a new arrival

Life is great! The arrival of Karen has turned an already amazing experience into an even better one! I will give a run down of the events that have taken place in the last four weeks since Karen touched down in Fukuoka, Japan.

Ok, now firstly let me just tell you how the reuniting at the airport went down. For the weeks leading up to the day I, as I'm sure anyone in my situation would, constantly thought about the moment when Karen would walk through the arrivals gate and our eyes would meet then we would run to each other and embrace... yes I know you may think this is soppy and its been in every movie Hugh Grant has ever made.. but I still subscribed to the dream and im not apologizing for it...

it's truly amazing how the city has progressed and rebuilt

Well, the actual reuniting was somewhat different to this. I'm going to blame my stomach... So there I was eating an egg sandwich I had just gone and bought (thank god I got back in time), not thinking Karen would be out for another fifteen minutes or so since she told me she is always the last through customs, so I was talking to a random lady checking if she had just got up and left her umbrella behind (turns out it wasn't hers)... when I turn round and there is Karen pretty much standing behind me!!! However, despite not locking eyes from across the airport it was still a very special moment and I was able to give her a long over due hug and kiss (not sure the Japanese appreciate displays of public affection...but they'll just have to get used to it I figure...)

Poor Karen was totally shattered after her night stop over in Korea having decided that since she didn't have an alarm clock the best defence against sleeping in was NOT to sleep at all! So by the time she arrived in Japan she was running on about 36 or more hours without sleep. So we went straight back to Takeo to show her the apartment and we stayed in for the rest of the day.

The next day I showed Karen around some of Takeo. Made her try the baseball batting cage and of course the compulsory taiko drumming game. That night we went to Yakitori Maruso (one of our regulars) where Karen got to meet Lisa, Badsha, Tan and Rumi. She also got to experience some Japanese style cuisine while also sitting on the tatami.

Friday was a public holiday (Autumnal Equinox or something?... all I know is I'm not complaining) and it also happened to be the day Yamauchi held their local festivals for the different areas of the town. We went along to see Rumi's dad, Yukibo, dancing in his cool get ups! Was definitely the most "Japanese" Japanese festival I have been to. Large amount of very old school costumes and what not. The shrine it was held at was totally great too, very old building and surrounds. The festival provided Karen with her first experience of being treated like a semi-celebrity with the hordes of people coming up to us all day and the large number of photo requests we received at the end! Have to admit to I was a little apprehensive upon our arrival when we were served with sake (excellent) and a tasty treat in the form of a small dried fish to eat! Really getting used to that feeling now where I'm just looking at some Japanese person who has just given me something gross to eat and all I'm thinking is "how would McGuiver get out of this one?..." For this one such occasion a fake swallow with a swift move of the hand to my back pocket was executed to perfection. The fish was then swiftly thrown into some nearby grass when no one was paying me attention anymore. Did I mention how much I love Japanese delicacies?!....

The next day we took Karen to the big smokes of Saga City (pop 190,000). It's the biggest city in the prefecture and also happens to host the only movie theatre in the prefecture! So we went for some shopping* (please read as 'walking round looking at things it would be nice to buy if we had money'). After shopping we went to the aforementioned only movie theatre in Saga to enjoy the new, and I must say brilliant, Tim Burton film Charlie and the Chocolate factory. Was a totally awesome film, however we, the gaijin, found ourselves laughing a lot more than the Japanese... not sure if they just don't laugh out loud in films or just didn't get most of the jokes.. I have a feeling it's the latter. Only downer was the fact that we had to pay about $22 NZ to see it!!

Upon returning to the massiveness of Takeo we went to a bar to watch a friend of Rumi's who is a lead singer in a covers band. They band go by the name 'The Hangers' and dress, play, and 'move' like they are in the sixties!! Was very surreal sitting in a, pleasantly surprising I must say, classy Japanese bar watching some Japanese people, dressed as though they are the band at the end of Back to the Future 2, singing along in perfect English and then coming over to us after they had finished and not being able to say more than Hello!! Can't imagine mastering over sixty songs in perfect Japanese but having not a clue what I am singing about...

After a quiet week from which a lot of quality time was spent with Karen Friday evening quickly rolled around and brought with it the final Ekiewa (English class) that Lisa and I had been running. As a final lesson we thought it would be more fun to go out for dinner with the class. Luckily the vice principal asked me to choose the venue which instantly made me breath a sigh of relief knowing that we wouldn't have to be eating sashimi, squid and octopus! However...(oh the dreaded however!)... I must say I was horrified and shocked when I found myself eating raw beef and actually liking it!! I actually thought it was some semi-raw sashimi I had once tried and actually enjoyed. After eating a fair amount I asked someone the name of it, so I could remember the fish I liked. Was rather shocked when they replied that it was beef... hmmm. Think the worst thing was I had heard people talk about having raw beef and how its yum and I instantly wrote them off as wrong and disgusting. I may have also vowed to them that they would never get me eating it... well that was a short-lived promise! The night itself was very nice night and all the participants from the course seemed to have really enjoyed it and are looking forward to any future ones we may run. They were all so sweet.

I awoke on Saturday to the usual sunlight streaming through the windows and the temperature quickly rising so I gave the usual push of a button to ignite the air conditioner. In order to make the most of the day we went riding round Takeo (have borrowed a bike from Sarah for Karen to use so now we are very mobile!). After a bit of shopping (just a lazy table and chair purchase... I feel like a homeowner or something... rather fun I must say!) We headed up to the Takeo lake and soon found ourselves paddling out to ... hmm sea is the wrong word... umm.. out to... the middle?!... just sounds wrong?! Oh well, you know what I mean... We were pimped out in a killer SWAN! Very fun just cruising around finding the ducks and throwing bread at them... I mean to them.. yes... to them... Once we had expended enough leg energy peddling we docked up and hired ourselves a good old-fashioned rowing boat! Excellent. Not sure I've used a proper rowing boat since I was last in the Lake District in England!! Oh the memories...

The next day a mass converging of gaijin took place in a town called Arita (I teach there on a Monday). Arita is a very nice town hugely famous for its porcelain (world class). The reason for us all being there was to experience the German festival they had organised. All of us arrived with mouths agape upon seeing a German style palace just casually sitting there in the backcountry of Arita Japan! Very weird. Was built to house a load of porcelain and as a tourist attraction for the area. The day was heaps of fun with loads of stuff to do including the egg (table tennis ball) and spoon race, potato sack racing, foosball tournament (myself and a Japanese guy took out third place), restaurants, wine and beer tasting and of course checking out the palace and its beautiful gardens. Even the on and off rain didn't damper things.

On Tuesday evening I found myself in the 'Uch' (yamauchi town where tan lives) playing some basketball with some locals. Not much to say about it except they are very good and I, apparently, am not. I got schooled...

On Wednesday the 5th Karen and I celebrated our six months by going out for dinner to an Italian restaurant (well Japanese Italian...but the closest we can get). Walked in feeling very confident and in control after recently having learnt my Katakana to go with my Hiragana (Japanese writing). Sat down, got the menu and then realised I didn't know sh*t!! So much harder trying to read a menu than just regular words. After a little while Karen and I decided to balls up and just order the set menu and just hope it was to our taste. I gave the obligatory "sumimasen" yell so the lady would come over to us then proceeded to order two set menus and a couple of glasses of white wine. Wasn't going to get any more fancy than that... white or red is as detailed as am able to say at this stage! It could be a 2005 bottle from Iraq for all I cared!

Was actually very fun for both of us sitting there not even knowing how many courses we would be getting let alone what they would be! Turned out to be four courses and all of which were very good. I would give them an A+ rating for taste, presentation and service! Best thing may have been when I paid and turned out to be less than $20 NZ each for everthing! So cheap here sometimes.

The Friday that followed saw that birth of TTF (table tennis Friday)!! We went to the local Merryland (merri rando in Japanese) that I have written about on numerous occasions. Only recently we found out they both table tennis and pool upstairs! Only negative was that you have to pay extra for regular western style bats (normal bats). Instead they give you whats called a pencil grip bat. Use one side only and hold funny enough like a pencil... After getting my ass handed to me by Tan with the pencil grip bat I quickly rushed downstairs to pay the extra for a regular bat so I could hit properly again!! (note: I have since bought a couple of bats so I don't have to pay extra again... also because as most of you know I love to buy gear for sports cause I'm a dreamer...)

On Sunday Karen, Uma, Dave (her bf down from Tokyo) and I headed on the train south to the city of Nagasaki (I know your all now going "Yes... somewhere I've actually heard of!!). Was so funny upon arrival to see Karen's face light up when we walked out of the train station and she realised she was in a big city!! She was giddy like a little girl at the possibility of shops and buildings requiring elevators! We quickly got our bearings and headed on a tram (yes they use them there, brilliant) to the Peace Park and Atomic Bomb museum. Was horrific walking round and reading and seeing pictures of the events that took place there sixty years ago. Unfathomable how bad it would have been. But, it's truly amazing how the city has progressed and rebuilt since then. It really was a beautiful great city to be in. People that have been to both often liken it to San Francisco. Next we headed to China town for some food and a look around before heading to Glover Garden to have a look over the city for an elevated spot on the hill. Finally once night had set in we headed to the shopping district to talk around the arcades and saw the end of the Okunchi festival there. The biggest Nagasaki festival of the year and we just happened to randomly select that day to visit... fluke?... I think not! Fate?... most definitely! Was so busy in the shopping arcade around where the 'dragon' (think Chinese dragon) was doing its current dance. Took forever to move through the crowds and in the end after watching the 'dance' for a while we found ourselves running the other way whenever we heard the telltale sound of the beating drum which followed the dragon and the swarm of people round the arcade and the streets!

The following day, Monday, was another public holiday for another unknown reason... ummm....maybe sports and health day or something sounds familiar... whatever the reason I don't care. All it meant was I didn't have to go to school and Karen, Rumi and I went shopping in Saga city. Karen purchased a much-needed digital camera and I got me a (say in Forrest Gump voice) G-tarr!! Now I own two (one in NZ and one here) and although I still can't play either at least I can now "jam" (strum loudly out of tune and time) whenever the urge hits me!! (yes! Oasis just came on on my random play list im listening to as im typing this!! It's a sign!!....) So I know a lot of you are now thinking "you blow out gus!.. always buying things you never use..." I now realise the purchase of a skateboard years ago was a bad choice but I'm learning I promise. And while I haven't technically "played" my new guitar cause it's out of tune and I don't know how to tune it... I'm still happy with my choice. If nothing else, it looks primo in the apartment on the stand I bought for it!...

Friday was the usual TTF with my newly purchased bats!! Haha we sure showed Merrirando by playing one the spare table too for free cause we took in extra bats and ball we had enough for four people! I think I've "paid off" the bats already with the money we saved!

This week at school has been very quite (the students have mid term exams). I have taught for a total of 20 minutes on Monday... so stressful I tell ya... However, before you write me off as being lazy and having a totally cushy job I must say I have been doing lots of Japanese study so my days haven't been totally wasted. On Monday we went to Rumi's home for dinner with her family. Was very nice to spend an evening in a family setting. But shouldn't do it too often I think cause it makes me miss my family too much.

Now, while I have been in Japan I have tried too many new things to keep count but one experience im not sure I will ever shake off or be able to repress occurred at Rumi's on Monday. Sometimes I wish my curiosity would just not get the better off me but after seeing how flash her toilet was (it has a clock on the control panel!!) I just had to try my first ever bidet. *shiver...twitch twitch...* Enough said.

So, finally, i will just say a little about what general life is like here. I should point out that the TV in our aparment only gets used to watch movies (about one a week, but it sucks cause cant get foreign films as the subtitles are only in japanese!) as we dont have cable and so its all japanese. Its so good being free from the TV addiction. We now find ourselves playing homemade scattagories, or doing some art, or ... and this is gonna happen soon... i have bought some wood and a few tools and really fancy giving whittling a go. I want to make my own wooden chess pieces. Karen thinks i wont.. but ill show her!! Life for me seems to have found a very nice routine now of work and lunch times at home and then hanging out with karen or as a group in the evenings. Its really great that each month in japan (and its almost three now) has brought with it even more fun and enjoyment and the month of October is proving to be a gem!