Don't do that!

Short post today.  No pictures.  すみません.

Yesterday we went to a はなび Festival, and of course I will go into more detail later, but while there, some of the boys thought it would liven the show up to add their own, new slang, like Daniel's idea to yell, "Jack!" and Jack to yell, "Spencer!"  But the best came when a huge explosion went off and Jack yelled, "Don't do that!"  Not sure why it was so funny, but I'm still laughing 24+ hours later.

Word Guide:

すみません: sumimasen; Excuse me.

はなび : Fireworks (Fireworks Festival)

Countdown til Fuji-san: 2 days

“You are a fool to never climb Fuji- san, and a bigger fool to climb more than once.”--Japanese Proverb

We live in an area called Hodokubo, a nice residential area that rests on a hill--the downside (or shall I say upside?) is that the most direct route to our apartment from the station is a severe climb that has us tired and sweating by the time we reach our place.  But our inspiration is drawn from the refrain, "Fuji Practice!" But now that refrain will soon take on reality, and I must say, fear is beginning to grip my heart.  I have heard more than one person remark on the difficulty of the climb, with one even going so far as to say, "Never again!"  But I feel like fear should never be a reason to keep me from doing something--if I had let fear control me, I wouldn't be in Japan in the first place, let alone all the other places that I have gone(as anyone who has flown with me in an airplane can attest to).  So I have bought my Japanese power bars and vitamin drink pouch (I am quite interested to find out what it holds inside/tastes like) so that my physical energy can hopefully hold out--so now I only have to focus on my mental willpower.  

"I lift my eyes up to the mountain(s), where does my help come from?"

I can hear the belling

Some quick insights:

Weather is super unpredictable; wash your clothes and hang them out to dry when you can.

Karaoke is fun, but it's even MORE fun when the English is slightly off.  Ex.: "I can hear the belling" (bell ring) from "Mamma Mia"; "Every moment, red letter" (gets better) from "A whole new world".  

It may look cloudy and rainy, but it's probably still hot.

If you haven't had the drink before, it's very hard to predict what it will taste like, even if you think it looks like water.

If you have a favorite food, you can probably find it in chip form!!

BTW, we (and by we, I mean I am while also forcing Sarah Joy to) are listening to Abba on repeat.  But only the song "Mamma Mia!", as inspired by karaoke.

**Correction!  Scott A. of Portland cookery fame has informed me that the true lyrics to the song "A Whole New World", are in fact, "Every moment red-letter", which apparently means excitement (kind of like it's exciting in the Bible when Jesus talks, so his words are red-letters).

Gaijin

Sarah Joy brought home Nanako after a shopping exploration, and one of the topics of conversations that came up is about natto, the beloved Japanese fermented soybeans.  I think a favorite activity for Japanese citizens is to introduce to snack to American gaijin to see their reactions.  If I was to try to explain how natto tastes using a keyboard, this is probably what it would look like:

BLAGHADRHGDFKGLSDFGADGR

>:(========)

GLGdfgadadgjauiaeDFGSADRGdjsfgadjkgfhuahuaehulVASDJASEFGJAERadgasd

FLEHBLAGHBLAGHBLAGHGRAAAAWWAAABLARFBLARF.

Which brings me to the topic of gaijin.  Gaijin, as I previously mentioned, are foreigners in Japan.  They can be whities, blackies, Chinesies, whatever; if they weren't made in Japan, they are gaijin.  Coming to Japan is much different from going to Europe, were passing for a native only requires wearing inconspicuous clothing and not hauling around a camera that you whip out for pictures every 5 minutes.  In Japan, blending in is not possible when your skin is tinted pink and you stand 6 inches taller than the average woman (and let's not even get into facial differences).  Let's not forget that Japanese style is insanely cute and composed even in 100% humidity; so while Japanese college students look like they just stepped out from some uber chic indie zine, I tend to arrive on the scene red-faced and pouring sweat with my baggy clothes sticking to my damp skin.  Real life might not seem so bad, but it's highly amusing to look back at pictures of myself with the students, where they are cool and classy while my appearance is more comparable to a fat man who has just gotten off a treadmill set to "mountain sprints".

But more importantly, there are cultural differences; general practices of courtesy that are ingrained into Japanese life.  Many of them aren't very difficult to remember, like pointing to your nose when referring to yourself; however, I had to constantly remind myself  not to point at people with one finger--and I have found it nearly impossible to always avoid eating and drinking while walking--I've definitely begun to notice how often I do certain things after I find out I'm not supposed to do them.  

Constantly standing out can be kind of weird; when we walk on trains, people always look at us (but try quickly to hide it), and we occasionally hear people utter the word "gaijin" to each other when we go by--but when you can't help it, you have to just go with it.  So technically, if we make faux pas every once in awhile, it's okay, because hey--we're gaijin.  If the humidity is pressing down on us on our walk to school, then I'll play the gaijin card and sneak a drink of Aquarius--the important thing is knowing the when going against the rules is seen as impolite, and when it is seen as adorably American (okay, I'm not sure anyone ever thinks that, but I have my hopes).