Jessica Goes to Hokkaido!

I'm going to preface this entry by saying that I couldn't possibly begin to capture the essence of this trip through a blog entry or pictures. That would involve posting several one-liners and links to youtube clips that would only be mildly funny to you, the reader, and probably lead you to think that we went crazy being stuck together for so long. Quite the contrary.

The destination? Sapporo, Hokkaido. The crew? Ben, Michael, Kate, Whitney, Ikumi, Joel, and me. The itinerary? The Sapporo Snow Festival (and ridiculous shenanigans, of course). A trip made for success.

Our entire adventure began Thursday evening (February 10th, to put it into perspective). My dear friend, KEITO CHAN, was arriving from Chiba to join us! Already in the car were Ben (driver), Joel, and me. After swooping her up from the train station, we were off to the grocery store to buy dinner. Kate and I, being the two people that we are, were entirely predictable. Any guesses as to what we chose? If you thought crackers, cheese and salami...you are RIGHT! Also, throw in some Pringles and chocolate-covered almonds in there for good measure. My, aren't we healthy? We met up with Michael, who was already at Ben's house, and feasted upon our junk food while watching youtube videos (hence the reference to it above) and reading excerpts from a book called Tokyo Confessions. It's a must-read for anyone that has been, is in, or will be going to Japan. Shocking stories.

The next morning came early, with a 45 minute drive to Hachinohe train station to meet Ikumi and Whitney and a 10 minute cab ride to the ferry terminal. Let me pause right here...we are currently at seven people total in the group. The original plan until about a week before the trip  was to cram seven people into a kei car, take the ferry to Hokkaido, and then drive another two hours to Sapporo. With seven people. (By the way, a kei car is a very compact car that are common in Japan; they're very economical and I don't know what they're called kei cars) After purchasing our tickets, we jumped on the ferry, eager to begin the eight hour boat ride to Hokkaido.

Let me tell you, the ferry was nothing like I had expected! This is what I had imagined it to be like:

Ferry Scene from The Dark Knight

This, except without the dilemma of whether or not to blow up the other ferry full of people.

This is what it was like in reality:

Ben, Ikumi, Whitney and Michael

Aaw! Happy people! It turns out, we had a ton of room to spread out, there was an onsen to get all fresh and clean, and a restaurant (final verdict on the food: first ferry food= bad; second ferry food=good). A few naps, a lunch at the restaurant and a walk outside (Japanese air circulation is non-existent), we finally arrived in Hokkaido. Oh happy day! Our bus ride to Sapporo was uneventful and most of all, we just wanted to shower. Two hours later, we arrived in the awesome city of Sapporo. It's a large city like San Francisco nestled in the snowy mountains. The landscape was a beautiful contrast.

Reppin' the 50!

Our group had split up and reconvened for dinner not too far from our hotel in the Susukino area, which I later found out is a prime spot for partying. We found ourselves at a seafood izikaya, a restaurant offering a plethora of sea creatures sliced, diced and cooked at our whim. Sounds tasty, doesn't it? Well, we had a grand time. Michael's Australian friend, Matt, joined us along with his Australian friends, and because we're foreign, we got put in the back of the restaurant. Probably a good decision on the restaurant's part. Things got rowdy after the 3rd or 4th round of double whiskey shots and my camera was able to capture a few of the ensuing moments.

Team Australia!

Team America!

Double whiskey shots...German-style!

Between departing from the restaurant and heading to karaoke, we lost half the group. The Americans got a bit too wild for the Australians, and they headed home. In reality, they had a big day of travel in front of them, but I think that some of them had one double whiskey shot too many and couldn't handle it. Well, the show must go on! So our smaller, but no less special, group headed to towards karaoke. Ben's friend from high school is not only doing JET, but was also in Sapporo with some of her JET friends. They already had a karaoke room reserved. Perfection. After finally locating the correct Big Echo (a nationwide karaoke chain), we quickly made ourselves at home, added our songs to the playlist and got to singing. The usual shenanigans ensued.


Because we were in a big city, McDonald's was the natural choice for our post-drinking meal, so off we went. Kate and I ordered our regulars (black pepper Shaka Shaka chicken and a Big Mac, respectively) and we all engaged in some pretty hilarious conversations that will never be recalled, unfortunately. You're all disappointed. We returned to the hotel, which would be a good time to show you how large our room was. We were able to fit five of us in there...pretty impressive.

The next morning we dragged ourselves out of bed at a reasonable hour, got ourselves a breakfast of champions at a convenny, and headed to the snow festival. Oh yes! The motivation for the entire trip. Essentially a series of snow and ice sculptures spread throughout the city, the Sapporo Snow Festival has been attracting people from all over Japan for over 60 years. We had seen a few the night before in Susukino, but today was totally focused on seeing everything. What we learned that day: the city of Sapporo and the vendors at the festival probably didn't take advantage of any native English speakers to proofread their signs; boots meant for rain are not insulated enough to be walking around in on snow and ice; going to the snow festival at the end during a particularly warm week in February probably isn't the best idea; Hawaii is a country, or at least is meant to represent the entire United States; Food from the Americas was represented by something called the New York Burger, which seemed to be your standard  cheeseburger with a fried egg...oh yea, I have that all the time!

After adding a few to the crew, we headed over to the Sapporo Beer Garden for some nomihodai (all you can drink/eat). This particular nomihodai was limited to 100 minutes, so it was the goal of all 15 of us to shove as much Ghangis Khan and down as much Sapporo beer as possible in that time frame. The food was your standard yaki niku, with all lamb. The place provided plastic bags (which we assumed were to bag your clothes so they didn't stink of lamb afterwards) and bibs, so the grease splatter from the pan didn't stain anything. Charming. I decided the best way to go about this was to pace myself with the person next to me, who just so happened to be Joel. We're about the same size, although being a guy I believe him to have a much higher tolerance than me. I kept up, even with drinking darks and half/half...but I did lose count. Kate suggested we do a throwback to college days and keep count with marking on our arm. No one had a marker. Damn.

When our 100 minutes were all up, there was talk of karaoke, but we migrated to another bar that was known for its something or other. To be honest, I wasn't paying attention. Upon crossing its threshold, I felt like I was back in America. The place was full of gaijin. There were JETs from all over the country and several military as well, mostly from Aomori prefecture. I'm not sure how much time passed while we chatted and drank away, but we soon found ourselves, once again, at McDonald's. Shocker. We all had our same orders, except Kate had managed to convert Ben to the Shaka Shaka chicken. Well, this caused quite the stir! While Kate and Ben were "shaka'ing", a foreigner (we took to calling her Russian girl...not sure if she really was) behind us made a few comments about quieting down. No one in our group heard except me, so, being the intoxicated troublemaker that I was, encouraged them to continue "shaka'ing" louder, if possible. Russian girl commented even louder this time, "I need it quiet in here!"...and that just got us all laughing uncontrollably. First of all, it was 3am. What the hell was this girl doing at Mickey D's at 3am if she needed quiet? Everyone knows that's the post-drinking/drunk food stop! Of course, her comment encouraged Ben to move his "shaka" performance from our table to standing in the aisle, much to the delight of a couple of Japanese girls sitting next to us.

NOTE: Had the woman who commented been Japanese, we would've complied with her requests...it was simply because this lady was a gaijin at a McDonald's at 3am on a weekend asking us to quiet down. Ridiculous? Yes, I think so.

The next morning, we dragged ourselves to the ferry station to board our nine hour ferry back to Aomori. Although not exactly thrilled to end the weekend and return to our "normal" lives, it was certainly a trip to put in the books. Like I said, I don't think I was able to properly capture the essence of the trip through this entry...



In other BIG news... I'm currently finishing this entry in Missouri! Surprised? Can't blame you! Patrick's plans changed last minute and he ended up being around for BCT graduation, so I threw together some last minute plans and headed out to the Midwest to see him. Call me crazy, but the 20 some odd hours of bliss we spent together was well worth it. Anyway, he's off to the next leg of the journey: OCS. Ganbate, Pato chan :)

Back Onstage in Nippon!

Come on, come all to see the amazing foreigner performing live onstage in Takko-Machi!

I swear to you, that's what the headline of the posters said! Hehehe...

This past weekend was the happyokai in which I performed with my Nihon Buyo group along with a number of other groups and individuals of various performance backgrounds. Although I was unclear as to what the purpose of the gathering was, I suppose it was an opportunity for local people to celebrate and keep alive their culture and traditions, some of which have been around this area for thousands of years (ex: Nanyadoyara). For me, it was an occasion for me to further immerse myself into everything this great country has to offer. And let's be honest...when have I ever said "no" to performing?

Although this was my first time performing Nihon Buyo (more elaboration later, I promise), it was not my first time performing in Japan. Waaay back when in October of 2009, I performed for the patrons of the G&B Festival my rendition of "Taylor the Latte Boy"...good times, ne? However, I wasn't roped into all of this purely based on my singing talents (shocking). I had also danced the Nanyadoyara on several occasions for this event and that, and a few of the ladies from this group saw me, realized I had an interest in taking dance classes, and signed me up! Six months later and I found myself painted in white make up with a kimono on and about a billion layers. I'm sure I blended right in.

Allow me to back track...as is with all dance, there are several versions of Japanese-style dancing. The group that I've practiced with dances the Nihon Buyo (に移動). This style of dance is made for entertainment on the stage as opposed to other dances that may be performed for religious rituals or specific events. It has evolved over the years as it incorporated elements from other styles and became influenced by the western world's growing presence in the country. To the western eye, however, Nihon Buyo looks as traditional as traditional can be (at least it does to me!). Of course, the components of this style that I found most interesting were almost the ones I had the most trouble with; the first characteristic I noticed/struggled with was how slooooow it was. Granted, the piece I danced to ("Sakura Sakura") is probably one of the most famous pieces of Japanese traditional music out there and is, from what I understand, a dance done by those just starting out. But overall, everyone's performance was very slow, a huge change from the fast-paced-jump-around-cheer stuff I'm used to. My next obstacle was the turning IN of the feet. Since I started dancing when I was 10 years old, they trained us to turn our feet OUT. Urgh. This I had issues with for a bit as it felt awkward to walk through the dance pigeon-toed (where is Julia when you need her?), but this is thought of as very beautiful for Japanese standards...so pigeon-toed it is! And lastly, with this style of dance, every since movement is deliberate and exact. This may seem obvious, but I was getting corrected on my arm placement with a difference of about 5 degrees...such things are usually not as easily spotted in the dance that I'm used to since it is far more fast-paced and difficult to catch mistakes like that. Along with this deliberateness, I was to be in a plié (bent knees) stance for the entirety of the dance (about 4 minutes). This was actually a fun challenge for me...it brought back some great memories from ballet and was fantastic strength conditioning for my legs. It certainly took its toll on my knees, however.


So now that you have a better idea of what Nihon Buyo entails, I guess a video would be in order, right? Unfortunately, I don't have that available. My sincere apologies. I have a short clip linked below, but not a full version. Mom, don't worry...I'll be purchasing a video of the entire happyokai so you can see it in its entirety.

The happyokai was scheduled to begin at 12pm, but I began my "getting ready" process at 8am, with a trip to the beauty salon. I had my hair done once before by this salon, but that was back in my "Queen" days...I also didn't have a choice in style. But this time, they plopped some style magazines in front of me and gestured for me to choose. I have to choose?! I didn't know what was the appropriate hair style for a geisha! I decided to go with the most conservative style I saw (the magazine given to me was geared towards 20-year-olds preparing for the traditional ceremony celebrated at that age...that's an entirely different story). Now, I'm pretty picky when it comes to my hair. I like it to be perfect and very secured, especially if I'll be dancing in it. That's what I really liked about this salon; she pulled and tugged at my hair to ensure it was neatly in place. In the end, my hair ended up being a mess of curls pinned into a messy bun. And, as with most hairstyles for these occasions, several random hair pieces were thrown on to finish it off. Even more were added once I arrived to the plaza to meet my group. Check out the accompanying picture for a visual.

Miyu getting painted

Ayani getting make up

My hair took about an hour, which gave me some time to eat toast before heading over to the plaza to get dressed (a light breakfast was necessary as I'd be tightly wrapped into my kimono and didn't need any of my breakfast to come back up). My dance was the first to perform out of our group, so I, along with the two younger girls that danced with me, were the first priority. We began with make up: a white base which was layered on thick, with red shadow, thick black eyeliner, drawn-on eyebrows, and bright fire-engine red lipstick. It was nothing like I had ever seen before for stage make up. The only familiar thing was the red lipstick. I hated wearing red lipstick. Next was the white paint, for lack of a better word, that was applied to our arms, chest, neck and nape. I looked like an obake (ghost)! An hour of make up later, and I was ready for my kimono. I've posted pictures of me in a yukata, a summer version of the kimono. A yukata is made of a lighter material and the sleeves, I believe, aren't as long. Well, since it's winter, the kimono I was wearing was not only made of silk, but I ended up having on four layers...and I didn't go outside. It was cho atsui! Along the four layers, I had about four to five layers of one version or another of the obi (the sash that is wrapped around the waist while wearing the kimono). I feel as if the point of the kimono is to look thin, but I always felt larger after they wrapped so much crap around me...

Ayani, Me and Miyu
I'm their mother...resemblance is uncanny

Finally, the time had come for the performance. Everyone around me was concerned: "Agatte desuka?" (Are you nervous?). "Nai, desho!" (Of course not!). And I wasn't. The dance was all of 4 minutes long and I had been practicing it for several months now. I credit this to my choreographers from way back when with the last minute changes to everything, but I pick up on choreography quickly. It's something all the obasans took note of during my first practice, except they mistook my ability to remember choreography for being skilled at Japanese dance. Oh well...let them think what they'll think! Anyway, the two little girls I was dancing with, Miyu and Ayani, were bouncing off the walls. Miyu, usually a ball of energy, was dancing for the first time and was obviously very thrilled about it. As the lights dimmed for our entrance, we covered our faces with the fans, and shuffled our way to the middle of the stage, turned towards the audience (faces still covered) and slooooooowly knelt down (killed my knees). At the second "Sakura...", I lowered my fan to reveal my *gasp* gaijin face. Literally, and I'm not kidding you, the entire audience gasped and started whispering. For a split second, I was worried about there being something on my face or kimono, but I remembered the novelty of being a foreigner participating in such events and how SHOCKING it must be to everyone. The rest of the dance went off without a hitch. Unfortunately, I don't have any video of my own right now, but my friend recorded the last bit of it. Click here.


As the dance ended and we tried to shuffle away backstage, my path was blocked by the announcer. How did I not see this one coming? He gestured for me to join him in the middle of the stage, made a comment about how たかい (takai=tall) I was, and disappeared backstage...leaving me there. I stared at everyone in the audience. It's standard Japanese entertainment procedure to leave someone helpless and confused; at least, that's my understanding of it based on observation. The announcer finally returned with a box to stand on, which made him about an inch taller than me. Ha ha ha. He made more comments about how well I had done ("Joozu desune?!"), which prompted another round of applause from the audience and a deep bow from me. He then turned to me and shot off with some rapid fire Japanese. I smiled as sweetly as I could and replied, "Gomenasai! Nihongo wakarimasen." Patrick had taught me some long exhausting phrase about not knowing how to speak Japanese which usually got laughs from everyone because here he was, spouting off with all kinds of Japanese, but I didn't remember it. A simple, "I'm sorry, I don't understand Japanese" would have to do. It still got laughs, but I think that's because I'm blonde and therefore, always entertaining. It turns out he was asking me what my job was ("Kokusai koryuun desu"), and how long I've lived in Takko (to which I didn't know how to answer...I had said "nana gatsu", or seven months, which also means July, so that answer might have been confusing). Anyway, with another quick bow and wave, I was released backstage. Whew.

It's over!!!

I'm actually very disappointed that it's all over. I had been looking forward to performing again; my family will tell you that it's my calling. I'm sure there will be more chances in the future and until then, there's always karaoke!

Demons Out! Luck In!

Watch out Groundhog's Day...there's a much more entertaining holiday in town!

I know what you're all thinking: "But Jessica, Groundhog's Day is my favorite holiday!" Yes yes, as it is for many, but Japan has a corresponding holiday that casts a large shadow over America's "spring prediction" holiday.

Part of Sakura san...ready for battle!

Yesterday was February 2nd for us on this side of the world, and as luck would have it, I was teaching my kid's class at the Garlic Center. Perfect opportunity to teach them about this ridiculously silly American tradition. As I told them the tale of Puxsutawney Phil and how the entire nation watches as he decides whether he'll be scared of his shadow or not, they were particularly focused on the fact that groundhogs are fat and cute. Oh well, at least the picture of a groundhog that I chose was entertaining enough. Of course, we all know that spring will arrive on its own time and no rodent is going to be the predictor of that, but somehow, our entire country becomes fixated on this little guy for one day every year. That is some cutting edge news for you!

All of Takko Hoikuen

Japan, on the other hand, has a much more engaging way to bring in a new season. It's called Setsubun, or "Bean Throwing Festival". The setsubun is the day before each new season in Japan and is literally translated as "seasonal division", but the term is most commonly tied to the transition between winter and spring and is traditionally held on February 3rd. It was previously thought of as a type of New Years Eve, so the idea was to drive out the evil spirits of last year to bring in a clean slate for the year to come. Enter, the bean throwing.

The bean throwing part of Setsubun is called mamemaki, literally "bean throwing". If you made the connection between "mame" and edamame, then GOOD for YOU! The custom calls for the head male of the household to throw the fuku mame, "lucky beans", either out the door of the household or at someone dressed as an oni, "demon" or "ogre", while yelling, "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!"...translated as, "Demons out! Luck in!" Did anyone make the connection from this entry's title on their own? Anyone? The thought is that the lucky beans will drive away the evil spirits and purify the space for the coming year.

Warrior with his "fuku mame"

While I probably won't be running around my apartment yelling at the demons to get the hell out while throwing roasted soybeans everywhere, I was able to enjoy this ritual with, who else, my hoikuen kids. As you can imagine, kindergarteners would be the BEST ones to do this with. For those dedicated readers of mine, think back to Halloween and the haunted house; that's where my excitement level was at, except I knew that it was guaranteed that the kids would be freaked out.

Pep talk from the Principal

The entire school was to be involved in the event. Every kid from ages one to six was dressed in some kind of outfit; Sakura san (the oldest class and the group that I teach), had the boys decked out in samurai-like outfits, while the girls adorned hats decorated with paper oni. Everyone held a hand-made basket of some sort, except the boys of Sakura san and the school Principal; they carried wooden boxes filled with the "fuku mame". When it came time, the entire school lined up in the big hall, prepared to fight down the oni. Everyone looked excited, although the ones taking it more seriously looked brave, like they were getting ready for war. Everyone sang a song; although I didn't understand all of it, the jist of the song was telling the demons to leave so that they may have a lucky year. The children sang the song three times, raising the volume each time. After the last note of the third time, we heard the booming sounds of the taiko drum, which signaled the entrance for the oni. The kids knew, and their perfect line formation scattered as they frantically looked for the oni. Two of the high school students dressed as the oni (one green, one red) entered from opposite ends of the room. Bear in mind that these children are wee ones, so a high school student would tower over them. Add a scary demon mask and a giant club to the mix, and you're sure to get some freaked out kids.

Chaos!

The screaming and tears began almost immediately, although there were plenty of "fuku mame" being thrown at the oni. I did my best to capture the Kodak moments, but I had a number of little guys grabbing on to me, crying and trying to hide. I also tried not to laugh, but it was hard not to when I saw some of the biggest bullies in my class beside themselves with fear when the oni came near.

The hysterics lasted for all of 4-5 minutes. After enough "fuku mame" was thrown, the oni began to retreat, clearly defeated. Despite the fact that everyone was fine and they had won, many of the tears didn't stop until well after the oni had left.

It's a shame that this Japanese tradition hasn't carried over to America. Think about it; if you were a little kid and you knew that with bad luck comes this huge scary demon ogre, you'd think twice about doing something bad, right? Karmic retribution takes on an entirely different meaning! And I mean really, who is going to be scared of a fat little groundhog? Just something to think about, America...

Three of the cutest oni you will ever see!

__

Coming up... This weekend is the long-anticipated happyokai for my Japanese Dance class! Stay tuned for an update, pictures and quite possibly, a video.

Letters Written: 53

The Mochi Mash

Karaoke Shenanigans

Another weekend in my winter wonderland has come to a close. Along with the usual boarding and karaoke shenanigans (and trying to stay as warm as possible, of course), I was able to witness and take part in a Japanese tradition that has been passed down for generations upon generations: もちのつき (Mochi no tsuki). Traditionally done in the winter months, the event is about friends and family coming together, having fun and, of course, making mochi!

Pre-Mochi Rice

I went to Shimizugashira, my elementary school, bright and early on Sunday morning (okay 9am is bright and early after a night of karaoke, right?). I made my way to the large gym at the back of the school, which was desperately trying to keep warm with the help of a few space heaters - it wasn't working. As everyone remained bundled up in their coats, we watched as the ceremony began. I knew that mochi was made from rice, but didn't realize that the rice was quite literally pounded until it becomes the familiar mochi-like substance. I also knew what to expect, after hearing about it and seeing pictures from last year's festival. I watched the live-action version play out before my eyes as the large wooden basin (called an "usu") was filled with the mochi-variety of rice by the obasan (Japanese for grandmother), the wooden mallet (called a "kine") was raised in the air by one of the men from the community, and then pounded down with full force onto the rice. A rhythm was created between the man and the obasan as he raised and brought down the mallet again and again, as the obasan, with lightening quick hands, dashes in to wet and turn the rice over before the mallet comes crashing down once again. This process is repeated until the rice has been pounded into the familiar mochi-like paste. Then mochi is then rolled out, cut, and prepared for eating. Sounds easy enough, right? But the process is quite tiring...to feed an entire gym of people, it took about two hours of pounding, rolling, and cutting to prepare all the mochi needed. Everyone joined in to help, parents and children alike, and when we weren't helping, we were playing traditional games, such as "ohajiki", a Japanese marble game.

This tradition of making mochi as a community is played out all throughout Japan; however, there is one twist unique to Takko-Machi's community. While half of the mochi made is prepared for eating, the other half is cut and given to the children to decorate trees that have been brought in for the celebration. The mochi is wrapped around the bare branches, which are also decorated with trinkets and ornaments of Buddha or wise sayings. The mochi on the trees are said to be representative of the blossoms that would normally be there, and it is also said that the practice will bring good luck and health to farmers. The trees are displayed throughout the schools as a reminder that with hard work brings good fortune, and in March, the now-hardened mochi will be removed, fried and eaten, in the interest of the Japanese "mo tai nai" (waste not, want not).

Red & white mochi:
Japan's colors for harmony,
good fortune,  etc

Now that the story has been told, I guess now would be a good time to mention that I don't like mochi. I'm sure many of you have tasted mochi before, and if there isn't a flavor added to it, it doesn't taste like anything (for this gathering, we dipped the mochi in ごまとあんこ (sesame and this bean paste that I REALLY don't like). But, despite the billowing snow that engulfed the school and gym in near white-out conditions and my aversion to mochi, it was warm and welcoming inside (even though the temperature inside nearly matching that of the outside). Students of mine of all ages were there, and it's always fun to spend time with them outside of the classroom. The hoikuen kids (kindergarten/nursery school) are always especially excited to see me; I suspect that they forget that I live in Takko until they see me walking around...it's a new revelation each and every time. Hugs from a kindergartener are probably some of the best you'll ever get, and I take advantage of them as much as possible. As you might suspect, Japan is a very "hands off" country, but those under the age of six don't necessarily pay heed to that.

___

I'm assuming that this information was already known to most of you, but it is official that I will be returning to the States come July-ish. My pre-destined predecessor has signed the contract and the required documents are being processed, meaning that my time is a little over halfway over and I have five months to cram in everything I need to do. Before any of this became valid, I had voiced that I only intended to stay one year. There were several things calling me back to the States, one of them being the rising anticipation of starting my "big girl" life, although it can be argued that moving to another country and living by myself for a year is "big girl" life. Anyway, I was mentally prepared to return home and figure out the next step. However, the moment I received the email that my predecessor had decided to accept the position, my wants and desires seemed to switch gears. I'm not ready to leave Takko or Japan...*sigh*.

This weekend is another full schedule of snowboarding! We'll be sticking to 229 Skiland again, but we're going to graduate soon to Appi or a nearby mountain. I'm not quite sure if I'm confident enough to battle the crowds and maneuver around people without crashing. I guess we'll see.

Falling, and then laughing after
proclaiming, "I didn't fall once this time!"

Snowboard Progress...Because you're all dying to know! I feel like I've definitely made leaps and bounds from where I was on the Heavenly trip with Patrick and his family. I've set a couple of goals for myself, one of which is to be able to do SOMEthing in the terrain park (that is, without being sent to the hospital). The other is to master going through trees. This second goal is a challenge because first and foremost, it requires speed and agility, two skills I'm still developing. Last weekend, however, Ben and I decided to go up this one trail that we had yet to explore, but when we discovered it was uphill, we abandoned that idea. The only problem was that the only way down was through some trees. I was feeling pretty brave that day, and decided to try it. I should mention now that the aforementioned trees were really just branches sticking out of the snow; had I crashed into one of them, there would have been damage done to the tree, but not to me. I managed to successfully bump, fall and slide through the "trees", avoiding them all the way. Whew!

What I've learned lately...All of you Californians have been enjoying some awesome winter weather lately, but in case you forgot what it's like to be in the bitter cold, it's very common for one to have a chronic runny nose. I'm not sure what it is about it (perhaps someone could WebMD it or something), but if you're out in the cold, you're almost guaranteed a runny nose. Like most of the Japanese that I learn, I learned the word for snot because it was simply everywhere, especially with my kindergarteners. Charming. It's はなみず, hanamizu, quite literally translated to "nose water". Pleasant, isn't it?

Coming Up...There are quite a few things in the mix! Next weekend (February) I will be dancing with my Japanese dance group in a happyokai here in town. My type of dance is called Nihon Buyo, in case y'all want to do some research on it beforehand, and it is traditionally performed by geisha. Yes, I will be a pseudo-geisha for the day. Is that impious? More on that next week, I guarantee.

Plans for the Yuki Matsuri, the second weekend in February, are all set and ready! We'll be taking a 9 hour (not a typo) ferry ride to Hokkaido and spending a couple days in Japan's supreme winter wonderland (Takko ain't got nothin' on this place). Yay!

There are also talks of trips up to Appi, the closest thing to an American-type of resort that I've seen. You may remember it from my weekend spent at the town dentist's house at the end of summer? Uncomfortably hot then, intolerably chilly now (that's a bit dramatic, but you get the idea).

Unrelated to anything in this entry, but it makes me smile

またねー！

Letters Written: 47  
**Although, I'll have to add here that I recently got some news that P's platoon no longer have phone privileges for the duration of BCT...I can complain about this until I'm blue in the face, but what is there to do? He has less than 2 weeks until he moves on to the next step, thank goodness! I'll just have to keep on writing...

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

I don't think I ever thought I'd say that, but yes, please do! It's no secret that I live in a place of snow, and let me tell you, Aomori doesn't mess around. From what I've been told, this area is also the coldest area in the entire prefecture (despite being on the south end). Sannohe (the next town over) has the record lows and highs for this ken, and being right next door to it means that Takko shares in this wonderful weather.

That being said, after nearly a week of being back, I'm still waking up every morning, opening my window, and being amazed at the blinding white light that is shining back at me. I lay in my bed for an extra 15 minutes every morning to wait for the heater to take the chill off of my room. I also have to add three minutes to my get-out-of-the-house-on-time routine to account for putting on boots, a sufficiently warm jacket, earmuffs or hat, and gloves. It's more time consuming than you think. I was anticipating that I'd be dressed like that kid from A Christmas Story and I wouldn't be able to put my arms down. Such is not the case...yet.

The paths and roads I use to walk to work are not plowed...ever. My way to work is usually completely covered and on my first day back, I had a crash course lesson in how to walk in the snow. Fact: Never ever step in snow that is uncharted. I decided to take my shortcut through the park and ignore the already carved out path that was a bit out of the way; I found myself in knee-deep snow with only one way out. Nice. I've learned to always work where others before you already have in order to avoid that fate. It's been working out nicely. But, I continue to go out of my way to step in snow that has yet to be touched, just like the 24-year-old that I am.

The crew at 229 Skiland
Takko's leading premier ski resort :)

But aside from the promise of sledding, snowman building and snowball fights with the kindergarteners, I also look forward to the weekends of boarding. Like I've mentioned before, I have made it my prerogative to improve my skills from akachan (baby) snowboarder to professional! Okay, maybe not professional, but to the point where I'm not freaked out by trees. I bought a new board and bindings in hopes that this will help the progress...first test run of the new board is tonight. Will let you know how that goes!


Granted, I know my opinion of this weather may change over time (the winter here lasts until April, after all), I am welcoming the snow with open arms until then!

Home for the Holidays!

Merry Christmas! Happy New Year! よいおとしお！Happy Holidays!

After a nearly one month hiatus, I am back in the saddle and ready to take on the winter. Assuming that almost all of my readers are either friends or family, you all know that I headed home for the holiday break - a three week adventure that I was particularly looking forward to for a variety of reasons.

I spent my last week in Takko before the break throwing a rather successful holiday party, continuing to make snowflakes with my students, and packing for home. In my infinite wisdom, I decided that I could be frugal with my packing and only took one suitcase back home. It was the larger of the two, in my defense, but still a stupid decision. I wouldn't be paying the price on that until the end of the trip and for the meantime, I was very proud of myself. It had been snowing on and off for several days, but nothing too serious and it barely stuck. The night before I left, however, it snowed about two inches (WOW!) and I was impressed, of course. I was only in town to enjoy it for a couple of hours before heading to Ninohe to make my way to Tokyo. Six hours, a bit of Christmas shopping, and a slight delay of the plane later, and I was on my way to Los Angeles for my first international connection ever. And yes, I was upgraded once again.

Upon arriving at LAX, my least favorite airport, I was led through the cattle call that is immigration and customs, speed walked about a half mile to the domestic terminal to catch my connection, and then sat for almost two hours waiting for my delayed connection. To put a date on all of this, it was December 17th, right around the time of the huge storm on the East Coast, which put a wrench into every flight plan in America, it seems. I finally arrived in SFO in time to drive up to San Francisco, quickly change in my sister's dorm, and then head to the Opera House to enjoy the SF Ballet's Nutcracker. Dinner? Nope. Just chips, cakes and wine.

The rest of my weekend hinged on Patrick's arrival on Sunday afternoon. I was stressed that his plane would be delayed to the point of near cancellation, since that seemed to be the theme of most airports on that side of the country, but we were lucky that it wasn't. After over-anticipating the traffic on the way to the airport, I arrived about two hours too early and sat in the arrivals lobby, obsessively checking my phone, waiting for the text that would read "we've landed". When it finally came, I, along with a number of other girlfriends and family members waiting for their loved ones, was pressed against the glass straining to see the gate. One of the girls jokingly remarked that the 20 foot high glass wall was placed there to prevent girlfriends from rushing past security when they spotted their boyfriend, although I didn't doubt the truth in that statement. The reunion was wonderful and I think I nearly squeezed his breath out of him, but when I finally did let go, we found his bags and started the next two very busy weeks together with a Christmas dinner at my aunt's near Discovery Bay.

Heavenly

Just as time together always does, it went by too quickly. Two weeks felt like three days, but we got a lot  done in that amount of time. Two days in Monterey, four Christmases, a week in Lake Tahoe, and countless other gatherings and get togethers later, and our two weeks were full. I am so utterly thankful for the holiday block leave that allowed him to come home, but now the ultimate test of patience has already begun: date and time of next visit, unknown.

The day after Patrick made his way back to the middle of nowhere, the Takko HS group arrived and thus began my true purpose of coming home for the holidays. Like all the trips, we hit up the usual touristy spots in San Francisco and Gilroy. The big difference between this trip and all the others was the obvious excitement that was constantly pulsing through the group. Their already excellent English developed at shocking speeds to the point where translation was barely needed. At the end of the trip, the sayonara party was full of tears as the students thanked their host families for the past week, and the tears continued to flow all the way to Japan. We were on the Shinkansen back to Takko and they were still saying that they didn't want to go home. They were home sick for Gilroy. You know it's been a good trip when...

Takko HS visiting USF!

Just a last note on the packing business, I ended up checking THREE bags (although one of them was checked by one of the students...the perks of traveling in a group): my suitcase, a duffel bag and a snowboard case. With the help of several space saver bags, I was able to fit everything, but not without having to pay the $25 overweight fee. Can't win them all!

I've been back for three days now, and I'm slowly getting back into my routine of things. We arrived back in Takko to feet of snow everywhere, but I did a bit of shopping in America and made sure I was prepared. As expected, there were icicles on the faucet in the kitchen, and my bathroom floor was iced over from the leftover water from my last shower here about a month ago. That evening, I had a slight panic attack at the thought of freezing when my heater in the living room wasn't working, but it was replaced the next day after mentioning it to my supervisor. The Japanese don't mess around. But all is well now; I no longer am afraid of the apartment being an ice box (although if the power were to ever go out for long periods of time, that would be a different story), and my plans for the next couple of months are slowly shaping up.

Because of the snow, new activities have fallen into our laps including snowboarding, sledding, and yuki matsuris! The new big adventure ahead is a trip to the prefecture north of us, Hokkaido. Sapporo (probably most famous among Americans as being recognized as the home of Sapporo beer) is also the home of the Yuki Matsuri, or snow festival. One week of the year, the city hosts a huge festival featuring snow and ice sculptures of all shapes and sizes that are spread out at different locations throughout the city. Since the festival is only for one week of the year, it can get pretty crazy up there. Hotel reservations should have been made months ago, and the trains are going to be packed. Traditionally, people in positions like mine (JET Program, etc) would couch surf in lieu of having to worry about hotels. That is Plan A...will let you know how that goes.

Other than that, I'm hoping my weekends will be filled with boarding trips in hopes of improving. During the two week holiday block leave, we went to Lake Tahoe, like I had mentioned. There was a bit of a misunderstanding in that Patrick thought I was more skilled than I actually am and I thought it was implied. Obviously not. Most likely relying on every bit of patience inside of him, Patrick gave me private boarding lessons, hoping to correct my bad habits so that I'll be able to keep up with the rest of the group next time we go. I'm counting on the countless trips to the mountain nearby to help me improve for the seasons ahead.

Coming up... To kick off this weekend, I'll be spending the evening doing my favorite Japanese activity: karaoke. Kendal's friend from home has come to visit, so we'll be keeping it classy in Sannohe. Sunday will most likely be my first day on the slopes here in Japan, so I'll definitely let you know how it goes. My two girlfriends will be coming with me, and they both identify themselves as beginners, although I'm worried that their Japanese modesty might be overcoming the truth. Just have to wait and see...

Letters Written: 36

American Rock Star in Tokyo

You gotta hooooold on to what we got!
It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not!
We got each other, and that's a lot for love...
WE'LL GIVE IT A SHOT!

Yes, it happened. I saw one of the American greats perform live at the Tokyo Dome this past Wednesday: Bon Jovi! I am aware that I am not a die-hard fan or anything, but not only did I grow up listening to this dude, but I also traveled 700 miles to check him out...I think my fan status went up a few notches after this trip.

Curry udon = MESSY!

I began my rock 'n roll adventure on Wednesday morning with Keiko and Yakko. We took the Shinkansen down in the morning and were going to play the day away in Tokyo and then meet up with Kate and Snapz for the concert later that evening. I had never been to the neighborhood where the Tokyo Dome is, so I was totally at the mercy of Keiko and Yakko for navigating the train system.

We headed first to Asakusa in search of food. We found a "classic" Japanese restaurant and I tried curry udon for the first time. Shockingly delicious and not-so-surprisingly messy. There is an art to eating noodles in Japan and I have yet to master it. My lack of abilities are bit more discreet when the noodles are in a clear sauce or water, but throw them in a bowl of curry and I'm doomed. I enjoyed them none-the-less and after our delish lunch, we went in search of a good viewing spot of the Sky Tree.

Sky Tree @ 500m

Kate and I are both slightly confused at the excitement over this tower. From what I understand, it's simply a reception tower, but its height will make it the tallest building in the Pacific (I doubt tallest in the world...although that's been thrown around too). The day we saw it, it had just passed the 500m mark, far surpassing the existing Tokyo Tower in another part of town. We oohed and aahed but really, there's nothing I can see to be impressed by yet until it's finished.

Next stop on our list was in the area and is famous for the plastic food shops. Now, for anyone that's been to Japan, you know exactly what I'm talking about, but there are a few shops in America that have them too. They are replicas of the dishes served in the restaurant, usually displayed outside or in a window for passer-bys to see. The food is shockingly life-like and made to look very tasty, but will certainly make room in your wallet. A small keychain is around 1200 yen ($13-14) and a beer of mug can run up to 4200 yen ($45). I love you all and they would make great gag gifts, but....

Infamous garbage cup

We wrapped up our afternoon at Ameri Street (or something like that), and I got in trouble for throwing my cup away in a garbage. First of all, it was clearly burnables and secondly, I saw other trash in there NOT from the vendor. Anyway, I played dumb tourist and kept walking. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to fish my cup out of your garbage.

After finally meeting up with Snapz and Kate, we all headed to the Dome in search of food. After realizing that most restaurants in the area had waiting lists that would cause us to miss the show, we opted for the arena food inside. I have had my fair share of arenas and I would say I'm pretty spoiled with HP Pavilion - let's face it; despite the long lines for food and the bathrooms, it's pretty organized overall. Well, Tokyo Dome might have it beat in organization. It's an older building, but each section has its own separate entrance, reducing lines exponentially. The security "requests" to check your bags and once inside, the lines for food maxed out at 5 minute waits! Incredible. But, as it was to be expected, the line for merchandise was far longer. In fact, we had to wait in line to wait in line to buy anything. Sasuga Japan...

The concert itself was incredible and even though we probably could've touched the ceiling from our seats, we had a great time. Not like many around us, we stood up for the majority of the concert, dancing and bopping along to songs we knew and didn't know. Of course, he performed "Livin' on a Prayer" as the encore performance, which everyone went crazy for and it finished out the night perfectly. We headed back to Kamagaya, made the ritual stop at the McDonald's and then off to bed.

Our plan the next morning was to head to Tokyo at a decent hour, play around for a bit, and then send me on my way to Takko. Well, we woke up much later than anticipated and by the time finished getting ready and arrived at Tokyo Station, I only had a couple hours until my train left. We picked up lunch at Dean & Deluca (always choice) and went in search for paricura (essentially photo booths on crack). The concierge informed us that the nearest one was a train ride away, but I knew that to be false. I had just done one a few months earlier during my weekend Tokyo trip with Patrick. By the time we walked around searching for it and found the general area, I had to turn back to make my train. For next time...

Overall, an excellent mid-week weekend that was much needed. Not only did it cause my week to just fly by, but I got to hang out with my Japan biffle and got to spend some quality time with Takko friends. Oh and by the way, the entire trip including the concert was in celebration for Keiko and Yakko's anniversary. Happy Anniversary!!!

Coming up... The holiday party at the GC is this Saturday! Round two for me in making that turkey and here's hoping that it turns out the same as before! I'll also be preparing the side dishes throughout the week after work hours, so this week is mapped out for me. Cooking, cooking, cooking...

Letters Written: 26