Money Troubles

One of the stranger things to adjust to in Japan is the currency. I emptied my coin purse today and it had 44$ worth of coins (pictured) It's quite easy to spend your coins without realizing their value (they can go up to 5$ and the smallest amount pictured here is still .50$).

I love my coworkers!

I'm on an island!

And it's all beaches and hotsprings.

I'm on a boat!

Obon Aftermath

As I previously mentioned, this weekend marked the end of Obon.  It didn`t take long to realize that Nagasaki celebrates Obon in its own unique way.  For one, instead of merely lighting lanterns, they create giant lantern boats which are then paraded down the street, many larger boats reached lengths of 30-50 ft and were walked by processions that ranged in size from 5   to 40 people.  Certainly this alone was a very cool site, but they took it a step further and behind each boat float was a cart (or two) that weighed 200-300lbs and was filled with fireworks and beer (obviously this can only lead to trouble).  Each group literally walked the boat from their house to the docks (and Nagasaki is surrounded by mountains so this is no small feat) spending the entirety of the time chanting, throwing firecrackers, launching fireworks, and drinking.

 

I realized the procession had started when I heard what sounded like sea waves crashing around my apartment, when I went outside I realized immediately that I would need some earplugs.  Its a good thing I bought them too, because fireworks and firecrackers were going off constantly for the next 5-6 hours.  I could never see this happening in the US, the streets were lined with people, police were at every corner directing floats and blocking traffic, and amidst it all firecrackers were detonated at my feet, in the air, at officers’ feet, underneath cars, trains, and even in peoples’ hands.  The gutsiest guy I had seen was detonating boxes of 100+ firecrackers in his outstretched hand (and I imagine he had been at it awhile because his arms were entirely black), but he was soon outdone by a member of a particularly rambunctious group (they had been doing 360`s with their float and nearly took out 20 or so spectators and later came inches from a collision with a street trolley) who took a cardboard box filled with these boxes of 100+ fireworks each and proceeded to hold it above his head, light it, and run screaming down the street.  He went up in a cloud of smoke and tiny explosions and the box eventually caught fire, but apparently he enjoyed it so much that he decided to do it again, this time running circles around the float and ending his journey by colliding with one of the police officers that was trying to stop the aforementioned 360`s.

Unfortunately the boats were turned into scrap at the docks instead of being set into the water (I imagine that dumping hundreds of wooden structures into your harbor every year would hardly be ideal for the environment).  The front of each float was marked by a picture of deceased in whose memory it was constructed, and there were a few pictures that I especially enjoyed for their humor (ex: one of an 80 year old man giving a peace-sign while straddling his favorite motorcycle) and a few pictures of younger people which were very touching (as touching as it can be when your dodging fireworks).

At the end of the night, I met up with a group of people that had been pulling one of the floats and was invited to their town hall for a celebration (they lived up on a very high hill so there was alot to celebrate).  Thus I ended my Obon with free food and drinks. 

Spectacles Bridge

I’ll get around to describing Obon later, but for now, here are some pictures of Spectacles Bridge.  It was built in 1634 and is notable for its Chinese design (Nagasaki was one of the  few places where Chinese merchants could live during the period of national isolation in Japan).  It is named Spectacles Bridge because the reflection in the water resembles a pair of glasses.

Obon Weekend

I`ve already been given a 5-day weekend without having even worked 5 days!  August 12th to 15th mark the Obon holiday.  Obon (`O` is just a modifier showing that it is honored, so you could just call the holiday Bon) is a Japanese Buddhist holiday during which people honor their ancestors.  Next to New Years it is probably the busiest time for travel in Japan, as most people will return home to clean grave sites and prepare meals for the dead to eat.  At the end of the celebrations, lanterns are floated down the river with white lanterns symbolizing people that died in the past year.  Hopefully I`ll figure out which river people are going to be using and be able to snap some pictures as well.

[I managed to snap this picture of Tokyo Tower last week from the highway as we left our hotel for the airport]

A-Bomb and Self Introductions

Today was an exciting day at the school.  For those that don`t know, today is the anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.  Thus, even though it is a Sunday, all the students and teachers were required to come to school.  Up until this point I had only met a few teachers and student since they had been taking advantage of summer break.  I was quite surprised this morning to find a piece of paper on my desk announcing that I would be giving my formal introduction to the school following the memorial ceremony.  Fortunately I was smart and left a tie in my desk in preparation for such a situation.

Around 10:30 all the teachers and students gathered in the gymnasium.  Schools in Japan lack air conditioning and the gym tends to be one of the hottest buildings on campus.  Furthermore the students don`t have chairs, so they alternate between standing (to bow) and sitting on the ground.  The school that I am at is about 10 minutes from ground zero and at the time the entire school had been destroyed.  In attendance was a group of 50 or so bomb survivors who are all alumni of the school.  One of them gave a speech and from what I gathered, he had come in on that day for examination and left early in the morning after finishing his exams.  Within a half hour the school was gone entirely.  He then talked about his life since then and the importance of nuclear proliferation.  Then at 11:02 the city sounded the air raid sirens while everyone observed a moment of silence.  Even for me (someone who finds the people latch onto the idea of `Japan as a victim` far too often) it was an especially somber moment.  This is a truly beautiful city and to imagine it all disappearing in an instant is overwhelming.

After that presentation, I was brought up onto the main stage along with the school principal.  I probably would have start to sweat from nervousness if I hadn`t already loss every drop to the heat.  I`m not very experience in the public speaking arena and far less so in Japanese.  Even so, I managed to get a few laughs out of students (hopefully due to my attempted joke and not poor Japanese) and quickly hustled out of the gym with the rest of teachers while feeling the pressure of 800 pairs of eyes locked onto my person.  On the whole it was a great experience that I can`t even get in other parts of Japan.

Some Views

Last night, I met up with a number of the other language teachers in the area and hung out in a park by the bay before heading across town to a bar for some karaoke.  They were a great group of people and all of them have been teaching anywhere from 2 to 4 years in Nagasaki city, so hopefully that bodes well for me.

I spent my saturday out walking and getting acquainted with the area.  I saw this amazing bridge covering the entrance to the harbor and decided to spend the rest of my afternoon walking to it.  It took about 2 hours to get there since I was just doing it by sight, but I made it and the view was well worth it.  I did get a bit sunburned and managed to sweat through 2 shirts and a thick pair of khaki shorts (by sweat through, I mean the entire pair of shorts were wet and it looked like a whole new color).

 

Employment

I was officially employed by the principal of my school today.  We had a miniature ceremony in his office.  In general formality is a big part of Japanese society (like bowing), so when I went into his office we jumped from informal small talk into this ‘ceremony to note a change of employment.’  The principal, two vice principals, and an accompanying teacher formed a half circle around me and presented me with a notification of employment and we exchanged bows and greetings.

The city is gorgeous as well, I’m torn between cleaning and establishing my apartment or going exploring.

[View from School]

[Picture taken on my way walk to school]

[View at a park by the bay.  5 minute walk from my apartment]

Interesting Exchange

Me: M. Sensei, I was thinking about running to school in the mornings, do you think that would be alright?

M. Sensei: Of course!

Me: Is there anyplace I would be able to take a shower?

M. Sensei: Oh I see… Well just use the student shower in the gym or pool house.

Me: Don’t you think that is a bit strange, I’m not sure students and teachers should use the same shower.

M. Sensei: It is fine. The students would be really excited and happy to ‘see’ you!

[A crab I met on the way to school!]

Orientation

Had a full day of orientation meetings yesterday and some ceremonies along with a few people from the Ministries that sponsor the program.

There really hasn’t been much time to get out (not that I expected there to be), but I did manage to catch up with some friends from last year.  It really feels like I hadn’t even left the city.

[Picture of Chuo Ward (financial center of Tokyo), Same view as yesterday but at night, opening ceremony, cute mascot]

Arrival and a new blog!

After another long flight, I’m safely back in Japan!  Touched down at Narita earlier today and I’ll be spending the next 3 nights here in Tokyo.  Tonight is my only free night before we enter two days of orientation meetings and I’m not going to let JET lag stop me from catching up with friends.

This is my new old blog and I’ll try to keep it updated more than the last one!

[Picture of Shinjuku from my hotel room]