Monday, August 20, 2012

Postcard Japan

It seems that people have an idea of what Japan is.  Maybe it s due to their place in America's memory/idea of what Asia is.  Perhaps it is the obsession we've harbored with Japan for 60+ years.  That being said I present to you my descent into the postcard ideal of Japan.

Riding the subway in Osaka I found myself gazing out the window while we were above ground.  It was here that my first glimpses of Japan would be had, and I must admit, I was anxious to see if several of the preconceived notions I had about Japan were true.  At first glance I was not let down.  We were traveling through the suburbs and the streets were clean and the buildings were somewhat haphazardly built upon each other.  It looked as if the city had been designed in the 60's and was cutting edge in the 80's.  Further up the line we descended under ground and proceeded to make our way to the train station for our ride up to Kyoto.  Having spent 4 years in Korea it was hard not to constantly compare the two countries.  Japan was cleaner, it was quieter, and it seemed to run more efficiently.  That being said it was also a bit more confusing because the public transit is run by several different companies and has not been consolidated.  In Seoul different companies own the subways lines but they are all linked through the same system and one ticket works for all the lines.  The cost of getting around Japan was also a bit probative.  Going on stop on the subway cost 120 yen which costs about $1.50.  To go from Osaka to Kyoto (a 45 minute drive roughly) cost $15 dollars on the Shinkansen (bullet train/15 minutes).  Yes we could have taken a cheaper option but when in Rome.

Still, upon arrival in Kyoto I felt like I was fulfilling some ancient calling or lifetime goal.  Maybe it's because I had wanted to go there for as long as I could remember and had planned the trip three years ago.  Either way I was gripped with anticipation and excitement.  It's hard to explain.  Kyoto was everything I thought it would be.  It was ancient temple after ancient temple.  There was the imperial palace, a fort, Shinto shrines, kimono, sushi, etc.  It was as if they packed every idea we have of Japan and put it there.  From a historians perspective this place was gold.  Every corner dripped of history and culture.  It is tourist heaven.  For four days John and I biked around Kyoto getting lost and seeing temple, after temple, after shrine.  It was amazing.  We ate awesome food and drank a little bit but not too much.  It was pretty expensive which I was both grateful for and disappointed in.  Still the coolest moment in Kyoto for me had to be Fushimi Inari.  This is a Shinto shrine with thousands of orange gates running up the mountain side forming a semi covered walkway. When you could find a spot to be alone with the cicadas and the forest it was truly impressive.  I felt like I could have been walking through this shrine 500 years ago surrounded by ancient samurais or costumed geishas.  We saw so many shrines and temples that they all seemed to run together. 

However, as sight after sight blended into one, I came to understand what had drawn me to Japan.  It was not for a world that is different from my own.  I've lived in Asia for 4 years now.  What was drawing me to Japan was the chance to see everything I've studied about, everything I've read about, and everything I've heard about Japan.  It was a chance for me to go there and discover for myself a small portion of the history and the soul of a people we know so much about.  That, is why I was there.  I was drawn to Japan to discover if it was the Japan that I had envisioned in my mind, or if it was altogether something different.  Luckily, it was a mix of the two.  The world may have preconceived ideas about what Japan is, but those ideas are firmly on display in Kyoto.  

Monday, August 6, 2012

Ferry Musings

There is something about being on a ferry.  A calmness to the time spent getting somewhere.  In today's world it is rare that we make the journey part of a vacation. Too often it is get in and get out as fast as we can. How we get there doesn't matter along as it is fast and cheap.  This ferry from Busan to Osaka takes roughly 18 hours.  It involves two meals and sleeping on the boat.  Yet more importantly it involves time to relax.  It involves time to clear your head, and time to restfully transition to vacation.  For me this trip has involved the first real days of rest in a long while.  Between the constant movement and reality that is life in Korea and the drain on your body that is teaching anywhere, it is necessary for me to recoup some semblance of sanity before I am able to truly enjoy myself.  For me that time is now. Ensconced on a boat, and with the stark beauty of an empty ocean.  A place where the wind can drown out the sound of the world and my life.  Where buffeted by stiff breezes I can feel as if the world is fading away and all I'm left with is the promise of discovery.  The promise of a new land, a new culture, and a new understanding.  


Wednesday, August 1, 2012

I've Been Gone for a While.

Well folks, I'm not going to lie.  I've been neglecting my duties to the internet world recently.  I wish I had a good reason for it, but the simple fact is I don't.  I've been busy but no more than normal.  However, I am aiming to rectify this situation in the next few months.  If I can't rectify it I will shut this down and probably never run a blog again.  The past few months have been a rather interesting mix of problems, solutions, and more problems.

For starters, a lot of you know that my health has been really up and down this year.  In fact this has been the worst year I've ever had in terms of my health.  I have spent more time on medication and in the doctors office this year than I have in my entire life.  Luckily at this point I'm just dealing with a couple of the side effects of my liver inflammation.  It's not totally dissipated but it is definitely improving.  When I get back from vacation I'm going to hop into a doctors office for another check up just to make sure but everything should be fine.  Luckily that check will be the final all clear and I'll gratefully put this crap behind me.

Moving on from my health, my luck with women recently could be termed comical.  I have run into several women recently that I have hit it off with great.  Only to find out a few days later that: hey they've got a boyfriend, hey they're leaving the country, hey they're moving to another city, etc.  I swear I must have a sign around my neck right now that says "hopeless."  Now most of this is my fault because I didn't ask ahead of time but ohh well.  Speaking of that, I am so screwed when I come back to America in terms of the whole dating scene.  Dating in Korea is an entirely different approach and what is normal here would come off as an over-abundance of confidence with a lot of American women.  Which I guess could be a benefit.

Professionally life here has been pretty much the same it has been for the past year or so.  Although there was a new requirement that we obtain a 100 hour TEFL certificate to continue teaching.  I've already finished mine and I'm planning on completing a 50 hour business English course when I get back from Japan.  I am not to broken up about having to get the TEFL because I had been kicking it around for a number of years.  I don't know if I'll ever actually have a need for it but you never know.  Who knows, maybe I'll parlay this into a career abroad.  Either that or it's a nice way to slip into school mode again.  What do I mean by that?  Well, when I get back chances are I have to get back into school.  Which means a lot of writing and proofreading and any type of practice for that is good.

Finally, I have officially descended into the modern world.  In the past six months I've procured an iPad and a Kindle e-reader.  Well, this week I had to take the dive into the smart phone world.  Which is a little ridiculous considering that I'm leaving in 6 months.  Ohh well, I figured if I'm going to get screwed I might as well get screwed by getting a new fancy phone and I purchased the Samsung Galaxy S3.  This phone is kinda nice and has all the bells and whistles.  Of course, this also means that I have zero brand loyalty, because I am currently running a service on the three companies fighting it out in the smart world.  At least I don't have a Kindle Fire because that would just make this ridiculous.  Ohh well.  I guess I had to jump in eventually.  Alas good people, I will try to get a few more posts up and shorten the downtime.