|
I am off tomorrow morning for Ikaho, one of the best onsen locals in the country, or so I am told. so I better get you up to date before I depart. The 22 km walk. Apparently this is a mutation of the samurai tradition. Age 14 was considered adulthood in ancient Japan, and this is when boys became samurai warriors. Since violence is no longer celebrated in Japan, the tradition had to be replaced with something. So my school (I haven't met any AET who gets to do this) decided that the 2-nen sei would walk 22 km and reflect on upcoming adulthood. Second grade was chosed because most kids are 14. But I and the teachers think that the walk is a fun hike for them instead of a contemplation exercise. We decided that it would work better with 3rd grade because they are preparing for high school entrance exams. So they are deeply engrossed in concerns about their futures. This is because the high school exam results can determine your status for the rest of your life. But anyway, not much contemplation went on during the hike. I really enjoyed the experience. It was a dreary day, but it wasn't windy and there was only drizzle, no bona-fide rain. I talked with a couple of my teachers, and after lunch I talked with a group of girls for 3 hours. That was really rewarding. Between the 5-7 of them, they came up with some good conversation pieces. They even asked for my autograph. Some things I learned on the trip were that Japan is polluted. We walked next to a river most of the time, and the effluent from industry was quite eveident in places. There was one place that had a little waterfall, and water was really foamy where it hit the river. It looked like someone had poured laundry detergent in the water. Is it nitrogen that causes this or a phosphate? I can't remember. This same place was a popular place for suicides. It is a beautiful spot, and I guess therefore ideal for ending your life. People say that sometimes the ghosts of these people will appear on our photos from there. I also learned that Kiryu is the home of the first pachinko parlor. So there are a lot of rich people, and a lot of interesting architecture for the parlors. Kiryu is also famous for silk and bad drivers. Besides all this insight, I also learned that my ankles can swell to the size of mikans (Japanese ~tangerines), and that it takes 3 days for the swelling to go down. This hike was seriously harder on my ankles and leg muscles than the Mt. Fuji hike. But I would still prefer to do this one again than the Fuji one again. Mon I needed to get some oil for my bike chain. I went to the local bike shop to buy some. I walked in and no one came to help. I said "sumimasen" many times, but I didn't hear a sound. So I hung around for about 5 minutes and gave up. So I left 300 yen on a table and took the bottle of oil and left. What a strange country this can be. Speaking of strange, I have been watching sumou training. Talk about abuse. These guys obviously want very badly to be sumou champions. Their hours are incredible, and the actually training is wicked. All these nasty-looking fat young men covered in wet sang, being hit with a bamboo switch by their sempai (~mentor). None of the men ever looked like they were having any fun. I also have been bombarded about the bank failures in Japan. Last night Doctor Quinn, Medicine Woman was cancelled in order to bring late-breaking news about the latest bank failure. You should have seen this stuff. The top executives were crying and begging forgiveness, and asking that companies hire their employees. Some of the men were running from camera men, on the brink of tears or a nervous breakdown. Very moving. I also watched SMAP X SMAP, which is a popular TV show featuring the rock group, SMAP. I have decided that they didn't get popular because of their singing ability. In fact, I think that is low on the totem pole for the Japanese. They seem to be interested in good looks dancing (which does not mean an good stage show). The SMAP guys were singing a duet(?) with a female singer (probably her song), and the guys were terrible. Maybe it was a bad night, or the song was not suited for them, but they were bad. Off key, and televised, not even live. The woman was good, and should have been doing a solo act. There is a reason Japanese music is not popular in the West.
Valerie Straayer
|