Shichi Go San in Hiroshima

Last month I went to Hiroshima along with many other Kansai Gaidai students to listen to a speech from an atomic bomb survivor.  We arrived early in the morning so we walked around Hiroshima which was absolutely beautiful.  We stumbled across a huge group of children all dressed up in elaborate garments and headdresses.  We stopped to admire all the little ones and were even given small Japanese flags to wave during the celebration.  The celebration was Shichi-go-san (7-5-3) which is the celebration of children turning three, five, seven.  It was amazing to see how happy the parents were to see their children all dressed up for the celebration.  We made it obvious that we wanted to take pictures and the parents were so happy to present their children to us.  The festival carried on towards a temple near Hiroshima castle.  We ended up there also and continued interacting with the adorable children as they tried to remove their seemingly heavy headdresses.

Hands off

When I first moved to Japan, I had preconceived notions on many topics, but one thing I had no previous knowledge on was the groping epidemic in Japan.  I am completely fascinated with it.  My first introduction to this was a women only meeting at school.  The woman speaking warned the many foreign female students to be cautious of men who will approach you on the streets or grope you on the crowded trains.  She advised us that it is common for Japanese women to be very embarrassed when they are groped in public and to avoid further embarrassment, won't say anything to there assailant.  This was shocking to me, I couldn't understand why they wouldn't say something.  I understand a bit more now, but it is still strange to me.  Recently, I rode on my first "Ladies Only" train car.  During rush hour, they reserve a few train cars for women only to avoid any gropings.  It is really a problem here, but I can't help but think it is a problem everywhere.  I feel that if any other country were as small and densely populated as Japan, the same kind of behavior would occur.  I understand for the women being groped it must be very violating, but I feel it is a much less crime than the crimes committed against women in much higher frequency in the U.S. and other countries.  I commend Japan for raising awareness for the crime and cracking down on the violators.  I found an interesting website that discusses both sides of the story and provides information on "chikan" (sexual assaulters) and their reasons for groping. 

You Make it Too Easy

My current residence in Japan is my first time to ever live outside of the United States.  I have traveled to several places but it was only for the quick 2 week vacation.  Before, moving to Japan I was expecting there to be a very view amount of people that spoke English where I lived.  I guess I was kind of hoping for that also.  That way I would be immersed in the language and come home completely fluent.  That is not going to happen.  As if globalization weren't apparent enough at Kansai Gaidai with the diverse mix of students from across the globe, even when I travel to places like Hiroshimo, it is evident. 

Two weekends ago I went to Hiroshima with a group of friends.  The first day we stopped into this adorable European cafe.  The architecture, chairs, and dinnerware were all perfectly European.  A charming Japanese couple owned and operated the cafe.  The couple both spoke excellent English and explained to my friend that the wife's father owned the building and passed it down to her.  I wondered where so many Japanese people living in Japan learned English so well.  The next day we went to Miyajima.  I was walking along the sea wall and my friend followed walking down by the water.  She passed an old Japanese man who looked like he was taking a break from fishing.  She greeted him in Japanese and he responded, "Would you like me to take your picture?"  We were both surprised that he knew English.  After he took our picture, he asked where we were from.  She told him she was from Canada and he told us he had traveled to Canada and several other places.  It is so amazing that in modern times travel is so accessible and common.  I think that will continue to be a force that bridges cultures, allows people to pick up new languages, and fuel globalization.

Pisto

Before moving to Japan, I heard that "pisto" or fixed gear bicycles were very popular here.  I was told the word "pisto" comes from a variation of the Italian word for track, pista.  I have seen hundreds of pisto bikes in ever city I visit in Japan.  Fixed gear bikes do not have a freewheel and often times do not have breaks.  There is only one gear and if the back wheel is moving, the pedals are also moving.  So if the rider is pedaling forward, they will move forward.  And if they are pedaling backwards, they can ride backwards also.  The break is not needed because if the rider shows resistance on the pedals can slow the wheels or skid to a stop.  With more inexperienced riders, trying to stop suddenly can end in the rider being thrown over the handle bars.  When fixed gear bikes became extremely popular in Japan several years ago, inexperienced riders were becoming a problem in big cities like Tokyo and many accidents occurred.  There is an interesting article in COG Magazine about pistos in Tokyo here. 

The article in COG also mentions how pistos became popular in Japan and it was partially due to being able to buy used Keirin bicycle fixed gear frames cheaply.  Keirin is professional track bicycle racing in Japan that is done on a Velodrome.  It is one of the few forms of legal gambling in Japan.  The Keirin racers are amazing and can reach speeds upwards of 40 mph.  Here is a video of Keirin racers in training.  It is insane how fast they can pedal.  They have tournaments all over the country and I am hoping to see one before I leave.  I know it will be intense!

My First Pachinko Experience

I knew it was something I had to do before I left Japan, understand what pachinko was. All I knew of the semi-legal, slot machine-esque game was that there were tiny steel balls, Japanese people got really hooked on it, and pachinko parlors were incredibly loud. Here is a better description of pachinko. I had my friend take me to a pachinko parlor in Hirakata-shi. She took me to one that was 100 yen per ball. They also have 400 yen per ball parlors, but that's a little too pricey for this college student. We walked in and immediately my ears were flooded with noise and smoke hit my nose. This atmosphere seemed so unappealing, but there were so many people there. There are several different types of machines and they are all beautifully designed. There is a screen in the middle that plays a video of some sort. The more you play the more of the video you get to see. The videos are anything from video game fights to love stories. The screen is also where the "slot" part shows up. Numbers will start spinning on the screen and you must have landed enough pachinko balls into the proper hole to activate the slot. I put my 1000 yen in and watched all the tiny balls come pouring out, it was really amazing.

I turned the wheel, which operates how fast the balls shoot out. I found what seemed to be a good speed and held it there. The balls hit the top pins and fall down any which way, but if you find the sweet spot they find their way to the winning hole. Once you send several balls to the winning hole, you can play the slot. I went to the jackpot round and ended up winning! I still haven't perfected my skill yet, so I didn't win as much as I could have. I was still very excited I won anything my first time. After I won though, I just wanted to send all my winnings back into the machine, Pachinko had her claws in me now. How quickly the balls zip out and the different videos makes it feel like more of a video game than semi-legal gambling machine. What do I mean by semi-legal? Well, the pachinko parlors can't give cash out as winnings, so they give you a candy gift and coins in the amount you won. You then take the coins out to an unaffiliated window who then redeems your coins for cash. The window was funny because you never see the person, just a hand.

Overall, it was an enriching experience. I might have developed a little itch in my fingers for the game. We'll just have to see if I'm strangely drawn into the next pachinko parlor I pass.

Let's Go Ride a Bike

Back home I enjoy riding bicycles as a leisurely activity. In Hirakata, and all of Japan, bikes are a main mode of transportation. Within the first week of school, and after many 30 minute walks in the heat, I realized I had to get a bike. I went to a used bike shop near campus and picked one up for pretty cheaply. Owning and riding a bike here is fantastic. My commute was shortened to 5 minutes and I am excited to go places even if they seem far. Even though I am a bicycle owner in Hirakata, I am far from being as skilled as the ever day Japanese rider.

Women in Hirakata are stunning. They wear beautiful clothes and are dolled up for school or just going to the market. The most impressive thing I have seen, is women on bikes in 4" high heels. I don't know how they do it. And the particularly talented women can ride their bikes while texting or talking on the phone, whether it be safe or not. The men around Hirakata have their own skills on bicycles also. I saw what looked like an 80 year old man ride a bike so slowly with huge boxes strapped to the front of his bike. I would never try something like that, it looked so dangerous and he could barely see where he was going. But that is the thing about the Japanese, they get where they are going by any means. And that man probably does the same thing every week. I feel that the Japanese are so humble and rarely seem to complain. I was shocked to find out that most my Japanese friends have at least a 45 minute commute every day to come to school. And they advise me that, that is close in Japan terms. It is just another part of the lifestyle here and it allows the commuter to have some time to themselves even if they are surrounded by people.




 

Southern Comfort

I recently moved to Japan to study abroad at Kansai Gaidai University in Hirakata, Osaka. I was very excited, but extremely nervous to leave my family and various security blankets at home. I have been here for three weeks and an amazing network of new and old friends have made this a smooth transition. The Japanese are extremely accommodating and welcoming. Within the first week I was here, I went to Namba, Dotombori, Kyoto, and on other various outings. All the Japanese students wanted to show my friends and I the best possible time and whisked us all over the city. I was warned of culture shock depression and I anticipated it would come when I sulked in my dorm all alone, but I honestly have had few moments to myself. The hospitality in Japan is unreal and not just amongst friends. I feel that when I go to any type of establishment here whether it be a store or restaurant the employees are sincerely glad you are there. Any employee in Japan would be the equivalent to the best employee in any company in the United States.

My favorite experience so far happened last Sunday. My good friend Tanya has tons of family living in Osaka and she forwarded them my contact information since I was also in the area. Within hours of receiving my phone number, I received a call from her cousin. My Japanese is terrible, so thankfully she spoke perfect English. She was incredibly kind and invited me to meet up with her that weekend. I made my way to Umeda Station(all by myself, thank you romanji subway maps) to meet up with Tanya's cousin. I found her and was pleasantly surprised to meet Tanya's uncle also. I just couldn't believe that they went out of their way on Sunday afternoon to meet up with some random gaijin. Moreover, they took me out to the most delicious lunch I have ever eaten. I still can't believe how welcoming they were and acted as if it were nothing.

I feel like the examples being set by Japanese friends and new family have already started to change me. I want to become more accommodating and seize any opportunity to spend time with all the people in my life. Thank you, Japan.