March II
21st March
The weather is continuing to throw up interesting surprises. Yesterday there was snow for a while, whereas today is covered in blazing sunshine, the moisture from yesterday deepening the hues. The town doesn’t look half bad on a nice Spring day, and the weather recently is the best I’ve known in Japan. It’s like a good Irish summer day with a cool breeze; none of the lethargy inducing humidity or shrill of cicadas (not to mention mosquitoe bites) of the summer. It’s possible now to relax outside on the “Beranda” (that’s not a spelling mistake). All over the town crooked, bent over old people are tending their allotments, a myriad of colours thrown up by the flowers of the various vegetables.
I was in Hiratsuke yesterday for dinner with Kyoko and some of her colleagues. I got a message from Taoe to avoid Shinjuku and Shibuya. She had it on good authority from someone working in Tokyo that there was a threat of a terrorist attack (given it was a public holiday and plenty of people milling around). However, the only way back to Shiraoka was through the heart of Tokyo, and I started to get a bit concerned. Last weeks disgusting attacks on Madrid have really thrown the terrorist threat into the spotlight here. Trains are the number one form of transport in the country, and it brought the reality of the threat home (especially after Japan was placed at the top of a hitlist from Al Qaida). Japan is also a rather soft target; there’s so little crime here that the police arne’t used to dealing with major threats, whilst there’s virtually no army to speak of. The only solace is that you can pick out a foreign face from a few hundred yards away! I guess I shouldn’t worry too much. Kyoko’s friend Alex put it like this;
“Can’t you see the irony in a man from Northern Ireland being frightened by terrorism in Japan?”.
March 24th
Was just reading some information (among the several tons of useless info forced upon the JETs at our orientation conference) that drew a wry smile across my face. It’s about culture shock, read the symptoms and try to think if I’ve displayed any over the past 8 months:
“..the emotional upset or tension that a person may feel because of exposure to life in an unfamiliar setting, surrounded by people who do things in very different ways. This tension can be accompanied by irritation, anxiety and frustration…You may start comparing how things are done in another country to your new home in a constantly negative viewpoint…some other symptoms:
- anxiety that affects normal behaviour
- lack of self-confidence
- lack of interest
- panic attacks
- loss of initiative
- EXCESSIVE ANGER OVER DELAYS AND MINOR FRUSTRATIONS
- feelings of hopelessness
- strong desire to associate with people of your own nationality
- excessive amount of time spent sleeping, watching programs in your native language, or reading anything that offers sanctuary from foreign stimuli.
Now, I’m not drawing attention to any one of these in particular…to be truthful, I’ve experienced them all, sometimes simultaneously. Luckily I seem to have gotten over the worst of it. A lot of things wash over me now; either that or I’ve learned to combat them by developing a highly devious and dishonest side.
It is interesting to note though, how many foreigners (especially those that I’ve met from my own area) have been experiencing these feelings more recently, perhaps informing their decision not to stay for another year. I am, as far as I can tell, the only AET I know in Saitama who has decided to stay for a 2nd year!! It seems so many foreigners residing here resort to anything that recreates their own home within Japan e.g. obsessing over the few (usually dreadful) foreign programmes on TV; spending far too much time at American army outlet stores or international stores; taking refuge in the foreigner’s district of Tokyo at weekends. I just hope that I’m over the worst of it, though I believe that it’s something that arrives in waves. Anyway.
Happy Birthday Carolyn!
30th March
The cherry blossom has truly arrived, and as loath as I am to admit it, it has transformed the landscape and made the place a whole lot prettier. Gone are the winter months, hopefully fading quickly from memory. To all those people who either thought it was hilarious that my apartment was bone crackingly cold or who just didn’t believe me, who’s laughing now (hint: it’s not you)? Today was a beautiful 20C (can you say that in Britain), I’m developing an enviable tan, and my hair is acquiring its traditional (and wholly natural) blonde highlights.
I took a trip down to Ueno at the weekend, the “cherry blossom capital of Japan”, and whilst the sheer amount of pink was incredible, so were the hordes of people. Check out the pics…For those of you who are too ignorant to know, the Japanese have a peculiar affliction of the mind which causes them to go pink crazy (not a gay slur) around this time of year. The daily news has an item on what percentage of full bloom a control tree in the prefecture has reached, whilst there are isobars(?) overlain on maps of Japan to chart the arrival of cherry blossom front in the various regions. Shops are selling all manner of sakura (cherry blossom) flavoured goods, and the city fathers are insisting on plastic cherry tree branches on city streets. I digress…
In Ueno people were celebrating “hanami” everywhere. Literally translated it means cherry blossom viewing, but in practice amounts to a huge drinking party. People arrived with ground mats and before long the whole park was turned into a massive drinking picnic. It got so crowded that the police moved in to manage the crowds which threatened to crush and kill. I could understand this at a rock concert, but not to stare at a few pink trees!!
Speaking of rock concerts, or not, here’s a photo of an old guy who just showed up, plugged in his karaoke box, and started belting out enka tunes. Only in Japan! I’ve done Karaoke a few times. I don’t really like it much; however, I quite like the machines which rate your singing – makes it a bit more competitive and puts the awful singers in their place.
I’m outta school for two weeks now, at the BoE. I promise I won’t complain; I just pray those ungrateful JETs who get a two week holiday crawl into a dank corner somewhere and die. I discovered a nice park out the back, and the weather is perfect for just lying about on the grass and relaxing, so its not all bad. I refuse to let the BoE blight my life, nor will I stare zombie like at the internet. If I feel like going outside, going to the gym, taking a 2 hour lunch break, then that’s what I’ll do. I’ll answer to the consequences later should they arise. And on a similar refrain, I achieved my dubious aim of not completing a single full day at the smoky school, seemingly without repurcussions!
April is also the start of the new school year; teachers and office employees tend to shift around from place to place, so the teaching scene might be a bit different. I don’t know why they shift around so much, but I read somewhere that it’s to prevent the build-up of trade-union movements which might challenge working conditions etc!! Until then, enjoy the cold and drizzle (wahahaha).
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