Soccer in Gifu

Thanks to the generosity of nice co-worker, I went to see our city's professional soccer team last weekend. It was a cold, windy night of entertaining soccer, filled with scoring chances, fan chants, and some diving. It ended in a 1-1 draw, which was a plus for our bottom ranked team. The season is wrapping up as well, but it'd be fun to go see another game sometime next year if I get the chance. Here's a photo of the stadium.

Heavy Duty Heater

In the past few weeks, it hasn't been too uncommon for me to wake up to an apartment hovering around 10 degrees celsius. Creeping across my creaky cold floor, having to step out the shower door wet into the hall, the temperature is a cold, hard fact, unchangeable until now. Two days ago I picked up a portable heater, capable of warming up my place in the amount of time it takes to wash and shave. Winter has only just arrived, and based on this year's January temperatures, it will only get colder. I know this heater will be a lifeline if there ever was one.

More local vegetables

These were courtesy of the elementary school. The giant white radish (daikon) came from the school garden next to the office, and the persimmons (kaki) came from the orchard next to the school, and was given to us by the family of one of our 3rd graders.

Back On Curry

I found myself eating curry on four or five occasions this week, which is the most since I was first really hooked on it, back in the Kyoto days of two years ago. As repetitive as it may seem, that is certainly not the case. This week consisted of both spicy and sweet Japanese curry with rice, sweet Japanese curry with udon, and Indian curry with naan. Today's plan is to find some curry bread somewhere in the city, and I think I know just the place.

Fotos de Padre

Here are some photos of my dad on our adventure over here. The first one is his from the ramen place we went to after we found our hotel in Tokyo. It took us a little while to find the hotel, creating a hunger that only a good bowl of ramen could satisfy.

  

Here is my dad outside my apartment, enjoying the view and smell of my neighbor burning some kind of trash or debris. I'm never sure what the guy is burning or why he is burning it, but I'm sure it is well-within the rules for disposing such material. Too bad the rest of us have to smell it.

Update

I haven't updated this in quite some time, but hey! Let's turn things around! Summer is gone and fall is here, but not for too much longer. We're back to wearing long sleeves at school and I officially switched from iced to hot coffee a few weeks ago. I have also been having a customary hot tea every night, as I am hoping to not have to use the floor heater too soon.
More to come! Stay tuned!

Summer Happenings

It's been a busy but productive summer so far. There were a number of things I didn't have time to take care of during the semester, so I've had a chance to make the execution of those priority number one. The biggest and most time consuming was getting my Japanese drivers license, which was actually relatively painless thanks to a helpful website. The bulk of the time (and money) was spent on practice rounds and test attempts. I was worried about how long it'd take me to pass it, so I'm pretty relieved to have gotten it done so early in the summer.
Another thing I wasn't able to do very often during the semester was get in touch with friends and family in other time zones. Due to the hours we all keep in our busy lives, there were only a few narrow windows available for the long-distance chats. I've managed to talk to a lot of people during this break so far, and am hoping to keep it up.
The last thing I've done, believe it or not, is cleaned my place up quite a bit and rearranged a few things. I have managed to create a bit more space, which should serve us well when my dad comes to visit next week. Though we will stay a few nights in hotels in other cities, we'll also be kicking it here for a few days, allowing my dad to see in person what's usually on the other side of the screen. It will be a lot of fun.

Summer Vacation!

It's been a long two years since my last summer vacation. It officially starts today, along with a two-day typhoon. I was planning on driving down to The City and running a bunch of errands, but it's looking like something I'll save for a slightly drier and less windy day. In the mean time, I have a ton of books to get through, radio shows to listen to, and will be taking advantage of the better hours for contacting friends and family in different time zones.

Local Produce

A common theme of all of my schools, from kindergarten to the junior high, is the incorporation of gardening. It shouldn't come as much of a surprise, since this town has so much farmland and proudly boasts an abundance of persimmons and strawberries. After graduating from the junior high, a fair share of students elect to go to the high school that is focused on agricultural technology. I think it's appropriate to say it all comes with the territory. Some students may elect a different path when high school rolls around, so it's nice that they all gain some knowledge in the dirt, regardless of their path.
A dozen individual pots are lined up at the edge of the playground, each with a cherry tomato plant and name stick. A barrier between the classrooms and the playground, they are visible to every kindergartener who takes a walk down the hallway. These are seeds the kids have planted, watered, and watched grow day after day, week after week. Seeing them finally enjoy the ripened fruits of their labor this morning was certainly something special. It's an art project for them, maybe a logical exercise, and certainly a lesson in patience. Perhaps more importantly, it's an introduction to life.
My first day at one of my elementary schools coincided with an assembly introducing some space pumpkin seeds. These were regular pumpkin seeds that had been taken to outer space, brought back to earth, and eventually into our principal's hands. As you may expect, they boiled up a lot of attention. Will they look just like any other pumpkin? Will they taste any different? It's safe to say that most of us have never eaten anything that has been into outer space, so that will at least be a thought-provoking aspect. Maybe this was a method of creating a fun, academic, and involved interest in agriculture as these kids grow up. In this ever-changing world of technology and innovation, agriculture is of course no exception. Maybe all of this was our principal's subtle metaphor, demonstrating to the students how far a few seeds can go.
From my recollection, the best two onions I have ever had came from the special needs kids at my other elementary school. Wrapped in newspaper, with a sliced green vine and bits of dirt for authenticity, these onions were big and still very alive. They were strong with an almost sweet taste, something I'd associate with both how fresh they were and how carefully or organically they were grown. As recommended by others in the staff room, I added half of one into my curry and rice that evening. Perhaps a testament to how fresh or organic the onions were, they seemed to change states exceptionally well that evening, disappearing into thin air.
As a way of wrapping up my few words on local produce, I have one local example of agriculture using technology very well. Here it is:

If you have not guessed quite yet, your last chance is now. It's a strawberry vending machine! It's refrigerated, reasonably priced, and the strawberries come from the fields right across the street! They were sold out the first two times I stopped there, and the farmers apologized from across the street. The popularity of this machine not only speaks for its convenience, but also for how fresh and delicious the strawberries are. The fact that it seems sold out so often also assures you that nothing is staying in there too long.

Oil Change

I had the fastest oil change in my life yesterday. I really couldn't believe my eyes. Granted I was the only customer at the station, I spent most of the 10 minutes wondering whether or not we were all on the same page. I pulled into the station and asked if they do oil changes, and instead of a specific verbal answer, I was politely directed out of my car with the engine running. One older man hopped in my drivers seat and pulled into the garage to start the oil change. The other chatted with me and checked my tire pressure. Before I knew it, I was on my way out to continue with other Saturday errands.

Dessert Ramen

The ramen shop up the street from me has a dessert ramen. I have only been there once and wasn't in the mood for it, but next time I hope to give it a shot! The ramen I had there was pretty good, not the best in the area, but very worthwhile.

Cat Bus

 

 I saw this cat bus on my way home from school the other day. It's from one of the local kindergartens, but unfortunately none of mine. Either way, I think it rules. The best part is that when they open the door to let the kids out, it makes a "meow meow" sound! I bet the kids love riding in that, as I think most people would. Clearly a lot of thought went into it, so kudos to someone.

Commute Photos

Here are some shots I took during the commute home from my most distant school. It's a kindergarten 25 minutes north into the mountains.

View from the Top

Here are some photos from a short trip I took with friends James and Chiho to Hikone Castle! It's about an hour or so by car from here, but maybe a little longer for safe driver's such as myself. 

This is the horse stable at the base of the mountain. 

 This historic castle has a mascot! It's a white cat with a samurai helmet and sword called Hikonya.

This is a view of Lake Biwa from the top of the mountain. It's the biggest lake in Japan, and with the typhoon winds and rain that day, it resembled an ocean more than it did a lake.

Photos of the Place

On January 4th I moved into an empty apartment. Well actually, it wasn't completely empty. It had a fridge, a gas burner, and some light bulbs. The apartment below is in fact the same apartment, but it has now been lived in for about four months. Due to the temporary nature of the job at the end of the school year in March, I was careful not to get too comfortable my first three months. However, since I officially found out I'll be staying here for a full-year, I figured I'd make some adjustments for comfort and convenience. There are probably still quite a few things I could buy, but I can't think of too much that I really need. I consider all of my space a precious thing as well. In fact, I have an entire extra room I use for storing rarely-used school materials, random musical instruments, and information packets kindly given to me by the city's waste management organization. I didn't really feel like taking any pictures of that room, but I did take some of the others. 

This first picture is of my bedroom. It has a floor of tatami mats, which are traditional mats made of rice straw. It's a very nice play to be, which is why I elect to sleep in there.

My kitchen is the place I want to add the most to, as my stomach will reap the benefits handsomely. I have made do with what I have pretty well. My staples have been pasta, curry, rice, ramen experiments, omelets, and toast. I don't eat that much meat, since I usually screw it up and would rather keep things simple. I have somehow managed to put garlic and olive oil into almost everything I cook, and am not sick of it yet. Eggplant, tomatoes, carrots, and spinach have also been regulars. 

This is my living room, and just a few steps from the kitchen. Having my computer so close to the kitchen allows me to listen to radio shows or music while cooking and eating. I have been hooked on the show Radio Lab lately, and recommend it to anyone who hasn't listened to it. I don't have much, but space is gradually being taken up more and more. Two months without a guitar to fool around on was tough, but I did make slightly more progress in my books during that time. In terms of moving into an empty apartment, filling my suitcase with stacks of books and photos wasn't too practical. Four months later, their practicality has even surpassed the expectations I had when I packed them.

As you may have noticed, I am still learning how to plan out and organize an apartment. Let me know if you have any suggestions for set-up or things to buy, since I'll admit that I don't even know what it is I don't know yet.

Pictures of the Place

I have finally taken the time to re-arrange my place and buy a few more things to make it more comfortable. It is still relatively empty, but I consider that a good thing. I clear space for a clear mind, after all. I'll be posting pictures up a bit later.

Highlights from Kyoto

 I took a trip to Kyoto earlier this month, which is only a short train ride away. Here were two highlights from it:

 This is the view from the platform on Daimonji. It's in the middle of a giant character on a mountain, a character that means "big".

These are directions for eating a Smile Burger. They don't have to be followed to enjoy the superior taste, but they might help a little.

Long Time, No Post

It has certainly been a while since my last post, I am estimating almost two months or so. The tragic earthquake, subsequent tsunami, and nuclear reactor difficulties in northeastern Japan have shifted my focus since then, and am very fortunate to have not been affected by any of it. There is still a lot of trouble up there and work to be done, so let's hope for the best.

A Poem for Underground Bread

Here are some pictures of a local bakery I have befriended. It's called Poem, spelled out in Japanese as po-e-mu (歩絵夢). The three characters respectively mean step, picture, and dream. This place has all kinds of small breads, mainly rolls and pastries. I've only seen it there once, but they have a terrific roll with curry and cheese in the middle. I had had plenty of curry breads and a few rolls with cheese inside, but never together in the same bread. I try something different every time I go there, and everything has been pretty good so far. Bakers are constantly bringing in trays of freshly baked goods and lining them up carefully in the proper places. This place isn't a chain, and judging by the wide variety, they seem to enjoy getting pretty creative with an oven.

The other thing that stands out about this place is the real-deal train car inside. I'm not sure if it ever actually hit the tracks, but the gigantic steel train car is where all of the bread waits for our picking. You pick up your tray and tongs at one end, greeted by a variety of baked goods on display, and after selecting a few, proceed out the other door and to the cash register. There are also some tables at the other end of the car to sit and eat if you like. I have made a habit of going there on Sundays, and there are always xylophone versions of Disney theme songs playing in the car. Maybe that happens to be the preference of an employee or that CD has a slot in the rotation on Sunday mornings, but whatever it is, it fits so well that I hope it's intentional. The bread, store name, train car, and music all go right along with a nice, slow Sunday morning, as if it's all one big poem anyway.

Only A Northern Drive

The long and winding road that leads past my most distant kindergarten and north into more mountains will also take you to two future destinations of mine. I'm guessing both are about twenty or thirty minutes past my school, but with so much uncharted territory (uncharted for me, that is), I can't be too sure. One of the destinations is a museum dedicated to the Mino-Owari Earthquake, the largest known inland earthquake in Japan. The other is an "onsen", or hot spring bath, though that three word description fails to convey how rich of an experience it is. I'm hoping there will still be some snow on the mountains when I go, though the simple fact that the onsen is in the mountains almost assures a great view. I'm hoping this next Saturday to head up there, but plans can always change. Either way, I'm hoping it'll make for a good day trip. There are Santa Cruz-like trees and mountains around there, so I may find a few reasons to hang around longer.
Interestingly enough, despite being about 45 minutes or an hour away, those places are still part of this city. I think that must be why a lot of emphasis is put on which ward or town you things are in.

Possible Earthquake

When one is half awake in bed,  it is sometimes tough to tell if the room is shaking or if you're just imagining it. So far, that's the case for me this morning. While I'm pretty sure there was an earthquake about half an hour ago, it is yet to be reported. However, in addition to the seemingly subtle swing of my bedroom, I also have some circumstantial evidence in my living room. One of my Beatles records I recently bought is now lying face down, a good seven inches below where it had been standing proudly last night. I'll keep an eye on the news, but I just figured I'd make it clear that everything is strawberry fields and golden slumbers over here.
Edit: After half a day nothing has been reported, so I think it's safe to say there was no earthquake. Maybe I was only sleeping...On a possibly related note, I found out last week that the largest known earthquake on the Japanese mainland occurred in 1891, known as the Mino-Owari Earthquake. Its epicenter was not only in this prefecture, but specifically in this city! More on that later!

Big City, Big Buildings

Living near the farms and mountains has taken its toll on me, as I felt compelled to snap a shot of this giant building in Nagoya two weekends ago. If I remember correctly, it's a music college.

Ramen Talk

Sorry I've been slacking a little bit with the updates, but I'll try to post twice a week if possible, with either photos and/or blabber. 
Here are some photos from a ramen restaurant I went to the other night. As you can see from the gigantic bright sign in front as well as the restaurant itself, it wasn't too hard to find this place. While such attention-drawers will often turn me off from a place, I usually try to give them a shot. Luckily for me, this one was a bull's eye.

The ramen pictured above was terrific. A classic case of something being better than expected (you know, with the glitzy sign and all). It was the spicy miso, and came with ground beef, onions, and bamboo shoots. The meal itself ended when I finished the noodles and toppings, and drank most of the soup. However, that bowl of ramen now remains with me as yet another inspiration to perfect my own bowl of ramen. I've been working at it, and though I've made a lot of progress, I still have a long road of many bowls ahead of me.

Q-Shoku

So far, after a month or so of teaching, I can say I have really enjoyed this job. I am excited to go to school everyday and look forward to what the day has to offer: from the fun lessons to the peculiar questions (coming from kids, and occasionally other teachers). If there's one part of my average day I have fallen in love with the most, it's the lunch (surprise, surprise).  Every lunch consists of rice/bread/noodles, meat/fish, soup, vegetables, a carton of milk, and a dessert (often fruit). Teachers also get a small cup of green tea. To attempt to balance this nutritional tray anymore would be to unbalance it. In addition, it is usually delicious, and at worst simply okay.
The school lunch is called 給食 (kyuu-shoku), which translates to "provided food". The name makes sense especially when you find out how it started. After the war, a lot of families couldn't afford lunches for their kids, so the government decided to provide everyone with a lunch at school. The purpose of this gradually changed from simply putting food in a belly to providing a nutritional meal.
Meals for all of the schools in the entire city are prepared in a nondescript building next to the mall, packed in travel containers, loaded onto delivery trucks, and delivered to schools in the late morning. The containers are then distributed onto carts, with each classroom getting a cart. Students take turns dishing out the food to their classmates everyday, and everyone eats lunch in the classroom together.
With everything being made in the same place, all of the schools in the city have the same thing for lunch. There's a calendar to help you keep track, so you know what you're going to get. The lack of choice would be a problem if it wasn't for incredible variety and previously mentioned high-quality of the food. How the quality remains so high on such a large scale is beyond me. Thinking about the amount of food needed to feed one school seems like a ton, I can't imagine a few dozen schools. With the great variety, I have been able to (and also somewhat forced) to try new things I otherwise would not have had. Mainly because I would never think of ordering them or because I have no idea where to actually get them. I've had fish a bunch of times already, but it's always a very different kind of fish. I don't know what restaurant or part of the grocery store I would go to to get whale, nor would I know how to prepare it. So in very many ways, the school lunch is forcing me out of my comfort zone, to the depths of the ocean, and beyond.. (contemporary Western notions of endangered species).
Healthy, delicious, cheap, filling, varied, and satisfying a cultural curiousity.

Weather Report

Until yesterday morning, we had gone two weeks without any snow. While it's been cold the whole time, you have to think that no snow is a harbinger of slightly warm weather in the coming weeks. Two years ago in Kyoto I arrived to a surprisingly cold city in late March, so I'm expecting a gradual improvement from this weather to that weather in the next month and a half. As tough as the cold can be at times, I'm getting more and more used to it, and was actually happy to see the snow again yesterday. It hasn't lost that appeal quite yet. It stopped snowing later in the day, but we'll see what this weekend brings. I teach at the school half an hour out into the mountains on Monday, and they usually have a white, fluffy parking lot.

More Snow

Outside today's kindergarten.

The Shinto gods next door to the kindergarten.

Scenery

This is from the parking lot of one of my schools. It's a twenty-minute drive north into the mountains, through a tunnel, and along a very cold looking river.

No Janitors, No Problem

Upon entering any of the schools I go to, rule number one is to take off your outdoor shoes and put on your indoor shoes or slippers. And while this is step one in keeping the school clean, step two is the cleaning period after lunchtime recess. All of the students and teachers pitch in with brooms and dustpans, trash bags and rags, with many hands stacking chairs and moving desks around. Of course every class has a few students who would rather chat or goof off in that time, but most seem to have a strong sense of responsibility to keep their school clean. Since most schools seem to operate this way, there is really no need for any janitors or cleaning people. There is, however, a utility worker at every school who keeps everything outside spic and span.
As a teacher, I of course join in with the students in the cleaning as well. I try to change up who I clean with, and a lot of times will base it on who I'm teaching the next period. However, certain classes seem to like me as a part of the cleaning crew, so I may end up sticking with them more often. I've been told by a few people, teachers and students alike, that I don't sweep the broom properly. The other American teacher said he's been told the same thing, but neither one of us is quite sure what we're doing wrong. If I ever find out, I'll let you guys know.

Space Heater, River, Car

 This is the space heater that my recruiter lent me. This has certainly been my lifeline, keeping my apartment above freezing temperatures.

 Here's a shot of the river just outside my apartment. I always manage to live near a river in Japan, probably because there are so many. It got a lot snowier in the days after this, but I figured this was a decent shot of the surroundings.









This is my beautiful car, parked at the laundromat. I have some shots of it full of snow on my other camera, but need to find the cable to connect it to my computer. It's a Daihatsu Mira, and a very basic version but equipped with tiny snow tires. Despite what this picture may show, this car is the easiest thing in the world to park. Also, this picture shows one of the rare occurrences where I park forward. It's a lot easier to park in reverse most places, but at this laundromat there's not as much of a choice since you're coming right off the street.

The Next Morning

I believe I left off my last post on what was Sunday night for me, and after what had been a pretty snowy day. Well, apparently that evening brought even more snow, and there was a nice, bumpy, slippery sheet of ice over every road. I woke up, hoping for a call or email saying school had been canceled, but nothing ever came. After many careful steps down the powdery stairs of my apartment building, I inched my way across town in the heavy traffic, with no one daring to go faster than 25 kilometers per hour. My small car, with its special yellow license plate designating it as an especially small car, can feel every bump in the road on a clear day. Monday's conditions allowed me to feel all of the bumps in the road, slips of the tires, and filled me with doubt as to whether or not I'd be able to get to the kindergarten. I eventually made it and was able to join the other teachers in the shoveling of the snow in the parking lot. It was actually my first time shoveling snow in my whole life, so it was pretty fun. Later when it stopped snowing, we took all the kids outside to play in the mounds and mounds of snow. Seeing as there was about two feet of snow evenly spread out across the playground, there was plenty for everyone. Plenty for a snowman, an igloo, a small mountain, and a dozen snowballs headed my direction. The next day, I learned that elementary school students have far better aim with their snowballs.

First Post from Gifu

Am I really in Gifu? Two short weeks ago I was in a warm, cozy southern California winter. No need for multiple layers of clothing, floor heaters, or hourly hot beverages. No icy roads or snow on the car, etc. etc. In these short two weeks here there have already been a few firsts for me, and one of them is seeing actual snow fall. I'm still in my "enjoying the snow" phase, so I'll do my best to appreciate this phase while it lasts. A week from now, I may be on the opposite end of the spectrum.
Up until a few days ago, it had simply been very cold here (below freezing temperatures, I may add). There'd be some snow on the ground in the mornings, but the roads would be clear and everything would go as planned. Gradually it started snowing more and more, and after the barrage of fluffy white pellets today, I'd be surprised if the snow gods have any ammunition left for tomorrow. I certainly hope not, as I have a long drive to one of my kindergartens in the morning. Growing up in a warm climate, I have no idea how much snow warrants a "snow day" or cancellation of school, so until I hear otherwise, the journey must go on.
Did I mention that I have just about the smallest car one can have on the road? It's great, it's a Daihatsu, I love it, it's the easiest thing in the world to park. With that said, no matter how good its snow tires are, I worry about it making it through all the snow that has built up.
Teaching so far has been a lot of fun. I'm teaching two days a week at various kindergartens, one day at an elementary school, and two days at a junior high school. As you might imagine, each age group is pretty different, so it's giving me a good idea of what I might like to teach in the long run. After only a week the jury is still out, so we'll see how it goes.
Thanks for reading this first post. There's really a bit more to report from here, but I figured I'd get this one out of the way first.