This will serve as an update from my arrival to Monday, June 22, 2009.
Itami airport in Osaka: This airport was much different than Narita in Tokyo. English was not as prevalent on signs, which prompted me to follow the crowd leaving the plane. The flight to Osaka was much different as well. ANA 001 to Tokyo was filled with attendants that knew I spoke English. On the way to Osaka, the attendants assumed I spoke Japanese. I was only able to infer what they were saying by facial expression and situational occurrences. The flight was also cramped comparatively.
As I was following the crowd, my body patiently walked, while my eyes frantically searched for English words. We ended up in the baggage claim area, where I collected my bag, after some time of waiting. Immediately upon exiting the baggage claim area, I saw Minami. What a long trip, but this moment made it all more than worth it. Quickly, we jumped onto a bus from Osaka to Kyoto. Again, my suitcase was very heavy, in which I had to carry it up and down flights of stairs. Yes not as many escalators.
The bus ride was an hour long, but Minami and I looked over the video I had already taken as well as what I had written in Narita airport. Upon arriving at Kyoto, we rushed to catch a train to a spot where Etsuo, Minami’s father, would pick us up. Kyoto met me with even more stairs. It seemed to be like a big city and nothing was much different from America so far, besides the signs and the people.
The train ride was also an hour long. Arriving in a station that was close to Takashima, where the Shimoda family resides, I had to carry my suitcase down what seemed to be a never ending set of stairs. Etsuo was waiting for us outside the gate. Our ride to the house prepared me for the setting I was about to step into. There were obvious language barriers that could not easily be overcome. We drove through narrow streets, filled with houses and shops. Even though it is considered the country -side, buildings are close together. At the house I lugged my suit case inside, careful not to bumped into any fragile walls. Cheiko, was waiting for us on the floor. Every thing seemed to be in miniature form. Ceilings were low, door ways were lower, the chairs were on the floor, and all of a sudden, so were we..
Sitting there with everything to say, but no way of saying it presented a familiar feeling. It is comparable to attempting a conversation with one of my Hispanic or Haitian parents. I was attempting to copy Minami and her mother by sitting on my knees, but when her father came in he told me to sit comfortably. I really didn’t understand what that meant, since sitting on the floor was not a concept of comfort to me at the time. I awkwardly fanagled my legs into an Indian style position and sat there with an expressionless smile on my face. Minami got up and walked over to a wall. She slid the wall to the side, which showed a staircase. This was the way upstairs. The steps were 6-8 inches wide and very steep. I, again, carefully carried my bag up a very narrow flight of stairs. My surroundings were extremely thin and fragile.
The house that night was busy. Even though I arrived at 11 pm, her family was still busily walking around and carrying out their activities. Minami and I sat down and ate, while her father and mother sat down. All communication was done through Minami. Etsuo obviously had a grasp of the English language, but years of lack of practice and application, made its usage difficult. I began to learn the customs surrounding eating, including not to drink while having chopsticks in your hand, not leaving even a speck of rice in the bowl, and where to place the other hand that is not being used. Dinner was good. Oishi.
Showers are taken at night. Bathing takes place in a separate room. It has a bathtub and a shower. The door opens up into this room in which the entire room is for bathing. Showers are taken sitting down on a small bucket. Good bye familiar. Minami’s room seemed smaller than what I had imagined. Her bed was low. This was the first shock of stepping into her house; everything is low to the ground. Shoes are taken off at the porch; therefore the floor is clean. We slept till 9 am
6/18/09
We made breakfast the next morning. Toasted bread with butter, yogurt, and an egg cooked by yours truly. Even though it was a lot of variety, portions were still small. This satisfies the taste buds, but leaves one not overly full. Onaka Ga Ebi. We walked outside that morning. Minami took a bike from the garage and sat on its seat. The streets were two sided, divided by an opening where the stream from a mountain flowed. The houses were traditional in style, and most had a small garden in the lawn. Grass was not a part of the landscape; concrete or dirt. Even though it was a small town, it had both a crowded and open feel. She gave me a tour of the area. We walked and then road the bike together. We stopped to take pictures or for her to explain something to me. After a while of walking, we came to a shrine. The shrine was at the top of a long set of stairs. It was all outside, in the woodsy area next to a mountain.
Our return to the house was met with lunch. We began eating with her mom and her dad joined us shortly. Hot tea is served with every meal. Ocha hotsu. Hojicha mainly, but sometimes green or a concoction of many. The lunch consisted of a piece of fish, a stew of pork, potatoes, and carrots, rice (gohan), miso soup, and vegetables. Portions are 2-3 ounces or less each, so again the satisfaction of many tastes trumps the amount consumed
A drive shortly after lunch allowed me too see the country-side. The roads are about half the size in Japan. Every car looks like a Mini or a Scion. They are still Honda, Mitsubishi, and Toyota; however they are made extremely small. The steering wheel is on the right side of the car and the cars drive on the left side of the road. We first stopped at an area, which is known for its windmills. It was a park. After we took a few pictures(sha shinn), our journey led us to a small shopping area. Walking though the department stores, there were only hints of English. Clothing and other items have a large Western influence and most attire worn by, at least younger people, are adorned with English words. Some of the writing doesn’t seem to be correctly used or is an awkward combination of words. Nonetheless, English was present; however, only Minami and I were speaking it. A video, game, and magazine store across street showed me how huge comics are here. Comics seem make up a majority of the reading material available.
Minami drove us to a small mart, comparable to a gas station, with no gas pumps. We picked up ice cream and a beverage and headed to the beach. It was a lake beach, with small pebbles instead of sand. It was empty, save one or two people with their dogs(dogu).
Dinner was eaten that night as a family. Meals take any where from 30-45 minutes or even longer to finish. The table consists of many individual plates and bowls with larger bowls and plates in the center. The larger contain meat. This night we had squid, salmon, tuna, shrimp, pork, and maybe another I cannot name. Cod egg is eaten as an additive to rice or other items. They look like pink sausages, but are more red in color. The taste is strong, with a kick of spice. We go through taking turns pouring tea for one another. We begin meals with Ita daki masu, this is like Bon apetit. We end meals with go chi so samu deshita. This is, from what Minami says, is a prayer in thanks for the food. This are not said in ritual or together, but individually, whenever one feels like it. Sounds of yum and mmm receive strange looks. Oishii, Oishiide, or Oshiiha are custom. Salmon is hard to eat when it is the part close to the bone. Bones are hard and must be picked out of the mouth by hand.
6/19/09
Sleep was immensely welcomed that night. My first nights met me with dreams of going through Customs. It was Friday and Minami had to work the majority of the day. We drove up a mountain after breakfast. Breakfast is not usually eaten together. It consisted of a ham sandwich and tea. Minami was attempting to take me to see(miru) a waterfall. The walk was steep and difficult in our shoes so we stopped and sat on rocks in the middle of a cold stream. After a while, we headed back. This was the first time, since my arrival, that I was left without a way of communicating easily. After a few hours of homework, I went down stairs and sat with my computer, and Minami’s mom. She started showing me on maps where we were going the next day. Etsuo had been planning a big trip through an array of cities and a destination of the city of Yufuin in the Oita prefecture. Cheiko showed me Kyushu, which is the Island in Southern Japan. She spoke to me in simple Japanese. After a short while of homework she would return and show me more things on the map or give me short lessons in Japanese( Nihongode shimasyo). Etsuo, Cheiko and I ate dinner together. They tried English, I tried Japanese. Her mom drew pictures to ask questions. Her dad used the dictionary. I used prayer. We joked and ate, talked and drank tea. After dinner we retired to the living room, where we picked spots on the floor to rest. Both approached me at different times to talk. Her mom asked questions about my family and about Florida. Her dad showed me Fukuoka on the computer, the city we were first going to on the following day by shinkansen(bullet train). I didn’t know it at the time, but her father loves Densya(trains). That surprise was saved for the following day.
At 11pm I walked to the train station to meet Minami. It had been a surprisingly great day. Despite not knowing my surroundings and definitely not being comfortable with communication yet, it turned out alright.
6/20/09
Even though we had to wake up at 6 the next day, the Sun did the job much earlier. The Sun seems to rise around 4:45 or a tad later. Mornings come easy because of this. We were headed for an over not stay in Yufuin. Etsuo, Cheiko, Minami and I headed out of the house to catch an earlier train to Kyoto, where we would take the Shinkansen to the Kyushu prefecture. We met up with Ryan and Dale, two Americans from Oregon who are in Shiga to teach English at local schools. The first time that I had seen other white people since I had been here. While in Kyoto station, we picked up a bento box, which is a box filled with many small portions of food. We said goodbye to Dale and Ryan, who were going to Hiroshima. On the train we ate the food. The train took us to Hakata, a city in Kyushu. Each region or prefecture has foods that are native and unique to that area. Ramen is a type of noodles that are uniquely prepared in different areas. We stopped at a Ramen restaurant for lunch. Food is ordered in a machine outside and then served in the restaurant. Throughout the day, I learned words and some phrases to say sumimasen- excuse me is used to apologize for bumping into someone and also to get attention from some one.
After walking around and looking at different shops we stopped at a dessert bar. They serve tea, coffee, cakes, and other treats. I ordered iced tea, while the Shimoda family ordered treats that were fancy and delicately prepared.
On the train platform, I became accustomed to Etsuo rushing to each train to take pictures. Looking around, there were many others doing the same. So I did as the Japanese do in Japan. I began chasing after the trains to take pictures or lend a finger in the snapping of a picture for some one else. Another two hour train ride later ended us in Yufuin. It was a rapid express train, which is not as fast as the Shinkansen, but is an elegant looking train, anyways.
We stopped in shops and looked around. The city was located in the Oita prefecture and is surrounded by mountains smoky with the cover of clouds. We hurried down a long street aligned with rice fields. Through a wooded area and passed a couple buildings we ended in front of a building nestled in the back of a quaint setting with many trees. A man rushed outside to meet us. He was wearing a type of traditional Japanese wear called a yukata. We placed our bags down and were welcomed to what would be Minami’s parents room. It was a room with tatami on the floor, a type of bamboo covering, almost like carpet, but not soft. The walls were thin and the doors all made of paper. The room opened up to a porch and a garden. We all collapsed onto the floor, while Etsuo put on his Ukata. He then joined the rest of us sitting around a table. A women, also wearing a Yukata, came in and served us tea and small snacks. Minami and I left to our room, mirrored the one we were just in. It was a scene out of a movie. This was a hotel called a ryo-kan, which means inn. It was of traditional style with three Onsens( hot springs). Minami showed me the proper usage of the showers and onsen so that I would be able to use the Men’s later on.
Adorned in Yukatas, we met up with her parents to have our dinner. The meal was rich in regional culture and history. Everything from the fish and vegetables to the beer was a locally grown or produced . Dinner consisted of many courses. The delicious taste of each course seemed only out done by the next. The third course surprised me with a full fish In a shell of salt. One must crack open the shell of salt to reach the fish inside. I cut into the chest area of the fish with my chopsticks and was greeted with, of course, its organs, I knew that this was going to be a new experience and said bottoms up. It could have been a lung or even the heart, but whatever it was did not sit well with me. Besides that, the whole meal was great. After the huge meal. I said televi wo miru. We all found a spot on the Tatami around the table and watched tv. Sleep came quickly that night.
6/21/09
Minami and I woke up at 6 the next morning and hurried over to the onsen to wash and relax one last time. The men’s was empty. A shower area, where one must sit on a small bamboo bucket and rinse before he enters the onsen, was directly outside of a small area where I put my cloths and towel. The water is naturally hot from the mountain which is comparable to a Jacuzzi or warm spa. It is not scalding hot, but warm enough to relax comfortably.
Still wearing Yukatas we went to the dining area of the ryokan and had a full coursed stagehand(breakfast). This was good as well, but did not eat any fish organs. Fish was served though. After breakfast, we went back to our rooms and packed for the days trip. Leaving Yufuin, we next went to Beppu. We met up with an exchange student that stayed with the Shimoda family a couple years ago from Thailand named If. After a while of walking, we visited a shrine and then had lunch in a Chinese restaurant. It wasn’t like Chinese food that we are accustomed to in the U.S. Plates were filled on a spinning table and individual portions were taken by one’s chopsticks. After lunch we went to the top of Beppu tower, a television tower.
Several quick train rides later and many shashinn, we were on the Shinkansen. Even though it is a bullet train, it still takes two hours to get from Hakata in the Kyushu prefecture to Kyoto. In Kyoto, we had dinner and then had a quick tour of the station by Minami. I saw the Kyto tower and some of the structures in the station. The train ride back was hot and long, and every one in our ryokou(traveling) party was fading. Etsuo slept, Minami waned, and Cheiko read. Air conditioning is a rarity in Japan. It exists, but is not used much. It is also humid, even though temperatures are not extreme. This leaves one with sweat and mustiness throughout the day. People bring small designer hand towels and wipe there faces from time to time. By the time we returned home, we were all ready for a shower and sleep. Even though the idea of the onsen was intimidating, and there was some initial hesitation about the trip, it turned out to be a wonderful experience. Hanging out with Minami and her parents is relaxing and fulfilling and I am very thankful to be a part of their family.