Konnichiwa
It was another HOT HOT HOT day here in Japan. Yowzers!! Fall is gonna be a welcome relief I am beginning to think. Got up at 6 am and did the usual airing out of the tatami room, made "futons" beds, checked Emails, put dishes away off the drying rack from dinner last night, ate my granola and yogurt and then off for my morning walk. Got a bit of a late start today though,as I figured I would leave when the water was going to be off from 10am-12pm, and so I went through the Japanese-English dictionary and starting writing down all the words we have needed to use so far. I have got to start working on this more. One book I bought says learn Japanese in 10 minutes a day, but I can't seem to stop at an hour. Once I get started there is no stopping me, so I think that is why I have not really done anything much with the language as of yet. I don't want to miss my morning walks and I am too tired in the afternoon to do it once I get this blog done and dinner started, so I guess I will have to figure out a beter routine.
I decided to walk out the front door and past the construction guys then down my back stairmaster and through the tunnel where all the Olympic panda bear drawings are that were done by school kids I presume. At the other end of the tunnel, I walked past the entrance to the school where those 3 VIP men I met at the Shinto festival work. The gate was closed and the building is hidden by trees so I could not get a good picture. Hopefully in the fall I will get some good ones to show you?
As I rounded the corner another construction worker was just exiting a house with a tray of ice tea I think and he crossed the street into the shade and crouched down to have his mid morning tea break I guess, he was so engrossed with his ice cold drink he didn't even know I was there snapping his foto. I continued along the road and it ended up going back up a slope and on to the ridgetop road and so I took that in the opposite direction I went yesterday.
I first passed a tennis court which sounded like it was full of moms and kids but I could not see through the green cloth on the fence. There were some open spots where there were no high fences or brick walls and I could see different views of the city skyline. I then went down a side street to the Yamate Italian Garden House and Bluff 18 old west mansion area. After looking at different views of the skyline along the garden wall and the flowers I made my way back to the main ridge road.
Next ,I saw a large Japanese style tile roofed building down below me and so I took the next curvy slope down to see what that was all about. It was another pretty Buddhist temple,and I enjoyed walking barefoot on the tatami mat floors and to get a bit of a break from the hot sun. I asked the man for some brochures in English,but they sadly had them in Japanese only. I did take one of their free little prayer books I think, so hopefully, when I learn some Japanese I can possibly try to figure out what some of the letters or words might be? I wanted to go out back and look at the graveyard, but they were working on the roof and had scaffolding all along the path so I skipped it. Then I noticed a long set of steps going up along side it and saw some kids in school uniforms headed that direction too,so I followed them. I got a glimpse of the gravestones and crypts. There were racks to hold the wood boards like at the other buddhist temple, but none of the graves had any? I then went past one of the Jr and Sr highs where the teen girls were gathering to practice tennis. I can't even imagine doing that in this heat. It is enough for me to walk at a leisurely pace up and down these slopes and stairs.
I continued down some more curvy slopes and past houses where a delivery bike was parked outside and the guy or gal must have been in the building dropping off the items. I crossed the canal over near the pachinko parlors we passed one other night and continued on towards the bay. I passed a hotel which had a little Japanese van and a GRANDE GRINGA van parked out front. What a diffefence in size. Next I came to a little corner park where an older gentle men was lovingly feeding some pigeons and two other men were playing some kind of checkers game it looked like. They too,had no idea I was even watching them for like 5 minutes.
I never did get down to the bay,(next time)as I noticed a little outdoor shopping mall with lots of people, color and action on a side street and once I started walking down that I just took it all the way to the end in the opposite direction I was headed.
I poked my head in book stores, kimono and yukata shops, dishware shops, went past a very crowded McDonald's and ran into the Kernal out front greeting folks at the KFC. It was now close to noon and so many restaurants were full of men and women in their black pants/skirts and white shirts/blouse "uniforms" getting and eating their lunch. I then spotted a pet shop and went inside to take a look at all the pups and kitties.I then realized I had not been in a pet shop for years. Well,I had never seen so many small little dogs in one place before. They were minature, almost tea cup size it seemed. Cute though, and many of them were sound asleep stretched full length out on their backs. I noticed one of the girls that worked there walked back and for along the individual cages and whenever one puppy did their duty she was right there to reach in and pull it out so to keep their cages nice and clean. I thought to myself...that's a very "Shitty job" but someone has got to do it. Right? haha
I then stopped at a bakery and got a flaky crusted donut covered in what might be maple glaze and sliced almonds, which we will have for dessert after dinner tonight. I also got some kind of spinach and cheese roll for my lunch and sat down in the shade at Odori Park to eat it and my granola bar with the last sip of my water. While eating I saw a bunch of teen boys in their baseball uniforms walking along as well as a bunch of local men just hanging out, standing around talking with one another. The baseball boys must have been on tour of Yokohama Stadium which was just a couple blocks further down the way.
So with my belly full and the sweat wiped off my brow I headed home as my bags were beginning to feel heavy as well. Yes of course I found some goodies. I got a couple little kids primary books for learning to write hiragana Japanese characters. I figured really basic is the best way for me to learn, and plus it might help when and if I get to work with the little first graders come fall ?
I then was looking at Yukatas and one had a bad hanger and it fell out of the plastic bag and so I took it in for the lady to rebag as I couldn't begin to fold it in the precise way it was. So as long as it was open and partially unfolded I asked her if I could open it the rest of the way to see if it was long enough for me and to my surprise it was waaaaaaay long, too long in fact. WOW,... that actually shocked me and also made me wonder how in the heck do they wear these things as they are supposedly one size fits all? What do they do with all the extra fabric and length? It is black background with red,blue and gold bursts of fireworks on it. CJ always tells me I am his "BIG" firecracker and that is where I first saw people wearing yukatas here in Japan, and so I thought what the heck I will get it. It came with a red and blue obi, which I think might be reversible, but I am not sure. I asked the girl for directions or instructions on how to wear them, but she had no idea what I was talking about. The phrase book I had in my purse did not help me at all either. Another women happened to be in the shop and she was a blonde and looked european and I assumed she could speak english, but when I asked her if she spoke English she said Japanese yes Englsih no in their accent and everything, I was flabergasted and couldn't believe she talked so well as she had no look of asian to her at all? When I walked further down the street I stopped in another higher priced kimono shop and the girl there had a little brochure she gave me for free. It was interesting there too, to look at all the different pieces to kimonos, obi, white and black tori socks, lace underslips, little stuffed cushions to take up space when the obi is to long. I guess it would be like adding some fat to your frame. I wish I could say I will need those.
By the way, the "very little" wooden sandals that came in the package deal,I knew at the store, that they would not fit me and figured I would give them to Kalen, but when I got home and tried to put them on, I was aghast and laughed thinking you have got to be kidding me. Can the adult women who will wear this loooong robe actually have feet that small? Yikes...they are so narrow that I think I will have to give them to Adriana my 3 yr old god daughter down in Honduras as they are just about the size she's wearing right now. Needless to say, that was my Cinderella moment, don't cha know. haha
I also found a few more blue and white ceramic dishes at a couple different dish/pottery shops to take the place of my plastic bamboo and hibiscus ones CJ doesn't seem to like eating on. So with my bags getting heavier by the minute, the mid afternoon sun now burning hot, my water bottle empty I headed for home and made my way very slowly up the two steep slopes, down our street and past the construction workers who were still going at it in the heat of the day and into the AC and under the bathroom faucet went my very hot head.
I unpacked, drank a bunch of water and then have been up here in the office since writing my latest fairytale to all of you.
It is getting close to dinner time, I guess, as the sun is now setting behind the trees across the valley on the other bluff; and so I had best get the pics attached to this story and get some food going for CJ and I. We may try to hit Chinatown after supper tonight and see if there is anything going on for Bon Odori at that stage I saw them setting up a couple of days ago. If we don't make it down there tonight,then perhaps we will watch a Japanese movie I bought when back home in MN.
"Ato de aimasho"...see you later
Hey, wait a minute ...I was just thinking you know nothing about CJ and his perspective nor what's been happening with him, and who knows if he will ever write on here? Especially since we now have the TV? :-) I will ask him again and see what he says. I do know he is enjoying his work and has some definite challenges ahead of him, but he expected that. He is feeling out how far he can push things and is noticing them pushing back a bit on changing the ways they have done things in the past. He has yet to figure out if it is a cultural thing or individual personal issues. Walking the fine line so to save face and not cause them embarrassment.
He loves his walk to and from work through the parks to the bus or train/subway stations and is testing the Japanese perfectionism on their train schedules and departure times. He is timing it to see how long it takes him without breaking stride to get from one train/subway/bus to another. His goal is to be able to walk out one and into the other and have the doors shut right behind him. I am sure he will soon have a graph or chart made up about it. Funny man!
CJ loves eating with his chop sticks and says it helps him to savor each morsel.He even requested that I get some mini spoons so we can eat our desserts more slowly as well and cherish each teensy weensy little bite.
We both look forward to each night after our showers to go to bed in the tatami room,on our fluffy futons with the door closed and shoji paper screens over the windows shut as well. They give a nice light to the room and the reed fragrance is so subtle, it all makes for such a relaxing place to sleep.
Nighty night..."Konban wa"
Karla and CJ
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