Stealing the Kids' Thunder

Monday brought me back to one of my mountain schools where we went on a field trip to a nearby famous restaurant where we were to make buckwheat noodles. I thought little of the invitation when it was presented. I was excited, sure, but I didn't think it was a big deal. I had forgotten that I worked in a small mountain town, and that little happened there. So, when I arrived at the restaurant and was greeted by no less than three news stations and a newspaper. I was overwhelmed.

I was nervous enough that I would ruin this age-old tradition of making buckwheat noodles (the area's claim to fame), and here were cameras everywhere, catching me in the act. They came only because it was a news-worthy event for 8th graders to make the noodles, but when they found out a gaijin (foreigner) would be at it too, it was headline news. Literally. I was the top story of the day not only in the small town, but across my prefecture (state). Several friends called to announce my appearance on the evening news, where I proudly exclaimed, "Oishi! (Delicious)" upon the completion of my project.

The actual making of the noodles was less difficult than I thought, especially considering all the nifty tools we were give to use. Also, the ladies who helped us out often took over when they thought we couldn't do it, but they were impressed by my rolling (like rolling out dough) abilities. Also, my kids got to use English in new and interesting ways, trying to translate the instructions. "Make dough like earlobe!" Meaning, the dough should resemble the texture of your earlobe, or, "cat-hands," indicating the way I should press into the dough with my fingers tucked under. It was great!

The noodles were great too! My interview on T.V. was less than great, but I suppose it is better to be looked over than over looked.

Now, I am off to America! Buckwheat noodles are great, but I can taste the cheese already....

Night of 100 Crepes

Friday night came and the insanity began. Friday night I stayed with one of my JTEs at her house so that I could more easily attend her brother's wedding the next morning. She lives with her parents in this fabulous house in a small town. Her family was so warm and inviting! They made sukiyaki for dinner, an excellent family meal, where the father tried to speak to me in English, and I tried to speak Japanese, and he had a fair amount of sake and started saying very random things.

The family was so wonderful, and they let me in on every part of the wedding preparations...including making 100 crepes for all the neighbors who would stop by the next day. I wish I could say I was exaggerating or that it was what everyone was doing and I was just helping, but I can't. I walked in the kitchen, and the mother--who speaks no English--showed me how to make them and then left the room. There was no one there except me and a stack of crepes, a bowl of whipped cream, and a ton of fruit. So, I got to it. Hours passed, and I was singing--increasingly loudly--Christmas carols to myself, until finally, when I was done my JTE came in to say thank you. It was kind of charming actually. Everyone was please and amazed at my handiwork. Later we ate cake while sitting under a kotatsu. It was great.

The next day I had to get up early to join my JTEs sister in her hair and kimono appointment. Watching her get her hair done wasn't enormously exciting...it resembled any special occasion hair appointment, like prom. But the kimono appointment...I had no idea! The kimono appointment lasted an hour and a half and made me wonder why anyone would ever consider wearing or even owning one. It is true that she looked fabulous for the wedding, but OH, MY GOD! There were three full layers of clothing, at least 12 different belt like items (from obis to fashionable cords), several layers of just the right 'padding,' a couple pieces of cardboard, and intricate maneuvering of the final obi that defied gravity and physics! Also, it is physically impossible to put on by yourself. The girl I was with had two people who helped her, and the bride had four, and fifth one just to help her move around all day. I was blown away by the amount of clothing and time.

So, kimono-clad sister and I hopped into a car (very difficult considering she could no longer move!), with my JTE to head back to the house where the bride would soon be arriving. When the bride arrived, she did the various prayer ceremonies at the groom's family shrine, and to the groom's parents, and her parents were there as well. I wasn't told if the groom performed a similar ceremony at her house or not, but after the tea offerings and prayers it was picture time then off to the temple.

The ceremony was by far the coolest part, but is unfortunately the one thing I have no pictures of. No photos are allowed during the ceremony, and I merely have to pray that someone will send me some of the professional photos taken...all of which were taken by machines.

I have been told it is rare that a foreigner will be invited to a wedding, and even less likely for them to go to the ceremony, but I never knew why. Now, I do. I was the only person there not directly related to the bride or groom. Everyone was an immediate relative...no friends or neighbors or distant relatives were allowed in the temple. What's more, there were individual seats which were assigned based on hierarchal rank, and each seat had a table on which sake and treats were provided for part of the ceremony.

It is impossible to describe fully the ceremony. From the costumes to the rituals, it was all foreign. There was a sake ceremony where the bride and groom each drank from three glasses, raising their glass three times before drinking and passing to each other. There was something about branches of leaves being turned three times by significant relatives and then the bride and groom. There was a ring exchange, and two young girls (similar to the role of an altar boy I think) who did a presentation with sticks fashioned with bells. Sadly, no one could communicate the symbolism of these rituals, but I assume they all meant something very important.

Following the wedding (which happened at 1:00 p.m.) was a reception, where more people turned up at times related to their closeness to the bride and groom. Close friends, then distant relatives, then old friends, then neighbors...etc. There is no dancing at a Japanese reception, but there is much drinking. So much drinking that an hour into it, no one could communicate with me at all. So, after a couple more rounds I hailed a cab and took off, assuming that what to come was more drinking and less comprehension.

All in all, it was a pretty impressive day. It was the first time I felt like I saw and was a part of Japanese culture. The bride, in the most traditional of dress, and yet unable to stop smiling. The 60 or so bottles of sake given to the young couple as a sign of hope. The hundreds of dollars passed in all directions, from the gifts to the couple to the gifts to the guests. It was spectacular.

I'm Getting too Old For This

Last night I hosted what I thought was going to be a small dinner party among friends. I thought it would be a nice way to spend time with my gaijin friends before everyone headed off to warmer climates for the holidays. I am not sure at what point I failed to notice that there were 30 people on the invite list, but 17 people came (it was after all a school night). My apartment, I think, was just big enough to hold everyone comfortably. It was a great time with great food and great people!
As hostess, I decided I would provide the wine, and everyone else brought a dish from home potluck style. I didn’t give too much thought to the fact that 1) it was a weekday 2) most people live far 3) there was another storm coming in. So, I followed standard hostess rules, one bottle of wine for every two persons, also deciding to round up. That brought us to nine bottles of wine, and two more were donated by guests. If you take into consideration that seven or eight people didn’t drink at all, you come to the conclusion that nine or ten of us consumed eleven bottles of wine
I can remember setting at least four people up in futons and beds I had lying around, offering as many blankets I had sometime around 4:00 in the morning. That was after two people had passed out, so now there are six people and myself, but waking up in the morning was like encountering a battlefield. There were bodies everywhere, and I—as usual—had to be out the door by 6:30.
In the end, everyone made it out okay (I think), and I haven’t heard that anyone called in “sick,” but all the same, I have learned my lesson. I had a great time, but the next day at work was brutal…one of the longest in memory. I actually had to caffeinate to get through the day.

A Test??? I Can't Even Order Dinner!

On the Sunday, I took the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test). I hadn't honestly expected to pass, as was evident by the fact that the night before I had company over playing board games until 2:00 am. When I signed up for the test—back in August—I figured I would study hard core for 3 months and pass, but instead I left it to 5 weeks, which is nowhere near enough time. But seeing as how I had already paid for the test, I went.

The test didn't go nearly as horribly as I thought it would; I knew nearly all of the kanji, felt like I understood the listening, and reading sections...and then I was hit with the grammar section. That section kicked my booty!!! It was like throwing darts at a dartboard in the dark, blind, and from a room around the corner. Sigh...but it is over, and I must wait until February to find out that I did in fact fail.

Taking a test in Japan, however, was an entirely new and interesting experience. It amazes me that the test started at 9:00 am, and ended at 2:00 pm, and yet the actual total amount of test taking time was less than three hours. Between long breaks, and several opportunities to sit and wait in silence in the room, almost half the time was dedicated to not taking a test...on a Sunday…in Toyoma...grrrrrrrr!

Some people went out after the test, but I, being glad it was over and only running on a mere four hours of sleep, went straight home where I was greeted by a typhoon that developed into a hail storm that continued well into the night keeping me awake. It was loud, yes, but this was not the source of my consciousness, but rather because I knew that hail in the city meant snow in the mountains...and I was right.

Monday morning I headed out to one of my mountain schools as I always did, a full two hours before I needed to be there, with dread in my stomach. The JTE picked me up at the station and we began the drive up into the mountains, where after the first 30 minutes we found a light dusting of snow. By mid-morning some more rain came and it went away, then the rain turned to snow, then back to rain and by late-afternoon it was all slosh. We haven't had snow since, but I know that when I get back from America for the holidays, I will freeze to death. At least the "heat" is on now.

Blah, blah, blah

Okay, I know it has been ages since my last post. The past couple of weeks have been insanely busy, yet surprisingly uneventful. There has been a lot going on, but none of it was cultural or in anyway unique to Japan, so it didn't seem worth mentioning. The most noteworthy thing--at least to me--is that it is cold. Not just a little cold, but freezing.

It's not quite snowing yet, but the snow is only 2 mountains away now from my schools. Those of you who know me know I am a bit of a weather wimp, but here's the thing, often it is colder inside than outside. Since we are near a ski lift there is a digital thermometer outside and looking at it right now, it says it is 1 degree outside (of course, this is in Celsius, but I refuse to make the conversion because then I would be thinking in Fahrenheit again, which I get teased about round here. Just know that 0 is the freezing point, which in Fahrenheit is 32 degrees). My teacher had the nerve to tell me we are having a 'hot winter.'

If only buildings were insulated, or had central heating. At work they wouldn't turn the heat on until December 1st, some crazy Japanese rule to save on costs. Up until Wednesday I could see my breath inside, so I was excited by the idea of the heat being turned on...that is until I found out just how they heat the place...they light a kerosene fire in the middle of the room. There is a huge contraption that looks like a large kerosene lantern for camping (probably what it is, ne?), the size of a desk and they light it. A FIRE! IN THE ROOM! The fumes alone will kill us all, but then you have kids running around...it is a recipe for disaster.

They say by the end of next week there will be snow. There was frost on the ground this morning...the land is freezing. Eep!

Right then, enough about the weather. On to more interesting updates. I got really sick for a while. There were three days where I thought I was dying, and then there was a week where I completely lost my voice (that's why I haven't called mom!). Surprisingly I was still asked to read for an English test...oh what fun! It got so bad that they actually sent me home a couple days, a feat I was told did not happen to often in Japan.

Then there was a gaijin (foreigner) hosted party with a 'school disco' theme. Apparently, this breed of party is all the rage in the UK, where people skank up their old school uniform. Us Americans, never having worn uniforms, did the best we could trying to find tartan skirts, ties and knee-highs. It ended up being great fun, but I am still a fan of the traditional Toga party...

There was a National Holiday, "Labour Thanksgiving" which is a day to give thanks for Laborers, and a conference (for all us Ishikawa Jets). Chaos ensues when you get 120 English speakers together. The event was held at a nice place with a natural onsen (communal bath/hot spring thingy). I am still getting used to the idea of communal bathing. All the naked is weird. I think I wouldn't mind as much if it were just Japanese women who are both used to it, and I don't know, but with my friends/co-workers it is weird.

Because a woman from Ireland planned the conference, it landed on Thanksgiving (it's not a holiday there), so we moved Thanksgiving Dinner to Saturday. Thanksgiving in Japan was interesting. Obviously they don't celebrate it here, or anywhere else in the world (at least, not for the same reasons), so celebrating it with a bunch of foreigners--not all American--meant a wide variety of dishes. From turkey (ordered special at a whopping $50) and a dozen variations of potatoes to Figgy Pudding and Mac -N- Cheese. By far the most difficult part was trying to find an oven large enough to fit a turkey. Ovens, already a rarity round here, usually can't even contain a dozen cookies, so a turkey...sheesh. We ended up having someone haul theirs from the Noto. The things you have to do to get a turkey round here! It all turned out lovely in the end. Twenty-five foreigners sharing culture and traditions on a cold night in a far off place...isn't that what Thanksgivings all about?

Finally, this coming Sunday is the Japanese Language Proficiency Test, which I haven't got a hope of passing, but have been studying for anyway. The truth is, that Japanese is hard. I feel like I have to decide whether I want to speak it or read it. Right now reading is winning. I figure in a year I will be able to go shopping without assistance. sigh...

So that's the jist.