Slow Days

Well, the winter cold has left us, and the pre-rainy season warmth and clouds have descended. Every now and then, we get a really nice day (like last Sunday), but most days are either cloudy or wet. But at least it’s warm!

We haven’t been doing too much. In part, this is because I hurt my foot:But the bandage will come off on Thursday, so hopefully I’ll be back to normal—and running—then.

In the meantime, I’ve been reading lots of books (no reviews, sorry) and knitting some. I’ve made two hats for no babies in particular. The green one on the left was an attempt to use up that strange shade of green that I bought in a moment of weakness. Also, although I measured my row gauge, this hat still turned out shorter than I'd intended. I'll definitely have to work on that before I start making things like sweaters. The yellow one on the right was an attempt to sort out how one shapes a ribbed hat at the top. I did better than last time, but I wouldn’t say that I’ve figured this out this out totally. I also played with knitting a flower, which was hard, but turned out quite nicely.

On Saturday we went into Tokyo. I found a new place to buy used obi (kimono belts) for cheap.

We also found a decent Mexican restaurant. By this I mean Mexican food that is comparable to what one would find in Seattle, but nowhere near as good as what one can find in Southern California.

Also, we saw some dogs in Tokyo.Yes, those dogs are wearing sunglasses. Who knew?

Clifford is apparently doing a campaign for Tokyo Metro.

On Sunday, my friend Daniella and I dressed up in kimono. A kimono store here in Tsukuba was running a promotion where you could pay a little to dress up in a kimono and get your picture taken. The store was beautiful, and they did the whole dress-up thing, with all the kimono undergarments and wraps. Although I’d been told that wearing a kimono was uncomfortable, I didn’t find it to be so – although it was a warm, with all the layers on. This was really fun!

Sorry that these pictures are a little blurry. We don't have a scanner, so the above are pictures of pictures.

Pictures from the weekend

Although Hakodate was significantly cooler than Tsukuba, we had a wonderful time!

On Friday night we ate some special bean sweets from Sapporo, which is also on Hokkaido. Mike’s host father had just made the 5 hour train journey returning from a conference he’d been to during the week.

On Saturday we set off to see the major sights. We first did a little tour of the Western influence to be found in Hakodate (it was one of the first treaty ports).

We stated with a statue of Perry-san.

Then, we saw the old town hall (complete with a toilet once used by the Emperor).The Russian Orthodox Church (and accompanying sidewalk tile).Other interesting buildings, plus a great sign.Last, Mike’s old school (any resemblance to a reform school is purely coincidental, I guess)

Hakodate also has a big 5-pointed fort in the middle of the city. I couldn’t get the whole thing from the viewing tower, but these pictures should give you a good sense. Also, it was super-beautiful since the cherry blossoms were in bloom.

Hakodate also has a very famous night view.

The day view of the beach wasn’t so bad, either.

Squid boats (squid is big business there)The district where Mike’s host parents currently live is called Toi. The mascot of the district is an octopus named Topas. Here is a flag with Topas reminding drivers about traffic safety. You know, because nothing says traffic safety like an octopus with a snorkel.

Mike’s host parents have two very cute dogs. Here are some dog shots. You knew I couldn’t resist, right?

This was also a weekend of two firsts. My first sea urchin sushi, and my first time seeing a recycle bin where you could recycle your bento box.

World Cup and Hakodate

In honor of Japan's recent announcement of its 23 man roster for the upcoming world cup soccer tournament, Kate and I have created an online soccer picks league. We encourage you all to join-- it is free, quite easy, not much of a time committment, and the prize--glory--is priceless.

To join, go here. Click on "Germany Cup Pick'em," and then create an account or sign in to your existing account. Create an entry (a clever name is required), and then click "create or join group." Our group name is "Soccer for Breakfast" and our password is "tsukuba."

Join up!

On an unrelated note, we just got back from a weekend visiting my host family in Hokkaido, the northern-most island of Japan. My host mother actually attended our wedding, so I know that many of our readers got to meet her. She is doing very well. She now has two dogs, Bibi and Koko, who are quite sweet. Her and my host father both have pictures of the dogs on their cell phones.

I hadn't been to this particular city in Hokkaido, called Hakodate, since 1998, and it was really nice to be back. The city is quitely charming, and it brought back good memories of the summer I spent there. Kate took a picture of the school where I took Japanese, framing it in such a way as to make it appear to be a reform school. I'm sure she will post that picture shortly, along with lots of other good pictures of our weekend.

Mother’s Day

Today in art we made crafts for Mother’s Day. The project was a small painted pot, into which the students would put IOU coupons for various helpful things plus flowers made from construction paper cut-outs of their hands.

Explaining the IOU coupon thing was a little hard. I caught one student writing a coupon that said only “1 hour be quiet.” So we worked to re-word that so it would seem more like a gift for the mom rather than a punishment ticket her child had issued her.

The pots turned out really well, though.Also, I missed volunteer appreciation day a few weeks ago, but I got a card today. Is this not the sweetest thing ever?Speaking of Mother’s Day (a big hug to our moms!), we are off to Hakodate on the island of Hokkaido (the northernmost island in Japan) to visit one of Mike’s former host mothers. We’ll be back Monday evening.

Peony Garden

Today was a beautiful and warm spring day. To celebrate, we went with some of our friends to have a picnic in this garden that featured lots of peonies. The garden was about a 20 minute drive from our house.

The peonies were simply beautiful. I had no idea that peonies came in so many colors.

The rest of the garden was quite nice as well.

After the peony garden, we also stopped at this public park that had some fields of poppies. However, we were a bit early for most of the poppies, so maybe we’ll try to go back in a few weeks.

And now, since you've made it through what might a be pretty boring post, I offer you a little dessert:

Rafting

Yesterday was the second day of a three-day holiday period here (Constitution Granting Anniversary Day, Holiday We Don’t Know, Children’s Day). We spent the day rafting to celebrate the birthday of one of the friends we’ve met in Tsukuba. The whole day was actually a surprise party for him, so that made it even more fun. A group of 15 of us Tsukuba at 7:40am and didn’t arrive back until 10pm. We were joined by two more people in Tokyo, making us a gangly group of 17 gaijin with a few Japanese folks thrown in.

It was a long day, but it was really fun.

Since the area around Tsukuba is pretty flat, we had to travel pretty far. We rode four trains each way. We headed to the area near Mount Hodosan, to a town called Nagatoro (in the Chichibu region). We rafted down the Arakawa River with a rafting company called Kanute.

We were also fully equipped with wetsuits, helmets, and lifejackets. We looked pretty funny.

But what was a little strange was that the same stretch of the river also had these traditional flat-bottomed wooden pole boats that were offering rides. The people in these boats were dressed in normal clothes without life jackets and had their kids and cameras with them. Here’s a link with pictures of the river and said boats (you have to scroll down).

The rafting was fun and very scenic: limestone cliffs topped with bamboo groves. We had just a beautiful day, since it wasn’t too hot or humid, but just beautifully clear and sunny. Luckily, for me, our guide called out the commands in English, since my Japanese is neither that good nor that quick.

We also passed a large campground as paddled down the river. I don’t know why, but I was really surprised that there was such a large campground – and this being a holiday week, it was totally full. In part, I think my surprise comes from the fact that the climate here is largely not so conducive to outdoor pursuits. Except, perhaps, for the months of May and October.

The Arakawa River is a pretty leisurely river, although I hear that the river really rages three days after a typhoon. I don’t intend to be around to check that claim out, though. My experience yesterday was a bit of a contrast with my rafting experiences last summer. Last June, I went rafting with my cousin and his family down the Cache La Poudre, in Northern Colorado. That was definitely a rushing, raging river – or at least the closest I’ve come to being on one. My cousin is actually a guide on that river, and having him guide us and tell us stories as we paddled was really fun. And I just love the scenery of the American West, with its pine trees, craggy mountains, and steep valleys. I feel a little guilty that Mike missed that day last summer, since it was so much fun and since he had so much fun yesterday.