sapporo snow festival (vegetarians not allowed)

Randomata: a word unheard. Last week when ordering a pizza I confirmed four or five times that the selection I was making contained no meat. When the pizza arrived an hour and a half later (because we gave wrong directions... woops), my teeth just touched the cheese when my friend noticed the beef minced throughout the sauce. I blamed myself for not double checking one more time and specifically asking if the sauce had any pre-added meat. On the weekend, at a nice tapas bar, I scared three or four servers by asking for vegetarian recommendations. Finally we picked something that the head server said had no meat in it. I explained that I didn’t eat any meat whatsoever, and he confirmed after a direct question that there wasn’t meat in it. When the omelette-ish dish arrived, I took one bite and tasted sausage, chunks of which were spaced throughout. These are just two examples of an ongoing battle vegetarians face here.
Supposedly the word ‘vegetarian’ is one of those adopted into Japanese without a change to its meaning (just change to hiragana syllables). There are also, of course, ways to say that one doesn’t eat meat without reaching outside Japanese vocabulary, such as ‘nikku o tabenai.’ Nikku is a catch-all for beef (gyunikku), pork (buntanikku), and bird meat (torinikku). But no matter how you say it, you’re likely to provoke a surprised reaction from whoever is taking your order. In fact, they might seem downright scared (that they won’t be able to find any food for you, and that you are some strange anomaly they can’t fathom).
More confusing, however, are the people who nod in agreement, for they make it seem like the concept of vegetarianism is actually crossing the cultural-linguistic border. In reality, even if the word is known in a basic way, few people seem to understand the mentality behind it. People find it hard to understand why someone would choose not to eat meat, and it seems to suggest that that person is religious, allergic, simply doesn’t feel like eating meat at that moment, might just want a little bit less than usual, not a meat-focused dish, or perhaps doesn’t eat a lot of meat in their diet but might want to eat some now. Above all, that person is downright strange.
Japan might have been prescriptively vegetarian at some point in Buddhism’s heyday, but that time is long gone. Now it is very difficult to convince people that it is possible to not have meat, to remove it from a certain dish or, better yet, to cook without it in the first place. Difficulty arises when servers too quickly signal their understanding because there are many times the meat doesn’t even register in their minds as part of the dish, likely if it is: pre-mixed in a sauce, part of soup broth, minced finely, or placed amongst other ingredients (so that the meat doesn’t stand out as a main feature of the dish).
Sometimes I think that everywhere I go, me being vegetarian gives people a new view to think about; other times, I’m just hungry.


I haven’t checked in for a while now. I don’t think anything worth mention has happened –

– except the WICKED Snow Festival. At several sites throughout the city, ice and snow sculptures coupled with festivities and performances to provide entertainment to the hordes of visitors. Odori Park, the large Boulevard that runs through blocks and blocks of the city centre, was covered with massive displays of skilled carvings of temples and imagined scenes, as well as blocks of familiar and comical characters, and an amateur section, where some of my chums tried their hand. Susikino (the party centre of town) had a long line of sharp ice sculptures as well as an ice bar (a popular gimmick in Hokkaido). Perhaps most fun of all was Satoland (trans: sugarland), which was the kids’ section of the Festival. I went with three guys who were staying with me over the weekend. Sure, we’re all 22/23/24/27, but that doesn’t mean we can’t admit to still being kids…

Highlights include an ice maze, an ice tube slide, insanely enthusiastic dancers everywhere who periodically gathered on stage for a more official performance, and an organized yukigassen. Yes, in typical Japanese fashion, the snowball fight had a court, pre-made barricades, deployment tactics, stringent rules, helmets and bibs, and uniform pre-made, pre-counted snowballs (made with these awesome and awesomely simply snowball makers that every kid should want).

Having buds at my house was great, not so much because the four extra male bodies stank up the place almost beyond tolerance, and not because they bought me booze, but because their perspective on my apartment and the city was refreshing. They were thrilled with what the city has to offer (as compared to the small town they live in at the very opposite end of the country, southern Kyushu), and ensured me that I am very lucky to have such a comfortable apartment, close to anything I might need.

Also, my friend Lex is halfway through his second year as a JET. I enjoyed seeing the progress he has made with the language, and the fact that his enthusiasm for living here has not waned in the least. He has nothing but good things to say about the living, working, and playing situation of a JET: decent pay, heaps of paid time off, the chance to travel, the chance to learn about a new country, and relatively straightforward demands – just hang out with the kids a bit! All these things I know, but sometimes don’t think on. Course he speaks fluent French as well, and he’s just an enthusiastic guy in general, but it still gives me hope for my second year here in Japan.

Not everything gives me hope and excitement for that second year. Next post: 'life is boring here.'

struggles in the school system

Randomata: Unsatisfied student. A third-year student at my junior high is applying to go to a high school in the United States. He asked me to check over his application paragraph, as did his teachers ask me to read over the review they must write in English. His justification was frustration with the close-mindedness of the Japanese school system, where teacher’s “don’t want to hear [his] opinion.” Junior high school does seem to stress repetition and retrieval of sanctioned information, rather than critical thinking. I think everybody (across the country) is expected to acquire basically the same knowledge, and not necessarily to analyze or dissect it. However, I’m not sure if this characteristic changes as the students age and move into high school. In a line that stood out for me, his teacher’s review presents the converse sentiment that the student has a “lack of patience and over-optimistic thinking.” I think the difference between the two comes from a lack of challenge for the student, who is eager to engage with English, not just reiterate required segments (‘regurgitate lifeless snippets on cue’ I would say in more polemical tones). He wants to practice speaking English, perhaps about real ideas relevant to his life, which actually happens very little in English class. I’m certainly not going to make any overarching comment on education in Japan being homogenous, suppressive, or ineffective. Yet, I think it unfortunate that a teacher should ever think a student ‘over-optimistic,’ his eagerness a ‘lack of patience.’

Randomata 1: Respect for authority and government control. The teachers in Hokkaido have had consecutive drastic pay cuts over the last several years (including one of 10%). Understandably, teachers are somewhat frustrated by the situation, considering their commitment and involvement at work has not lessoned accordingly. Months ago, at a conference of JETS (like me) and Japanese Teachers of English, one teacher took the opportunity to stand up and comment that the pay cuts were unacceptable and teachers should no longer work a minute past their contracted hours. Coincidentally, one of the managers from the Sapporo Board of Education was in the same seminar room and he directed a sidelong response that teachers don’t work as hard as they make it seem. You could feel the antagonism in the air, which is pretty much unthinkable here.
The teachers do have a union, but it is characteristically Japanese in key ways. Central tenets of life here seem to be acceptance of the status quo, respect for hierarchies of authority, and avoidance of overt social (and political) discord. Unsurprisingly, legislation bans disruptive strikes. I heard the word whispered amongst the teachers at my Junior High School. At my friend’s High School, the teachers took the only strike measure they could, again, one very characteristic of these hard working and devoted teachers:
After regular class hours (when they’d normally still be working), the teachers took 29 minutes to stop all work, have some drinks and cakes, and in such a way send a message to the government. Anything 30 minutes or longer would constitute an illegal ‘disruptive strike’. Their protest, then, did nothing to interfere with the educational system, and did not actually cause the authorities that much difficulty. Hopefully, if teachers continue to protest within their means, the government will lose face due to their undervaluing of teaching, a profession generally respected and prestigious.
In this place where respect for authority is paramount, a quiet struggle continues, an experiment to test the responsiveness of government to a largely docile populous. So, barring the threat of strike, what power has a union?

rocking the slopes and cooking in the dark

First of all, I’m alive. I’ve been out of touch with people back home for a few weeks now, for which I have several excuses and no real reason, but I am definitely alive – doing rather well, actually.

Let’s see, excuses include most interestingly a lack of electricity. On a day of less than usual transience, I came home after work and flicked my genkan light switch to no effect. I immediately knew what the problem was; with my undisciplined postal awareness, less than exemplary filing system (ie a messy floor), and irregular paying habits, it wasn’t hard to guess. Apparently those notices with red writing that I kept receiving in the mail weren’t friendly letters congratulating me on another successful month in Japan. They were notices that I was about to have my power cut off! Such are the exigencies of illiteracy that now in darkness do I well.
The scoop is that somehow I managed to lose my power bill from last August or September, and for whatever reason it wasn’t added to my subsequent bills. In that case, I am thankful to the Man for not cutting me off sooner!
I wasn’t too concerned about the whole situation, even though the temperature has hovered between -6 and -10 for the last few weeks. Actually, The Weather Desktop (*TM) says it’s -11 right now. Truthfully, my heaters were broken before I moved into the apartment so I have been going through the whole winter without them anyway. Ironically enough, I just got my heaters fixed last week (company’s coming soon) and used them approximately once before my power went out.
In any case, I was accustomed to the cold. I had my handy headlamp and so was able to scrounge up some matches and candles. That first night, in fact, I had a quiet candle lit dinner chez moi avec book and a lovely cup of tea. (Since that, I’ve been mooching off the girlfriend ‘till I figure out how to say “I’m an idiot, please turn my electricity on” in Japanese).
Long story short, I haven’t had access to the internet for email’s sake, nor have I spent much time around the phone for phoning’s sake. I will figure out the power situation soon, and then I’ll be back in touch.

----The next day, I phoned the power company. After telling me that they didn’t speak English, the operator left the phone momentarily. He came back asking if it was Mr. Wilson calling. I didn’t tell him my name, and I wasn’t calling from my home phone…! Apparently there is only one person in the whole city who had his power cut off. Tee hee, silly me. I managed to tell him that I paid the pill and if my power worked that would be peachy. Now, Thurs the last of Jan, I’m at home and reconnected for the first time in a while, woot---

Second excuse: intentional disconnect. I had a decision of some import to make recently: whether or not to stay a second year here in the J-spot. I felt like my mind was bouncing back and forth between here and home a bit, so I figured I would focus on my friends and life here for just a little while until I made up my mind.
Depending on your feelings toward me and your current geographical location, the news is either good or bad. I’m staying. I’ve signed the contract, so barring any unforeseen calamity or severe change of heart, I’ve got around 18 more months before I’m out from under JET’s umbrella with a paid ride back home. (Later or in another post and if I remember, I’ll come back to my temporarily improved disposition toward my work situation.)

Third excuse: itsumo isogashii desu, jinsei te son’na mono sa (Always busy, such is life.) Work occupies the same amount of time as always, true, but I’ve been spending more time with friends (socializing as a regular way of life is still a bit new to me). There have been some more exciting activities to spice things up as well.
The weekend before last I went for a hike up the back of the tallest mountain in Sapporo, Teine, with friend Ido. The path was partly packed by previous perambulators, otherwise we would have simply drowned in the metres of soft powder, what with the snowshoes that didn’t fit our boots. It was an awesome four hours, followed by an enjoyable slide on my rump down the ski hill on the face of the mountain, to the bemusement of many a skier and boarder (some of whom I passed – man those M.E.C. rain pants are slick!), concluded by an ever wondrous soak in an onsen (this one had relaxing marble bucket soaking seats as well as personal ‘cradles’ to stand in and get the massage jets right where you need ‘em).

Last week I bought a gi and rocked up to a judo class that a fellow JET told me about. I spent a couple hours practicing falling over and smacking the floor properly. Yesterday night I did the same! I got thrown over some guys backed and slammed to the ground. Sweet! Today, I was only slightly sore all over.

Speaking of sore, all week I’ve actually had more sore muscles than at any one time before. Last weekend, a crew of us stayed at a friend JET’s place near Niseko, a ski town of some renown. Three of us took the plunge, hired snowboards and booked a lesson. Having skied only three times now, and boarded never, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Snowboarding always looked so immensely cool but also immensely difficult. However, as soon as I strapped in, I was hooked.

We were up the mountain about five hours both Saturday and Sunday. Though by Sunday I was able to shuffle down an easy run without falling, I kept trying to learn the proper movements and turning, as well as increasing my speed, which meant the falling didn’t stop. I think you could probably average it all out to a tumble every 2 minutes (maybe I was a slow learner). With ten hours up the mountain, that’s heaps of tumblin’ – all of it very ungraceful and some at unsafe speeds for a useless novice like me.

In any case, it was wicked. Hokkaido’s incessantly incredible powder kept coating the slope; the mountains never seem all that crowded here, but late Sunday evening I saw a total of two people on my way down the run; I was finally able to snake down the hill tip-first without spinning in circles to slow down; it was great fun hanging out with friends in a new town; I finally tried this damned sport that I’ve been afraid of for years and years: all around, it was awesome. We hopped the two hour train back to Sapporo, and were home by ten.

Consequently, the soreness. Unfamiliar muscles in about four or five places ache to high heaven – lying in bed, I actually had to lift my head up with my hands because the muscles around the throat that normally take that job were out on strike for the day! All the usual muscles too seem at risk of cramping at any moment. I love it!

Ok, so that’s a sense of why at this moment, I’m glad I decided to sign the contract and keep my option open for next year.