The Pot Squat: using the toilet in Japan

In Japan the easiest thing to find is the toilet...simply because it is the same word in Japanese, トイレ.

One of the more common questions I get asked by people from back home is always about the toilet. It seems to be a crowd favorite.

For anyone who doesn't know, a contraption that is frequently called the squatty potty is prevalent in many Asian countries. As my friend Tyler pointed out, it kind of looks like a sled for infants. Allow me to expand, it looks like a porcelain trough planted into the ground. There is a hood and lever at one end. You face this when you do your business. For women, it is a common wasteful practice to always pull the handle to keep the water running.

These types of toilets are cheap and therefore found in any public place that is trying to cut costs. In other words you find them in schools, train and subway stations, on trains ( man that is a good story from Taipei!), public restrooms and even some restaurant restrooms. They are so prevalent, they are pretty difficult to avoid. 

Increasingly more common in Japan are the bidets. I believe it is thought that the French introduced this to Japan. Japan seems to like a lot of French things, most of all bread and food. They are fancy partly plastic toilets with a whole remote switch board along the side. These switchboards control everything; how loud the flush; how much water is used; if there is any ...water cleansing needed; how warm the seat is; and it can even make a toilet flushing sound if you are not in a particularly wasteful mood. These are now common in homes and hotels and newer schools and nicer restaurants.

And the last style of irregular not often seen in America) toilet that I have encountered, is the one in my home. It is completely normal except that when you flush it, it also runs water into the upper tank from a facet where you wash your hands. Of course you can opt not to do this and go to your kitchen or bathroom (yes it is different from restroom in Japan) sink to wash your hands; however, if you wish to wash your hands via this contraption, you must flush the toilet.

Also important to note, is that nearly every toilet has marking on the handle: 大 and 小. 大 means big, and the other, 小, means little. I will leave it to what little your imagination needs to process this.

a cute instructing sign seen on the stall walls of my elementary school

And just so that there is less room for the imagination...

I want my friends to die early

An intermission from my normal routine of Japan culture and holidays. I am going to write about a particular class amusement.

Some background
I am currently teaching some of the more useful aspects of having a phone conversation when the person you want to talk to is unavailable to my 3rd year JHS students. So some of the key phrases include things like ''May I speak to...' 'He/She is out' 'May I leave a message' 'Would you ask him/her to...'

These two incredibly intelligent boys were sitting front and center in my classroom. They have a really good grasp on English and will, when they feel like it, clue the rest of the class in on what I am talking about. Today was a particularly interesting day between the two of them and they one did something when the other sat down which set them off in a battle of the wills: holding a secret war between each other while still being focused on English. I knew what was going on and saw a few of their punches ( they are friends so they were trying to maim...permanently). So then I walk up to them and tell them that the next punch I see they are going to have to do Butts Game, a Japanese punishment game. So they almost sober up and say yes they understand. I continue to walk checking student work and not even seconds later one of the two falls off the chair. The other punched him off. The one on the ground is pointing at the one at the desk who then explains 'But Ms. Lauren - you didn't see it.' Ok I can't flaw their logic.

Class progresses and their battle still rages
We reach an activity where we are going over the phrase 'Would you tell him/her...' more in depth. And we reach an exercise that states 'I want my friends to______________' and they write in an activity and of course I give them more activities they can write in ( give me Christmas presents, send me nengajo...). I am walking around and checking their work and I reach my favorite pair they have written down 'die early'. I could no longer hold back my laughter. I want my friends to die early.

And for any who are curious, at the end of the lesson I made them both do the Butts Game. I made them sing the ABC's to the rest of the class. Seeing as they are both very popular boys one of them starts clapping and gets the rest of the class to clap along and towards the end, they all start singing.

And for as much trouble as they cause me, I would rather have 100 cheeky mischief makers who are good in English than a single silent class.

The suspects in question

Happy Christmas from Japan!

Many people were curious when I told them all of my holiday plans in Japan, and were surprised to find that Japan celebrated Christmas.

Well no, they are not exactly religious, but man they love some Christmas. There are decorations all over, giant lit up snowmen,and house decor. All the store fronts are decorated in Christmas style and you see green, red, and gold everywhere. Sometimes, since I live in a city, I feel more in the Christmas spirit than I did in the US.
This is not to say that they are Christian. They just like the decorations, the holiday, and the presents. This is actually less of a holiday for families in Japan and more of a holiday for couples. I was told that a great many hotels and love hotels get booked pretty far in advance for the coming of this holiday.
One of the traditions that I really like is the Japanese idea of a Christmas cake. Okay, so I know there are some other Christmas cakes out there; there is the Bouche de Noel, of which I am very fond, and there are some at-home traditions, too. But being American and all, I don't recall a Christmas cake that everyone partakes in... In Japan they typicaly do a vanilla cake with white whipped frosting. However, the most important part lies in the decoration: the strawberries. For whatever reason, Christmas cakes in Japan all have strawberries. I love this season here because it makes buying strawberries out of season very easy and very cheap if you buy the slightly over ripened ones. And let me tell you, I don't remember strawberries tasting this good!
Another good one is having fried chicken for your Christmas meal. Apparently many Japanese people will head out to the local KFC for some good old country fried chicken for their big family dinner!
Other differences between American and Japanese traditions lie in the tree. Sure, in Japan a few families might have a tree, but I do not believe it to be too popular. Additionally, the tree is fake. I have not seen a live tree being sold anywhere, kind of like my pumpkin search of Halloween. They don't seem to be too big on getting once living things and using them to decorate their homes for the season. But that does not mean they don't know how to decorate! Just look at these pictures!

And here is a look at Arashiyama in part of the Keihanshin Christmas light festival:

And lastly here are a few videos of a spectacular light show seen in Osaka as part of the Keihanshin:




An after edit featuring a light show which can be seen from my own city that is projected onto our...
Sun Monster

Dear Mum,

Japan, one of the foremost countries in flower arranging, often relies on a simple mum on the solemn occasion of a funeral. 

These beauties known to us Americans as 'mums', carry precedence with their cheer and happiness; however, in Japanese these are actually more commonly known as funeral flowers. The flower's full name is chrysanthemum and, as a personal experience, I associate it with the Parade of Homes, but there is also a spectacular Chinese movie, the crest of the Japanese throne, as well as a flower tea that is associated with this flower. White is typically more common since it is seen as pure to the soul and is used to keep out impure spirits. In addition to these flowers they also decorate their house with white paper and will typically preform a Buddhist ceremony.

Flowers are sometimes not adequate enough in the expression of grief. And in these circumstances people will present either 'koden' or 'hanawa'. Hanawa is more or less an extension of the flower, and is an elebroate funeral wreath of flowers. Koden is a monetary gift to help supplement the family and the cost of the funeral.

However I found these flowers on a much happier occasion. It was a competition of sorts; a display of all of the beautifully grown chrysanthemums located at the Natural Science museum in Osaka.

医療分 Insuring Japan

いりようぶん

or more simply put, Japanese health insurance.

Insurance is a key thing to have in Japan. Actually, you must have it. By Japanese law, you are required to be insured during your stay here ( exception: this does not include tourists). There are several methods of insurance. 

• Interglobal
•  社会保険 Shakai Hoken
• 国民健康保険 Kokumin Kenko Hoken
• 私学共済 Shigakou Kyousai

Interglobal is a foreigner special, where I am told that it will only cover you for a year, I believe this limit to be shorter; when I received my information packet and Bronze card, it was only good for three months. Possibly Interglobal is used more often as traveler's health insurance when visiting Japan. It costs 2900 yen and would be deducted from my salary. Since Interac applied for me, my insurance was linked to my salary and gets deducted from my paychecks rather than paying for it in person
.

Nevertheless, that was canceled in all of a day as I received my kokumin kenko hoken. Kokumin hoken is part of the National Health Insurance program. It is for people who are unemployed. I fall into this category, as I was not employed in Japan in the preceding year. This insurance is less than half the price of the Employees Health Insurance. I pay 2000 yen, just over 20 bucks, and it covers 70% of my medical costs. So far I have only used it for going to the dentist. Since I was already in Japan at the time and could easily do it myself, Interac did not take part in the application process. I also pay for it myself via receipt tickets that I have for each month. 

Next year I will have to graduate to Shakai Hoken, as I will have been employed in Japan the previous year. This will cost 8.2% of my salary and it will also cover 70% of my medical costs, as well as other things.

The last type of insurance I mentioned is for private companies and universities. It is similar to Shakai Hoken.

To the left is my Interglobal card and the right is my Kokumin Hoken.
You simply present this card upon entering anywhere
you would need medical or dental attention

How to get insurance:

Interac automatically applied to Interglobal for me since I was not present in Japan to apply for it myself (also just because they are nice guys and want to make your life comfortable and easy). Therefore, they said that even before arrival in Japan I was covered by insurance...I am not certain what this means, since I did not have official documentation for being covered until 2-3 weeks until after I got to Japan. However, Interac assured me that I was covered before I left incase something happens on the plane or at the airport. When it arrived on my doorstep my insurance package contained papers explaining the different programs  (bronze, silver and gold) as well as other necessary readables -- of which I had no intention of doing-- and, most importantly, this little gold card that I would carry around with me to the doctor.

Well I did away with that since it cost more, and seemed to expire in three months anyway, and applied for the Unemployed Persons Insurance, kokumin kenko hoken. To do this you simply go to your respective city office and apply for it in person. Unfortunately, no: Interac cannot apply for this type of insurance for you since it needs to be done with the applicant present. However, there was ridiculously little paperwork involved, so that I thought that they must have misunderstood my purpose. But low and behold, about two weeks later the insurance papers were delivered to my door. These papers included my flimsy but valuable insurance card and a type of receipt ticket with the value and a month stamped on each of them. You simply take the ticket for the appropriate month to any bank or post office to pay for that months insurance in person.

This is one of the insurance tickets that you receive in the mail.
You might be able to see where it says it is for December and how it is due on December 28th of 2011.
It gets stamped upon payment and acts as a receipt thereafter. 

But please note, you cannot go to a city office that is not respective to your living arrangements. They will simply wave you away and keep telling you ' No, no' followed by the appropriate city office. 

Nyaa Nyaa Nekochan

Here kitty kitty

The cat population in Japan is an exceedingly large geographic. Where cats can be house hold pets, this is not as often the case in Japan as it is in America. Cats are more often found wandering the streets of smaller less aggressive areas. This is to say the areas with not as much foot and car traffic, where they can hunt and scavenge in peace. Often you will find them in residential areas of a town. Personally I know of 4 kitties that haunt my apartment...either that means we have really great trash, or some one has an infestation...or it could be the fact that someone feeds them and I secretly believe them to be someones outdoor pets. You might think of them as disgusting or a nuisance, as I thought of the homeless dogs in Korea, but for all their yowling at night, I have not seen a single mouse, rat, or roach. Allergies permitting, I welcome there feral beasts...at least to the area surrounding my apartment. 

Outdoor cats here are just as agile and capable as they are in America, but I have come be believe that there is are certain roughness around the edges. I don't know what it could be, the tattered ears, the scrapped noses, or maybe it is the fact that the majority of cats I see have stunted tails. This is not a growth defect, but rather a result of some injury such as a car or...well you get the point. Their tails will occasionally appear twisted and shorted or sometimes are just a little stub as if they were extremely limber rabbits.

one the black cat that little black ball is all it has for a tail...though it was kind of cute

Another solution that has come forth in recent times, is the cat cafe. I am not sure who suddenly decided that this was the new black, especially with all of their disregard or perhaps undesirability in the common street, but suddenly cat cafes are a welcome and often popular location. In Korea I had to wait upwards of a quarter of an hour to be seated at one of these. They are a great couples, friends hang out, and even family location. These cafes are not found every where, but certainly in ever large city in Korea and Japan. 

Inside these cafes you sit and have a cuppa and have the option of feeding the cats. At first you might look down on this, but you will find that the cats might not be so ready and willing to interact with you when there are other people with the tempting delights; therefore, it is recommended that if you really want some cute cat holding and affection time, that you pay up and get the kitty snack. Additionally at some of these places, they will have purchasable desserts for human consumption; however they do warn you not to feed these to the animals. 

Also you might wonder if there are dog cafes, and I delight in telling you that there are such things, but I only know of one in Seoul, South Korea.

In Korea, I have found them in Daejeon, Gumi, several in Seoul, and Busan

In Japan, I have found them in Kyoto, Osaka, and Tokyo, but I am certain they are in other large cities.

Mancatcher

is not a nickname referencing a particularly attractive women, but rather a sasumata. It is an instrument used in schools and fire stations to detain persons of potential threat.

This post comes after a recent event where a man came into our school's teacher office yelling. His voice would oscillate in pitch, words slurring into one another, most unlike any Japanese person I have met. These particular vocal characteristic are often seen when a person wants to be seen as threatening and angry. And trust me, I had no intention of going near him!
The man was there to evidently complain about the non compliance of our students to clear the road when he honked his horn; however, I was thinking that the bigger issue is letting him drive in his current state (possibly not quite so sober). Let me tell you, that as our vice principal came over to sooth the situation over and coax the older man into an office, I was looking at the sasumata as my best friend of the moment. The man did comply and we did not have to get forceful or use the sasumata at all.

Let me explain, the sasumata is a metal pole that is about 2 meters long with a U shape at one end. Now you may look at the and scoff like I did when I first saw it, but it may be the friendliest thing you have in a dire situation that you don't want to become worse. Sometimes the pole has a grip or bar on the opposite end to help the detainers have a better hold on the tool to stop the assailant. How it works it that one or more people grip the pole end and use the opposite end to force and assailant up against a wall and pin him there until the authorities arrive to handle the situation.

This tool is an adaptation from a much older weapon that was perhaps barbed and bladed which existed in the Edo period.

Momiji

One of the most beautiful things about Japan, is its fall colors.

Recently I had the splendid opportunity to view the Japanese maples in their full fall foliage. And they were stunning.
I feel obligated to point out that Japanese maples and Japanese cherry trees are two entirely different species. Japanese cherry trees are the ones that have the beautiful sakura blossoms in the spring and Japanese maple trees have the stunning autumn colors. What makes them so stunning is that they are all varying shades of red and orange. And when the light hit them, from a ways away, you might swear the trees are on fire.

In Japan this is an important time of year: it is tourist season once again, especially for places like Kyoto and Tokyo, which have famous locations for momiji viewing. Thus many temples who cultivate these beautiful trees are able to make a lot of money from the visiting tourists from Osaka, Nagoya, and other neighboring cities. Additionally there are many street vendors who open up their stalls at this time in hopes to earn an extra...yen. In Kyoto, some of the best places to see the colors are; Eikando, which specifically engineers their entire temple to display these, and only these trees; Nanzenji, which has a masterfully worked brick waterway which is the perfect backdrop for any momiji photograph; and Tofukuji, which is also famous for its autumn foliage that is spectacularly viewed from its great wooden bridge and its view to the valley below.

Japanese Certificate of Eligibility

Certificate of Eligibility, or COE is something that essentially allows you to get a visa for a longer stay in Japan. Typically, if you are a tourist, the stay is only 90 days. This is stamped in your passport upon arrival at the immigration counter. With this document all things are ensured to go smoothly.
The certificate of eligibility permits one an extended stay. Since I work for Interac, who applied for my certificate in lieu of myself, my 'extended stay' is only for one year. However, there is no problem getting extensions of your visa once you are here. I have heard those that work for JET might have a 5 year visa and I might assume any foreign national who is attending school in Japan might have an extended visa as well.

What you need for your COE:

• application form for the Certificate of Eligibility
• 2 passport sized photos
• a sponsor or organization who has agreed to hire you and sponsor your visa application
  (there is paperwork that they must submit as well that details your position, such as your Certificate of Emplyment)
• an addressed return envelope
• a copy of your passport 
• your diploma or official transcripts
• possibly letters of recommendation?
• possibly a criminal background check?
  (for US residents, a statewide background check is sufficient, though I believe it must be fingerprinted...not like the online things that South Carolina does!)

I believe that is all. I am not sure about the last two More or less it is everything that you should be obtaining to apply to your desired company. Though the minimum requirement is the application and two passport photos, I believe that the rest of these documents are either important to speed up the processing time or are specifically required for teachers. This information can be found at the Japanese immigration website. The cost of the COE is free. So please do not get scammed to pay money to someone who says they will sponsor you and that it costs to obtain one.

The COE takes about 22 working days to be returned via post. Working days means that weekends and holidays are not included. So essentially it is a little over a month. Mine was sent off the 7th of July and was expected to be received by August 9th; however luck was on my side, and it was received by Interac on August 2nd, and later by myself on August 5th. During this time I was super worried. What if my Certificate of Eligibility was rejected? What if something was wrong? What if it was weird that I was coming from Korea and I was teaching English? Well for anyone who has any worries, I have determined that as long as an organization is sponsoring you, I do not believe you have anything to fear.

Once you have the COE, you are clear to apply for your visa. At the time I was living in Korea and therefore went to the Japanese consulate in Seoul. The procedures here evidently take a lot less time than in America and if you apply before 11am I believe you should have you passport and accompanying visa back by 4pm that day. As for myself, I wanted no room for error and was there at 9am applying, (there is a sheet you must fill out here) and had my passport-visa combo back to me by 3pm. They also returned my COE, which is to be expected as they take it for keeps at the immigration counter.

If you want to bring a spouse or children over to Japan, you need everyone's photos, copies of their passports, your marriage certificate, and birth certificates for the children.

Happy Labor Thanksgiving Day from Japan!

A lot of people wonder what we do for Thanksgiving in Japan. Well of course Japanese people do nothing; but by we, I meant the odd gaijin or two.

There are few to none options for turkey dinners here in Japan...UNLESS you know where to look. There happens to be a few specialty stores and a few restaurants who celebrate Thanksgiving with turkey dinners. Or you can visit www.themeatguy.jp who sells turkey and chicken beasts that vary in weight and origin. This guy goes and gets these birds in perhaps early October when you can start purchasing them until mid November when they are either all sold out or is it crunch time to get a bird by the special day.

Here in Japan, this year we had the day off before Thursday. This day is to celebrate hard work ANNNND, get this, the harvest festival. What does this sound like to you!? But of course! Labor Thanksgiving Day!!! Ok so the two are a bit lumped together but the important part is still there, Thanksgiving. The  Japanese holiday is called Kinro Kansha no Hi, 勤労感謝の日. This is a day for congratulating people for their hard work and giving thanks. Traditionally on this day the emperor makes the first offering of current years rice harvest to the gods and then partake in the fresh harvest himself. This tradition goes back hundreds of years, though in recent times, since the end of the second world war, it has come to be known as a labor day combination. This holiday is always celebrated on the 23rd of November, unless the 23 falls on a weekend, in which case the kind Japanese government will observe it on the following Monday, which will then be a day of rest.

One of the major festivals for this day occurs in Nagano and unfortunately I was not able to make it there.

On to Thanksgiving dinner...again...Here is mine!

What we have here is a sincerely molested chicken, adorned with stuffing. It weighs in at perhaps a kilo or two. A small gravy dish. Mashed sweet potatoes. And green bean casserole...and pan.

And that proves you can do Thanksgiving in Japan

Matsuri! on a Boat!

Only there was no T. Pain on this boat.
In Arashiyama this past weekend there was a special matsuri going on. What makes this matsuri so different is that it takes place on boats! Traditionally, in all of the preceding matsuris I have seen, they have all taken the form of elaborate mikoshi with people carrying them around and making their way to the shrine.

So you might be thinking how on earth does one have a festival on a boat. Well about 13 different shrines from all over Kyoto prefecture sponsor a boat and they put on a performance, such as a dance or tea ceremony in front of the Tokgetsu bridge in Arashiyama. Supposedly there was even a Noh play on one of the boats. The boats move in a circular fashion around the lake to appease their large crowd on both banks.

Clad in elaborate costumes and elegant kimono's the entourage of the boats are as much as of the performance as the dancers. These people sit along the sides and rear of the boat as the performance takes center stage on the boat. Some of these people function as singers, singing traditional songs that are possibly for purification, and are often heard at their respective shrine; others would play various instruments such as the gong seen below. The performers donning the most elaborate costume and often a mask or an object with which they dance (a fan, a hat, these things?...).

The name of this matsuri happens to be Momoji Matsuri. For anyone who does not know, momiji is the term for the beautiful fall foliage that Japan is so known for. Unfortunately, this matsuri was planned a little too early and the leave have yet to fully turn therefore having a very slight but still present mottled effect of green and orange tinged leaves.

In addition to watching the matsuri from the riverside, you can also rent boats and tour around the lake. Even during the matsuri allowing you a very up close opportunity to view the festivities.

Aki Matsuri

 

I think one of the most associated aspects of the word matsuri is all the food booths and game areas. But one of the greater more massive features of it, is the giant elaborate wooden carts that weigh 4 tons and are mobilized by the shear force of man. Here at the Wakayaman town of Aki, matsuri that is no different.

These wooden carts are called mikoshi and it is believed that the gods temporarily reside in them while they are transported around a city or to new shrines that will serve as their home. These are often seen as portable shrines and are sacred. Every year lots of money is used to furnish and decorate the mikoshi. Since they are so elaborate and so much time and thousands of dollars goes into making them, they get a lot of use out of them; they are used year to year, for possibly up to 20 years or until they acquire enough money to build a new one. You may wonder what happens to some of the decor that falls off in the stunts that they do, they simply pick up the pieces and glue them right back on for the next years festival.

Here in Wakayama you may notice a few rather similar aspects about the three mikoshi here, They all have a heavy golden rope that weighs a fair amount and costs just as much mantled around the cart, called shimenawa, as well as the folded spirit paper called shide.

Up on the cart are the leaders yelling encouragements and waving their fans.

During the matsuri these carts are carried by dozens of men and women, who are decked out in the uniform of their team. The leaders sport fans and towels and support the runners, yelling 'Soyra!' as a chant of encouragement. Occasionally seen at these festivals is the hitting of the runners with these fans. At first I thought this was friendly brutality, but later learned it is an act called 'charging'.

Here are boys and girls decked out in their teams uniform.

White pants, white cloth shoes and a type of (usually) black jacket with their team image.

Girls often do up their hair in cornrows for the event.

At this Wakayama matsuri, the three carts on display at the time run in a small, tight circle dragging the cart to the crowds enjoyment. After an uncertain amount of times or laps they break and ready themselves for the big important event of the festival. They have to drag their 4-5 ton cart up a set of 5 stairs into the shrine center. This is no easy task.They have their long line of runners ready themselves with half of them already up the stairs in order to get the leverage needed to propel the cart up them. It is the task of all three carts to accomplish this. What happens if they fail? Well I don't know!

Here is a picture of the shrine and the sand bags that 

they put before the first step to give them leverage on the way up.

Once up the slope the carts put on a sort of 'dance' if you will, rocking their cart back and forth with a person in the back pounding a rhythm on the drum. After each finally make it, they go out in a bang, producing their banners, popping streamers, and finally go into a sort of boisterous revelry. They drink sake, Japanese holy water, and proceed to anoint their mikoshi with the sake as well as the crowd. Then they proceed to gift the crowd with mochi, or rice cakes, which are thought to bring good luck in health if obtained.

Other notable areas around the celebration are the stalls. Food stalls. Game stalls. Sweet stalls. Fish stalls. All sorts of things can be found here. And rather go into detail describing them all I will just give you the photos for you to make of it what you will!