Brendan in Japan

2008-10-28T01:20:00.002+09:00

Ciaran just sent me this. I had no idea we had a recording.

BBC and the London Embassy

2008-07-21T04:29:00.004+09:00

I got a call from Mr. BBC today. They wished to do an interview on morning radio about the relationship between China and Japan. Unfortunately I only saw the email 20mins before they planned to broadcast, so I'll have to leave my insightful analysis for another day. Anyway it was nice to be asked!

I got back to the UK last Friday, and on Wednesday I found myself at the Japanese embassy for a drinks do. Sushi and white-wine. I shamelessly hobnobbed with the Minister for Trade and we chatted away in Japanese about Japan's nuclear policy. At least, I think it was about Japan's nuclear policy. (If you're just saying, "Yes... I agree... that's right...", I find it's hard to go wrong.)

Many have asked me since I got back whether I'm going to do a job using my Japanese. Probably not, is the answer. It's nice to use a skill, especially after having spent so long learning it, but you learn skills to give you more choices, not less. I don't want to limit myself by saying "I must have a job where I use my Japanese". At the moment, other things looks more interesting.

That's it: my last post. Thanks for reading!

Mt. Fuji

2008-07-05T00:56:00.000+09:00

With just days to go before I would finally leave Japan I decided to climb Mt. Fuji. Having chosen to take the tough option and I climb it from the very bottom, I kitted myself out with a fleece (North Face, no less), puma trainers, and an umbrella as a walking stick. Two days later I was sick from the altitude and dehydration – but I did it. And I only got lost once.

At the heart of every Shinto temple is a sacred object, and it seems that even though the buildings themselves were abandoned, they dared not move these objects, instead secured them behind locked fences.

Mt. Fuji is a sacred mountain, and many climb it as a pilgrimage. However many of the old temples have been abandoned as more and more start the climb from 5th station.

Split wood and open roofs were all that was left, though some had left offerings of tea and packages at the ruins.

Eventually the tree line petered out, and Mt Fuji, still technically an active volcano, was revealed.

You really felt like you had the whole earth spread out before you.

As night fell I became thoroughly sick from dehydration and altitude. The "old man" whose family I had teamed up with powered on, while I took shelter in a hut near the summit. It was a wretched night but the sunrise made up for every minute of it.

2008-07-04T23:44:00.000+09:00

A temple garden at the foot of Mt. Fuji full of moss and wood.

This area of Japan receives heavy rainfall throughout much of the year. The response? The "design solution"? Plant a garden that is at its most beautiful in the rain.

2008-06-05T10:59:00.001+09:00

I took the train to the office as usual this morning. I wound my way through the masses of Tokyo's rush hour to Taro Kono's parliamentary office. Through security, and up the stairs to the small cramped office on the second floor. But today's different: suits spill out of the MP's backroom into the reception, listening intently to what's going on inside.The buzz is in the air.

But I don't really know what's going on. I'm still not fluent enough to follow this scene; and even if I was, who knows if I'd be in on the loop. It's not exactly an open political scene.

Is it all going to change?

The LDP's ruled the roost for so long, but their ratings have never been this low. Really, we're talking Mariana Trench here.

Following the second world war, Japanese society changed. People left the rice-paddies and mountains of the countryside and headed to the neon and crowds of the city. This has left many MPs representing nothing but a handful of farmers and some trees. To keep at least some jobs in these rural towns, the politicians have been building roads in the countryside. Lots of roads that nobody needs. Construction companies show their appreciation for the business to the politicians at election time.

Back in Fukuoka I'd often cycle to the local dam. The road followed the river all the way there. In fact, on the other side of the river was another road following the same route, in case I wished to try out that side. t was easy to switch betweeen them. I could try the alternative anytime I liked: there was a new bridge every hundred metres.

This little deal has been made easier by the way the national budget is divided up. In Japan, the road tax doesn't go into a general pot, but just goes on roads. In theory this seems a great idea to me: officials might look at the roads one year and say, "Hey, they're in pretty good nick this year, so 50% off the tax this year!". In truth, no politician wants to reduce a tax one year, if they think they're going to have to raise it the next. So you get roads - whether you need them or not.

So now comes along a proposal to break down the fence that rims off the road tax money from the general fund. Let's use the money to pay for the old people hospital bills! So go the calls for reform. No, let's increase sales tax (VAT)! say the construction gang. And that's the point where Kono and others are threatening to leave the party. If we get an increase in VAT vs. opening up the road-tax budget, we're going off on our own, they say.

So the meeting crowded around me, as I tap away on my electronic dictionary, might be about that. Or it might be about FID, or DIRR, or some other obscure acronym. (In fact, I find out later it's about India and America's nuclear deal, which is quite exciting, as I got to write the English version of the resolution - which as no-one but Japan speaks Japanese, will be the one actually read. But more on that another time.)

I come out of the meeting to make more room for people who can actually follow what's going on. I browse the internet and read Robert Gates' recent speech in Singapore, US Defence Secretary (honestly that's first on my list every morning - what has Robert Gate's said today?). Anyway:

"Over the past three decades an enormous swathe of Asia has changed almost beyond recognition. By any measure – financial, technological, industrial, trade, educational, or cultural – Asia has become the center of gravity in a rapidly globalizing world."

So nothing new here, I suppose. European power-clashes, British Empire, 1st World War, rise of America, 2nd World War, Cold War; history for so long been a story centred around the Atlantic. Now the Pacific is where the action is. (I guess I'll have to leave out Japan's empire efforts of the Pacific War in my glib narrative...)

ANYWAY, there's a buzz out here. So why I am heading back to old-world London?

A little later, I find myself looking through Koike Yuriko's biography this morning. According to the gossip here she's the first female Japanese Prime Minister. She went off to Egypt upon graduation, mastered Arabic, came back to a media career, before getting swept up in politics. Hmmm... I'm a sucker for hunting for parallels in others' biographies. Look! It's just like me! She's from a small island-kingdom too, and off she went to learn a language, and then came back to a media career...

Yeah right. Well. We'll see. At any rate, the buzz in the office this morning, Asia being the new power centre, and obscure biographies; I can't help feeling like this Japan business isn't quite finished for me.

2008-05-26T17:53:00.001+09:00

Violence...

2008-05-21T13:12:00.003+09:00

Saw some train-rage today. I just got off off the packed underground train this morning, when a Japanese man ran off and chased after the man who had been standing just in front of him, and violently kicked him in the leg.

Looking through this year's Global Peace Index 2008. The most violent country in the world?

Iraq

The most peaceful country in the world?

Well not the UK, which came in 49th. And not Japan, though it came in 5th.

Who was first?

[Answer in the comments]

Saatchi and Saatchi girl

2008-05-16T12:47:00.006+09:00

Who is this? Why is she on my blog? This is from Saatchi and Saatchi...

"Creativity in Japan was at rock bottom. This was (still is) the second largest advertising market in the world and yet international creative competitions were rarely won. Almost all the advertising was formulaic and relied on the use of celebrities endorsing the product; there was little attempt to build long-term brand values and much of the advertising was so similar it was impossible to identify the brand from the campaign.

Every client and Agency copied what the other was doing as if they were too scared to do something different.

'We are saying that to be different is to be good. We want to be the nail that sticks up. It’s the only way of ensuring that the advertising cuts through the morass of meaningless messages,' was my mantra at the time.

...

We had no receptionist in the Agency. Greeting you with a kiss and a hug was Mayu, a DJ and Muse; a spunky girl dressed is if she had just come from a night out in Shinjuku. She DJ'd the music that pounded through the agency. Her task was to make everyone happy. All day she walked around the agency, wandering into meetings, sitting at someone's desk, showing visitors around the gallery. There was no receptionist’s desk. Her cordless switchboard could work even when she was outside the building. On more than one occasion a new business prospect has come in because they have been inspired by the way Mayu had answered the phone.

But this wasn’t her only job. When MTV started broadcasting in January 2001 they signed Mayu up as a VJ to host a weekly request show. She became one of the stars of the channel.

The gallery set the tone acting as a creative stimulus to everyone who worked at Saatchi & Saatchi, providing a constant source of inspiration, both from the work and the artists who exhibited there.

As the Gallery was open to the public, it meant that the agency wasn’t isolated.

'Isn’t remarkable?' I said in an interview. 'Here we are, attempting to connect and communicate with the consumer every day, yet we close ourselves off behind concrete walls. We want to be an open space that everyone can come in to'

[Ed: I just love this idea]

Go East young man! (or woman)

2008-05-16T12:39:00.002+09:00

“My god this place is just exploding … . we have so many great opportunities here and we are really only constrained by getting good people in … . jeez if I was in my late 20’s or early 30’s I’d be here in a shot”.

Two posts (here and here) from the David Brains at Edelman, make me happy to be out here.

"Maybe it is a function of my advancing years, but I am amazed that even ambitious young people in the business seem to be viewing their career in very narrow geographic and discipline ways."

And one more:

"Someone once said ‘we don’t know what we don’t know’ and that sometimes makes us blind … working and living abroad is the best way to open your eyes to be a truly global operator."

I like the idea of being a "global operator".

He singles out (fairly, I think) Brits and Americans as the worst provincials - cursed by their native English ability to never going anywhere. Honestly, until you've survived somewhere where the first language is not yours... Shame we haven't got an Empire anymore. There was a time when every young bright thing would spend a few years abroad, rewriting the Indian education system or putting down an insurrection. Great on the CV.

But then, on the other hand, I've heard horror stories about people trying to get jobs going back home ("re-entering the market"). Sitting in interviews, good applicants are told that they are wild and unpredicatable free spirits, and not to be trusted. Plus with an immigration policy like Britain's maybe you could say we don't have to go abroad, abroad comes here - or "there", I should say, still being in Tokyo.

Is working abroad a dirty-mark on the CV?

Japanese are the hardest people in the world

2008-05-11T22:31:00.003+09:00

Japanese camera crew interrupted by American gang.

Homeless in Tokyo

2008-05-02T17:59:00.003+09:00

Homelessness is different in Tokyo to that which I've seen in other countries. Many are ex-salary men, eduacated and sober, a contrast to the mix of mentally ill, drunks and drug-addicts that make up the homeless population of western cities. In many parks, you see neat and tidy shacks built from discarded timber and blue sheeting. The semi-nomadic residents clean the parks they live in, connect their "houses" to drinking fountains, and are generally tolerated by the authorities. The results are kind of middle-class shanty towns. Some interesting pictures here.

There's an interesting report here from Channel 4 on the "cyber-homeless", people who instead of sleeping on the streets live in my cyber-cafes - which have always been my preferred option to hotels and youth-hostels. You can watch it here.

My only quibble with the Channel 4 report is that the flat they picked to look around was hardly a typical flat for a young single person. I mean it had more than one room! That makes it a millionaire's mansion for Tokyo! The estate agent quoted a figure of 290,000 when you can find many flats for 50,000 or 60,000 - and that's right in the centre of the city. A bit sloppy, but otherwise good in highlighting the raft of charges that make accommodation market so rigid in Tokyo.

2008-04-30T14:18:00.003+09:00

I got to see the Japanese parliament in action today. Very interesting.

Actually the session's start was delayed because members of the opposition party blocked the door to the Speaker's office. He was trapped inside!

Anyway not as violent as the Taiwanese.

Check out this slap.

Diet

2008-04-24T11:16:00.007+09:00

Nothing to do with getting thin, the Diet I'm talking about is the Japanese parliament.

I'm working for this guy: Kono Taro.

Ignore the creepy picture on the website - hope to change that soon. Seems a good man. Apparently, "one of Japan's most dynamic young politicians".

In classic fashion, he's following his grandfather and father in the family business, and since boyhood has been groomed for the world of politics. He was sent off to study in the US and also, interestingly, did a stint at the Central School of Planning and Statistics in Warsaw, Poland, where he got locked up for the night after visiting the home of the Solidarity leader, Lech Walesa.

Will let you know how it all goes.

Incidentally, nothing to do with this politician:

"Miyazawa became Prime Minister on November 5, 1991, and gained brief fame in the United States when President George H. W. Bush vomited in his lap and fainted during a state dinner on January 8, 1992. The Japanese even invented a verb for this incident: busshu-suru or busshuru—literally, “to do a Bush,” ie. “to vomit in public.” "

2008-04-20T16:30:00.001+09:00

2008-04-08T09:16:00.002+09:00

My new address in Tokyo:

大きな地図で見る

Or click here:

The address is:

東京都渋谷区千駄ヶ谷４－１２－４サクラハウス千駄ヶ谷４丁目A001-01

Brendan Miller A001-01
Sakura House Sendagaya,
4 Cho-me,
4-12-4
Sendagaya
Shibuya-ku
Tokyo

2008-04-01T11:43:00.001+09:00

Haunted web-page

http://cubo.cc/

Shy Students Saved by their Mobiles

2008-03-26T14:36:00.002+09:00

From Washington Post:

In Kyoto, the cell phone culture has generated a new type of university class. Students in more than 52 courses ranging from math to welfare studies at the city's Bukkyo University almost never speak aloud.

Rather, they e-mail questions and comments from their cell phones to their professors while in class, and professors answer orally.

"Students can be very shy, and the anonymousness of the system helped them to overcome their shyness," said Kiyoharu Hara, assistant professor of sociology and a mastermind of the university's unusual class communication. "Keitai mail matched the Japanese culture of silently conveying meaning."

2008-03-04T15:15:00.001+09:00

Liz and I go for dinner with our old teachers...

Links 17-2-08

2008-02-17T21:01:00.001+09:00

Japan invents the world smallest toilet

http://www.frostfirezoo.com/japan-invents-the-worlds-smallest-toilet

World of Golden Eggs

2008-02-17T20:25:00.006+09:00

My favourite Japanese comedy, World of Golden Eggs. It's not very mainstream so there's not much on-line, but these are my favourite of those around.

Necessary

Young Wife

なんでブラつけているの？

French　Lesson

Ice-skating

2008-02-07T16:20:00.001+09:00

The correct way to eat sushi

2008-01-31T18:17:00.000+09:00

One of the videos doing the rounds on the Japanese blogosphere.

Will Ferguson's Hitching Rides with Buddha (1)

2008-01-30T22:43:00.000+09:00

Will Ferguson's Hitching Rides with Buddha is my favourite book on Japan. It tells the story of his hitch-hiking trip from the most southern tip all the way to Hokkaido; and there's some parts I thought I'd quote for you:

"The ferry crossed a black sea to Shikoku. I stood on the deck watching dark shapes slide by in the night: islands and ships, clusters of lights, fishing boats like fireflies. ...
Just before the ferry was about to leave, a tax had roared up to the dock and an elderly couple had scrambled out. The taxi driver hurried to get their bags out of his trunk. The gorund crew, meanwhite, wer already tossing the ropes free. The drawbridge was about to be raised. The couple could have made - would have made it - but they stopped to bow to the taxi driver. He bowed back. They returned the bow ... and at that moment they were lost. It was too late. The gate was closed, the dock workers waved them away, and they stood watching helplessly as the ship sailed without them. In the time it took to bow they had missed their ferry and were stranded on the wrong side of the strait, a husband and wife marooned by good manners."

Later in another town, Ferguson falls in with a group of salarymen.

"My circle of Akita businessmen was also concerned, in a pornographic sort of way, with violence in America. They all had their pet theories about the matter, several of which were real eyebrow-raisers. In wit and insight, this group was not quite on a par with the Algonquin Round Table. One man declared that the problem was that all white people were, oh, what's the word, racist - a statement that was ludicrously self-contradictory I didn't know how to respond. Whites were racist against blacks, but Japanese were not. Why? And here I quote, for it was such a memorable statement: because "our skins are slightly darker, so we can understand both white people and black people."
Another man immediately chimed in: "That's why blacks in America always riot at night. It makes them harder to see. It's very clever, don't you think?"

It's a funny book, but thoughtful too; and when I get time I'll copy out some other favourite bits.

Links 30-1-08

2008-01-30T10:39:00.000+09:00

NHK (Japanese BBC) and the government trampling on individual liberties?

http://shisaku.blogspot.com/2008/01/despair.html

The whale hunt - an experiment in human storytelling

2007-12-27T18:29:00.000+09:00

I've written before on whale hunting, but have a look at this: great photography and a fantastic design idea.

2007-09-22T20:14:00.000+09:00

Day Trip to a Volcano

2007-09-22T18:52:00.000+09:00

Mt. Aso, Japan's largest active volcano:

Matt with the Hat: かっこいい！

These are in case the volcano erupts：

More useful in case of rain:

阿蘇山

Settling a bet: How many minutes do you think it would take to walk to the top of the little light triangle of grass? "Exactly 5-6 minutes," said Matt.

And he was right. Though Chie took a little longer.

Our lovely walk through Aso Plain was accompanied by Yellow Submarine and Schindler's List from the CD, "Classics on Xylophone" broadcast at high volume from the tourist centre. We had to leave before we got a chance to listen to the theme from the Emprie Strikes Back.

楽しかった

イギリスのホームステーのワークショップ

2007-09-01T23:12:00.000+09:00

This is a workshop I ran for Japanese students going to do a homestay in England.

It's written in Japanese and thus is full of kanji. I realise that unless your computer is set up to display them, the kanji will just look like an indecipherable mess. Well, don't worry. That's what kanji look like to me most of the time anyway.

I've also included some anonymous internet pictures of our capital for you to enjoy.

二年前に日本に来てから日本語を勉強し始めました。ですから私の日本語は完璧ではありません。まだまだです。しかし今日のテーマのひとつは　英語力が高くなくても問題がないということです。
ですから私も頑張ります。

よろしくお願いします。

まず始めにクイズをします。

これはどこの旗でしょうか？

これはイギリスの旗、ブリテンの旗です。

これはどこのはたでしょうか。

イングランドって何なんでしょう？

日本語では英国人とイギリス人は同じ意味ですが英語では違います。

[Here I explained how although in Japanese, there is one word for the UK - a unpleasant (if you're Scottish or Welsh) but not illogical step, in English we make a distinction. In fact we even call them countries. "Why? Well because we are a Union..." and here I started to pull my different flags together, to explain the Union Jack. ]

ユー・ケーは日本語で「連合王国」と訳（やく）されています。

連合している国は、北アイルランド、スコットランド、ウエールズ、そして　イングランド　です。

実はこの旗が作られたときアイルランドはまだ独立していませんでした。そのときのアイルランドの旗はこれです。それからウェールズはありませんでした。（ごめん）

[Here I explained that at the time the flag was made, Ireland's flag was different and Wales didn't exist. I'm not sure my history tutor would have been pleased with this economical version of British constitutional history, but my magic trick complete, the audience actually broke into spontaneous applause.]

これらの旗がまざってUnion Jackができました。

[Thank you Wikipedia. Acutally whilst poking around on there, I saw this fascinating version of the flag, which puts Scotland on top. "Well oc-aye me lad - we may have to send our gold and virgins to London but look at this great flag!" ]

Englishはイギリス人、Scottishはスコットランド人、Welshはウエールズ人Irishはアイランド人。Britishは英国人。

Brendan Sensei's tips on politeness #1: Its football, not "soccer".

LONDON

　私は生まれも育ちもロンドンです。２年前に来日する・まで・２２年間住んでいました。

私はロンドンが大好きです。みんなさん　も　ロンドンへの旅を楽しむことでしょう。

しかし　たぶん、不安なことがたくさんあるんじゃないでしょうか。

治安（ちあん）のこと

自分の会話力

道に迷ったら？

そんなつもりはないのに文化の違いで失礼なことをやってしまったら？

食べ物は？　フィッシュ　アンド　チップスってまずいのかな？

Londonの地下鉄「イギリスではSubwayじゃなくてTubeと呼ばれます」LondonのTubeとか観光名所についてのガイドブックがいっぱいあるし、

トラベルイングリッシュ的な本もたくさんありますよね

しかし、文化的なことやホームステイする家族と仲良くすごす方法を書いた本はあまりないと思うんです。ですから今日のメインポイントは二つです。

１．英会話の心配をしないこと。

２.イギリス人と仲良くなる方法。

１．
日本人のみんなさんがあまり話そうとしないのは、しっぱいすることをこわがっているからだろうと思います。

　相手が分からなかったらどうしよう？！

　単語を思い出せなかったらどうしよう？！

　まちがえたらどうしょう？！

　笑われたら、いやだなあぁ　

などと、みなさんは心配してるんじゃないでしょうか。

　「ロンドン」とひとことで言っても、さまざまなんです。（ロンドンで）話されている言語は３００種類以上です。　例えば、私が通った（かよった）小学校には、パキスタン、インド、アフリカの国々、東ヨーロッパの国々などから、移住してきた家族の子どもがたくさんいました。

　隣近所には、ヒンズー語、グルジア語、アラビア語、中国語、ポーランド語などが、あふれています。たまに、英語が聞こえてくると、逆に変な感じがします。

世界各地から移住してきた人たちも英語を話すので、私たちは文法の間違いや発音の違いにも慣れています。だから、心配しないでください。

　困るのは、間違いを気にしすぎて、話そう「はなそう」としない人たちです。つまり、知っている単語を、とりあえず、言ってみてほしいのです。

たとえば…

Excuse me do you happen to know where the Park is?

失礼ですが、公園はどこにあるかご存知ですか？

“Where… Park?” Or just…. “Park”は大丈夫です。

　単語が思い出せないばあい　は、どうしますか？

そんなときは、思い出そうとしている単語を別の言い方で説明して、助けてもらいましょう。

Dentist = teeth-doctor, or teeth-man
Scissors = cut-thing
Batteries = for camera small thing – power
Computer = monitor, machine, data,
Bicycle =　wheels, bell

もっと難しくしましょう。

環境。英語でわかる人がいますか？分かっていてもなんというか　わすれたら説明はどうすればいいでしょうか。

関係のあることば？

　ジェスチャーも使いましょう。役立つ・うえに、相手を楽しませることもできます。まさに一石二鳥（いっせきにちょう）

２．イギリス人と仲良くなる方法。

まず、あいさつについて恥ずかしがらずに、フレンドリー握手しましょう。

はっきりとした声で「Hello! My name is ….」・・・・と言いましょう。

おとのりの人と練習しましょう。

　それから何でもいいんですけど、なにかをほめましょう。

- This is a beautiful house.
- London is so lovely. I love all the beautiful gardens.
- This is so different to Japan.

- Wow you English are so tall!

下を向かないで、かおを上げて笑顔「えがお」ではなしましょう。自然にね。緊張しすぎて、英語をはなせなかったら、「Nice to meet you」だけでも、笑顔でいいましょう。

日本人はおとなしすぎるとか、自分から　話そうとしない　で質問されるのを持ってるとかいわれています。就職の面接試験じゃないんですから、皆さんから話しかけるようにしましょう。

イギリス生活で大切なのは、「礼儀正しくする」ことではなく、「みんなで楽しむ」ことです。笑い声が起こるのはいいことなんです、決して自分が笑われているなんて思わないでください。間違いってけっこうおもしろいものが多いでしょう。

例えば、私が　初めて友達の両親に会ったとき、「Brendan　から来ました、イギリスと申します、」といってしまいました。

[Here I explained how I, on recent arrival in Japan, routinely told Japanese people I was from Brendan, and my name was England.]

ほかには「たのしんでください」のかわりに「死んでください」言ってしまいました。しかし皆わらってくれましたよ。ですから、（ジョークのかわりに）、わざと間違えるのも、いい考えかもしれませんね。

たとえば、日本人にはSit downとShit downの違いは難しいでしょう。しかしイギリス人は喜ぶかもしれません。もうひとつはClap your hands.（拍手「はくしゅ」してください）とCrap your hands（手にウンコを置いてください）の違いも面白いとおもいます。

[This bit was a big success too]

日本人がにがてな発音、たとえばLとR、に興味を持つんじゃないでしょうか。
ホストファミリーの笑いをさそえたら大成功！

遠慮しないでイギリス人はアメリカ人より間接的だといわれています。欧米の家族は、ゲストが自分たちで工夫しながらうまくやって　くれたらいいという考え方です。（日本式にいう「お客さま扱い」されることを期待しないでください。「Hmmm I’m a little hot」とかは、だめです。水が欲しければはっきり「Can I have some water please」といってください。または自分で台所に行って、グラスを見つけて、飲んだほうがいいと思います。

その.一方で、手助け「てだすけ」が欲しければ、素直に頼んでください。ゲストの役に立てるというのは、ホストにとってもうれしことです。

「Can I carry your bags?荷物を持とうか」と言われたら「Oh yes please, thank you.おねがいします」
「何か飲む？」と聞かれて、あなたが「Thank you」と、飲み物をもらえばホストは満足することでしょう。
食事が終わったら「Can I help?」「手伝いましょうか」と申し出てください。あなたがホストと一緒にお皿を洗うのは珍しくないことですよ。最低限、お皿を提げるぐらいは手伝いましょう。

皿洗い、自分の部屋の片付け、ベッドメーキングなど、家事は、すすんで手伝いましょう。いつもThank you」と「Please」を使ってください。

もうひとつはホストはクシャミしたら「Bless you」といってください。

会話

　会話のキッカケをどう作ったら、　会話をどう始めたらいいんでしょうか。いい会話の始め方のひとつはアドヴィスを聞くことです。

Where is a good place to go in London?
What is the best beer？
What is your favourite place?
How do you say this word?

日本の地図や、写真を見せることなども、キッカケになりやすいでしょう。写真の枚数は、１５枚　程度（ていど）で大丈夫です。

プレゼントをすることもいいことだと思います。お箸とか　浮世絵などのえはがきとかもうひとつは筆ペンを持って行って、ホストの名前を日本語で書いてあげれば、ホストファミリーはきっと興味をもつでしょう。

ホストファミリーが喜びそうな話題は、方言というか俗語の　たぐいでしょう。そして、友だち作りにも有効かもしれません。

じゃあ練習しましょう！

Alright darling
Alright mate
See you later alligator ….　In a while crocodile
Starving-marvin
How’s it going?
Cor blimey governor
Cheers guv
Toodle-pip

[I have a video of this bit. Trust me, the sight of 60 Japanese students practising "Cor blimey Guv!" is pretty amusing.]

Conclusion さいごに

皆さんの喜びはホストファミリーの喜び

リラックスして、たのしんできてください。

First day back at school

2007-08-29T12:16:00.000+09:00

"Hey Ryoga! How are you?!"

Ryoga looks at me suspiciously.

"How are you doing? Did you enjoy your summer holidays?"

"No."

He disappears off to his classroom.

"Hello Shion!"

Shion's response:
1) Big grin for teacher.
2) Punch teacher right in the balls.
3) Run off to classroom.

-

Holiday homework came in today:

For her spelling example sentences one girl asked at the top of the page, "Imagination okay?".

She let me know when this dangerous device had been used by making a note in brackets after each sentence:

"Tuesday is my piano lesson. (Not true)
Wednesday is my ballet class (Not true)
I love to ride my bike. (True)
I went to the moon by myself (Not true)"

One boy wrote:

"Yesterday I went to toilet. I watched a movie. And then I drank soda. It was yummy."

Some others were:

"Yesterday I went to in side Mr Miller. I played with his brain. And then I ate his brain. It was yucky."

"Yester I went to Hokkaido. I ate ice crean. And then froze. It was cold. "

"Today I went to Venus. It was very very very hot. And then Im drank 500 bottle of water and I went Saturn. It was very very very cold."

I suspect one of my students was being deliberately provacative (the rascal):

"Yesterday I went poo-poo. I ate poo-poo. And I drank pee-pee. It was funy and it was yumy."

My favourite spelling mistake was:

"Last Saturday I went to the moon with an astrosnot. And then I saw an alien. It was fun. "

I've been told that I can't include any more pictures of the children on my blog, so here's a picture of an Ostrich egg that Daiki brought in.

There was some disagreement as to whether it was a real egg or not (why does he have an ostrich egg?), but the issue was resolved when the egg (all 2kg) went off. I came in one morning to meet the smell of 2kg of rotting egg. Believe me when I say that's a lot of smell.

However it was only once the egg started becoming so disgusting that the other children became interested in it. They were daring each other to smell it or touch the green slime. I think Daiki was quite pleased.

Ghosts in Japan

2007-08-24T21:34:00.001+09:00

It's a fox she explained.

It looks like a guy's face.

No, it's a fox that's changed itself into a man.

It seems the fox has quite a bad rep in Japan.

Then sprinkled salt on her digital camera.

2007-08-23T10:14:00.000+09:00

Ice cream while I type

2007-08-22T17:12:00.000+09:00

My local internet-cafe just got better!

Not only can I relax in my massage chair, read weird porno comics and pick my nose in privacy (or even do all at once) but now I can have free ice-cream.

They have installed a Mr. Whippy machine, satisfying not only my desire for ice-cream but a long-held childhood dream of operating one of these machines. You pull down the big lever (glad no half-wit designer decided to modernize the thing with a touch-button) and out comes ice-cream like toothpaste from a tube - a thick white stripe of the stuff.

Round and round it goes, stacking higher and higher, becoming a beautiful helter-skelter of creamy perfection.

Actually, on the first attempt I incorrectly judged where the ice-cream was dispensed from so started my helter-skelter of creamy perfection on my wrist. The result was a kind of more traffic roundabout with roads heading off all over the place, than the turret of ice-cream I had been intending to craft.

And it was now dripping onto the floor. What followed was the predictable mess of a man trying to mop the floor with a tissue, and maintaining a licking-battle with his ice-cream cone (and wrist), hoping to stop anymore dropping on the floor. It reminded me of whenever I try and carry a big bundle of laundry, and I have to stop and pick up a dropped sock, only to drop another one whilst bending down, and so I bend to pick it up too, and then there goes some underwear, and so on. I've no doubt it was amusing for the shop staff - that's probably why they installed the machine.

Anyway having mastered the technique, I've now made three little ice-cream missions. And now I'm waiting for my Nan-ban chicken take-out to be delivered (direct to my massage-chair).

It has been a stressful day.

I spent two hours waiting for my Japanese driving lisence (which is simple to get if you have the good sense to come from a country that drives on the same civilised side of the road as Japan), only to be told my foreigner-card was out of date. The gruff man behind the counter was quite alarmed.

"Your foreigner-card is out-of-date."

"Oh I see. Does that mean I can't get my driving lisence today?"

"It's out-of-date!" He waved the card vigorously in the air so I could make out the relevant numbers more clearly.

"Oh that's bad."

"Dame da yo!" Dame (pronounced "da-meh") is a unique little Japanese word that means forbidden, out-of-line or just plain broken. The first time I heard it was when one of the porters at the dormitory kicked the punctured tyre on my bike.

The man looked at me like I was a punctured tyre. "Dame!"

It turned out that the government could arrest me for just failing to have my card about my person. What about having an out-of-date card? "Dame, dame, dame..."

Ahh. The government would get me. Where could I go to get a new card?

"The local-government office" he said.

So off I set for the government office, looking right and left for fear of being arrested by the government.

Anyway, it was all a big waste of time on my last day of holiday, so I'm going to enjoy my Mr Whippy machine - as many times as I like.

Chie enjoys Mr. Whippy too.

PS Chie emailed yesterday regarding the "Pacific Love Letters".

Yesterday the Blog was seen.
I feel like crawling under the floor.

Shame.

I will try hard in English.

Chie

Obviously I realize publishing this is not the way to sooth the wounds, but what a sentence: "crawl under the floor"! Forget wanting to "hide under the table", crawling beneath the floor is far more vivid. If you like the English language, and like seeing "interesting" things done to it, forget James Joyce or Ginsburg, come live in Japan.

Back in Fukuoka

2007-08-18T10:25:00.000+09:00

Back home in Fukuoka. Ahhhh the heat. It was 37 C when the plane touched town, and it's wet too. I feel like I'm swimming through custard. I don't know why this is surprising, after all Fukuoka is on the same latitude at Georgia, USA. It's just such a shock to the system after the cool of Canada. My apartment was roasted. It took a full 24 hours with the air-conditioning blowing full-blast before walls and floors cooled. Even now when I open a drawer or cupboard, a blast of hot air floats up into my face.

FUK: It's good to be home.

Anyway, I've adapted now. Like the old Japanese men I've taken to wearing a towel around my head, and a vest to soak up the sweat. That, or I just wander around in my underwear.

And leaving you with that image I'll sign off.

Love letters from over the Pacific

2007-08-13T13:06:00.001+09:00

(Reproduced with permission!)

These are from my girlfriend Chie, sent to me while I was in Canada. If gives some clue to the wonderful fun that is Japanese-English. These are reproduced not to belittle Japanese people trying to speak English - but just because I love Japlish so much.

Besides, my Japanese is mocked regularly. Only this week I confused "stock" (as in "stocks and shares") and "turnip".

"I'm thinking of buying turnips so as to secure my financial future," I said to a man at a bar, who - with splendid Japanese politeness - turned, looked at me, and nodded, "Turnips? Yes, good investment."

Anyway:
[Regarding a wedding she went to:]

However, in the past, the man for whom I had been yearning had attended. I was surprised. He is bride's friend.
He was growing old.
He is 25 years old. However, he looks like 30 years old.
I do not feel the charm in him at all.
Because you are several times more charming !!!!
fu fu fu ha zu ka si i

[Translated litterally as: chuckle-chuckle, I'm so shy.]

Dear Brendan

I did the barbecue yesterday with the relative.
It was done in the garden of my grandpa's house.
There was a child of Uighur there.
The homestay is done to my uncle's house.
He was polite, and very lovely.

Dear Brendan

[On a funeral she attended, and the arrival of younger colleague from work:]

She came with the boyfriend.
It is said by a surrounding person that she have no common sense.
At the today's funeral, she wore clothes that exposed the skin.
I think so oh !!sexy !!
But the attendance was very surprised.
Her clothes invited frowns of disgust.

[Original font size.]

Dear Brendan
I 'm fine.
In Fukuoka, it is still very very very very hot.
My hairstyle is not changed.

By the way, it is an urgent report.
Mail came from Sachie.
[I'm going on a trip with Sachie and friends.]
About the trip to Iki.
[A trip to Iki.]
August 25. August 26. One night stay. Cost 12500 yen.

Does Brendan participate?
Sachie is describing for Brendan to have planned to participate.
She wants the answer by tomorrow.
Sachie invited me to the travel.
However, I put on the yukata [traditional dress] with Senpai [senior colleague from work, in this case a friend too.]
And, it strolls eating the cake in the coffee shop in traditional Japan afterwards. It views the fireworks on that night. Perhaps, I cannot participate in the trip to Iki.
I did not know ..going.. schedule ..Brendan.. trip to Iki. I was going to invite Brendan to fireworks.
However, I am OK. Please give priority to the previous appointment.
I'm wait for your mail.
Chie

Chie's letters were such a regular gift of comedy that I want to continue our correspondence even now I've returned. I liked especially being told that I was "several times" more charming than some other guy she used to fancy, and the frowns of disgust.

Tenjin

2007-08-12T18:54:00.000+09:00

Kanji #11

2007-08-12T11:38:00.000+09:00

In Japanese, a land-mine, is 地雷, the kanji for earth or ground, and the kanji for lightning: Ground-lightning.

The rest of the series is here: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Lindsay Hawker: Laziness of the Western Press Verges on Racism

2007-07-21T22:32:00.000+09:00

Excellent snippet from Richard Lloyd Parry, the Times' Asia Correspondent, in response to an excellent article in the Japan Times by David McNeill.

". . . To prove that underneath the stiff salaryman suit of everyman Japan lurks a slavering fantasist, several foreign journalists were dispatched to interview white hostesses in Roppongi, Tokyo's "social hub," as it was described in a British newspaper.

After explaining that Hawker had been "repeatedly beaten over several hours" in a flat owned by Tatsuya Ishihashi (sic), The Daily Mail said that many of the hostesses were also worried about "weird" Japanese men.

"While some British women described the attitude of the men they encounter here as strange, uncomfortable and unpredictable, others talked of the awe and mystique Western women hold for the Japanese male," the reporter wrote.

The "taller" and "more liberated" British women have to "constantly put up with unwanted male attention — such as the endemic groping on trains."

... Step through a minefield of racial cliches ... ask the obvious questions: Why visit a club district to investigate the life of a language teacher; why should a place designed to exploit and magnify sexual fantasies for money yield honest insights into racial relations; and what did the men think? We don't know because the reporter never bothered to interview a single Japanese person."

Butoh - apparently no nudity involved

2007-06-27T17:20:00.000+09:00

I've mentioned Butoh before when describing my good friend Oliver. Read his account and see the rest of the various pictures I've taken of his performances here.

In the dance above, three women and Ollie locked in a huge embrace and grinded around to a track by Muse. In the small theatre, with everyone sweating in the heat, it was a prevocative, almost amative, evocation of the erotic (By the time it had finished I felt like I'd just had sex). Cunningly, because there was quite a high risk of tumbling over, the participants were directed, if they were to trip, to then make it into a "falling down" dance.

Whaling: 'Theirs is a quiet slaughter'

2007-06-26T07:50:00.001+09:00

An excellent report by the Guardian's Justin McCurry here on a whale slaughter in the fishing village of Wadaura. Personally I have little problem with whaling, though I think McCurry does an excellent job here in this piece of balanced reporting. He follows the golden rule of just reporting what he sees and hears and letting the material do the work for him.

I like the audio-slideshow format too: not radio, not magazine, not TV - but somehow captures something good from each. The single voice on the radio is awesome; its intimacy is quite powerful. It is what makes programmes like Alistair Cooke's Letters from America and From Our Own Correspondent, startling contrasts from the radio's normal chatter and clamour, so enchanting. (Actually now - thanks to the Internet - one can hear the original master, Roosevelt, in his famous Depression-era fire-side chats).

The slide-show format builds on all this, but with the pictures something else special happens - the narrator can pause. In these pauses the images continue to tick on, drawing you in, but a space is allowed for your own thoughts to surface, and to consider what's just been said. This space is rarely allowed in the more traditional TV media, though I guess this is what the News 2.0 lot want to change, with newslogs like Nick Robinson's to the Guardian's Comment is Free's big-blogger contests.

Speaking of From Our Own Correspondent, Richard Black's piece is another excellent treatment of the whaling topic, especially as he notes other culture's culinary outrages. His account of the Extracto de Rana in the markets of Peru, particularly sticks in the memory: live frogs liquidised with honey, malt and herbs to produce a 'healthy' tonic drink. Nice.

Why I love my job # 10

2007-06-25T15:24:00.000+09:00

Spelling sentences

1. The cheese is walking
2. The desk was eating a sandwich
3. The shelf was soft.
4. The chips were eating chips.
5. The chair is flying away.
6. "I'm hot," cherry said.

WILMJ # 9 - Looking back on the year...

2007-06-23T16:43:00.000+09:00

Everyone enjoyed different things about last year ....

I especially like Reon's thoughts...

Climbing Tempaizan

2007-06-23T12:28:00.002+09:00

Why I Love my Job # 8

2007-06-14T11:53:00.000+09:00

Yesterday, I went to the sun. It was very hot. I went by rocket. There I saw a small alien. The alien ate the sun. The alien was very crazy. I hit aliens head.

A seven year old's story

Japanese at the pub

2007-05-24T10:14:00.001+09:00

Learning a language is great.

Yes it is very difficult. Indeed according to the CIA, for English native speakers, Japanese and Russian are the only two languages to have a Level 5 difficulty rating. And with its three alphabets, three levels of politeness, and 1000s of characters, it does seem impossible at times.

But on the other hand, there's so many opportunites to study. I watch trash TV, I'm studying. I read adverts on the train, I'm studying. I try and chat up the girl next to me on the train, or (more likely) get chatted up by a granny ("You have such a lovely small face!"): good and bad, it's all study.

Most pleasing of all however, is that I can study at the pub.

In fact, for learning Hakata-ben it's the best place. Hakata ben is the local dialect, and it is not taught in class, or found in text-books. Of course (typically) it's the way that people actually speak. (Don't ask why, if it is what most people speak, it is not taught in class. I did this once. "But then they would just speak like normal Japanese" was the answer. There was no answer to this.)

So if you want to leave the English-culture-exchange-let's-go-study-together-at-Starbuck's bubble and talk to real people (not just Japanese who want to learn English) then you've got to learn Hakata ben.

Which means going to the pub.

Excellent.

Speaking of which I think I'll just hop off for a bit of er... study.

Why I love my job # 7

2007-05-22T09:11:00.000+09:00

"I'm going to the moon."
Moon said "My room is dirty so don't come in!"
"Sorry I don't know your room is dirty. But living room is okay?"
"It's okay come and eat food"
"Thank you"
"Little bit wait please"
"Okay."
"For you my favourite boot."
"Oh thank you!"
"Thank you for eating dinner."
"You are well come."
"Then go back my room."
"See you soon."

Why I love my job # 6

2007-04-25T10:43:00.000+09:00

Why I love my job # 5

2007-04-24T16:41:00.000+09:00

Great ambition Daiki.

Town and Country

2007-04-24T11:39:00.000+09:00

Understanding town and country might seem a simple task. Indeed Japan has lots of country-side. The government, not wanting to rely on all it's food from their friendly neighbours, China and North Korea, gives huge subsidies to farmers to keep growing rice.

Indeed consider this rice-harvesting, country-side scene:

But all is not as simple as it seems.

I remember last year teaching first years the difference between town and country, because we were looking at the Town and Country Mouse story. I got into a lot of trouble.

Teacher: Country! Country! (lots of repetition and hand-movements).

Student 1: 何？（I will translate here into English) What?

Look! (Teacher points out the window) Tree! Grass! This is country.

Student 2: I think he wants us to go outside.

Student 3: No, he's going outside, he'll be back soon.

This is generally how the beauty of immersion education works. The teacher continues, as children discuss amongst themselves what their English teacher might be talking about - kind of like a group of humans observing with much confusion as to why the new pet dog is jumping around and barking.

Tree! Flower! This is a tree! This is a flower! The teacher continues. Look! Tenjin and Fukuoka is a town and city. But here it is just trees. Just flowers. No buildings. No houses.

Student 3: Maybe he lives in Tenjin.

Student 1: Is it lunch time yet?

Student 4: No, we've got Maths after this.

No walls or windows! Teacher is now jumping over tables to tap the wall, and hit the window so as to indicate the lack of buildings in the country. No walls or windows! Just flowers and trees!

Student 2: He's clearly nuts.

Student 3: Yeah can't even speak properly.

Student 5: Maybe we should teach him Japanese, then he'd get on fine.

Some time passes in this fashion...

Student 1: I think he's saying Fukoka is "city".

Student 2: Must be how you pronounce it in English.

At this point they start to contest the pronounciation of "Fukuoka". I say City! They echo back, "No - in Japanese: Fu-ku-o-ka".

This is a city! Buildings!

Students: Fuku-oka!

Finally something starts to click...

Student 1: Ahh, he's talking about the place where there's just plants and flowers.

Student 2: The park?

Student 1: Must be it.

Student 4: No it's about places far from Tenjin.

Student 3: Oh the shopping centre! Diamond City!

It was only after a while living here in Japan that I started to understand the root of the misunderstanding better.

The thing is, Japan seems to work differently when it comes to town and country.

You see Japan is basically either flat or it's mountains. Where it's mountains, Japan is forest. Where it's flat it's buildings or rice-paddies.

The forest is real forest as well. We're not talking about strolling through autumn leaves under the shade of gentle oak trees. We're talking about thicket. Bush. This is the kind of stuff you have to hack through - full of bamboo, untrekable ground and lots of big spiders.

Thus people tend not to go into the mountains - I mean not even hiking, let alone building their homes there.

And so Japan has (statistics vary) between 62% and 73% forest cover.

"But I thought Japan was crowded" I hear you say. Well yes it is, but it's all stuffed in around Tokyo and Osaka. The rest is mountains and thus forest.

So although Japan is actually very big (just under three times the size of England) - it is (with all those trees) really quite cramped.

Thus wherever it is flat they build houses. Lots of houses. Wherever they can. Even in the middle of the "country".

Which is how you get scenes like this:

Japanese politics

2007-04-20T08:00:00.000+09:00

Canvassing for votes, Japanese style:

2007-04-17T22:15:00.000+09:00

Daizenji Fire Festival

Seasons changing

2007-03-27T11:10:00.000+09:00

I am Kosuke # 3

2007-02-16T12:01:00.000+09:00

1000 Japanese Kanji

2007-02-08T16:00:00.000+09:00

Finally there - 1000 Kanji down.

王音下火花学気九休金空月犬見五口校左三山子四糸字耳七車手十出女小上森人水正生青夕石赤千川先早足村大男中虫町天田土二日入年白八百文木本名目立力林六引雲遠何科夏家歌画回会海絵貝外間顔汽記帰牛魚京強教玉近形計元原戸古午後語工広交光考行高黄合谷国黒今才作算止市思紙寺自時室社弱首秋春書少場色食心新親図数西声星晴切雪船前組走草多太体台地池知竹茶昼長鳥朝通弟店点電刀冬当東答頭同道読南馬売買麦半番父風分聞米歩母方北毎妹明鳴毛門夜野友用曜来楽里理話悪安暗医意育員院飲運泳駅園横屋温化荷界開階角活寒感館岸岩起期客究急級宮球去橋業曲局銀苦具君兄係軽血決研県言庫湖公向幸港号根祭細仕死使始指歯詩次事持式実写者主守取酒受州拾終習週集住重所暑助昭消商章勝乗植申身神深進世整線全送息族他打対待代第題炭短着注柱丁帳調直追定庭鉄転都度投島湯登等動童内肉農波配畑発反坂板皮悲美鼻氷表秒病品負部服福物平返勉放万味命面問役薬由油有遊予洋葉陽様落流旅両緑礼列路和愛案以衣位囲委胃印英栄塩央億加貨課芽改械害各覚完官漢管関観願希季紀喜旗器機議求救給挙漁共協鏡競極区軍郡型景芸欠結建健験固功候航康告差菜最材昨刷殺察参産散残士氏史司姉試辞失借種周宿順初唱焼照賞臣信真成省清勢静席積折節説浅戦選然争相倉想象速側続卒孫帯隊達単談治置貯腸低底停的典伝徒努灯堂働毒熱念敗倍博飯飛費必筆票標不夫付府副粉兵別辺変便包法望牧末満脈民約勇要養浴利陸良料量輪類令冷例歴連練老労録圧移因永営衛易益液演応往恩仮価果河過賀快解格確額刊幹慣歓眼基寄規技義逆久旧居許境興均禁句訓群経潔件券険検絹限現減故個護効厚耕鉱構講混査再災妻採際在財罪雑蚕酸賛支志師資示似児識質舎謝授収修衆祝述術準序除招承称証条状常情織職制性政精製税責績接設舌絶銭善祖素総造像増則測属損退貸態団断築張提程適敵統銅導特得徳独任燃能破犯判版比肥非備俵評貧布婦富武復複仏編弁保墓報豊防貿暴未務無迷綿輸余預容率略留領異遺域壱宇羽映延沿可我灰街拡革閣割株干巻看勧簡丸危机揮貴疑弓吸泣供胸郷勤筋系径敬警劇穴兼権憲源厳己呼誤后好孝皇紅降鋼刻穀骨困砂座済裁策冊至私姿視詞誌磁射捨尺釈若需樹宗就従縦縮熟純処署諸将笑傷障城蒸針仁垂推寸是聖誠宣専泉洗染奏窓創層操蔵臓俗存尊宅担探段暖値仲宙忠著庁兆頂潮賃痛展討党糖届難弐乳認納脳派拝背肺俳班晩否批秘腹奮陛閉片補宝訪亡忘棒枚幕密盟模矢訳郵優幼羊欲翌乱卵覧裏律臨朗論亜哀握扱依威為尉偉違維慰緯逸芋姻陰隠韻詠影鋭疫悦

Just another 1000 to go...

Apologies for those who just see squares - I'm working on it.

Relaxing in Dazaifu

2007-02-08T15:48:00.000+09:00

Vending Machines # 2

2007-02-08T15:44:00.000+09:00

Mentioned vending machines before - well here's one still selling alcohol!

Opportunities abroad

2007-02-07T17:38:00.000+09:00

Follow Simon's instructions....

"1. Click here
2. ...then click on the TV screen (the one which says TV CM), and another, smaller internet page will come up.
3. When it does, click on the third box down on the right hand side. The commercial should then play (although it will probably take about 1 minute to load)......"

... playing the role of foreign nerd to perfection.

I am Kosuke #2

2007-02-04T17:15:00.000+09:00

"Ramen is constant... unlike friendship"

Mame-maki Festival

2007-02-02T15:41:00.000+09:00

Continuing the festival theme. In this one small children throw peanuts at adults dressed up as devils. Do they know why? er... maybe. Just an excuse to have fun really -

Snow in Kyushu

2007-02-02T15:14:00.000+09:00

a little feathering in the morning...

a blanket by lunch...

and all over by home-time.

I am Kosuke

2007-02-02T08:13:00.000+09:00

Do not worry about Ramen shop.

There are many Ramen places in Tenjin.

Ramen is always with us.

by I am Kosuke

Comments

2007-01-28T11:28:00.000+09:00

To all those people who have been posting comments, and wondering why they haven't been displayed, sorry! It seems I missed (for several months) the button which would allow them to be displayed. Should be a problem no longer :-)

As for Kanji display problems that some have mentioned, to get my computer to display Kanji I had to install Kanji fonts. The data was already on the computer but I had to un-compress them from Control Panel. I'll have a hunt around and put up some instructions here soon.

Kanji # 10

2007-01-28T10:52:00.000+09:00

A traitor is a 裏切り者, or a behind - cut - person.

In other words, a traitor is someone who stabs you in the back.

Sally R.I.P. (again)

2007-01-24T22:48:00.000+09:00

Just an update to the last post - the children from 1A dug up Sally today at lunchtime today to "have a look". They reported that she was fine, but she had started to smell a bit.

Rest In Peace Sally Race-Car

2007-01-18T14:03:00.000+09:00

Today our class hamster, Sally Race-Car, died.

Sojiro wanted to know why: was he hungry? Were we too loud? Tatsuaki was the first to cry. Then Taiga, a usually boasting, rather arrogant, class tough-guy, spent all lunch time in doors crying on the mat. Mai cried also, half because she was sad, half because she wanted the attention. This set off Cynthia and Yuki Goto. Norika wrote a letter, wouldn't let anyone read it, and stuck it on the "Rememberance Card". On the same card, Aoi said she was looking forward to having fun in heaven with Sally when she got there, others just wrote their name. Shion either didn't care or didn't understand, and tore around as normal. Koki was glad we were taking all this time off normal lessons. Ms Nagamatsu told the children the Hamster was in heaven and then I explained the idea of the circle of life.

We put him in a box and buried him in the old sunflower patch. We told the children how bad it was to try and unearth her little box of a coffin. The kids took it in turns to put in soil a handful of soil, and then goofed around on the grass, while I piled in the rest of the earth. Wakana made a cross out of two sticks.

We buy a new hamster next week.

Daizenji Fire festival (PG)

2007-01-08T17:01:00.000+09:00

This blog is rated parental guidance: images are included that may be shocking to some viewers.

Men are cold...

... so they get fire...

...big fire...

This festival has a history of 1,900 years. The idea is simple: get drunk and burn stuff.

Great picture Heather (click to enlarge). Can you see the man sitting on top of one of the cannons?

They light huge cylindrical bundles of pine-wood and then they carry them around. Its great.

Dave and Oliver are participating.

Guess who?

Thus the PG rating. Bums, bums, everywhere bums.

I just love the way Japan do festivals and tradition. I mean they're just cool! Look: fire, drink, shouting, naked bums. Compare this to ... oh I don't know - Carol Singing, a kind of English winter tradition. Now while I like carol singing, and all, if it was done naked whilst carrying huge burning bundles of pine, with buckets of mulled-wine (rather than the odd glass) it would be a lot more exciting (well maybe not naked). This is why England has football riots and sports-team curries full of carnage, we have no other space for going crazy and acting like pagans.

Read Ollie's account here.

When to return?

2007-01-08T16:48:00.000+09:00

An interesting thought .. scribbled on a Tokyo toilet wall.

Day 9 - Random 2

2007-01-07T16:22:00.000+09:00

These signs seem to be quite clear. Don't leave your bike here. In fact one might even think this was an excess of signage.

Ah.... someone misunderstood. A few more signs perhaps?

Day 9 - Random 1

2007-01-04T16:10:00.000+09:00

What kind of company is this? Not sure I want to know

Day 8 - Last night in Tokyo

2007-01-02T22:43:00.000+09:00

Unexpected (at least as far as we were concerned) New Year bank closures, left Ollie and I with 10,000 yen on which to survive for two days. Not a lot in Japan.

So running scared from the countryside, we city-boys return to the comforting lights of Tokyo. But it's a budget night out; later we go to an Internet Cafe, and so as to make our stay more affordable, set our alarm clocks for 5.00am. But till then it's good times: we sit on the river bank, drink in the neon, and sipping whiskey and watching the trains commute past, converse the hours away. Perfect.

Day 7 - New Years Day

2007-01-01T21:28:00.000+09:00

New Year's tradition.

Day 6 - New Year's Eve (Poor Ollie)

2006-12-31T22:59:00.000+09:00

As the night drew in, we wrapped up and headed out into the night.

Prayers were being said in the Temple, but unsure of what was going on we wandered away and towards a low-set hut, the windows of which were glowing in the night. Inside it was like a big Viking beer hall, full of men shouting and drinking big bowlfuls of hot sake. There were huge bonfires heating huge iron cauldrons full of steaming alcohol that were hanging from the rafters. A man would come periodically and fill up a bucket from the cauldron and then ladel it out to the other men.

Just as we entered some kind of ritual was starting. Eight men sat in pairs around a bonfire, and were taking it in turns to stand up and with their partner, walk and stand in front of another pair. Then they would shout at each other, drink and then return to their place. The same thing would then happen but with another pair. And then again, and again, everyone getting drunker and drunker.

We got chatting to one of the onlookers, and it seems (as best we could understand) that the men were from different parts of the local area, chosen for their drinking ability. What we were watching was a basically a drinking contest - made up of a series of greetings. Upon greeting their neighbours, the two pairs would - as politeness dictates - drink together. Which ever pair lasted the longest in this ritual would bring pride and honour to his area. The Japanese: even their drinking-contests are battles of politeness.

And a battle of politeness it was. Pair after pair would stand up, walk around the huge fire to stand in front of another pair, there upon - using the most polite grammar and words one can use in Japanese - they would shout aggressively at their opponents, staring at them with alcohol-crazed eyes, the flames of the fire lighting their anger-strewn faces, and they would ask (some-thing along the lines of) :

"If it's not completely disagreeable, in the name of the time-old friendship between our towns, why don't we share a spot of sake together?"

Eventually after this continuing for thirty minutes or so, a huge roar went up from the crowd. One of the pairs had apparently been unable to fulfil the obligations of friendship, and had submitted. Others followed until the winning pair were left triumphant.

Our guide to the proceedings had invited us to sit down, warm by the fire and partake in the merry-making. as best we could, and in the name of international-friendship and cultural exchange, we drank bowl after bowl of steaming sake. Various other things were going on in the hut. We saw the Shaman type fellow (definitely with a face that looked like he'd been in the cold for the last hundred days), and some others we recognised from the day before. We drank and talked, drank and talked. We discussed such topical issues such as how many English football players we could name, then Japanese food, Japanese chopsticks, Japanese women, and then Japanese wives. Before we knew it we'd been invited to join in the festival!

We were told to unrobe and given a kind of waist-coat to wear. Then holding huge burning torches we proceeded outside to the main festival-site and lit huge bonfires. Full of hot sake I didn't feel the cold at all. Then someone shouted something and before we knew it we were stampeding back to the hut. Apparently this was a kind of warm-up to the main event later on.

We returned to the sitting-drinking pattern, and we'd just started singing Beatles songs together, when I noticed Ollie was nowhere to be seen. Bag, coat, everything where he left it, but the man himself absent. Must be in the toilet I thought, and returned to singing Imagine and Baby you can drive my car.

However as time passed, I went to check the toilet. Not there. I walked around the hut, looking for my friend. Nowhere! But then the doors opened and the men poured out again, and joining them, I made my way again to the festival-site where by now, huge bonfires roared into the sky.

It's hard to explain what happened next. Each village (including the one into which I had been adopted) had a huge rope which we lifted onto our shoulders. Then we waited for ages, half-naked, while men went around ladelling out more sake into waiting mouths. Suddenly a shout went out, and everyone started pulling the big rope as hard as they could. We dragged it down to the end of the field and then back to the hut. I'm sure it signified or meant something, but I sure don't know what it was.

Back in the hut I continued drinking and talking as the hours wound by, eventually having been invited to at least one wedding, and been instructed to return next year, I said my goodbyes and stumbled back to my room...

...which is where I found Ollie.

Ahh bless.

Though wait for the blog on the Daizenji Fire Festival, aka The Redemption

Day 6 - Walking in the snow

2006-12-31T10:29:00.000+09:00

Picking apart Japanese spirituality is an on-going fascination of mine. It's very hard to do. For starters, the Japanese word for God is notoriously hard to translate. The nearest word is Kami, but it can mean many different things. Some Kami are personified beings, similar to Greek or Roman characters; some are similar to our idea of dead people or "souls"; and sometimes Kami are also thought to be present in nature. (Note above the decorated rope tied around the huge tree that marks its holiness). The hurricanes and torrential storms that defended the Japan against numerous invasions from Korea, were seen as kami-inspired. It was a divine wind, or kami-kaze that dashed the ships. It's not surprising the Japanese revived the word in World War II.

Kami are very different to the tradition of West. A Kami is not some mix of Judge Dredd and Santa Claus: a good guy who will give you stuff if you believe, and deal out some hard-lined justice if you don't. (Even real Christians can be in danger of holding this mindset.)

The Kami thought to be present in these beautiful woods are unpersonified, and exist regardless of human life - there is, in other words, no sense that they need or want prayer, relationships or people to believe in them. When ancient people saw these places, they were awe-struck and filled with wonder. The shrines and Torii that are built here were a response to that. When Japanese people come here to pray, it is in this sense of that they do so.

I remember the first time I went to see little Yuki from my host-family practice baseball. It's a family affair as dads help with the practice and the mums make rice-balls and snacks for break-time. At sunset the coach called time, and the boys all packed up and raked the pitch. After that they lined up, and in unison thanked firstly their coach and then their parents for their help. This thing is quite common, and is how most Japanese school lessons end: a big chorus of Arigato Gozaimasu! However, after that they turned around so they had our backs to us, and bowing to no-one as far as I could see, hollered out another call of thanks. "Who are they thanking?" I asked my host-family father. "They're thanking the ground" he replied.

Soon after this holiday I went to a fire-festival in Daizenji (blog will be posted shortly) and because of the huge crowds, some children had climbed up onto one of the Shrine's statues, so as to see. After the crowd had thinned out, the father called for them to go, and the kids jumped off, turned around and bowed to the statue that had just been their seat for the night.

Respect is part of Japan, bound up in its religion, its language and its identity, to the extent it extends to things other than people. Although there are many Japanese who aren't respectful, and although Japanese do not always respect their environment (the way much is covered in concrete comes to mind); respect is a Japanese cultural instinct, and an admirable one at that.

Day 5 - Turning in for the night

2006-12-30T23:59:00.000+09:00

As night falls we find the monastry where we'll be lodging.

We arrive, are met by a Sister of the Monastry, deposit our shoes and are led down a long corridor of stairs, the wood freezing under-foot.

A beautiful tatami room awaits.

We enter into the spirit of things.

Day 5 - Wandering the snows

2006-12-30T22:46:00.000+09:00

We arrive and start to explore the grounds...

Please note the hut - it will become significant later...

We find a series of little statues of people, which represent ... something. I don't know what. But anyway they've been wrapped up for the winter.

Some even in the latest fashion. Note the Adidas man.

Suddenly through the snowy-heavy air, we hear a horn sounding. Coming up out the woods is a procession of figures...

They came, they did something, they went back to the snow.

Day 5 - Heading North on the train

2006-12-30T16:30:00.000+09:00

Back on the train and head north...

The contents of the in-train catalogue seem to suggest my trainers and jean-jacket may not be sufficient protection for the weather that awaits. A full face mask? I have a scarf...

First crashing sea as the train-line hugs the cost, and then: the land of snow...

No seats...

Staying in Tokyo

2006-12-30T01:24:00.001+09:00

I haven't been staying in hotels, hostels or even traditional ryo-kan.

I've been staying in internet cafes. I've already described how different these are to the European ones I've been in - here you can even have a shower in the morning! Granted you might have to put up with a bit of snoring, and they are windowless caves full of computer-game nerds, but consider: for 2,000 yen (about 10 of your English pounds) you can stay in the heart of wherever you end up at bed-time. Tonight for example we went drinking in a series of fascinating little bars in Shinjyuku. We came out, decided we were going to head home, I spotted somewhere and in 2 mins I was at my bed for the night.

My main bag is in a locker at Tokyo station, to which I return to resupply my day-bag. Every now and again I indulge at an Ofuro or Onsen for a nice leisurely soak.

I have to admit that this choice of accomodation-style was probably more due to my lack of organization than anything else. However, it did seem a kind of appropriate response for such 24-hour buzzing anonymous city such as Tokyo.

I also stayed in a capsule hotel.

First you exchange all your belongings for a flannel and pair of slippers...

Then you kind of post yourself away for the night.

Of course internet cafes and capsule hotels - for all their charm - don't compare to the place I stayed when I was last in Tokyo.

The Keio Hotel. Thank you Mr Tsuzuki. (Steak for breakfast!)

Michael Longley

2006-12-29T18:41:00.000+09:00

The Weather in Japan

Makes bead curtains of the rain
Of the mist a paper screen.

Michael Longley, in "The Weather in Japan", poem and title of his 2001 prize-winner.

Day 3 - Random # 3

2006-12-29T08:00:00.000+09:00

Day 3 - Random # 2

2006-12-29T00:59:00.000+09:00

The lights. So pretty...

Day 3 - Random # 1

2006-12-29T00:06:00.000+09:00

Up the Metropolitan Tokyo Tower...

Imagine if your town-council decided what they really needed was the tallest skyscraper in the city from which to conduct their important work.

A terrible, awesome sight.

A land flooded with construction. Buildings poured out like water, stopping only at the mountains' edge.

In fact this picture illustrates it well. Japan is either flat or mountains. When it's mountains, they leave it generally wild, but when it's flat they build, and build, and build...

Day 2 - Host Bars

2006-12-28T23:58:00.000+09:00

Mentioned these before, as the equivalent to hostess bars for women. Men decked in enourmous hair-dos prowl the streets trying to pick up women who are out with their friends. They then take them back to their host-bar where the girls spend over £30 per drink.

The hair-dos can make the establishments look like hair-salons, and I wouldn't be surprised if more than one had been walked into by some non-Kanji reading tourist, looking for a perm.

This is "Top Dandy" Masato, on a huge billboard about a club. It seems that he has also written a poem about his job.

Hurried city
Season that passes at quick pace

I am waiting for you
It keeps waiting without dividing in
this conduct oneself indefinitely...

Day 3 - Drinking in Shinjuku

2006-12-28T12:59:00.001+09:00

We hunt through the back streets of Shinjuku, searching for a little French-film themed bar we'd heard about.

Englishmen in Tokyo speaking French whilst listening to German opera.

Francis Ford Coppola likes to pop in every now and again

(He's a famous film director Mum)

Day 2 - Random # 3

2006-12-28T12:59:00.000+09:00

tee-hee

Day 2 - Random # 2

2006-12-28T00:48:00.000+09:00

Is it just me or is this getting away from the true spirit of fishing... ?

Day 2 - Random # 1

2006-12-28T00:08:00.000+09:00

What's up with these trees?

Day 1 Trip North

2006-12-27T00:58:00.000+09:00

Having packed the night before, I awake to bright sunshine and after drinking a nice cup of tea, turning off my loo-seat heater, I head briskly out the door and into the morning. Use my JR pass for the first time, arrive in Hakata where the Shinkansen awaits me. Ticket bought, waiting in line-

Shit.

I forgot my wallet.

...

Get my wallet. A VERY nice affair sent by post as a Christmas pressie from Aunty Greta. ARIGATO GOZAIMAS!

This time board the Shinkansen no trouble. Slinky Shink. Is it possible to be sexually attracted to a mode of public transport?

Arrive late (er) in Tokyo! Capital city! Meet Oliver and French girl, whose name sounds like Lawrence of Arabia, but I'm too embarassed to keep getting her to repeat it.

Tokyo is rain. Pouring, pouring, pouring rain. Tops of sky-scrapers are obscured in misty drench.

Anyway hole up in a Ropongi Jazz bar and are crooned at by a geriatric Peggy Lee.

Emerge into the Tokyo night, which is still being bucketed with water... I forgot to mention I also didn't book any accommodation. The original idea was about freedom, and being led at the spur of the moment, and liking the idea of a capsule hotel that Japanese business men flock too having missed the last train. Anyway, now that the sky is being ripped by lightning, and hotels (capsular or not) seem far and few between, this approach to travel has lost some of its lustre.

Finally having purchased extra rain-protective gear at a local combini I find a Japanese style internet cafe in Shinjuku. Now quite wet and despondent, its neon sign glows with the hope of a christmas tree, home fires and the star over Bethlehem all rolled into one. I hurry in, collect slippers and blanket, choose the full-flato option, and burrow into my cyber hole for the night.

Christmas at Nami's

2006-12-24T00:56:00.000+09:00

Christmas is Christmas but slightly different.

This is to be expected because the traditional design of Japanese houses doesn't make things easy. There's no chimney for Santa to come down, no beds to hang a stocking on, let alone mince pies and sherry to snack on.

Everything has been slightly re-arranged. So Christmas Day is actually Christmas Eve, and the 25th a normal working day. In fact Christmas Eve is more famous, but then as a kind of early Valentine's Day. Forget being at home with the family, or enjoying a pint in the pub with friends, this is worse than being without a date to the prom. (That is, as I understand proms from watching Hollywood - I went to an all-boys high-school.)

Westerners haven't always helped in correcting mistaken impressions. Thanks to a fantastically audacious 1980s advertising campaign by KFC, "Christmas Chicken", rather than turkey, is the dish of choice through-out the land.

Strawberries are a choice delicacy at Christmas. So at Nami's we all ate a lovely Strawberry Christmas cake, preceded by a sashimi (raw fish) starter, and steak main-course.

...

Beautiful Wakamatsu. Nami and family showed me around...

That's the bridge. It's significant. It crosses one bank of factories and smog-machines with another. Its red. Nami and family did their best to "show me the sights", but like actors with a bad script the material was just lacking.

Cultural exchange: I struggle to eat squid, while Sami struggles to eat Santa.

Scary Dad... and not so scary dog.

Perhaps the most unnerving moment was when Dad asked:
"My daughters are beautiful aren't they?"

er... yes?? I mean, no not that I have any such intentions, er... but yes they are beautiful...

I also had some interesting conversations with the granny. She explained the significance behind all her belongings. Did I understand? No. Did she mind? No.

Katakana # 2

2006-12-23T19:25:00.000+09:00

Another great Katakana word:

A beeper (the electronic device which in movies the evil-work-all-the-time dad has) ...

is a ポケベル (pokeberu) or "pocket-bell".

Oliver and New Year plans....

2006-12-23T01:18:00.000+09:00

So we're off to Yamagata. Oliver's persuaded me. Oliver is my partner in new-year travelling. He is an English grad from St Anne's and every inch of it. He wears ties in causual settings. He wears t-shirts with blazers. When he was young "actors and dancers were in and out of my house every day" He sticks up for Morris Dancing (most of it is shit, but I'm telling you there's powerful stuff out there, that would make people shut up) Actually I remember one of our first conversations...

"Have you heard of Butoh?" Ollie asks.
"No, what's that?" I reply.
"It's a Japanese dance."
"Odori?" The normal word for dance. Then, after consulting electronic dictionary, "Hanemawaru"? Some Japanese girls who are also with us, admittedly of the rather brain-dead variety, have not heard of it either. "What's it like then?" I ask.
"Well ... it's very avant-garde."
[?]
"Very dark. Very powerful. I don' t know very much about it, but it was very avant garde in the 60s."
"Is there music?" beginning my search for concrete adjectives, "is is happy? Is it sad? Are there words? What happens? ..."
Ollie looks at me as if to say you don't quite get it.
"Maybe it's like Kabuki or No?" I ask, both well known famous traditional Japanese theatrical pieces, both of which I've mangaged to avoid since coming here.
"Often it's performed without clothes," Ollie concedes - which to me is a crucial piece of information. This is where I would have started in my description. If you saw a group of people dancing naked, I'd say most people would make note of this fact first. "Fuck! They're naked!", something like that. In fact, one'd probably notice the fact they were naked, before noticing (if at all) that they were dancing.
"Oh! So it's naked dancing."
I can see from the expression on Ollie's face that I'm getting excited about the wrong aspect of this particular art-form.
"It's not about them being naked. ... It's very elemental, and wild. And very dramatic."
"And they're naked? They are sans-clothes-?" I thought this dash of French suitably metropolitan.
Ollie groans. "The lack of clothes is ...."
"It's about getting to see some tits?"
I could have continued in this vein. Like one of the quick-to-josh plumbers or hair-dressers I live in fear of engaging in conversation with: Oh naked dancing! I know that kind of dance, me ol' mate. Down the club. As long as they have a nice pair, and I ain't talking about her shoes either, heh-heh-heh - and so on, and so on, in class stereo-typing fashion.

I should confess that, after watching a few videos I was pretty shocked/moved/impressed (in that it made an impression on me) so anyway if you want to get a eye-full, check it out here.

Having conceded all that. It is weird. Here are some lines of poetry from the Su-en Butoh dance company.

self-cannibalism and beauty at the same time
where the biting into the flesh
is an act of love
an act of life

So that's Ollie. Or it's not. You can't take a friend and categorize them, like in Guess Who. Ollie is not a type, anything but. However, as most of you don't know him, you need something to go on. And there it is. If you know that Oliver is an arty type who gets naked on weekends with Japanese people to dance in a very avant-garde way, you have a starting point.

Anyway I'm quite sure Ollie would not mind the adjective "weird", though he might opt for interesting. With Ollie, a lot of things seem to come down to "interesting". And indeed our New Year Plan's are definitely that (we hope).

We're off to Yamagata. It's northern, bleak, and full of snow. There one can find a mountain so special and unique that anyone who goes there is sworn to secrecy about what they've seen there.

I reckon that's a pretty good ploy for somewhere cold, bleak and full of snow. They should try that with various English Crap Towns (not that we have snow - snow's interesting in England). Somewhere bleak like Wolverhampton, or Milton Keynes. Imagine that... Following the trail of the M25 towards the roof of the world, I reached a small town consisting of nothing but roundabouts and out of town shopping centres. Making my way through the dark B&Q car-park I reached the central and final roundabout. In the centre I found - no you have to go there and see for yourself. £50 day trip from Kings Cross.

Anyway around there, or somewhere near there is also the site of New Year festival that happens - well, every year. Apparently ascetic monks braving the snows make a 30 day pilgrimage from mountain to mountain arriving on New Years Day (at presumably another mountain) to drink hot sake, dance like ravens (and with fire involved somehow) and argue about whose village is better until dawn.

After that who knows? Ollie wanted us to go to some island as well. Its meant to be really bleak and reflective of the Japanese esthetic of wilderness. Apparently a percussion band used it as a retreat, drummed for 10 years together, reached cosmic levels of excellence and emerged back into the world, only to become instantly recognised as genius and became world famous. Like most cultural things Ollie mentions I've never heard of them. Anyway, I managed to convince him that staying somewhere really bleak, cold and which makes people want to hit things - might not be the best use of a two week trip.

My instincts are more basic. Warm, dry, bed, steak, beer...- things that are Interesting, like someone famous once wrote, ate, topped himself here, follow after these other things. My hierarchy of need is very hierarchical, if you will. I don't care that this is where Genji lost his tail, or that these monks walk five miles every day on their knees, if I can't eat something tasty and go to bed somewhere warm at the end of it. However, I know that this homeboy needs moving out of his comfort zone sometimes, and so maybe that's why I've headed off to this bizarre destination with Ollie. I'm a limpit and he's the Dawn-Treder; or, I'm Dr Watson, and he's Sherlock Holmes; but then both of those make me kind of lame. I was reaching for something cooler - maybe Sam and Frodo. Who knows? Anyway, off I go.

Beautiful Kyushyu skies

2006-12-23T01:16:00.000+09:00

Burning leaves in late Autumn

Last day at school

2006-12-22T17:03:00.000+09:00

Ms Nagamatsu explains using a megaphone (?) that today they are going to learn about the true meaning of Christmas ....

That's right! Santa Claus. We celebrate his birthday by giving presents...

Here the children learn about how to give to others in the spirit of Christmas....

Is that Chip... ?

Don't worry children although Santa's going he will be resurrected in three days...

Why I love my job # 4 ... ?

2006-12-20T13:21:00.000+09:00

For those inclined to underestimate the rigours of supervising six and seven year olds, to those who might feel I've chosen an easy route, that I've opted for some time-out after the stress of Oxford and so on; I offer the following statistics for the last term.

- Worked 10 hours a day, 50 hours a week, straight.
- Contracted tonsilitus 5 times (no joke); and more colds than I can count.
- "Ryoga please don't draw on the floor", said at least 3 times a day.
- Had to sing/perform the actions to the Lizard song 54 times.
- "No you can to the toilet at break-time", said 825 times.
- "Cynthia get changed! Get changed and then play", said 11,390 times.
- Worked, or been asked to work, 99.9999% of weekends.
- Had 5 sets of trousers, 4 shirts and 2 jumpers ruined by children walking around the art room, carrying their wet paint brushes before them like the blind with canes. Except in this case they're horrible litter children lancing my clothes with wet paint.
- Found in hair, had stuck on hands, cleaned off the floor and inhaled 63.9 billions particles of acrylic glitter.
- Accidently stapled by own stomach with a staple gun.

Although I have to admit the last item was the result of my own acute stupidity and could, therefore, have happened in a variety of different jobs.

Of course something must be right if I'm staying for another year :-)

Kanji # 9

2006-12-20T00:13:00.000+09:00

If ever a pair of Kanji looked exactly like what they represented, it is these two:

凸凹

Separately they mean "convex" and "concave"; together they mean "bumpy".

Cultural Sensitivity

2006-12-19T17:01:00.000+09:00

So Santa Claus on a Cross to represent Christmas... Well yes, it's probably an urban myth, but it is true that Japan often displays a remarkable lack of sensitivity and maturity towards other cultures. They are often, in other words, not very politically correct.

Take for example, this little treasure in a stationary store:

Forget for a minute poor attention to forming the plural, and just digest this: three little kawaii (cutey-cutey) Indians - not Native Americans - who, in an effort to communicate the deep and rich variety of their culture, in a dignified and graceful way are saying: "War whoop!!" "War whoop!!"

Although I have to admit I do like the meter of the verse:

One little, two little, three little Indian.
Three little Indian boy.

A great item for any collector.

Kanji # 8

2006-12-17T10:58:00.000+09:00

Try this website if you've can't read 漢字

Christmas # 1

2006-12-16T19:42:00.000+09:00

Japan has a knack for taking parts from other cultures and traditions and morphing them into something odd, strange and "uniquely Japanese".

Apparently one year, a large department store, in a incredible feat of iconographical confusion put up a display of Santa Claus being crucified.

Santa Claus being crucified.

Read the story behind this picture here

山への旅行

2006-12-14T16:33:00.000+09:00

先週の土曜日から日曜日まで国立少年自然の家にグローバルウィング集団と遊びに行きました。

まずＥｔｓｕｋｏとＫｏｓｕｋｅと西鉄ストアでビスケットやビールなどの買い物をしておきました。

選ぶのがむずかしいですね。

場所はどこかなぁ...

自然は本当にきれいでした。

女性も本当にきれいでした。

　

面白い踊りを踊ってくれました。

バスケをしました。実は中学校の女の子のチームにまけた。その試合の写真は取りわすれました。

We actually played a game against a middle-school girls basketball team. But I didn't take a photo as I was too busy being thrashed!

Ｂｏｂーｓｌｅｉｇｈのコースを見たらびっくりしました！超楽しかったです。

Ｋｏｓｕｋｅは頭が痛そうだから飲みすぎたのかなぁ...

Ｇｏｏｄ　ｆｒｉｅｎｄｓ，　ｇｏｏｄ　ｔｉｍｅｓ．

　　

よく楽しんだからみんな疲れました。

みなさん、私を誘ってくださってありがとうございました！

日本語が上手じゃなくてごめんなさい。日本語の間違いを見つけたら、Ｃｏｍｍｅｎｔで教えてくれたら嬉しいですね。

他の写真も見たいから良かったら、メルで送ってくれる？

I wonder what my present is...

2006-12-13T19:57:00.000+09:00

I've just got a lovely package from my Mum and Dad. It's a Christmas present and I'm very excited because there's a nice "Don't open until Christmas" sticker on the front. I have to remain in suspense until the day itself!

Unfortunately the effect is slightly spoiled by the obligatory customs declaration: "shirt, value: £48".

Oh well, I'm still exicted :-)

Smoking Manners # 4

2006-12-13T12:37:00.000+09:00

I just love these posters so much.

They are such a mix of contraditions and contrast.

On the one hand they're very practical - they are a government-funded campaign to make smokers think about the effects of their habit on others. Thus they should be straight-forward and direct. Indeed, the style of illustration is direct; the arrows, stick-figures and the labels in capital letters puts one in mind immediately of an instruction-manual. The thinking behind each point is also straight forward enough. In this example: although it seems cool to flick cigarrette onto the floor with a movie-star flourish, in fact it is simple littering.

However while the idea is simple, its expression is bizarre. Part of the reason for this, is that the English is a transliteration not a translation - the words have been simply changed to accurate and grammatically correct English, as opposed to thinking what would a native English speaker say in such a situation. In this way they fit with a very Japanese tradition of writing obscure English on posters and t-shirts. (See Engrish.com for more examples than you could ever want)

And yet it is more than that. Choosing to make the point with reference to "Old Movie" is odd. A simple poster could easily make the point: littering - especially frowned upon in Japan - is littering, whether it's a half-eaten burger, or a cigarette; without the distraction of bringing in Cowboys and all the accompanying Western paraphenallia (cactus, saddled horse), all precisely labeled - whether a label is necessary or appropriate or not: "hero", "villian", "a long time ago".

The result is confusion - one begins wondering how these posters were ever thought up. Should you just laugh at these amateur scribblings, or are they in fact cleverer than one might at first think: a mix of amusement and bemusement if you will. To me, this almost zen-sensation, the result of a surreal clash between eccentricity and the prosaic is what makes them so engaging.

Kanji # 7

2006-12-12T21:16:00.000+09:00

Dai-jyo-bu is the Japanese for "okay". (Apart from "okay" which Japanese people also use.)

Its Kanji are 大丈夫.

大 = big
丈 = stout
夫 = husband

How are you?

I'm okay. I mean I've got a big, stout husband - of course I'm okay.