Golden Week Part 2: 3 Days in Gifu

Last week consisted of two days of work (Monday and Friday) and then Tuesday – Thursday were National Holidays! Woo! On Tuesday and Wednesday, I went to the Toki Ceramics Festival. It’s a famous ceramics event that gathers hundreds of vendors and about 35,000 visitors over the course of 3 days.

I got to bargain for dishes and glasses and I was even lucky enough to get asked if I wanted to try the pottery wheel. Obviously I did, since I had never done it before. If you wanted to see something funny, try watching a Japanese man explain how to make a mug to an American woman in 95% Japanese and 5% English. Yes, very funny, especially when you have no idea what the man is telling you…Oh, I laughed hard. However, about 30 minutes later, I created 3 masterpieces (if you ask me). It was fun and I can’t wait to see how they turn out.

On Thursday, I went into Nagoya for some civilization. I visited Starbucks, the foreign food store, the Apple Store, and the English Library where I checked out some books. A good, fun day if you ask me.

Having a quick snack after golf

And that was the extent of my official Golden Week. This past weekend I stayed home with a cold on Saturday and Sunday consisted of Mallet Golf (think metal croquet mallets, wood/plastic balls, the course is in the mountains (trees, rocks, even rugs are obstacles, or helpers). It was interesting and in the tournament I cam in 7^th out of 42 people, shooting a lovely 11 under par, 61. Go me.

The rest of my Sunday was spent in fear of bugs. Yes, right as I was getting ready for sleep, the first centipede of the year crawled under the chair I was sitting in. Scared me half to death before I thoroughly sprayed it with bug killer and took it outside. On Tuesday morning, I packed up all of my clothes and dishes and thanks to another male ALT (who basically did everything, I’m way too chicken), we set off 2 centipede and other bug bombs inside my apartment. Hopefully they all die and don’t come back (however, I’ve seen several lurking on the walls outside of my apartment window…eek). It’s only May, I can’t imagine 5-6 more months of this. If you are wondering the number 1 thing I don’t like about Japan, it is the bugs. Hands down. No question.

School lunch: milk, orange slice, soy beans and small fish (ick), veggies, green tea, udon noodles, sesame seed dressing for the noodles (the real soup had pork)

Golden Week Part 1: 3 Day Weekend: Miyajima, Hiroshima, and Osaka

Yes, 3 days, 3 locations. It was an epic weekend for miles traveled both on trains and on foot.

(just a note: this happened over the weekend of April 29th-May 1st)...

On Friday, I took the 5:45am train to Nagoya, and hopped on the 7:30am train to Hiroshima. Since I planned this trip literally last minute, the reserved seats on the Shinkansen were full. My choice was to risk standing for 2.5 hours or buy a “Green Seat” which is like First/Business class on a plane. So, I sucked it up and bought a “Green Seat” (which aren’t green…). It was totally worth it! Too bad I’ll probably never do it again.

After arriving in Hiroshima, I took a local train for 25 minutes heading southwest to Miyajima. It’s a small little town with nothing except for one of the most famous locations in Japan. It’s said to be one of the three most beautiful places in Japan. I’ve been to one of the three back in Middle School, it’s a place called Amanohashidate or the Bridge to the Heavens. I wanted to visit it again on this trip, but the trains would’ve gotten really expensive. Another time! So once I arrived at the station, I took a boat to Miyajima because it’s on it’s own island. The main attraction of why it’s one the beautiful places in Japan, is the red torii gate (red torii gates are a staple of Shinto Shrines). However, most torii gates are on land, this one was set in the ocean. During high tide it looks like the gate is floating in the water (I’ve seen photos, they looked pretty cool). However, I was not there for high tide. Instead, I was able to walk out to the gate itself, which was pretty cool too. I walked around the island, went into the Itsukushima (translation: beautiful island) Shrine. I walked around through the shops, bought a wonderful keychain that a lady wrote my name on. Then, I decided to take the tram up to the top of the island and from there I could see all around. I could even see Hiroshima. After taking the tram back down, I was off to Hiroshima.

The 5 Storied Pagoda at Miyajima

Did I forget to mention the wild deer? Everywhere and very friendly

"saying cheese" with the famous torii gate

Leaving the island...You can see the red torii gate on the right

My first stop in Hiroshima was the Hiroshima Castle. It wasn’t as cool as I had hoped; it was a replica (due to the Atomic bomb) because it was a mere 1km (.6 miles) from the hypocenter. After walking around the castle and its grounds, I was ready to ditch my backpack and grab some dinner. I found my hostel (which was great), and went to the main shopping/entertainment area for dinner. What wonderful, fantastic Japanese food did I eat? Oh, Subway. Some of the food items I truly miss are turkey and whole wheat bread, neither of which exist in Japan. Sad, I know. However, ham and white bread are easily found everywhere, convenience stores, grocery stores, subway/train markets, street vendors, school lunch…you get the drift. While eating dinner, I was lucky enough to watch the Royal Wedding on my phone. It was a sight and I bet their lunch/dinner was classier than my Subway sandwich, but oh well.

Hiroshima Castle

After some shopping, I headed to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, which is a small island that was about 5 minutes walking from my hostel. I walked around the park and made my way to the A-Bomb Dome. It was a very interesting moment, looking at some of the only remains from the bombing. The dome was only 500 meters or so from the hypo-center, so I’m surprised it halfway survived. A few pictures later and I was ready to head back to the hostel. I learned that traveling alone can be very lonely, especially when the evening comes and you have no one to explore the nightlife with.

Hiroshima Peace Park at night

Day 2: Saturday. I started the day bright and early and at about 8:15am I headed to the Hiroshima Peace Museum because I knew it would be crowded. Oh man, I was right. I got there 5 minutes after opening and it was so crowded. I rented an English headset and I was off. Before I went to Hiroshima, I read differing accounts of the mood I would be in after I left the museum, I read that I could be extremely sad or just a normal mood. Well, 90 minutes later and I was in the same mood, but with a far greater understanding of what happened when America dropped the “Fat Boy” on Hiroshima. I really appreciated the work and research done by the museum, and if you are ever in Japan, I would recommend going through this museum ($0.75 to enter). There were videos, pictures, and stories written by survivors. It was a very humbling experience and after seeing the damage caused for generations, I have a much greater appreciation for the reduction of nuclear weapons.

"Peace" made out of cranes

So, after the museum I walked the park grounds. I saw the Cenotaph of where all of the names of the Atomic bomb and its aftereffects (i.e. radiation) victims are written, the Flame of Light (a flame that won’t be extinguished until nuclear weapons leave this planet), and once again, I visited the A-Bomb Dome, but this time in light. After the peace park, there really wasn’t anything else for me to see in Hiroshima, so off I went to Osaka.

The A-Bomb Dome

Once in Osaka, I made my way to my last hostel and dropped off my increasingly heavy backpack…who knows why. I went to Osaka Castle, a towering castle surrounded by a large garden/grounds area. I had been there once or twice before, but it was nice to get a refresher. Inside the castle is a museum, but my favorite part of any castle is the view. On the 8^th floor of the castle there was a nice view of Osaka.

Osaka Castle

From the top of the castle to the subway station (which is just outside of the castle grounds) took me 25 minutes. That's how big it is! I made my way to a famous shopping area. I stopped in an H&M store, something I haven’t seen in forever. It was so crowded that even touching the clothes was difficult. Just outside of H&M was the famous Gilco man. When you see photos of Osaka in guidebooks, the Gilco man is always there. So of course, I got my photo with him.

Finally it was time for dinner and I decided to treat myself to the American-style Hard Rock Café. Yes, interesting choice I know, but when salads aren’t offered at everyday restaurants here in Japan, you tend to really crave a salad. Now, don’t get me wrong, Japan has plenty of salads, that is if you like cabbage…yeah, incredibly boring, so you see my point. A real salad? Yes please.

View of the Osaka Skyline

On the observation deck, my shoes looked awesome :)

Saturday night I headed back to the hostel where I met some people from China and South Korea. Let’s just say we all had Japanese in common…When was the last time you saw an American, a South Korean, and a Chinese person speaking in Japanese? Yes, comical I know. And that was my Saturday.

Day 3: Sunday. Let me start off with a story. I love the beach. I love the ocean. And, I love aquariums. I’m not sure what started my love of aquariums, maybe when I was a kid I was jealous of all of the cool places marine animals got to go. Who knows? I do remember a time when I was fairly young, my mom, my sister, my aunt, and my two cousins and made a daytrip to see Keiko the Killer Whale. Yes, it was still a big deal back then. We made it there and we couldn’t see Keiko. I believe the term to express a child’s feelings at that point is: extreme anger, disappointment, and frustration. Yes, so that story aside, I’ve really enjoyed aquariums since then. I even forced my father to take me to one when we were at Pebble Beach (I don’t think he enjoyed it as much as I did). What I’m trying to say is that I tend to remember my aquarium trips, so maybe that’s why they mean so much to me.

The Osaka Aquarium

So, on Sunday morning I went to the Osaka aquarium. But not before a Starbucks Latte! It is pretty famous throughout Japan, so I got there for opening, but I still had to wait 25 minutes to get my ticket. Once inside, it was so incredibly crowded I feared that if the fire alarm went off, some kids wouldn’t make it to safety. However, no alarm went off so I didn’t have to test that theory, thank god. It was a holiday weekend, so of course it was going to be busy. After a while, the crowds dispersed throughout the 8 floors of the aquarium. I watched the penguins get fed and the dolphins play games. In one word: successful (and fun).

After the aquarium, I visited a few more locations in Osaka known for tourism, but there really isn’t anything exciting to share with you. Exhausted and running low on yen, I headed back to the train station and took the next Shinkansen home.

Almost two weeks later and I would say this trip was a success. However, somewhere in Osaka, I lost my Alien Registration Card, which is basically an ID Card that says it’s legal for me to be in Japan past 90 days. Losing that card is NOT good. On Monday, May 9^th, I went to the Kani City Police Station with my supervisor to explain how stupid foreigners can be. It’s not like I wanted to lose this thing, it is extremely important and I won’t get another one until June. Not a problem, except I need to take my drivers licenses test in Japan and to do that I need my Alien Registration Card. Oops. I guess we all lose important things, it’s just part of life.

The Smallest of Worlds

Ok, first: long time, no posting. Sorry!

On with the show! I've decided that the world seriously gets smaller by the day. Today, I had my first lesson at the smallest elementary school. These kids are awesome, enough said. However, after lunch there was no one left at school, except for two office attendants and me. Lonely indeed. Since a 5-hour workday was too short, I stayed in the office studying Japanese and editing lesson plans. Due to the new school year, there are many faces I don’t know. At the smallest school, only about 3 people changed positions. I was talking with one of the office attendants, and she went on to tell me about her older sister who lives in America after I said I was from America. I told her I was from Oregon, and she said her sister lives near Portland. Wow. She went on to explain that nobody knows Vancouver, Washington, but everyone knows Vancouver, Canada. So her older sister, lives in Vancouver, Wa. Crazy right? 5000 or so miles away from home, and I meet someone whose sister lives in the city next to mine. When was the last time that happened to you? (Not recently, I’m guessing). So, we talked for 20 minutes or so about life in Japan, health insurance, green cards, being a teacher in Japan, etc. I was quite impressed with my Japanese ability. After 8 months in Japan, I was starting to wonder if any Japanese would come back to me.

Aside from that story, I don’t have too much news. I’m studying for a Japanese Language Proficiency Test in July…hopefully I pass! This weekend is the start of the epic, National Holiday bazaar. What does that mean exactly? Well, Friday is a National Holiday, and then next week Tuesday-Thursday are National Holidays! Yippie. Time to do some traveling!

I’ve got some accommodations reserved, which was the most important part (I figure there are plenty of trains…) I’ve decided to make my trip a little shorter than I already planned. I’m going to take the train to just Southwest of Hiroshima, where I will see Miyajima, which is supposed to be one of the top 3 most beautiful views in Japan. Next, I’ll head to Hiroshima, where I will spend the night. And finally, after touring Hiroshima on Saturday, I’ll take the train to Osaka, where I’ll spend the night. On Sunday, seeing the sights of Osaka, and finally returning home Sunday night. Hopefully all goes well! The best part, is that I work Monday, and then have 3 more days off….I should really start planning my Tuesday-Thursday adventure.

Since I haven’t had a lot of things to take pictures of, here are some school lunches to keep you occupied. These were from Monday-Wednesday of this week.

Photo 1: Milk, Chimaki (the green thing, it's mochi...sticky/sweet rice, wrapped in grass), green tea, salad (carrots, burdock root, and other Japanese veggies), fish, rice with chicken, bamboo, and other goodies in it.

Photo 2: Salad (cucumber, corn, daikon, carrots), soy beans covered in cocoa powder (YUM), mini apple jelly for dessert, green tea, milk, spaghetti (pork in the meat sauce, so I mix it with my veggies)

Photo 3: green tea, orange, milk, white rice, salad (cucumber, corn, carrot, daikon). some other pork product too. it got wiped off my plate!

Also, I have to say THANK YOU, to my wonderful Aunt and Uncle, who sent me an Easter Care Package. Holy smokes. You made my Wednesday night.

The Ever So Short Life of Cherry Blossoms

The title really tells the whole story. The people in Japan (I couldn’t say Japanese people because that wouldn’t include all of us foreigners!) excitedly await the cherry blossoms every year. There are websites dedicated to tracking the cherry blossom season all across Japan (and yes, timing differs by months). Let’s just say it’s a big deal. This past weekend, I took in about as much cherry blossoms (or sakura) as possible. Saturday I spent the evening at a fellow ALTs apartment, where we played a variety of board games and other games…

Sunday morning I drove back to my apartment (90 minutes, not too bad) and early in the afternoon, the Watanabe’s picked me up and off we went to Inuyama Castle. Does that name ring a bell? Well, yes I went there twice last weekend, so it was a little redundant, but Inuyama has the best cherry blossoms. We walked around the castle, but didn’t go in because the line was 60 minutes long. We stopped and took numerous pictures with the cherry blossoms. Finally, I wasn’t the only person taking pictures all the time! We stopped at a small Italian restaurant directly across the river from the castle for some coffee and a snack. I didn’t know why we were going to an Italian place for coffee until I realized the view of the castle (amazing). After getting back in the car, we headed out to find more cherry blossoms. About 30 minutes later, we had found ourselves a small river that had cherry blossoms going down each side, gorgeous. After that, we made our way back to Mitake and soon enough I was back home.

A little cleaning, gardening, and that about wrapped up my Sunday afternoon.

Let The School Year Begin!

Mitake

Well, I’ve officially survived 8 straight days at the BOE (or my “head” office/desk). I’ve edited several lesson plans, developed some kick-ass games (or at least, I think so), learned how to make worksheets, crosswords, and word search activities. Basically, I’ve done a lot of preparation for the new school year that I didn't do in August because I had no idea what was going on at the time! The sakura trees have fit full bloom and sadly, they will only be around for a few more days…On Thursday, Mr. Watanabe (his wife speaks English…) picked me up during working hours and took me to a sakura watching/bbq party. There were 5 of us, and all teachers who I had met before. We roasted rice, tofu, chicken, pork, and loads of veggies. Plus, with the rice, we made gohemochi (drilled rice covered in miso sauce…ah-mazing!). We sat and talked for a few hours, or in all honesty, they talked and I tried to comprehend. We discussed the earthquake and tsunami, and if my family and friends in America were worried (I had to admit I went back to America briefly). Of course, the conversation went onto the Fukushima Nuclear Plant…yikes. Eventually, the topic changed and that's about when my involvement in the speaking part of the conversation stopped. Oh well. I did learn new words, as I frantically looked them up on my phone dictionary (thank you i-Phone).

BBQ Party!

So there you have it, lots of work/sitting/planning/waiting/wishing (Jack Johnson reference there). Talking via skype with my roommate from college brightened my Thursday night. Thank god for the internet, I can’t imagine living in Japan 20 years ago, teaching English without any communication to my family and friends. Just after I went to sleep, a 7.4 earthquake rocked NE Japan (again, I know). Thankfully, I’ve read that only 3 people died from that aftershock (as of now). If that would’ve happened in America, I can guarantee you that a lot more than 3 people would’ve died. Best part? Didn’t even feel it! Woo!

Spring Festival at Inuyama Castle (Part 2)

On Sunday I was greeting with blue skies and about 60 degree weather, a wonderful start to my Sunday. I’ve noticed lately that starting in February and continuing until now, the wind is fairly strong and consistent in my area. In the morning it’s relatively calm, but towards lunchtime and especially in the late afternoon, the wind is whipping about. Sunday morning was devoted to laundry and airing out my futons (you’re supposed to hang them outside for about 4-5 hours every 2 weeks to prevent bugs, or something like that). In the afternoon, one of the JHS English teachers picked me up from my apartment and off we went to Inuyama Castle.

Once we found a place to park, we met up with another JHS English teacher and off we went to the castle. Since there were so many people, there was a 40 minute line to enter the castle. The reason being mainly that the only way to get into the castle is to climb up these huge and scary stairs, however you must go up single file because the stairway is very narrow and steep. Once at the top, we had an amazing view of the river and the festival. I took some pictures, but since I’d been here once before, I wasn’t as photogenic. After the castle, it was time for dinner. We walked to the Inuyama Meitetsu Hotel and sat down for a 7 or 8 course dinner. I totally spaced on taking pictures (sorry). But in true Japanese fashion, the dinner was both delicious to my eyes and stomach. We had sushi, rice, sukiyaki (beef and veggies cooked in front of you in a broth), and other treats. After dinner it was time for the most relaxing part of my day. We went into the public bath/hot spring and had a nice long soak. The water is special because it has a really low Ph level, and it feels a little slimy. However, once out of the bath, my skin felt wonderful. A quick drive home and I was ready for bed (and off to another work week)!

Cherry Blossoms + Spring Festivals = One Lovely Weekend (Part 1)

It truly seems like the weekends I enjoy the most are always the ones that go by the fastest. Could you imagine a world where the workweek was only 2 days long and the weekend was 5 days? Oh, all of the things we could accomplish!

On Saturday, a teacher assistant at the largest ES picked me up and took me on a cherry blossom viewing adventure. Last November, I went to the Tea Ceremony festival with her and her husband. First, we went to Kakamigahara City (yes, it’s a mouth full...ka-ka-mi-ga-ha-ra, is how you pronounce it in Japanese, except ‘mi’ sounds like “me” and ‘ra’ sounds likes “la” in English. So, “ka-ka-me-ga-ha-la” is how English speakers would pronounce it).

We went to a cherry blossom tea ceremony at the Kakamigahara Citizens Park. This was my second time at a tea ceremony since arriving in Japan last August, and it’s a new activity that I would like to learn more about. I don’t really understand why they do everything in such an exact and precise order, but it truly fascinates me. After having our tea and wandering around the park, we got back in the car and headed to lunch. We went to an udon (thick noodle) restaurant. It was unique because most udon is served in a clear/white broth, but at this restaurant, it was served in a red broth. Very tasty, but very messy (I wore a white shirt…).

After lunch we headed to the area near Inuyama Castle for the annual Spring Festival. It starts at the train station and winds its way through the small, historic looking streets all the way to the castle, probably about 1.5 miles. Street food vendors and games flanked the entire walk, it reminded me of a state fair. In Inuyama (Dog Mountain), they have these things called “da-i”, which are large towers that are exquisitely decorated. I honestly have no better way of explaining them, but hopefully after looking at the pictures you’ll get an idea. They are really tall and they only have wheels that go straight, so to turn these ancient things, the workers have to literally push/pull them to where they need to go. At the train station, we watched 6 of these “da-i” appear. My favorite part of watching the large, towers-on-wheels, was the little kids inside of the towers that were playing music (drums and flutes). It was adorable, especially their kimonos.

Street Vendors

Since it was only about 4 in the afternoon, we still had plenty of time before dusk, when they would illuminate the “dai’s”. We walked around all of the shops, sampled some street fair delicacies of course. We stopped at a teahouse, where I had zenzai (red beans with mochi, it’s like a hot soup). This is a typical New Years treat, which I had back in January and February. Once dusk set in, we watched the lighting of the “dai’s”. There were 7 dai’s near Inuyama Castle, and 6 near the train station. Since we watched the lighting at the castle, we had to wander back to the train station (the car was there). Finally, we watched the fully lit “towers” as they started their trip back home. Impressive!

Green Tea, Zenzai, Umeboshi (those red things...so sour)

Pretty

But, the night wasn’t finished. It was about 8pm, but we hadn’t had dinner. We went back to Kani City (right next door to Mitake), and went to a sushi restaurant. This was a new sushi restaurant for me, and I will definitely be going back (I just need to remember where it’s located). I had some tuna, salmon, yellowtail, and other assorted fish. Finally, we ordered egg and natto (those sticky beans, I’ve grown to appreciate) that were rolled up in rice and seaweed, and the sushi masters were kind enough to put a Japanese and Canadian flag on the rolls (no American flag that night).

Yum

Natto (left) and Fried Egg (right)

So there you have it. Day 1 of my Inuyama Castle Spring Festival event. The cherry blossoms are about halfway to full bloom, so I think I’ll have to head that way next weekend and see if they are fully bloomed then. I know it will be a spectacular sight.