Saru mo Ki kara Ochiru (Even Monkeys Fall From Trees)

We left Tokyo, hopped on the Shinkansen bound for Nagoya, which by the way is the coolest way to travel and we should totally adopt it in America...But, that is another issue. After eating some corndog-sized fried shrimp in Nagoya, We hopped on the bus and rode for about 2 hours far into the mountains of Gifu, a small town of about 15,000 people, it is called Gujyo Hachiman. We arrived at the train stop, it was raining, waiting to meet our next host...we waited...A car pulls up on this desolate stretch of Japanese Highway, it has got to be for us.
I was expecting Richard, the Canadian guy who runs the farm to meet me, instead it is a young hippie Japanese guy, with a few drunk girls. We hop in. After some strange broken Japan-glish in the car, we arrive at a house where I hear guitars and Djimbe drums...definitely Hippies. We go in to find maybe 20 Japanese people sitting on tatami around two tables with heaps of food and copious amounts of alcohol, beer, Sake, Scotch....WOW! What is this place some sort of Oneida Community?
Turns out they were having a community party that was once planned as a barbecue, but it rained so they moved inside. This group of people are part of a web community called Masubu, and I think this was the first time that many of them had met. They promote a self-sustainable type of living, a self-dependence and a quiet impact on the earth. It is actually really really cool, and totally possible to do. I think I am going to like this place.
Today Nick and I drove, yes we drove the Japanese van, up the mountain to collect composting leaves for the garden...and maybe a little sightseeing along the way. It is so beautiful and quiet here. The house is all open and at one with the landscape. Today we stopped at an overlook to see the view. I hear some rustling in the trees, look up to see the some grey-bodied creature climbing in the trees. Japanese Monkeys in the wild! I stopped and looked and the red-faced little guy looked right back at me directly in the eyes. What a place.

The Last Train

Good Morning Tokyo....What a crazy week. This place has got to be the most intense city ever. During the day, it is the most beautifully bustling city, and at night when the last train stops do not catch yourself in the red light district. Strange place, different than anything I thought. But, I am not a great writer, so I will use media to make it better. Here are a few videos while I was in Tokyo.

OK We Go....

So... What to say about WWOOFing.....everyone should do it. It is not only a cheap way to travel, it is a perfect way to immerse yourself in a foreign culture at a domestic level. Today Nick and I arrived in Tokyo city today, in Minowa to be exact in Taito ward, at the bAkpAK youth hostel...We settled in a bit and immediately went to Akihabara. There, the busiest arcades and electronic shops anywhere pale in comparison to the sensory overload that is in Akihabara. Lights, arcades, pachinko, more lights and crazy people, maid bars, which are really wierd, pay to rent a cat for 30 minutes to play with it....oh Tokyo, what a place. But i'll go into more later. What I am trying to say is that, this was already too intense for Gaijin, and we have been in Japan for two weeks. I could barely handle it, honestly. But WWOOFing prepared me for the intimacies that exist in Japanese society, like how to get proper service at a restaurant. I now have a week off, free to myself, maybe I can show my polished Japanese skills off...alright probably not. But I'll try.
Anyway, I will miss the Yamazaki house and all the fellow WWOOFers. My last day, Kazuko and I rode 40 minutes into Hachioji to the Metro super to buy some pork shoulders for roasting. I cooked all day. I made some spicy southern roasted pork shoulder, cole slaw, and baked beans. A gift of a traditional meal cannot be topped. It was a great final night. But, here are a couple videos of the metro and a quick tour of the Yamazaki's place.






But, I would like to go into about the issue of trash and waste disposal very briefly in Japan. Okay, as you know everything is small here, cars are half the size, houses have maybe one bathroom, everything is small because only 30% of land in Japan is habitable. So....there is absolutely no space for waste. But, the Japanese have adapted very well. Many things are built to last so products are expensive, but they dont break. They recycle alot. But, It sometimes costs more to throw away something than its worth to buy. I costs hundreds of dollars to toss a fridge out, WHAT!? I dunno just something to think about.....

A Narrow Fellow in the Glass

I work nearly 48 hours a week, from 10-6 Monday through Saturday. After work is finished we have dinner, which starts at 7, and goes anywhere from 9 o'clock to 10 o'clock. My free time is a bit limited as far as the time I have to update the blog, but I try. On Sunday though, Nick and I had the day to ourselves, and we rode the subway east into Kichijoji, a bustling city catering to the young generation with many vintage boutique shops, bars, and cool art galleries. Some describe the city a mini-Tokyo. And, as with any major Japanese city, sitting directly off of the noisy streets are quiet temples with neatly manicured gardens, and quietly modest landscapes.

After the temple, we wandered around the city, stopped in a ramen-ya, and got some salty ramen and a beer and were on our way. We made it to Inokashira park, which is awesome. After the park we walked through the shopping district, and pretty much everywhere around the city. But I wanted to go to the famous Yodobashi camera. A playground for any electronic enthusiast, and if you are not you will become one there. They have everything from $15,000 watches to more camera tripods than you could use in your life, and every new little gadget in between.

Night came, and the bars were open. So we headed around the shopping district, it closes shops and night and opens delicious restaurants and great bars. We stopped in at a Hawaiian-Okinawan themed restaurant and bar called Jingle-Jangle. It was awesome. We had some delicious Japanese Beef Tataki.

We met a couple of Japanese natives. They introduced us to a new beverage that I have always seen and wanted to try, and I finally did. Habu-shuu, or roughly a rattle snake curled up inside of a bottle of strong rice liquor. Tasted great, and apparently its nature's Viagara too. Or so they say.

"Apples in Tokyo!," Please Don't Surpise

Clare Garden has been much of a surprise to me. It is a little Oasis of Japaneseness mixed with an enthusiasm for everything Western. It is basically a Tudor style house and an English garden with lots of beautiful roses and a very nice koi pond. The inside is an antique shop and a small restaurant/cafe. The cafe reminds me of a french or western style cafe where the dishes do not match, one table is a metal garden table and one is a round oak table, and the food is served in a similar, "Today's-Lunch-Plate,"style. Needless to say, my experience in Japan is a very peculiar one. All of the patrons are Japanese, and I have not seen any Gaijin, foreigners that is, beside the WWOOFers since I have been in Japan, and yet the food and atmosphere is strangely familiar and western

Working there at first was a bit stressful becuase of Kazuko-san's personality. She is a very busy lady, running three households and a restaurant, so her stress comes into everything she does just about. She has been constantly taking in WWOOFers which I am sure adds to her stress. I think so because in Japan, guests are treated with a certain respect, and it may look bad if a someone cannot host a guest and has to refuse them. With that in mind I think Kazuko-san has been bombarded with many WWOOFers requesting stay here, and she only turns away a few.

When we first arrived and began work, Kazuko-san was a bit cold, she would not entrust us with tasks independently, so she micromanaged. But, I had to prove my capability by just working diligently, and she has warmed up greatly. I have enjoyed trimming roses and dead-heading them. One day she told me how to trim roses, probably expecting me to finish all 20 roses bushes rather quickly, instead, I took my time, and worked all day making every rose bush perfect. She liked that, so now I get to work independently. Yesterday, I finished a bit of a dry-stack wall around a garden. And I built a fire in a brick oven and made bread. Finally, some cool shit to do!

All Things in Moderation

Hittari, Futtari, San-nin Irio, One Little, Two Little, Three little Indians is the English version we know. Everyday, I have to consider how wierd and difference Japan is, the methods to the Japanese madness. Rainy season is upon us, and the food is good. Last night all of the WWOOFers walked maybe a mile in the rain to go to the Japanese suupa, which is basically a supermarket, an interesting adventure nonetheless. On the way we pass a bar called a Sunakku, which is a Japanese way to say a Snack Bar, in these places a hostess greets you and brings you food throughout the night, but she also provides the service of company. She sings to you and may dance if you are lucky.

After a week of working in the hot sun all day and falling asleep at 10 and waking at 6:30, the WWOOFers were tired and needed to let loose a bit. So we got beer and some snack food.

Yaling is the girl giving the peace sign, she is Taiwanese WWOOFer who came to stay, she is fluent in Japanese, but no so good in English, so we teach eachh other. She is really cool. The stuff in the pictures were rice balls on a stick with sugary Teryaki sauce, really wierd tasting. I just bought some beer and Nigiri from the Suupa, no wierd bullshit, but I must admit I will try anything.

But what I am enjoying most is going to the Job site with Hiro-san. Yesterday, Nick and I worked on wrapping the house with weather barriers so that the masons can come back later to build the rock veneer that will cover the house. On the inside the carpenter man is like a master. I have rarely seen someone work with such attention to detail. But, Hiro san is easy to talk to and he has many interest in everything, especially international issues. He seems to know something about every WWOOFers country and home city and something that goes on there, and we have WWOOFers from America, UK, Napoli, Victoria Australia, and Taipei. SUGOIIII!

To Your Health!

Last night was my first for a lot of things. Oh yes, I had my cultural cherry popped. We started the night when the Yamazaki's took us out to dinner at a Sushi-ya. This particular shop was a conveyor belt sushi shop, unlike anything I have ever seen before. Efficiency is a must at the place, something out of Henry Ford's diary. The Conveyor belt has to be a football field in length, weaving through the tables and back into the kitchen several times. Needless to say the choices are overwhelming. But I was so excited to try fish in Japan. I tried many things. Squid, Sea Urchin, Duck, Halibut Belly, Toro, and it was all great, the sea urchin was the most unusual taste I have had. I did not like it at first, tasted like the most concetrated extract of ocean water, excrement included. But, I think can taste some hidden umami, it must be an acquired taste, I will try again soon.
After dinner, I thought we were going home. Nope, we were going to someplace that is magic, a place of ultimate relaxation, the Onsen. The bath house is a massive building, full of facilities to take your mind off of your hecticx day. The contstruction is immaculate down to the stitching in the tatami mats. The baths are beautiful, with both indoor and outdoor baths made of granite and marble, a hot sauna with aromatics. We were definitely the only Gaijin there. It was somewhat awkward being the subject of curiosity when you are totally naked walking between baths. I think that the Japanese men were just fascinated to see foreigners in the baths. But, Im sure I made some faux pas that attracted attention as well. After the baths for an hour, we returned to the lobby for a relaxing beer. My first beer in Japan was something to remember.

Where to Start?

After 27 hours of awake time and crazy jet lag, Nick and I arrived in Hino at about 8 at night, Tokyo time. Japan is a stimulus overload for a foreigner, too much to take in a too much to see at first, lucky I was totally brain dead when I got here. Settling in was shaky and confusing, I brought a gift for the famil but was not sure when I should present it. But after a very delightful meal that Kakuzo fixed for us, American Chili, Salad, and of course some Delicious Japanese rice...We hit the bed, ready to work in the morning.

I started the day working at the cafe and antiquae store that Kakuzo runs. It is a Tudor style cottage with a nice garden. As I arrived on the scene, all the women were rushing about but there did not seem to be any real purpose. I was told to sweep a floor that was clean. I obliged and took my precious time, because I was in fear that she may not have anything else for me to do. I think that it is going to be hard working for Kakuzo because she is very managing, but does not want you to use your intuition, but with that being said....She is a very nice person, and certainly helpful, she is always thinking about others, but I think she is going to be hard to please.

Fortunately, I was originally intended to work with Hiro, the man of the Yamazaki family. He was busy in the morning so I had to occupy myself at the Clare Garden and Cafe in the morning. We were going to a construction site, something that I was really excited about. As we arrived on the scene, I noticed the cleanliness and craftsmanship with which this house was being made. Upon entering, we were to remove our shoes, DURING CONSTRUCTION IT IS THAT CLEAN, just like a traditional Japanese house. Though the house was under construction, it was still treated as a clean and dignified place. I find that a very interesting concept and work ethic. This is a post and beam house, and it is going to be very strong. I was so happy that I got to see how people work in Japan, and how a house is built.

Japan is going to be interesting. I am obviously still adjusting to the different culture....Reflections to come later

You will see Many Many things

"If all had gone the way a lot of people thought it would, Jesus Christ would have been among us again, and the American flag would have been planted on Venus and Mars.
No such luck!
At least the World will end, an event anticipated with great joy by many. It will end very soon, but not in the year 2000, which has come and gone. From that I conclude that God Almighty is not heavily into Numerology" - Vonnegut

Traveling to see the Garcias in Mexico, building a house for them, meeting Sergio and Manuel, I can remember some details, but much is lost because many great things happened. Dad can always refresh the cloudy memories that a journey makes, he remembers how the vendor at the Taqueria was selling the meat in the Gordita saying, "Dookie." Or so it sounded, she meant Turkey. But, I can say that the Gordita was the best I had, totally different than the bastardized matter that Taco Bell markets as a Gordita. It was so simple and fresh. In Alaska, everyday we ate bear bacon, elk sausage, and caribou country-steak, delicious, and of course the meal included some fresh poached fish in cream sauce. The little things i remember, just as much I forget.
I am on the grueling, 12-hour flight across America via Chicago International Airport, and through Fairbanks Alaska, over the vastly vacant Pacific Ocean, into the next day of Tokyo Japan, The flight is not so bad, I have made friends with my row-mates. One is returning to Thailand from school in Arkansas, I don't think that she is coming back to America, adieu. The other is meeting her husband in Tokyo, they will be stationed in Okinawa for the next 3 years. Wow, and I don't even know their names, I probably won't ask. The flight though operated by American Airlines and United Air cooperatively, is largely catered to the Asian patrons....and rightly so, most of the passengers are Asians. The captain's messages are translated into Japanese, Alice in Wonderland is the feature film for this flight, with subtitles in Chinese, we were even served teryaki chicken and ramen, terrible by the way. We are flying at an altitude of 30,000 feet at 535mph, the Outside air temperature is -42 degrees.
I am no Andrew Warhola, I do not want to be a medium for recording my life, I am no stenographer, I am not good at remembering what happened yesterday, I do wish that I taped my voice and listen to myself speak more, a sort of self-understanding therapy. But I want to remember, be aware of my travels, be vulnerable to experience. But sometimes vulnerability connotes weakness, maybe it is. I don't care. I am weak to the strong world around me, 20 people died the other day from Floods in Arkansas, what can I do? So be it. I am humbled. The stalk with the heaviest head of rice bows the lowest.

p.s. The girls names were Patti and Sequoia, we introduced ourselves as we left.