In the U.S. there is a fake/satirical newspaper called “The Onion”. There would be a new issue every week, and back in 2006 when I lived in Chicago this would be my reading material on the “not so bad” Chicago public transit. One of the fake journalists, his moniker was Jim Anchower, would always begin his column the same way: “Hola amigos...I know it’s been a long time since I rapped at ya…” Sometimes he would have columns in succeeding weeks so he could not have possibly “rapped” at us any sooner; still he would repeat the same line. Anyways, to make a short story long:
Hola amigos. What’s good? I know I haven’t rapped at ya in a while but I’ve been wearing the sheep’s, wolf’s, and shepherd’s clothing. Finally the self loathing has caught up to me to start writing again. The Month of May could not be summed up in any simple manner. It combined the elements of opportunity, capability, luck, and teamwork to create a pulsating memory that will shine somewhere in my head forever.
This will be my first blog from my new apartment. After some disagreements between me and my former downstairs neighbor over the appropriate levels of walking loudness I decided to make a move. And to be fair I ended up buying a guitar which he REALLY was not happy with. The sweet sounds of guitar playing were met with him smashing something on my floor and telling me to SHUT UP! Before I left we had a stare down, which included me looking down unto a middle aged Japanese man in his dirty white t-shirt and whitey-tighties underwear.
So here are some photo albums from my travels in May. As I mentioned previously I went to a beautiful area in Japan called Hakone which has mountains, ryokan (traditional Japanese hotels), and onsen (famous hot springs usually located at the ryokans), and a lake which includes a ride on a kind of pirate ship. You could also see Mt.Fuji on a clear day.
The second album is from a festival in downtown Tokyo called the Kanda Matsuri. I was actually a part of the festival. The big wooden thing we are carrying around is a Mikoshi. Only local people from specific neighborhoods of Tokyo are allowed to participate in this festival. Guillaume and I were invited the night before the festival by Natsuko. The urgency, timing, and vagueness of her invite suggested this would be something special. It also happened to be on my birthday:
Natsuko: “…so do you want to go to a Japanese festival tomorrow?”
Me: “Ok, what type of festival is it?”
Natsuko: “uh, well I can’t really describe it right now but you have to tell me if you will be able to make it. I need to find people.”
Me: “Can you be more specific at all?”
Natsuko: (audible huff of frustration) “No, just tell me if you can make it. Trust me you want to go this.”
Me: “Ok, but I might be tired we’re going out for my birthday tonight”
Natsuko: (another audible huff) “Ok you have to be there at 11…do you have tight black pants?”
Me: “Ummm no”
Natsuko: “You don’t have tight black pants?”
Me: “Nooooo…”
Natsuko: (huff) “Fine, we’ll have to find you guys some tight black pants”
Hakone
Kanda Festival/Birthday
You know, I reflect on the events that led up to those days above and it is a very obvious deterrent to seclusion. Seclusion is the easy, safe path and I think my life has been a steady fixture of caution and control punctuated by outbursts of active action. And honestly many actions of mine would be considered incredibly stupid. But every now and then when the outcome is good, the stupidity is instead looked at as bold decisiveness.
Of course living abroad is not all peaches and cream. For the first time I’m experiencing a mild level of homesickness. Missing all the usual 3f’s, family, friends, and food (were you expecting somethings else?). And somewhat obscurely I miss my culture. Being able to speak colloquially is something you don’t recognize you do until you can’t. Maybe this blog is an escape for me to do just that. So I’ve been adapting, eating McDonald’s once a week and cooking some more familiar meals for myself. Skyping, sending emails.
The point here is that no matter how hard to you want to assimilate to a new world, you will always be where you came from. And it’s ok to maintain that part of yourself. Just don’t let it turn into seclusion. And also, don’t be afraid to be a little stupid…I mean bold.
There are no huge plans for the next couple months which actually is a welcome blank canvass. Instead of trying to replicate a beautiful painting which has been done many times before, these next months will be an improvised exploration of Japan. Stay tuned!
Jon In Japan 