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Published: October 21st 2006
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Pachinko Time
The smaller sign below this one read, "You Come In For A Happy Fun Time Now!" Just when you all thought you were done getting the obnoxious e-mails from TravelBlog, here I am sending out one more. Sorry this last entry is so delayed; by the time I got home from this trip, I only had a few days at home in the QC before moving back onto campus in Des Moines. Since then, I haven’t had time to sit down and write or post my last pictures. I would have just let it go but since this blog is my only account of my time in Japan, I wanted to finish it off, if for no other reason then so that I don’t forget it. Thanks for sticking with me . . .
Konnichi wa!
Here is my last entry from Japan and a run-down of how I spent my last week in this amazing country. The last few days were spent doing some last minute things that I had been meaning to check off my list but hadn’t gotten around to yet. My buddy Riki took my to a Pachinko Parlor in Fuchu to experience what countless Japanese blow their money on. Pachinko is one of the Japanese’s guilty pleasures - there is a
Everyone's A Winner!
You love Pachinko, I love Pachinko, We all love Pachinko! parlor on every other corner of every city. The neon lights and crazy names on the signs out front almost prepare you for the ridiculousness that is to come inside. Pachinko is sort of like our slot machines, only instead of matching-up three images, you are shooting metal balls down the glass case and hoping to win more little metal balls by doing well. Needless to say, you have no real control over the game, but people (young and old) line up in the smoke filled rows of machines to mindlessly watch as the balls shoot from top to bottom. A lucky player can amass baskets and baskets full of metal balls and trade them in for prizes when they’re finished. (To avoid breaking the law, the parlors only allow you to trade in your winnings for prizes, not money. If you want cash, you’ve got to leave the parlor and go around the corner to a little window in a dark alley and trade in your metal balls for yen. It’s an interesting system.)
After blowing a fair amount of money at Pachinko, we rode down the street to a Hundred Yen Store. Yes, much like my Dad’s beloved
Not So Much
Here I am, not having a clue what's going on. “Anything For $1” stores at home in the U.S., Japan has their version of off-the-wall cheap crap chain stores. For 100 yen (which is actually less than one dollar) you can buy anything from a coffee mug to a pair of sunglasses, some flip-flops to a pack of gum, or a “Watch Your Step” sign to a Richard Gere temporary tattoo. (Richard Gere is HUGE in Japan by the way.) Anyway, I picked up some pretty cool stuff and had a good time fighting my way through three floors of local shoppers.
Among all of this talk about sightseeing, it occurs to me that I haven’t ever really talked about how I have spent the last four weeks of mornings and afternoons here. As I mentioned in the first post, I’ve had a job working at ASIJ (American School In Japan). During the summer, they run a day camp sort of thing for the local Japanese kids. The idea is to teach them English while intermixing their days with fun activities. I was in charge of the Mini-Golf Course. Needless to say, I was no expert on putt-putt golf before this summer but now I could sink a shot through
The American School In Japan
Where everybody knows your name . . . and how to pronounce it. any alligator mouth, windmill, or clown shoe that gets in my way! It was really a lot of fun each day trying to teach little kids English and mini-golf at the same time.
In addition to the kids, getting to meet the other staff was a huge bonus for my trip. Almost all of us were college students from around the world who happened to be in Japan for one reason or another. It was the most diverse mix of people from around the world that I’ve ever had the pleasure of encountering. My table at lunch was often a couple of Americans, a Japanese guy, two British guys, a girl from Canadian, two sisters from Egypt, and a German. Everyday was a different conversation that ranged anywhere from talking about the kids we taught, to international politics and current events. It was like a meeting of the UN in a high school cafeteria. On top of that, a lot of them had lived and worked in Japan before so it was great for me to be able to hang out with them after work and see parts of the city I would have otherwise missed on my own.
The
Security
The front guard - what a nice guy. Everyday it was, "Good morning Mr. Matt!" last day of work was rough. It was hard to say goodbye to everyone who I somehow felt like I had known forever. The next morning our shuttle left to take us to Narita International Airport to catch our flights. Again, it was hard to say goodbye to my new buddies and to Jen and Emma, who I had become pretty close to. (Of course, living in an apartment that size, there was no way to AVOID becoming that close.)
I got excited again, however, as I boarded the plane. Even though I had a long flight ahead of me, I was looking forward to getting home and seeing everyone. The flight was a piece of cake - friendly flight attendants and good movies make all the difference when you’ve got 13 hours to kill! The flight from Chicago to Moline was less fun simply because I had to get into a tiny little commuter plane and bounce back and forth for 20 minutes. Landing at home was very cool and to see familiar faces at the baggage claim made me remember that no matter how fantastic a trip is, it’s always good to be home.
So, there you have
Garden Entryway
The difference between American campuses and Japanese ones? Zen gardens. it. The five weeks really flew by, but not without making some amazing memories and having experiences that were once-in-a-lifetime. The places I went and things I did were unbelievable, but it was the people that really made the trip a dream. The Japanese are an incredibly kind, accommodating, and friendly people. The fact that their society is such a fast-paced and technologically advanced one becomes even more impressive when you see what a high value they still put on respect and formality. Each time a train conductor, shopkeeper, or total stranger bowed to me, I had an overwhelming urge to bow even lower back to them. In a world that it is increasingly popular to be annoyed by foreigners, they welcomed me gladly and never were unkind to me even when I didn’t speak a word of their language. The point is, I think we have much to learn from the Japanese and our country would be better off if we placed as high a premium as they do on ideas like civility and courtesy. My advice is, if you ever have a chance to visit Japan . . . take it, you will not regret it.
Thanks for
Crash Course
Teaching the kids the basics before hitting the course.
"Say putter! Say it!" reading,
PEACE FROM TOKYO
Travel Tip For The Complete Dumbass #8
“Leave your home country and travel to other parts of the world.” For anyone who ever says that all they need to see falls within the borders of the U.S.A., you are wrong my friend. There is a whole world out there and you can’t really understand it until you see it for yourself. Experience the culture this planet of ours has to offer . . . that’s no joke.
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Riki
non-member comment
It was a blast
Hey man, great meeting you this summer, it was a blast. When you coming to Hawaii?