I like all of my coworkers: they are great to talk to, they worry about me and make sure I am enjoying my work/time in Japan, and even though they are more serious than my laid-back attitude they are easy to get along with. I can see how they relate a company to a family, and how the whole “in-group/out-group” dynamic that I learned about in Japanese language class really plays out.
An interesting thing I have learned about some Japanese companies that I didn’t understand before was the group/family company paradigm. So for example, before coming to Japan if you would have said Mitsubishi to me I would have immediately thought of the cars, or maybe also the chemical company that did not respond to my emails about a potential internship. But I always figured that they were completely separate companies that shared a name, because maybe Mitsubishi is a popular name, like Smith or Johnson in the US. And while that is true that they are different companies, they stemmed from the same “mother/father” company and are part of the overall Mitsubishi group/family. So Hitachi and Hitachi Chemicals are different companies altogether (although in this particular case Hitachi holds the majority of Hitachi Chemicals shares, I think, but let’s not get into business talk). Thus there is still some collaboration among the other companies in the group, as most of them are specialized (), but occasionally there is inter-competition. Korea has a similar system, but there it’s more “traditional” because it tends to actually be family-owned. So the president of the main company is the father, and the presidents of the branch companies are the children and other family members, usually.
I have noticed that many Japanese women wear a lot of make-up and enjoy dying their hair brown. It might be part of the way they were brought up or simply today’s fashion; I can only speculate as I have not directly asked. I personally am not an advocate of make-up and I enjoy dyed hair more if it is “weird” colors, as opposed to attempting more “natural” colours.
“Whoa! Did you just type in British?” Yes, I did. I am slowly getting used to seeing cars on the “other” side of the road and manoeuvering my way correctly on bicycle. Although unlike Boston where you can get a ticket for riding your bike on the sidewalk, here you can get a ticket for NOT riding on the sidewalk (no personal experience, but I’ve heard stories). Next topic: rubbish.
OK, I’m done with British…so trash. In Tokyo they are sticklers for separating trash when you dispose of it: paper, bottles, bottle caps, bottle wrappers, etc. Mostly, though, you separate the burnable and the not burnable, but I would say 90% goes in the burnable. I have a theory that Japanese people love packaging and packages, on everything. Sure sometimes packaging is necessary to preserve perishables or things like that, but sometimes they go overboard, I feel…individually wrapped fruit, multilayered-wrapped onigiri, wrapper within wrapper within bag within bag…oh my. And since many of the things are smaller sized (maybe for accurately, normal/human sized and not super-sized) this leads to a whole lot of plastic waste, which I think could easily be reduced.
Hmm what else.
One day a coworker told me that another unknown [to me] coworker commented that I looked like Tom Cruise from The Last Samurai. My theory is that I don’t, but since this is a movie that maybe many Japanese have seen (due to the popular main character played by Watanabe Ken) and Cruise-in-that-movie and I share long hair, facial hair, and non-Japanese-ness, I can see how they came to this conclusion. So that brings my current look-a-like status to Cap. Sparrow and the Last Samurai. Right…
Sometimes during work I do something that I usually never do, read the news. Or something like that. I occasionally read CNN.com and although I usually get the main ideas of what’s happening in the world, I sometimes question what CNN is thinking with their idea of journalism. Some of their stories I find un-news-worthy or poorly written, but I do enjoy reading most of the comments. Most of the comments stem from Americans, but there are occasional non-American participants. My estimate is that 85% of all comments are anger/hate-driven, 10% are positive or somewhat intelligent, and the rest are random or non sequiturs. Because human interactions fascinate me, this is a real treat especially since online interactions tend to be more brutal and raw due to anonymity and physical distance. It also shows how divided Americans (the world) are, politically, spiritually, hmm anything-and-everything-ally. Oh and there’s also the sea of misspellings and the stratosphere of grammatical errors, and the black hole of figurative imagery. So if your day is full of slow filtrations and there’s a long line to use the scanning electron microscope I recommend that you check out CNN.com, especially the comments for an interesting view of human interactions, assuming of course you don’t have access to hulu or youtube.
A couple of weekends ago I went to Tokyo for the second time, on my own.I went on a Saturday afternoon to this “park” surrounded by a Four Seasons hotel and restaurants. This was close to the Edogawa stop (don’t ask if it was metro, subway, JR, etc) and there were many people along the river enjoying hanami.
The park, Chinzan-so, was finished around a hundred years ago, but boasts several historical artifacts that give the place a somewhat mystical aura. Upon entering from the river-side, I was greeted by a 500 year old sacred tree and several small traditional Japanese buildings. As I walked around the grounds I admired all the flowers and relics, all happily residing in the middle of a bustling Tokyo, which I would not have guessed had I been randomly dropped off here. Since I have been to several of the world’s heavily-populated cities (and their parks), I give the Japanese props for creating believable rural atmospheres integrated in Tokyo, the world’s most populated metropolitan area. At Chinzan-so I was also able to get in some good people-watching, but that isn’t too difficult for Tokyo (see previous sentence). I ran into kimono-clad women, both young and old, a Western-style Japanese wedding, and families with babies babbling in Japanese more fluently than me. My favorite couple I think was a mother in her kimono admiring the scenery with her daughter who was sporting the Lolita fashion. The artifacts themselves ranged from different time periods and represented Shinto, Buddhist, and Taoist beliefs.
After this breath of fresh air I walked to a part of Tokyo called Ichigaya to meet up with my old MIT language partner, Uchida-san, and some of his other MIT friends in Japan. There were a total of six people at dinner, and I was the only non-Sloanie. The other members worked either for the government or for banks, and a lot of the evening’s discussion revolved around the financial/economic happenings of Japan. It was pretty interesting even though most of it went over my head. But I just focused on savoring the delicious food and the sweet, cold sake.
After dinner we went to a nearby lake to watch the beautifully-lit sakura at night. Near the lake I was told that there was one of the most expensive apartment complexes in Tokyo, and some important/wealthy people lived there. In Japan, a “mansion” does not refer to a huge house like I think most Westerners would imagine, but it refers to a large apartment that is extremely overpriced, but apparently very comfortable.
After this evening stroll I bid my fellow beavers sayonara as I raced back to catch one of the last TX trains.Once arriving to Tsukuba I picked up my borrowed bike and rode the 40minutes home blasting my iPod and singing loudly along the deserted sidewalks at 2am.
Groggily I awoke later that Sunday at 7am to accompany Yamaura-san from my dorm to buy fresh fish from Oarai, about 1.5 hours away by car. I had gone with him the Friday before to a specialized store to buy avocados, tomatoes, limes, and cilantro so that I could make guacamole and also to a liquor store where I bought rum for the BBQ. At Oarai we had fresh conveyor belt sushi (my first time) and as you can probably deduce it was phenomenally yummy. For anyone out there who doesn’t really like wasabi they put a British flag in the sushi that has little to no wasabi, but they are very rare (I only saw one, and I cracked up upon finding out what it meant). We bought fish and the temperature was very cold, and not just because of the vast amounts of ice at the fish market.
After Oarai I took a quick shower and then joined the convoy to Sakurai-san’s house. Basically everyone from our work group was there, with their kids (if applicable), and a ton of food. The seafood was great, as was the high-quality beef, tons of veggies, ramen, baked fish, mushrooms, alcohol, and my personal favorite…desserts. I tried castella, different Japanese types of mochi, and other yummy treats. My guacamole was a hit, although one of the kids was a bit scared of it. The children were playing SuperMarioBros. inside and running amok outside. Everyone ate to the verge of explosion (I know I sure did) and there was much laughter and merriment even though the day was cloudy and cold.
I quickly bonded with Sakurai-san’s father and he showed me around his garden and his 300 year old house next door. This was the beginning of a good relationship with the Sakurai’s. I later found out that Sakurai-san’s father used to be the president of a branch of Fujitsu and was very well connected. He began to worry about me since I did not have any plans for the two months after my Hitachi Chemical internship so he took it upon himself to try and find a job for me. They ranged from working at a nice hotel on top of Tsukuba Mountain to working as a translator for foreigners with the president of the Tsukuba city council. However, because of my special type of visa (neither working nor tourist) I cannot work unless I change my residency status, which would be a huge hassle seeing that it took around 3 weeks to get my current alien registration card. Regardless, this was very nice of him and I thanked him deeply for his help.
Well, spring is in the air, and in a very Japanese way. If you ask a Japanese person what their favorite tree/flower/plant is, I would guess that the majority of them would answer "sakura da yo!" or something less blunt. Regardless of the politeness level, the Japanese really like sakura (cherry blossoms) and I have learned why. This tree, different from an actual cherry-bearing tree, has very beautiful flowers, either white or pink, or both if it's very special. Some are over 350 yrs old, others are blossoming for the first time. Some are firm and upright, others are more droopy and enjoy a nice pillar for support. Many types of sakura abound, but they are all viewed respectfully and are admired.
So what about them makes them so dear to the Japanese, as if their beauty weren't enough. Well, they only bloom for about two or three weeks out of the year, some types even less. So during those fateful days in April (usually, but it depends where in Japan you are...they bloom first in the south and last in the north since it is roughly temperature-dependent) people swarm to see them. Parks of crowded with people who sit under the trees with family and friends and have a hearty celebration with delicious food and plenty of alcohol (which is legal to consume in public, and of course can be bought from vending machines). This does result in plenty of trash and the occasional drunken argument, but mostly everyone has a good time. The sakura flower's evanescent life reminds us of our own short life and also of those who came before us. This profound symbolism is what appeals the most, I think, to the Japanese. In many "Western" views, to over-simplify, spring is seen as a time of new beginnings, renewals, and rebirth, and while this holds true in Japan as well, the sakura is a beautiful example of our fleeting life. What a great way to start off the new (fiscal, in Japan) year.
Here are only a few of the pictures I have taken of flowers, most of which happen to be sakura.
Violet-colored. Or maybe lilac-colored, I'm bad with colors.
In Tokyo, sakura ga mankai desu (umm the sakura are in full-bloom). And a beer company headquarter office in the back, I think it's Asahi.
BAM!
Yeah pure awesomeness
Close-up sakura
You have just been sakura'd
This is in an awesome park in Tokyo, Harumifuto-koen I think. My favorite place in Tokyo so far. In Yasukuni shrine, which is a controversial place, especially for Korean and Chinese people, I've been told.
I daresay, what a fine specimen and perfection
In Ueno park, many people enjoying hanami (花見, literally meaning "flower seeing")
K, hope y'all enjoyed that. It was pretty awesome to have serendipitously been in Japan to experience this awesomeness.
So I am really bad at computers and technology stuff, yeah I know I am a Marilee Jones student. Before coming to Japan I bought a new computer and I did not realize that it has a camera card reader. Good news is that now I can upload photos for your viewing pleasure. Maybe this way it will be less boring and people can get a better "picture" of my adventures. Enjoy and comment away!
Takane-san, Yamaura-san, and Kamo-san in front of Tsukuba-san shrine gate
At Tsukuba shrine, to wash ones hands and mouth before praying
Some traditional masks at a souvenir shop, guess which ones depict males
At one of the shopping centers in Tsukuba, I just like pandas, even fake ones
Real store at the mall. It's either really good or the worse civet coffee.
What a bad ass. At tennis practice, this is the company court.
Bryan's and my welcome party
The organizers and the cute couple.
Inside the TX, en route to Tokyo for the first time.
Honda-san and Kamo-san just want some peace in this world
Vendor making and selling yummy sweets. I just noticed that the sign in the back says "yakitate" meaning freshly baked, but humorous (and bad business) in Spanish
MooMoo White, from Fanta? This is either milk or maybe peach (momo)
Tokyo Tower
Climbing the tower
We made it to the viewing deck, and the vast Tokyo skyline(s)
Well kids, that is all for now. I have tons more photos, but this is just an introduction. And if you have any other questions/comments/suggestions, let me know
My welcome party photo, check out my peace-sign-turned-bunny-ears
The after party...coworkers are a bit wilder the second time
Writing on the right reads "ai no eego," jeje
Nice tree in front of a shrine
In Kasama
Many foxes at the shrine
Fish market in Oarai
Fresher than fresh
This smelled so good, mmm sea urchin and shrimp
This fish is apparently called Ankou and looks a bit unappetizing, but it's probably delicious 
So much green!
Imagine this is the view from your window...
I was kimono'd
Maruyama-san and girlfriend in Nikko
A fine assortment of yuba
English explanation of the yuba meal we ate
In Nikko
Hear no evil, Speak no evil, See no evil
I forget which god this is, but he is mischievous and depicted as green here, so I couldn't resist
Dango-making lady, her family has been doing this for generations
