Right Between the Eyes

Those of you who have been following the blog might remember my metaphor for the heat here being like someone wrapping a warm blanket around you. I would like to amend this. Exiting our local Marui (Supermarket), a wonderfully air-conditioned space; the heat, in Maki's words, “Punched us in the face”. I'm not kidding. 34 degrees with 96% humidity. You feel the air and have to push and cut your way through it. And while a lot of stuff on my blog is looking at the funny side of 'Our Man in Japan', this isn't a laughing matter. 4 people died in Japan, today alone from the heat.

Even sitting doing nothing, you can feel the beads of sweat pushing their way out your skin. I can't stop leaking! Today I played basketball with the locals and after 5 minutes, I looked like I had a bath! Not one square inch of me or my clothes was dry. I'm not looking forward to the 38 degrees everyone keeps telling me about!

Sumo

After catching some Sumo on Japanese TV we decided it would interesting to go see a tournament live. Incidentally, Sumo is about the only entertaining thing I've seen on Japanese TV as its mostly cheesy, plastic version of reality, consisting of a lot of people expressing options about everything by going “Uuuuuurh!” But there is something oddly captivating about fat men fighting. People seem to like see a David and Goliath match, the underdog beating the giant. In Nagoya, one of the best matches we saw all day in the earlier bouts, between a slightly chubby guy and the largest guy we saw in the tournament by a long way. This sumo-san was so big he looked liked he would have problems getting though door ways and even the crowd gave a gasp of amazement at his sheer volume when he entered the ring. I, like most, thought the smaller guy didn't stand a chance against this mammoth of a man. The crowded seemed to rally behind him and the guy actually won and hyped by his victory and the cheering crowd began waving his arms around in celebration.

The level between the top Sumo-san is noticeable though, and there were some really interesting bouts to be seen. There is a lot of tradition and fluff between the bouts though and when the match gets going there is usually only a few seconds before a winner is declared (The aim being to get your opponent on the floor or out the ring). On one match the referee had to hold the match as one of the guys 'nappy' was coming loose. These guy has to stay in the hold while the referee tried to hoist the loose end back around before it left a giant naked man in the middle of a stadium. This was easier said than done, as it took some pulling and the crowd began to chant to encourage the ref to pull harder, giving him a round of applause when he finally pulled got it together, allow the slightly embarrased Sumo-san to go on and win the bout.

I was surprised how the reserved nature of the Japanese is put on hold for events like this and how they can get quite vocal. In my desire to get a closer ringside photo I was asked to return to my seat by the Sumo police. I think I was on the verge of being ejected from the building.  

Kobe – Beef and Capsule Hotels

My summer holiday is here and travel beckons. While my holiday is comparably hefty with 6 weeks in the summer alone, there is a lot of Japan to see. So, as we were on our way to Nagoya to see a Sumo tournament it only made good logical sense to hit some other places on the way. The first stop was a night in Kobe. This gave me the chance to cross-off some more items off my 'bucket list'.

I've wanted to try Kobe beef for a long time. After tasting reindeer steak in Finland, I thought I had found the holy grail of all meat, until I heard on a cookery program that in most peoples options, the succulent reindeer steak came a close runner up to Kobe beef. For those of who you don't know, Kobe cows are the most pampered livestock I've ever heard of, as the cows are given massages and beer to drink. The aim is to make the cows as calm as possible which does something rather surprising to the meat. It makes the fat more evenly dispersed thought meat, creating a tender and juicer steak with a marbled effect of white fatty veins running through the meat. After waiting so long to try this, I never though it could live up to the hype after so much time. I was wrong. Kobe beef is amazing. It has such a burst of flavour and the steak is so tender it almost melts in your mouth. The texture is oddly similar to a mince beef burger. If you ever get a chance you must try it. It's not cheap but well worth it. FYI, if you intend to try a steak in Japan ask them to cook it a little more than you would normally. Once, I asked for a rare steak and it came raw.

The next item to tick off the list was sleeping in a capsule hotel. Capsule hotels are a cheaper alternative to standard business hotels, but what you take away on price you sacrifice on space. They are aptly named as all you are given is 'capsule' of a bed; a plastic coffin like tube fitted with a bed, a TV and a clock. The one we stayed in was somewhat dated with an 80s theme in a non-ironic way and clothing that looks like an MC Hammer Jimbe (Jimbe is a traditional Japanese summer casual costume). Men and Women are segregated and you must shower and onsen before slipping into your allotted hole for the night. The general clientèle seemed to be the older Japanese business man travelling alone. Not a word seems to be spoken between the men and this combined with the nudity in the onsen can be a little disturbing. I've seen more naked, saggy, old Japanese men that I care to see for a while. The capsule itself is actually quite comfortable and while the thin curtain that covers the front of my capsule doesn't keep out the noise I was asleep as my head hit the pillow.  

Kurashiki and Bicchu Kokubunji Temple

Kurashiki is just outside of Okayama and has a really beautiful old town. When taxes were collected in rice, they were brought to this central location, making Kurashiki a rich region. There are canals which they used to transport rice, than are now used to ferry sightseers up and down the 300m stretch of the touristic centre. The buildings are interesting and not really what I expected from Japan in some cases. The criss-cross patterns remind me of the black and white British Tutor architecture, but in the case the white and black has been reversed. In actuality the builds are covered in tiles with larger bands of grout, created to shield the structures from fire. Interesting little boutiques, cafes and gifts shops line the pedestrian roads and you can find a few interesting items within.

But the heat is really been cranked up another notch (Or two) as just walking at a slow pace feels like a marathon spirit and just standing still can bring out in an all-over body sweat. It's currently about 35 degrees with about 80% humidity. The scary thing is, it can hit 38%!

On our way back we stopped at the Bicchu Kokubunji Temple, a 5 tiered masterpiece that seems to defy gravity, let along seismic activity. I was amazed by the beauty of the way it seems to rise up from nowhere and yet I was even more amazed when I got up close. The intricate construction is so complex and yet precise in it's use. I'm confused why no one has sort fit to try and recreate this style of architecture for the 21^st century, as surely with modern building methods it would be easier to create and just as striking; using metal frameworks and while retaining a beautiful blend of traditional and modern. I sense a 'Grand Design' coming on!

Tsuyama Beer Festival

Maki, myself and some local friends of ours adorned our 浴衣 (Yukkata, A traditional summer style Kimono) to attend the local ビ-ル祭り(Beer Festival), to sample some of the local beers from Okayama. I especially like the pink 'sakura' beer we tried, sweet and fruity, but I was surprised you cannot really buy these beers in bars! No one really seems to know why. Japanese people love local produce and the idea of limited or season food or drink seems to appeal to them; then why not the local, seasonal beer? Why do they they produce it if no one drinks it? Or where do they sell it, aside from the festivals?

Six Year Old Distraction Tactics

I had a first year class self-introduction (Yes, I'm still introducing myself). The children are 6-7 years old. It was rather a strange lesson. As I was setting up before the lesson, this little girl came up to me and started talking to me in English! I was kind of a little thrown at first as this is meant to be their first English lesson and I wasn't expecting them to know anything. She said “How old are you?” So I said “I'm 29. How old are you?” “I'm 6.” Then came the WTF moment, as she said “What time do you get off?” Now is it just me, is “What do you get off?” reserved for cheesy movies / sitcoms where the guy wants to pick up the girl, who is currently working as a nurse / waitress etc, and he wants to take her out for a date after she finishes work? Kind of an odd expression for a 6 year old. Obviously she is asking what time I finish work, she's a 6 year old Japanese girl and she doesn't want to take me on a date. And besides, I'm married. So I regain my composure and say “4:30”. She then looks surprised and then says “Oh, that's early!” What? Your 6. How can you have a grasp on what's an early time to finish work, and yet also be able to articulate that in English? So I reply “Really, what time do you 'get off'?” “I get off at 6:30!” What? No you don't. You leave at 3:00. What is going on? Then a small boy tried to punch me in the nuts. The moral of the story, never let your guard down.

Tottori Sand Dunes

No, I didn't know there was a desert in Japan either. But there is. It's actually quite small as a desert goes. It has one really big dune that rises up steeply and then drops down as sharply to the sea. It's odd being on the top as your so high above the beach down below. 

Random English of the Month – Surprise!

It's another single word, but I this one really made me laugh. I was driving around a corner, not really sure if I was going the right way and then found this right in front of me 'SURPRISE!' Seriously, what's it doing there? Sometimes I think Japanese people just finger though a dictionary and point to a word saying “Oh that'll do, we'll call our company that”. 

It's Like a Big Warm Blanket

As I've mentioned, it's warming up. But if you've never been in such a climate, you probably don't know how this heat might make you feel. The time you notice it most is when you go from an air-conditioned area back out into the heat. It's like walking into a wall of heat. The best way to describe is like someone walking up to you and saying “Here you are, here is a blanket that's been on the radiator. Let me put with on you!” And you say “No, thank you. Really, I'm hot enough.” But the person insists and says “No, really. You need to wear the hot blanket.” And you say “Please, get this blanket off me.” And they say “You've got too, it's summer!” That's the best way to describe it.

Humidity is also a factor. I went into a bathroom at one of my schools the other day and noticed the mirror had steamed up, like after you've had a hot shower. But it was a public bathroom so there was no shower. It was just the natural heat with the water in the air, causing it to mist.

We also had a super lighting storm the other day. I don't think I've ever seen such a storm. There was lighting cracking and flashing up the sky about every 20 seconds for about half an hour. At one point the rain was so loud it sounded like hale.

Japan is nothing if not extreme, in every sense of the word.  

Racist Cereal and Homophobic Tea