural difference. People from the States (and Canada it seems) take a relatively long time to say goodbye. We have to say “goodbye” and then “take care” and maybe have a little bit of I'm leaving small talk before we shake hands or hug (hugging is not the norm here). Often, we'll keep an eye on the other person for a short while afterwards even. So usually a standard USA goodbye will last at least a solid minute or two. Even if you have a plane or train to catch, you're apologizing for having to leave so abruptly and saying goodbye a couple of times as you grab your bag.
This is not the case in Japan. In Japan, even between friends, it's goodbye and gone. I've spent a fair amount of time thinking about this, and I think it has something to do with the general Japanese sense of punctuality. It's probably more polite to leave quickly here, as you both probably have somewhere else to be, and would be better off to be early getting there. This is different from the USA, where the 15 minute grace period of lateness is the norm on both ends of a get together or event—especially at the end of something. (like a party that claims to end at 1 am never ends before 1:30 am, unless something has gone horribly wrong). A part of this in US culture I think also has to do with the idea that you want to show the other person that you enjoy spending time with them, and aren't really thinking about the next event because you are so much enjoying their presence. (this may or may not be true). In Japan, you want to show the other person you value their time by not overstaying yours.
So I assumed I hadn't offended him and enjoyed the irises for a little longer. The temple itself, and the tons of Irises were stunningly beautiful. Hopefully the pictures will upload to facebook so I can actually show them to folks. We'll see.
After that, it was a simple bike home! Gonna try to hit the sack early. Toying with the notion of biking to Josui tomorrow to get to school. I'm feeling so much better now that I'm biking more regularly, though it means getting up earlier, it might be worth it to make the trek on my bike (if the weather is good). Josui is only 4.9 kilometers away: should be doable in an hour or so, even at my miserably slow current biking speed here.
Or I'll sleep in and catch the train. Hmm...
But back to the bike to Chiryu. This was by far the easiest long distance bike ride I've made here. For the most part, the path was clearly marked. This is because I was going from one metropolis to another, on a main road. For a portion of the middle of my ride there, I even had on my ipod as I was going...it was one of the least interesting roads as compensation for it's relative ease of travel.
The video tells the story:
In fact, I had no real problems until I actually got into Chiryu proper. At that point, I realized that (of course), I'd totally lost track of my google maps directions (and probably overshot my mark to a significant degree). Entering Chiryu city was a bit like entering the outskirts of Camden, without the terror.
Video Here:
If I hadn't seen the tiny sign just below the stoplight that read 知立, that's Chiryu in Kanji only, I wouldn't have even known I was in a city. (the sign is too small to see in the video, but I think I took a picture of it). As a word of advice for navigating Japan, always memorize (or at least print out or write down clearly) the Kanji for where you live and where you are going. While the blue road signs are in English and Kanji, the local signs are not. (especially for the fun things you're looking for, like Temples, and onsens and the like) If I hadn't done this, I'd never have found the onsen yesterday, and certainly not the Temple today.
After asking for directions (showing the map, this is where Google Maps is highly useful because it gives you the name of the location, vaguely where it is located in the city, and it is written in both English and Kanji) I followed them and found a sign for the Temple (as I'd had the vague idea the person who gave me directions had asked me to look for, but only after I spotted it).
This was very exciting for me, so of course I took video:
Note: if you can't memorize the exact name of the onsen or temple in question, it's worth it to at least get the general Kanji for Onsen or Temple (tera). Onsen = 温泉, literally “warm/hot” + “spring”. You also know by looking at the left side of the first kanji that the warm/hot has to do with water, as the radical on the left is water. And the top left is a sun. There's a plate on the bottom, which may be the sound element, or have something deeper to do with the meaning. I don't really know. And honestly, this level of Kanji dissection is totally from what I've taken from Heisig and how I've thought about it. I'm no expert, so take it for what it's worth.
Temple = 寺. Temple is also the right side of some really useful kanji including time = 時 (sun + temple = とき), wait = 待つ（ちょっと待ってください = wait a second, please) and the slightly more obscure poem = 詩 (し), among others. If you google Heisig's “Remembering the Kanji” and go to the direct site (nanzen something.com), you can get the first 1/3 of the book which includes this Kanji. I have the link to it on my Kanji Movie Method blog that only has one entry: http://kanjieiga.blogspot.com. I highly recommend Kanji Movie Method; I just didn't have enough time to do it and write about doing it at the same time. And Heisig's method is amazingly helpful. I recommend doing Kanji Movie Method, but after you've read Heisig's introduction and worked through a little of the book so you get a feel for how to create effective mnemonics.
Then it was a relatively short jaunt (less than a kilometer) to the Temple itself, which in addition to being beautiful, also had a wonderful performance going on of young girl's doing fan dance. I took two videos of it: first the older, more skilled girls, and then two younger girls who were giving it their all (and would totally have kicked my ass in a fan dance contest, I'm sure).
Video 1:
Video 2:
I also had the privilege of sharing the same bench and thus enjoying a conversation with a wonderful older man, answering questions about my life in Japan as well as learning that the Irises had come up early this year. We sat, surrounded by beautiful irises and trees, talked for a bit, and then, as is the norm with Japanese people as I've noticed, an abrupt conversational end where he jumped up, shook my hand and wished me luck before leaving. This took less than five seconds, and was right in the middle of what I thought was a conversation.
When first coming to Japan, I used to get so worried I'd offended someone when they did this (and still hold that niggling fear), but it seems to more of a cultural difference. People from the States (and Canada it seems) take a relatively long time to say goodbye. We have to say “goodbye” and then “take care” and maybe have a little bit of I'm leaving small talk before we shake hands or hug (hugging is not the norm here). Often, we'll keep an eye on the other person for a short while afterwards even. So usually a standard USA goodbye will last at least a solid minute or two. Even if you have a plane or train to catch, you're apologizing for having to leave so abruptly and saying goodbye a couple of times as you grab your bag.
This is not the case in Japan. In Japan, even between friends, it's goodbye and gone. I've spent a fair amount of time thinking about this, and I think it has something to do with the general Japanese sense of punctuality. It's probably more polite to leave quickly here, as you both probably have somewhere else to be, and would be better off to be early getting there. This is different from the USA, where the 15 minute grace period of lateness is the norm on both ends of a get together or event—especially at the end of something. (like a party that claims to end at 1 am never ends before 1:30 am, unless something has gone horribly wrong). A part of this in US culture I think also has to do with the idea that you want to show the other person that you enjoy spending time with them, and aren't really thinking about the next event because you are so much enjoying their presence. (this may or may not be true). In Japan, you want to show the other person you value their time by not overstaying yours.
So I assumed I hadn't offended him and enjoyed the irises for a little longer. The temple itself, and the tons of Irises were stunningly beautiful. Hopefully the pictures will upload to facebook so I can actually show them to folks. We'll see.
After that, it was a simple bike home! Gonna try to hit the sack early. Toying with the notion of biking to Josui tomorrow to get to school. I'm feeling so much better now that I'm biking more regularly, though it means getting up earlier, it might be worth it to make the trek on my bike (if the weather is good). Josui is only 4.9 kilometers away: should be doable in an hour or so, even at my miserably slow current biking speed here.
Or I'll sleep in and catch the train. Hmm...
Sanage Onsen Bicycle Adventure!
So today I decided to take advantage of the warm weather and bike to experience another wonderful aspect of traditional Japanese culture, the Onsen Bathhouse. Ryuichi had recommended I try the Sanage Onsen, which according to Google was a bare 7.1 miles (about 12 km) from my apartment, so I figured this was the perfect day excursion. I got a much later start than I wanted, for two reasons: 1. I was still tired from yesterday so while I got up at 9:45am, I didn't get moving until almost 12:30 (thus defeating the purpose of getting up early) and 2. I had to get my travel supplies organized, print internet maps, find all of my maps from the Visitor's Center, and the like.
I first made a detour to Jusco in order to by a portable air pump, tire patch kit and inner tube for my tires. The thought of being stranded in some rice field with a bike flat tire and no way to fix it has not been thrilling me, and as I travel farther and father afield, the peace of mind of knowing I have the general means to keep my bike basically operational is well worth the 2,300 yen it ultimately cost me today to buy supplies. Actually, all of these supplies were quite cheap, and my tire kit even came with the little things you slip under the tire to get it off (not as good as the ones that Carrie gave me that I for some crazy-ass reason left at home) but better than nothing. The only thing that was kind of annoying was they didn't have any kind of small “portable” air pump, so I had to buy a relatively lightweight regular one and load it into the back basket of my bike. Luckily my back basket is huge, and I bought a net for it, so the pump was secure. It should be a lot easier than Carrie's portable pump at least, as we all remember from Bike to the Shore 2009!
Also, as an aside, I'm super grateful for Carrie, Don and my shore roadtrip last year. Basically, when packing for my trip (it was a short distance, but getting lost is easy in Japan, and also, as I discovered, I was going straight up into a mountain range), I just kept saying “what did we bring for our shore roadtrip?” So I brought some sliced carrots with peanut butter, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (didn't eat it), an Onigiri (protein and rice) and a water bottle. The carrots and peanut butter were especially great for this trip! (and I do need more fruit, only strawberries in the fridge). Carrots have sugar, and the peanut butter provides excellent protein.
Bicycling distances takes a lot of energy and burns lots of calories, so it's important to have good, high quality snacks and to eat frequently on the road (about 1x/hour or so). Also, water intake is critical, especially on a relatively warm day like today was. Luckily though, Japan is one of the most convenient places on the planet, so even if you brought nothing, even in the utter middle of nowhere, you'll probably stumble across a vending machine or convenience store before things get too desperate. That is one very nice difference between Japan and the USA. (especially the vending machines).
After the Jusco trip, I was ready to go! I considered stopping at the Visitor's Center on my way out of town, but I really wanted to see if I could find the place completely on my own (with only three area maps and one google maps printout), so I figured why not go it alone? The worst thing that would happen is I wouldn't find the place, but it would still be fun! Also, less frivolously, I really want/need to get a better intuitive feel for how to get around Japan, at least my area, and that only comes through trial and error. I am definitely getting better at this, and today was a testament to that.
Of course, I totally lost track of where I was on the Google Maps directions less than a mile in. So I whipped out my Toyota City English map and tried to orient Google Maps directions/maps to the actual area map, with minimal success. So it was time for the Japanese map, which was a lot better. For one thing, the Sanage Onsen was actually on it! As another stroke of good fortune, the Sanage Onsen was roughly in the direction (though further away) of four of my schools: Nishi-homi, Toyota Yogo, Ibo and Ohata.
This meant I passed through Homi and Ibo (and Kami-Toyota, a station I've passed on the train but never stopped at, but got to see today). I also passed through 貝津 Kaizu (a haven for clams) where Eric teaches; no wonder he has to take so long to get to his schools! It takes me an hour from my apartment by train to get to Nagoya, and Eric lives on the opposite side of Nagoya than me, in Ogaki, about 35 minutes out by train, so you get an idea of scale and distance.
So figuring that I stood a better chance of finding the Onsen by using the map the Japanese people use, as opposed to my mediocre Google Maps printouts, I decided to head in the direction of Homi and once I got there, reorient myself again. I figured, if I was lucky, I'd hook back up with the Google Maps directions, and if not, I'd figure something out.
This plan was actually reasonably successful, though I did take some interesting detours. (on the way back, finding an Oiden busstop and using that to help me figure the direction of Toyota-shi, I accidentally connected with Google Maps directions, and hadn't gotten mixed up somewhere along the line of the beginning, they would have been quite a bit more straightforward than the path I ultimately took, but such is life)
In addition to finding the train stops for a bunch of places that I pass by going to my schools (Kami-Toyota, Kaizu, etc), I also stumbled into the Chuukyou (中京) University campus. Though it's Golden Week, there were still a fair number of students on campus, playing sports, walking around and the like. Finding the University was especially exciting for me because it let me know that my estimation of where I was looking at the sun (afternoon sun = West) was actually dead on. Looking at my map, I'd estimated that I was going North, and sure enough, I had been going North!
(note: I'm going to try and buy a compass tomorrow. One of the main reasons why I HAD to leave before dark was because I'm really crappy with constellations, and had no confidence in my ability to find the North Star, thus without the sun, I was essentially directionless.)
Getting out of Chuukyou University was like an episode of the Twilight Zone. The main road was a circle, and so I kept trying to look at the sun and go North, only to find out that I was just spinning my wheels. But I did find a bathroom, which when biking is a huge deal, and remembering our Shore Bike Trip, after partaking of the facilities, I also made sure to refill my water bottle at the sink.
When I finally got out of Chuukyou University, I found myself back at the almost exact place on the previous road as I'd left it. Which was a bit of a setback, but okay, because all I had to do was continue East until I hit another northerly road.
Which I did. It was at this point (about 2.5 hours in) that I looked at the map and realized I was in a cul-de-sack with only one exit, a tiny road that was highlighted in yellow that connected with a larger northerly main road. The rest of the roads, which looked exactly the same size on the map, simply lead back in to the center a sort of superstring fragment that connected only with itself. I also was further mislead (and terrified) for a second by a sign, with Kanji that indicated that I had already fallen past the event horizon of this black hole (I know I'm mixing my physics theories), but then I looked closer at the sign and realized it was an advertisement for a store of some kind in the cul-de-sac that I had not yet entered.
I stood for a while, leaning my bike against my hip, and tried to guess which road was the correct one. Ultimately, I made my decision based on two factors: 1. the road to my right was going north and 2. the road going North seemed to have more traffic. This was good decisionmaking (and probably a metaphor for life in some way) but as I traveled onwards, the road got thinner and more winding and full or rice fields being planted, and I began to have serious doubts as to where I was.
That's when I made this video:
And less than five minutes later, the road crossed with a larger highway. I looked to my left, and there was a sign for the Sanage Onsen!
That's when I made this video:
At this point, the lostness faded, and it was only the uphill. Seriously, this Onsen was straight up a mountain. I didn't fully realize this as I was going up. All I kept thinking was that I was brutally out of shape because I kept having to walk the bike for a bit, and then bike, and then walk, and so though I wasn't that far from the Onsen, it took me close to 45 minutes to clear the last 2.5 kilometers. But then I was there!
The onsen experience itself was totally nifty! It was a lot like you see in anime, except that you spend a lot more time pre-bathing than they show in animes and dramas. Also, you are given a locker, and a key which fits around your wrist, but the string is hidden in the keychain, so I had no idea what to do with it until I asked a nice woman how to use it. First she took the key from my hand and mimed putting in the lock with a really confused expression, but then I clarified that I indeed knew the basics of using a key, and just needed to know where to put it once I locked the locker door and she showed me the string.
Once I got my stuff lockered, I stripped, took my washcloth and proceeded towards the bathing area. I had been under the impression that Japanese women were not at all body conscious in Onsens, but actually this was not true for many women that I saw. Most women used the long washcloth to shield themselves in some way, some even managing to get it to cover all of their frontal nudity. I was rather sad about this because I'd been looking forward to a totally relaxed nudity environment. A year and a half as a nude model for artists has taken what little body shyness I had and demolished it; but I did do my best to mimic what the other folks around me were doing so as to not be impolite.
Still, aside from the minor washcloth thing, it was basically shame-free, and in addition to the women (this onsen had a separate male and female bathing area) there were also some mothers with small children (about 3-4 years of age of both sexes). The kids were really entertaining, getting into the water, shouting “atchi” (a shortened version of “atsui” = “hot”), and running around and the like.
Before getting into the onsen, you had to wash yourself thoroughly. Considering how gross I was, I had no problem with this. You sit on small stools in front of a spikot and movable shower stick (common here, my home shower is the same setup, with a tub instead of stool. The Onsen provided us with shampoo and conditioner and body soap. I accidentally sprayed the woman next to me with while trying to rinse my back with the shower stick. We had a long conversation about this, because at first I had no idea what she was saying, but now I know “mizu kaketa” = you sprayed me with water. I apologized profusely once I knew what I had done. I was also careful to wash as long as the two women next to me, including thoroughly washing and conditioning my hair (though the conditioner and shampoo they have makes a mess of my hair because it's not for my kind of hair, but gotta take the good with the bad. It was the same at the Ryokan and our hotel in training).
Once I was clean, I stepped into the onsen tub. It was like a hot tub, hot but not nuclear. There was also a section with jets which I soaked under, especially my neck which has been very stiff and sore lately. Then I made my way up a set of stairs to an outside pool, which was refreshing because inside was very steamy and humid and after a while I found myself getting a little dizzy.
Eventually I had to leave as the sun was getting low and I was feeling a little faint, partially from the heat and partially from hunger. I did make one stop on my way out, to try some local pastry. I was starving, and I wanted to have a taste memory of the Onsen. They had some type of soysauce miso sampler which I liked, so the man behind the counter gave me a second sample. I also tried a chestnut pastry with what seemed like was a hard boiled egg yolk in the center. I didn't expect to like it because I don't like nuts, but it tasted nothing like nuts and was quite creamy and delicious. I really enjoyed the pastry and made sure to tell them so, and I even got a picture with it and one of the chefs!
As I left, I realized it would be a good idea to make a video of me actually at the onsen, so here it is:
The way back home was much easier. Going down the mountain took less than 10 minutes, and I didn't have to pedal at all. Also, as is always true because I live in a major city center, it was much easier to orient myself towards Toyota-shi. I almost immediately found an Oiden Bus stop on the main road (I refused to go back into the cul-de-sac so instead figured if I stayed on the main road, now that I had found it, I'd probably be able to find my way back to Toyota. It took me about an hour and a half to get home, with a stop at the Sankus convenience store for milk. About half the time of getting there. And all in all, a highly successful day!
Tomorrow, I'm biking to Chiryu! Going to see the 4 Irises at the Temple Muryojuji. It's only 12km up Route 155, wahoo! Going to get an earlier start tomorrow than today, so I can spend more time at my destination. Then back to school on Thursday! Gonna miss Golden Week, but the weekend is soon in coming!
(note: Facebook is acting up, so I can't get the photos uploaded right now. Will post link to album later)
I first made a detour to Jusco in order to by a portable air pump, tire patch kit and inner tube for my tires. The thought of being stranded in some rice field with a bike flat tire and no way to fix it has not been thrilling me, and as I travel farther and father afield, the peace of mind of knowing I have the general means to keep my bike basically operational is well worth the 2,300 yen it ultimately cost me today to buy supplies. Actually, all of these supplies were quite cheap, and my tire kit even came with the little things you slip under the tire to get it off (not as good as the ones that Carrie gave me that I for some crazy-ass reason left at home) but better than nothing. The only thing that was kind of annoying was they didn't have any kind of small “portable” air pump, so I had to buy a relatively lightweight regular one and load it into the back basket of my bike. Luckily my back basket is huge, and I bought a net for it, so the pump was secure. It should be a lot easier than Carrie's portable pump at least, as we all remember from Bike to the Shore 2009!
Also, as an aside, I'm super grateful for Carrie, Don and my shore roadtrip last year. Basically, when packing for my trip (it was a short distance, but getting lost is easy in Japan, and also, as I discovered, I was going straight up into a mountain range), I just kept saying “what did we bring for our shore roadtrip?” So I brought some sliced carrots with peanut butter, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (didn't eat it), an Onigiri (protein and rice) and a water bottle. The carrots and peanut butter were especially great for this trip! (and I do need more fruit, only strawberries in the fridge). Carrots have sugar, and the peanut butter provides excellent protein.
Bicycling distances takes a lot of energy and burns lots of calories, so it's important to have good, high quality snacks and to eat frequently on the road (about 1x/hour or so). Also, water intake is critical, especially on a relatively warm day like today was. Luckily though, Japan is one of the most convenient places on the planet, so even if you brought nothing, even in the utter middle of nowhere, you'll probably stumble across a vending machine or convenience store before things get too desperate. That is one very nice difference between Japan and the USA. (especially the vending machines).
After the Jusco trip, I was ready to go! I considered stopping at the Visitor's Center on my way out of town, but I really wanted to see if I could find the place completely on my own (with only three area maps and one google maps printout), so I figured why not go it alone? The worst thing that would happen is I wouldn't find the place, but it would still be fun! Also, less frivolously, I really want/need to get a better intuitive feel for how to get around Japan, at least my area, and that only comes through trial and error. I am definitely getting better at this, and today was a testament to that.
Of course, I totally lost track of where I was on the Google Maps directions less than a mile in. So I whipped out my Toyota City English map and tried to orient Google Maps directions/maps to the actual area map, with minimal success. So it was time for the Japanese map, which was a lot better. For one thing, the Sanage Onsen was actually on it! As another stroke of good fortune, the Sanage Onsen was roughly in the direction (though further away) of four of my schools: Nishi-homi, Toyota Yogo, Ibo and Ohata.
This meant I passed through Homi and Ibo (and Kami-Toyota, a station I've passed on the train but never stopped at, but got to see today). I also passed through 貝津 Kaizu (a haven for clams) where Eric teaches; no wonder he has to take so long to get to his schools! It takes me an hour from my apartment by train to get to Nagoya, and Eric lives on the opposite side of Nagoya than me, in Ogaki, about 35 minutes out by train, so you get an idea of scale and distance.
So figuring that I stood a better chance of finding the Onsen by using the map the Japanese people use, as opposed to my mediocre Google Maps printouts, I decided to head in the direction of Homi and once I got there, reorient myself again. I figured, if I was lucky, I'd hook back up with the Google Maps directions, and if not, I'd figure something out.
This plan was actually reasonably successful, though I did take some interesting detours. (on the way back, finding an Oiden busstop and using that to help me figure the direction of Toyota-shi, I accidentally connected with Google Maps directions, and hadn't gotten mixed up somewhere along the line of the beginning, they would have been quite a bit more straightforward than the path I ultimately took, but such is life)
In addition to finding the train stops for a bunch of places that I pass by going to my schools (Kami-Toyota, Kaizu, etc), I also stumbled into the Chuukyou (中京) University campus. Though it's Golden Week, there were still a fair number of students on campus, playing sports, walking around and the like. Finding the University was especially exciting for me because it let me know that my estimation of where I was looking at the sun (afternoon sun = West) was actually dead on. Looking at my map, I'd estimated that I was going North, and sure enough, I had been going North!
(note: I'm going to try and buy a compass tomorrow. One of the main reasons why I HAD to leave before dark was because I'm really crappy with constellations, and had no confidence in my ability to find the North Star, thus without the sun, I was essentially directionless.)
Getting out of Chuukyou University was like an episode of the Twilight Zone. The main road was a circle, and so I kept trying to look at the sun and go North, only to find out that I was just spinning my wheels. But I did find a bathroom, which when biking is a huge deal, and remembering our Shore Bike Trip, after partaking of the facilities, I also made sure to refill my water bottle at the sink.
When I finally got out of Chuukyou University, I found myself back at the almost exact place on the previous road as I'd left it. Which was a bit of a setback, but okay, because all I had to do was continue East until I hit another northerly road.
Which I did. It was at this point (about 2.5 hours in) that I looked at the map and realized I was in a cul-de-sack with only one exit, a tiny road that was highlighted in yellow that connected with a larger northerly main road. The rest of the roads, which looked exactly the same size on the map, simply lead back in to the center a sort of superstring fragment that connected only with itself. I also was further mislead (and terrified) for a second by a sign, with Kanji that indicated that I had already fallen past the event horizon of this black hole (I know I'm mixing my physics theories), but then I looked closer at the sign and realized it was an advertisement for a store of some kind in the cul-de-sac that I had not yet entered.
I stood for a while, leaning my bike against my hip, and tried to guess which road was the correct one. Ultimately, I made my decision based on two factors: 1. the road to my right was going north and 2. the road going North seemed to have more traffic. This was good decisionmaking (and probably a metaphor for life in some way) but as I traveled onwards, the road got thinner and more winding and full or rice fields being planted, and I began to have serious doubts as to where I was.
That's when I made this video:
And less than five minutes later, the road crossed with a larger highway. I looked to my left, and there was a sign for the Sanage Onsen!
That's when I made this video:
At this point, the lostness faded, and it was only the uphill. Seriously, this Onsen was straight up a mountain. I didn't fully realize this as I was going up. All I kept thinking was that I was brutally out of shape because I kept having to walk the bike for a bit, and then bike, and then walk, and so though I wasn't that far from the Onsen, it took me close to 45 minutes to clear the last 2.5 kilometers. But then I was there!
The onsen experience itself was totally nifty! It was a lot like you see in anime, except that you spend a lot more time pre-bathing than they show in animes and dramas. Also, you are given a locker, and a key which fits around your wrist, but the string is hidden in the keychain, so I had no idea what to do with it until I asked a nice woman how to use it. First she took the key from my hand and mimed putting in the lock with a really confused expression, but then I clarified that I indeed knew the basics of using a key, and just needed to know where to put it once I locked the locker door and she showed me the string.
Once I got my stuff lockered, I stripped, took my washcloth and proceeded towards the bathing area. I had been under the impression that Japanese women were not at all body conscious in Onsens, but actually this was not true for many women that I saw. Most women used the long washcloth to shield themselves in some way, some even managing to get it to cover all of their frontal nudity. I was rather sad about this because I'd been looking forward to a totally relaxed nudity environment. A year and a half as a nude model for artists has taken what little body shyness I had and demolished it; but I did do my best to mimic what the other folks around me were doing so as to not be impolite.
Still, aside from the minor washcloth thing, it was basically shame-free, and in addition to the women (this onsen had a separate male and female bathing area) there were also some mothers with small children (about 3-4 years of age of both sexes). The kids were really entertaining, getting into the water, shouting “atchi” (a shortened version of “atsui” = “hot”), and running around and the like.
Before getting into the onsen, you had to wash yourself thoroughly. Considering how gross I was, I had no problem with this. You sit on small stools in front of a spikot and movable shower stick (common here, my home shower is the same setup, with a tub instead of stool. The Onsen provided us with shampoo and conditioner and body soap. I accidentally sprayed the woman next to me with while trying to rinse my back with the shower stick. We had a long conversation about this, because at first I had no idea what she was saying, but now I know “mizu kaketa” = you sprayed me with water. I apologized profusely once I knew what I had done. I was also careful to wash as long as the two women next to me, including thoroughly washing and conditioning my hair (though the conditioner and shampoo they have makes a mess of my hair because it's not for my kind of hair, but gotta take the good with the bad. It was the same at the Ryokan and our hotel in training).
Once I was clean, I stepped into the onsen tub. It was like a hot tub, hot but not nuclear. There was also a section with jets which I soaked under, especially my neck which has been very stiff and sore lately. Then I made my way up a set of stairs to an outside pool, which was refreshing because inside was very steamy and humid and after a while I found myself getting a little dizzy.
Eventually I had to leave as the sun was getting low and I was feeling a little faint, partially from the heat and partially from hunger. I did make one stop on my way out, to try some local pastry. I was starving, and I wanted to have a taste memory of the Onsen. They had some type of soysauce miso sampler which I liked, so the man behind the counter gave me a second sample. I also tried a chestnut pastry with what seemed like was a hard boiled egg yolk in the center. I didn't expect to like it because I don't like nuts, but it tasted nothing like nuts and was quite creamy and delicious. I really enjoyed the pastry and made sure to tell them so, and I even got a picture with it and one of the chefs!
As I left, I realized it would be a good idea to make a video of me actually at the onsen, so here it is:
The way back home was much easier. Going down the mountain took less than 10 minutes, and I didn't have to pedal at all. Also, as is always true because I live in a major city center, it was much easier to orient myself towards Toyota-shi. I almost immediately found an Oiden Bus stop on the main road (I refused to go back into the cul-de-sac so instead figured if I stayed on the main road, now that I had found it, I'd probably be able to find my way back to Toyota. It took me about an hour and a half to get home, with a stop at the Sankus convenience store for milk. About half the time of getting there. And all in all, a highly successful day!
Tomorrow, I'm biking to Chiryu! Going to see the 4 Irises at the Temple Muryojuji. It's only 12km up Route 155, wahoo! Going to get an earlier start tomorrow than today, so I can spend more time at my destination. Then back to school on Thursday! Gonna miss Golden Week, but the weekend is soon in coming!
(note: Facebook is acting up, so I can't get the photos uploaded right now. Will post link to album later)
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Of Baskets, Compact Discs and Frilly Skirts
Today I woke at 8:15am--major sleeping in for me here--feeling 95% better than last night! I decided to move along at a nice, slow pace, having nothing major planned besides a trip to Jusco to buy eggs and pancake syrup (I'm making french toast tomorrow for breakfast...yay!), to wash a few clothes, and as it was sunny and beautiful, to get on my bike, take off in a direction, and see where the wind and wandering took me.
What an excellent day! Before I even left my house, Steph and I miraculously were near the computer's Skype at the same time, so we got to talk for a long time as her Saturday ended and my Sunday began. We caught up on each other's lives (the little things that can't be understood entirely through blogging (no matter how thorough one might try to be), and just generally touched base. I wasn't 100%, alas, but 95% was a heck-ton better than yesterday!
Also, as a total aside, since I've arrived in Japan, I've found it difficult to sleep through the night without getting up at least once (usually to use the bathroom...I'm wondering if the tea intake is getting to me) for some reason or another. I think the environment is just so different from what my mind and body is used to (even now). For one thing, it's WAY quieter here! In Philadelphia, my room is at the back of the house, so I'm not as thoroughly inundated as my poor mother with the music of the city (ambulances, cars, buses, screaming people, etc) but even the relative quiet of the rear of a Philadelphia house is a perpetual boom box in comparison to the peace and quiet here. I think in the back of my mind, the silence is warning my backbrain that something must be terribly wrong, and so I'm up every few hours checking in to make sure the world hasn't ended. (You'd think after a month...but no)
Also, Japan doesn't go on daylight savings time, so this time of year the sun rises here sometime between 4:45 and 5am every morning. Even with the curtain drawn, some sunlight peeks through, and so every morning (if I'm working) I wake up in a state of mild terror, convinced I've overslept. I'm up at 5am, 5:30, 6am, etc. So unlike in the States, here in Japan, I'm an early riser. (though I refuse to let myself wake up before 6am. I'm still tired, even if my brain wants me out and about like an Army of one.) It's really weird.
So when I finally left my house (second set of laundry churning, first set hanging,) I started out in the direction of the Toyota Art Museum. I followed the running path by the art museum (there are some lovely pictures and videos of this path a few weeks ago during Sakura time that you can check out on facebook) then hung a left and aimed myself in the general direction of Jusco. I figured I'd go on past it and continue biking towards the mountains. Actually this city is surrounded by mountains, so I just aimed myself for the closest set and shebang!
On my way, I stopped at the Conbini and paid my gas bill (gas here is very expensive, which solve the mystery of why next to nowhere has the option for you to use hot water after washing your hands in the bathroom.) I also showed them the 100 yen ticket I'd gotten last week and asked them if they knew where I could pay it (with the vague hope that I could just do it there). As with everyone in Japan, they went way out of their way to help me (which makes you feel a little guilty actually), reading the ticket, looking up in the phone book the location of where to pay it and writing down the phone number for me. So now at least I have somewhere to call about this ticket. Not being able to read SUCKS!
Then I hung another left, (though the streets here are winding, so that doesn't mean that I was heading in the direction of two lefts, even though I had taken two lefts) and seeing distant mountains in front of me, peddled onwards. It was a crisp, beatiful day and I really had a wonderful time biking through the fantastic landscape, glancing at stores and resturaunts and other things as I peddled onwards. I did make one stop though that is worth noting, at a CD, Video Game, and book shop. This stop is worth noting in large part because of their used CD section. They were selling CDs as cheap as 50 yen a piece (that's about fifty cents), which is amazing especially considering how expensive CDs are here in Japan especially. I picked up about eight or nine CDs for 850 yen total (about $9, I bought one 100 and one 300 yen CD, splurging I know). The first one, by a band called Chemistry (I'm pretty sure I have one or two of their songs already, but this CD is different and it rocks!), is quite good (and it works). So this was a huge find for me! I also picked up a manga with furigana for kicks.
Eventually, I started coughing and feeling hungry, so I ate my Onigiri from the Conbini and then decided to head back. I'd seen a Jusco tower while biking, as well as the Stadium in the distance, so I figured that I'd retrace my steps, look for the Jusco tower again and then (assuming it was the other Jusco that's near Higashiyama) continue on further down the road, over the bridge and back towards my target Jusco. But actually, in about two hours of being out biking (and CD buying), I hadn't ventured as far afield as I'd thought...the Jusco tower was for “my” Jusco! So I went in, back to where I'd originally bought my bike, picked up a basket for the back rack (which the salesman installed, OMG thank you!), paid to have it registered with the police, picked up a U-lock (a small aluminum one that also is put through the wheel but is much thicker and more secure than my current wheel lock. One less thing to worry about.
Then after my bike purchases were complete, I wandered around for a little bit, and lacking shopping discipline, finally broke down and bought what I'd originally thought was one of those frilly skirts that I see everyone in, but turned out to be a pair of shorts that resembled the skirts (not quite a Squirt, but close). Considering how short these skirts are, I was much happier with the shorts, which go with the frilly shirt (both actually) that I bought last week, as well as my other t-shirts (yes, it's all black...awesome!). I almost bought a second skirt (that was actually a skirt) but I'm not made of money. I did pick up an adorable half price long sleeved shirt that I couldn't resist. (I'm turning into such a girl here!)
Lastly, I hit the grocery store where, as-per the usual, my 5 item shopping list turned into a full cart of goodies. I even found instant beef curry (with veggies I think), good for four meals, as well as a ton of other great food! I also bought some horrid processed Kraft cheddar cheese, which with the super processed shredded mozzarella I bought last week and a lot of strawberry jam, made a decent cheese toast. Tonight's dinner was an odd mix of American and Japanese: cheese toast with jelly, cocoa (with cinnamon...thanks Shveta; and generic brand Pocky...thanks Japan), stir fried veggies in special sauce and gyoza.
Now as I prepare for tomorrow, the beginning of another week of teaching, I feel excited, relaxed and happy. Also, thanks to the schedule change, I'm starting the week with Toyota Yogo, which means sweats and t-shirt to work. Yay
What an excellent day! Before I even left my house, Steph and I miraculously were near the computer's Skype at the same time, so we got to talk for a long time as her Saturday ended and my Sunday began. We caught up on each other's lives (the little things that can't be understood entirely through blogging (no matter how thorough one might try to be), and just generally touched base. I wasn't 100%, alas, but 95% was a heck-ton better than yesterday!
Also, as a total aside, since I've arrived in Japan, I've found it difficult to sleep through the night without getting up at least once (usually to use the bathroom...I'm wondering if the tea intake is getting to me) for some reason or another. I think the environment is just so different from what my mind and body is used to (even now). For one thing, it's WAY quieter here! In Philadelphia, my room is at the back of the house, so I'm not as thoroughly inundated as my poor mother with the music of the city (ambulances, cars, buses, screaming people, etc) but even the relative quiet of the rear of a Philadelphia house is a perpetual boom box in comparison to the peace and quiet here. I think in the back of my mind, the silence is warning my backbrain that something must be terribly wrong, and so I'm up every few hours checking in to make sure the world hasn't ended. (You'd think after a month...but no)
Also, Japan doesn't go on daylight savings time, so this time of year the sun rises here sometime between 4:45 and 5am every morning. Even with the curtain drawn, some sunlight peeks through, and so every morning (if I'm working) I wake up in a state of mild terror, convinced I've overslept. I'm up at 5am, 5:30, 6am, etc. So unlike in the States, here in Japan, I'm an early riser. (though I refuse to let myself wake up before 6am. I'm still tired, even if my brain wants me out and about like an Army of one.) It's really weird.
So when I finally left my house (second set of laundry churning, first set hanging,) I started out in the direction of the Toyota Art Museum. I followed the running path by the art museum (there are some lovely pictures and videos of this path a few weeks ago during Sakura time that you can check out on facebook) then hung a left and aimed myself in the general direction of Jusco. I figured I'd go on past it and continue biking towards the mountains. Actually this city is surrounded by mountains, so I just aimed myself for the closest set and shebang!
On my way, I stopped at the Conbini and paid my gas bill (gas here is very expensive, which solve the mystery of why next to nowhere has the option for you to use hot water after washing your hands in the bathroom.) I also showed them the 100 yen ticket I'd gotten last week and asked them if they knew where I could pay it (with the vague hope that I could just do it there). As with everyone in Japan, they went way out of their way to help me (which makes you feel a little guilty actually), reading the ticket, looking up in the phone book the location of where to pay it and writing down the phone number for me. So now at least I have somewhere to call about this ticket. Not being able to read SUCKS!
Then I hung another left, (though the streets here are winding, so that doesn't mean that I was heading in the direction of two lefts, even though I had taken two lefts) and seeing distant mountains in front of me, peddled onwards. It was a crisp, beatiful day and I really had a wonderful time biking through the fantastic landscape, glancing at stores and resturaunts and other things as I peddled onwards. I did make one stop though that is worth noting, at a CD, Video Game, and book shop. This stop is worth noting in large part because of their used CD section. They were selling CDs as cheap as 50 yen a piece (that's about fifty cents), which is amazing especially considering how expensive CDs are here in Japan especially. I picked up about eight or nine CDs for 850 yen total (about $9, I bought one 100 and one 300 yen CD, splurging I know). The first one, by a band called Chemistry (I'm pretty sure I have one or two of their songs already, but this CD is different and it rocks!), is quite good (and it works). So this was a huge find for me! I also picked up a manga with furigana for kicks.
Eventually, I started coughing and feeling hungry, so I ate my Onigiri from the Conbini and then decided to head back. I'd seen a Jusco tower while biking, as well as the Stadium in the distance, so I figured that I'd retrace my steps, look for the Jusco tower again and then (assuming it was the other Jusco that's near Higashiyama) continue on further down the road, over the bridge and back towards my target Jusco. But actually, in about two hours of being out biking (and CD buying), I hadn't ventured as far afield as I'd thought...the Jusco tower was for “my” Jusco! So I went in, back to where I'd originally bought my bike, picked up a basket for the back rack (which the salesman installed, OMG thank you!), paid to have it registered with the police, picked up a U-lock (a small aluminum one that also is put through the wheel but is much thicker and more secure than my current wheel lock. One less thing to worry about.
Then after my bike purchases were complete, I wandered around for a little bit, and lacking shopping discipline, finally broke down and bought what I'd originally thought was one of those frilly skirts that I see everyone in, but turned out to be a pair of shorts that resembled the skirts (not quite a Squirt, but close). Considering how short these skirts are, I was much happier with the shorts, which go with the frilly shirt (both actually) that I bought last week, as well as my other t-shirts (yes, it's all black...awesome!). I almost bought a second skirt (that was actually a skirt) but I'm not made of money. I did pick up an adorable half price long sleeved shirt that I couldn't resist. (I'm turning into such a girl here!)
Lastly, I hit the grocery store where, as-per the usual, my 5 item shopping list turned into a full cart of goodies. I even found instant beef curry (with veggies I think), good for four meals, as well as a ton of other great food! I also bought some horrid processed Kraft cheddar cheese, which with the super processed shredded mozzarella I bought last week and a lot of strawberry jam, made a decent cheese toast. Tonight's dinner was an odd mix of American and Japanese: cheese toast with jelly, cocoa (with cinnamon...thanks Shveta; and generic brand Pocky...thanks Japan), stir fried veggies in special sauce and gyoza.
Now as I prepare for tomorrow, the beginning of another week of teaching, I feel excited, relaxed and happy. Also, thanks to the schedule change, I'm starting the week with Toyota Yogo, which means sweats and t-shirt to work. Yay
Monday, April 19, 2010
Manga-cafe, Tokugawa Museum and Sundry:
So at 4am, Mie and I decided to leave the club (where the party was still going strong) and find some place to crash. Mie had suggested that we could either spend the night at a Karaoke hall or at a Manga Cafe, but since it was so late, we'd probably sleep better at the Manga Cafe. So we went. The Manga Cafe was an over ten story building with places to read Manga, small rooms that you could rent by the hour to watch DVDs, surf the internet, read manga, use Playstation and sleep...as most of the people were doing when we got there. For about $18/person, for seven hours, Mie and I rented a cubicle that was just large enough for both of us to stretch out across the floor and sleep. The floor was padded (more comfortable than my futon actually in regards to padding, and the room had two beanbag chairs which made great pillows.
We had free run of the Manga Cafe too, including being able to read from the huge manga library, watch DVDs, use the internet, or just hang out if we wanted. The Manga-cafe also had cup-o-noodles style (but better) ramen you could buy and free soda and tea as well. This was a great place! Perfect place to go to crash overnight from clubbing (as was obvious by the split of how people were dressed: Otaku vs. Women (and men) in full club gear. I'll definitely crash here again. Also, since the Manga cafe gets regular TV stations, and there is one about 3 minutes from my house, I know how I'm watching my Japanese doramas (without having to wait for them to come up on the Internet), so it was a win.
In the DVD/Sleeping Areas, the Manga-cafe played a form of background music that was like an elevator remix of popular and obscure songs from musicals, anime, US ballads, and TV themes done in the one note style that sounds like a crime drama or Lifetime movie. I fell asleep and had this incredibly weird dream that I was teaching a class, constantly having to leave because I had to pee, and then coming back with the assured terror that while I was gone, SOMETHING HORRIBLE was happening to the children I had been teaching. And that SOMETHING HORRIBLE had something to with them being shoved into shoeboxes.
I woke in a state of terror, heart pounding, and really having to pee, so I got up. I was thinking about my dream (and a bit scared that when I went back to sleep it would pick up where it had left off, as dreams sometimes do), unsure why I was so frightened and listening to the canned music when I realized why what was probably restful for the Japanese people there (the music was clearly designed to be pleasant) was scaring the crap out of me.
Soon I figured it out: If you ever watch a crime drama, Lifetime movie, or police procedural, you'll notice whenever SOMETHING HORRIBLE is happening to a child (usually a murder, or if it's Lifetime, a rape) the music is done in the exact same style. That sort of tinny music box simplification of what is ordinarily a cheerful song. Then the color leaches from the scene, or the lights dim, and it's bad things.
Figuring this out made me more easily able to sleep (and my nightmare didn't come back...phew...), though I kept waking up at random points through the night because I'd recognize a song and the recognition would jog me awake. The most surprising music choice for me was the music box rendition of “I'll Give My Life For You” from Miss Saigon. That's the song where Kim is basically telling her son that she'll kill herself in order to see that he has a better life in America. That's a real winner for restful sleep. There were also slowed down renditions of eighties one hit wonders, Beatles' hits, and music from random movies (but not A Beautiful Mind, which would have actually been the perfect choice. Maybe I missed it). I think for people who aren't familiar with the music (or American Crime Dramas), it's probably just random background noise. For me though, the associations kept returning me to the land of the awake.
That said, I LOVED the Manga Cafe! It was soooo much fun! And my awakeness allowed me the chance to wander around, look at people, and start (when I say 'start' I mean peruse the first 1-2 pages) of two manga: the first issue of Full Metal Alchemist (Hagane no Renkinjutsushi) and a manga that was unfamiliar to me “Tegami Nochi” (don't quote me on the last word, I'm not sure I'm remembering it correctly). The second one took place on another planet and had something to do with delivering letters. That's as far as I got, but I did start making vocabulary cards from the words I'd looked up from it, which was helpful in regards to improving my weak Japanese vocabulary. When next clubbing, I'm totally going to make the Manga Cafe my crashplace. With earplugs this time.
Mie and I parted ways after the Manga Cafe: I was meeting up with Hatsue-san to go to a museum and have lunch and Mie had to go home to her family. Still, we had an amazing time, and we're totally going back to either that club or another one, so yay!
There was some confusion in regards to where in Kanayama Station Hatsue and I were going to meet up, but it was soon resolved. Since my breakfast had been a handfull of Koala Bear snacks (made of delicious...you can find these in Chinatown in Philly. They are in a small green cardboard tube that is shaped like a pentagon. Try them; you won't regret!) that I'd picked up at the Conbini the night before, I was pretty hungry. So we stopped at a dirt cheap but filling and delicious corner dive at the Kanayama Station. I tried Akamiso (red miso, very sweet!) sauce chicken Katsu (fried chicken patty cut up basically) over rice with salad and scraped my plate clean. Then we were off to the Tokugawa museum and garden. All things inside related directly to the Tokugawa Shogunate.
Both were amazing. The garden was beautiful, full of peony flowers (in Japan they are called Boaton: pronounced like button but the first part more like “Boat”)., huge, stunning koi fish and lovely, planned waterfalls. Also a tea house (for tea ceremony, display, no real tea there) Many pictures were taken. For a while, Hatsue and I just sat by the side of the small pond, watched the Koi and talked. Then we went into the museum and saw artifacts (including armor and arrows) as old as the 12th century. Chinese, Japanese and Korean art was represented. My favorite piece of art was a screen of the four scenes by Kano Tan'yu (sample of his work: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1991.480.1,.2) (note Sample does not do the artist justice, but I wasn't able to get pictures in the museum so it will have to do). It was stunning how much detail, beauty and sheer depth of space could and was captured in so few brush strokes.
Hatsue-san and I made plans to meet again at some soon point, exchanged Keitai information (now that I have one) and I'm totally looking forward to seeing her again. After the museum, I was flagging in energy. I made my way back to Toyota City, puttered aimlessly around my apartment and then passed out. An uneventful end to a highly charged weekend of fun!
Photos: Facebook Album
We had free run of the Manga Cafe too, including being able to read from the huge manga library, watch DVDs, use the internet, or just hang out if we wanted. The Manga-cafe also had cup-o-noodles style (but better) ramen you could buy and free soda and tea as well. This was a great place! Perfect place to go to crash overnight from clubbing (as was obvious by the split of how people were dressed: Otaku vs. Women (and men) in full club gear. I'll definitely crash here again. Also, since the Manga cafe gets regular TV stations, and there is one about 3 minutes from my house, I know how I'm watching my Japanese doramas (without having to wait for them to come up on the Internet), so it was a win.
In the DVD/Sleeping Areas, the Manga-cafe played a form of background music that was like an elevator remix of popular and obscure songs from musicals, anime, US ballads, and TV themes done in the one note style that sounds like a crime drama or Lifetime movie. I fell asleep and had this incredibly weird dream that I was teaching a class, constantly having to leave because I had to pee, and then coming back with the assured terror that while I was gone, SOMETHING HORRIBLE was happening to the children I had been teaching. And that SOMETHING HORRIBLE had something to with them being shoved into shoeboxes.
I woke in a state of terror, heart pounding, and really having to pee, so I got up. I was thinking about my dream (and a bit scared that when I went back to sleep it would pick up where it had left off, as dreams sometimes do), unsure why I was so frightened and listening to the canned music when I realized why what was probably restful for the Japanese people there (the music was clearly designed to be pleasant) was scaring the crap out of me.
Soon I figured it out: If you ever watch a crime drama, Lifetime movie, or police procedural, you'll notice whenever SOMETHING HORRIBLE is happening to a child (usually a murder, or if it's Lifetime, a rape) the music is done in the exact same style. That sort of tinny music box simplification of what is ordinarily a cheerful song. Then the color leaches from the scene, or the lights dim, and it's bad things.
Figuring this out made me more easily able to sleep (and my nightmare didn't come back...phew...), though I kept waking up at random points through the night because I'd recognize a song and the recognition would jog me awake. The most surprising music choice for me was the music box rendition of “I'll Give My Life For You” from Miss Saigon. That's the song where Kim is basically telling her son that she'll kill herself in order to see that he has a better life in America. That's a real winner for restful sleep. There were also slowed down renditions of eighties one hit wonders, Beatles' hits, and music from random movies (but not A Beautiful Mind, which would have actually been the perfect choice. Maybe I missed it). I think for people who aren't familiar with the music (or American Crime Dramas), it's probably just random background noise. For me though, the associations kept returning me to the land of the awake.
That said, I LOVED the Manga Cafe! It was soooo much fun! And my awakeness allowed me the chance to wander around, look at people, and start (when I say 'start' I mean peruse the first 1-2 pages) of two manga: the first issue of Full Metal Alchemist (Hagane no Renkinjutsushi) and a manga that was unfamiliar to me “Tegami Nochi” (don't quote me on the last word, I'm not sure I'm remembering it correctly). The second one took place on another planet and had something to do with delivering letters. That's as far as I got, but I did start making vocabulary cards from the words I'd looked up from it, which was helpful in regards to improving my weak Japanese vocabulary. When next clubbing, I'm totally going to make the Manga Cafe my crashplace. With earplugs this time.
Mie and I parted ways after the Manga Cafe: I was meeting up with Hatsue-san to go to a museum and have lunch and Mie had to go home to her family. Still, we had an amazing time, and we're totally going back to either that club or another one, so yay!
There was some confusion in regards to where in Kanayama Station Hatsue and I were going to meet up, but it was soon resolved. Since my breakfast had been a handfull of Koala Bear snacks (made of delicious...you can find these in Chinatown in Philly. They are in a small green cardboard tube that is shaped like a pentagon. Try them; you won't regret!) that I'd picked up at the Conbini the night before, I was pretty hungry. So we stopped at a dirt cheap but filling and delicious corner dive at the Kanayama Station. I tried Akamiso (red miso, very sweet!) sauce chicken Katsu (fried chicken patty cut up basically) over rice with salad and scraped my plate clean. Then we were off to the Tokugawa museum and garden. All things inside related directly to the Tokugawa Shogunate.
Both were amazing. The garden was beautiful, full of peony flowers (in Japan they are called Boaton: pronounced like button but the first part more like “Boat”)., huge, stunning koi fish and lovely, planned waterfalls. Also a tea house (for tea ceremony, display, no real tea there) Many pictures were taken. For a while, Hatsue and I just sat by the side of the small pond, watched the Koi and talked. Then we went into the museum and saw artifacts (including armor and arrows) as old as the 12th century. Chinese, Japanese and Korean art was represented. My favorite piece of art was a screen of the four scenes by Kano Tan'yu (sample of his work: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1991.480.1,.2) (note Sample does not do the artist justice, but I wasn't able to get pictures in the museum so it will have to do). It was stunning how much detail, beauty and sheer depth of space could and was captured in so few brush strokes.
Hatsue-san and I made plans to meet again at some soon point, exchanged Keitai information (now that I have one) and I'm totally looking forward to seeing her again. After the museum, I was flagging in energy. I made my way back to Toyota City, puttered aimlessly around my apartment and then passed out. An uneventful end to a highly charged weekend of fun!
Photos: Facebook Album
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Classroom Antics, Cell Phone Blues, & Reggaeton
Wow was this a packed day! I went to bed after Izakaya at around 1AM after having been plied with more Nihonshu (Sake) than I needed (or particularly wanted but I wasn't trying to be rude). I woke up again at 2am, then at 5am, then at 5:30am, then at 6am, then at 6:20am, which I figured was close enough to 6:30 that I'd best suck it up and face my day. I think I'd been so nervous about not waking up that I really couldn't sleep well. That and my small bladder. But I wasn't feeling particularly tired when I left my apartment and made my way by train and foot back to Ohata. I had two morning lessons and then the wildly intimidating PTA assembly.
My first class of second graders was observed by their mothers who sat in the back of the room and seemed entertained through the entire process. I had a few mild screwups through the lesson, the two major ones both being solved with relative aplomb. First, I had a CD for a “Good Morning” song that was given to us in our teaching materials (excellent) and I had planned to have me and the HRT teach the song to the second graders and then perform it with the CD. The problem was that after the song had been taught, the CD's pace was faster than I'd thought, and the kids were less than successful with doing the song (and looking a little frustrated). So in a quick flash of insight, I had us drop the CD again and perform the song “more slowly.” At this point, I started doing the song (with gestures) like a mega slow motion camera. The kids immediately got a kick out of it, and after a few seconds everyone was having a great time! After another runthrough of the song accapella (with gestures) the kids were able to do the song masterfully with the CD, and life was good.
The second mess up of the class was related to time management...again. For some reason, all of the activities and things to learn were done in a half hour, leaving another fifteen minutes to fill. I didn't have anymore flashcards or materials, so I ended up writing down more feeling associated words (we were doing “how are you today) on the board and teaching them. The kids weren't wildly into that, but after they had a basic handle on the vocabulary (which took 3 minutes) we then did a whisper down the lane game which ended with the kids in the front of the line running to the board and whacking the appropriate vocabulary with fly swatters. Luckily, any excuse to whack things with fly swatters can turn a dead lesson on it's end, so things went well and learning and fun were had by all. We ended with the song again, and the parents and children appeared happy, so it felt like a win to me.
My next class was unobserved, an adorable group of first graders who were really quick learners. Most of the time when I do my self introduction lesson, I can count on all of my students being from Japan, but twice I've gotten a child from somewhere else. This really adds a lot of fun to the lessons for me. I find their home country on the map, put a magnet there, and incorporate their country into the lesson as well. My first non-Japanese origin student was from Brazil (last Monday...I added a Brazil flashcard to my repertoire but have had to use it yet. For my second class, one of the little girls was from Bangladesh. She also clearly had learned a great deal of English at home, because when I said “I like cats” she popped right back with “what is your cat's name?” That gave me a chance to do my “I have two skinny cats and three fat cats,” lesson aside, which thinks to my cats all having names that indicate some aspect of personality or visual, allows me to teach a lot of vocabulary in a painless way. I didn't expect the first graders to remember much of it, but they surprised me, understanding and accurately responding with things like “No, three fat cats” and “Oddball = hen na neko. (weird cat). These kids were so much fun and so bright, it was a joy (even on a Saturday).
After classes, we had the PTA ritual. This is where we presented ourselves to the PTA and parents. This presentation was done in the school gym, where the PTA members sat behind boardroom style desks and looked dreadfully serious while the parents sat in the center as an audience, also looking serious. All of the teachers lined up in order of importance and gave a brief, not at all humorous self introduction. There was bowing, and humble language, and all that good stuff. I kept mine very brief, not wanting to screw it up (my name is Vashti Bandy and I am the new ALT, yoroshiku onegai shimasu...in Japanese, that was the basic gist of things). Then we bowed and left. As soon as we left, all of the teachers were talking about how nervewracking the experience was and how glad they were it was over. So was I. After that, Kyoto-sensei and Kouchou-sensei sent me home early. I was back in Toyota proper by 1pm, even with accidentally getting on the train going in the wrong direction and then having to come back.
With all of my extra time, I decided to go home and scramble some eggs and bacon (but the bacon had gone bad, so it was eggs and hashbrowns) talk to my mom for a bit, and then figure out how to pay my electric bill. During this process, I got a buzz at my door: my bank cashcard had arrived. It had a similar font and design to the envelope as the random piece of paper I'd gotten in my mailbox about four days before (that I couldn't read), so I figured, why not take that to the Post Office and see if they had my bank passbook?
If that didn't work, it was back to the Visitor's Center to see if the fine folks there could read it for me. But luckily, it was my bank passbook, and passbook plus cashcard meant “I can get a Ketiai!” (cellphone). So after a brief stop at the Convenience Store (Conbini) to pay my electric bill, I was off to AU to buy my cellphone. I'm not kidding about the convenience store either, that's how you do it here. You just go to the register, hand them your bill, and you pay it, they give you a receipt and boom...your bill is PAID. You even get a receipt. In fact, you can do practically EVERYTHING at the Conbibi! Make color copies, fax stuff, buy hot and cold food/drink, pay your bills (I paid for my reentry permit, guess where, the Conbini?!) Then I figured I had over two hours before I had to leave to meet Mie in Sakae (for clubbing), why not go buy the cell phone?
My Japanese has been slowly and steadily improving, but it was not up to the task of choosing a cell-phone plan in Japan. I mean, I guess to an extent it was as I have a cell phone, but my God was that complicated. I had some indication that this might be difficult because the last time I tried to buy a cell phone, I didn't have enough documents so while I couldn't get the phone at the time, I was given a large catalog in about four languages illustrating the cell phone plans available. I read it twice and still didn't have a great grip on what it was I wanted (or what the eighteen different plans meant in regards to my needs, which were BASIC). This is in large part because Japanese cellphones (keitai) have sooooo many features and options. What I wanted was a portable phone that did email (because in Japan that's the equivalent of text messaging). If it had a GPS that was a major bonus. That's it.
There were two areas of difficulty in regards to getting my cell phone. First, I'm a foreigner. So I had to show my passport with Visa, two forms from City Hall saying that I had applied for my Alien Registration Card and that it was being processed, my Toyota City address, and my Philadelphia address, (I gave them my paid electric bill too for good measure), and my company's phone number.
After gathering the documents (and searching the internet for my company's phone number), the man who was seeing me had to call somebody and have a conference with them about if it was okay to sell me the phone since I had all of this evidence (of what, that I hadn't stolen my own identity and had the real Vashti Bandy locked in a trunk somewhere...and what this had to do with my buying a cell phone anyway...?). And then things got weird. After the conference call, he asked me where I was born. I was like what...the hospital? You really need to know where I was BORN to sell me a cellphone? (I didn't say that out loud, but it was probably written on my face) No, he just wanted the city, so I said, yes I was born in Philadelphia. As an aside, in Japan, the concept of States doesn't translate, so he kept asking me what Pennsylvania was, a city...? I said it was a State, like a prefecture (which they have in Japan: I live in Aichi Prefecture), but that didn't really go over clearly. Then I said it was a state, and my city was Philadelphia.
Then it was another conference call, and I was approved to be sold a cell phone. Yay! First hurtle, crossed. Next came the harder part. I said I wanted a cheap phone that would allow me to make calls and send email (this is the Japanese equivalent of texting). And that I was only in Japan for one year. He handed me about eight different phones to choose from, all with different features, etc. I asked which ones had an English display, and he said all of them (phew). Then he asked if I was returning to the U.S. After I finished in Japan, and I explained that I was planning to travel around Asia and Europe. Then out came the color coded maps: some of these phones could be made to work in some countries but not others. Now the logical thing would have just been to say “I don't care, as long as it works in Japan.” I have Skype, I'm not planning to gallivant around the world with my cellphone from Japan. And also, when I get back to the U.S., I'm going back to my old cell phone plan. But because we were in question and answer mode, I ended up spending a huge amount of time trying to understand these charts and maps, etc. So now the phone I have will work in every country I'm planning to go to except Korea. And I doubt strongly I'm going to use it in any besides Japan, as it will be too damn expensive anyway.
Then came the cell phone plans. There was the EZ plan E, EZ Plan SS, and about four other EZ plans (if they have to tell you it's EZ, it's not), all with different features, different attachments, different prices, sometimes monthly, sometimes per data unit (whatever that is?), sometimes depending on who you were calling, etc. There was a two year plan that cut your monthly fees in half, a one year plan, a no year plan, etc. And that's not even talking about email, which varied in cost depending on plan, usage etc. There was the internet, television, GPS, etc. And then the cell phone promotions. Because I wanted to get my phone for free, I had to get six different options which are free for the next two months, but can only be canceled in May (I don't even want to tell you how long it took for us to figure this out).
To give you an example of how this buying process went, one question he asked me (discussing a feature) started out with “If your homepage is a bad homepage?” And I was like “Homepage, huh? Do you have to make a homepage for your cell phone and how much does that cost because I don't need it,” and he was like “No, if you have a bad homepage,” and I was like “What's a bad homepage? Is that like Hentai?” (porn) “because I'm not going to do that,” and he averted his eyes and said “no, no, of course not....” And I said asked, “then what's a bad homepage?” and he was like, “if you have a bad homepage, like, if you accidentally have a bad homepage on the internet” and I was like, “So if I accidentally go to a hentai site does that cost more, is that what you're saying?” and he was like, “No, no, it doesn't cost more, but if you don't want a bad homepage on the phone then you can do XKLJOIAHO” and I was like “What kind of bad homepage?”..and he was like “If you don't want to see it on your phone,” and suddenly, in the middle of this conversation I realized he was asking me if I wanted parental controls on my phone. And I said “I'm an adult. I don't need that.” and our conversation moved forwards again.
This guy was amazingly patient, considering I understood (as a high estimate) about 30% of what he was talking about. Some of this was language misunderstanding and some of this was just general misunderstanding because I some of the features/products and methods of payment are just things that don't exist in the USA. After 2/5 hours, I was the proud owner of a Keitai and running about 40 minutes late to meet with Mie. I called her on my cell and also sent her a mail to let her know I'd be late, and booked it.
I had the best time with Mie! In Nagoya, we did Yakiniku for dinner (cooked our own meat with BBQ style sauces) and then went to the Raggaeton party. Reggaeton is like fast paced Reggae that is highly influenced by the Spanish speaking world (it's mainly in Spanish). It was super fun! Mie and I did our part to get the party moving, getting out and dancing because everyone else was too embarrassed. Soon the dance floor was packed and Mie and I didn't leave until 4am. There was a DJ, live music from four different performers, alcohol and great new friends! I am so grateful and happy that Mie and I met because she's a super fun person! We said we'd go back again, so hopefully soon!
I have more to write about my day, but I'm going to cut it here because if I don't sleep soon, it will be tragic. So tomorrow's entry will discuss sleeping in the Manga Cafe, the Tokugawa museum, and other things.
My first class of second graders was observed by their mothers who sat in the back of the room and seemed entertained through the entire process. I had a few mild screwups through the lesson, the two major ones both being solved with relative aplomb. First, I had a CD for a “Good Morning” song that was given to us in our teaching materials (excellent) and I had planned to have me and the HRT teach the song to the second graders and then perform it with the CD. The problem was that after the song had been taught, the CD's pace was faster than I'd thought, and the kids were less than successful with doing the song (and looking a little frustrated). So in a quick flash of insight, I had us drop the CD again and perform the song “more slowly.” At this point, I started doing the song (with gestures) like a mega slow motion camera. The kids immediately got a kick out of it, and after a few seconds everyone was having a great time! After another runthrough of the song accapella (with gestures) the kids were able to do the song masterfully with the CD, and life was good.
The second mess up of the class was related to time management...again. For some reason, all of the activities and things to learn were done in a half hour, leaving another fifteen minutes to fill. I didn't have anymore flashcards or materials, so I ended up writing down more feeling associated words (we were doing “how are you today) on the board and teaching them. The kids weren't wildly into that, but after they had a basic handle on the vocabulary (which took 3 minutes) we then did a whisper down the lane game which ended with the kids in the front of the line running to the board and whacking the appropriate vocabulary with fly swatters. Luckily, any excuse to whack things with fly swatters can turn a dead lesson on it's end, so things went well and learning and fun were had by all. We ended with the song again, and the parents and children appeared happy, so it felt like a win to me.
My next class was unobserved, an adorable group of first graders who were really quick learners. Most of the time when I do my self introduction lesson, I can count on all of my students being from Japan, but twice I've gotten a child from somewhere else. This really adds a lot of fun to the lessons for me. I find their home country on the map, put a magnet there, and incorporate their country into the lesson as well. My first non-Japanese origin student was from Brazil (last Monday...I added a Brazil flashcard to my repertoire but have had to use it yet. For my second class, one of the little girls was from Bangladesh. She also clearly had learned a great deal of English at home, because when I said “I like cats” she popped right back with “what is your cat's name?” That gave me a chance to do my “I have two skinny cats and three fat cats,” lesson aside, which thinks to my cats all having names that indicate some aspect of personality or visual, allows me to teach a lot of vocabulary in a painless way. I didn't expect the first graders to remember much of it, but they surprised me, understanding and accurately responding with things like “No, three fat cats” and “Oddball = hen na neko. (weird cat). These kids were so much fun and so bright, it was a joy (even on a Saturday).
After classes, we had the PTA ritual. This is where we presented ourselves to the PTA and parents. This presentation was done in the school gym, where the PTA members sat behind boardroom style desks and looked dreadfully serious while the parents sat in the center as an audience, also looking serious. All of the teachers lined up in order of importance and gave a brief, not at all humorous self introduction. There was bowing, and humble language, and all that good stuff. I kept mine very brief, not wanting to screw it up (my name is Vashti Bandy and I am the new ALT, yoroshiku onegai shimasu...in Japanese, that was the basic gist of things). Then we bowed and left. As soon as we left, all of the teachers were talking about how nervewracking the experience was and how glad they were it was over. So was I. After that, Kyoto-sensei and Kouchou-sensei sent me home early. I was back in Toyota proper by 1pm, even with accidentally getting on the train going in the wrong direction and then having to come back.
With all of my extra time, I decided to go home and scramble some eggs and bacon (but the bacon had gone bad, so it was eggs and hashbrowns) talk to my mom for a bit, and then figure out how to pay my electric bill. During this process, I got a buzz at my door: my bank cashcard had arrived. It had a similar font and design to the envelope as the random piece of paper I'd gotten in my mailbox about four days before (that I couldn't read), so I figured, why not take that to the Post Office and see if they had my bank passbook?
If that didn't work, it was back to the Visitor's Center to see if the fine folks there could read it for me. But luckily, it was my bank passbook, and passbook plus cashcard meant “I can get a Ketiai!” (cellphone). So after a brief stop at the Convenience Store (Conbini) to pay my electric bill, I was off to AU to buy my cellphone. I'm not kidding about the convenience store either, that's how you do it here. You just go to the register, hand them your bill, and you pay it, they give you a receipt and boom...your bill is PAID. You even get a receipt. In fact, you can do practically EVERYTHING at the Conbibi! Make color copies, fax stuff, buy hot and cold food/drink, pay your bills (I paid for my reentry permit, guess where, the Conbini?!) Then I figured I had over two hours before I had to leave to meet Mie in Sakae (for clubbing), why not go buy the cell phone?
My Japanese has been slowly and steadily improving, but it was not up to the task of choosing a cell-phone plan in Japan. I mean, I guess to an extent it was as I have a cell phone, but my God was that complicated. I had some indication that this might be difficult because the last time I tried to buy a cell phone, I didn't have enough documents so while I couldn't get the phone at the time, I was given a large catalog in about four languages illustrating the cell phone plans available. I read it twice and still didn't have a great grip on what it was I wanted (or what the eighteen different plans meant in regards to my needs, which were BASIC). This is in large part because Japanese cellphones (keitai) have sooooo many features and options. What I wanted was a portable phone that did email (because in Japan that's the equivalent of text messaging). If it had a GPS that was a major bonus. That's it.
There were two areas of difficulty in regards to getting my cell phone. First, I'm a foreigner. So I had to show my passport with Visa, two forms from City Hall saying that I had applied for my Alien Registration Card and that it was being processed, my Toyota City address, and my Philadelphia address, (I gave them my paid electric bill too for good measure), and my company's phone number.
After gathering the documents (and searching the internet for my company's phone number), the man who was seeing me had to call somebody and have a conference with them about if it was okay to sell me the phone since I had all of this evidence (of what, that I hadn't stolen my own identity and had the real Vashti Bandy locked in a trunk somewhere...and what this had to do with my buying a cell phone anyway...?). And then things got weird. After the conference call, he asked me where I was born. I was like what...the hospital? You really need to know where I was BORN to sell me a cellphone? (I didn't say that out loud, but it was probably written on my face) No, he just wanted the city, so I said, yes I was born in Philadelphia. As an aside, in Japan, the concept of States doesn't translate, so he kept asking me what Pennsylvania was, a city...? I said it was a State, like a prefecture (which they have in Japan: I live in Aichi Prefecture), but that didn't really go over clearly. Then I said it was a state, and my city was Philadelphia.
Then it was another conference call, and I was approved to be sold a cell phone. Yay! First hurtle, crossed. Next came the harder part. I said I wanted a cheap phone that would allow me to make calls and send email (this is the Japanese equivalent of texting). And that I was only in Japan for one year. He handed me about eight different phones to choose from, all with different features, etc. I asked which ones had an English display, and he said all of them (phew). Then he asked if I was returning to the U.S. After I finished in Japan, and I explained that I was planning to travel around Asia and Europe. Then out came the color coded maps: some of these phones could be made to work in some countries but not others. Now the logical thing would have just been to say “I don't care, as long as it works in Japan.” I have Skype, I'm not planning to gallivant around the world with my cellphone from Japan. And also, when I get back to the U.S., I'm going back to my old cell phone plan. But because we were in question and answer mode, I ended up spending a huge amount of time trying to understand these charts and maps, etc. So now the phone I have will work in every country I'm planning to go to except Korea. And I doubt strongly I'm going to use it in any besides Japan, as it will be too damn expensive anyway.
Then came the cell phone plans. There was the EZ plan E, EZ Plan SS, and about four other EZ plans (if they have to tell you it's EZ, it's not), all with different features, different attachments, different prices, sometimes monthly, sometimes per data unit (whatever that is?), sometimes depending on who you were calling, etc. There was a two year plan that cut your monthly fees in half, a one year plan, a no year plan, etc. And that's not even talking about email, which varied in cost depending on plan, usage etc. There was the internet, television, GPS, etc. And then the cell phone promotions. Because I wanted to get my phone for free, I had to get six different options which are free for the next two months, but can only be canceled in May (I don't even want to tell you how long it took for us to figure this out).
To give you an example of how this buying process went, one question he asked me (discussing a feature) started out with “If your homepage is a bad homepage?” And I was like “Homepage, huh? Do you have to make a homepage for your cell phone and how much does that cost because I don't need it,” and he was like “No, if you have a bad homepage,” and I was like “What's a bad homepage? Is that like Hentai?” (porn) “because I'm not going to do that,” and he averted his eyes and said “no, no, of course not....” And I said asked, “then what's a bad homepage?” and he was like, “if you have a bad homepage, like, if you accidentally have a bad homepage on the internet” and I was like, “So if I accidentally go to a hentai site does that cost more, is that what you're saying?” and he was like, “No, no, it doesn't cost more, but if you don't want a bad homepage on the phone then you can do XKLJOIAHO” and I was like “What kind of bad homepage?”..and he was like “If you don't want to see it on your phone,” and suddenly, in the middle of this conversation I realized he was asking me if I wanted parental controls on my phone. And I said “I'm an adult. I don't need that.” and our conversation moved forwards again.
This guy was amazingly patient, considering I understood (as a high estimate) about 30% of what he was talking about. Some of this was language misunderstanding and some of this was just general misunderstanding because I some of the features/products and methods of payment are just things that don't exist in the USA. After 2/5 hours, I was the proud owner of a Keitai and running about 40 minutes late to meet with Mie. I called her on my cell and also sent her a mail to let her know I'd be late, and booked it.
I had the best time with Mie! In Nagoya, we did Yakiniku for dinner (cooked our own meat with BBQ style sauces) and then went to the Raggaeton party. Reggaeton is like fast paced Reggae that is highly influenced by the Spanish speaking world (it's mainly in Spanish). It was super fun! Mie and I did our part to get the party moving, getting out and dancing because everyone else was too embarrassed. Soon the dance floor was packed and Mie and I didn't leave until 4am. There was a DJ, live music from four different performers, alcohol and great new friends! I am so grateful and happy that Mie and I met because she's a super fun person! We said we'd go back again, so hopefully soon!
I have more to write about my day, but I'm going to cut it here because if I don't sleep soon, it will be tragic. So tomorrow's entry will discuss sleeping in the Manga Cafe, the Tokugawa museum, and other things.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Kosema...no wait, Toyota Yogo!
After some rather distressing confusion with my schedule (please contact me privately if you'd like the whole story), it turns out I was scheduled to go not to Kosema as I'd thought, but instead to Toyota Yogo.
Thankfully, the nice people at Kosema (where I'm working today/Wednesday) gave me a ride to Toyota Yogo. (I was driven by Kosema School's third in command, I forget the Japanese word for it though it was explained thoroughly to me) Toyota Yogo is the Special Needs school that I'm teaching at (apparently) on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I was super late of course, and dressed entirely inappropriately to work at a school with children with severe mental and physical handicaps. I was in a suit jacket, button down shirt, nice slacks, shoes, and inside slippers. We were told to dress well for the first week of work at our Orientation/Training and also to bring our own slippers. This held true for Monday at Higashi-yama, but sneakers and jogging suits are the norm at Toyota Yogo, as I was informed by the dismayed, harassed looking English teacher who took one look at me and asked if I had a change of clothes or sneakers. I doubt had I had the correct schedule that I'd have dressed much differently, as I did Aisatsu at so many schools, I'm not sure if I caught the dress code from this one (we met each other briefly for five minutes in the main hallway; the meeting was mostly in Japanese, so it's very likely I missed some fine points...my Japanese is not that good! I've only been here two weeks goshdarnit!) but I'd probably have worn more durable pants at least.
So onto my day, once I got to the correct school, it was clear that they didn't have a whole lot to do with me. My first two periods were free, which meant I sat at the staff desk and tried to look busy. After a while I just gave in and started to study Japanese. I also offered to help in as many ways as I could, but this school is like a combination school and hospital, and they really didn't need some random person screwing up their well oiled system. In fact, they really only needed me for the high school class at the end of the day, though I did get to participate and help out with two music classes as well as doing a brief self introduction lesson for the high schoolers.
All three of the classes I helped out with where really interesting and fun! As I said, this school is full of kids with varying levels of physical and mental disabilities. Most of these leaned towards the very serious in my estimation, and the school clearly served a large area. In general, interactions with students involved a lot of physical contact (wildly different from general Elementary Schools where physical contact (at least between ALTs like me and students) is discouraged; I did my best to follow along and do what I saw the other assistants doing. It seemed to work out okay, but you never know in Japan because people are always nice to you as a foreigner. (though this school seems a lot more direct, probably because if something is screwed up, things will go horribly wrong for some poor child.)
Also, as an aside, the simplicity of the songs and lessons and repetition make working here an ideal way to study Japanese! I learned new words (Hill, Valley, making Bento) etc, just from the first song. Also, in performing “head, shoulders knees and toes” in English, I was given the translation into Japanese, which is very cool! I also got to help out with lunch, which the kids were very active in preparing and helping clear plates. At lunch, I spent a great deal of time talking with Tommy (his name is Japanese but he asked to be called Tommy, which I truly appreciate: I'm having the hardest time remembering Japanese names!), a very bright high schooler who clearly loves studying English and could actually speak really well. He asked me a bunch of questions, which I answered...it was really cool, and later on he was in my class!
I think the thing that was most problematic at this school was the sheer amount of free time I had. I'm not one to complain, but after about 20 minutes I would have been happy to do ANYTHING but sit at the desk in the staff room. About halfway through the day, however, I was given my greatest gift in regards to Japanese study yet: the High School English textbooks! These are great because most of the phrases in the English dialogues are translated as footnotes into Japanese for the students! A huge win for me. Now I know how to say “thank you for doing X for me” and “best friend” and “goodnight kiss” and “not John's wedding but Bob's” etc. (the last one helped me nail down “janakute” which means “it's not X but...”) They let me take the books home, so I'm going to take these books with me to every school so when I've got one of these free periods, I can at least use it productively in learning some natural Japanese! My life would be complete if I could remember to look specifically for index cards the next time I go to the 100 yen store so I can make flashcards.
After the day ended, I had an excellent conversation with a couple of great people at the school. The first was another teacher who I had helped prepare lunch with. We had a great conversation about movies and American history (which he knows more about than me, it seems). Then I had a wonderful conversation with my desk neighbor who is studying English at an Eikaiwa. Things were going along well with that conversation until her grandmother died...can you believe it! And then she had to go. I felt so terrible for her!
Lastly, I spoke for a while with my Kyoto-sensei. I felt like in spite of being late and inappropriately dressed, I still made a good impression with him at least. He mentioned that the last ALT (from last year) had only spoken one word of Japanese, and that he was impressed (and seemingly happy) that I was able to do much more (though my Japanese has a ways to go). One of the other teachers asked me how many years I'd lived in Japan, and when I said two weeks, she appeared very surprised. Mie had had the same reaction. I feel, on the other hand, like I have a frak-ton of work to do before I can say I'm any good at speaking Japanese. But I'm working at it! Once he realized I was interested in Kanji, we also talked about the Kanji meanings of Toyota Yogo and the Kanji meanings for everyone's names (which does help).
After work, I wandered around Josui (Toyota Yogo is in Josui) for a little bit, and found a clothing store/grocery store. I was very happy to find a button down shirt at the clothing store that fit perfectly over my cleavage. It was only a large, which considering the pants that I bought were a 4L (that's 4X baby!) was pretty amazing! The grocery store had some great finds too, including Bok Choy for 98yen/two bunches, scallops, and a chocolate croissant. They were out of Koala Bear snacks though, which was very sad. I took the train home only to find out that my bike had a parking ticket for 100yen. It seems my bike (and about ten other ones, also ticketed) were parked in a motorcycle parking area. Can you believe it?! In Japan, bikes have designated parking areas! 100 yen is like a dollar, but damn if I know where to pay it. I asked a guy whose bike was also ticketed to explain the ticket to me, but he really wasn't much help, though he did say go to the police station. Again, damn if I know where that is. I'll ask at the Visitor's Center.
Now, to bed!
Thankfully, the nice people at Kosema (where I'm working today/Wednesday) gave me a ride to Toyota Yogo. (I was driven by Kosema School's third in command, I forget the Japanese word for it though it was explained thoroughly to me) Toyota Yogo is the Special Needs school that I'm teaching at (apparently) on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I was super late of course, and dressed entirely inappropriately to work at a school with children with severe mental and physical handicaps. I was in a suit jacket, button down shirt, nice slacks, shoes, and inside slippers. We were told to dress well for the first week of work at our Orientation/Training and also to bring our own slippers. This held true for Monday at Higashi-yama, but sneakers and jogging suits are the norm at Toyota Yogo, as I was informed by the dismayed, harassed looking English teacher who took one look at me and asked if I had a change of clothes or sneakers. I doubt had I had the correct schedule that I'd have dressed much differently, as I did Aisatsu at so many schools, I'm not sure if I caught the dress code from this one (we met each other briefly for five minutes in the main hallway; the meeting was mostly in Japanese, so it's very likely I missed some fine points...my Japanese is not that good! I've only been here two weeks goshdarnit!) but I'd probably have worn more durable pants at least.
So onto my day, once I got to the correct school, it was clear that they didn't have a whole lot to do with me. My first two periods were free, which meant I sat at the staff desk and tried to look busy. After a while I just gave in and started to study Japanese. I also offered to help in as many ways as I could, but this school is like a combination school and hospital, and they really didn't need some random person screwing up their well oiled system. In fact, they really only needed me for the high school class at the end of the day, though I did get to participate and help out with two music classes as well as doing a brief self introduction lesson for the high schoolers.
All three of the classes I helped out with where really interesting and fun! As I said, this school is full of kids with varying levels of physical and mental disabilities. Most of these leaned towards the very serious in my estimation, and the school clearly served a large area. In general, interactions with students involved a lot of physical contact (wildly different from general Elementary Schools where physical contact (at least between ALTs like me and students) is discouraged; I did my best to follow along and do what I saw the other assistants doing. It seemed to work out okay, but you never know in Japan because people are always nice to you as a foreigner. (though this school seems a lot more direct, probably because if something is screwed up, things will go horribly wrong for some poor child.)
Also, as an aside, the simplicity of the songs and lessons and repetition make working here an ideal way to study Japanese! I learned new words (Hill, Valley, making Bento) etc, just from the first song. Also, in performing “head, shoulders knees and toes” in English, I was given the translation into Japanese, which is very cool! I also got to help out with lunch, which the kids were very active in preparing and helping clear plates. At lunch, I spent a great deal of time talking with Tommy (his name is Japanese but he asked to be called Tommy, which I truly appreciate: I'm having the hardest time remembering Japanese names!), a very bright high schooler who clearly loves studying English and could actually speak really well. He asked me a bunch of questions, which I answered...it was really cool, and later on he was in my class!
I think the thing that was most problematic at this school was the sheer amount of free time I had. I'm not one to complain, but after about 20 minutes I would have been happy to do ANYTHING but sit at the desk in the staff room. About halfway through the day, however, I was given my greatest gift in regards to Japanese study yet: the High School English textbooks! These are great because most of the phrases in the English dialogues are translated as footnotes into Japanese for the students! A huge win for me. Now I know how to say “thank you for doing X for me” and “best friend” and “goodnight kiss” and “not John's wedding but Bob's” etc. (the last one helped me nail down “janakute” which means “it's not X but...”) They let me take the books home, so I'm going to take these books with me to every school so when I've got one of these free periods, I can at least use it productively in learning some natural Japanese! My life would be complete if I could remember to look specifically for index cards the next time I go to the 100 yen store so I can make flashcards.
After the day ended, I had an excellent conversation with a couple of great people at the school. The first was another teacher who I had helped prepare lunch with. We had a great conversation about movies and American history (which he knows more about than me, it seems). Then I had a wonderful conversation with my desk neighbor who is studying English at an Eikaiwa. Things were going along well with that conversation until her grandmother died...can you believe it! And then she had to go. I felt so terrible for her!
Lastly, I spoke for a while with my Kyoto-sensei. I felt like in spite of being late and inappropriately dressed, I still made a good impression with him at least. He mentioned that the last ALT (from last year) had only spoken one word of Japanese, and that he was impressed (and seemingly happy) that I was able to do much more (though my Japanese has a ways to go). One of the other teachers asked me how many years I'd lived in Japan, and when I said two weeks, she appeared very surprised. Mie had had the same reaction. I feel, on the other hand, like I have a frak-ton of work to do before I can say I'm any good at speaking Japanese. But I'm working at it! Once he realized I was interested in Kanji, we also talked about the Kanji meanings of Toyota Yogo and the Kanji meanings for everyone's names (which does help).
After work, I wandered around Josui (Toyota Yogo is in Josui) for a little bit, and found a clothing store/grocery store. I was very happy to find a button down shirt at the clothing store that fit perfectly over my cleavage. It was only a large, which considering the pants that I bought were a 4L (that's 4X baby!) was pretty amazing! The grocery store had some great finds too, including Bok Choy for 98yen/two bunches, scallops, and a chocolate croissant. They were out of Koala Bear snacks though, which was very sad. I took the train home only to find out that my bike had a parking ticket for 100yen. It seems my bike (and about ten other ones, also ticketed) were parked in a motorcycle parking area. Can you believe it?! In Japan, bikes have designated parking areas! 100 yen is like a dollar, but damn if I know where to pay it. I asked a guy whose bike was also ticketed to explain the ticket to me, but he really wasn't much help, though he did say go to the police station. Again, damn if I know where that is. I'll ask at the Visitor's Center.
Now, to bed!
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Schools and Friendship Found!
It was a beautiful sunny day today in Toyota. The birds were singing, and outside it was a balmy 22 degrees Celcius. A more perfect day to try to find my schools I could not have chosen. So it was with a light heart that I stepped forth with my blue bag filled with snacks and water, ready for an exciting day of finding stuff. I had four schools on the docket for today, and finished one ahead with the help of my new friend Mie, who actually drove me to Higashiyama tonight after we had dinner. But I'll get to that later.
For now, we'll let the videos tell the story:
Ohata: Found this one in under a half an hour, only getting mildly confused once. In short, a win!
This leads me to tonight and my dinner and hanging out with the very awesome Mie-Chan! I met Mie when I was lost trying to find a used bike store on Thursday. She happened to be parking as I was wandering around, looking for someone to ask for directions, and we had a wonderfully serindipitous conversation. What I didn't know at that time (but found out tonight at dinner) was that she had actually been driving along in the opposite direction when she saw me, saw that I looked lost and turned her car around and actually found me to help me out. I was totally blown away! And boy did we have an excellent time tonight. She's a super fun person, and I'm so glad to know her. Though Toyota City is dead at night, we managed to find stuff to do until midnight, including her driving me to Higashi Yama and pointing out the bus stops as we went. I couldn't ask for a better new friend!
Bonus: Higashi Yama – Found!
In addition, we did some Karaoke (including a duet of NagoriZake: there really was nothing else to do in Toyota after we were done eating), and had some wonderful conversations (shifting between English and Japanese). Got to try Umeboshi Onigiri (Pickled plum: not my favorite thing but it's a huge step up from Ikka). And Mie is a font of useful information about the area, like where to buy a printer close by, and what great cafes are in the area. Tonight was super relaxed and fun! Also, turns out we both have a common interest in clubbing, so next Saturday, we're going to Nagoya to check out a Regaeton festival (Raegaeton is like Latin Hip Hop) and hang out. I had such a good time with her, and I feel very excited to have a wonderful new friend. Mie's a great person (top notch) and I'm very happy to also get to know her better as we spend more time together here in Japan.
In short, another great day! It's funny, but this evening put the icing on the cake that lets me know I made the right decision to come here now instead of with the Jet Programme in August. The experiences I'm having now and the people I'm meeting here are really changing my life! And I'm having such good luck to be stumbling across so many wonderful people. This is the right place and time for me, and it's very exciting!
Bonus: Check my Facebook for Photos! Includes my new bike, pictures from the train as I was looking for my schools, banking angel Medina and new friend Mie-chan! (in process of being uploaded; I'll add link later...must sleep now...)
For now, we'll let the videos tell the story:
Ohata: Found this one in under a half an hour, only getting mildly confused once. In short, a win!
Ohata, Part 1Nishi-Homi: This one was a bit of a challenge. Google Maps told me to make three lefts, and I thought I had done that, but I guess not, because I ended up going about a mile and a half down the wrong road before asking for directions, turning around and coming back. But eventually, Nishi-Homi was found!
Ohata, Part 2
Nishi-Homi FailIbo: The easiest of the lot. Less than five minutes from the Homi train station. I'd actually pretty much found this school before because I passed it on my way to my BOE meeting last week, but it was still good to find it so easily again.
Nishi-Homi Found
Ibo Found!Toyota Yogo: This is my special needs school. Having learned my lesson from Nishi-Homi, I asked the guy at the train station for directions before setting out. This was incredibly good because the directions Google gave me did not seem to match up with what I was told at the train station. I asked for directions one more time at a pharmacy, just to make sure I was on track, and I was, and soon after, Toyota Yogo was also found!
Toyota Yogo: Found!
This leads me to tonight and my dinner and hanging out with the very awesome Mie-Chan! I met Mie when I was lost trying to find a used bike store on Thursday. She happened to be parking as I was wandering around, looking for someone to ask for directions, and we had a wonderfully serindipitous conversation. What I didn't know at that time (but found out tonight at dinner) was that she had actually been driving along in the opposite direction when she saw me, saw that I looked lost and turned her car around and actually found me to help me out. I was totally blown away! And boy did we have an excellent time tonight. She's a super fun person, and I'm so glad to know her. Though Toyota City is dead at night, we managed to find stuff to do until midnight, including her driving me to Higashi Yama and pointing out the bus stops as we went. I couldn't ask for a better new friend!
Bonus: Higashi Yama – Found!
In addition, we did some Karaoke (including a duet of NagoriZake: there really was nothing else to do in Toyota after we were done eating), and had some wonderful conversations (shifting between English and Japanese). Got to try Umeboshi Onigiri (Pickled plum: not my favorite thing but it's a huge step up from Ikka). And Mie is a font of useful information about the area, like where to buy a printer close by, and what great cafes are in the area. Tonight was super relaxed and fun! Also, turns out we both have a common interest in clubbing, so next Saturday, we're going to Nagoya to check out a Regaeton festival (Raegaeton is like Latin Hip Hop) and hang out. I had such a good time with her, and I feel very excited to have a wonderful new friend. Mie's a great person (top notch) and I'm very happy to also get to know her better as we spend more time together here in Japan.
In short, another great day! It's funny, but this evening put the icing on the cake that lets me know I made the right decision to come here now instead of with the Jet Programme in August. The experiences I'm having now and the people I'm meeting here are really changing my life! And I'm having such good luck to be stumbling across so many wonderful people. This is the right place and time for me, and it's very exciting!
Bonus: Check my Facebook for Photos! Includes my new bike, pictures from the train as I was looking for my schools, banking angel Medina and new friend Mie-chan! (in process of being uploaded; I'll add link later...must sleep now...)
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Nagori Cooking Spray
So today, among other things, I went to the Post Office to set up a Japanese postal bank account. This is common here, and postal accounts are the best because Post Offices here are open very late. They are also happy to have foreigners set up accounts with just the paper you get from City Hall saying you will soon have an Alien Registration Card, instead of needing the card in hand. As the card takes a month to process, and my work schedule seem to make it impossible to go to a local bank, the Post Office account is 100% the right choice. Also, Post Office ATM cards are accepted nationwide, while other accounts apparently aren't. (I have no idea why everyone doesn't just use a Postal Account, but I'm sure there are good reasons)
You think trying to choose a cell phone and buy a cell phone plan is hard if you don't speak the language (and if you do think that, you're right), it's nothing compared to setting up a bank account. Okay, as I haven't successfully bought a cell phone, but have managed to successfully get a bank account today (with the help of Medina, a wonderful woman who spot translated for me when she saw that I was completely lost), maybe these things are a tie. But we're getting ahead.
It's the little things that trip you up in when trying to live and work in a foreign country. For example, certain things just aren't easy to find here, like cheddar cheese, horseradish, and cooking spray. And some things, just because you are a foreigner, take a bit longer and are a bit harder to do. Like setting up any kind of account. Add that with the complication of being barely conversational (conversational is a bit of an overstatement I think) and you get a recipe for constant confusion.
First: the order of things on forms is different here than what I'm used to in the States. This is not just with the bank account form, but also with most forms. In the States, usually the spot for the year is on top, followed by your name, with two separate blanks for last name then first name. Here, sometimes the year is towards the top, but the next thing is usually your address. I can't tell you how many forms I've screwed up by putting my name in the address spot. Luckily I can recognize the Kanji for “name” (氏名）and “address”（住所）(thank you Heisig and Kanji Movie Method!) but sometimes, like at the bank today, these forms do not use the same vocabulary. I couldn't find “address” anywhere on this bank's form. So I had to ask one of the ladies working there for help, which is when I found out that I'd written my name in the address spot, again. (Which is what happens when you go on autopilot).
Another confusion about Japanese forms is that not only do they make the spot for date really small, so it's next near impossible to find, but also at least half of the time they use a different dating system for the year (which has to do with what year we are in the current Emperor's reign I think). I'm pretty sure I was born in Showa 22, and now we're in 53, but that's just a guess hazarded from looking at how people have corrected my paperwork, and not a sure deal (I really should look this up...why haven't I?). Lastly, Katakana and Kanji are the preferred ways of filling out forms. I'm actually still pretty bad with Katakana. The Katakana I don't use a lot, I'm always forgetting. Like NA (ナ）which is easily confused with ME (メ）(pronounced MAY) and NU (ヌ）among others.
A final point of confusion: because I have a middle name and it is listed on my passport, every form I fill out is expected to be filled out as it is listed on my passport (in Katakana, of course), which mean that I have to remember to use my middle name. I never do, because I never use it on forms at home. So usually a kind person has to remind me. And my middle name (Naima) has NA in it, and so it goes.
Oh, and I'm still memorizing my address. I've got the Kanji down, but the actual numbers of my street, etc, I keep forgetting. (Remember, small streets like mine aren't labeled here, so I never use it). I usually keep a copy of my address form in my bag so I can do this...even the Karaoke place requires that you write your address down every time (sigh) but I still don't have it totally memorized yet (wtf!).
But getting through the form aspect is within my Japanese capabilities (with a fair amount of questions, etc). What proved to be beyond me was the followup conversation. I take my number, go to the desk when called, and we're moving along nicely until...there's SOMETHING he (the postal banker guy) can't do. Then it's all “moshiauku arimasen” and “sumimasen” (so very sorry, sorry) but what it is he can't do, I haven't the foggiest idea.
I take a stab at asking, “Bank account, can't do?”
“Janakute. (blah, blah, blah) Moshiaku arimasen. (blah, blah, blah).”
“Bank account,” spread out my arms, “Yes” wave right hand, “or no”, wave left hand.
“You can do the setup here, but I can't give you,” holds out what looks like my bank passbook. “because you don't have the alien registration card.”
“So I don't have a bank account?”
Repeats the same thing faster and louder. (this is no help)
It's clear at this point that we're both getting very frustrated. And here's where my translation angel Medina comes to my rescue. She'd been mailing something at the window next to me, and like a ray of sun from the sky, she asks me “do you speak English.”
“YES!”
“Is it okay if I translate for you?”
(is it okay?! Of course it's okay!!! It's amazing!)
Within one minute, she's found out that what the nice gentleman was trying to say (at 90 miles an hour; I am going to work so hard to speak slowly for my kids...seriously, this was my object lesson): I do have a bank account, but instead of giving me the passbook now, because I don't have an alien registration card, they have to mail it to me.
That's it! I'm pretty sure I have most of the vocabulary necessary to try and understand this concept, but not with the speedy keigo the banker was using, and I was too stressed to remember how to ask for “kantan na nihongo”, ie: easy Japanese, so there we were.
I say “no problem” and we're moving along smoothly again.
It seems at this point, the guy has decided I'm an idiot because I didn't understand the first thing he was trying to say, so he gives me a detailed explanation about how it's important not to make my pin number for my ATM card my birthday or 1234 or something of the like. (really? But I love the ATM password I got from Spaceballs) All of which Medina gracefully translates, and then I have to sit and wait for a bit more before we complete the process. Which gives me the opportunity to chat with Medina. She's a really interesting (and busy person). In addition to running her own English School, she also runs a Church (clearly God sent her to me—I'm not a big church-goer but I know a miracle when I see one. She's from the Philippines but she has lived in Japan for 20 years. Hence her Japanese is top notch, of course.
I finish the bank account process--hopefully the card gets to me because I wasn't sure about my postal code so I told the post office it was most likely theirs, but it it doesn't arrive they'll send it back to the original Post Office, at which point, I can get a cell phone, yay!
After a brief stop at Jusco for groceries (and drying rods which I still don't have, but I seem to be doing okay drying my clothes outside on hangers and over the railing so oh well) and to see if there's somewhere close to buy a printer (I may end up just printing everything at the convenience store...for the next week...sigh...) I figure the next step is to try and find my schools.
I first turned to the materials I was given by Paul at Aisatsu: a train map of every train leaving the two Toyota Stations on one sheet and an incomprehensible bus schedule written in Kanji, of course. Both of these things are probably useful once I actually know where I'm going (I guess).
Next I turn to Google Maps, and am (with some work) able to get decent directions to four out of six of my schools. For the last two “Kosema” (Old Lake Interval) and “HigashiYama” (Eastern Mountain), Google Maps can only give me walking directions. So if I'm prepared to walk for an hour out into the wilds of Japan, I should easily be able to get to these schools. Right. I'm assuming the bus schedule is for these two schools. The bus's last stop is in Kosema Town (古瀬間町) but once I get off the bus, what to do next? And where is the other school on this bus route?
As an aside, I have no idea how anyone gets around without reading some Kanji in Japan. In a big city like Nagoya or Kyoto, sure, it's possible to get by with Hiragana, Katakana and Romanji, but in a smaller city like Toyota (which has English at the train stations, but only at some parts, and nothing on the buses), knowing some Kanji has been utterly essential towards me accomplishing basic tasks. Like running my appliances, setting up my internet, riding the buses, finding stores, etc. And if I was in a smaller town or in the countryside, I think my level of literacy wouldn't handle it at all.
And this is with being familiar in some way or another with about half of the Kanji (though I sometimes forget some), and knowing all of the common component primitives (which I memorized for Kanji Movie Method)! With Kanji Movie Method, I got through about 1,100 Kanji, but the last 200 or so were done in a real rush and didn't stick well. Also, like all of the quick memorization techniques, Kanji Movie Method is incomplete, you learn the meanings, writings, and the ON Yomi. No KUN Yomi. And since I couldn't finish it in the States (2 months isn't long enough), I only have about half of the On Yomi, so some Kanji I've memorized still have additional readings I haven't learned—I really wish I'd been able to finish this but I could only memorize so much in a day. The brain literally taps out...it's annoying. I also know most of the very common Kanji either from my last run through Heisig, from reading Manga and/or attempting to translate song lyrics.
Still, it's not enough. I'm doing my best to create little mnemonics to associate both new readings to Kanji I come across on a daily basis. Some I've already partially memorized and some are completely new to me. The trains are very nice for introducing you to new Kanji in a bite sized way because they usually give you the pronunciations of the next station as well as having a little LCD display of the Kanji for the next station as well. For example, the second Kanji for one of the train stops is 坪(TSUBO), so I think of it as being a little TSUnami that comes through in Japan every night and makes the DIRT EVEN. (the left half is EARTH/DIRT, the right half is EVEN). In Japan, they call these TSUBOs, but noBOdy talks about them. This sort of thing is a fun way to while away a train ride. Another one: Train station, EKI, has a team of horses on the left and a Shakuhachi flute on the right (I think...it looks like a capital R) so I remember a team of horses running through the ShinToyota Station playing the flute and leaving R shaped hoofprints behind. Entertaining and educational!
Having tapped my resources for Japan Land Navigation, I called my supervisor and asked him for more detailed directions. He asked me to email him with the information about the schools, which I did, including the school's websites (maybe he can read them—it's all Japanese to me) It's now Saturday and I'm still waiting to hear back from him. I'm also going to go to the train station Visitor's Center with the bus schedule and see what they can do for me. The people at the Visitor's Center, like the people at VITS Karaoke, are beginning to recognize me. (at VITS, they even automatically give me a Coke...maybe I'm going there a little too often...)
Which leads me to the less stressful part of my day: Karaoke! Yesterday (I started this blog entry last night and am finishing it up today, hence the confusion with time), I went to VITS and found a whole new section of awesome music: Nagori Songs. I found these Nagori songs because I have Nagori Yuki on my Ipod sung by Masaharu Fukuyama called Nagori-yuki. Last week, I thought it meant “bound for Nagori” but actually, what it means is “sorrow at parting with snow.” or “vestiges of snow.” The Kanji are 名 (name) + 残 (remainder), though it is usually spelled out in Hiragana. Nagori = sorrow at parting and/or vestiges of: it's a sad word. I didn't know the dictionary meaning of Nagori when I was singing, but judging by the music videos, which generally (with the exception of NagoriGrass x 2) featured a woman in Kimono staring wistfully at a body of water or beautiful field while standing under and umbrella (and in NagoriAme, there was a line about Nagori Umbrella), and/or a man in Yukuta drinking Sake and looking very serious/sad, I figured the word meant “longing,” and I think there are some aspects to that within the dictionary definition, at least if these music videos have any say it it.
There are a huge ton of Nagori songs: NagoriFune (pronounced NagoriBune = Sorrow at parting with a ship...for pretty much all of these Nagori songs, the first syllable of what is being Nagori'd about is voiced, though typically for the words alone the first syllable is unvoiced), NagoriZake (sorrow at parting with Sake), NagoriGawa (river) NagoriNatsu (summer), NagoriZouZou (This was a rock style Nagori song by the artist Kra with the Kanji for “grass” repeated 2x), NagoriAme (rain) etc. I worked my way through most of the Nagori songs (except the one which I couldn't read the Kanji for what was being Nagori'd, so I'm going to look that up this weekend) before moving to musicals again, where I found out that the “artist” that I'd thought on Monday was the musical Cats is really just all unfiled music. That was awesome, because I even found songs from Beauty and the Beast in Japanese!
After that, it was dinner at home and then off to Izakaya. Great times, too much Shuucho (tastes like gin but apparently isn't) and I got to try Akamiso (red miso) sauce over fish: a delicious specialty of this region. I also tried Ikka, one of the few things in Japan so far I haven't liked. Ikka is squid with liver in a stinky sauce. I'm not calling it stinky, Ito-san who had me try some told me specifically not to smell it because it was stinky. Since he enjoyed it, I thanked him kindly and let him finish it. For some reason though, he was very surprised I liked the Akamiso sauce (he said it was difficult to eat), which is funny because the akamiso sauce tasted like a sweet vaguely honey bbq sauce without the tang...what's not to like? Whereas the Ikka tasted like rubbery squid mixed with bits of liver in a stinky sauce. You get the idea.
Well, that was yesterday! Today I'm off to find these four schools, after which I'm going to head back to the city in time to meet up with Mie for dinner (who hopefully won't stand me up like Arisa did, go figure). With luck, when I return, I won't have spent too long wandering around a rice field.
You think trying to choose a cell phone and buy a cell phone plan is hard if you don't speak the language (and if you do think that, you're right), it's nothing compared to setting up a bank account. Okay, as I haven't successfully bought a cell phone, but have managed to successfully get a bank account today (with the help of Medina, a wonderful woman who spot translated for me when she saw that I was completely lost), maybe these things are a tie. But we're getting ahead.
It's the little things that trip you up in when trying to live and work in a foreign country. For example, certain things just aren't easy to find here, like cheddar cheese, horseradish, and cooking spray. And some things, just because you are a foreigner, take a bit longer and are a bit harder to do. Like setting up any kind of account. Add that with the complication of being barely conversational (conversational is a bit of an overstatement I think) and you get a recipe for constant confusion.
First: the order of things on forms is different here than what I'm used to in the States. This is not just with the bank account form, but also with most forms. In the States, usually the spot for the year is on top, followed by your name, with two separate blanks for last name then first name. Here, sometimes the year is towards the top, but the next thing is usually your address. I can't tell you how many forms I've screwed up by putting my name in the address spot. Luckily I can recognize the Kanji for “name” (氏名）and “address”（住所）(thank you Heisig and Kanji Movie Method!) but sometimes, like at the bank today, these forms do not use the same vocabulary. I couldn't find “address” anywhere on this bank's form. So I had to ask one of the ladies working there for help, which is when I found out that I'd written my name in the address spot, again. (Which is what happens when you go on autopilot).
Another confusion about Japanese forms is that not only do they make the spot for date really small, so it's next near impossible to find, but also at least half of the time they use a different dating system for the year (which has to do with what year we are in the current Emperor's reign I think). I'm pretty sure I was born in Showa 22, and now we're in 53, but that's just a guess hazarded from looking at how people have corrected my paperwork, and not a sure deal (I really should look this up...why haven't I?). Lastly, Katakana and Kanji are the preferred ways of filling out forms. I'm actually still pretty bad with Katakana. The Katakana I don't use a lot, I'm always forgetting. Like NA (ナ）which is easily confused with ME (メ）(pronounced MAY) and NU (ヌ）among others.
A final point of confusion: because I have a middle name and it is listed on my passport, every form I fill out is expected to be filled out as it is listed on my passport (in Katakana, of course), which mean that I have to remember to use my middle name. I never do, because I never use it on forms at home. So usually a kind person has to remind me. And my middle name (Naima) has NA in it, and so it goes.
Oh, and I'm still memorizing my address. I've got the Kanji down, but the actual numbers of my street, etc, I keep forgetting. (Remember, small streets like mine aren't labeled here, so I never use it). I usually keep a copy of my address form in my bag so I can do this...even the Karaoke place requires that you write your address down every time (sigh) but I still don't have it totally memorized yet (wtf!).
But getting through the form aspect is within my Japanese capabilities (with a fair amount of questions, etc). What proved to be beyond me was the followup conversation. I take my number, go to the desk when called, and we're moving along nicely until...there's SOMETHING he (the postal banker guy) can't do. Then it's all “moshiauku arimasen” and “sumimasen” (so very sorry, sorry) but what it is he can't do, I haven't the foggiest idea.
I take a stab at asking, “Bank account, can't do?”
“Janakute. (blah, blah, blah) Moshiaku arimasen. (blah, blah, blah).”
“Bank account,” spread out my arms, “Yes” wave right hand, “or no”, wave left hand.
“You can do the setup here, but I can't give you,” holds out what looks like my bank passbook. “because you don't have the alien registration card.”
“So I don't have a bank account?”
Repeats the same thing faster and louder. (this is no help)
It's clear at this point that we're both getting very frustrated. And here's where my translation angel Medina comes to my rescue. She'd been mailing something at the window next to me, and like a ray of sun from the sky, she asks me “do you speak English.”
“YES!”
“Is it okay if I translate for you?”
(is it okay?! Of course it's okay!!! It's amazing!)
Within one minute, she's found out that what the nice gentleman was trying to say (at 90 miles an hour; I am going to work so hard to speak slowly for my kids...seriously, this was my object lesson): I do have a bank account, but instead of giving me the passbook now, because I don't have an alien registration card, they have to mail it to me.
That's it! I'm pretty sure I have most of the vocabulary necessary to try and understand this concept, but not with the speedy keigo the banker was using, and I was too stressed to remember how to ask for “kantan na nihongo”, ie: easy Japanese, so there we were.
I say “no problem” and we're moving along smoothly again.
It seems at this point, the guy has decided I'm an idiot because I didn't understand the first thing he was trying to say, so he gives me a detailed explanation about how it's important not to make my pin number for my ATM card my birthday or 1234 or something of the like. (really? But I love the ATM password I got from Spaceballs) All of which Medina gracefully translates, and then I have to sit and wait for a bit more before we complete the process. Which gives me the opportunity to chat with Medina. She's a really interesting (and busy person). In addition to running her own English School, she also runs a Church (clearly God sent her to me—I'm not a big church-goer but I know a miracle when I see one. She's from the Philippines but she has lived in Japan for 20 years. Hence her Japanese is top notch, of course.
I finish the bank account process--hopefully the card gets to me because I wasn't sure about my postal code so I told the post office it was most likely theirs, but it it doesn't arrive they'll send it back to the original Post Office, at which point, I can get a cell phone, yay!
After a brief stop at Jusco for groceries (and drying rods which I still don't have, but I seem to be doing okay drying my clothes outside on hangers and over the railing so oh well) and to see if there's somewhere close to buy a printer (I may end up just printing everything at the convenience store...for the next week...sigh...) I figure the next step is to try and find my schools.
I first turned to the materials I was given by Paul at Aisatsu: a train map of every train leaving the two Toyota Stations on one sheet and an incomprehensible bus schedule written in Kanji, of course. Both of these things are probably useful once I actually know where I'm going (I guess).
Next I turn to Google Maps, and am (with some work) able to get decent directions to four out of six of my schools. For the last two “Kosema” (Old Lake Interval) and “HigashiYama” (Eastern Mountain), Google Maps can only give me walking directions. So if I'm prepared to walk for an hour out into the wilds of Japan, I should easily be able to get to these schools. Right. I'm assuming the bus schedule is for these two schools. The bus's last stop is in Kosema Town (古瀬間町) but once I get off the bus, what to do next? And where is the other school on this bus route?
As an aside, I have no idea how anyone gets around without reading some Kanji in Japan. In a big city like Nagoya or Kyoto, sure, it's possible to get by with Hiragana, Katakana and Romanji, but in a smaller city like Toyota (which has English at the train stations, but only at some parts, and nothing on the buses), knowing some Kanji has been utterly essential towards me accomplishing basic tasks. Like running my appliances, setting up my internet, riding the buses, finding stores, etc. And if I was in a smaller town or in the countryside, I think my level of literacy wouldn't handle it at all.
And this is with being familiar in some way or another with about half of the Kanji (though I sometimes forget some), and knowing all of the common component primitives (which I memorized for Kanji Movie Method)! With Kanji Movie Method, I got through about 1,100 Kanji, but the last 200 or so were done in a real rush and didn't stick well. Also, like all of the quick memorization techniques, Kanji Movie Method is incomplete, you learn the meanings, writings, and the ON Yomi. No KUN Yomi. And since I couldn't finish it in the States (2 months isn't long enough), I only have about half of the On Yomi, so some Kanji I've memorized still have additional readings I haven't learned—I really wish I'd been able to finish this but I could only memorize so much in a day. The brain literally taps out...it's annoying. I also know most of the very common Kanji either from my last run through Heisig, from reading Manga and/or attempting to translate song lyrics.
Still, it's not enough. I'm doing my best to create little mnemonics to associate both new readings to Kanji I come across on a daily basis. Some I've already partially memorized and some are completely new to me. The trains are very nice for introducing you to new Kanji in a bite sized way because they usually give you the pronunciations of the next station as well as having a little LCD display of the Kanji for the next station as well. For example, the second Kanji for one of the train stops is 坪(TSUBO), so I think of it as being a little TSUnami that comes through in Japan every night and makes the DIRT EVEN. (the left half is EARTH/DIRT, the right half is EVEN). In Japan, they call these TSUBOs, but noBOdy talks about them. This sort of thing is a fun way to while away a train ride. Another one: Train station, EKI, has a team of horses on the left and a Shakuhachi flute on the right (I think...it looks like a capital R) so I remember a team of horses running through the ShinToyota Station playing the flute and leaving R shaped hoofprints behind. Entertaining and educational!
Having tapped my resources for Japan Land Navigation, I called my supervisor and asked him for more detailed directions. He asked me to email him with the information about the schools, which I did, including the school's websites (maybe he can read them—it's all Japanese to me) It's now Saturday and I'm still waiting to hear back from him. I'm also going to go to the train station Visitor's Center with the bus schedule and see what they can do for me. The people at the Visitor's Center, like the people at VITS Karaoke, are beginning to recognize me. (at VITS, they even automatically give me a Coke...maybe I'm going there a little too often...)
Which leads me to the less stressful part of my day: Karaoke! Yesterday (I started this blog entry last night and am finishing it up today, hence the confusion with time), I went to VITS and found a whole new section of awesome music: Nagori Songs. I found these Nagori songs because I have Nagori Yuki on my Ipod sung by Masaharu Fukuyama called Nagori-yuki. Last week, I thought it meant “bound for Nagori” but actually, what it means is “sorrow at parting with snow.” or “vestiges of snow.” The Kanji are 名 (name) + 残 (remainder), though it is usually spelled out in Hiragana. Nagori = sorrow at parting and/or vestiges of: it's a sad word. I didn't know the dictionary meaning of Nagori when I was singing, but judging by the music videos, which generally (with the exception of NagoriGrass x 2) featured a woman in Kimono staring wistfully at a body of water or beautiful field while standing under and umbrella (and in NagoriAme, there was a line about Nagori Umbrella), and/or a man in Yukuta drinking Sake and looking very serious/sad, I figured the word meant “longing,” and I think there are some aspects to that within the dictionary definition, at least if these music videos have any say it it.
There are a huge ton of Nagori songs: NagoriFune (pronounced NagoriBune = Sorrow at parting with a ship...for pretty much all of these Nagori songs, the first syllable of what is being Nagori'd about is voiced, though typically for the words alone the first syllable is unvoiced), NagoriZake (sorrow at parting with Sake), NagoriGawa (river) NagoriNatsu (summer), NagoriZouZou (This was a rock style Nagori song by the artist Kra with the Kanji for “grass” repeated 2x), NagoriAme (rain) etc. I worked my way through most of the Nagori songs (except the one which I couldn't read the Kanji for what was being Nagori'd, so I'm going to look that up this weekend) before moving to musicals again, where I found out that the “artist” that I'd thought on Monday was the musical Cats is really just all unfiled music. That was awesome, because I even found songs from Beauty and the Beast in Japanese!
After that, it was dinner at home and then off to Izakaya. Great times, too much Shuucho (tastes like gin but apparently isn't) and I got to try Akamiso (red miso) sauce over fish: a delicious specialty of this region. I also tried Ikka, one of the few things in Japan so far I haven't liked. Ikka is squid with liver in a stinky sauce. I'm not calling it stinky, Ito-san who had me try some told me specifically not to smell it because it was stinky. Since he enjoyed it, I thanked him kindly and let him finish it. For some reason though, he was very surprised I liked the Akamiso sauce (he said it was difficult to eat), which is funny because the akamiso sauce tasted like a sweet vaguely honey bbq sauce without the tang...what's not to like? Whereas the Ikka tasted like rubbery squid mixed with bits of liver in a stinky sauce. You get the idea.
Well, that was yesterday! Today I'm off to find these four schools, after which I'm going to head back to the city in time to meet up with Mie for dinner (who hopefully won't stand me up like Arisa did, go figure). With luck, when I return, I won't have spent too long wandering around a rice field.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Aisatsu! Let's Meet My Schools. And Bonus Episode: Bike Shopping and Karaoke Revelations!
Today was another day ippai (packed full of) fun! I got up at about 8:30, a bit later than I'd have liked but considering how exhausted I was after my adventure in Kyoto, it makes sense. I made a delicious breakfast including hard boiled eggs, crackers with cream cheese (Philadelphia) and jelly, and sliced apples, then set out to buy a bicycle. I had to meet with Paul to go to my aisatsu (school introductions) at 1pm, which meant I had to be back at my apartment at noon at the latest in order to shower, change into my power suit, and get to the station in time. My original intention was to buy a used bike (furui jitensha – literally “old bike”) but that rapidly became derailed because finding the used bike place I'd been recommended turned out to be impossible.
The place I was looking for was supposedly near the Jusco. Of course, there are two Juscos in Toyota, so as I got closer to the Jusco I know, I saw a hotel and decided to ask for directions. Hotels generally give the best directions because they're used to dealing with out-of-towners and they have maps. People who work at maps are also incredibly patient. So when the hotel sent me back towards the Toyota train station for a combination used and new bike store, I was super excited. I only had to ask for directions one more time when I got close to where I thought I was supposed to be but couldn't find the place. A quick journey through a tiny gap in a fence behind the parking area got me to the neighboring street, and sure enough, there was the bike store. Unfortunately, as I learned when I arrived, I learned that this bike store did not sell used bikes, but instead only new bikes.
The gentleman who worked at the store (like just about everyone here) was very helpful. He pulled out a map from under his desk, and not only gave me directions to a second bike store, but also hand drew me a simpler map when it looked like I was drowning with the first one. So with handwritten notes and a new map in hand, I headed off again into the wilds of Toyota.
At about the point where I thought I should be at my destination, of course I didn't see the furui bike shop either, so I asked a lovely woman named Mae (found this out later) in a car for directions. She asked me back in excellent English if I was lost, and I said yes! Turns out she'd spent two years in Columbus, Ohio. She took one look at my map, and said that the place I was going was very far away. I thought I was going around the corner, but it was a much longer walk. We talked for a bit, and she even offered me a ride to the far away bike shop, but at this point it was approaching 11:00am (and time was growing short for me to return to my apartment and prepare for aisatsu). We also exchanged contact information, so now I have another Toyota City friend!
(note: being perpetually lost seems to be an excellent way to meet people in Toyota City)
We parted ways, and as I was just a block away from the Jusco, I decided the hell with saving money; I had about enough time to buy a new bike at Jusco and bike myself home. So I did. And it was an excellent decision. My new bike has all kinds of nifty attachments, including a light that is powered by the movement of my front wheel and a wheel lock on the back wheel that will keep folks from “borrowing” my bike to go somewhere and not returning it. (it seems here people don't consider that stealing, but the effect is the same, my $160 bike is GONE). But all it takes in Japan to keep folks from walking off with your bike is a little circular lock around the back wheel to make it too much trouble to carry off. Comparing this to Philly, where I've had one bike picked clean off a bike rack, so only the metal spine of the frame was left; or the second bike which was wrenched right off the pole; or the wheel that was plucked off of my third bike the day Obama won the election...you can imagine how shocking the relatively small degree of security necessary to protect ones stuff. People are just honest and nice here.
I also made a less pleasant discovery today: I realized this morning that though I'm eating less sugar, my gums were hurting. I brush twice a day, but I was developing some gingivitis. It seems (as I found out later when I asked Paul as we traveled to my schools) that in Japan, they don't add fluoride to the water. I knew fluoride toothpaste was not common here, but it didn't occur to me that it at least wasn't in the water. There is supposedly a fluoride mouthwash that they give to children in schools which I'm going to see if I can't find at the Jusco. Also, I'm going to ask my mom to ship me more mouthwash.
This is leading me to a quick aside about teeth and Japan. On Tuesday, as I bar hopped with my friends from the Izakaya, one of them asked me if my teeth were my natural teeth, and if not, how much had I spent on them. I was really confused by the question, and at first thought I didn't understand him, but after a bit of back and forth, I answered “yes, these are my natural teeth.” He complimented me on my teeth, which made me start paying attention to the teeth around me. And lots of people here do not have straight teeth. This isn't something you pay attention to in the USA, because practically everyone gets braces if they don't have straight teeth. If I hadn't been lucky enough to have straight teeth, I'd certainly have had braces. Many of my friends in Junior High and High School had braces or a retainer of some kind, and even as an adult, these products are still available and desirable.
At the hostess club on Tuesday, I noticed that one of the girls had very un-straight teeth, but apparently it didn't effect how she was perceived. I've also noticed (and this may be a function of my TV, which I'm convinced is not giving me the current Japanese channels but is instead some weird cable equivalent through my apartment that's about 5-6 years behind on all of its anime programming and doesn't appear to show dramas at all...still streaming these off of the internet...wtf) that I don't really see any commercials for mouthwash or toothpaste either. You can't go through a day of Primetime TV in the USA without seeing a variety of commercials for toothpaste, mouthwash, tooth whitening products, etc. Here in Toyota we get lots of beer commercials. I've heard most of the world isn't as focused on dental care as the United States—in Moldova, they didn't even believe in brushing baby teeth, so the teeth there were a disaster as teens and adults—but I'd assumed Japan, being in the developed world, would have a more US attitude on that. But while teeth here are generally clean, straight teeth seem to be an option, not a necessity. And their gums must hurt like hell. Unless the beer is helping keep things in check.
So back to my day: I took my bike home and got dressed for Aisatsu (school meetings). With a quick Onigiri for lunch, I was good to go. We visited six schools today! At first it was a little nerve wracking to meet my principals, vice principals and tanto-senseis (third in charge) but as I repeated my Jikoshoukai multiple times, and chatted (as best I could within the context of my Japanese and the relative formality of the situation), I began to get more relaxed, and by the last school, one of the teachers was even offering to have drinks after class. That's the Special Needs school and they are going to be a fun bunch!
Each school was very different. I have two small schools, Kosema and Ohata, Ohata's entire student population being less than 80 kids, one very large school Nishi-Homi (that's in the Portuguese speaking neighborhood), as well as a couple in between (Ibo and Higashi-Yama). The Vice Principal at Higashi-Yama especially was quite concerned with my speaking too much Japanese instead of English with the students (since my Japanese is so terrible, I doubt that's going to be much of a problem), and I was given the suggestion by Paul to pretend I didn't speak Japanese at all on school grounds, and even when asked a question in Japanese to just respond in English. Paul said that was good way to both practice my Japanese comprehension and get a leg up on what the kids were talking about as they wouldn't know I understood them. (kind of sneaky...eh...)
A short aside about the self introduction, just so you know what it is. Basically, this is a meeting between you, your company (if you have a company) and the school head staff (Principal, Vice Principal and Tanto-sensei, the third in command) You go to each school with your supervisor (in my case Paul, who is my supervisor's supervisor, as my supervisor has a huge number of people and needed to delegate some). Usually by way of the staff room, you are then led into the Principal's office, where there is an exchange of business cards, lots of bowing and “onegai shimasu” and more bowing, then everyone sits down. My meetings generally included a Principal, Vice Principal and Tanto-Sensei (third in command) as well as an occasional English teacher or Home Room Teacher.
As we sat, my supervisor, Paul, explained a bit about the company, gave them some literature about how we worked as well as my (very incomplete) Japanese resume, and then told them a little about me (I'm apparently very Genki/Happy and Energetic, no shock there). At some point at the beginning of the sit down portion, a woman would come in and serve everyone either tea or coffee. We were encouraged to drink. Depending on the school, some of the staff would start asking me questions like how I was getting to school, how long I'd been in Japan, etc and I would answer them as best as I could. At some point in this process, I got to give my official Jikoshoukai (self introduction), after which there were varying amounts of conversation and questions, and everyone left with smiles and more bowing.
Each school handled this aisatsu a bit differently. In one school, we were very informal and talked in the main hallway. At most schools, we met in the Principal's office. In addition to giving my Jikoshoukai in the Principal's office, I also got to give my self introduction to the entire staff at Ibo, which was a bit nerve wracking but ultimately fun. I am quite happy that we got to do this school meeting before my showing up randomly at some point during the week to teach classes. It would be much harder to just walk into the school on a random weekday and then try to get into the swing of things. At least this way someone in the school has actually laid eyes upon me and knows what I'm there to do.
As an aside, I am also very glad at the Izakaya that one of the folks said my nickname “Bashu” was like “Basketo-Shoes,” (Basketball Shoes), which the Japanese shorten to “Bashu” as well. So I was able to say “Please call me Vash, like Basketo Shoes,” for my Jikoshoukai, which was a big hit. Everyone found it to be hysterical, and it really helped loosen up the mood. By Toyota Yogo (the last school and most relaxed), I also asked the Principal (I think it was the Principal) if he was familiar with Philadelphia Cream Cheese. They sell it here in the supermarkets, a shock to me. With a little descriptive help from Paul, the Principal recognized Cream Cheese and “Yes,” to which I followed up that both Cream Cheese and I came from Philadelphia. That was a real crackup too for everyone.
In regards to Japanese comprehension, I must admit I was very surprised at how much Japanese I was able to understand today during my many school meetings. A lot of information was given to me in Japanese by various folks, and I understood maybe 60-70% of it. That's pretty shocking, especially considering the speed at which people were speaking. I think something in my brain is generally beginning to click, because I'm understanding a lot more and when I speak, people seem more able to understand me. It's really exciting!
For example, after attempting again today to buy a cell phone--this time at AU, which I'm going to go with because they have a good cheap plan BUT I need to setup a bank account first, a job for tomorrow at the Post Office, your best friend here in Japan along with the Hyaku-en Store, your local Izakaya bar, a good English map and the Jusco--I was able to much more clearly express what I wanted and understand what the woman was telling me (though again, lack of vocabulary is KILLING me). (that last one felt like a Barthlme sentence)
But it was afterwards, taking advantage of the “on a weekday if you're by yourself you can do Karaoke from 4 to 8pm or any portion of that time for 500 yen special” at VITS, that I had my real Karaoke comprehension revelation. I did a song called Naruhodo by the Mass Missile and suddenly, as I was singing with the lyrics, I UNDERSTOOD what the song actually MEANT! I've had this song on my computer for YEARS, and I've done it twice before here (it's an excellent song because it is slow and has some repetition) but this time, I knew what the song was about. I'd been shifting the lyrics to that song in my head in a state of confusion for YEARS, and suddenly, I got it! Wow!
Also, I found out (on Monday actually, but really took advantage of it today) that many popular musicals that I love have also been done in Japanese. The three real gems I found today on the playlist were Tomorrow from Annie, Memory from Cats, and the Japanese version of “I Still Believe” (今も信じてる）from Miss Saigon. The last one especially was excellent because I've been trying to do that song in English since I've started doing Karaoke in the States, and today I actually got to sing it in Japanese! Also, very exciting, most of the vocabulary of the song were words I knew, so it was relatively easy to sing. Score! Also, they have (which I discovered on Monday) “Another Day” from Rent, again in Japanese. That's my favorite song from Rent, and by the time I get back to Philly, I intend to have that one memorized in Japanese as well.
There were also some songs from Wicked (in Japanese) and some Japanese musicals that I want to write down the titles for and see if I can't find on CD. It's really exciting to sing songs from musicals you know fairly well in Japanese for Karaoke because you don't have to think of the tune; you can just read along and see how ideas originally in English are translated (not directly) into Japanese. As an aside, Karaoke really is improving my site reading speed and Kanji recognition, and one of my Kyoto Senseis (Vice Principals) hugely loves Karoake, so we have that in common.
In short, it's been another great day here! Today was a bit more business focused, instead of traveling about being a tourist, and I can feel my attention shifting from pure fun to preparing for my job. Considering how awesome the staff and kids I met were today--the kids that I saw all greeted me with a cheerful “hello” or “hi” and some even made it through the “how are you, I'm fine, I'm fine too” interchange that is very popular here—I'm very excited to start.
The place I was looking for was supposedly near the Jusco. Of course, there are two Juscos in Toyota, so as I got closer to the Jusco I know, I saw a hotel and decided to ask for directions. Hotels generally give the best directions because they're used to dealing with out-of-towners and they have maps. People who work at maps are also incredibly patient. So when the hotel sent me back towards the Toyota train station for a combination used and new bike store, I was super excited. I only had to ask for directions one more time when I got close to where I thought I was supposed to be but couldn't find the place. A quick journey through a tiny gap in a fence behind the parking area got me to the neighboring street, and sure enough, there was the bike store. Unfortunately, as I learned when I arrived, I learned that this bike store did not sell used bikes, but instead only new bikes.
The gentleman who worked at the store (like just about everyone here) was very helpful. He pulled out a map from under his desk, and not only gave me directions to a second bike store, but also hand drew me a simpler map when it looked like I was drowning with the first one. So with handwritten notes and a new map in hand, I headed off again into the wilds of Toyota.
At about the point where I thought I should be at my destination, of course I didn't see the furui bike shop either, so I asked a lovely woman named Mae (found this out later) in a car for directions. She asked me back in excellent English if I was lost, and I said yes! Turns out she'd spent two years in Columbus, Ohio. She took one look at my map, and said that the place I was going was very far away. I thought I was going around the corner, but it was a much longer walk. We talked for a bit, and she even offered me a ride to the far away bike shop, but at this point it was approaching 11:00am (and time was growing short for me to return to my apartment and prepare for aisatsu). We also exchanged contact information, so now I have another Toyota City friend!
(note: being perpetually lost seems to be an excellent way to meet people in Toyota City)
We parted ways, and as I was just a block away from the Jusco, I decided the hell with saving money; I had about enough time to buy a new bike at Jusco and bike myself home. So I did. And it was an excellent decision. My new bike has all kinds of nifty attachments, including a light that is powered by the movement of my front wheel and a wheel lock on the back wheel that will keep folks from “borrowing” my bike to go somewhere and not returning it. (it seems here people don't consider that stealing, but the effect is the same, my $160 bike is GONE). But all it takes in Japan to keep folks from walking off with your bike is a little circular lock around the back wheel to make it too much trouble to carry off. Comparing this to Philly, where I've had one bike picked clean off a bike rack, so only the metal spine of the frame was left; or the second bike which was wrenched right off the pole; or the wheel that was plucked off of my third bike the day Obama won the election...you can imagine how shocking the relatively small degree of security necessary to protect ones stuff. People are just honest and nice here.
I also made a less pleasant discovery today: I realized this morning that though I'm eating less sugar, my gums were hurting. I brush twice a day, but I was developing some gingivitis. It seems (as I found out later when I asked Paul as we traveled to my schools) that in Japan, they don't add fluoride to the water. I knew fluoride toothpaste was not common here, but it didn't occur to me that it at least wasn't in the water. There is supposedly a fluoride mouthwash that they give to children in schools which I'm going to see if I can't find at the Jusco. Also, I'm going to ask my mom to ship me more mouthwash.
This is leading me to a quick aside about teeth and Japan. On Tuesday, as I bar hopped with my friends from the Izakaya, one of them asked me if my teeth were my natural teeth, and if not, how much had I spent on them. I was really confused by the question, and at first thought I didn't understand him, but after a bit of back and forth, I answered “yes, these are my natural teeth.” He complimented me on my teeth, which made me start paying attention to the teeth around me. And lots of people here do not have straight teeth. This isn't something you pay attention to in the USA, because practically everyone gets braces if they don't have straight teeth. If I hadn't been lucky enough to have straight teeth, I'd certainly have had braces. Many of my friends in Junior High and High School had braces or a retainer of some kind, and even as an adult, these products are still available and desirable.
At the hostess club on Tuesday, I noticed that one of the girls had very un-straight teeth, but apparently it didn't effect how she was perceived. I've also noticed (and this may be a function of my TV, which I'm convinced is not giving me the current Japanese channels but is instead some weird cable equivalent through my apartment that's about 5-6 years behind on all of its anime programming and doesn't appear to show dramas at all...still streaming these off of the internet...wtf) that I don't really see any commercials for mouthwash or toothpaste either. You can't go through a day of Primetime TV in the USA without seeing a variety of commercials for toothpaste, mouthwash, tooth whitening products, etc. Here in Toyota we get lots of beer commercials. I've heard most of the world isn't as focused on dental care as the United States—in Moldova, they didn't even believe in brushing baby teeth, so the teeth there were a disaster as teens and adults—but I'd assumed Japan, being in the developed world, would have a more US attitude on that. But while teeth here are generally clean, straight teeth seem to be an option, not a necessity. And their gums must hurt like hell. Unless the beer is helping keep things in check.
So back to my day: I took my bike home and got dressed for Aisatsu (school meetings). With a quick Onigiri for lunch, I was good to go. We visited six schools today! At first it was a little nerve wracking to meet my principals, vice principals and tanto-senseis (third in charge) but as I repeated my Jikoshoukai multiple times, and chatted (as best I could within the context of my Japanese and the relative formality of the situation), I began to get more relaxed, and by the last school, one of the teachers was even offering to have drinks after class. That's the Special Needs school and they are going to be a fun bunch!
Each school was very different. I have two small schools, Kosema and Ohata, Ohata's entire student population being less than 80 kids, one very large school Nishi-Homi (that's in the Portuguese speaking neighborhood), as well as a couple in between (Ibo and Higashi-Yama). The Vice Principal at Higashi-Yama especially was quite concerned with my speaking too much Japanese instead of English with the students (since my Japanese is so terrible, I doubt that's going to be much of a problem), and I was given the suggestion by Paul to pretend I didn't speak Japanese at all on school grounds, and even when asked a question in Japanese to just respond in English. Paul said that was good way to both practice my Japanese comprehension and get a leg up on what the kids were talking about as they wouldn't know I understood them. (kind of sneaky...eh...)
A short aside about the self introduction, just so you know what it is. Basically, this is a meeting between you, your company (if you have a company) and the school head staff (Principal, Vice Principal and Tanto-sensei, the third in command) You go to each school with your supervisor (in my case Paul, who is my supervisor's supervisor, as my supervisor has a huge number of people and needed to delegate some). Usually by way of the staff room, you are then led into the Principal's office, where there is an exchange of business cards, lots of bowing and “onegai shimasu” and more bowing, then everyone sits down. My meetings generally included a Principal, Vice Principal and Tanto-Sensei (third in command) as well as an occasional English teacher or Home Room Teacher.
As we sat, my supervisor, Paul, explained a bit about the company, gave them some literature about how we worked as well as my (very incomplete) Japanese resume, and then told them a little about me (I'm apparently very Genki/Happy and Energetic, no shock there). At some point at the beginning of the sit down portion, a woman would come in and serve everyone either tea or coffee. We were encouraged to drink. Depending on the school, some of the staff would start asking me questions like how I was getting to school, how long I'd been in Japan, etc and I would answer them as best as I could. At some point in this process, I got to give my official Jikoshoukai (self introduction), after which there were varying amounts of conversation and questions, and everyone left with smiles and more bowing.
Each school handled this aisatsu a bit differently. In one school, we were very informal and talked in the main hallway. At most schools, we met in the Principal's office. In addition to giving my Jikoshoukai in the Principal's office, I also got to give my self introduction to the entire staff at Ibo, which was a bit nerve wracking but ultimately fun. I am quite happy that we got to do this school meeting before my showing up randomly at some point during the week to teach classes. It would be much harder to just walk into the school on a random weekday and then try to get into the swing of things. At least this way someone in the school has actually laid eyes upon me and knows what I'm there to do.
As an aside, I am also very glad at the Izakaya that one of the folks said my nickname “Bashu” was like “Basketo-Shoes,” (Basketball Shoes), which the Japanese shorten to “Bashu” as well. So I was able to say “Please call me Vash, like Basketo Shoes,” for my Jikoshoukai, which was a big hit. Everyone found it to be hysterical, and it really helped loosen up the mood. By Toyota Yogo (the last school and most relaxed), I also asked the Principal (I think it was the Principal) if he was familiar with Philadelphia Cream Cheese. They sell it here in the supermarkets, a shock to me. With a little descriptive help from Paul, the Principal recognized Cream Cheese and “Yes,” to which I followed up that both Cream Cheese and I came from Philadelphia. That was a real crackup too for everyone.
In regards to Japanese comprehension, I must admit I was very surprised at how much Japanese I was able to understand today during my many school meetings. A lot of information was given to me in Japanese by various folks, and I understood maybe 60-70% of it. That's pretty shocking, especially considering the speed at which people were speaking. I think something in my brain is generally beginning to click, because I'm understanding a lot more and when I speak, people seem more able to understand me. It's really exciting!
For example, after attempting again today to buy a cell phone--this time at AU, which I'm going to go with because they have a good cheap plan BUT I need to setup a bank account first, a job for tomorrow at the Post Office, your best friend here in Japan along with the Hyaku-en Store, your local Izakaya bar, a good English map and the Jusco--I was able to much more clearly express what I wanted and understand what the woman was telling me (though again, lack of vocabulary is KILLING me). (that last one felt like a Barthlme sentence)
But it was afterwards, taking advantage of the “on a weekday if you're by yourself you can do Karaoke from 4 to 8pm or any portion of that time for 500 yen special” at VITS, that I had my real Karaoke comprehension revelation. I did a song called Naruhodo by the Mass Missile and suddenly, as I was singing with the lyrics, I UNDERSTOOD what the song actually MEANT! I've had this song on my computer for YEARS, and I've done it twice before here (it's an excellent song because it is slow and has some repetition) but this time, I knew what the song was about. I'd been shifting the lyrics to that song in my head in a state of confusion for YEARS, and suddenly, I got it! Wow!
Also, I found out (on Monday actually, but really took advantage of it today) that many popular musicals that I love have also been done in Japanese. The three real gems I found today on the playlist were Tomorrow from Annie, Memory from Cats, and the Japanese version of “I Still Believe” (今も信じてる）from Miss Saigon. The last one especially was excellent because I've been trying to do that song in English since I've started doing Karaoke in the States, and today I actually got to sing it in Japanese! Also, very exciting, most of the vocabulary of the song were words I knew, so it was relatively easy to sing. Score! Also, they have (which I discovered on Monday) “Another Day” from Rent, again in Japanese. That's my favorite song from Rent, and by the time I get back to Philly, I intend to have that one memorized in Japanese as well.
There were also some songs from Wicked (in Japanese) and some Japanese musicals that I want to write down the titles for and see if I can't find on CD. It's really exciting to sing songs from musicals you know fairly well in Japanese for Karaoke because you don't have to think of the tune; you can just read along and see how ideas originally in English are translated (not directly) into Japanese. As an aside, Karaoke really is improving my site reading speed and Kanji recognition, and one of my Kyoto Senseis (Vice Principals) hugely loves Karoake, so we have that in common.
In short, it's been another great day here! Today was a bit more business focused, instead of traveling about being a tourist, and I can feel my attention shifting from pure fun to preparing for my job. Considering how awesome the staff and kids I met were today--the kids that I saw all greeted me with a cheerful “hello” or “hi” and some even made it through the “how are you, I'm fine, I'm fine too” interchange that is very popular here—I'm very excited to start.
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