Testing Testing: We're Back

Sorry for the neglect. I've been really busy! Not with work, actually, since as my friends here all know I have the single cushiest posting on the JET Program and only ACTUALLY work about four hours a week, and two of those probably involve playing games, drinking tea and eating cookies or candy with my elementary schoolers. The remainder of my work hours (40 a week) are spent surfing the internet in the Yuri Chu teachers' room.

Dave, I hope you're taking notes on how to treat an employee. ;-)

At any rate, for all the idleness of my gainful unemployment, I try to compensate on my days off...of which I also have an excessive number compared to other JETs in the area it seems. Consequently I've been traveling quite a bit. Destinations include Akita City, Odate, and last weekend, a journey to Kyoto and Osaka via Tokyo. To get the trip report type stuff out of the way, here's the scoop on Kyoto and Osaka, and then we'll get into my latest reflections on Japan and the experience of living here.

I took the Akita Komachi shinkansen (bullet train) from Akita City to Tokyo, where I transferred to the Nozomi shinkansen to Kyoto. Because I hadn't reserved a seat in advance, I ended up standing (well really sitting perched on my suitcase) in the compartment between two cars, crammed in with Tokyo salarymen who were all drinking, smoking, playing Nintendo DS, or in many cases passing out leaning against the wall. One could, I suppose, refer to this as a "cultural experience". I call it simply hilarious, since I paid 120 dollars to sit on my suitcase for two and a half hours inhaling smoke and surrounded by drunk Japanese businessmen. God bless the land of the rising sun.

Since we had planned very last minute everything was booked up hotel-wise in both Kyoto AND Osaka, but a friend and fellow Seattle JET who lives in Osaka (George) generously sorted out with his landlady for me and my travel partner, Elliott, to stay in his apartment building's guest room. So upon arriving in Kyoto I took a local train to Osaka, where I met up with Mari in Osaka Station. George was busy that evening, so his neighbor/friend/senpai Sam met up with me and Mari. He showed us to our temporary home (his and George's building) and then he, Mari and I went out for some izakaya (a Japanese pub serving small plates). Near their apartment exists a wondrous place known as the 280 - a modern fusion izakaya where EVERYTHING costs only 280 yen. Want some beef skewers? 280 yen. A huge beer? 280 yen. How about some fried cheese with butter on top that you push inside with your chopsticks to melt? 280 yen. Oh and by the way let the last item be a clue - leave behind your illusions about the refinement and healthfulness of Japanese food. If it can be eaten, it can be found in Japan deep fried, slathered in mayonnaise, topped with butter, and/or covered in a thick sugary sauce. Japanese people love fried anything; fried chicken, fried potatoes, fried cheese (even though they hate cheese), fried croquettes, fried pork loin, fried fish, fried fritters, fried vegetables, fried squid, fried meatballs, fried tofu, fried boiled quail eggs, fried fish cakes, fried hot dogs, fried onion, fried shrimp. If you can eat it, they have breaded it, fried it, topped it with mayonnaise, Worcestershire and skipjack tuna flakes. Japan even has multiple WORDS for fried foods, depending on the exact style of frying. 天ぷら, or tempura, is probably the best known outside of the country - originally Portuguese, it's a light panko batter with a pale yellow color. Usually applied to veggies like Japanese pumpkin, shiso leaf, etc, as well as the famous tempura shrimp, though I have also had tempura squid which is quite good. Next is カツ, or katsu, a slightly heavier, more brown-looking breading usually used on meats like chicken or pork. They also have フライ, or furai (katakana pronunciation of fry), which is the heaviest breading you'll likely find in Japan. They also have 唐揚げ, or karaage, a special soy-sauce layered technique of breading used primarily for chicken. Karaage is a popular dish at many izakaya. Lest you think we were done, they also have many kinds of stir-fries and shallow fried dishes, including yakisoba, fried rice, gyoza, and pan-fried chicken or fish. And while I am on the topic, Japanese people are OBSESSED with mayonnaise. I mean OBSESSED. You will find mayo on hamburgers, teriyaki, takoyaki (octopus fritters), pizza, okonomiyaki, sandwiches, salads (potato salad, pasta salad, tuna salad and egg salad are very popular), as salad dressing, as a sauce on pasta, and as a dip for fried chicken, French fries, and pretty much anything else including raw veggies. So much for the myth that the Japanese live forever due to a healthy diet.

If living like a Japanese person ensures longevity, I should probably start smoking like a chimney, drinking beer like water, and sucking down deep-fried foods and mayo as if I were a child freshly escaped from Bosnia.

At any rate, the next morning I took the train into Kyoto and met up with Elliott. We then went sightseeing, including Kiyomizudera and Sanjusangendo, both famous Kyoto sights. Sanjusangendo contains 1,001 statues of the Buddha Kannon, and many National Treasure statues of Buddhist gods and goddesses. Kiyomizudera is a beautiful temple, and it is said that if you drink the clear waters there you will have long life and great beauty.

For dinner we found a Spanish restaurant, and while we were having a discussion about grammar differences between English, Japanese and Chinese, a Chinese man from two tables away walked over, sat down and began chatting us up. He reminded me of nobody more than Professor Hsieh, one of my favorite teachers and mentors! That night we went out with Mari and George in Shinsaibashi in Osaka. We visited Zerro, a gaijin bar featuring a Corona-and-lime foosball table, before going to Bamboo, a Middle Eastern restaurant owned by an Israeli. We shared lamb kebabs, good conversation, and hookah. After Bamboo, we went for karaoke. We stayed late enough to miss the last train, so we just stayed up all night singing to take the first train home the next morning! When I told my JTE, Ms Sasaki, this story, she told me I am like a Japanese college student. Whether that's good or bad, I'm not sure.


The next day we got a late start due to our late night, so the only Kyoto sight Elliott and I managed on Sunday was Ginkakuji, or the Silver Temple. It was raining, but still beautiful! We had the best ramen I've had in Japan for lunch, and discovered a French cafe on our way home. With French radio playing in the background, we enjoyed coffee, beer and the best breads I've had since France!

That night we took it easy, just going for a few drinks and some good eats at a local pub. Mari and I shared several small plates, including a mochi cheese that was just yummy! Elliott was tired so he went home early, but Mari and I went with George to the 280 to keep hanging out a while longer. For the record, ice-cream filled frozen strawberries for 280 yen a plate were a FABULOUS idea, Mari!

Monday, our final day and day of departure, Elliott and I went to Kinkakuji, the legendary Golden Temple. Because all the train station lockers were taken, we had to drag our suitcases along for the trip! I'm sure we looked absurd! But the Golden Temple was as beautiful as can be, and we really enjoyed our visit. Even our heavy luggage couldn't ruin the experience!


Finally, exhausted but happy, we caught the Nozomi shinkansen back to Tokyo (two and a half more hours sitting on a suitcase...no seats available...), where Elliott and I parted ways. He boarded the Tohoku shink to Yamagata, and I got on the Akita Komachi back home to my rural, rice paddy-full home.

So that was my trip to Kyoto! The sights, company, food and experiences were fantastic. I'm really happy I went.

So, as if this post wasn't long enough, on to my latest and greatest puzzlements with Japan. There are many, and the longer I live here the more I find, so expect more to come if I get un-lazy about this blog. At any rate, the question of the moment is Japanese attitudes regarding homosexuality.

On the surface level, Japan is incredibly tolerant and accepting of what might appear to be homosexual behaviors. My junior high school boys frequently hold hands, give each other piggy back rides, and link arms; I've even come into a room to find a few of them snuggled up on the floor in a corner spooning. Ironically, Japan is VERY intolerant of actual homosexual relationships. Two persons of the same sex taking a room at a love hotel*, or in some cases a normal hotel, may very well be asked to leave. Homosexual relationships, ESPECIALLY for women, are beyond taboo. And yet, my junior high boys spoon, snuggle, hold hands, and collect Hello Kitty pens and pink cell phones. How does this all resolve?!

Ultimately, I think it dilutes down to the Japanese sense of masculinity and femininity, which is very different from the US sense of this dynamic. Masculinity is being a father, a breadwinner, a husband. It has nothing to do with snuggling other men or liking pink. It's much more concrete; consequently, "cool" high school boys in Japan frequently look like drag queens, in some cases even wearing makeup, with heavily styled hair and a feminine (to my Western eye) affectation. Much like the question of Japanese "racism", this question of Japanese "homophobia" is a very ambiguous and confusing area to examine. Actions and preferences that would be definitely considered "gay" (probably if not certainly to the social detriment of the parties in question in the US) are totally normal, acceptable, and even cool here. And yet, the notion of an actual gay relationship isn't even necessarily discriminated against per se ...because it's simply so taboo that it never happens, at least not openly. I confess I find this dichotomy - acceptance of homo-suggestive behaviors, and total rejection of homosexuality - somewhat confuzzling. That said, it is nice to see people (both male and female) feeling comfortable being affectionate with their friends gender notwithstanding, as well as feeling free to like the colors or characters that they like, without being forced by gender norms to or away from one or the other (ie, pink being girly in the US). Japanese society doesn't abuse or hate on homosexuals; it's simply so taboo, and the social pressure to conform is so strong, that it's rarely (if ever) an issue. Do you think this is better or worse than the situation in the US, where homosexual behavior is stigmatized even in the most liberal of places? (Think associations with pink, male handholding in junior high, etc...Even the most liberal and accepting American has some pretty thoroughly ingrained biases about what is "gay" or not.) Is it better or worse to embrace open displays but make relationships so taboo that they rarely emerge as a question, or to have a society that at worst openly harms gay people (ie Matthew Shepherd) and at best clings to subtle biases despite its claims of acceptance?

I'm not sure; both situations have their drawbacks and their advantages. Thoughts?


*A love hotel is a by-the-hour hotel, usually with a theme like tropical, etc, intended specifically for couples. Since many single young people in Japan still live at home, in many cases in multi-generational living situations, love hotels are a solution for young couples looking for some privacy. They tend to be cheap, affordable and reputably quite fun.