The smell of smoke and a slight haze is filling the air around here nowadays as rice fields are being harvested, and chaff is being burned. Sanda means 3 fields. I guess it's like the names "Strathfield" or "Marsfield" back home. The fields lie uncultivated in winter fallow as the cold starts to come on. Yes, in just these few weeks, the temperature has dropped noticably. The other night I was really cold! Soon should come the strong autumn colours I've been hanging out for...(I can't wait to see Kyoto in orange and red).
Well to sum up the last 10 days...
If you know me even semi-well after reading my next anecdote you will either shake your head as if to say "this would only happen to Ian" or you will nod in recognition - "yes, this is Ian". Last weekend I lost the key to my apartment somewhere between Sanda and Osaka.
I had been having a great day in Osaka, enjoying the relief of seeing a familiar face - catching up with my friend Mizuho (wife of Brad, for those who know them... they are among the best people you will ever meet!). It was when I reached the door to my apartment at midnight that I reached into my pocket to feel my pants and my thigh... and that's it. Whaaaa!!????
No key. No more trains. No phone numbers... except Mizuho's! Ah! I walked to the next station waiting for a passing cab to take me back to where I'd bought a can of coffee. I wasn't thinking too clearly - I was imagining I might have dropped the key, (yes that "nifty credit card thing" I was bragging about previously), when I pulled out my wallet at the vending machine. But no cabs came along and there were no public phones along the way. I went to a police station which had a sign announcing "police on duty - feel free to come in". So I walked in and there was noone there. I tried to use their phone but I couldn't get a line out. Anyway, I found a pay phone and got through to Mizuho. After some to-ing and fro-ing (I didn't even know my address!) she was able to ring for a 24 hr locksmith!
What a legend. Anyway, I walked back to the apartment and at 3am this car pulled up. It looked like a middle aged couple and their 20 something son. But then the older guy (he would have been great as a yakuza boss - really hard feaures, bryl-creamed hair) comes up and says "Are you Ian Young?" and upon confirmation they started getting gear out of the car. Three of them! The poor woman just seemed to have to stand there with a clip board and look worried and irritated. The young guy put on a caving headlamp and set to work on the door. After the lock refused to be picked (an awkward 10 minutes or so - me standing there sheepishly with 3 people I've dragged out of bed at 2:30am from who knows where) they pulled out the big guns. The young guy unscrewed the spyhole and then fed this armature thing through the hole. After measuring the door up he then levered the latch on the inside of the door open. I was impressed. I tried not to show it too much though for fear of just being snarled at. He was nice about it though and wished me a good night. The old guy had the look of having seen a thousand hapless key-losers at 3am before and the lady just looked plain miserable and wishing for her pyjamas. I apologised and shut the door, safe in the knowledge that I live in a veritable fortress! It takes 3 highly trained people to break in here. Well, one locksmith and 2 sleep-deprived company people.
The week went by building up from a shocker of a start to a good finish. Some classes are hard work, some I really genuinely enjoy. Anyway, the weekend came and so Sunday I headed to Osaka again and met with a pen friend, Tomoko. It was great to meet her after some months of exchanging emails - kind of weird, but cool. We had okonomiyaki for lunch which is a kind of cabbage and noodle pancake with different meats mixed in, topped with sauce, mayonnaise and bonito flakes. Oishii!
I then went to Nishinomiya Kitaguchi, to an upstairs dance studio to go to church! Nishinomiya Crossroad Bible Fellowship. It's a group of around 35 people - mostly 20-30 somethings and a few young families. They are mostly Japanese, but there are a few foreigners too - Americans and a Malaysian. The service was long but good - a girl who had accepted Christ a month ago was baptised after she talked about how she'd previously gone through life wanting to die. She was so happy now that she knew God's love, it was great to see. They were really warm and friendly people and you could tell that they know how to have fun. They even offer hula dancing lessons! Keiko, the teacher is a half-Japanese girl out from Hawaii. Anyway, it was great to spend time with these guys over church and then with some of them over dinner. I'm thinking I might make this church my home.
This morning I went to my first Japanese lesson here. It's a fantastic deal. I have my own teacher to myself for 2 hours a week for 6 months for 2000yen. That's next to nothing! My teacher is a really nice lady named Kinu. I'm going to try to be really nice to her, as she is pretty much volunteering her time for me. We spent the time today just generally chatting about ourselves, so that she could gauge my proficiency. Needless to say, we spoke mostly in English!
After class I took up an invitation to join the NZ teacher from my school and 2 Aussie high school exchange students (from the Blue Mountains) to visit their host school. It was a strange experience - these girls have got it made - there's only 2 subjects that they have to attend, I think. Anyway, it was interesting to feel the atmosphere of the place - friendly but regimented. The uniforms are fairly military in style. I had curry rice from the school canteen - a bargain at 230 yen!
Sorry to go on, but I met this funny staunch anti-Bush American guy at the supermarket across the tracks from my place. He's been here for 24 years and has never bothered to learn Japanese! Hard to believe. Anyway, we had a good chat and I could read into what he was saying and what he wasn't that he's been through some really heavy times. He said that he hated a lot of years spent here, but he should thank Bush for making him enjoy Japan that much more by the sheer fact that he's not in the States! Anyway, I hope to hang out again with this self-proclaimed lapsed "Mormon who drinks, swears and is thinking about messing around too" (he was joking about the last bit). He seems like a really thoughtful, interesting and honest guy... if not a little crazy.
I'm stoked that I've met so many nice people this weekend.
Well, as good as it is here, I've forfeited certain privileges in coming to Japan and have already missed some big milestones. I've missed the weddings of 2 good friends (hi Nick and Sparrow if you're reading this... if you are, why are you!?) and the birth of my new nephew, Aled! A cute kid I'm told, and I can see that too from the photos (thanks fam!). Things like these really make you aware of the distance. Anyway, spam you later...
Well to sum up the last 10 days...
If you know me even semi-well after reading my next anecdote you will either shake your head as if to say "this would only happen to Ian" or you will nod in recognition - "yes, this is Ian". Last weekend I lost the key to my apartment somewhere between Sanda and Osaka.
I had been having a great day in Osaka, enjoying the relief of seeing a familiar face - catching up with my friend Mizuho (wife of Brad, for those who know them... they are among the best people you will ever meet!). It was when I reached the door to my apartment at midnight that I reached into my pocket to feel my pants and my thigh... and that's it. Whaaaa!!????
No key. No more trains. No phone numbers... except Mizuho's! Ah! I walked to the next station waiting for a passing cab to take me back to where I'd bought a can of coffee. I wasn't thinking too clearly - I was imagining I might have dropped the key, (yes that "nifty credit card thing" I was bragging about previously), when I pulled out my wallet at the vending machine. But no cabs came along and there were no public phones along the way. I went to a police station which had a sign announcing "police on duty - feel free to come in". So I walked in and there was noone there. I tried to use their phone but I couldn't get a line out. Anyway, I found a pay phone and got through to Mizuho. After some to-ing and fro-ing (I didn't even know my address!) she was able to ring for a 24 hr locksmith!
What a legend. Anyway, I walked back to the apartment and at 3am this car pulled up. It looked like a middle aged couple and their 20 something son. But then the older guy (he would have been great as a yakuza boss - really hard feaures, bryl-creamed hair) comes up and says "Are you Ian Young?" and upon confirmation they started getting gear out of the car. Three of them! The poor woman just seemed to have to stand there with a clip board and look worried and irritated. The young guy put on a caving headlamp and set to work on the door. After the lock refused to be picked (an awkward 10 minutes or so - me standing there sheepishly with 3 people I've dragged out of bed at 2:30am from who knows where) they pulled out the big guns. The young guy unscrewed the spyhole and then fed this armature thing through the hole. After measuring the door up he then levered the latch on the inside of the door open. I was impressed. I tried not to show it too much though for fear of just being snarled at. He was nice about it though and wished me a good night. The old guy had the look of having seen a thousand hapless key-losers at 3am before and the lady just looked plain miserable and wishing for her pyjamas. I apologised and shut the door, safe in the knowledge that I live in a veritable fortress! It takes 3 highly trained people to break in here. Well, one locksmith and 2 sleep-deprived company people.
The week went by building up from a shocker of a start to a good finish. Some classes are hard work, some I really genuinely enjoy. Anyway, the weekend came and so Sunday I headed to Osaka again and met with a pen friend, Tomoko. It was great to meet her after some months of exchanging emails - kind of weird, but cool. We had okonomiyaki for lunch which is a kind of cabbage and noodle pancake with different meats mixed in, topped with sauce, mayonnaise and bonito flakes. Oishii!
I then went to Nishinomiya Kitaguchi, to an upstairs dance studio to go to church! Nishinomiya Crossroad Bible Fellowship. It's a group of around 35 people - mostly 20-30 somethings and a few young families. They are mostly Japanese, but there are a few foreigners too - Americans and a Malaysian. The service was long but good - a girl who had accepted Christ a month ago was baptised after she talked about how she'd previously gone through life wanting to die. She was so happy now that she knew God's love, it was great to see. They were really warm and friendly people and you could tell that they know how to have fun. They even offer hula dancing lessons! Keiko, the teacher is a half-Japanese girl out from Hawaii. Anyway, it was great to spend time with these guys over church and then with some of them over dinner. I'm thinking I might make this church my home.
This morning I went to my first Japanese lesson here. It's a fantastic deal. I have my own teacher to myself for 2 hours a week for 6 months for 2000yen. That's next to nothing! My teacher is a really nice lady named Kinu. I'm going to try to be really nice to her, as she is pretty much volunteering her time for me. We spent the time today just generally chatting about ourselves, so that she could gauge my proficiency. Needless to say, we spoke mostly in English!
After class I took up an invitation to join the NZ teacher from my school and 2 Aussie high school exchange students (from the Blue Mountains) to visit their host school. It was a strange experience - these girls have got it made - there's only 2 subjects that they have to attend, I think. Anyway, it was interesting to feel the atmosphere of the place - friendly but regimented. The uniforms are fairly military in style. I had curry rice from the school canteen - a bargain at 230 yen!
Sorry to go on, but I met this funny staunch anti-Bush American guy at the supermarket across the tracks from my place. He's been here for 24 years and has never bothered to learn Japanese! Hard to believe. Anyway, we had a good chat and I could read into what he was saying and what he wasn't that he's been through some really heavy times. He said that he hated a lot of years spent here, but he should thank Bush for making him enjoy Japan that much more by the sheer fact that he's not in the States! Anyway, I hope to hang out again with this self-proclaimed lapsed "Mormon who drinks, swears and is thinking about messing around too" (he was joking about the last bit). He seems like a really thoughtful, interesting and honest guy... if not a little crazy.
I'm stoked that I've met so many nice people this weekend.
Well, as good as it is here, I've forfeited certain privileges in coming to Japan and have already missed some big milestones. I've missed the weddings of 2 good friends (hi Nick and Sparrow if you're reading this... if you are, why are you!?) and the birth of my new nephew, Aled! A cute kid I'm told, and I can see that too from the photos (thanks fam!). Things like these really make you aware of the distance. Anyway, spam you later...
posted by Ian at 5:30 PM
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