An Englishman in Japan

Final Post

2010-03-25T20:49:00.002+09:00

I started this blog 4 years ago when I first went to Japan to teach English. I have now left Japan after an unforgettable, life changing experience. During that time I really enjoyed my teaching work. I spent my first year working for NOVA, a chain english conversation school or eikaiwa 英会話, in Matsumoto city. The next three years I taught in the Japanese state school system. The first year at a Junior High School in Ueda City and the next two years teaching in many Elementary Schools in Matsumoto city. The work was fun and rewarding and I made many friends through it.
Living in Japan gave me a chance to travel to many interesting places inside and outside the country. I visited Mexico, Hong Kong, Hawaii, Laos and Thailand. Inside Japan I visited more than half of the countries 47 prefectures. Living amongst the Northern Japanese Alps allowed me to ski on some of the best slopes in Asia regularly. In the summer I hiked many Japan's biggest and best mountains. I got into running and completed two full marathons. Through these activites I made many good friends, Japanese and foreigner or gaijin 外人 alike.
I got to know the culture and found out the best and the worst of Japan. The best: so many wonderful Japanese foods and dishes, the shinkansen bullet trains and simple efficiency, futuristic gleaming modern architecture side by side with beautiful traditional buildings, karaoke and other Japanese inventions, the work ethic and manners, cherry blossom time or hanami 花見. The worst: beurocracy, even now a failure to aknowledge and come to terms with World War 2, strange Japanese takes on western culture like the KFC Christmas bucket of chicken or teenage girls or ギャル trying to look western by wearing coloured contact lense and dyeing their hair orange.
During my time in Japan there was a revolving door of five different Japanese prime ministers. My family and friends all moved on with their lives. Notably my brother got married, moved to the USA and had a baby. My internet alias Matt Santos predicted the election of Barack Obama as life mirrored art and TV's the West Wing proved uncannily accurate.
This is not the end of my association with Japan. I have become fluent in Japanese and recently passed the Japanese Language Proficiency Test level 2. I intend to continue studying and maybe even try to find a job where I can use my Japanese skills. My love life has had its ups and downs but I am now very happily together with a Japanese lady. She will join me in England soon. I will certainly go back to visit and may go back and work in Japan again. This is the end of this blog though. It served it's purpose to reassure and inform my friends and relatives back in England of what I'm doing. It was also a diary and a personal history for me although edited of the more private or scandalous episodes of my Japanese life. It will remain on the internet for the consumption of people who know or people who don't. Thanks for everything, Japan. See you soon. さようなら

My last day at school

2010-03-12T15:51:00.003+09:00

On Wednesday I taught my last day of school. I visit 15 elementary schools in the Matsumoto area so I had already had numerous farewells at the different schools but it was still sad to say goodbye. The previous weeks had seen the start of springlike weather so I had changed the tyres on my car back to summer tyres. So I was as suprised and put out as anyone when I learned Tuesday night had the heaviest March snowfall for 50 years. To make my matters worse my last day was spent visiting two small schools in Shiga mura, a small suburb of Matsumoto up a mountain and about one hours drive away. But as it was my last day I decided I had to try to get to school. With the bad conditions and the wrong tyres I set of 30 minutes early. My first task was to dig my car out of a foot of snow. I proceeded as cautiously as I could and found myself 90 minutes later still very far from school. Fearing I would be late or couldn't make I phoned ahead but 20 minutes later, after nearly two hours of fraught driving in difficult conditions I made it to Nakagawa elementary. I had about 5 minutes to prepare for my first class. We played giant "snakes and ladders" with year 5; reviewing all the English I taught them. It seemed to go well. 2nd lesson was with year 6. For my benefit they organised some games in the sports hall which because of the weather was below freezing temperature and your breath misted up in front of you. We first played "Fruit basket". This game is something of cliche; in my opinion played by lazy teachers with little imagination and I dislike it. I had spent the last two years of my job successfully avoiding using it despite it's ubiquity amongst other English teachers. However, the kid's insisted so I played along and everyone seemed to enjoy it. We then played "イスとおり” or musical chairs. Murayama sensei had remembered a conversation we had about a year ago and used Crowded House, one of my favourite bands, as the music. So New Zealand New Wave 80's pop was the music for musical chairs. Finally we played dodgeball; a game that is crazy popular in Japanese elementary schools. Despite having a whole team around me I was inevitably the target of almost all of the balls thrown but still it was fun.
I had brought my guitar with me with the intention of playing one goodbye song at the end of 2nd lesson. However, Yamamoto sensei spotted this in the staff room and interupted 2nd lesson to ask me:
"Kevin sensei! Today we were supposed to do cleaning outside after 2nd lesson but we can't becuase of the snow. Can you do a 20 minute guitar concert for the whole school?! It will start in 10 minutes."
I had little choice but to say yes and so I sang through a few beatles songs. It was well recieved but a tougher audience might not have been so impressed. There was time for thanks, farewells and a few photos before I had to go down the road to Gojo Elementary school.
Gojo is the smallest school in Matsumoto with only 36 students total and destined for merger with Nakagawa school in a few years. It had started raining now as the temperture rose. 4th period I had a lesson with the 5th grade, all 7 of them. We studied food and ordering in restuarants. They did very well with the English and it was a nice lesson. I ate lunch with the 4th graders, all 5 of them. They asked me to play dodgeball with them and so I again was the main target throughout the match. A special English assembly had been arranged prior and we played some games involving learning the names of sports. I was again requested to play the guitar and so I sang "Yesterday" with all the teachers mouthing the words! I knew the Beatles were popular everywhere but I was still surprised. Then I was present a thank you card and was asked to shake each student's hand individually. A small school so forturnately it didn't take too long. 5th lesson I taught the 6th grade, all 6 of them. We learnt about jobs and I asked each student their career ambitions. They were variously doctor, pharmacist, voice actor, manga cartoonist, dancer and baseball player; all fine aspirations. In form time at the end of school I was once again asked to play dodgeball. By the time I had said my goodbyes and left the rain had turned into snow again and I drove home with great caution.
And so my last day had finished. In many respects quite a typical day; in many respects untypical. It contained all the best and worst aspects of my job. I got to teach fun lessons to happy, enthusiastic students. I got to spend time in lovely small old fashioned schools and school buildings before they are soon torn down and merged. I had to pretend to like things I didn't. I got to share my language and culture with students who have hardly ever seen a non-Japanese person. I had to an awful lot of driving.

Obama ruined my Christmas (sort of)

2010-01-05T11:12:00.003+09:00

あけましておめでとう！Happy new year everyone. I spent my Christmas in the USA, where my brother now lives, with my family and met my nephew for the first time. My nephew is lovely and full of character but like most 9 months old takes a lot of looking after. His daily routine is much like a panda's - he spends more than 80% of the time sleeping and eating. I look forward to seeing him grow up.
My brother lives near Austin, Texas. You can't fly there directly from Japan so you have to transit somewhere. I decided to turn this into an opportunity and on the way back had a two day stopover in Hawaii.

On the first day I went to Pearl Harbor. It was a very interesting site and they have fitting memorials to the people that died there and during the Second World War. I have now seen WW2 sites on four continents now (Tunisia, the beaches of Normandy, Hiroshima and Nagasaki and now Pearl Harbor) and always struggle to comprehend the scale, physically and historically, of these events and how much they shaped the world as it is now.

I followed that by a walk through downtown Honolulu and Waikiki beach. The influence of various immigrant communities, not least the Japanese, is very noticeable and makes it a nice place to explore. Waikiki beach is full of tourists and yet very beautiful inspite of all of the souvenir shops, etc.

My second day I hired a rental car and drove around Oahu island. I didn't reserve so the only car available was a Jeep SUV. It was massive and a beast to drive. I just about got to grips driving it and set off driving around the coast. Along the way numerous places are signposted as "Scenic points" though you could park your car just about anywhere on the coast and have a lovely view. I made my way clockwise around the island taking in the views and I stopped for a swim. In the afternoon I hoped to go to the North Shore and Kaena Point which I am told is the prime spot for whale and sea turtle spotting. However, the US President was also on holiday in Hawaii at the same time and on that particular day at the same time he went to the North Shore. Shortly before the start of the hiking trail to Kaena Point the secret service blocked the road and I was told to turn my car around. Disappointed I headed back and passed the presidents motorcade. There were about 10 police cars, 5 blacked out SUV's, 2 blacked out limousines and an ambulance. I can't imagine living with that level of security all the time. It was a shame I couldn't go to the North Shore though I understand why President Obama has so much security. He didn't really ruin my Christmas. Truthfully I had a great time and hope you had a happy Christmas too.

Monkey Dogs

2009-12-07T16:59:00.003+09:00

I'd like to share this article from today's Mainichi shinbun newspaper about "Monkey Dogs" in Omachi, near Matsumoto, where my girlfriend lives. Excuse my amateur translation.

Monkey Dogs Training Display
7th December 2009
To publicise the activity of "Monkey Dogs", or dogs employed to chase monkeys away from agricultural land and back up into the surrounding mountains, a training display was held yesterday at Shinano Omachi train station square.
Omachi city was in 2005 the first city in the whole country to introduce a team of "Monkey Dogs". To help manage the cost of running the scheme the dogs are housed and kept by farmers in the area. At the moment 17 specially trained dogs are in place living on nearby farms and in each of these farms they have been effective in curtailing the damage to crops caused by monkeys.
At yestersdays display 15 dogs were on show and paraded in front of the station. Then at the station square Ryuyu Isomoto, a representative of Azumino Dog School in Azumino city, led the dog owners as they lined up and walked their animals and practiced giving them orders.
Mr Isomoto said "At each location where we have a Monkey Dog they are able to chase away invading monkeys".
by Minorino Nakazawa

モンキードッグＰＲへ訓練披露

2009年12月7日

市内のモンキードッグが集まって行われた訓練＝大町市のＪＲ信濃大町駅前広場で

The "Monkey Dogs gather outside JR Shinano Omachi train station square for training.

　農地に出没したサルを山奥へと追い払う犬「モンキードッグ」事業をＰＲしようと、大町市は６日、ＪＲ信濃大町駅前広場でモンキードッグの訓練を披露した。

　同市は２００５年度に全国に先駆けて同事業を導入。市が費用を助成するかたちで主に農家の飼い犬をモンキードッグへと育てている。市内では現在１７匹が活動し、各地で農作物被害の抑制に効果を上げている。

　この日は、市内の飼い主１５人が参加し、モンキードッグを連れて駅前までパレード。広場では、訓練施設「安曇野ドッグスクール」（安曇野市）の磯本隆裕代表の指導で、飼い主と並んで歩かせたり、命令通りの動きをさせる服従訓練を行った。

　磯本さんは「各地に点在するモンキードッグが、一つの線となってサルを追い払うことができれば」と事業の拡大に期待していた。

　（中沢稔之）

Snow Hiking

2009-12-07T16:46:00.003+09:00

I went hiking in the snow with my friend Japan Hiking the other week. Down in Matsumoto city itself we've had little snowfall yet but go up a bit to the surrounding mountains and you can see winter has arrived. The ski resorts open soon and I look forward to enjoy probably my last Japanese ski season.
I've never been hiking in the snow before so it was a real experience. We climbed Yakedake which means "burning mountain" and appropriately enough is an active volcano. I was wearing full winter gear; crampons, thermal underwear, gloves, ski jacket etc. I needed it because there was considerable snow fall. We started at 1600 metres and climbed up to 2350 metres. The summit was just another 100 metres but by that point the snow was so high we couldn't find the path. We headed back disappointed. It was a great experience and a first for me (I've never had my trousers freeze before!). I hope to go again.

Kentucky Christmas

2009-12-05T16:08:00.003+09:00

Christmas is fast approaching. I know this because the KFC near my house has dressed it's life sized Col Sanders statue in a Santa Claus uniform. I'm not sure when or how this tradition started but Christmas in Japan is now synonamous with eating fried chicken and cake and Kentucky Fried Chicken take full advantage of this by offering their "Christmas Bucket". As unappealing as this sounds KFC becomes fully booked weeks before Christmas as Japanese people celebrate Christmas by eating fried chicken out of a bucket just as Jesus intended. Japanese competitors MOS Burger have got in the action too (see their puntastic poster pictured). I am happy to report that I won't spending Christmas day in Japan.

Omachi Marathon

2009-10-21T17:43:00.004+09:00

Regular readers may recall two years ago I ran in the Tokyo marathon and swore I'd never run another marathon. Well I have to eat those words now as I ran my second full marathon last Sunday in Omachi, a town north of Matsumoto. The memory of the pain of running it has faded and a desire to get a better time has been nagging me. I persuaded my girlfriend to run with me (though she opted for the 5km race instead). I have run other races recently and been enjoying training for it.

The conditions were great. A small field, good weather and a relatively flat course. It was a beautiful autumn day and the leaves were changing colour and the nearby mountains were seeing the first snow at the summit. The first 30 km went by quickly and uneventfully and so I could enjoy the view. Apparently all the training I had done did not stop me "hitting the wall"- that old runners cliche. The next few kilometres were an ordeal and though I managed to keep running my pace dropped off. To compound matters, 5 km from the finish my fragile hamstring which had behaved itself for 37km gave up and I had to limp the rest. I alternated between a running limp and a walking limp. I was in real pain and only kept up any kind of pace because of the supporters lining the route. I crossed the finish line and overcome with pain I collapsed and burst into tears. After a rest and some TLC from girlfriend (who had run very well in her own race) I contemplated what I had just done.

I had a few goals in mind before the race. First I wanted to beat my previous time. I did by more than 45 minutes. Second, I wanted to finish ahead of anyone in a costume. I did just. The clown ran me close right at the end. Third, I wanted to run in under 4 hours. I managed 4hours4mins37seconds and came 216th out of 1000 entrants in the marathon race. Close but no cigar.

Though the race hurt a lot I'm pretty sure I've done no permanent damage and I'm walking close to normal again. It was agony right at the end but most of the race was very enjoyable. I'm not going to make any rash promises about giving up running or not now. Most likely in a couple of years I'll forget the pain and want to get a better time again.

Silver Week Hiking in Tateyama

2009-09-28T17:28:00.005+09:00

I have written on this blog before about hiking in Japan. I enjoy it and am very lucky to be in the middle of the Japan Alps and have so many places to hike. The mountains I have climbed in Japan, though quite high, have not been too challenging in that you don't need any specialist equipment (other than boots) or training. My friend Japan Hiking invited me on a three day hike through some of the toughest terrain in Japan. I jumped at the chance so during Silver Week, a coincidence of national holidays that creates a five day weekend every six years, Japan Hiking, his fiance, a Japanese friend of ours and myself set off.

The start and finish of our hike was the Kurobe dam, Japan's biggest. It is hard to imagine how this huge public works project ever happened. It took thousands of workers, billions

of dollars and decades to make this massive dam in the middle of nowhere and now as well as producing electricity it is an unlikely tourist attraction. We camped the first night near the Dam. I lost paper, scissor, rock and had to camp in undergrowth whilst everyone else had nice, flat pitches.

The next day we hiked from a starting height of 1500m up to 3000m and the top of Tateyama. You can take a cable car for most of the ascent

but we skipped that and hiked it to the surprise of the day trippers we bumped into. After we

followed the ridge and then hiking down to our campsite at 2500m we had walked for ten hours and I was exhausted. I had lugged some beers up the mountain and we drank them that evening and they tasted lovely and well deserved.

The next day was no let up. In the morning we climbed up Tsurugi dake. We dropped off our bags at the base and set off. The route was the most difficult I've ever climbed. Rocks mostly with 20 chain rope sections where it gets too steep to simply clamber up. The weather was rainy but perhaps that was a blessing since it wasn't crowded with people and you cou

ldn't see the sheer drops below. A few frayed nerves and along the way but we made it to the summit at 2999m and back. Having long legs made up for lack of climbing experience on this section and I enjoyed it a lot though it was a lot harder than I thought. We reunited with our bags, had lunch and then continued towards the next campsite. In between us and there was a 大雪渓 or snow valley. I was looking forward to this part the most and I had

bought crampons especially for it. By chance there were a couple of mountain patrol men on the same path. The warned us the snow had collapsed in the middle and showed us where to get on. Otherwise we would have been stuck in the middle of the snow and would've had to waste hours trudging back and around. There were amazing views down the snow valley and hiking with crampons proved to be easy enough.

The final day we hiked back to the Kurobe Dam. The path wasn't well used and proved to be a maze of ladders, ropes, rickety bridges and not flat at any point. In fact the whole hike was not flat at any point over difficult terrain. It was a

real challenge. I couldn't have done it without the help of the experienced climbers with me. Carrying a backpack with my tent and gear for three days added to the difficulty as well. All in all it was a hard but amazing hiking trip.

Spy School

2009-08-19T11:17:00.005+09:00

I have just come back from a three week summer holiday in England. As well as catching up with family and friends I spent a week running a "Spy School". Spy School was a spy themed children's holiday organised by the charity ATE. I have been volunteering for ATE for 10 years, since before I went to Japan, and have previously worked on or directed holidays with maths, singing and robotics themes as well and no theme in particular. Earlier in the year ATE asked me if I wanted to direct a spy school. I thought "How many people ever get the opportunity to do something like this?" and agreed. I spent some of my free time in June and July planning and organising and came back to England early August. After a week back at home I went to Moor Park in Ludlow to run Spy School and this is how it went...
There were 24 children on the holiday who turned out to be very nice and on the whole very well behaved. To help me look after them I had an assistant director, 4 monitors (who each had a group of 6 children), a matron, a caterer and 4 general assistants. Each day had different activities.
Day1 included codebreaking and semaphore flag making, Day 2 fingerprinting and disguise making, Day 3 was a day trip to Ludlow castle but the children also had to perform a black market nuclear weapons bust (seriously!), Day 4 blood spatter analysis and a crime scene investigation, Day 5 featured ninja lunch and walkie talkie activites, Day 6 had a graduation ceremony but before that could take place the children had to defuse a time bomb, rescue the ninja and deal justice to some North Korean rappers up to no good.
Throughout the week strange characters came and went and the children became involved with helping a ninja defeat the one armed evil twin of my assistant director who was working for the North Koreans. As I've mentioned already, the children went undercover and bought nuclear weapons to keep them out of dangerous hands. They ate ninja lunch. They uncovered the truth about the evil twin by investigating a crime scene recreation. The graduation ceremony was interupted by a smartie time bomb crisis which was eventually resolved and ended in the evil twin becoming good and the North Korean rappers who had tricked her dealt justice by being thrown into a swimming pool.
It was great fun planning and came together well in the execution. I was lucky that I had a great staff team and everyone really got into the spy activities. As the week has finished all aspects of the spy school are now declassified and I can show you the following pictures.

鎌田小のアイドル犬「ポチ」が天国へ旅立つ Kamada Elementary School Idol Dog "Pochi" goes to Heaven.

2009-06-30T20:14:00.001+09:00

From the Matsumoto Shimin Times, Tuesday June 30th 2009

"松本市の鎌田小学校（田辺邦夫校長、８３１人）で１７年間、児童と教職員に育てられてきた犬の「ポチ」がこのほど病気で息を引き取り、７月１日に児童会が「お別れ会」を開く。「学校のアイドルで、先輩のような存在」（６年生）だったポチがいなくなり、児童たちの間に悲しみが広がっている。"

Matsumoto city Kamada Elementary School (Principal Kunio Tanabe, 831 pupils) staff and students for 17 years kept and raised a dog called "Pochi". She died on last friday at school of respiritory failure. On the 1st of July a rememberance service will be held. "She was the school idol, we all looked up to her" A sixth grade student said. A great sadness was felt widely amongst the students upon news of her death.

My amateur translation. I visit Kamada Elementary School as part of my job and had met Pochi many times. She was blind, couldn't walk well and her 17 years had been tough on her but she was a nice animal. She was taken in with two siblings after they were abandoned 17 years ago in the neighbourhood and whilst her brother and sister found a new home noone wanted Pochi so the school raised her. My family once had a cat called Elgar with a very similar biography. She died the same day as Michael Jackson and whilst I'll miss both of them and the death of the "King of Pop" will have a wider resonance only one of those got covered in the Matsumoto Shimin Times.

Running

2009-06-27T10:51:00.004+09:00

Regular readers may recall I ran the Tokyo marathon two years ago and I swore afterwards I would never run one again. It has taken a while but the I have the running bug again. I entered two races in the past few months and got some decent times.
In the Golden week holidays in May I entered the Shinshuu Nakagawa half marathon. Nakagawa is a tiny village literally meaning "in the river" and it is mainly rice fields sitting in the middle of a river surrounded by the Japanese alps. The views were amazing. I was the only non-Japanese competitor. I ran the 21.0975km in 1 hr 48 mins 21 seconds and came about 100th out of 800 runners. The villagers were very friendly and I got some free farm produce as a prize for finishing.
Last weekend (21st June 2009) I ran the Norikura Sky marathon with my friend Gary. Again we were the only non-Japanese competitors. It is a marathon up Mount Norikura on the Ecoline road which is the highest public road in Japan and closed for most of the year due to snow. The day of the race it was pouring with rain so they reduced the course length from 30km to 23km. The course started at the Norikura visitors centre by the ski resort at 1500 metres altitude and went up for 15km to an altitude of 2700km. Towards the top there is still snow left over from the winter and it was amazing view. The last 8km you turn round and go downhill back the same way. The views of the snow corridor, the mountain scenary and waterfulls full to bursting in the rain were breathtaking and the race was tough but intense. I exceded my expecations and ran in 2 hrs 29 mins 59 seconds to finish 392nd out of 1150 runners and ahead of Gary. I think I might enter a full marathon again.....

Birthday Karaoke!

2009-06-20T18:11:00.003+09:00

I turned 28 this month. I had a birthday party and 17 friends were kind enough to come and help me celebrate. We ate, we drank, we sang karaoke!

The Recession in Matsumoto

2009-06-06T14:20:00.005+09:00

Japan is in the midst of the worst recession since the end of the Second World War. The most visible manifestation of this is the huge number of boarded up shopfronts and closed or barely functioning businesses. One of the noticeable things about Japan is how you can have a brand new high tech superstore and next to it have an ancient temple and next to that have an old delapidated building literally crumbling before your eyes. It's a legacy of the post war boom and the 90's lost decade where the economy basically stagnated for more than ten years. When I came to Japan the economy was doing very well again but you could see this uneven development everywhere.
In recent months however it has become even more noticable. Whilst some areas of town are very busy and new shops (cat cafes etc) opening up there are whole streets where almost every shop is closed, boarded up or barely functioning. There are literally hundreds of "For Let" signs around. All the photos below are from Matsumoto city centre, metres from busy focal points like the train station or on the main high street or next the castle. As in the UK with Woolworths, the shops that are closing were the one's which never made much money in more favorable times. I don't suggest that I will miss the assortment of Mom and Pop stores, tabbaconists, chainsaw shops, petrol stations, cafes, etc that have closed. I don't see however that the cat cafes, Crispy Cremes, convenience stores, coffee shops and chain stores are a particular improvement. It is interesting to see Joseph Schumpeter's creative destruction in action but I hope the recession ends soon.

Neko Cafe

2009-05-03T09:57:00.003+09:00

In recent years across Japan a lot of cat cafes have started opening up. Last month Matsumoto saw it's first Cat Cafe open. I went there recently.
The idea is pretty simple. It's a cafe full of cats and for a small fee you can play with cats and have them sit on you while you drink your coffee. If you can't have a pet in your building or don't want the responsibility of looking after a cat full time then you can visit one at the cat cafe. It was a lovely place with a nice atmosphere. I wonder if the concept will become popular back in England. My parents have a ginger cat called Billy who is a vicious sociopath who attacks people without warning and for no reason. And yet he recieves Christmas presents from some of our neighbours. The economic potential for a cat cafe full of cute, friendly and well behaved cats surely can't be underestimated.

Zero temples pilgramage of Shikoku

2009-03-30T20:52:00.004+09:00

Last week I went on a road trip around Shikoku, Japan's fourth largest island. Shikoku is famous for the 88 temple pilgrimage which about 100,000 people do every year. I am not religious and have seen my share of temples and shrines in my three years in Japan (btw my favourite temple is Zenkoji in Nagano city) so I had no interest in that and saw zero temples on my trip.
I drove down avoiding the toll roads so it took 11 hours to get from Matsumoto to Kobe where I stopped for the night. The next day I drove across to Shikoku via the world's longest suspension bridge and Awaji Island to my first destination of Tokushima. I stayed at the marvelous Tokushima youth hostel. It's a wonderful place to stay; run by a lovely Japanese couple who have a yappy dog called Run and who's official job titles are "hostel parents". They act like parents and the 'mother' is a wonderful cook. The rooms and baths are traditional Japanese style and, best of all, the hostel has it's own beach. I highly recommend it.
I visited Tokushima at the right time to see cherry blossoms in bloom and saw some lovely views from Mt Bisan. I drove down the coast and saw a sea turtle museum in a small town called Hiwasa. I came too early in the year to see sea turtles laying their eggs on the beach unfortuately. I drove to the southern cape and got some great views of the Pacific Ocean and the wierd rocks and cliffs around.
Onward I went to Nao shima, an island that has become something of a living art gallery. In and amongst the town and the beaches of the Island are various art galleries. The giant pumpkin sculpture on a beach by Yayoi Kusama has become something of an icon of the island and is a wonderful sight to see.
My final destination was Chiiori in the middle of the Ina Valley, Japanese biggest. It is a 300 year old traditional Japanese thatched cottage that was bought and restored by American author Alex Kerr in the 70's. Incredably remote, 40 minutes by car to the nearest shop, and very impracticle to live in it is one of only a few surviving old thatched cottages in Japan. It was lovely to stay there. I worked in the garden, helped with dinner which the guests all ate around the fireplace in the centre of the house. I also visited a nearby onsen which has a funicular railway to take the guests up to the bath. The next day I was running low on money and so I spent the last of it on petrol to drive myself home and bridge tolls.
I clocked about 40 hours driving during the week. I visited many wonderful places and met some lovely people but my favourite part of the trip was the driving. The freedom of it all. The views. The Inland Sea, the Pacific Ocean, the Naruto whirlpools, huge bridges, beaches, walking pilgrims, cliffs, statues, cherry blossoms, pirate themed restaurants, ships in the distance, surfers, farms, traffic, valleys, gorges, rivers, waterfalls, rusting abandoned cars, delapidated houses, money no object gleaming bridges, tunnels and roads, ridiculous love hotels and Pachinko parlours. And through it all my tiny Suzuki Alto never complained or let me down.

Spring arrivals

2009-03-21T10:51:00.005+09:00

Halfway around the world from Japan my brother became a parent for the first time. Thanks to inventions like webcams and skype I have been fortunate enough to see a lot of my new nephew. Meanwhile, I saw my sister in person as she takes a two month holiday around the world. Lucky her and proof perhaps that wanderlust in is the family genes.
Many of the places she and I went to I have blogged about before; Matsumoto castle, frog street, the monkey onsen and many sights in Tokyo. We also went to the Kiso valley to a town called Tsumago. Hundreds of years ago it used to be a post town and traders would stay here as they carted their goods between major cities. It has been preserved exactly as it was more than a hundred years ago so no telephone poles or traffic lights or other signs of modernity are visable. It was quaint but very nice; a kind of Japanese Cotswolds. We also went the amazing Studio Ghibli museum in Tokyo. You probably know their animation movies like Spirited Away and My Neighbour Tottoro. The museum is very much in the same spirit as the movies. Unlike Disneyland, it is small and doesn't have rides and the number of visitors are limited and sell out weeks in advance. The museum is built like a castle and full of spiral staircases, turrets and indoor bridges. The displays were full of invention and the museum's exclusive short film maintained the same quality of their feature films. Unfortunately I am too old to play on the cat bus but the little children playing seemed to really enjoy it. I thoroughly recommend a visit.
My sister may contest this but she can be a fussy eater. So I feel quite proud to have gotten her to eat almost every major japanese food; ramen, soba, sushi (including squid), yakiniku, natto, wasabi, cow's tongue and japanese barbeque to mention some. She has left now but it was lovely to see her.

Matsumoto Ice Carving Festival

2009-02-01T15:53:00.003+09:00

明けましておめでとうございます！Happy New Year! Whilst over in America my brother has had to contend with zombies I have had a more low key January. It has been typically cold for Matsumoto and I have been enjoying the excellent ski conditions. Also there has been an ice carving festival at Matsumoto castle this weekend. Whilst not on the scale of the Sapporo Snow Festival it was nevertheless a winning combination of chainsaws and ice.

Singing Christmas Tree

2008-12-25T01:34:00.003+09:00

I am in England spending Christmas with my family for the first time in three years. I am very happy to be back spending a Christmas at home with the family and cats. However, in an excess of festive exuberance my mother, usually a woman of good taste, has spent actual money on a dancing Christmas tree. This tree sings and dances to "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree". When the tree sang for the first time the cat got frightened and ran away. Seemingly his tiny cat brain struggled to understand the anthropomorphism. Me too, for that matter.
In this time of recession please support the economy by buying Christmas tat like Mrs Singing Christmas tree here regardless of its utility. Merry Christmas, everyone.

Thanksgiving

2008-12-10T19:20:00.004+09:00

Using the same clumsy titling system that I use my brother could call himself An Englishman in the USA. Wisely, he has chosen Ted in Texas instead. My brother and his wife generously hosted a thanksgiving for 13. I made the trip from Japan and my sister and parents managed the trip from England.
We ate deep fried turkey as cooked in the massive turkey fryer pictured. American cuisine and southern cooking in particular is often mocked and I have been as guilty as anyone of dismissing its virtues. I therefore now make the point of saying the food I ate during my stay in the USA was outstanding and on a par with anything Japan can produce. I enjoyed a wide range of food, from breakfast pancakes at a 50's style diner to New England style clam chowder and salt lick barbecue. All of which were delicious and of course much larger portions and much more fattening than the Japanese food I have become accustomed to. However, pride of place is taken by the deep fried turkey. Cooked in a vat so big that the oil used to cook it cost more than the turkey itself, deep frying it meant it only took 40 minutes to cook and retained it's moisture.
And so, in the great state of Texas, over a thanksgiving meal of deep fried turkey cooked by my brother and his wife I caught up with my family after more than a year apart and met some new American members of my extended family. And that is what I am thankful for.

Congratulations Barack Obama

2008-11-06T18:50:00.003+09:00

I have been following closely the US presidential election for almost two years. I am very glad Barack Obama won and will become the first black president of the USA. What I know about him is he is an excellent writer (Dreams from My Father is an great autobiography) and orator with a fascinating life story. I like his liberal instincts, the way he ran his campaign and his apparent calmness and good judgement and I think he has the potential to be great statesman. Although I don't expect him to reach the sky high expectations that people have or to be able to solve all or even many of the myraid problems facing the USA and the world, I am genuinely optimistic for his presidency and wish him good luck.
I wrote before about how, by coincidence, my internet alias Matt Santos, who ran for president in the TV show The West Wing, was based partly on Barack Obama. The casting of Jimmy Smits meant he was a Latino-American and not African-American but they share many similarities. Both are former community organisers recently elected to congress with a skill for public speaking casting themselves as post-racial unifying candidates. The storyline of the West Wing series 6 and 7 were remarkably predictive. Matt Santos fought a gruelling primary campaign before eventually beating the party insider and favourite ( although admitedly Bob Russell in the West Wing is nothing like Hilary Clinton). There was even a third Democrat candidate called John who (like John Edwards) was revealed to have an affair during the campaign. Matt Santos's rival is an aged maverick Senator very similar to John McCain. Matt Santos's running mate was a veteran democrat similar to Joe Biden. The economic crisis that triggered Obama's final and decisive rise in the polls was mirrored on the TV show with a nuclear power plant meltdown that helped Santos to win. On the TV show, Matt Santos's running mate, Leo McGarry, died of a heart attack on election night. I was therefore concerned, literally, for the health of Joe Biden on Tuesday. However, he seems in good health so no worries there. Neither did the West Wing writers predict the batshit insanity that is Sarah Palin but still not bad going on the life imitating art stakes.
The West Wing finished with Matt Santos's inauguration so I need another TV show or movie to predict Obama's presidency. Will he perhaps share the fate of 24's David Palmer. If this is the case, Obama can expect an assortment of terrorist related threats orchestrated by Kosovans, Islamic extremists, Russian ultranationalists and corrupt US businessmen and military. His wife, who in reality seems like a thoroughly decent person, will show herself to be devious and manipulative and double cross him and eventually force him to resign. He will finally be assasinated by his successor. Lets hope none of that actually happens!
The only other fictional black president I can think of is Morgan Freeman in Deep Impact. I don't want to be killed by an asteroid here. Help me out! Does any know of a fictional black president who doesn't suffer a terrible fate?

Japan loves big statues

2008-09-18T16:50:00.004+09:00

Last weekend was 3 days long because of the respect the elderly bank holiday. I took a trip to Sendai, in Northern Japan near the sea. A night bus has just started from Matsumoto so now it is cheap(ish) and easy to get to. Sendai has much to recommend it. It's very near to Matsushima bay which justifies it's billing as one of the three best views in Japan. Sendai city centre is very nice and full of trees. Someone planted trees along all the main roads in the city centre and the effect is very nice. These are both heavily advertised in promotional literature of the city.
In contrast to this, the big statue you see pictured is not mentioned anywhere and seems to be an embarrassment to some people in Sendai. It's a 100metre statue of Kannon, the Buddhist god of compassion. It's 3 times the size of the Statue of Liberty. It's in a suburb of Sendai and visible for miles around. I scoured the internet for information and the best I could find is from people's blogs so I don't know if this is all correct. Apparently, It was built in the 90's by a Buddhist sect to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Sendai's city status. The Buddhist sect went bankrupt and the land was sold. A golf course and shopping centre were built around it but it was too expensive to take down the statue. It remains only now 20 metres from a pet superstore on one side a multistory golf driving range on the other. I don't know what the significance of the dragon's mouth by the feet of the statue is but it certainly adds to the tackiness. Inside is a small museum and a lift to near the top. You can see good views from the city from there. The shell of statue is plastic so it's less impressive close up. You can decide for yourself if it's an embarrassing eyesore or an impressive religious monument. I'm leaning towards gaudy eyesore at the moment.
The Kannon statue is the 6th largest statue in the world. All of the largest statues are Buddhas (there are no Muhammed statues obviously). Far from being a one off, there are similar, recently built, large Buddha statues all over Japan including Hokkaido, Ibaraki and Hyogo. These seem to be similarly ignored by the tourist agencies. Only Russia and China compete in terms of massive statues. All of which I find a bit odd for non communist country. Japan is more famous for making all manner of technology and things miniature. Maybe large, ostentatious statues are a counter reaction to this.

My Summer in Thailand and Laos

2008-08-23T12:18:00.006+09:00

I have just returned from my summer vacation. I was lucky enough to be able to spend 3 weeks in Thailand and Laos. My girlfriend is also a teacher but because she is Japanese she has to work most of the summer vacation. She could only take a 4 day break to Osaka. It was the first time I have visited south-east Asia. I started and finished in Bangkok and went in big circle around Northern Thailand and Laos.
I flew into Bangkok and spent a day sightseeing there. There are many interesting landmarks and cultural attractions, not least the worlds biggest reclining Buddha covered in gold leaf. However I didn't take to the city very much. Crowded, polluted, busy, full of packs of stray dogs and tuk-tuk (a kind of taxi) drivers giving tourists the hard sell. Perhaps Bangkok's charms take more than a day to reveal itself but I'm in no hurry to visit again. The next day I took a train to Nong Khai, on the border with Laos. I travelled 3rd class to experience like the locals do. I can't say the train was clean or comfortable but the journey was nice. The landscape changed dramatically along the way and the other passengers treated me with curiosity. A vendor tried to sell me roasted chicken on a stick but I declined (you have to be very careful about what you eat to avoid the worst food bugs). 14 hours later I was in Nong Khai. It is a very nice, sleepy little border town on the banks of the Mekong river. It has a famous Buddha statue park which was full of curious statues (snakes and elephants featured heavily). I took a 1 hour dinner cruise along the Mekong river around sunset. It was most relaxing and a beautiful view. 3 day slowboat tours down the Mekong river are very popular but I can't see what another 71 hours would add to the experience other than tedium.
The next day I crossed the Mekong river and entered the People's Democratic Republic of Laos; my first taste of communism. Getting in was straightforward and then I took a large tuk-tuk for the 20km journey to the capital Vietienne. At first I was the only passenger but the driver kept picking up more passengers and by the time I had arrived there were twelve people , mostly traders carrying their wares, in the rather modest sized tuk-tuk. Anyway, for 1 dollar it was good value. I checked into a hotel and proceeded to see the sights of Vietienne. The golden temple called Pha That Luang is the most famous landmark in Laos and significant historical building. It was very impressive. Elsewhere, Vietienne is quite bizarre. The French colonialist left a significant mark. I accidentally ordered raw steak at a French restaurant but I ate it. I was quite nice and to my relief got no food poisoning from it. Around the city there are a mix of French colonial buildings in various states of disrepair, golden and orange temples and communist monuments. Some of Vietienne is what I imagine a less scary North Korea would be like. I went to the Lao Peoples Army museum. Seemingly the only visitor they had all day I saw displays about the communist revolution and victory as seen through the prism of their own ideology (lots of America bashing needless to say). Vietienne is the only place in Laos where communism (or much evidence of any functioning government) is very visible. Mind you, its a quite laid back and incompetent communism rather than scary, North Korean style communism.
I took a bus (along with several chickens and some motorbikes strapped on the roof) to Vang Vien, further north in Laos. It has spectacular scenery with mountains, cliffs, jungles, rivers all in the same place. It has become famous for tubing recently but I eschewed that rather strange 'sport' and went kayaking instead. I had a great time kayaking; we stopped along the way to see some caves. I overcame my fears to dive underwater to enter a pitch black cave (the water was very high that day usually you can just wade in). Much more rewarding than floating aimlessly down a river in an inflatable tube unable to steer I think.
My next destination was Luang Prabang further north. The bus I took to get there broke down and we were stranded in the middle of nowhere for a few hours whilst they scrambled a replacement. In Luang Prabang I saw the very impressive Kuang Si waterfalls. I also went elephant riding. It is a tourist cliche but it was very fun. I researched to check the tour company treated the elephants well. The elephant I rode was saved from a life of logging and was well looked after. I even got to sit of the elephants neck and steer the big animal like their driver or 'Mahoot' does for a few minutes. Luang Prabang is a very picturesque town, full of temples and monks on the banks of the Mekong river. Torrential rain for several days didn't spoil my trip but led to several power black outs and the Mekong bursting it's banks and flooding some main streets.
My next destination was Phonsavon. I went their to see the mysterious Plain of Jars. Phonsavon was heavily bombed during the "Secret War" by the USA. As a result Laos is now the most heavily bombed place on earth and Phonsavon is the most heavily bombed part of Laos. Despite the fact that the war ended over 30 years ago, bomb removal on started this decade and unexploded bombs kill or injure thousands of Lao every year. The main street and the Plain of Jars have been cleared but almost nowhere else has. Having found this out I donated some money to a bomb clearance charity working in Phonsavon. Anyway, the Plain of Jars were an intriguing site. These various stone jars can't be aged so no-one is sure who put them there or why. The most likely explanation is they are funeral urns but local legends say they are giants drinking vessels.
I returned to Luang Prabang and a couple of days later took a one hour flight to Chiang Mai, Thailand (the alternative was a 2 day bus trip). Chiang Mai was noticeably richer and more developed. Only after I left Laos did it strike me how poor and undeveloped a country it is. As far as I could tell most Lao people have no access to decent healthcare, electricity or clean water. A lot of school age children were doing nothing or working in rich fields or worse selling things to tourists. The roads were terrible and there are no trains in Laos. If Laos had the transport network on Japan I could have saved at least 4 days travel time. Anyway, in spite of its poverty I had a wonderful time in Laos and recommend it to you.
Back in Chiang Mai, my holiday was in it's last week and winding down. I learned Thai cooking amongst other things and Team GB's success at the Olympics caught my attention. I would like to see more of Thailand and want to visit the region again. I had a wonderful trip and feel very lucky to have the time to do it.

Oktoberfest

2008-07-29T13:34:00.004+09:00

Japan has a long tradition of adopting foreign festivals and adapting them for a Japanese audience. Christmas has been commandeered by cake manufacturers and KFC as some kind fried chicken and desert food festival (you really need to be in Japan around christmas time to see the nonsense). Japan adopted Valentines and for good measure added White Day, exactly one month later when women give chocolate to men. Added to this tradition comes Oktoberfest, the German beer festival, originally held in October (in case there was any doubt).
Japanese Oktoberfest is a nationwide tour starting in Kyushu in April and passing through Matsumoto in July. Oktoberfest was in Matsumoto, set up next to the castle, for a week. I went last Thursday with some friends. We drank German beer, ate German food and watched various musical acts. The warm up acts were Japanese rock bands of varying quality. The final act was an actual German band dressed in Lederhosen singing German folk songs. There was a friendly atmosphere and the food and beer were excellent. It was relaxing start of my summer holiday. I'm off to Thailand and Laos for three weeks starting tomorrow.

Mount Fuji

2008-07-20T10:43:00.005+09:00

I have lived in Japan for over two years now so it was about time I climbed it's highest mountain; the iconic Mount Fuji. I went with my friends from Ueda last weekend. Many of them are leaving Japan at the end of the month so it was also a chance to meet them one last time and say goodbye.
We chose to climb at night and try to make it to the summit by sunrise. The climbing season for Mt Fuji is July and August (you can climb at other times but there's lots of snow and none the cabins are open). Fuji is always busy during this time and we went on Saturday night so the mountain was jam packed with people; tour groups of businessmen from Tokyo, tourists, other English teachers who had the same idea as us, families with (crying) children, pensioners, etc. We started about half way up at the Kawaguchiko fifth station which is where most people start. We started the ascent at 10pm under clear skies and were in high spirits. On a good day when it's not very crowded you can climb up in about 4 hours. Because there were so many people it took 7 hours. The terrain is all black rock and dirt. The further up we got the more people there were and this slowed our progress.
The last 300 metres were the worst. We were practically queuing on the path. At this point the high altitude was having an effect as well. At about 3am it was at it's coldest and I was wearing 5 layers of clothes. The slow pace and the huge volume of people was testing everyone's patience. I was guilty of complaining a lot at this point. At about 3:40am the sun started to come up and this brought gasps and shouts of "Kirei" (beautiful) from the masses of people. The sunlight revealed a spectacular view of the Fuji five lakes below. At 5:10am I passed through the gate and reached the summit. By 6am the whole of our group was at the top. We rested and saw the caldera and took and some group photos and then headed down.
We took the sunabashiri route down which translates as the sand run route. It's wide, sandy, goes almost straight down and you can run down it. I enjoyed this part the best and took only 80 minutes to descend. My knees were complaining as I waited at the bottom for everyone. After everyone had come down it was time to go and we said our goodbyes. I found, with no sleep, the simple task of getting the right connecting trains back to Matsumoto confusing and difficult but eventually made it back. I'm certainly glad to have climbed it but you won't see me back there anytime soon.

15 schools

2008-06-22T05:17:00.006+09:00

I haven't blogged in a while. Apologies. Since I last wrote I have been busy going to the 15 different elementary schools in and around Matsumoto where I teach. The schools range from small (37 students) to large (900 students), countryside, mountainside and city centre. One school has a pet goat. The local newspaper, The Matsumoto Shimin Times, sent a reporter to watch one of my lessons and wrote a nice article about me. I'm not sure why me teaching English is newsworthy and there must be at least 10 other people in Matsumoto doing similar jobs to me but I appreciate the attention.
I also turned 27 recently. I had a party at a restaurant called Sunny Place Cafe. People from Ueda and Matsumoto came. It was a fun night and Yuriko (in the photo) made a Bailey's flavoured birthday cake.

Chirihama Beach Driveway

2008-05-06T03:34:00.004+09:00

I went for a road trip around the Noto peninsula for the golden week weekend. The Noto peninsula is famous for its spectacular coastlines, cliffs and seafood. The North Korean military kidnapped many Japanese citizens from the beaches of the Noto peninsula in the 1970s and 80s. I can confirm the quality of the seafood and the great views of the cliffs. The highlight of my trip was driving along an 8km strip of highway actually on the beach. It's called the Chirihama Beach Driveway. It's famous across Japan and indeed was packed with tourists and motorcycle clubs who like me were also enjoying golden week holidays. It was great fun driving on the beach. The sand was wet and packed down to make it driveable. If you should ever go, don't (like the Mini driver in the photo) drive on the dry sand.

Springtime in the 'Moto

2008-04-29T17:30:00.003+09:00

I haven't written recently. I have spent the last month or so getting reacquainted with the people and places of Matsumoto. It's a nice time to return because the cherry blossoms are in bloom and there have been many hanami parties. My job has become busier. I travel to 14 different elementary schools teaching English. It's tiring changing places every few days but the kid's are very nice and enthusiastic. Because of Golden Week I get a 4 day weekend next weekend. I am thinking about where to go.

Easter Holidays

2008-04-04T18:09:00.006+09:00

A lot has happened in the past couple of weeks. The school year finished and the 3rd graders graduated. I went to some leaving parties including my own. In the easter holidays I moved to Matsumoto. After I had moved I had some time so I went to visit Kyushu, southern Japan.
To save money I went by bus which took 18 hours. I split up the journey by visiting Nara on the way and I saw the famous Buddha and the many deer which live in the surrounding park. Legend has it if you can crawl the Buddha's nose you will get good luck. You can't crawl through the actual Buddha's nose but there is a wooden hole the same size that is used as a substitute. I managed to crawl through so I hope I get good luck.
I went to Nagasaki afterwards. I saw the atomic bomb museum and peace park. The personal accounts and the small details of what happened really shook me and serve as a reminder of what happened. The recovery the city has made after the atomic bomb makes it hard to imagine it was razed to the ground just over 60 years ago. I also saw the many old Dutch and European buildings from the time when Nagasaki was the only point of contact with the outside world in Japan during the Edo period. The next day I went to Unzen, a very active volcano near to Nagasaki. I had an onsen near the steam filled foothills called 'Jigoku' meaning 'hell' in Japanese. The water was very hot and coloured green by the minerals in the rock. Before I left I also took a boat tour of a place called Battleship Island, a now abandoned island with a strange history. I thought it was so ugly that it went full circle and achieved a stark beauty of its own.
I went onwards to Fukuoka, the largest city in Kyushu. I ate the local Hakata ramen and heartily recommend it. Fukuoka is everything you expect of a Japanese city; clean, safe, runs like clockwork, busy, full of neon and skyscrapers. I liked it. Near to Fukuoka is a place called "Tachirai Peace Memorial Hall". From the title you probably won't guess it is a museum about the Kamikaze pilots who were trained in Tachirai Air Base in World War two. It was all in Japanese but the curator took the time to talk to me (in Japanese) about the all the exhibits. It was very interesting and showed the pilots as ordinary people, ordered by their increasingly desperate commanders towards the end of the war to be suicide bombers. The museum had a British Rolls Royce airplane engine that was used in a Japanese fighter plane. The irony of it amused me.
It was a very interesting trip and a nice break. I'm just starting my third year in Japan and am still finding surprising things about this country.

Shinshu Pro-Wrestling

2008-03-16T13:52:00.004+09:00

A couple of weeks ago I went with a couple of friends to see a Japanese pro-wrestling event in nearby Bessho onsen. It was shown on national Japanese TV and we were seen in the audience and interviewed briefly after (presumably they were interested in us because we were foreigners). It was quite ridiculous and of course all pre-rehearsed but very entertaining. Despite the fact they called it pro-wrestling I'm sure all of the participants are strictly amateur and have boring office jobs during the week. The commentators spoke in Japanese but occasionally used borrowed English terms like "Jumping Elbow". A small child near us spent most of the 90 minute show screaming "Ganbare!" at the wrestlers. The strange humour and costume choice made it a very Japanese affair. Here are some photos. Enjoy!

Waffle

2008-03-01T10:27:00.003+09:00

Just a brief update of what's happening in my life. It's been a very cold winter and whilst I have loved the skiing conditions I am happy to see the first signs of warmer weather. Roll on spring! I passed the Japanese test I took in December. Also, I am getting a transfer within my company. I am moving back to Matsumoto (I lived there before I came to Ueda) at the end of the month. The next school year starts in April and I will change from teaching in a Junior High School to teaching in ten different Elementary schools. It should be fun and it means I need to by a car so I look forward to getting some wheels in Japan.
Last weekend I went to Tokyo with some friends. Amongst other things, I got my photo taken with a Taiwanese protester dressed as a horse (Let them join the UN!). Look out for him at the Beijing Olympics, I suspect he's planning something.

My internet alias in the news

2008-02-25T22:29:00.002+09:00

When I started this blog I chose an alias rather than give my real name out of fear of identity theft. I chose the name Matt Santos because I'm a fan of "The West Wing" TV show. This recent article draws an interesting comparison between Santos and Barack Obama. The West Wing writers apparently based the character on Obama before he was even a US senator. In the TV show, Santos's story arc starts with him as an inexperienced young member of Congress who runs for the Democratic presidential nomination and eventually wins the presidency. I wonder if this will happen in real life and Obama makes it all the way to the White House this year. If not lets get Jimmy Smits to run in 2012. Nothing to do with Japan or me but I thought it was interesting.

Omiwatari

2008-02-04T19:05:00.000+09:00

"Once upon a time, there were a goddess named Yasakatome-no Mikoto (八坂刀売命) and a god, Takeminakata-no Mikoto (建御名方命). When the Goddess alone moved to the Lower Shrine, the God missed her so much but found that Lake Suwa was too large to cross. Then, when Lake Suwa was frozen over, he took the chance and walked over the ice to her shrine.

Today his footsteps are said to be Omiwatari. (This natural phenomenon is said to be caused as water expands with freezing in winter. The straight line of the sharp upheaval appears on the surface, and is called Omiwatari.) People used to regard Omiwatari as the sign which insured safety on the ice. When it came, they would step on Lake Suwa."

So goes a local Japanese legend. I went to Suwa-ko yesterday to try and see this rare phenomenon and also visit my friend John, my old Nova colleague.
Unfortunately, my efforts to see this natural phenomenon was thwarted by another natural phenomenon; massive snowstorms. Yesterday I saw the biggest snowfall I've ever seen. Possibly 40 or 50cm fell in about 24 hours in some parts of Nagano. They even managed to cause widespread delays to Japan's famously punctual trains. Nagano is used to heavy snow so was actually well equipped to deal with the conditions.

Unfortunately , the amount of snow meant you couldn't see where the road stopped and where lake Suwa began, never mind the omiwatari (the picture is a file photo).
All was not lost though. We had a very fine lunch at an Indian restaurant. I caught up with what has happened to everyone since Nova has shut (most have found new jobs). Before the cold froze my camera I took these photos. The views of the Japan Alps in the snowstorm on the train ride down were spectacular. There is a public foot onsen in Suwa. We had the most bizarre experience of having a foot bath in front of a frozen lake in the middle of a snowstorm. It was quite fun.

Jigokudani Yaenkoen Monkey Park

2008-01-22T21:31:00.000+09:00

Regular readers of this blog may remember I took my parents to the monkey park when they visited me in Japan in September 2006. It was such a wonderful and unique experience I had been meaning to come back every since. I went last Sunday with my friend Daniel to see the monkeys, which are famous for enjoying a hot bath surrounded by snow. 猿は面白いね！

Nozawa Onsen Fire Festival

2008-01-19T15:39:00.000+09:00

Almost every town and village in Japan has its own festival and many of them are quite bizarre. One of the more famous festivals is the Dosojin Fire Festival held every year in Nozawa Onsen on Jan 15th. Nozawa Onsen is a tiny village in the Japan Alps about two hours drive from where I live. It is otherwise famous for being a world class ski resort (the best I've been to in Japan) and its hotsprings. I went to the festival with a couple of friends earlier this week.
The festival is a centuries old tradition which is the only reason why this dangerous and violent event gets official sanction. Only men born in Nozawa onsen village are allowed to take part but a huge crowd of people, including many foreigners and tourists, spectate and it is shown on local TV. A wooden fort is constructed and then all the 42 year olds in the village sit atop of it. The 25 year olds of the village stand beneath it and defend from attack. These two ages are chosen because they have bad luck in Japan (apparently though I don't the origin of this). Then other men of the village attack the fort with burning sticks attempting to set it on fire. The 25 year olds defend it and put out any flames. The 42 year olds on top of the fort throw down wood to attack the fort with. At first it was pretty mild, babies and small children going first and ceremonially attacking. Afterwards, the intensity increased and it became more and more aggressive and violent. Overseeing all of this are volunteer fireman from the village. We could see adrenaline and primal instinct take over as the men attack with more vigour and the 25 year olds defend with more passion and less restraint. The attack on the fort lasted about an hour and a half. By the end the attackers were jabbing burning bundles of wood into the defenders without restraint and the crowd were getting restive. Only heavy handed crowd control by the volunteer firemen prevented a crush or stampede. Amazingly there were no serious injuries that I saw. Then at 10 o clock on the dot the attack was halted; the 25 year olds having successfully defended the wooden fort. The defenders cleared out of the fort in an orderly fashion and it was lit as a big bonfire, the men's aggression having subsided. At About 11pm all the Japanese spectators left almost at the same time, the craziness over for another year. We stayed on a while longer and had some drinks in a nearby pub afterwards.
It was a very entertaining evening and unlike anything I've ever seen before. I didn't feel very safe while watching it but I don't think I was particularly at risk of being burnt or injured. It is a fine example of Japanese style well organized chaos or perhaps one of these events that only takes place because it's a centuries old tradition. It takes place January 15th every year if you want to go next year. Otherwise I can definitely recommend Nozawa Onsen for its skiing.

South Korea

2008-01-06T15:32:00.000+09:00

Happy new year,
I spent ten days of my Christmas vacation in South Korea, based in Seoul. I will try to add pictures later. I had a very nice time. I stayed in a private room at a youth hostel and met some interesting people there.
Seoul is huge, 13million people and bigger than Tokyo. There were many interesting sightseeing places there. Among them Gyeongbok Palace, the most impressive of the Korean royal palaces. It was well preserved and beautiful, a match for anything you'll find in Kyoto. There were many good museums, the best of the lot was the Korean War Memorial museum. It was a very interesting look at Korea's complex history of colonial invaders and finally the Korea War which split the country in two. The Olympic park (from the '88 Seoul Olympics) was cool and the modern skyscaper's and entertainment districts were like Tokyo only busier.
I also took a trip to Busan on the south coast. It's the second city and a different atmosphere to Seoul. There was a surprising amount of nature and parks for a crowded city of 3.5 million. The views of the city from the coastal cliffs on a freezing December day were spectacular.
You can't visit South Korea and not take a guided tour of the border with North Korea. It's billed as the 'most dangerous place on earth' but the fact it is a popular tourist destination suggests it is more high farce than real danger. The situation between the countries seems to be improving with rail services starting between the two for the first time in fifty years. On the tour we saw (from a distance) the reunification village, an uninhabited village controlled by North Korea with the worlds biggest flagpost and a massive North Korean flag. We were shown down an attack tunnel dug by North Korea and found by South Korea about 20 years ago. The North Koreans painted coal onto the wall to try and make it look like a coalmine. The tour was very interesting and quite funny. Of course, the situation in North Korea with all of it's human rights abuses and hunger and Stalinist personality cult government is a real tragedy, too.
I got to try many Korean foods. Kimchi, basically spicy cabbage, is quite popular and easily available in Japan too but in Korea it was much nicer and there were more kinds. Bibimbap, a staple rice dish, is very nice even for unadventurous people and I highly recommend the seafood. I ate a lot of things that I didn't what it was but I think I avoided eating dog (it's a delicacy here). Something I ate gave me food poisoning which laid me low for a few days and stopped me from skiing in Korea. The people in the hostel were friendly and we went out drinking on a few occasions. Despite getting ill I had a good time and it was an interesting (and cheap) trip.

The Japanese Proficiency Language Test

2007-12-03T18:29:00.000+09:00

I took the JPLT on Sunday. It is the most widely taken Japanese test. You can only take it once a year on the first Sunday in December. I had to travel to Shinshu University in Matsumoto to take it. There were some other Westerners taking it (including many of my friends) but the majority of people taking it were Korean, Chinese, and other Asians. There are 4 levels; 4 is the lowest and 1 is the highest. I entered level 3. My 15 year old cousin in England (who is a Japanophile) is taking level 4 at some venue in London. Level covers about 400 kanji and and Japanese grammar equivalent to a 11 year old Japanese native. I studied for months for it. It was difficult but I think I passed. I hope to take level 2 next year. Level 2 is valuable qualification as you can (in theory at least) work as a translator or in a Japanese office or teach Japanese in an English High School if you pass it. I will start studying for that around February.

Money for Old Rope

2007-10-24T17:30:00.000+09:00

I am saving up for a Christmas trip to South Korea. I got a circular email a few weeks ago looking for staff for a weekend English Camp. A High School in Nagano were holding their annual English camp in Nagano and needed native English speakers to work on it. It looked like a fun way to make some extra cash.
It took place last weekend and it was great fun. It was held in a luxury Onsen hotel in Iiyama, north of Nagano. The hotel was very nice; they even had some tortoises. My job for the weekend was to basically talk in English with the students, do activities like pumpkin carving, play games. The students were all very nice and personable. We ate a Japanese style barbecue on Saturday evening; it was delicious. Later in the evening I had free time and could enjoy the onsen.
I got paid to stay in a luxury onsen hotel and speak English a bit. Not bad work if you can get it.

School Festival セルリアン祭

2007-09-30T21:01:00.001+09:00

This past Friday and Saturday was my schools festival and the major cultural event of the school year. The staff and students alike had spent may months preparing for it. Japan has a surfeit of festivals but the school festival is an important event for everyone involved with the school. Though my own involvement was minimal, just spectating at the whole event was exhausting.
It started on Friday with essentially a four hour assembly. There were displays from various clubs and elective classes. The cheer leading club were first, followed by the drumming club. There followed hours of speeches that varied in quality and topic. One boy talked about how his home room class had made a giant mud ball one lesson. There were a few English speeches which I had proof read before and were delivered well. A girl talking about a social studies project was so overcome with nerves that she cried throughout her speech and barely got through it. She received loud applause when she eventually finished. The morning finished with six different groups doing choreographed dancing to various J-pop tunes. The length of this assembly was exhausting.
After lunch there were some sports events. First, a student led the entire school through an aerobics workout. There was class relay contests afterwards. The day ended with a class skipping (or jump rope in American English) contest.
The next day was dominated by musical events. Another four hour marathon assembly. First the brass band played through their repertoire (which includes "Smoke on the Water" bizarrely). There followed a singing contest judged by outside experts. Each class and each year group, the staff and the whole school had songs to sing in each of those subdivisions. I sang with the staff for the staff song. It was an Okinawan folk song. The lyrics were spelt phonetically (without Kanji to help deduce the meaning) and the song used antiquated grammar and Okinawan dialect so I had no idea of it's meaning and it would be have been an heroic to find out.
Nonetheless, it sounded nice and was short and easy to learn. I also sang with the whole school song which was about a rabbit that lives in the moon (a popular Japanese folk myth). After lunch the winners of the various competitions were announced and a full hour was spent to surmise and reminisce on the festivals events. With the best will in the world no-one can concentrate though eight hours of assembly in two days. I don't doubt the effort that went into the whole event but it suffered from the Japanese trait of effort for efforts sake. A smaller, leaner event would have easier to digest and saved the staff and students needless time and stress. Anyway, afterwards the staff could wind down as we all went for an 宴会 (enkai) or party.
The staff party was a showcase for all sorts of odd Japanese social behaviour. By a lottery people were seated and I ended up next to the headmaster and the former headmaster (a special guest). Both were charming but got very drunk. They said they were glad was from England before making a series of rude comments about the USA. The old headmaster quizzed me about English marriage tradition. He asked how important cooking ability was when choosing a future wife in England. I replied that it wasn't particularly important. He followed up by saying, "My wife is good at cooking. Good at bed too. Hahahaha." In Japan it is bad manners to pour your own drink; you should pour for other people and have the favour returned. The teachers were falling over themselves to refill the two Headmaster's glasses. I made sure I completed the ritual fairly soon so I didn't appear rude. It finished with the teacher in a circle singing the school anthem. The last AET, my predecessor Stuart, at this event last year got very drunk, took his trousers off, ran home and had to be picked up the headmaster in his car lest the police find him. That proved to be fatal for his relationship with the school staff. I judiciously decided to retire early rather than join the teachers for the follow up drinks in town. And so it finished.

Back in Japan

2007-08-19T15:17:00.000+09:00

I have got back to my home now after a frenetic three weeks in England. During the break I managed to renew my passport, see my friends and family, go to the pub a lot, see my old barbershop chorus and direct a summer camp (see previous post). Last week on Tuesday I went to London for the day and met my old university friend Rob. I went on the London Eye, visited the very good Churchill War Rooms museum and saw a BBC Proms concert. We got tickets in the pit and were about five metres from the performers; a Jazz trio playing Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue with an orchestra. The next day I went to Poole to visit my sister. We went to nearby Monkey World, a rescue centre for primates. You could tell some of the animals had suffered hard lives but they have a very nice (if wet) home now. In total it was a great summer vacation. I flew back on Friday/Saturday and start work again on Tuesday. In the meantime I have to evict some ants that have taken residence in my house while I was away.

ATE Superweek

2007-08-17T00:19:00.001+09:00

For eight years now I have volunteered for a charity called ATE. They run residential summer camps for children. It's a sort of hobby of mine. I decided to spend one of my three weeks vacation in England working for them. As I have worked for them for so long now I am a director and am in charge of the madness. The particular holiday I was running was in a place called Moor Park near Ludlow. I had 42 kids in my care and a staff of 17 to manage. Everyone was very nice which made my job rather easy. I attempted to cook Japanese food one evening for everyone. I ruined the noodles but there was enough other food to make up for it and no-one really noticed. We all went on a day trip to Ludlow Castle and Town which was very nice and about as English as you can get. All in all it was a very fun and successful week. I will leave these photos without explanation or context and you can try and guess what they are about.

Back home

2007-07-30T16:30:00.000+09:00

Hello from England.
I am on my summer holidays and am in England for the next 3 weeks. It hasn't changed much in the 16 months I've been away. My family and cats are largely the same. I have been enjoying English cuisine hard to come by in Japan like yorkshire puddings and roast beef. I have not really suffered from homesickness or culture shock while I've been in Japan but nevertheless it's nice to be back.

Asama yama

2007-06-26T17:30:00.000+09:00

Last weekend I climbed Asama yama (浅間山), a 2600m active volcano near where I live. It is one of the most active volcanos in Japan; its last eruption was 3 years ago. To get to the mountain path I took a train to Komoro (小諸) and then a bus up to the start of the mountain path. The weather forecast for the day was clear, sunny weather and for the first hour it was sunny. However the rest of the day it rained and as the day wore on the rain became stronger. During the climb I saw many other people: pensioners photographing flowers, Tokyo residents on a trip to the countryside and organized hiking clubs.
It took me three hours to climb up and two hours to climb down. About 1hr 3omins from the summit I saw the first of several warning signs saying "Possible eruption at any time! Proceed at your own risk!" This made the climb look a lot more dangerous than it actually is. As I climbed further up the vegetation got less and less and eventually disappeared as the volcanic soil got more poisonous. The last 30 minutes there was thick, pungent smoke which made breathing difficult and I had to take regular breaks. About 100 metres before the crater is a rope barrier. Beyond this point you are at serious risk of passing out from the smoke or the ground subsiding underneath you and falling into the crater. I was intrigued to see the crater but I resisted the urge to get myself killed and went no further. The journey back down was much easier and I stopped halfway down in a mountain hut and had a hot drink. At the bottom of the path I waited in the rain for a bus. A nice Japanese man took pity on me and offered me a lift back to the train station. Regular readers may recall my previous mountain climbing trip last summer ended in me getting lost and wading down a mountain stream so I'm glad this trip went well.

4 day weekend!

2007-06-17T09:57:00.000+09:00

Thanks to a scheduling error by my company, bless their inefficiency, I had a 4 day weekend last weekend. I used the time to visit Niigata and Sadogashima.
Niigata is a sort of Japanese Newcastle. It is a big industrial northern port city. It used to be famous for the Industrial Pollution that caused Minamoto disease but now takes great effort to be environmentally friendly. It has a nice atmosphere, lots of interesting Museums and shops and clean sea air. I don't know how far the Newcastle comparison goes. I'll have to come back in the middle of winter to see if the menfolk walk around town in just a T-shirt ala Newcastle.
Sadogashima is a Island off the coast of Niigata. I enjoyed some splendid Isolation there. I think I was the only foreigner on the Island. At least I didn't see any other foreigner's and precious few people in general. I was the only guest at a very nice little Youth Hostel. I had a whole beach to myself. Sadogashima is very picturesque. It was surrounded by mist when the boat arrived, looked very mysterious.
I thank my good fortune that this scheduling error gave me the time to visit these places. One downside; On Wednesday when I returned to work I was suffering from what the Japanese call "Yasumi boke" or sleepy brain.

Cricket!

2007-06-06T17:30:00.000+09:00

A couple of weeks ago I played cricket in Matsumoto. The teams were nominally Australia and England. Of course, I played for England. I am not good at any ball sports so I wasn't particularly good. I batted for 3 overs, scored 7 runs including one boundary. I was bowled out twice. I bowled one over, got no wickets and conceded two runs. Our team, England won the match but it came down to the last two balls. It was fun. Here are some pictures.

Golden week

2007-05-07T18:12:00.000+09:00

Last week was golden week in Japan which meant there was 3 national holidays and I only worked 2 days in the whole week. I went on a couple of trips, one to Kanazawa and the other to Fuji five lakes.
Kanazawa is a big city on the east coast of Japan. I took a five hour bus to get there (very economical). It is most famous for Kenrokuen, an old Japanese garden that is supposed to be one of the 3 most beautiful gardens in Japan. It was indeed very beautiful and having seen it I don't need to visit any other Japanese gardens. Kanazawa also boasts a very nice castle and a fine Modern Art Museum. I saw a special exhibition by Grayson Perry, a cross-dressing Englishman with a very funny sense of humour. He manages the rare feet of making pottery interesting.
After a couple of days at work I had the rest of the week off and I went to Fuji five lakes. It is an area in the foothills of Mt Fuji where you can see the most specatucalar views (Mt Fuji itself is not as scenic). I went camping with Noriko and we stayed at lake Kawaguchi. It was the first time she had been camping and she enjoyed it inspite of all the inconveniences associated with camping. I found a campsite in about the best viewing spot in the whole of the lake. Cars kept stopping by the road next to us to get a picture of the view. While we were there we went to Fuji Q Highland, a theme park nearby with some monster rollercoasters. Both of us are wimps when it comes to rollercoasters so we only went on the very tame rides but it was fun. I feel the temptation to climb Mt Fuji in the summer now.
Last year I had to work through Golden week (boo the NOVA English school) so I really appreciated the time off and have great memories from my travels. Regular readers will be aware I go on an excessive number of trips for someone with a full time job and a fairly limited budget. You've got to have a hobby I guess.

Life in Ueda

2007-04-17T18:45:00.000+09:00

Sorry for the long abscence. I have no internet at the moment. I have been living in Ueda for about 3 weeks now and working in my new job for about 2 weeks.
I am working at a large Junior High School in Ueda as an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher). I haven't taught much yet but all the staff and pupils are very friendly. The first few days the students had special classes with their home room teachers. After that I had to introduce myself to all of the 15 classes. Now half the school is on a trip to Kyoto and most English classes are cancelled. I also have to gently persuade the English faculty to use me properly and not just as a glorified tape player. It is a trap many ALT's fall into and it takes time and diplomacy to avoid but I think I will avoid that fate. What I can is that schools in Japan are certainly very different to English schools. Here are some things that have struck me the most:
The opening ceremony. The school year started with this most formal affair. The hall was divided into four groups; staff, guests, the new first years and the old second and third years. About 10 different speakers were heard; the principal, the vice-principal, the chairman of the PTA and some other people who's role I couldn't discern. Everytime somebody spoke they bowed six times; to the stage, the staff, the guests, the new students, the old students and finally to everyone. They bowed at the start and the finish of the speech. The national anthem was sung. The school's own anthem (most Japanese schools have a unique anthem) was sung twice. The new teachers, including me, were introduced one at a time. The teachers were then introduced in year groups and again in faculty teams. The whole exhausting process took about two hours. The pupils showed remarkable patience and attention throughout. I guess they are practiced at it. It was interesting to me because it was novel. The next time I attend one I will probably be bored stiff.
School lunch. Organised with almost military precision. Pupils all eat school lunch in their classrooms. The lunch monitors fetch the food and plates and cutlery from the kitchen and haul them up usually two flights of stairs. They proceed to dish out everyone's meal (it takes about 10 minutes) then some preassigned person says "Itadakimasu" and everyone eats. 15-20 minutes later everyone has finished and there is no spare or uneaten food (it is rude not to finish your meal). Someone says "Gochisosamadeshita" and in a rush of activity all the empty plates are collected, returned and tables wiped. Constant items on the menu; milk, some kind of soup, rice and salad. Variable items on the menu; squid, curry burger, ground chicken, grilled fish, octopus, prawn cocktail, bread and cheese.
Soji or cleaning. Everyday after lunch for 15 minutes the whole school does cleaning. Everyone has a preassigned area and every student and teacher takes part. They have different jobs on a rota. Everyone has to wear a bandana during this time (for hygiene I guess). During soji, inspirational music is piped throuh the building. At the moment, they are playing the school anthem and 'You raise me up'. I hope they change the music soon. The pupils clean properly and without protest. In England it would be very difficult to get this kind of routine introduced, too many people would complain and shirk.
School building. Japanese schools don't have central heating. They do have kerosine heaters in the corner of the rooms. As a result, half the classroom is freezing, half the classroom is sweltering and it smells like kerosine the whole time. My school has yet to get an interactive whiteboard (a marverlous invention). The school has yet to get even a whiteboard. They still have blackboards and chalk. It's quite surprising that one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world has school buildings and equipment 50 years out of date.
I could go on but those are some of my first impressions. I think I will enjoy working here if I can avoid my predecessors fate; they were given nothing to do and then were complained about for doing nothing. I shall endevour to square that circle.

This strawberry looks like Admiral Ackbar

2007-04-03T09:59:00.000+09:00

I went strawberry picking with Noriko yesterday. I found this particular strawberry and I thought it looked like Admiral Ackbar of the Star Wars movies. If you can see a different likeness please leave a comment.

Visiting relatives

2007-04-01T20:51:00.000+09:00

As I mentioned before, my uncle and cousin took a holiday to Japan and visited me in Ueda. Sadly, my uncle was taken ill and their trip has been cut short. Still, even in the short time they were there Japan left a very positive and distinctive impression on them. As the Japanese say;
"Sho ga nai"

New apartment

2007-03-25T19:10:00.000+09:00

I have moved to Ueda. Last week I hired a van and moved all my stuff to the new apartment. I then went to Tokyo for a week for training for my new job. The training was pretty boring and not very useful. However, I did get to see bits of Tokyo I've missed before; Harajuku and Yoyogi park (those crazy kid's with their strange fashion!), the Japanese parliament, a Da-Vinci exhibition in Ueno and a night out in Roppongi (as terrible as I had imagined). So overall it wasn't a bad deal.
I arrived back in Ueda on Friday. Mark, the previous tennent had left many things:
a CD player, a spare mattress, a lot of food (some had gone off), a kerosine heater, a Bob marley CD, a ski waxing kit, a computer memory stick. Mostly very useful and much appreciated. However there was one notable omission - the key. We had arranged a secret hiding place where he would leave the key (not ideal but there was no easier way of doing it). The key was not there and after 15 minutes of looking I gave up. I had to use all the street smart I learned growing up in an upper middle class area of Malvern and break into my own apartment. One small hand injury, but no property damage, later I got in.
I've been here a day and a half now and have got a key, electricity and gas back on. Best of all, I've just realized Mark never canceled his internet provision and I've got it set up. I'll use it until I get some legitimate internet access of my own. I now have about a week before I start my new job; working in a Junior High School teaching english. By happy coincidence, my uncle and cousin are visiting Japan during this time off. Expect posts about that.

My Farewell Party and final week in Matsumoto

2007-03-15T10:01:00.000+09:00

Last Sunday I went to my work farewell party. My colleague Andrea was leaving too (after 9 years in his case). It was held at the delightfully named "Cafe Sunny Place". It was a lovely farewell and I shall miss my colleagues. I hope to go back to Matsumoto from time to time to visit.
I have worked for NOVA, an English conversation school for nearly one year. Next week is my final week. I am then moving to Ueda city which is about 2 hours travel from Matsumoto. I have a new job working as an AET (Assistant English Teacher) in two Junior High Schools. I did a recce of Ueda on Tuesday with Noriko. I recently got my driving license converted so I can drive in Japan. I drove for the first time in over a year as I shared the driving with Noriko. It was fun driving but there are five tunnels to drive through between Matsumoto and Ueda which is a bit scary. I saw my new apartment and met the guy I'm replacing . He's called Mark, a nice guy, and he gave me lots of useful information about the new job and Ueda. I am exited about all the changes coming but it will throw up challenges too .

My Brother's Wedding in Mexico

2007-03-09T14:46:00.000+09:00

On Friday 23rd February 2007 my brother Ted Hoffman (this is his internet alias) got married. The venue was the beach by the Blue Parrot suite in the resort of Playa del Carmen, Mexico. 44 friends and family traveled from the USA, England and Japan (that would be me) to witness this happy event. The music was chosen by my brother. The traditional wedding march was abandoned. Jaye, my brother's beautiful new American wife, walked down the aisle to the sounds of "The Theme from Rocky Balboa". Awesome! The minister spoke in Spanish and was translated into English by Jaye's mother. A crazy Frenchman called Christian took photos of the event (hence my photo's are not very good). He kept asking people to "look into the future" for his shots. An impromptu request by Christian for everyone to sing "All you need is love" was humoured but not well received. The ceremony was very moving and the backdrop was beautiful.
It was an unusual wedding in many respects but most of the customs were still observed. There was a rehearsal dinner the night before the wedding. After the ceremony a reception was held and speeches were given. The best man, Sam (pictured above on the right), had two speeches prepared; One full of embarrassing stories and secrets and another more moderate version. He was going to decide which version to read based on how my brother introduced him. My brother shrewdly introduced Sam as "A giant of a man, my best friend and the best man" and the second version was read and the embarrassing stories were kept under wraps. Now the ceremonies are over I wish my brother and his new wife every happiness in the future. Their future children will be of British, Irish, American and Mexican stock. That is an excellent lineage.

The Tokyo Marathon - A runner's report

2007-02-19T07:43:00.000+09:00

It's finally over. After months of training, yesterday I ran the Tokyo Marathon in a time of 4hours 53minutes. It was by the far the physically toughest thing I've ever done. I'm relieved I completed it (Sammy Korir, the pre-race favourite and 2nd fastest Marathon runner ever failed to finish because of the severe weather). With that, I am retiring from long distance running.
The race started in torrential rain. I had to line up near the back of the 30000 field so it took 15 minutes from the bell to actually cross the start line. The wait and the weather had turned my hands numb. The first 6km were downhill and I had to resist the urge to run too fast. By 7km I could feel my hands again. The first half was pretty enjoyable. I could see Tokyo Tower (though the top was obscured by rain). The second half got tougher and the field thinned. I had settled in about 10000th place (the 5km markers displayed the time and number of runners already passed). I had to make a toilet stop at about 27km and cue for 10minutes. This broke my momentum and my speed dropped. At 32km I saw the "10km to go" sign. However a series of hills sapped my energy and I had to walk briefly. I soon realized that at this point it was just as painful to walk as it was to run so I dug deep and ran the rest. The final kilometres were packed with athletes who ran too quickly early on and couldn't run any more. Even at the slow speed I was running, I passed thousands of runners in the last 5km. With 4km to go, the sun came out and the home stretch was actually enjoyable. At the finish line my girlfriend Noriko was waiting. She took this picture of me at the finish line. Thankyou for your support, Noriko.
So that was the Marathon. My time was a little slower than I hoped but nevermind. I also raised £515 (so far) for ATE, a charity that I know well. You can still donate, even now. I can now relax and recover. Even better than that, I am off to Mexico tommorow where my brother is having his wedding.

Update

2007-02-12T22:33:00.000+09:00

Sorry for the long absence of posts. Here's a brief summary of the last few weeks:
I've been training a lot for the marathon. I ran 20km up and down a mountain two weeks ago. I've been skiing 7 times so far this winter and I think I've improved a reasonable amount (though the UK Olympic team may have to wait a few years yet). I recently met a nice Japanese girl called Noriko and we are dating. For my new job I will move to Saku city. It is about an hour away from Matsumoto where I live now. It is famous for nothing in particular but it is large, convenient and near to Matsumoto, Tokyo, Nagano and many ski resorts. I have mixed feelings about moving there. It was a last minute change made by my new employers who had originally promised Matsumoto. Nevertheless, the new job is exiting and as a bonus I get furnished with a car. I am in the process of getting a Japanese driving license. It is a long bureaucratic process but I have only one more hoop to jump through. I will soon be very familiar with the Kafkaesque agencies of the Japanese Government as in the next few months I have to renew my visa, renew my passport, renew my health insurance, move apartment and register my address with the local council. Meanwhile, the marathon is on Sunday. Watch this space for how I get on. I think I'm reasonably well prepared but you never know. I can feel the pain already.

Hong Kong

2007-01-17T15:42:00.000+09:00

My grandfather had a very English name - Hastings. He served as an air force pilot in World War II. Shortly afterwards he and the family moved to Hong Kong where he worked for the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Corporation (now HSBC). He went by plane because he was needed urgently by the HSBC to help sort out the mess that was left after the war. My grandmother and father (an infant at that time) by sea on a long and arduous voyage. It was very hot going through the Suez canal, and my Dad was very thin when they arrived in Hong Kong. While they lived in Hong Kong, my uncle was born. A few years later, my grandfather contracted TB and had to be evacuated back to England for treatment and recovery.
My gran was left on her own for a bit and then flew back with my Dad and uncle aged 4 and 2. The flight took 2-3 days with stops in various places! It was my Gran's first time
flying, and she was greatly reassured when the pilot turned out to be a friend. He invited them to the cabin, where they left some plasticine, which was brought back later by a stewardess in the shape of an aeroplane. My dad still has this. Hong Kong at the time had two tall buildings, the HSBC building (12 storeys I think) and the Bank of China across the road (13 storeys). I never met my grandfather (he died before I was born) but last week I was able to revisit this part of my family history as I took a trip to Hong Kong. I went with my sister, who flew from England. I suspect the Hong Kong we saw was considerably different to the Hong Kong my grandparents knew.
The first thing I noticed was the transport system. Hong Kong's transport is, if it's possible, even cleaner, more punctual and more efficient than Japan. The airport is supposed to be the best in the world and I can't disagree. It works like a perfectly functioning organism; moving people from the planes through the various checks to the exits as efficiently as possible with moving walkways everywhere. One notable feature was a body temperature scanner just after the customs check (presumably an innovation brought in after the SARS outbreak of a few years ago). The subways, buses and trams are cheaper, easier to use and faster than even Japan's very high standard.
Our first sightseeing was up to Victoria peak via the ancient funicular railway (it's been in operation for over 100 years). The railway car looked beautiful but felt decidedly unsafe as it crawled up the very steep hill to the top. At the top were some lovely views of Hong Kong as well as old colonial style houses. The British settlers originally built houses up the top of the mountains as the villages below were rife with Malaria. This part, at least, may have looked the same to my grandparents when the lived there.
The next day we went to Hong Kong Disneyland. Disneyland's rides and attractions are pretty underwhelming. However, the resorts main appeal is that everyone is happy and friendly and the affection generated for the Disney characters and the classic movies they come from. We had a great day of childish fun.
Our next destination was Lantau Island. Here we took a cable car to the middle of the island and saw some great views, including the massive airport from above (it looks like an arrow). In the middle of Lantau there is the world's biggest Buddha. It was built only ten years ago and it's very impressive- just as much as the ancient Buddha in Kamakura in Japan.
The following day we did many things: saw the new and impressive Space Museum, walked along the 'Avenue of Stars' and saw Bruce Lee's statue and had afternoon tea at the Peninsular Hotel (a very English affair). The highlight of the final day was seeing two Pandas at one of the parks.
Hong Kong has some reminders of it's British Empire past but the feel is mostly Chinese. More than that however, Hong Kong is overwhelmingly capitalist. Apparently the most capitalist place on earth, it is in evidence in the seemingly never ending shops, markets, street vendors and commerce. The profits from this pay for the extraordinary skyscrapers and the beautiful night view. Unfortunately, the thick smog created by all this industry spoils the place too.
Me and my sister had a wonderful time in Hong Kong, and we didn't have to take a grueling sea voyage to get back too.

Matsumoto Castle in the snow

2007-01-07T20:18:00.000+09:00

It's been snowing heavily recently so I thought I would show you this beautiful view of the castle in the snow.

Hokkaido

2007-01-04T12:27:00.000+09:00

Happy new year from An Englishman in Japan. My workplace has been shut for the last week because of the New Year and I have had the luxury of 10 days off work. Christmas day came and went without much incident and I spent the last few days of 2006 in Hokkaido. Hokkaido the cold, northernmost island of Japan is somewhere you could easily spend months exploring but I only had 4 days. Still, it was a pleasure (please look at my photos).
I took a night train up and after a 14 hour journey I arrived in Sapporo at 6 in the morning last Friday. I spent the rest of the day sightseeing in Sapporo. There is snow and ice permanently on the ground for most of the winter in Sapporo so you have to walk with caution. At the tourist information centre they provide explanatory brochures in many languages of the proper walking technique for icy pavement (how very Japanese). Sapporo is an odd place, a kind of cross between New York and Siberia (I'm imagining here), but very cool and I recommend it to you. It is famous for Sapporo Beer which is my favorite Japanese beer. Local dishes are plentiful including fresh seafood and sushi, a special Sapporo ramen and a grilled lamb dish called jingus kan which is delicious. I tried them all while I was there.
I also visited nearby Otaru, a small picturesque city which is used as a filming location for many Japanese movies. Japan has many really old buildings and temples and many strange new buildings. However because of WW2 bombing and the subsequent rebuilding of Japan there is very few buildings from about 1800 - 1940. Otaru is a notable exception to this, there are lots of 19th century buildings and old factorys, Russian fisherman buildings and the canal is very famous. I had a fun day there and I even went to a glass blowing factory and made my own beer mug.
The final place I visited was Toyoko (or Lake Toya). It is the likely venue for the 2008 G8 summit in Japan and a volcanic lake and hot spring resort. I saw some genuinely beautiful scenery; smoldering volcanoes and huge volcanic lake with and island in the middle. Afterwards, I enjoyed a hot spring.
On New Years eve I was going to go to Sapporo clock tower to count the new year in (its always a big event in Sapporo) but I fell asleep. I left new years day by plane. Security on Japanese domestics flights is decidedly lax. I didn't need to show any ID - just a ticket. I brought a penknife onboard with my hand luggage (I hadn't realized) and no-one noticed or questioned me about it. Given my existing fear of flying I was less than reassured by this. Anyway, I arrived back safely. I had a lovely trip and I also enjoyed skiing in Nagano during my break from work. I have to go back to work on Friday but only for three days. I am going to Hong Kong next week for another holiday. It's a hard life, eh!

Bonenkai

2006-12-20T19:23:00.000+09:00

Last Sunday was my company's Bonenkai. Literally, this means "forget the year party". It is customary for every employer or social club to have one. We went to a French restaurant where we ate traditional Christmas fare like turkey with cranberry sauce along with Japanese food like sushi. A curious mix but nonetheless delicious. Andrea, as our oldest colleague was given the task of carving the turkey. His effort was so masterful the restaurant owner gave him a small bottle of brandy to say thank you. We ate and drank and thankfully speeches were kept to a minumum (in more formal Japanese company the speeches can sometimes drag on for hours).
Afterwards, having drunk much wine and champagne I attempted to make a tower of bottles (see picture). First three and then four bottles were balanced on top of each other but five sadly eluded me.
Next we went to karaoke (only my second since I came to Japan). A variety of songs, English and Japanese were rendered in less than dulcet voices. I sang "More than words" despite many protests from my colleages. Karaoke in Japan comes with a free drinks and snacks bar you can use. The "Mister Whippy" style ice cream dispenser was almost emptied by our group. Eventually we left and to cap off a great party it started snowing heavily outside. Ah, Christmas. Tis the most wonderful time of the year.

Start of the Skiing Season

2006-12-13T17:36:00.000+09:00

The ski season has started and on Tuesday I went skiing at the Hakuba 47 resort with my friend Gary (pictured). After a five year break from skiing I was worried I might have forgotten how to ski. Luckily, it appears skiing is much like riding a bike - you never forget. And, as I remember, skiing is still awesome fun. I should probably add that to a neutral observer my skiing technique is terrible but I did at least remember the basics and only fell over once. Of course, Nagano prefecture's main claim to fame is the 1998 Winter Olympics. I now have another 4 months to enjoy the regions many ski resorts with their beautiful scenery (pictured) and improve my technique.
Last week, in a moment of extravagance, I bought a pair of skis. They were the second cheapest in the shop (the cheapest pair were too short). Even still, they cost the equivalent of 10 days ski rental. So, doing the maths, I have to going skiing at least 10 days this winter to justify the cost of buying them. The cost of all of this will significant so I will have to economize in other areas - 4 months of eating beans on toast maybe.

I've got a new job

2006-11-24T13:33:00.000+09:00

On Monday morning, I went to Tokyo for an job interview with another company. They recruit Assistant Language Teachers (ALT) on behalf of Elementary and Junior High Schools in Japan. Yesterday they offered me a job as an ALT starting April 2007. I don't know where it is yet but my three stated preferences were, Hiroshima prefecture, Nagano prefecture and greater Tokyo so it will be in a public school in one of those areas.
At the moment I work for a private English school. I teach students from 2 - 92. I had a one year contract to work for them that finishes at the end of March 2007. I like the job, my coworkers and have no complaints with the company. I am changing employers for a couple of reasons. First, I previously was a school teacher and wanted to do something closer to that. I get to have more creative input in my lessons and a more varied experience. Also, I will have more opportunity to speak and improve my Japanese. My present employers are geared up for English speakers and so I find no necessity at work to speak Japanese. My coworker, who has spent 9 years in Japan, still orders in McDonalds in english and speaks almost no Japanese for this reason. Lastly, the ALT job is regular working hours, Monday to Friday during the day, with long school holidays.
All in all I very glad to have this sorted out a good 5 months before my contract expires. Thats all the news I have for now.

Please sponsor me

2006-11-18T22:29:00.000+09:00

As I have mentioned in previous posts I am running the Tokyo Marathon next February. I thought I should use this opportunity to raise some money for a worthy cause. If you can please sponsor me by following this link. I am hoping to raise money for Active Training and Education (ATE). ATE are a charity whom I've volunteered for 7 years. They run children's residential holidays with an educational motive. I know first hand the good work they do. You can follow the link to find out more about them.

Thankyou for your support

Marathon training update

2006-11-07T21:52:00.000+09:00

Since my announcement about the Tokyo marathon I have begun training. I still have 16 weeks before the marathon and my progress so far is very good. I have been running about 4 times a week at the recommendation of Wikipedia and slowly increasing my speed and distance. Last week I ran round Matsumoto airport. There is a 9km track round the outside and my time was 46 minutes. Today, I went running around Lake Suwa, near Matsumoto, with my friend Gary. My time was 1 hour and 24 minutes for the 16km course.

2006-10-20T10:51:00.000+09:00

A few months ago I was surfing the net idly when I saw an advert for the Tokyo Marathon 2007. My curiosity got the better of me and I applied for a place via an online lottery system. Earlier this week I got an email saying I had a place. I decided to follow one foolish action with another and I've paid my entrance fee. So, next year on February 18th at 10:00 am I will be lining up at the start of the Tokyo Marathon.
Why am I doing it? I've never done a marathon.
My training has begun and I will let you know how I'm getting on.

Happy Halloween!

2006-10-17T17:55:00.000+09:00

I realise it is a bit early to be having halloween parties but nonetheless I went to one on Saturday at a local nightclub with a fancy dress theme. My samurai costume won me only 8th place in the best costume prize. I was wearing sandals which caused me to fall over. I broke the viewing screen on my digital camera but I think I can still use it. I was beaten into first place by "The A Team". I'm sure you can all tell who is BA Barracas but can you identify the rest of them?

Taimatsu Matsuri

2006-10-04T16:03:00.000+09:00

Every year on October 3rd the village of Asama Onsen near where I live hold a most unusual festival - Taimatsu Matsuri or Fire Festival. October 3rd is also the birthday of two of my friends, Retta and Carl. They come from Utah but thankfully aren't polygamists. We celebrated their birthdays amidst the madness of a Japanese celebration of Fire.
For the festival, local teams drag huge bails of burning hay up a hill to a temple where they then throw it on a huge bonfire. Young and old alike take part and even the Elementary school has a team. Safety officials wearing white tin helmets make sure no-one catches fire. A drumming band leads the way. Shopkeepers along the route hand out free Sake of dubious quality. Quickly soot gets everywhere. The people who are dragging the burning hay wipe soot onto the faces of spectators -an act of friendship. Foreigners are particulary popular targets for being smeared with soot. People get drunker and blacker as they get further up the hill. Motivational cries of 'Banzai' and 'Irrashai' echo about. The temple is reached and the burning hay is thrown onto a big bonfire. Afterwards people eat from street vendors. The whole event last about 2 hours. Half an hour later the streets are being swept clean and most people have gone.
The festival is a unique experience, apparently safe and excellent fun. The public spirit and cooperation of the Japanese is the reason for its success. If this event were held in England, some teenagers would burn down some houses too just for fun. If this were England, some enterprising individual would dowse the hay in petrol to help it catch fire. Locals would object about the smoke and soot in their houses. Local goverment would ban it on safety grounds. In Japan, you can hold almost any ridiculous, dangerous, chaotic event you can think of if you just call it a festival. People will get behind it, think it's a great idea and enjoy it. Festivals are an acceptable way for normally conservative, workaholic Japanese people to let their hair down and get really drunk.
Three showers later I am no longer covered in soot. I inhaled a lot of smoke so everything still smells like smoke to me. However, it was an awesome experience. See you next year?

Hiroshima and Miyajima

2006-09-20T18:48:00.000+09:00

As my parents Japanese Holiday continues I joined them for a visit to Hiroshima. It is of course famous for being the victim of the first Nuclear Bomb attack in 1945. Perhaps my musings about it are 60 years late but here they are anyway. After the bombing the city modelled itself as 'City of Peace'. This is an elegant and forward looking response to such a tragedy. Hiroshima could have easily decided to become some kind of Chuck Norris style 'City of Revenge' (imagine the statues of fists raised in anger). Anyway, the city pays suitable reminder to this tragic event by the various buildings in the 'Peace Park'. A museum, various monuments, sculptures and most potently the A-bomb Dome. Apparenty, this building survived the epicenter of the blast thanks to the random architectural properties of dome shaped rooves. Now it is the only remaining pre 1945 building in the city.
Thankfully, the city's overriding impression isn't of 'that place that was A-bombed'. Hiroshima comes across as a beautiful, busy, vibrant, first world city between the sea and the mountains. People spend their time shopping, watching baseball, playing Pachinko, eating Okonomiyaki (pictured, a local omlette like speciality) and generally just living normal lives. The Atomic bomb is just part of its past and a strange tourist attraction of sorts.
The next day we went to nearby Miyajima island. It is famous for the red gate or 'tori' in the sea that becomes submerged during high tide. It is also full of deer wandering free. After the monkey park last week I am becoming accustomed to wild animals mingling with people. Deers strike me as a very gentle and lazy species. They congretate anywhere near people eating food and either are asleep, sitting down relaxing or wandering with little purpose. Being a deer, it seems, is an easy life. Being an english teacher in Japan, by the way, is also an easy life.

More Englishmen in Japan! and some monkeys too!

2006-09-15T21:24:00.000+09:00

My parents have come to Japan to visit me. On Wednesday they arrived in Matsumoto and we caught up, saw the Castle (of course), ate strange japanese food (well sort of - squid), etc. Thursday I decided to show them Jigokudani Wild Monkey Park.
The monkey park is in the middle of a mountain. It takes two trains, a bus, and a 40 minute walk to reach. It is worth it because when you reach it you can walk freely among the monkeys. There you can observe the universal appeal of animals exhibiting human traits. For example:

having a hot bath

loitering on the path

not sharing your food
"They're my seeds. Leave off!"

and breaking up fights
"Leave it! It's not worth it."

This kind of animal park is a much more civilized affair than your average zoo (Polar bears in a small, shallow concrete pool in the middle of July looking thoroughly pissed off, etc). I've always liked monkeys and to see them close up, comfortable in the company of humans, was a wonderful experience. It's a shame England doesn't have any wild monkeys. They would brighten the place up.

Kobe and Himeji Castle

2006-08-31T10:22:00.000+09:00

It had been a little while since my last sightseeing so I decided to go to Kobe on my days off. 11 years ago, Kobe was struck by the 'Great Hanshin Earthquake' and all but raised to the ground. 6000 people died and hundreds of thousands of homes were destroyed. Looking at it now you would never know such an event took place. If the US government and the people of New Orleans want to know what they should do to rebuild their city they could do worse than looking at what Kobe did to recover. Down by the harbour their is a small square of pier preserved as it was after the earthquake (see picture).
My sightseening started at the port which had some typically strange Japanese buildings and statues and Rocco island- a manmade island on land reclaimed from the sea. After that I visited the Kitano district which is famous for its 'Ijinkan' or foreigners houses. Here you can visit houses that belonged to european foreign traders who settled here 150 years ago. I had a look at what was apparently a typical English house. According to the Japanese that includes a mouse's head on the wall, two suits of armour, a bar that sells guinness, at least three rooms purely for drinking tea, portraits of the queen, at least 8 union jack flags hanging up and a jaguar out the front. It was almost like being at home. Slightly more authentic was a shop nearby where I was able to buy marmite.
Next, I took a trip in a cable car up Mt Rocco (Kobe is built on the side of a mountain). From there I saw some beautiful views of the city. After that I headed to the harbour where I saw the Akashi Kaikyo bridge, the longest suspension bridge in the world (see picture). I'm not normally interested in bridges but it looks very impressive. Then, I ate Kobe beef (of course) and found the youth hostel I was staying at.
The next day I headed for Himeji castle, a short train ride away. It was, according to the guidebooks, the best castle in Japan having been the biggest, best designed and survived the second world war bombings. I wasn't let down. Its on top of a hill so you can see it from many kilometres away. There was a volunteer guide who talked me through its history and the finer points of its design. I mentioned South Korea in passing and she got rather hostile about that country so I changed the subject. Otherwise it was a very interesting commentary and she was a really nice guide. Volunteer English guides are a strange Japanese phenomenon. I can't think of any equivalent such people in England. After that my visit was done and I made the long journey back to Matsumoto.

Lake Suwa Fireworks Festival

2006-08-16T14:50:00.000+09:00

On Tuesday I went to Suwa Lake Firework Festival. It's one of the biggest fireworks displays in Japan and a pretty big deal (it's shown on national TV every year). Heeding several peoples advice I went very early to get a good viewing spot. It turned out I didn't need to as there were places to sit available right up untill the start of the show. Oh well, 4 hours wasted - not to worry, on with the fireworks.
The show was as impressive as I'd hoped. The fireworks were huge and varied and were coordinated spectacularly. There were heart shaped fireworks and fireworks which had 7 separate phases of explosions. Some of the bigger fireworks created their own sonic boom which shook the ground and pushed you back a little. The mushroom cloud type fireworks were strange to see, especially in Japan. It was an hypnotising and strangely peaceful communal experience. I really felt on the other side of the world during it.
The finale was suitably spectacular. A ring of fire was lit around the lake, which changed from red to blue to white while all manner of fireworks were being let off leading up to the biggest firework yet being let off to finish the show.
After the show came the mad scramble back to the train station. Kamisuwa station isn't designed for the thousands of people who were queing and the lines went back 500m. Some assertive queing strategies meant it took for 40 minutes to get to the train platform when it might have took 2 hours. A 30 minute ride squashed in a jam packed train was more like the Tokyo subway than rural Japan. Anyway, I got home in reasonable time without too much discomfort. It was an experience I'd recommend to anyone.

Utsagushigahara open air statue museum

2006-08-02T13:26:00.000+09:00

Yokohama

2006-07-28T09:37:00.000+09:00

I've just returned from a two day jaunt to Yokohama. I visited an old University friend of my father, Takahisa, and his family. A most strange and interesting experience it was.
My first port of call was Yokohama Sea Paradise, a massive man made island housing Japan's largest aquarium and a huge amusement park. The aqaurium had a most bizzare sea creature show that runs several times a day. If you ever want to see four dolphins and a walrus dancing to the YMCA then this is the place for you. The aquarium was wonderful; the coral reef a particular highlight.
After the highbrow intellectualism of dancing walruses I needed some light relief. I went to Yokohama Museum of Art. Kind of like a Japanese Tate Modern, this is Japan's premier modern art gallery. And, just like the Tate Modern, there is a mix of the brilliant, the banal and the stuff I don't understand. I followed that with trip up Yokohama Landmark Tower, Japan's tallest lift with the fastest lift in the world (40mph). It was an impressive view and a fine building. Having seen it, I'm think I'm through with visiting tall buildings now (and aqauriums too probably). A quick shopping trip found me some very cheap guinness but alas no Marmite (I've still not found any in Japan).
After that I met Takahisa, my father's old friend from Cambridge, and his family. They were all very nice people who spoke good english. They humoured me by I spoke good Japanese ( I really don't). Takahisa showed me old photograph's of my dad when he was my age. I must admit there is a big resemblance.
The next day I took a trip to Yokohama's famous Chinatown district. Formerly a haven for organised crime, now a safe and popular tourist area famed for it's gates (see picture) and it's food. In the afternoon, Takahisa's wife Kazue, showed me round Kamakura; an area famed for it's buddhist temples and monuments. I like the Buddhists give reverence to their God by making their statues as big as possible. Kotokuin (left) was breathtaking.
In the evening Takahisa and Kazue took for dinner at a nearby hotel. It was tabenomihodai (meaning all you can eat and drink). There was Chinese, Western, and Japanese food. The western food was cooked by a Japanese chef and there were a few tell tale signs - the greek salad contained octupus. Nonetheless, the food was delicious and I ate crab for the first time, which I loved. Takahisa and Kazue got very drunk and told me I was 'Tsuyoi' -strong, I can drink a lot. Not true, I had just eaten about five full plates of food with my wine. They were lovely hosts and I got a fascinating glimpse into the life of a Japanese Salaryman. I have now visited Japan's four biggest cities, which pleases me for some reason.

Rain, rain, rain.

2006-07-18T21:21:00.000+09:00

I'm from England, which is a place which has little to none extreme weather. People are delighted if somewhere in the country a single flake of snow falls on Christmas day. The country's traffic system grinds to a halt if there is but a moderate hailstorm. If the temperature get's above 30 degrees in summer the trains all travel at 30mph because the tracks are "too hot" (I'm still bitter about it). So today, because of this sheltered upbringing, I've witnessed the most rain I've ever seen in my life. Literally non stop torrential rain for the past 36 hours. As a result, I've put off the further hiking adventures I had planned to save my mother from further worry.
The local Japanese have hardly batted an eyelid at this rainfall. They nonchalently cycle through the streets; mobile phone under the chin and umbrella in one hand. "Torrential rain" they say, "I laugh in your puny face". I am caused to marvel at how this country is the world's second largest economy. Japan is 70% mountainous and uninhabitable. It suffer's frequent earthquakes, flooding, typhoons and snow blizzards. It has virtually no natural resources. The countries infrastructure was completely destroyed by US bombing in WW2. In spite of all of these things working against it, Japan became and has stayed one of the richest countries in the world. Congratulations, I say, you are an example to us all.

The highest Onsen in Japan

2006-07-14T14:08:00.000+09:00

On Tuesday on my day off I set off (like many an Englishman before) on a silly and fairly pointless quest; to climb to the highest Onsen (hot spring) in the whole of Japan -YARI ONSEN 2100m.
A 2 hour train followed by a 30 minute bus took me to my start point. From here it should've been a mere 2 hour hike to the onsen. The first hour went well and along the way I passed 2 groups of hikers and some kind of mountain goat (left). After that the path became smaller, mostly covered in snow and decidedly dangerous. Maybe I am too used to the Malvern Hills back home (which are about 25% of the size of the Mountains I was climbing today). Anyway, twice I slipped off the tiny path about 10 metres and had to crawl slowly back up. After 3 hours (an hour overschedule) I could make out a hut in the distance which I assumed was the onsen. However, it had started to rain and there were 3 more snow covered ridges to negotiate to get there. Reluctantly I turned back.
The return journey went smoothly for about an hour and a half. Then the path crossed a dry rock covered stream. I couldn't find where the path continued. I went down the dry stream looking for an exit. Before I knew it I had gone 10 minutes down the stream without seeing
where the path continued. I figured that the stream would go down to the bottom of the mountain or another path so I continued to follow it. Pretty soon the dry stream became a wet steam and then a big stream with the occasional waterfall. Along the way I saw footprints in a patch of snow and some droppings. I assumed it was a bear and got a bit scared. After two hours of scrambling and wading down a mountain stream it finally came to an end. There a was a small manmade dam built with a road at the side. I followed the road for about 15 minutes when a Japanese man drove past, saw me and offered me a lift to the train station. Tired and wet, I gratefully accepted and saved myself another hours walk.
My quest to reach the highest had ended in failure and a 7.5 hour misadventure on a mountain. Still, at least I wasn't eaten by a bear. And there may yet be a sequal to this nonsense. I've since discoverd there is another route to Yari Onsen; a road with a sporadic bus service. You may have won this time mountain!

new housemate

2006-07-05T20:41:00.000+09:00

I guess I came perilously close to being the victim of a North Korean nuclear warhead. If the Taepodong 2 missile had actually worked Matsumoto would have been well within range (I admit Tokyo is a more logical target). Still, it got me thinking. Had the missile struck one of my last acts before I died would have been to watch Mr and Mrs Smith - a dull, overlong, predictable piece of Hollywood crap. Maybe there's a lesson there for me. I wonder what will happen now. Will the UN write Kim Jong-Il an angry letter (ala Team America: World Police)? Perhaps a few bars of Love me Tender by Mr Koizumi will de-escalate the situation.
Away from foriegn affairs, life rolls on. I got a roommate 3 days ago. He's called Charles. He's from New Zealand. He used to be a chef but presently works for the same English School I do. He's a keen runner, cyclist, hiker and snowboarder. His general fitness level puts me to shame. Still, he's very genial and I'm pretty sure we'll get along fine.
I visited Suwa today. It's the next town along and it has a big lake. As with most big lakes there are tourist boats if you want to get a good view of the whole lake. What sets it apart is the choice of boats:

a) the shark boat
b) the swan boat
c) the turtle boat
Which boat would you choose? Please comment and let me know.

Osaka

2006-06-22T11:31:00.000+09:00

On my days off I visited Osaka. What I found was a charming mix of the cutting edge and the naff. To illustrate this point, lets compare:

Cutting Edge:

This is the Sky Building in Osaka. Looks like the World Trade Center used to but with a escalator s and walkways connecting each tower. Also at the top there is a view platform with a big hole in the middle. I think it is a brilliant piece of modern architechture.

2. Osaka Aquarium. A giant place housing all kinds of sealife. The highlight being an enormous whale shark which swims around and harrasses schools of fish who have share the same tank. Also present: dolphins, penguins, sea turtles, jellyfish, rays, seals. I took loads of photos and video clips and I will see if there's anyplace I can publish them online.

3. Osaka Castle. The biggest castle in Japan, apparently. When I arrived a volunteer guide offered me a tour in english. He was a very nice man who spoke good english and gave me an extensive history of the place. For example, it was built from stone in Kobe and they carried rocks, some as heavy as 130 tonnes using extroadinary engineering and human effort. He got uncomfortable whenever he had to mention World War 2 (US bombing caused damage to the some of the castle). It is an example of a phenomenon in Japan. The legacy of WW2 is hardly discussed in Japan and is considered a taboo and controversial subject. Indeed, in my job I am instructed not to mention the war and to change the subject if a student ever talks about it. Yet the war and the US occupation after relates to so much of modern Japan; its economy, it foreign relations in Asia, it's military, it's constitution. And still my guide, like so many Japanese, got uncomfortable even mentioning it in passing. This state of affairs saddens and helps noone. Anyway, back to topic.

Naff:

1. American Town. A small suburb in downtown built to resemble America. If it is a true representation, then America is in trouble. A collection of fast food joints, american fashion shops, groups of ridiculously dressed Japanese teenagers all intermixed with homeless people and array of love hotels.

2. Sinsekei. A district which was the face of modern Osaka 50 years ago and now looks like blackpool pleasure beach. Endless streets lined with Pachinko parlours and takabori (octupuss balls) restaurants. Also the Hitachi Tower which used to stand proudly over the rest of Osaka but now is dwarfed by countless office buildings and skyscrapers in trendier districts. Most interestingly is the Festival Gate shopping centre. Absurdly, it's a shopping centre with a rollercoaster throughout it. Sadly, the rollercoaster, like 80% of the shops, is shut and not in use. The place feels like faded glamour replaced with empty disappointment.

I found Osaka fascinating and charming; both for it's cutting edge and it's naffness.

My nearly thirty birthday

2006-06-13T13:13:00.000+09:00

Since my last post, I turned 25 (on Friday to be precise). Luckily I didn't have to work so I went to an Onsen (Japanese Hot Spring). It's a strange country where you can have an Onsen inbetween a Starbucks and a Video Rental store but that's Japan. In the evening I had a nice meal and recieved some nice presents such as: a lampshade, English sized trousers, an England world cup T-shirt, a bell to put on my door (so I can hear if someone is trying to break in apparently), a Japanese Ukiyo-e art mug, a home-made birthday cake. It was a lovely way to turn 25 (or nearly 30 as my friend Noriko said). Afterwards I played some darts (won 1 lost 2) and watched the first game of the world cup (Germany 4 - Costa-Rica 2).
The day after I was brought back down to earth by Englands depressing 1-0 victory over Paraguay. The result was good (as was the 0-0 draw between Sweden and T&T) but the performance was not. After a great start, we scored via an own goal from a Beckham free kick. Had it not been an own goal an England player would have scored. The next 85 minutes the game slowly petered away. Eriksson still doesn't have a Plan B (Downing continually losing possesion and taking off Joe Cole our best player and replacing him with Hargreaves is not a good plan B). Perhaps he should watch a few episodes of Prison Break. I've been watching it on video for a few weeks and am continually impressed by Micheal Schofields exploits. Whatever the situation, however daft or extreme, he manages to come up with a way to get through it and get one step closer to freeing his brother on death row. Example:
Problem: I need to curry favour with the prison warden so I get rid of my insomniac cellmate and continue my plan to break out.
Solution: I will use my knowledge as an architect to help the warden finish the Matchstick Taj Mahal he is making for his wife's birthday present. Genius.

Sven - maybe you could learn a lesson from him.

Kamikochi

2006-06-07T18:55:00.000+09:00

I went hiking in the mountains in Kamikochi on Tuesday. Had it been a Saturday or a Sunday I would've had half of Japan joining me (it's a very popular tourist destination). Luckily it wasn't so I was mostly able to enjoy the scenery and nature undisturbed. I did have to say 'Konnichiwa' to everyone I passed as they had said it to me. I'm all for people being friendly but after about 100 times it does begin to get annoying. Maybe the average Japanese hiker could be more sullen and European and not feel the need to say Hello to everyone they pass.
I was lucky to enjoy beatiful weather. At one point took a sidepath that went up a mountain. About half way up it dissapeared but I endevoured to continue through first permafrost and then thick trees. I realised the foolishness of this idea soon enough and returned to the main path. In the midst of the Mountains is a place called Myojin-ike which is a very picturesque pond and also a Shrine. After a good 5 hours of hiking I waited for my bus back. The staff at the bus stop all spoke English to me, they must get many English speakers passing through. My Japanese, whilst still very much begginer, is however more than adequite to buy something at a shop or order coffee or buy a bus ticket. Still, I spoke in Japanese, they spoke in English and everyone was happy enough.
All in all a good day and good preparation for when I get round to climbing Mt Fuji.

Gary's wearing a dress!

2006-06-05T21:56:00.000+09:00

It's the week leading up to my birthday. In the run up there have some strange events. On saturday night I was out only to be confronted by this image:

My friend and colleage Gary is seen here wearing women's clothing and showing his best dance moves. He did have a tenuous reason for this attire but I shall leave you in suspense about it.
Meanwhile on sunday I entered a Japanese/English quiz. There were 5 rounds; Japan, Geography, Sports, Cinema and Music. I was the clear winner and won 1500yen and two free drinks at the Cafe it was held at. I impressed some local Japanese people and in the process made some ammends to the image of the Englishman in Japan that Gary had tattered the night before.

Japanese Weddings

2006-05-31T15:14:00.000+09:00

Last saturday my colleage Kazumi got married and I went to a Japanese wedding reception for the first time. It would seem that Japanese and English weddings are pretty similar. There was a buffet with very nice food. There were speeches from all the usual people ( Groom, best man, wife, etc). There were some strange games at the reception such as banana eating race. I'm not sure if this is typical of Japanese weddings. I recieved a gumball machine style gift from the bride and groom. My colleagues and I gave a Yogurt maker as a present. And of course, everyone got very drunk. I had a lovely time and even managed a few conversations in broken Japanese.
I saw "The Da-Vinci Code" yesterday. Inspite of the bad reviews I went anyway and it actually managed to exceed my low expectations of it. I thought it was never less than entertaining and had some nice locations and the plot of the book is very interesting. Alfred Molina was very good as a suspicious cardinal. I've seen him now play Americans, Mexicans, Italians and Englishman all with exactly the same peculiar accent. The problem is it's writer, Akiva Goldsman. He is a hack (who wrote Batman and Robin amongst others) and Ron Howard should stop working with him. Tom Hanks face as he stares into space solving codes and riddles is rather silly also. All in all, a thoroughly average but entertaining movie.

Tokyo

2006-05-23T10:52:00.000+09:00

Here is a brief account of my 48 hours in Tokyo last week. As befits such a baffling, noisy and brilliant place it will be in list form; unburndened by any attempt to give it a cohesive narrative or for it to make sense.

1) Arrived at Shinjuku station. Immediately got lost.
2) Went to Tokyo Metropolitain Government Offices. Saw a panoramic view of the city from the 48th floor observation deck. A little misty.
3) Head towards central Tokyo. Cue for one hour to see National Museum of Modern Art. Special exhibition on Leonard Foujita. French/Japanese impressionist painter who painted lots of pale nude women and cats.
4) Wandered round Imperial Palace Garden.
5) Saw Tokyo International Forum. Big strange architechture.
6) Went to Sony Building. Was dissapointed that playstation display room was closed for rennovations.
7) Went to Tokyo Science Museum. Pushed buttons on interactive displays.
8) Went to Roppongi Hills. Looked at many shops.
9) On 47th floor of Mori Tower is an art museum. Saw display on the Da Vinci Code.
10) Went to Shinjuku station. Got lost again.
11) Saw Tokyo Tower at night. All lit up like a christmas tree.
12) Booked into a capsule hotel. Room 1m x 1m x 2m. V cheap.
13) Headed for Tokyo Bay (Odaiba). Nice view on the train.
14) Saw Museum of Emerging Science. Special exhibition on the brain.
15) Visited pallete town shopping district. Rode big red ferris wheel. Drove Toyota Formula 1 car simulator.
16) Found Asakusa. Old Edo style streets and temples.
17) Looked at Kirin Tower (see picture). Super Mario Bros style building.
18) Went to Ueno. National Museum of Western Art. Exhibition of Rodin and Carriere. Symbolism aplenty.
19) Wandered round Ueno park. Homeless people juxtaposed with beautiful scenery and sculpture.
20) Eat at Freshness Burger.
21) Yebisu Garden Place. Large Shopping Complex. Large. Lots of shops. Complex
22) Slept at an internet cafe. 200Yen an hour. V cheap.
23) Slight disorientated stroll around Shinjuku at 6:30 in the morning. Many enormous Black Ravens attacking garbage pags. Slightly post apocolyptic.
24) Got the bus back to Matsumoto.

Going stir crazy

2006-05-09T20:19:00.000+09:00

So today was the day I finally got my own internet access. No more stealing bandwidth from people in my building or cycling across town to the community centre to get online for me. Of course, they couldn't have made it simple.
I was told to expect someone between 9 and 12 in the morning. Sure enough someone rang at 1o and checked my phone connection. Except he had the wrong equipment. He went away and came back again at 11 with the right equipment, fiddled with some wires and said it was OK. He told me to wait because someone else would come after 12 with the modem. And whilst that was true he didn't tell me it would be 8 o clock. That I had to find out by phoning some when I got I bit tired of waiting. Put briefly, I spent my day off stuck waiting in my apartment for the internet to be installed for nearly twelve hours and went a bit stir crazy. So what did I do with all that time:
1) Started a diary in Japanese.
2) Wrote a letter to the school I taught at back in England
3) Drank a lot of coffee.
4) Watched several episodes of the West Wing.
5) Studied a bit more Japanese.
6) Cleaned, hoovered and generally tidied my apartment for the first time since I moved in.
7) Rang some friends and complained about my confinement.
8) Read some Murukami
9) Cooked an elaborate meal using almost everything in fridge.
10) Did my washing
11) Paced around a bit
12) Did a very big Sudoku my Mum sent me all the way from England.
I've concluded from this experience that if ever went to prison it would break me. An hour longer and I would have tried the Natto that's in my fridge. If you don't know what it is follow this link. Otherwise, life is ok. My allergies are subsiding after a green tea remedy. I'm enjoying teaching and had my first children's lesson the other day. I've repeatedly stated to my students that England will win the world cup and that Peter Crouch will be our key player. After Rooney's injury that claim seems less outlandish and I may be proven to an expert analyst of the game. I'd like to finish by wishing Vale Harmony Barbershop Chorus the best of luck at this weekends National Convention at Harrogate. If I weren't in Japan I'd be there with them.

Nagano

2006-05-03T08:26:00.000+09:00

So, ever wondered what happens to Olympic Podiums after the games have finished?

Some of them get turned into carparks. This is in downtown Nagano city, which hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics. I thought it was funny, although if I had won an Olympic gold medal here I would be a little annoyed it's now a car park. Maybe London will be awash with such white elephants after 2012?
So, I went to Nagano city on my day off. It's the next city along from Matsumoto and about 90 minutes by bus over some mountains. It's a nice place with lots of cool sights, not least of which is Zenkoji Temple. Apparently, it has the first Buddhist image to arrive in Japan. It's too valuable to be displayed in public though; a copy is displayed but only once every seven years. Still, it's a pretty interesting place.

I also managed to a bookshop which sold Kanji flashcards. Having learnt Hirigana and Katakana scripts the next phase in my mission to learn Japanese is to learn some of the 2000 Kanji characters (20 a day for the next 3 and a half months-it might happen). Otherwise, it seems I suffer from Hay fever in Japan or more specifically Matsumoto. I never got it in England. Oh well!

Kyoto and the mystery of the never ending escalator!

2006-04-26T15:23:00.000+09:00

Since my last post lots has happened. Last weekend was the last weekend of Hanami (cherry blossom season). The weather was kind so I spent Saturday and Sunday night at Hanami parties with fellow Gaijen (foreigners) and Japanese alike. It was great fun. The cherry blossoms are now blowing away in the wind and won't return untill next spring. I have photos but no way of uploading them at the moment.
On my days off I went to Kyoto. Sorry to wax american but that place blew my mind. First of all, the train station. A new building; this place is an architectural miracle. It's about 1km long and 14 stories high and from the main entrance hall you can see all of it. You can take an escalator all the way up (thats 1km along and 14 stories up). There are more escalors in that building than I've ever seen. I got carried away by it and rode the escalators for what seemed like days. I will post photos when I'm able.
As for Kyoto itself. It's extroadinary. Within it's many hundreds of historic temples, castles, shrines and other historic buildings are examples from every significant period of Japanese History in the last 2000 years. I went to the famous Golden temple, also the Silver temple where you can walk along the path of philosphy. Having done that I somehow felt wiser. There isn't a Bronze temple before you ask. Dozens of temples and shrines and castles later I finally had my fill. Still I would recommend you to go. I will post photos when I am able.

Until then

Check out my new bike!

2006-04-19T19:10:00.000+09:00

I bought myself a bike last week. This being Japan, I had to get a licence and register it with the police. Apparently, If I don't and ride an unlicenced bike around town and get stopped by the police I can be arrested and put in prison untill the matter is resolved. Again, this being Japan, nearly all bikes come with a basket attached and usually one gear. Mine has six because I found a bargin in a sale. I had to extend the seat to it's limit to get a comfortable ride height but it was still possible.
So I used my day off to cycle about 40 km in and around Matsumoto. Having not bicycled for several years I got carried away with the novelty of it. I cycled up a mountain to Misuzu Lake which you can see in the photo above. It's not quite as impressive as it sounds as Matsumoto is essentially 3/4 of the way up a mountain already; I just had to do the final 1/4. I also cycled to Asama Onsen (An onsen is a Japanese Hot Spring). That was very nice but I could only manage to stay in there for about 45 minutes. At that point my skin colour was near purple and I was feeling faint. I also cycled for miles along a county road line with cherry blossom trees. They are almost in full bloom now so this weekend will be celebrated with Hanami partys wherever you go in Matsumoto. Hanami partys are where people sit underneath cherry blossom trees and 'contemplate' them (contemplating is usually done in the form of drinking lots of sake or whatever you prefered drink is).

Thats all for now.

Frog Street

2006-04-11T17:58:00.000+09:00

I've started work properly now and I'm settling in in Matsumoto. Teaching is great and my coworkers and students are all very nice. I used my day off to see some of the sights of Matsumoto. First up Matsumoto castle:

I managed just about to avoid banging my head inspite of the fact there are at least 30 low roofs, beams and staircases in which you could. It seems that most of the museums staff's knowledge of english begins and ends with "mind your head". Still its very impressive and really well preserved and works very well as a castle, being impenitrable and all. I also saw Frog street.

It's a little street next to the river that is full of art and craft shops. I don't know who called it Frog street first but now it's awash with frog signs and needless to say you can buy ornamental frogs till your heart's content. I thought it was very nice and very Japanese.
Matsumoto seems like a very nice place with a wealth of things to see. However, I'm not a fan of the weather. Since I arrived it has either been cold, raining, windy or some combination of those. Anyway, I am about to go to my first Japanese lesson.

Kanpai!

2006-04-08T09:06:00.000+09:00

I have finished my training now and have left Nagoya. We had a celebratory meal of Sushi after the last day of training..

I tried Kalimari (octopus) and various other strange foods. In the middle of this sushi meal, the waitress bought round a plate of chips. I didn't believe this and had to be assured there wasn't raw fish inside. Sure enough they were chips. I eat them with chopsticks and dipped them into soy sauce. The one thing I couldn't manage to eat was the pregnent sardines. That's my challenge for next time.
I've moved to Matsumoto now. I am now an official Alien! I registered as one earlier in the day. I am about to go visit the famous castle there. Untill next time...............

2006-04-04T10:21:00.000+09:00

I am about to start my training. It lasts three days, during which I will learn everything I need to about being an English Instructor. I'm looking forward to starting my job properly, although sightseeing and stuff has been fun. I went to English speaking pub called Misfits on saturday with my Australian housemates. It's located on the top floor of an apartment building. I found that strange but apparently it's fairly common in Japan. It could comfortably seat about ten people and there were about thirty people there. We happened to go on the anual awards night for the locals, the JEDI's. So now I know a huge amount about a bunch of people I've never met (e.g. One Misfits regular played a gig on top of Mount Fiji!). In addition to my sightseeing I keep getting drawn into bizzare Japanese TV shows. Competative eating, hours and hours of baseball, any type of extreme physical challenge gameshows you can imagine. I should stop myself as it's probably not an accurate representation of Japan.

Castle with an elevator!

2006-04-02T14:14:00.000+09:00

I start work on Monday and have untill then to recover from jet lag and acclimitise. I've been getting to know my Australian roommates, August and Steve. Top blokes both of them. I've also been sightseeing in Nagoya. I saw this in a department store.

If you have any suggestions of what the Power Rangers are fighting please comment......
I reckon is a giant magnet or USB port. Also been to Nagoya castle. It was destroyed in WW2 but has been completely rebuilt. The outside is really impressive and authentic. Plus, they've improved it by adding an elevator inside. Will send more pictures when I get a better internet connection.

Greetings from Japan

2006-03-31T13:31:00.000+09:00

I am arrived in Nagayo, Japan. After a 20 hour total yourney including an 11 hour flight and a nine hour time zone change my body clock is a bit confused. It`s apparaently 1:30 pm now but you could probably tell me any time and I would believe you. Having survived the flight and marvelled at the effiecency of the trains I arrived at my appartment. I was greeted by a by a massive parcel containing my bed. I unpacked, visited the 99 yen store (like a Japanese netto or poundland or something) and went to sleep off my yourney. I was awoken, startelled by my new housemates some hours later. Apparently they didn't know I was coming or that they would be getting a new housemate. Anyway, they took it all in good Australian humour. I've since met them properly and am exploring my temporary home for one week.

6 days to go

2006-03-24T02:54:00.000+09:00

I'm busy finding things to distract me from learning the language. As well as four different types of alphabet, the Japanese have at least fifteen different words for "I" (depending on context, position in society and most bizarely geographical region). I shall have to counter this onslaught by insisting on my students knowing all the different regional ways of saying "It's cold" (nippy, baltic, rimy, etc). Still, It's something to keep me occupied on the 11 hour flight I have to look forward to. I'll wager a large amount of money the inflight movie will something like the 'Cheaper by the Dozen 2' or that new film with Tim Allen playing a CGI dog. I wonder if the Japanese have an equivalent of Tim Allen?

Welcome to my blog!

2006-03-17T03:36:00.000+09:00

Greetings everyone,

This weblog will chronicle my time in Japan. I've just recieved my Visa from the Japanese Ministry of Justice and will be flying out in but two weeks. I will be staying in the lovely city of Matsumoto. If you've never heard of this place let me enlighten you. It is in the middle of the Japanese Alps near to where the Winter Olympics of 1998 were held in Nagano. It is famed for it's hot springs which are said to help heal gout and rheumatism. Who knows when that will come in handy! Matsumoto's local delicacy is a raw horsemeat dish. Yum! It is twinned with Grinewald, Salt Lake City, Kathmandu and Torquay. What I'm most looking forward to is my new accomodation. (see right)