Me vs. Ibogawa

While Colleen was away last week, I ventured out for a kayaking trip down our wonderful river with bartender/comedian Tetsuya and household shrine retailer/river master Seiki. Testuya never works during the day & Seiki freely opens & closes his shop, so we all met up at 10am and headed out; Tetsuya and I in kayaks, Seiki holding down the fort in the canoe.

I told them I had kayak/canoe experience, which was true, but Ibogawa surprised me & made my previous trips look like afternoons intertubing down the lazy river. Of course I flipped over TWICE within minutes (seconds?) of getting in the boat, which wasn't entirely due to my stupidity. The place we dropped in (right behind Seiki's store) is one of the rapidest spots in town. I ended up flipping a few more times, most of which were either in perfectly calm water trying to do some fancy maneuver or foolishly attempting to go upstream.

I managed to lose my wedding ring at some point - I'm guessing the oar slipped it off during one of my stints underwater - but besides that had a great time. Obviously I didn't dare take camera in the boat, but I snapped a few quick shots as we were loading everything up at the end.




Mike

Gakusei vs. Sensei

Students vs. Teachers

Next week is Sports Day!!!

If we can get enough women teachers to particpate, we'll compete with our female students in a 100 meter dash :) So far only 3 teachers want to join our team, so I have some convincing to do. A couple male co-workers tried to talk me out of asking my partner who is over 40. She seems pretty athletic though... we shall see!

Please wish me luck! Ganbattemasu!

-Colleen

Out of bed at 6:00 a.m. on a Saturday

What for?
Hiking!

But it wasn't these local mountains! Today was my 3rd day trip to beautiful Sasayama-shi in East Hyogo for my next
"BEST hike this year". I joined a teacher I know from work, her husband, and a small group of their friends for what seems to be the first of a series of hikes this season.
The start time was outta my hands. Kakiuchi sensei was knocking on my door at 7:00, as I was throwing my lunch box and extra clothes in a bag.

So many events here in Japan begin with an opening ceremony. Today after parking the cars, we all stood in a circle, the trip organizer gave a little "good morning, let's get started" pep talk, and we all introduced ourselves. I think it's interesting that even common events with friends can begin so ceremoniously. It was nice & kinda reminded me of when I was a kid; before family trips our parents would have us all participate in a prayer for safe travels.

Today, all these Senseis kept asking "hitori desuka? (roughly: "you're by yourself today?") So I explained a couple times that Mike doesn't like hiking. I suppose this seems pretty independant of me, but I didn't feel like I was "by myself" with this friendly group. The trail was tough, and we had to use ropes and chains at some points to help with the climb up the mountain. After a couple hours of hard work, we were rewarded with a completely amazing 360 degree view of everything below us. We took tons of photos at the point, but I didn't have my camera (Sorry! wish I could share the view with ya).
At the top, we sat down to share our food, making it the best lunch ever--> why? Everyone brought chocolate! I had made "cous cous" for my lunch, and let everyone try it. No one had ever had cous cous before!!! We also ate bamboo shoots, pickled daikon, onigiri (rice and fish wrapped in nori), and fresh fruit before the chocolate.

After hiking, we went to a famous hot spring to soak in what I'm convinced must be the hottest water in Hyogo. (For any locals; even hotter than Kinosaki!) The Onsen is called "po ka po" and has 2 indoor baths, 3 outdoor baths (1 inside a cave structure), and a sauna. My blood was flowing so heavily that you could see veins popping out of my forehead! Pretty freakin' hot! Good thing these hot springs are planned so well- plenty of cold drinks and ice cream are available in the lobby.

I LOVE "ONSEN"! Hot springs are great! If you come to visit, we gotta go.

After re-hydration, we parted ways, everyone saying "Otsukaresama deshita" "sayonnara" and "matta ne". Maybe I'll see them all in June for Daisen-san in Tottori prefecture.
Now I'm off to bed way too early, hours before Mike will get home from Osaka.

Convinced you have to come visit so that you can soak in a hot spring???
Japanese honeymoon anyone? Summer vacation? What about a 2006 Japan tour?

-Colleen

"Yesterday He Saw An Adult Book"

This week at my English class I passed out photos and told the kids to they had to write/speak sentences in English about the people in the pictures. To make it a little easier I told them the sentences could either be based on things in the actual pictures or just completely made up. This was by far the best response. Some other kids chose to point out a security camera that was such a minute detail in the photo I had to have them point it out to me.

Only one more class left. I think we'll revisit the sentence game with some pictures of rap stars I found. If Juelz Santana can't get kids psyched for English, there's no hope for the language.

Mike

We Are Idiots

So the whole time we've been here - quickly approaching 10 months for me, 11 for Colleen - there has been a full size mattress leaning against one of our walls. Fools that we were, we looked at and shrugged, decided it didn't look so great and that we didn't need it. We've been sleeping Japanese-style on futons ever since.

So this weekend, we had our first overnight guests and broke out the mattress for them. The next morning they informed us it was quite cozy so that afternoon I proceeded to take a nap on it and was immediately won over. Been sleeping wonderful ever since. What were we thinking?

Mike

How Disgustingly Humid Is It?

Last night after a month or so dealing with slugs, our patience finally broke. We put out two beer traps and laced the place with salt. This morning - less than 12 hours later - I went downstairs and almost all of the salt has liquified. From grainy crystals to puddles overnight. I can't believe it.

The Sounds of Spring

So I last night I wandered out with the minidisc & mica in tow to capture some of the ceaseless sounds that pour in our window. Right click to download the MP3 files.

The Frogs & Insects
I wandered down to the rice fields around the corner to record this. There are fields closer (right next to our apartment), but because this particular cluster has about 8 fields lumped together -and they've all been filled - it is by far the loudest in the neighborhood. Be sure to listen for the really low frog that sounds like some kind of motor running. Listening through my headphones, I initially thought I was picking up the sound of someone's A/C unit. It wasn't until I took them off that I realized it was a frog.

The Ditch
This is the ditch/gutter right behind our apartment. It's normally empty or lightly trickling, but since spring rolled around it's been flowing like crazy. Never lets up. It usually sounds like we have a river for a downstairs neighbor.

Most nights we have a great combination of bassy water rush & high-pitched frogs, but my mic isn't good enough to capture it all together accurately. Maybe there will be a microphone upgrade when I'm back in the States.

If any new insects roll in or the sounds of summer differ greatly from those of spring, I'll be sure to let you know.
Mike

London? Milano? Cleveland's "Little Italy"?

Nope!

This is our favorite bar in Ichinomiya. Albero is a home away from home; like Cheers, except we don't go every day, or even every week.

You can't tell by these pix, but there are plenty of Japanese customers who also frequent this bar/ (sometimes) restaurant. The amazing bartender/ (sometimes) chef, Tetsuya-san, helps keep everyone's conversation connected, because he has a great handle on English. Many times we learn "useful" Japanese over a beer or 2 :) Like the phrase "yellow cab" which we are told is slang for a "loose woman". And Pippa made sure to teach everyone "bullocks"! Do the Americans out there know "bullocks"?



This weekend we'll share this great place with another Jet-affiliated couple. Mmmm... wood-fired pizza! Did I mention Tetsuya lived in Italy for a year? You would be able to tell from one bite. It ain't no Pizza Hut!

-Colleen

The Floods

It's rice-planting time and that means the irrigation is in full effect. I'd estimate a good 1/3 of Ichinomiya is under six inches or so of water and another 1/3 will join it shortly. It is absolutely insane and amazing to look outside and see plots full of water. Luckily the mosquitos I was expecting to come along with the standing water have yet to show up in any significant way. The locusts and frogs have definitely been drawn out though. Been meaning to go out at night and get some recordings.

Mike

Road Warriors

I'm still in shock. Somehow Colleen and I managed to both pass our driving tests on Tuesday. One shot. Pretty unbelievable. Factor in that Grace passed too and it's really unbelievable. Three for three. The only other person who passed that day was a woman taking it for the fourth time. We rule.

BUT... As great as that is I'm slightly peeved. Because my license was issued less than a year before we came here (renewed actually, but it makes no difference), I am considered a "new driver" and our car must bear the yellow and green magnet of shame also known as the "Please give me a traffic ticket and teach me a lesson. I don't know how to drive yet, Officer" magnet. Humbug to that. Kekko desu.

Mike

Aso-san the volcano

3 days into my vacation from work, I said good-bye to my friends in Hiroshima and caught a train to Beppu, which is on the southern island of Kyushu. Beppu is famous for being a spa town; it's full of hot springs. I found it to be like a Las Vegas in Japan, but with hot springs replacing casinos. It was kitschy and touristy, and it seems to have passed it's prime. But I still enjoyed seeing the town and the bathing experience at an onsen which had both indoor and outdoor baths. After getting clean, I found an awesome Jamaican restaurant and had fun chatting with the other people at the bar. Next morning, I took a train to Aso...

Long ago (geological time; not sure when) the area now known as Aso erupted. Today it measures 20 km across, and it's one of the biggest calderas in the world. Tucked inside this volcanic caldera is a town, highway roads, a train line, and in the center are several volcanoes, one of which is still active today.

I didn't really have a plan, so after leaving the train station I jumped on the bus that was headed for the volcano. I meant to spend the day hiking to it, but I followed my impulse to take the bus. 30 minutes later, I got off the bus and hiked about 15 minutes to the smoking STINKY! volcano....




After hiking around for a bit with another American, we started hearing sirens and loud voices blaring through megaphones. All I could understand was "please leave". Now, I had read up on Aso-san, so I knew why everyone was being kicked off the peak. This volcano spews noxious sulphur-dioxide gas, and sometimes the wind changes, filling the area with gas. Supposedly you can pass out from a lack of oxygen. I had my heart set on following the hiking trails to the other peaks (which aren't spewing gas everywhere), but before I could get that far, the Park staff ushered me and a couple other hikers back down to the bus stop. I was SO bummed! I had come so far just to hike. But, I knew all along I was taking a chance, cause the wind can change at anytime. At least I got there in time to see part of it.
I went back into town, soaked in a hot spring (onsen), and found my youth hostel. After dinner I was hanging out in the dining area and met a really cool family from Alaska. Parents and 2 children maybe 11 and 13. They had been travelling for 8 months, covering Austrailia, China, Korea, and now Japan. The kids helped me find hiking possibilities for the morning, and I was very impressed with how much they knew about the area just from being there 1 day. The parents seemed to include the kids in navigation and decision-making; I'm sure this is an amazingly educational break from school for them. I was in awe of their lifestyle and think it might be a great idea if Mike and I ever have kids in the future. We'll see ;)

I also ran into a couple Japanese women I had met the night before at the Youth Hostel in the town of Beppu. It was fun to speak a little Japanese with them, exchanging travel plans, etc. They laughed when I told them what I thought of Beppu; saying "but it's famous!". Then I went to bed early so I could try to fit in a hike before catching my 12:45 pm train.

I was hiking by 6:30 am! As I hiked the land changed from town to forest to grassy valley, then rocky Mars-like desert terrain. I met several groups of hikers along the way, who were friendly, so I had more chances to practice Japanese ;) It was amazingly beautiful! What do you think? Have a look for yourself...






6 hours later I was fully satisfied. I headed towards the train station with a bright-red sunburn and a smile on my face.

-Colleen

ZECT

I'm not sure what exactly Zect is but I found this trading card - for the _________(kanji I can't read) Rider Kabuto - on the ground while I was out walking the other night and now I want to know more. A lot more.

Mike

Hiroshima city and Miyajima island

April 29th I joined a couple friends for a road trip to Hiroshima city. It's a mere 3-4 hour drive from Hyogo, but that's enough time to work up a decent appetite for the food Hiroshima is most famous for: Okonomi-yaki!!! Yum! Grilled noodles, sprouts, and seafood (or meat) between two egg-batter savory pancakes. Topped with a brown sauce, nori flakes, and mayo!!! It's amazing stuff, and one of these can fill me up for a whole day.

We spent the first night just having fun wandering around the night life area. Then we got caught in the rain on our walk back to the ryokan (a Japanese style inn). We went to bed pretty early so that we could wake up early to take the ferry to the island of Miyajima to see one of the "3 most beautiful sights of Japan". Itsukushima shrine welcomes visitors to the island with a "floating" torii gate. Well, it looks like it's floating if you arrive at high tide ;) What do you think?





The island is a sacred place with not only the beatiful Istukushima-jinja, but Buddhist temples as well. We wandered around through one of the temple's grounds for a long time and enjoyed a free sample of a special tea blended by the monks. The leaves were all a beautiful, rich green



We spent our last morning in Hiroshima at the Peace memorial museum. Emotionally draining, but it's one of those places everyone should go if they have the chance, especially Americans. It covers events leading up to, footage and photos the day of, and after, the Atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. I read through everything, soaking in much more than I ever did from history books. The information is displayed through historic, scientific, sociological, and sentimental perspectives. From explanations of how Atomic bombs work to displays of personal items left by those who died. Photos and models showed just how devastating the damage was.
One of my favorite parts was when we met a volunteer who spoke English. He explained that only 4 days after the bomb hit, the Hiroshima city streetcar service had a section of it's line up and running again. They ran it for free. The city was full of rubble and ash, so seeing this sign of civilization proved to be a much-needed sign of hope for survivors. To this day, Hiroshima proudly maintains a streetcar service as a main mode of public transportation.

Here's a picture of one of the very few buildings that "survived" the bombing; it's left up as a reminder, but also for a call for peace.




That's all I can fit in today, as I don't really like sitting at the computer. BUT! I can't wait to share pictures from my first-ever visit to a volcano!! So please check back in a day or 2 ;)

-Colleen

Golden Week, Children's Day

So the reason Colleen is off on her jaunt this week is that it's a major holiday week here; one that's pretty notorious for the amount of travel that happens. Starting today there are three national holidays in a row: Constitution Memorial Day today, the extremely vague National Holiday tomorrow, and Children's Day on Friday. I don't know anything about the other two, but Children's Day is pretty major. Pre-feminism it was known as Boy's Day and pre-windcatchers people hung an actual fish outside for every boy/child - I'm not sure if the windcatchers or inclusion of girls came first. So there have been giant windcatchers all over town the past couple weeks. Those pictured are probably 12-15 feet long and are right outside our window. I really like them. Hope some people get lazy with them and leave them up like Christmas trees.

The highlight of my Golden Week? Hmmm.... the concert was Saturday, so i don't think that counts. I'll have to go with the kiwi I had with my lunch today.

Mike

Bachelor Pad

Colleen is off for a week of sightseeing in Hiroshima and hiking in Kyushu. It's just me & the slugs now. I stayed behind because a.) neither of those things interest me much and I had a chance to see one of my favorite Japanese artists, Merzbow, make a rare appearance in these parts on Saturday night. The show was amazing; totally worth skipping out on a volcano. I'm sure Colleen will have plenty to share when she gets back.

Mike