Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter 1
Vietnam
Chapter 2
New Home
in Kofu
Chapter 3
Hong Kong
China,
&
Korea
Chapter 4
Yamanashi
Chapter 5
Society
Chapter 6
Hospital
Chapter 7
Nikko
Chapter 8
Holiday
Greetings
Chapter 9
Culture
Chapter 10
Holiday
Trip:
Kansai
&
Kyushu
Chapter 11
Mores
Chapter 12
Hankos
& Brush-
writing
Chapter13
Friends
Chapter 14
Festivities
Chapter 15
Okinawa
&
Nagasaki
Chapter 16
Hong Kong
&
Australia
Chapter 17
Special
People
&
Events
Chapter 18
Coming
to
Japan
Chapter 19
Letter to
Editor
Chapter 20
Teaching
English
Chapter 21 Hamamatsu
Chapter 22
Women's
Relation-
ships
Chapter 23
Reflections
on
Education
Chapter 24
Nephews'
Visit
Chapter 25
Thailand,
Korea
&
Home
Chapter 26
Taking
Stock
Chapter 10
Holiday Trip: Kansai and Kyushu
January 11, 1996
Dear
Friends,
As we write this letter we are aware of the worst winter ever for most of our friends and family in the US. Although news of the US is scarce in Japan there was some coverage of the problems in Washington DC and New York from the heavy snow, and we had phone calls from several people keeping us up to date. Hope this letter finds you all "dug-out" and recovered from that snow, ice, and cold and that no one had serious mishaps.
We also hope that the crisis with the federal government is resolved by the time you receive this letter. What a mess! It seems like it was a good time for Marie to leave the country. There is no way she would have driven an hour to work every day under horrendous weather and road conditions, with no guarantee of getting paid. We’ve worried and wondered about our friends and family who are affected by the shutdown. We hope the private citizen was honestly informed about who did what, but that is probably too much to expect.
We are back to our routine after a pleasant trip to Kyoto and Himeji in the Kansai region and Aso, Kumamoto, and Nagasaki, in Kyushu, the most southern major island in Japan. The only snow we saw was for a couple of days in Kyoto. We have had no snow in Kofu and none is forecast for the immediate future, although the temperature has been averaging about 10 degrees below normal for this time of year.
We had a pleasant, if unusual, Christmas. Saturday evening we went to the home of one of the former exchange students for a real Christmas dinner. Madoka Horikawa has just returned to Japan after living in Boston for a couple of years. She is engaged to a medical student and will be getting married in June, so she came home to get ready for her wedding. Her fiancé was a successful engineer for years before going to medical school, when he didn’t find his previous work satisfying.
Mr. Horikawa divides his time between the US and Japan. Although he has officially retired, he is in the process of expanding a business in Boston that develops microchips for robots. Officially he is a consultant, but is working harder than ever. Anyway, the Horikawas are probably the most western Japanese we know, and they were eager to have us to their home, which was decorated for Christmas as thoroughly as any home in American, with items they had purchased in the US. In addition, Mr. Horikawa has an extensive CD collection, and we listened to beautiful Christmas renditions all evening. That evening was the closest we came to feeling like a real Christmas away from home. Their home is on a mountain a few miles from Kofu, and has an unparalleled view of Fuji from their living room, adding to the ambiance. And the food was the best we have had since we came to Japan, maybe including the fancy French feast at the wedding we attended. Mrs. Horikawa prepared a Western meal, which we can’t recapture on paper. She uses no recipes, and whipped up some amazing dishes, including roast pork, and several casseroles.
We neglected to mention in our earlier letter
other visits with another former exchange student and her family. Masako now lives in
Sweden with her physician husband and her two children, Mika (3) and Erik (18 months). We
both fell in love with the children and had a great time playing with them. What amazed us
about them is their gift of language. Their mother speaks only Japanese to them, their
father speaks Swedish to them, and Masako and Niklas speak English to each other. So the
children are learning to speak all three languages. What charming and delightful children
they are, as are their parents and grandparents. We hope to visit them in Sweden someday
before too long.
Masako’s parents, the Fukinos, invited us to their home while Masako was here.They introduced us to various Japanese sweets and spent the day telling us they want to take care of us while we are in Japan. When Mr. Fukino discovered that we were looking for a kimono for our granddaughter, he immediately called a friend who owns a wedding and kimono extravaganza. This resulted in a private tour of the plaza, a special bargain on two kimonos, and much hospitality.
We also discovered something during this visit that was surprising news. Mr. Fukino trained as a kamikaze pilot during the war and was on the list for the next mission when the surrender occurred. As Masako said, if the war hadn’t ended when it did, she might not be here. Even though Tom has known the Fukinos for almost 20 years, he never knew about Mr. Fukino’s experience. Neither did Masako until this year, when she was interviewed in Sweden for a special story about the 50th anniversary of the end of the war.
Another interesting coincidence was brought to our attention this week. There was a newspaper article in the Japan Times that was taken from the New York Times. It stated that uranium that was aboard an intercepted Nazi ship headed for Japan was included in the A bombs that the US detonated in Japan. Apparently, the uranium was meant to be part of the Japanese nuclear bomb program. When Tom mentioned this to a colleague at Eiwa (a history teacher who teaches the truth as much as possible), the teacher said that a relative of his wife was on board that ship when it happened. And he concurred that Japan was developing an atomic bomb at the time of the bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. That was quite interesting to us, given our recent trip to Nagasaki, and our personal discussion about whether Japan would have used the bomb if they had it first.
Back to Christmas. We spent Christmas Eve with the Nakayamas, and it was nice to be with the closest thing we have to family in Japan. We went to their church in the morning. A very small church, with wooden benches that might seat 60 people at the most. Mr. Nakayama’s brother is the minister, and the church is on family property, adjacent to the Nakayama’s home. The church is a very simple structure, and we were struck by the sincerity of faith in that place without all the trappings we are used to. We would like to give them a Moravian star, as it would fit nicely with the atmosphere of the church. (Can you help us Jerry and Judy?)
After church we had a communal dinner with curried rice as the main course. Tom was doubtful, as curry is his least favorite food. However, even he had to agree that it was very good. People sang Christmas songs, the minister’s wife taught the congregation sign language and, before we knew it, several hours had passed. It was a warm and lovely experience.
Next on our agenda was a trip to Mt.
Fuji and the Itchiku Kubota kimono museum near its base. The kimonos, based on scenes from
nature, are truly spectacular and it was interesting to learn about the process of
creating them. We strongly encourage you to go to the Smithsonian to view the exhibit of
the kimonos designed and created by this artist. They are on display from last November
until about April of ‘96 in the Museum of Natural History. It is definitely something
we would drive from Pottstown to see, even if we weren’t especially interested in
Japan. (No pictures were allowed to be taken in the museum, so the accompanying image,
Fuji
Glittering in Gold, is from a postcard.)
On returning home, we found gifts at our door. By far the most intriguing was a singing Santa Claus from the Kasai family. It has an extensive repertoire of holiday songs which you can enjoy by squeezing his hand. He also came with a sack full of small gifts and treats.
Thanks for the care packages, cards, and letters we received over the holidays. They were all much appreciated. We never had more fun opening gifts than we had opening the candy, cereal, books, tea bags, etc. this year. What has happened to our priorities?
Our trip began the day after Christmas when parts of northern and western Japan had heavy snow, and the Shinkansen (bullet train) had been affected by the weather, a highly unusual event. Our timing was good however, as we were only slowed down a bit and we saw some breathtaking scenes around us as we traveled to Kyoto on the first day, including a great view of Fuji from the train. Kyoto itself was a once-in-a-lifetime sight with the Golden Pavilion and Silver Pavilion in the snow. (One of our four all-time spectacular sights in our travels....another will follow. The others are Gross Glockner and Halstadt, both in Austria).
Golden Pavilion
We arrived in Himeji on Dec 29th, the site of the "most beautiful" castle in Japan, the sole reason for our trip there, only to find out that it is closed three days of the year. Dec. 29th, 30th, and 31st! We could still see it from the outside, take plenty of pictures, and mingle with the holiday crowds so it wasn’t a waste. After the initial surprise, we weren’t even disappointed. (To see picture go to previous chapter.)
All that stuff about turning crises into opportunities, etc. came later in the trip, and we must say that this trip left us feeling much more relaxed about traveling, and not too worried about minor details, like missing our train on the busiest day of the year in Japan for public transportation, when trains are filled to 160% capacity and more. Just try to imagine that if you will.
We arrived to meet our train with much time to spare, and stood in the designated spot according to our reserved tickets. What we didn’t realize is that some trains are much shorter than others and the "Super Express" only had 6 cars and had a different location on the platform. Since the Shinkansen only stops for 90 seconds, it had come and gone, while we stood and watched it with our mouths hanging open. With help from a conductor, we were able to get on the next train, and after being wedged in a non-reserved car for awhile, we also managed to get seats in a reserved car (probably from someone else who had missed that train, and probably because the conductor took pity on these gaijin). What we learned from that experience and from watching others, is no one knows what is going on much of the time, and the Japanese ask for more help than we used to. Our friend Jackie who has been in Japan 10 years, and who speaks fluent Japanese, says that sometimes she still gets confused while traveling. So now we won’t be so hesitant to ask for help.
We stayed at a traditional Japanese inn (ryokan) in Aso,
where we could watch an active volcano from our window. The next day we took a bus to Mt.
Aso, and rode a cable car to the rim, where we watched the steam rising from the crater.
We read a sign that stated in English:
"Now Mt. Aso is in strong volcanism and is ejecting suffurous acid gas, but we will warn those who have the asthma, the trouble with the respiratory organs not to go."
The sign was correct, the sulfur smell was bad at times, but we wouldn’t have missed this experience for the world. It is the other sight on our list of four most spectacular sights.
New Year's Eve we walked to a small temple to observe any special ceremonies that might be going on. There was no activity so we had to be content to go back to our hotel and listen to some distant temple bells. Every New Years Eve it is the custom to ring temple bells 108 times to drive out the 108 temptations Buddhists believe people face in life, thus helping to prepare people for the new year. It is a unique and moving experience to hear the blending of the distinct sounds coming from the simultaneous ringing of the many bells.
We spent New Year’s Day at Kumamoto, the most gracious city we visited, and we wish we could have stayed there longer. The mood of the city was positive and the streets were clean. New Year’s Day is the biggest festival of the year. After checking into our hotel, we found a large Shinto shrine to visit. Before leaving the hotel, we were given a complimentary drink of sake served in a wooden cup, for the New Year, and then we headed for the festivities. The street leading to the shrine was lined with shops selling all sorts of food and souvenirs. We opted for a $6 bag of French fries, and a $5 arrow. The shrine itself was very crowded as people went to pray, make donations and receive blessings. There was a large bonfire inside the shrine entrance where worshippers were burning arrows containing prayers from the previous year. (We didn’t burn ours but kept it for a souvenir. Hope that doesn’t bring us bad luck.) Marie had a field day taking pictures of children decked out in their New Year’s finery.
Reading Prayers for the New Year at Shrine
From our hotel, we could see the remains of Kumamoto castle, which, in 1877, was the scene of the last battle between the forces representing the old order and those who supported the Meiji emperor and wanted to bring western ideas into Japan. The traditionalists (samurai) were soundly defeated by the civilian army of the emperor. (We didn't see any of the bullet holes that we told you we would look for.)
It was on the grounds of Kumamoto Castle where we saw an 800 year-old camphor tree. We couldn’t resist taking a leaf as well as several pictures of this magnificent tree.
It’s interesting how you get a feel for a city. On arriving in Nagasaki we were struck by unfriendly vibes. Maybe because Kumamoto is a younger city on the move, it makes an effort to make people feel welcome. Nagasaki, on the other hand, has been an international seaport for over 400 years and is a little more self-satisfied. We visited all of the requisite sights....the peace park; the cathedral destroyed in the A-bombing; the epicenter "park"; and the memorial to the 26 martyrs: 22 Japanese and 4 priests who were crucified in the early 1600’s as a warning to other Christians who were still practicing their outlawed faith.
Our favorite site in Nagasaki was the Glover Garden,
which sits on a bluff overlooking the city and harbor. It’s a compound containing a
number of buildings, constructed mostly in a European style. There are also some lovely
gardens and a wonderful view of the city and the harbor. The area is named for
Thomas Glover who had his home
there. Glover was born in Scotland (though the signs refer to him as "an
Englishman") and made a fortune in Japan by selling munitions to the new imperial
government in the late 19th century. With the money made from selling weapons,
he branched out and invested in such fields as steel and a brewery. He helped a number of
young Japanese men to study in the west and ended up by being honored by the emperor. It
is said that Puccini used Glover’s house as the setting for "Madame
Butterfly". There is a statue honoring the actress who made the role famous, as well
as a relief of Puccini, in a special garden on the grounds of the house.
We were disappointed that we could not visit Imari to see its distinctive pottery, which we were eager to see. All of the shops and studios were closed for the holidays.
Coming home on the 5th we missed another train. This time it wasn’t our fault. Our travel agent had planned our connections from the airport too tightly. But this time it wasn’t the busiest day of the year, and we were able to catch a train a half-hour later, even finding a seat for the whole ride. We arrived home safe and relaxed and ready to find more adventures in the New Year.
1996 is the year of the rat and since Tom is a "rat" - we had fun looking for New Year’s rats throughout our trip and on our return home. The rat is an especially good sign because they squirrel things away and thus are prosperous (Doesn’t that sound Scottish?)
Marie is a horse - a particularly bad sign for a Japanese wife because they are too strong. But Sonny (our Chinese guide) said it was a great sign. Could this be the difference between a man and a woman’s point of view? We read that, in Japan, there are fewer girls born in the "year of the horse" and some families actually change the year of birth on their daughter's birth certificate so they won't be the inauspicious horse!
Current events in Japan. You must have heard about the resignation of the Prime Minister (Murayama) and the appointment of his successor (Hashimoto). Although politics takes up most of the state owned network news hour, it is pretty boring, and doesn’t seem to make much difference overall. The "person of the street" doesn’t seem to care a whole lot. Political power is a struggle among factions within the dominant party and has little to do with popular support.
Monju. Have you heard anything about it? Monju is a breeder reactor that takes nuclear fuel and reprocesses it. More than a month ago there was an accident resulting in massive leaks of the sodium coolant. The degree of the severity of the problem increased as more news came to light, and essentially it was determined that there was a cover-up. The early videotapes of the plant after the accident were edited or withheld as the story first broke. It came to a head this weekend when the man who headed the investigation committed suicide by jumping off the roof of a hotel in Tokyo.
There is much discussion of making English the official second language. Most interesting for us is how this shows up in commercials. There are several that show people practicing simple English with each other. Mostly they are ads for language schools, but some are for food, or other products.
The space shuttle story here has been exclusively focused on the Japanese astronaut, others on the flight are mentioned only in passing and never by name.
Today (January 15th) is a
national holiday..."Adults Day"... recognizing all those who turn 20 years old
in 1996. There are 2 million nationwide and 13,000 in Kofu. It is the official coming-
of-age in Japan. Many young women buy kimonos while others dress in modern fashions to
visit shrines. Our young friends have told us that Adults’ Day is more important for
many young women than their wedding day. On this day they receive their first expensive
kimonos, which they often wear for many years for special occasions. When Masako’s
daughter, Mika, dressed for 7-5-3 Day this year, she wore her mother’s obi (belt)
from Masako’s Adult Day ensemble, and they came all the way from Sweden for the
holiday..
Happy New Year to all. Hope you stay warm and healthy. We send you love and peace. Keep the cards and letters coming.
Tom and Marie
