The Beginning of Spring

Hey everyone!

So, Spring has sprung, and you know what that means...the cherry blossoms, sakura, are blooming! The 花見 ('hanami', literally flower-viewing) obsession has been sweeping the nation! It's hard to see, but the map below shows when the sakura are in full bloom in each specific region. The sakura in Okinawa, not shown, bloom sometime early in February due to it's warm climate.

Hanami Map

And, when I say 'hanami obsession', I mean the obsession with hanami parties has been sweeping the nation. Japanese people love to have parties under the sakura, where they usually eat bento (or some of my favorite Japanese desserts: dango and manjuu), drink sake, and enjoy each other's company.

Top: Delicious, delicious dango. These are made with rice flour, and are similar in flavor to mochi. Bottom: Dango Daikazoku from Clannad. Why the picture? Because they're friggin' adorable.

Manjuu! The outside: flour, rice powder, and sometimes buckwheat. The inside: boiled, mashed red beans. Yum!!

In fact, these parties are so popular that there is a famous Japanese proverb that jokes: 花より団子*** (hana yori dango), which, more or less, literally translates to: dango before flowers. Normally, this proverb means that some people prefer functional/useful items over decorative items, like flowers. In the hanami context, this can mean that some people, rather than going to the parks to see the flowers, are more interested in eating (dango), drinking, and socializing at the parties that occur under the sakura trees. My friend said that she loves drinking beer with friends under the sakura. The relationship between alcohol and sakura is further exemplified by another one of my co-workers who told me that "[you] appreciate the flowers more when you're drunk".

...I think I'll just take his word for it. >.>;;

Anyways, while I think sakura are beautiful, I've been waiting for the tall grass to come back! Call me crazy, but I'd even say that I like this better than the sakura I've seen. Am I becoming a country bumpkin? Perhaps...but there's something really soothing about sitting near a patch of this stuff, listening to the rustling of the leaves as they sway with the wind.

I think I can understand how Pokemon trainers can't see small Pokemon in the tall grass. I'd probably step on a Caterpie or two if I decided to waltz on in there.

Also, I hadn't given much thought to it, but when I played Harvest Moon, flowers popped up all over the place. It's totally the same in Japan too (go figure)! I'm not sure how they pop up, since they grow alone in random places...but they sure are pretty ^.^

Well hey there, little fella!

Hanami season is almost over in Nagano right now, but I'll soon be making the trip up to Aomori, where I'll go hanami with Ryan at Hirosaki Castle. It's one of the best spots to view the sakura, so I'll be sure to bring my camera this time around. Look forward to some amazing pictures in the near future! :]

***Edit: The food dango is actually written with the kanji 団子. Before, I mistakenly used the wrong kanji 男子. This is because the name of a very popular Japanese drama is called 花より男子 (Hana Yori Dango: Boys over Flowers). The kanji 男子 is normally pronounced "danshi", not "dango". This irregular reading is used in the title of the drama as a play on words. Japanese people really REALLY love their puns...

Nanshin Tours

In order to help the newcomers get to know the lazy towns in the Nanshin area of Nagano, a local English guide club (Ina English Guide Club, IEGC for short) has organized multiple events since our arrival in August.

The first tour was the day after the Illuminations Festival at Oshiba Kogen. After the Illuminations Festival finished, we slept on-site in a "bungalow". Since it was October, it was just starting to get cold...and these cabins were not very insulated. I was able to keep my blanket for most of the night, but my neighbor took it away from me while we were sleeping.

*shakes fist in the air*

The Bungalow

Anyways, after a really chilly and uncomfortable night, the IEGC took us to visit a town in Shiojiri called Narai-juku. Narai-juku is a town nestled in the Kiso Valley, and it is known as being one of the stops along an old trade route (called the Nakasendo) from the Edo Period that stretches from modern-day Tokyo to Kyoto. This place is one of Japan's Nationally-designated Architectural Preservation Sites, so they've tried to keep it as close to how it was in the Edo Period.

They tried, but if you look carefully, there are traces of modern technology everywhere, effectively ruining the authenticity. The roads are paved (cars often travel through the town), they disguise fluorescent lightbulbs with traditional box lamps, and some of the non-shop buildings  definitely didn't look like they were from the Edo Period.

It was pretty, but a bit more touristy than I had expected. I made it a point to show this place to Ryan (as it was one of the only landmarks in the area), but most of it was closed that day. Bummer. :/ Anyways, after the IEGC tour of the area, we reunited for lunch, called it a day, and went back to our respective cities.

This man had a very bad case of Parkinson's, but he was still able to practice calligraphy! Inspiring.

The next tour was a mochi-making tour. I was super excited about this one because 1) mochi is delicious, 2) Ryan had done it before and told me about it, and 3) we could eat the mochi that we made! Woohoo!!!

This tour was the day after my trekking/McRefugee-ing through Nagano City, and I totally forgot to set my alarm when I got back to Komagane. Somehow, I managed to oversleep through the actual mochi-making part of the tour, but, thankfully, I was still invited to eat the mochi lunch that everyone else had made. Eating the delicious fruits of everyone else's labor...I probably should've felt worse about it, but the mochi was just too delicious! lol

I hope I get the opportunity to make mochi again when I'm in Aomori! ^^;;;

Left: Black Sesame Mochi, Top: Kinako Mochi, Right: Red Bean Mochi

Ozoni Soup (soup  with mochi in it)

Mochi with daikon

Well, that concludes this post on tours that I've been on. These tours have been interesting, but they often remind me of how uncool and sleepy my area is. :/ I really can't wait to get out of here and move to Aomori! >.< 

SWAN Project

Earlier this month, I was commissioned by my Prefectural Board of Education to do some work outside of my base and visit school. They wanted me to be a part of a special program called the SWAN Project, which helps prep young, skilled winter-sport athletes for becoming future Olympians! While the premise of this program is pretty cool by itself, you may wonder how I would fit into the picture. While I do enjoy snowboarding, winter sports as a whole are not exactly my specialty...

Well, supposedly, the Prefectural BOE determined that I am a "highly-skilled athlete" at the "national level" based on the All-American soccer accolades that I put on my JET application. Cool! (Yes, they actually read your application!! lol) But...why would they want a soccer athlete to help out with the SWAN Project, which is for winter sports athletes?

They wanted to host a soccer clinic for these kids!

Why soccer???

Well, beats me! Everyone I've asked has been equally baffled about the reasoning.

The main role of the project was to give the kids more exposure to English in the context of a sports-related activity. While I'm not sure why soccer was chosen, I'm really glad that my soccer accomplishments in college (and my native English ability) helped me earn this opportunity!

Anyways, I traveled up to Nagano City early in the morning on a Wednesday for some sight-seeing before coaching these kids for about an hour each in the evening. After spending an awkward morning/afternoon with my caretaker, she decided to let me know (about 2 hours before the event) that these sessions would be broadcasted on national television.

You know, no pressure or anything... ; _ ;

The first session was with elementary school-aged kids. They wanted me to speak only in English, which, alone, is almost impossible for elementary school kids to understand. In addition, I haven't coached anyone anything besides goalkeeping stuff, so it was a real learning experience for me! I had to test out what worked for which kids, how much the kids understood me, how to efficiently transition between drills, and how to effectively utilize my assistants. It was all very confusing...and terrifying, but it ended, and the kids seemed like they had a fun time.

The second session was with a smaller mixture of junior high school and high school. It went much more smoothly this time around. In fact, better than smoothly! Some of the kids were doing some crazy diving headers, full-court shots, and dribbled really well!! After it was over, I was told that some of these kids are on their school soccer teams. How they find the time for doing after-school club activities and for participating in the SWAN Project activities, I have no idea...but they're pretty incredible kids. Anyways, the kids this time around had a blast, and they even gave me flowers after the activities ended!

Just before I was about to leave the event area, one of the more boisterous high schoolers came up to me and said (in English):

Him: "My name is Kitano ********. I had a lot of fun today!

Me: Thank you!! I had fun too! You are very good at soccer!

Him: :D Really?!? I am LEGEND?!

Me: (LOL) Yes, yes, you ARE a legend!

Him: ^___^ I play Skeleton! I will win a gold medal, so please remember me!

I told him that I'd definitely remember and wished him good luck! He understood, said thank you, and ran off with the biggest smile on his face. This totally gives me an incentive to watch Skeleton during the upcoming Winter Olympics. 応援します ("ouen shimasu": I'm cheering for you)、Kitano-kun!!! p(*＾-＾*)q

Due to a mandatory High School ALT Conference in Nagano City that Friday, I spent all of Thursday and Friday morning wandering around Nagano City. Being by myself without a place to stay was actually quite liberating. I could do whatever I wanted, speak as much Japanese as I wanted, eat whatever and wherever I wanted (including the famous MosBurger below), and study as much as I wanted! Without a place to stay or a schedule to abide by, it forced me to get some sun and go places that I might not have otherwise gone to :P It was easily the most productive and fun day that I'd had in a long time.

MosBurger's namesake: the MosBurger. I had to test the rumors going around that this place was better than In-N-Out. They're definitely not better, but they're still pretty delicious and praise-worthy, despite the mess that eating one causes.

I had no hotel reservation for that night, so I became what is called a "McRefugee". In other words, I stayed at a McDonalds for shelter through the night. Though it was supposed to be open 24 hours, everyone was ushered out at 3am for 'maintenance'. So, I wandered around the city for about 2 hours until 5am, when they opened again. It was really cold out (it even started raining at one point, much to my chagrin), so I visited pretty much all the convenience stores in the area for warmth ^^; (Kristin earned the title "Conbini Connoisseur" *insert JRPG achievement jingle here*)

After that grueling sleepless night, I somehow made it to (and stayed awake throughout) the meeting. Once it was over, I hopped on the next train back down south to Komagane. I thought I'd get some sleep on the way back, but I ended up making a friend with another JET in the Iida area (south of where I live), so I guess it was all worth it. :P