ARGH so in the process of updating my blog last night, I knocked over a glass of water and spilled some onto the keyboard of my laptop.. Dag nab it. The jury is still out on whether it will be usable... I will know in a few days after it has dried out completely. Thankfully, though, I have my ipad and it is relatively easy to write blog posts on (though you'll have to forgive any typos along the way). So here we go...
On Saturday (7/5), the big activity for the day was a trip to an archaeological/historical centrer on the Jomon era (pre-historic Japan). We were accompanied by students from Hakodate University, who I later found out were required to join us on this trip – it wasn't for the thrill of meeting us. At any rate, we spent an hour-and-a-half bus ride to get to the center. I didn't know much about the Jomon period, and unfortunately I still don't because the lecture we were given on it in Japanese was pretty much inscrutable to me. However, they had some very cool remains on display. One is an intact doll-like figure (dogu) dating back about 3500 years. It was in its own display room, and is apparently on the waiting list to become a national treasure.
 |
| Millennia old! |
Another striking artifact were a series of stone tablet with small footprints in them. Apparently the Jomon people (at the time of these footprints, anyway, since the period lasted thousands of years), when they lost a child, would imprint the footprint onto such tablets as a memento (and, potentially, would hang them in their home, given the holes appearing on most of these tablets). The historians point to this as a sign of Jomon spirituality. It's gripping and sad, at any rate, and reminded me that the human experience, in all its joy and pain, goes way, way back.
On Sunday (7/6), Okaasan very kindly took me to her sister's house so I practice piano. I practiced for an hour and a half and was very grateful, to her and her sister. Later that day, one of my Yale Japanese professors, Nishimura-sensee, was in town to visit the four of us Yalies in the program. She was in the process of making a tour to all the Japanese programs with Yale students in them, coming to Hakodate in between visits to Ishikawa and Tokyo. We all got a wonderful lunch at a Japanese inn and talked about the program, what we thought/were learning. I voiced my frustrations with the pace of my class, and was interested to see what she would think we she observed class on Monday. It was a great time to catch up, anyway; I had been missing my own Yale Japanese class, largely due to the dedication, enthusiasm, and generosity of our Japanese professors. Once we were done eating (and it was quite the array), we went to the onset at the inn. (Thankfully all of us are guys, and since make and female baths are separated, there was no awkwardness).
Monday (7/7), my frustration with class reached a peak; I found myself complaining internally a lot and becoming impatient with the repetition of the material. The fact that class takes 3 hours out of every day, combined with the fact I was learning very little new information in this final unit of the semester... Well, I was having trouble just sucking it up and dealing with it, especially knowing that even after completing this program I will still have to study a lot more independently to successfully skip a level of Japanese. Anyway, I don't intend to bore you with my whining, but this frustration was becoming a real part of my daily experience; outside of class, I was so enjoying exploring and learning within the culture; inside class, I was bored. (Thankfully, my classmates are very fun, kind people to be around, and we have a great group dynamic). So, after class I met up with my Yale professor and we talked about possible options. It was pretty much too late to move into the higher level, because there would be too much catching up to do; yet it was clear the work in this level was not challenging enough. I could ask for more work from my teacher (but why would I want to take more time away from actually experiencing Japan?). At any rate, it was clear I should make clear to my teacher here some of my concerns.
Monday evening, things took a very pleasant turn as the celebration of the Tanabata Festival took place. Tanabata, in practice, looks a lot like the America's Halloween, though it's origins are really not much alike at all. Children up through middle school years dress up in yukata (the light, summer equivalent of a kimono) and go to local homes and businesses and receive treats. (Actually, apparently, this may just be how it's celebrated in Hakodate. Unclear to my foreign understanding.) at any rate, the streets are crowded with children in beautiful traditional clothing, and at each stop along the way, they would give a short chant, asking for treats (literally asking for "a big wow"). I walked around with Mariko and Haruto as he filled up his bag all around the neighborhood. Video of Haruto doing the Tanabata chant forthcoming, if/when I am able to use my computer again.
{Update: my computer is now working, thank the Lord, so here is the video, as promised}
 |
| Out of snacks :( |
 |
| Riding with his brother (a neurologist's nightmare) |
0 comments:
Post a Comment