Aids for the Blind
Mood:  surprised
I just found out that there are little dots in Japanese paper bills so that blind people can feel the differnce between a 1,000, 5,000 and 10,000 yen note. Amazing

By the way, there are rough strips in the middle of many sidewalks so that a visually impaired person can follow them and stay in the middle of the walkway. There are vertical strips to indicate entering an intersection. Many of the crossing lights have audible sounds when it is safe for pedestrians to cross. These strips are a bit difficult to navigate on a bicycle but a small price to pay for the mobility it affords a person with a visual impairment.

Schools battle bad behavior of first-graders.
Mood:  sad
Here are some excerpts from an article in the English version of the Daily Yomiuri newspaper this week: "Primary school teachers frequently find it hard to manage first-grade classes as children ... walk around classrooms and talk during class time.....A major factor contributing to the disintegration of acceptable behavior in the classroom is the declining ability of the family and the community to raise children properly." Oh, my gosh, does this sound familiar, U.S. teachers? "The term soichi puroburemu (first-grade students' problems) was coined to refer to the situation as most of the students who cause trouble are those who cannot adapt to their new surroundings.....An increasing number of primary schools nationwide are implementing various measures to deal with the behavioral problems of students in the lower grades. One such method is limiting the number of students in classes to ensure a manageable group of children. The method can be approved in exceptional cases under the compulsory education standard law, but it states that a class should have 40 children." Oh, my gosh. "Another method is a cooperative exchange between kindergarten and primary schools of teachers to facilitate a child's transition from one school to another." It seems sad to me to see that Japan is beginning to experience a problem that has been growing larger and larger in the states. I can't help but think that it may have something to do with TV, music, computers, and advertisements, which are carbon copies of what our kids and WE in the states are being bombarded with. Turner broadcasting and all the corporations including Pepsi, McDonald's, MTV and...are here preaching their form of consumer-ism. The kids are getting used to shorter and shorter sound bites. They are the short-attention span kids who have been raised on fast food and TV. What are we doing to our kids? Ok, i know it's only my opinion. I'll stop preaching now and go have some tea and read a good book.

Spaghetti Party
Mood:  celebratory
This took some planning. I made numerous trips in advance to grocery stores to transport #10 tins of tomatoes and 10 loaves of French bread and paper plates, veggies and more all on my trusty bicycle. What fun tho. We had ALT's and some of our favorite English teachers from Nishinomiya here. My favorite family brought their twin sons and one of my favorite junior high girls came all by herself. We had hiking friends and Japanese language class friends and many other acquaintances. Everyone seemed to enjoy the friendly, informal atmosphere. I had to answer lots of questions before hand because some Japanese are not used to informal, potluck type parties. The party began a little before 5:30pm and the last folks left around 11:30pm. I didn't really count, but I think there must have been 20-30 people here. What a surprise to be sharing my apartment with not only Japanese friends but also friends from Bali, Bangladesh, Australia and Iran. I wish I had taken a picture of the shoes. They filled the entryway and spilled out into the hall. It looked like a used shoe sale! Sunday was mostly spent cleaning, but there was a nice warm glow about the place after sharing it with such friendly, happy, enthusiastic folks.

School Trip
Mood:  incredulous
Third grade students (14 - 15 years old) caught the train by themselves this morning to meet their teacher in Nagoya, about a two hour trip.
They are staying 3 days and two nights with farmers and learning about the area for their school trip.
Can you imagine having our 14 year olds being responsible enough to get themselves to a train station and show up on time two hours later to meet their teachers? wow.
I keep "thinking lawsuit city." Personal responsibility is just expected of these kids, and they mostly live up to that expectation.

Sunday, May 16th
Mt. Hiei trip

Sacred Mt. Hiei
I met Yokoyama sensei this morning at the train station. She is my Japanese instructor on Thursday evenings for the next few weeks. She also is a Tendai Buddhist monk. I am very lucky to have met her, and she has kindly invited me along today for quite an experience. She also brought along a long time friend and fellow Buddhist woman. We headed out for Kyoto on the train and then transferred to a bus to take us up the steep, winding, narrow road to Endakuji temple ?C about an hour!?s ride. This is a huge complex of Buddhist temples that are scattered around the top of Hiei-san.
We are going to meet Ajira, a marathon monk. I find out later that he has been walking since 12:30am till 8am this morning with a small group of followers on trails around Mt. Hiei. Now you have to realize these are only foot trails and it has been pouring rain all night and into today. We arrive around 10:30am and he is doing a service with a lot of traditional chanting. Then we meet him for lunch that is served quietly in a wonderful tatami room. We eat QUICKLY in silence. I still can!?t get used to how fast we eat. Then we are moved into another smaller tatami room where he is doing tea ceremony. This is one of those times that i have to vigorously fight making judgments. This man (about 40 something) has accomplished some unbelievable physical feats of endurance including walking practically all night for 1,000 days on Mt. Hiei. He also has fasted for 10 days straight with absolutely no food or water and survived! He is considered enlightened ?C a living Buddha by some. But here he is! doing tea ceremony and smoking a cigarette that is placed under a low table next to him. Hmm. The contradictions in this culture are many and who am i to decide who is and who is not a Buddha? All i know is that he looks perfectly healthy and awake. I would be exhausted if i had been walking since midnight!
Next we do some strolling in the rain to view some of the other temples and end up at a Fire Ceremony in front of one of the very famous sites on Hiei-san. The Fire Ceremony is incredible. I swear it sounds and smells and looks like a Native American ceremony. Yokoyama sensei says that maybe it was borrowed from them (at least I think that!?s what she said). There is a big bonfire going with quite a stack of cedar bows that are continually added to the conflagration. There are percussion instruments and chanting that, if i close my eyes, can almost sound Native although the language is definitely Japanese. One of the monks is throwing little sticks into the flames. They have writing on them. The writing is people!?s fears and worries that will be burned away by this ceremony. The theme of this ceremony is peace and it will be held again in August. There will be representatives here from a number of different sects of Buddhism at that time. Also there will be a contingency of Native Americans participating. I wish i could be here for this but i!?ll be in Africa then. The rain continues all day long ?C sometimes heavy and sometimes just a light pitter-patter. The views are hazy and wet and green. It feels like we are walking through a Japanese painting, a bit dreamlike. It!?s an inspiring and peaceful way to spend a day. This would not be anything that i could pay a tourist agency to do. I chant a few prayers of gratitude for being able experience such a powerful day.

So, i've learned so much more about these Ajari since reading this website and viewing two videos on them. Please take the time to read about this incredible endurance test:
Marathon Monks



Here are some details
Since 1885, 46 marathon monks have completed the 1000-day journey
The routine for the 1st 100 days (completed in one year) is that he will get up at midnight, attend a one hour service and start his marathon run/walk (kaihogyo) around Mount Hiei, completing the route between 7:30 and 9:30 a.m. He will then attend an hour-long service, followed by bathing and the midday meal. After lunch, he will rest, then attend to temple chores. The last meal is taken around 6 p.m., and he gets to sleep around 8 or 9. The only variation in the 100-day ordeal will be a special 33-mile run through Kyoto, robbing him of one night's sleep altogether.
During the daily walking route, he will sit down only once.

OH, BY THE WAY, HE MAKES A COMMITMENT THAT IF HE HAS TO QUIT DURING THIS ORDEAL FOR ANY REASON HE WILL COMMIT SUICIDE BY EITHER HANGING OR DISEMBOWELMENT. How's that for some strong motivation to continue?

The first 300 walks are 18- to 25-miles each undertaken 100 days in a row, from the end of March to mid-October over three years. Starting in the fourth year, he will be allowed to wear socks with the sandals. During the fourth and fifth years, he will walk 200 consecutive marathons each year and will be allowed to carry a walking stick. At the completion of the 700th marathon, he will face the greatest trial of all, called doiri -- seven and half days without food, water or sleep, sitting in an upright position and chanting mantras day and night.

He will lose one quarter of his body weight during this fast. He will be able to rinse his mouth out but cannot swallow any water. The Ajari who we met fasted for 9 days. If he lives through this trial, which brings him to the brink of death and therefore to the ultimate appreciation of life, he will have attained the Buddhist level of Saintly Master of the Severe Practice.

Following the "1,000 days of moving and the seven and a half days of stillness," the next stage towards Enlightenment is the Sekisan Marathon (sekisan kugyo), which takes place the sixth year and consists of 100 consecutive days of 37.5 mile run/walks that require 14 to 15 hours to complete. The seventh and final year, he will run two 100-day terms. The first 100 days -- considered by some to be the ultimate athletic challenge -- consists of a daily 52.5 mile run/walk through Kyoto. That's two Olympic marathons a day -- for 100 days in a row!

In his book, The Marathon Monks of Mount Hiei, John Stevens sums up the greatest contributions of these spiritual adventurers: "The most admirable thing about the Hiei gyoja is their warmth, open-heartedness and humanity ... Facing death over and over, the marathon monks become alive to each moment, full of gratitude, joy and grace. ... [they] have much to teach us ...: always aim for the ultimate, never look back, be mindful of others at all times, and keep the mind forever set on the Way."

1600 Miles
Mood:  energetic
Now Playing: ...and what do you get?
I can't believe that my little bike odometer turned over 1600 miles this week. I can't believe it actually still works due to all of the rain and moisture in the air.
I highly recommend a Cateye wireless computer. It's worked like a wonder so far.

New School - New Tune
Mood:  incredulous
I've been at Kobu Jr. Hi. (chugakko) for a month. I just can't believe that I haven't seen one boy punched violently in the stomach, not one kid swearing at a teacher. I haven't lost my voice yelling over the din in the classrooms. Kids stand at attention here, bow, sit down, and are silent mostly. THEY ALL SIT AND LISTEN AND ANSWER POLITELY. Maybe the last two schools were just a bad dream. I loved my first two schools but there was bullying and a roughness that is not at this school. This is more what I think the stereotypical Japanese school looks like. I am very relieved to know that it still exists. I am so sad that students at the other two schools have to live with bullies and constant disruptions in the classrooms. I am so very sad also for the hard working teachers who deserve to have a classroom environment that is respectful and positive. I am so glad that I get to experience the full spectrum here in Japan.

Kabutoyama
Mood:  caffeinated
I'm getting in high gear for training to climb Kilimanjaro. I climbed up Kabutoyama (behind our apartments), back down by a different trail, then back up again and, again, back down today. woo hoo.

Sick Person Story
There WAS a charming wooden merry-go-round in the park near my apartment. I had heard that it was shut down because of some kind of dangerous situation. I thought that someone had decided that it was just too unsafe to have kids sitting on a wooden wheel spinning around. I was very sad to find out the true story this week. It seems that some sick person rigged the merry-go-round not once - but 3 times - so that when a child sat on it the kid could put his/her finger in a hole and 3 kids on 3 different occasions had one of their fingers cut off while spinning around. Good grief. The U.S. really does not have a corner on the market for sickies.

Used Books
Wow, with my friend, Didik's, help we found a used bookstore WITH ENGLISH BOOKS today in Kobe. Books are 100-500 yen and such a variety. I seem to be devouring books so this is a real blessing. I can find new English books at the bigger bookstores, but the selections are limited and the cost is about 1,000-2,000 yen each.
What a great find!
I also have been exploring Japanese manga (comic books) thanks to a company in the states that translates the most popular. These can cost from $9-$15 each. It's fun to read what the kids are reading. A lot of action ninja-type themes. There's some great artists and the same kind of wham-bam-zoom comics that you see in the states. The other cool thing is that they follow the Japanese format of going from what we would call back to front and right to left so that takes a bit of getting used to. It feels like it's stretching my brain a bit. Who knows.

Another Hamako Baseball Game
This was my favorite teacher/baseball coach, Sasaki-sensei's "last dance" with the Hamako baseball team. He has been transferred to another school and has stayed on as their coach for this final regional competition. I rode my bicycle to the Osawa's to meet them at 7 am in the morning. We headed out in their van in terribly strong wind and rain wondering if the baseball game would be cancelled. These kids are tough. Unless there's a storm warning for a typhoon, they usually play their games. Awaji Island is about a 1+ hour's drive by car, but since it's Golden Week, we were expecting heavy traffic. I think, because of the rain and wind and being early in the morning, we had no problems. Taking a ferry to the island was a bit exciting. There were some nice waves out there on the ocean but the ferry was big and it was a comfy ride. It was way too windy to stay outside but the inside was warm and dry. The game was played on a fairly nice field but there were no bleachers so the hardy, enthusiastic parents and other supporters stood outside the fencing with our plastic cones that take the place of beating our hands raw clapping. The game was a close one, but i don't think the boys were as intense as i've seen them in the past. There have been a lot of problems off the field in the last few months and having their coach leave for another school probably didn't help either, oh, and the weather was a challenge too. Anyway. It was tied at the beginning of the 7th inning. The other team was up first and scored a run. At the bottom of the 7th we had to score a point or accept defeat. The kids tried hard, but they just didn't have what it took. They lost by one point. Actually, i think everyone was relieved. They had driven out on Monday and stayed all day long, won their games and battled heavy traffic to get back after 10pm at night. Then it was back up on Tuesday morning and if they had won this game on Tuesday morning they would have had to wait around and play another game that afternoon. If they won that game then they would have had to do the same thing all over again on Wednesday. What a holiday, eh? It poured rain right after the end of the game so we ate lunch in the car. There was heavy traffic going back home but at least we got back at a decent time of day.
It is such a pleasure to spend some time with this family. Even though the weather was a bit challenging, we enjoyed the day together. I wouldn't have missed Sasaki's last game for anything. I could sit and visit with the Osawa's all day. I love their kids and Tamie and Ro are such interesting, intelligent, good-natured people, my kind of folks!


Oh, my gosh. Osawa-san says that the Japanese eat quite a bit of horsemeat. It is usually prepared raw as sashimi. Well, i can handle that, but what really shocked me was WHERE they get their horsemeat. He says that most of the meat comes from America and Australia. Some horses that don't cut it on the racetracks in these two countries get slaughtered and shipped to Japan. Good grief, i thought that it was made into dog and cat food. I don't think that i'd like to eat meat that's been shot up with hormones; drugs and antibiotics that I suspect are used on racehorses. How odd.

Another interesting thing is that Ro supervises a handful of Doctoral students at the University of Kobe. One of the things they are researching is the "good" bacterium found in our stomachs and intestines. I am not going to even pretend to understand what their work is all about. In brief they are creating a kind of unique dry/frozen yogurt culture made from an individual's own bacteria to use for that patient if/when his/her bacterial culture is out of whack. For example when someone takes a lot of antibiotics and wipes out their good flora in their stomach. The specific culture unique to that individual will be manufactured from their own bacteria before they start taking the antibiotics. Fascinating.

Hiking @ Minoo no taki
Mood:  bright
I went hiking at Minoo to the waterfalls with another wonderful family: Yoshie, her daughter, Miki, and her husband, Takemura-san. The new Japanese maple leaves were glowing light green in the sun. It's a marvelous thing to see leaves that are just unfolding - so clean and fresh. The chlorophyll hasn't done its thing yet, and so the leaves are almost yellow turning into green. We had a yummy lunch prepared by Yoshie. Sitting on rocks next to the creek in the shade we enjoyed the view, which included the appearance of a harmless looking monkey who sat staring off into nowhere land for quite a while. I took a few camera shots of him while he posed aloof up on a road above us in the shade. Slowly, as we ate, he managed to move closer and closer. Before we knew it there silently appeared a second monkey. Then, before we knew it, they both were meandering towards us still rather "uninterested" it seemed to me, when all of a sudden Miki had a monkey hanging off her back! Dad kicked it off her while we all tried to stash our food as quickly as possible into our packs. While we were struggling with food scattered all over, i discovered that one of the monkeys was at my back and another in front of me. Thanks to Takemura-san who positioned himself back to back with me, we were able to gently kick (and maybe not so gently drop-kick) them away. This is an experience that i don't care to repeat.

Today's hike was an easy stroll with food stands and beer stops along the way. Kids were playing in the stream. It was a comfortable day. Not so hot and definitely not too cold. The waterfall was magnificent. An amazing new phenomenon for me is that I seem to attract "older" gentlemen lately. Maybe it's my gray hair, i don't know. A cheerful interesting "young man" of 83 caught up to our group and began talking to me in some pretty broken English. His enthusiasm was genuine and contagious. We ended up hiking back down with him to the train station with a stop for coffee along the way. He called himself an amateur photographer but when he opened his case and pulled out a German made Leika and a rather impressive assortment of lenses, he looked rather professional to me. He gave us all some tips in how to frame pictures and helped Miki, Yoshie, and i do some shots with our digital cameras. What an inspiration to be hiking these trails carrying a fairly heavy pack at 83. He says that staying challenged and always learning is his secret to long life and health. I believe him. What a blessing it is to discover such a gem on the trail! The Takemura's were so gracious to share a day of their Golden Week with me. What a pleasure and a gift.


Sunday, May 2nd
Bloomsday

Frankie and i just HAD to run Bloomsday this morning. We took off from our apartment and ran to the Shukugawa and down to the ocean and back again. We visualized every mile along the way as if we were actually in Spokane. Frankie's Mom followed us on a bike. Gorgeous, warm day. Typical Bloomsday weather. Came back and had hearty whole wheat pancakes with fresh pineapple, yogurt and maple syrup with Frankie and her Mom. Back at my apartment there was still something missing so i called my girlfriend, Margaret. Margaret and Terry have had a Bloomsday party after the race every year for the last few years and i was missing the after-race glow of visiting with friends all dressed in our new Bloomsday t-shirts. Surprise, surprise, Margaret was having a PRE-Bloomsday-carbo-loading party and so i got to visit with her and her husband, Terry, and my "Ex" who was the last to leave the party! What a surprise. Now the day's complete. Well, except that i didn't get a t-shirt this year, but I feel like I finally finished first this year (about 17 hours early!) Sylvia sent me a description of the t-shirt later - she says it's my virtual Bloomsday t-shirt.