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Published: October 30th 2006
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Well, after about three weeks of feeling like my body was falling apart, a trip to the doctor has ameliorated the situation. He told me it was allergies... to Japanese air, I suppose. Either way, I got two days worth of drugs and a couple days off to knocked the nasties right out of me. Still not 100%, but it's nice to go through a day now without a pounding headache!
Mostly, my life lately has been business as usual. Working lots and coming to despise Halloween. This particular celebration is not necessarily a part of the Japanese culture, but I'm beginning to think that our school managers are bound and determined to change that... starting with ACC. I have been listening to kids' Halloween music, working among gawdy decorations, and doing Halloween activities and parties for the past month. November could not come fast enough.
So life beginning to feel more routine lately, it was really nice to finally get to take another trip and remind myself that I'm in Japan! Simran, Lesley and I headed to Mie prefecture yesterday with our Japanese class and the rest of the NIA (Nishio International Association). The trip set out way
too early in the a.m. and took us to Ise Jingu shrine, Okage Yokocho, and Futami-ura. This was my first experience taking a tour with the Japanese. It's nothing like touring Canadian-style.
It all began meeting our four busses in a parking lot at 7:00 a.m., only to wait for an 8:00 departure. Undoubtedly, we were slightly less than impressed with this, and yet it seemed to be part of the schedule. As the day wore on, I began to wonder if the NIA has lost a lot of foreigners on the trips in the past because, even during out "free time" touring and shopping, we were being constantly herded and reminded of our time and present locations by NIA members. And so I have come to the conclusion that Japanese tours are not meant for taking in a travel experience so much as they are for seeing, taking pictures, rushing, and running. Now I know! Nonetheless, the trip was wonderful.
Before I get into the real meat and potatoes of the trip, I feel the need to share a little of the bus trip part of our excursion. First, I ended up sitting with a guy named
Chan from Vietnam. He spoke no English, but he did speak Japanese. I have taken but four classes in my new language, so though our most common language was Japanese, it made for a somewhat frustrating communication situation. Even so, I really tried! And I thought we were doing alright when the guy leaned over me and, laughing and pointing to me, said to my friends, "Nihongo wakarimasen.". "She doesn't speak Japanese." I thought, "I understood that, asshole!". I gave the guy the cold shoulder for the next half hour until I finally swallowed my pride and tried talking to him again.
We ended up sharing our bingo card for the big bingo bus game. That was good to break the ice again and we even won a prize. I am so good at bingo! No bingo on the way home though. It was karaoke instead! Ah, but J-pop is some nasty shit to have to listen to being butchered for three hours on a bus. Oh well. We had alternative forms of amusement on our way home. The comedy that takes place after a few chu-his (Kirin coolers) on a bus with no toilet is quite something. Some
people were brought to tears as they contemplated just asking to stop the bus on the highway. But the scene of men running for the bushes because they couldn't even make the fifty meters from the bus to the rest stop bathrooms... priceless! Mine were only tears of laughter... until, standing in line at the rest stop vendor deciding between ice cream and fries, a bird decided to defecate on my head. Damn bird... I chose both.
Anyway... the meat and potatoes... Ise Jingu shrine is one of the most famous Shinto shrines in Japan. The more temples and shrines I visit in this country, the more I realize how much I love just being on their grounds. They are beautiful, clean, well-kept, but most importantly peaceful and spiritual in the midst of the hub of tourism. Ise's grounds were so beautiful. I took many pictures, but they never quite capture just how beautiful these places are. You'll all just have to come visit.
After touring the shrine, we had some time to take in Okage Yokocho Street, a street in this shrine town with many of your typical souvenir shops and Japanese food vendors. This particular town
is known for it's udon though. Erin (an Australian NOVA teacher from our Japanese class) and I took in some of the udon while listening to drummers just behind us. Very tasty. We also took in some tea and dessert at a place called Akafuku. The shop and its sweets are famous throughout Japan; akafuku is a nice, sweet dessert, like inside-out manju cake. Lovely!
Our last stop was Meoto Iwa, the "Wedded Rocks". The sea off of Futami-cho is home to these two sacred rocks that represent husband and wife, tied together with ropes that are replaced at a Shinto ceremony three times a year. The whole viewing area was beautiful and lined with different areas to make wishes and offer prayers. Of course, you had to pay for these, but I decided a few of the prayers were worth it. I've explained in the pictures.
So there you have it... a lovely trip to remind me of the wonders of the Japanese culture.
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Doré
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Guano on your melon
The Italians believe that if a bird poops on your head, it's good luck. Too bad you were in Nippon not Italia during the blessed event. I would have bought the fries, the ice cream... and probably a chocolate bar for later. But, I have an unreasonably insatiable appetite.