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Published: July 30th 2006
So as a I wander, and often get lost, in this small city of Hekinan, the thought that most often crosses my mind is, "What the hell is that?". Now please don't take this phrase to be one of judgement, but rather one of true astonished wondering. On this, my fifth day in Japan, I recount a few of the things I have seen and heard that have caused me to perk up or scratch my head.
First, the toilet. As this topic has already been briefly broached, I will offer to my more curious friends a more detailed description of the toilet and it's many dials. There are still two dials that I have yet to work up the courage to try, but I have experienced a few of them. There's one button that looks like a fountain. As I assumed, this provides good hard shot of water at your back side for obvious cleaning purposes. The button with the girl with the wavy lines offers a more gentle wash, specifically for a woman. And the three wavy lines, well that, of course, is the drying mecanism that blows nice warm air on the region. So there you have
The view from my balcony2
This one shows a little of the local flora.it, complete instructions for the use of a bidet.
Next, the cicadas. Still dealing with a little jetlag, I often find myself waking up very early, unable to get back to sleep. What often wakes me is a sound, somewhat difficult to describe. At first, I thought it may be an air conditioner, but multiple experiments of my ear to each air conditioning device eventually ruled that out. Then I thought that someone had water running, but I was often the only one home so that was not the answer either. I looked all around my area to see if someone was using sprinklers. This problem solving attempt also proved futile. And so I asked my fellow teachers, "What the hell is that noise that keeps waking me up?". The answer: the cicadas. They are insects that supposedly live in trees, are about 3 to 5 cm long, somewhat resembling grasshoppers, are rarely seen, but are always heard by what scientists call "their song". I call it fucking annoying, but perhaps I'll hear it as melody in time.
There are also song trucks. Often, around the middle of the work day, I hear a voice singing a song
My walk to work
This is what I see when I walk to work. Also, the Arte building is the nearest grocery store. or a jingle. It is generally not a very nice voice and it sounds near, then far, then near, then far. Again, my inquiries have taught me that these songs come from trucks with loud speakers that sing these songs to let people know they are coming with whatever merchandise they are selling... rice, pipes, and supposedly political messages as well.
And then there's the supermarket. In my mind's eye, I had pictured all kinds of new sea creatures and fruits in markets and similar concoctions to those I saw while living in College West during university. My mind's eye had no idea... Now don't get me wrong, there are many things that I do recognize. We do share a lot of basic foods like breads and grains. Many fruits and vegetables are also the same, though some are a lot bigger or smaller than their counterparts in Canada. And I was delighted to find green tea ice cream in dixie cup form (jealous Mark?). The difficulty sometimes lies in figuring out what is contained in many of the packaged foods that are covered only in Japanese characters. Even more difficult is encountering interesting new foods that you may
Sunflowers!
There is about a half-block small field of sunflowers on my walk to work as well. My students would understand why I'd appreciate this. want to try, but have NO CLUE how to prepare. Hopefully, by the time you all come to visit me, I will floor you with my skill for cooking Asian cuisine.
With the wonderfully new and exciting environment in which I now reside, I made a point of taking a walk yesterday to see the sights and find my way around (especially after having gotten lost the night before). It happened to be the day of the town's festival, Genkiss, so the sights were that much more exciting to see! I also attained a few personal victories as I found the post office, an ATM with English instructions, the train station, and a few stores. I'm posting some pictures here to give you all a feel for this little city I now call home.
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Aubrey
non-member comment
Cicadas and Music trucks
Thanks for the laugh! I had forgotten about the trucks and cicadas! Funny and I felt the same about them! This blog is great Kara!