Sleeping: A national past-time

If I ask my students or other Japanese teachers what they did during their vacations or weekends, they will almost undoubtedly answer (other than the more studious students who dutifully and truthfully answer, "study") that they were "sleeping". "All day?" I ask. They nod. "Every day of your vacation?" They nod again. Of course, I'm not sure that is exactly the case, but the truth may sadly not be far off. In fact, some students, when asked about their hobby, think it is perfectly acceptable to answer "sleeping".

Can sleeping really be a hobby? One normally thinks of "a hobby" as something we do actively to pass the time, something that we enjoy. Can sleeping fit that criteria? Perhaps, for Japanese people, it can.

I probably shouldn't speak only of Japanese people because I can tell you, from experience, that there is quite a similar situation in Korea. I can't tell you how many times Linus and I went to talk to Mr. Park in the next room and found that perhaps it was a bad time- since he was sound asleep on his desktop- during work hours. Apparently one major problem of these overworked societies is that its people are suffering from serious sleep debt. (And therefore, one must question whether these long hours are just about quantity or quality, of course...)

So, it is quite common to look around on a long-distance bus or train or plane, where in the U.S. it is quite typical to see people chatting or reading a newspaper or book, and instead see here at least 80% of the people around me with their eyes closed and heads down. It's almost comical. At first, I thought, "Oh, they're just closing their eyes, taking a rest." But upon closer examination, I realized, "Noooo... they really are sound alseep. Far out!"

Taking the train to my "Special Needs" school on Wednesdays, I see all of the other area high school students passed out, some with their books in hand, attempting to study. Were they up late the night before studying? One can only assume so.

And then there is sleeping in class, which Japanese students notoriously do. In the U.S., I don't think it would be tolerated, but here it is not common to look around the room and see a few students completely out for the count. Teachers get angry but they don't slam books down on their desks or send them to the principal's office because it is just not that big of a deal. (Fortunately, or at least I like to believe, not so many in my classes! However, I do find great enjoyment going around the room and tapping the napping students on the shoulder with a cheerful, "Good morning!" Then they get all embarrassed and usually manage to stay awake for the rest of class.)


During the day, I sometimes look around the teachers room and see teachers (who aren't meant to be in class, obviously) with their heads down on their desk. At first glance, it would seem that they are intently reading something on their desk, but upon closer examination, you will see that there is some REM going on. So apparently it is a perfectly acceptable thing to do as long as you LOOK busy.

And the strangest "sleeping in public" moment I have come across here is the people (usually workers or "salarymen" who spend a lot of time driving in their cars) sitting in their cars, sometimes with the engine still running, sound asleep with their feet propped up on the dashboard like the guy in this white car here. In the U.S., there would be nothing to stop someone from jumping in the car beside him and taking off in the car. Perhaps that sense of safety here is one reason people feel secure to take a nap in public, but it must go beyond that... perhaps it is just a sleeping culture.

I personally had always been kind of nervous about falling asleep in public, remembering pranks people in high school might pull, like sticking things in your hair or ears, taking your picture (who would do such a thing?! Not I!) OR, what if you were to start drooling? How embarrassing... Now, however, I have started to embrace sleeping in public, particularly on the train or airplane (perhaps it's the change in air pressure?) and I've also found myself head-down on my desk during the day. There certainly is a joy to be found in catching a few Zzz's when you can, although I don't think I will EVER go as far calling it a "hobby."

New Zealand pics now ONLINE!

Well, here's the good thing about having a sick day at home: I get all sorts of work done! (Of course, not the work I really need to be doing, such as for my online class- more on that later!)

Anyway, I have finally put ALL of my New Zealand pictures online from the two weeks I spent there over the holidays. There are two parts- "New Zealand" and "New Zealand 2," so be sure to check them both out! I will hopefully be adding other pictures from this past year to this photo website as well. http://web.mac.com/kiminjapan/Site/New_Zealand.html

Obviously I am not too sick today, but I have had a fever and sore throat. I suspect it could again be tonsillitis, which, if that IS the case, would be the 4th time within a year and it might be time my doctor would recommend having them taken out. Apparently there is something about Japan (the pollution, perhaps?) as I know 4 other people from my teaching program who have had to have their tonsils out since coming here. Crazy!

Right, so hope some of these images from "Summer in New Zealand" help warm you up a bit (although I must admit, I was a bit disappointed by exactly how warm it was NOT there!)

The Year of Change... bring it on!

Happy Chinese New Year, Everyone!

So... it's only been 8 months since my last post, but who's counting? The "new year" seemed a good time to start doing this blog thing again, and what better time than the lunar new year?! (Since I missed the solar one a month or so ago...)

And since we're speaking of old news in general, I should mention that these beautiful pictures were actually taken during the Chinese New Year time LAST YEAR at a very cool Chinese Lantern Festival I went to in Nagasaki. I'm sure the name Nagasaki stands out in your minds from your history books as one of the two cities the U.S. dropped the A-bomb on in WWII. That is the dark side of Nagasaki's past. The ironic thing, in many ways, is that Nagasaki was one the first places in Japan that opened itself to the Western world after being shut off for so long. It had a rich history, colored by the many merchants who traded there and it was known for its progressivness in letting in western medicine, food, and other merchandise from around the world by ship. It's just sad that what it is most remembered for is a place devastated by the atomic bomb.


Nagasaki had its own Dutch town and "China town," of which the latter is still very happening today and this is where these pictures were taken. The lanterns were just gorgeous and warmed your soul in spite of the bitter cold.

This Chinese Year is the "Year of the Rat," also known to some as the "Year of Change" as is the first of the 12 year cycle. It is said that many people make big changes in their lives this year- starting a new job or getting married, for example. I doubt the latter will be true for me, but I can say that I will definitely be changing jobs sometime this year. I have officially turned in my papers to say that I will NOT be recontracting another year, and I have had no feelings of regret this year. It is definitely time to move on. My current contract finishes on August 1st, so I will, no doubt, be living it up until then. The next question, of course, is what comes next, and that is a good question right now. Most likely, I will be staying in Asia to teach for another year, but it won't be in Japan. I have sent my application in already for a job in Hong Kong, which could be very exciting as it's a brand new place, but it is also very tempting to return to Korea where I taught for a year before coming here. I guess I always thought, in the back of my mind, that I would go back there and I still have a lot of contacts there, so it will be very interesting to see where I end up in this Year of the Rat! To be continued.

Same same... but a little different

As you know, I haven't stayed many places that long. A year here, a few months there... Japan is actually the longest time I've stayed anywhere for any significant amount of consecutive time, and the longer I stay in one place, I realize what a cycle there really is to life... everywhere, really. And I've now been around the "Japan cycle" almost 3 times, I realize how much the same things stay from year to year... but of course there're always a few fun twists in there that make the events different than the year before, and the year before that, fortunately...

Yes, apparently (as some of you have pointed out) April must have been a blur and it turns out that May was, too... This is true and I truly do apologize for my long lapse in communication... Much has happened, but the beauty of only posting every two months is that I can just give you the highlights instead of boring you with the long, much too detailed post that I usually write...

Anyway... let me bring you up to speed... and so... I give you the 5 biggest happenings of the last two months: (in order of time, not significance)

1.) The Cherry Blossoms Came & Went (Early April)
The "Sakura" (cherry blossoms) are a sight sure to tear at the heartstrings of any given Japanese person as they are undoubtedly one of the symbols of Japan. They have certainly inspired many songs, poems, amorous feelings, and alcoholic tendencies. Many people have "hanami" (cherry blossom "watching") parties, which simply means getting together to drink and eat vast quantities under or within sight of the beautiful sakura. And they really ARE beautiful. You can't help but feel a little awestruck in their presence. The sakura are a sign that spring has finally come... but the sight of them is also a little bittersweet, for their beauty is fleeting... The cherry blossoms really only last for about two weeks, and then they are gone. Coincidentally, they also appear at a very bittersweet time of the year in Japan, for this is the time of year in Japan when EVERYTHING changes... at least at schools and public offices across the country. This is the end of the school year. Students graduate or move to the next grade, teachers and other "public servants" are transfered (I use this in the passive form because it is not their choice at all) to other schools or offices (sometimes HOURS away) all within about two weeks' time as well... (Perhaps later I will comment more on this system of transfering teachers in Japan... completely different than back home...) Yes, this was certainly a season of change, and that is what the Sakura symbolize to many as well.

2.) The new School Year began (Early-Mid April)
And speaking of cherries (or actually, not, because these trees bear no fruit) I had a whole new class of first-year high school students to whom I had to give my "self-introduction." Ask anyone teaching English in Japan and they will tell you that, given the number of times they have had to introduce themselves in this country, they could probaly do their self-introduction in their sleep... I basically ramble on about Michigan and how it's shaped like a hand/mitten so the "hand map" is very convenient, how cold it is (everyone is shocked to hear that we basically have snow for 5 months of the year) and talk about the "5 Great Lakes" (which they all know) as well as Henry Ford, cars, and CHERRIES, of course! (Being that I am from "Cherry country," up north.) Of course, the whole "cherry" thing always brings an eruption of laughter from some of the naughtier boys in the class... "Cherry boy" is kind of Japanese English but it's not too far from the English connotation which I'm sure you can piece together. Anyway, I am definitely back in the swing of school and all the new students are quite GENKI as they say... (meaning something along the lines of enthusiastic/energetic/positive) so all is good for now...

3.) I went camping for the first time in my life! ("Golden Week," 1st week in May)
Can you believe I've never really ever been camping in my life? Well, unless you count staying in a pop-up camper with my aunt, uncle, and cousins, or tenting it on my grandma's lawn... and I don't. I mean, serious camping. Perhaps it was growing up in the sticks as it was... already felt close enough to nature. Or perhaps it's because I can be a tad high-mainentence... and didn't actually think I could live without a hairdryer for more than a day. Well... I'll have you know that I went THREE DAYS without washing my hair! (Yes, I did bathe.. but the public bath we visited was very strict about not using shampoo or even soap since it was harmful for the environment.) Anyway, it was a good "virgin" experience for me... It was a pretty big group of us.... 14, to be exact... and just a short trip (2 nights; only 1 night camping, the 2nd was in a cabin.) It was a beautiful 3-hour hike from our cars to the camp-site, but carrying our huge packs made it all the more challenging. I came to the realization it can definitely be fun to camp if: 1.) you are with a group of good friends, particularly those who are experienced in the camping department and 2.) If you are prepared for the climate. I knew it would be cold there in the mountains, but I had no idea I would sleep with every article of clothing I packed on and my teeth would be chattering all night long. (Here is a loverly photo of me "the morning after" and then later that day when we chose to drink wine in the sun instead of hike with the rest of the group on the 2nd day!) Anyway, 'twas a good time and I would even attempt it again someday....


4.) Sports Day at my School (Mid-May)
Every school across Japan, from elementary to high school, has a Sports Day sometime within the school year, and it is a BIG DEAL. My school's takes place in May, right before it starts to get too schweaty. I guess there isn't really anything that compares to this back home... kind of like "Track & Field Day," but on a much larger scale.

The whole school (students & teachers) are divided into 4 teams (Blue, Red, Yellow, and White... at least at my school) and students compete in various events and the team with the most points at the end of the day wins. There are relay races, obstacle courses, tug-of-wars, even "cheerleaders," male and female, and just about anything that would demonstrate physical prowess and agility. The students practice for days and days and people from the community come to watch on the field. I posted several videos after this post, so you can check them out and get a better idea of all the sportiness that takes place.

5.) Esther came back to Japan! (Mid-May for 2 weeks) Esther is our good friend from Germany, who came to Japan at the same time in 2004... Last year, particularly, we hung out a lot... She was not an English teacher, but a "Coordinator for International Relations," which means she is pera-pera in Japanese and therefore got to speak Japanese and English all day long. And sometimes when she was greeted on the streets with a Japanese "Hallo," she felt like she was back in Germany... Anyway, she returned to Germany last summer but made us all happy when she came back to visit. We hung out at our favorite old cafes, bars, and karaoke places... But of course, having someone visit is always a good excuse to do stuff you don't usually do, like wear Halloween costume parts in public and go to watch Japanese baseball games. It was just like old times for us... but just a little different.

"Cheer girls" - the R-rated performance

First, let me say that there are no cheerleaders in Japan as we know them in America (for basketball/football games, etc.) Japanese high schools have cheerleaders, but they are mostly guys and are straight-faced and tough rather than peppy and smiley. However, on one day of the year (Sports Day), we get to see girls show their flirty, peppy side in shorts skirts. And believe me, it is quite a show. I remember how shocked I was at watching them the first year I was here because it is SEXY. There are numerous "panty shots" for the guys crowding in the front row to watch. This fact wouldn't surprise me so much about Japan if it weren't my otherwise academic, conservative high school... Anyway, perhaps you will see what I'm talking about here...

Cheer girls- showing more promise

This is actually pretty cool...

"Cheer guys"

Quite a different act than the Cheer Girls.... These guys look a little more militaristic in their suits (which you can't see from the distance, but are all invidually made with different patches and designs sewn on and cost about $500 each, I hear) and perform to the beat of a taiko drum in what is apparently a very traditional Japanese style of cheering. This particular group is "cheering for"/representing the White Team (usually there are four team: Red, White, Blue, and Yellow, and the entire student body is divided into those four teams). The White Team actually releases white doves into the sky as part of their act... pretty impressive, but also a tad bit distracting because you end up watching where the birds are going instead of the boys and their moves.

Fans Unfolding & Unshirted Boys

This must also be very "Japanese." For high school boys (as well as junior high, I hear) to show their strength and dexterity, they are made to go bare-chested onto the field and perform various acrobatic acts in pairs (carrying their partner on their shoulders, holding them as they're standing at an angle against their legs to make an airplane, etc.) The finale is this... 5 guys to one group, making the shape of a fan as it unfolds, synchronized to music and the milataristic P.E. teacher, violently signaling with a small flag which groups should be unfolding when.

What would Avril think..

...if she knew her song was being played at high school Sports Days in Japan, and that 800 girls were dancing to it at the same time, barefoot, on a dusty field in front of hundreds of people? All I can say is that I'm glad I never had to do this in high school.... but it IS pretty impressive choreography.

March Blur

Yes... I'm still alive out here! And yes, I know... I really suck at this whole blog thing. Nearly a month has passed without a word from me. Once you hear all I’ve been up to this month, though, you might begin to understand why I haven’t been able to find a spare moment to post until now…

Here’s a little taste of what March had in store from me.... Believe me, I will be happy when April arrives... March has left me spinning. I’ve decided to recap each weekend and try to break it up a bit. (Of course, the weekdays have also been equally busy so there wasn’t a chance to catch up with anything then either…)


1.)1st weekend in March: HOST FAMILY'S VISIT
I have a Japanese host family from when I visited Japan in the summer of 2002, before I even went to Korea. (They are from Kagawa on the main island of Shikoku, about 5 hours from where I live now, and their city is a “friendship city” to Lansing, Michigan, which is where I was living at the time… that’s the long-short version of this.) Anyway, I have kept in touch with them and have visited them several times in Shikoku. However, they finally came to visit me for the first time in Kumamoto. They brought their two little girls, and after visiting the famous castle of Kumamoto together, we rented a car and drove to Amakusa. It turned out to be a HOT day, record-setting, in fact. Almost 80 degrees F on March 3rd! We stayed in a hotel overlooking the sea, which was really beautiful and relaxing but a bit of a long drive.

2.) 2nd weekend in March: SAYAKA’S WEDDING IN CHICAGO

This may have been the craziest trip I have ever taken considering it was so far and for such a short time (but wait, I have done long weekends to Europe before so I thought it was along the same lines.) My good friend Sayaka (who I met while living in MN when I needed a Japanese tutor, and who I have kept in touch with and visited her rich family near Tokyo during the last 3 Christmases while she was home on break) was getting to married to her American fiancée, Jesse, and I really wanted to go back for her wedding. It happened to be a time at school that I could take time off, and so I found myself doing a very “Japanese style” trip.. meaning, arriving there on Friday afternoon, returning on Monday.
Crazy indeed. Still, I’m glad I went back for the wedding because it meant a lot to her and it was interesting to see the mix between Japanese and American traditions. For example, her and Jesse changed into Kimonos after dinner, and then danced the “Chicken Dance” in them. Classic. I was supposed to sing a song at the reception (karaoke-style) but it somehow fortunately got forgotten in the mix of other speeches and activity… The next day, I spent a little time in downtown Chicago, watched the sun set from the top of the Hancock Building over Chicago, and met my friend Matt (an avid reader of this blog, who also happened to visit me a year ago in Japan so certainly deserves mention) for dinner and drinks before heading back to Japan on Monday.

2.) 3rd weekend in March: TOKYO WITH TARA

I’d barely been back in Japan (and right back to school) for exactly 2 ½ days when I flew to Tokyo to meet my friend Tara who was coming to visit me for 10 days. Tara and I got to know each other when I was living in Minnesota because we were in the same TEFL Course Program. We decided Tokyo was a good meeting place because (although on the other side of the country from where I live) it was a “new place” for both of us. (I’d been there a few times before, but never really spent much time sightseeing in the city.) On Saturday morning, we set out to get our bearings by visiting Tokyo Tower (looks a bit like the Eiffel Tower, actually) for a view of the city from 333 meters high. Here we were greeted by one of the “mascots” of the Tower. The Japanese love their mascots and so do we. For lunch, we met my friend Kathy (who used to live in Kumamoto) for lunch in the fish market. Kathy is a sushi connoisseur and she speaks awesome Japanese and knew the owner well so we got quite a special lunch (cheap and plentiful and great service.) As it was St. Patty's Day, we thought we'd share a little bit of "Western culture" with the sushi man so we gave him a shamrock sticker to adorn his doorway... probably the only sushi restaurant in Japan to have an Irish touch. Afterwards, Tara and I went to a Japanese park and later met up with Kathy for a St. Patty's Day drink. We happened to pick the most popular Irish bar in all of Japan, it seems... It was packed with Japanese and foreigners. I guess everyone likes a holiday that celebrates the art of drinking. Anyway, we settled on a British pub, which wasn't exactly the same, but we at least had elbowing room to drink! The next day, Tara and I went to check out Harajuku, a famous part of Tokyo where "anything goes" as far as fashion. You may have heard Gwen Stefani singing in admiration of these "Harajuku girls" because there is certainly attitude & unique style on display here. It's quite a place for people-watching on a Sunday afternoon. Later, we did a bit of shopping in Shibuya, one of the busiest shopping areas in Tokyo. It was absolutely packed with shoppers. From a distance, the people look a little like ants on the crosswalk. It's pretty overwhelming. We were more than ready to get out of the crowds and head for my "country town" of Kumamoto after that.

3.) Last weekend in March: SICK AND IN ASO
Everything finally caught up with me, and I woke up last Wednesday (a holiday, of course… Serves me right to be sick on a holiday) with a fever and the cough of death. I called in sick the next two days, which would have been my last days of classes for the school year.) Meanwhile, Tara wisely esecaped my germ-infested apartment and went to Hiroshima for two days. By the weekend, I was feeling a little better but not healthy by any means.
Still, I wanted to show Tara around a bit more, so we went to visit two of my friends (Jess and Xina) living in the Mt. Aso area, where we checked out the largest caldera in the world and she got to try her first onsen (geothermal hot springs bath) in the buff. We had a cup of coffee outside and enjoyed the nature and had kaiten sushi (served on a revolving, conveyor-belt) for dinner.

Tara went back to the U.S. on Monday, and I went to work, where my horrid cough still made random outbursts, loud enough to trouble some. Chill, people… it’s not the bird flu! My supervisor was quick to hand me my very own mask to "protect myself and others," which I have worn dutifully since. At least people can take one look at me and know that I’m sick although you will NOT see me walking around downtown with it onl. I guess I’ve been living in Asia too long since just put it on without considering how freaky I would look. Actually, the mask doesn’t make me stand out much more than I usually do. Maybe I’ve just been here long enough to know that masks are actually the key to the illusion that you’re working hard in spite of some major setback or hardship (in my case, this awful cold) looks even better to all your co-workers and superiors because it’s all about perseverence in the name of work! So, I am NOT freaky. I’m hard-working and dedicated to my job! (And yes, I am smiling freakishly behind this mask.)

Now the students are on Spring Break, but many teachers are still at school doing last reports, etc. Yes, it sucks that I have to come to school when it is technically Spring Break, but I have no choice but to be here. If I want to stay home, I have to use a vacation day, and since I only have ONE more left until August, I'm stuck putting in time at my desk. At least I can read, listen to music, watch DVDs on my computer, or maybe even study Japanese or plan future lessons... if I feel REALLY ambitious. Nah, think I'll save the latter for mid-April when the new school year will start all over again... Think I'll enjoy a little "vacation at school" for now. It's nice to have a little "inaction" after this blur of a month.

Graduation Day

March 1st is the day that, all across Japan, public high schools hold their graduation ceremonies. As you might expect, they are very formal occasions. Everyone dresses in their finest threads, including kimonos. Students, however, just wear their regular uniforms but the graduates follow the American tradition of throwing up their caps at the end. There's no class song or valedictorian/saludatorian speeches, but there are plenty of other speeches, lots of standing up, sitting down, and bowing, bowing, and more bowing.

The ceremony takes place in the school gym, which is usually absolutely freezing on March 1st. This year, fortunately, it wasn't so cold. The ceremony itself is about an hour and a half. Then, much to the surprise of some people unaware of this special tradition at my high school, the graduating seniors "storm the stage" and take over entertaining everyone present in a wild display of comedy, music, dancing, and magic. The sudden switch is a bit shocking... but in a way, it is very Japanese. Things are never really how they seem from the outside. This picture of the boys singing is one of the more "tame" examples. Check out a wilder scene of boys dancing on the stage at http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8467829410754857051. Please note the very sober audience- if this were a concert, people would be bouncing along, but no one- especially the teachers whose heads you can see- know quite how to react to this whole graduate performance thing.

After the ceremony, students go to their homeroom class and they have one last pow-wow with their parents and homeroom teachers. More speeches and tears followed. But then....after many rigid years of the Japanese education system, they are finally FREE!

I waited with some of English club members to give flowers to those from our club who were graduating. Students were milling all around in the hallways, taking pictures, signing yearbooks, in very festive moods.

Outside the school, their club activity "kouhei" (juniors) are waiting. (Each club's members kind of forms a mini-circle and serenades their senior, presents them with gifts like flowers, cards, etc.) Each club has its own way of saying goodbye as well as initiating newer members. For example, the boys tennis club that is shown, show their respect with a shaving-cream pie-in-the-face for the seniors. The baseball club (also shown) makes all the first-year students do "cosplay" (dress up as maids, etc.) and do other similarly embarassing things.... The rugby club also had its own "hazing" going on. I saw a student drink a whole bottle of Tabasco sauce. Ay, ay! There were also some students running around in nothing but diapers.

Things at my school definitely get a bit crazy on graduation day, but it's probably a release they need from all the studying. It makes most of the other teachers a little nervous- after all, this doesn't really fit our "traditional" school image- but there's nothing they can do... graduation is really about the students. And tomorrow it will be back to classes as usual for the students who are still here, as if none of this craziness ever happened.