友達 from Texas

A big shout out to my 友達 (friend) from Texas, Martin! A couple weeks back he made the grueling trip from good ole' San Antonio all the way to Oshima to spend some time with Michelle and I. I know it takes a lot of time and money to make the trip, and Michelle and I really appreciate that he made it out.

I'm sure like most people who are staying in rural Japan for the first time, Japan turned out to be not entirely what he was expecting. Rural Japan is a far cry from the images of Tokyo and Osaka that most people associate with all of the country. It was great to show Martin how we live our life out on our island. It was also funny to see how accustomed Michelle and I have become to things here (and also how bad our English has become, ha!). We hardly even notice anymore when people stare at us for being foreigners. With Martin here and pointing it out we realized again how much we get gawked at everyday. Martin's visit was also a huge boost for us emotionally. For the soon to be ex-JET, June is really a month of limbo. You are about to leave and everyone knows it so no one can really start anything new with you, but you are still two months out from going so it still feels like you have a long time left and you really can't say "goodbye" yet. Martin came over at the perfect time for us, and now Michelle and I both feel rejuvenated and committed to making our last month in Japan a great one. 

In the week that Martin was here we covered quite a bit of ground. He flew into Fukuoka, so we spent some time there, stayed on our island Oshima for a few days, visited Iwakuni (where a famous temple and the five arch bridge is), and stayed a weekend in Hiroshima. In Hiroshima we got to experience all the fun crazy that constitutes life in a big Japanese city too - a baseball game (with the beloved but horrible Hiroshima Carps), purikura and karaoke. Fun times indeed.

Exploring the old Samurai quarters in Iwakuni

Kintaikyo Bridge

A live Japanese baseball game is infinitely more entertaining than an American one...

Throwing the chicken skewers down at Sanzoku in Kuga

What can sum it up better than this purikura pic?

On the Road Again

Michelle and I, being the gluttons for punishment that we are, recently hit the pavement again in Japan for another road trip adventure. This time, instead of going south, like we did in during our Kyushu Roadtrip, we struck out to the north-east, past Hiroshima, past Kobe, past Osaka and even past Nagoya to the small town of Tajime.

The long trek from Oshima to Tajime, a 9 hours drive on the ETC (toll highway)

The trek was arduous. To get to Tajime from our apartment in Oshima it took a gut-wrenching nine hours of driving on the ETC. Luckily we were able to break up our journey on Friday (June 10th) night with a pit stop in Fukuyama, where we got hang out with our friend Allison at her apartment. Despite the fact we dropped our small car key down a tiny hole in the console of our car, and that I spent two hours in the rain trying to get it out, we had a great time hanging out with our friend in her town. Starting from Fukuyama the next morning the drive was a much more manageable five hours and 30 minutes.

The purpose of our trip to Tajime was to visit Sako San. Last October I began having a language exchange with Sako San over Skype. On Monday and Tuesday evening every week, we would spend 30 minutes conversing in English and then another 30 minutes conversing in Japanese. Talking with Sako San over skype over the past eight months has been a blast, but we had never been able to meet. With Michelle and I leaving Japan at the end of July, if we were going to meet we had to do it soon. Michelle and I decided that if we could all find a free weekend in June, we would make a road trip up to Tajime to spend time with Sako San and his family. Luckily over Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, June 10th thru the 12th, we were all free.

It was great finally getting to meet Sako San in person. After we arrived we put our bags up in the second house that Sako San's family owns (so Michelle and I had a nice and traditional Japanese house all to ourselves), and we went to meet his family. His wife was very nice and kind, and his mother was one of the cutest grandmothers we have ever seen. Sako San's sons were very well mannered. His oldest son attends an international program at the local high school and just recently got back from a year home stay in Canada. His English was fantastic. After chatting for a while, his family cooked us a FEAST of different Nagoya style Japanese foods that we had never tried before. After dinner we played a game of Monopoly, which was followed by an awesome little welcome party that they held for us. They hung a box from the ceiling, and after we pulled the cord streamers fell out with welcome messages written on them. Then Sako San's grandmother presented us with some gifts that she had hand knitted. Michelle and I were in shock - it was all completely unexpected.

Having a feast with Sako San's family the first night we arrived

Getting owned in Monopoly

Welcome Party!

Michelle and I holding the gifts that Sako San's grandmother hand knitted for us

On Sunday, the only full-day that we spent in Tajime, Michelle and I went with Sako San, his wife, and his youngest son to play frisbee golf at one of the top ranked frisbee golf courses in Japan (I didn't even realize there were rankings for such things). We had a blast. The weather was great, and the natural scenery around the course was fantastic. We followed this up with a nice Kansai style okonomiyaki lunch, and then went to the Toyota Museum in downtown Nagoya (Toyota was born and raised in the Nagoya area, and the company's headquarters are still located there). That night for dinner back at their house, I had my first taste of Sukiyaki - a dish where you cook meat and vegetables in a large pot and dip them in raw eggs before eating.

Sako San "teeing" off at hole #1

My frisbee flew over the fence about two seconds after this picture was taken

Exhibit at the Toyota Museum

I thought it was great but Michelle wasn't a big fan of the raw egg dippage...

After dinner, they threw us a small farewell party. It was the sweetest thing Michelle and I had ever seen. Each of the family members presented us with a small present, and Sako San presented us with a wall scroll that he had hand painted kanji characters on himself. Michelle and I were overwhelmed. We weren't expecting any of this. We stayed up a little while longer talking before saying our farewells. The next morning we had to be up and out early, and after saying goodbye to Sako San one last time we were off on our nice 8 hour drive back to Hiroshima. Our trip to Tajime to visit Sako San has been one of our most memorable experiences that Michelle and I have had here in Japan.

Fukuoka!

Fukuoka is one of my favorite cities in Japan. It might not have a lot of "touristy" things to do, but its big, convenient, and overall just a fun place to be in. We have been numerous times throughout the year, but we just recently got a tour of the city with the best type of tour guide - someone who was born and raised there.

On June 4th and 5th, Michelle, Alice and I met up with Keiko and Masa at their home in Hikari. Keiko is one of Alice's English teachers and Masa is one of my coworkers at Iwakuni Technical High School. Masa was actually born and raised in downtown Fukuoka, and lived there until graduating from University a few years back. From their home in Hikari we all crammed into Masa's car and made the three hour treck to Fukuoka. We had been talking about the trip for weeks, and we could tell Masa was really proud and excited to show off his city. Fukuoka and his tour did not disappoint. When we arrived in Fukuoka, we hit things off with a nice western style meal at Hard Rock Cafe (wow do we really eat that much food at every meal back home?), followed up with some shopping at the new Hakata train station. Afterwords we took a quick break at Masa's parent's home to relax a bit. Her house was amazing. Located off a few side streets, it was incredibly tranquil even though it was located a stones throw away from Hakata Station. After a two hour rest, we were back on the subway heading out to Tenjin and Nakasu, where we dined at a British pub and had a couple drinks at a trendy international beer joint.

Hard Rock Cafe in Fukuoka!

Hanging together Saturday night in a British pub in Tenjin

With Masa's mother in her house in downtown Fukuoka

We stayed the night back at Masa's mom's quant Japanese home, and after we ate the fantastic breakfast that she made for us we took off to the small town of Yanagawa, located to the south of Fukuoka. Here we dined on the town's famous unagi (eel) dinner plates and strolled the city's beautiful river canals. The unagi dish, called kabayaki-don, was incredible. The eel is cooked and dipped into a sweet soy sauce, then served over rice in a tiered food box. Delicious. After Yanagawa, and a stop at the area's famous American style outlet malls, we started the long drive back to Yamaguchi Prefecture. It felt like we packed a week's trip in just two days. A big shout out to Keiko and Masa for being such awesome hosts!

Strolling alongside Yanagawa's beautiful canals

The Unagi (eel) kabayaki-don plate. Amazing.

Rice Paddies

Michelle runs a small adult English tutoring operation here on Oshima when she's not working in Tabuse, and a couple weeks back one of her students invited Michelle and I to come visit her home and to meet her family. Finally this last Friday everyone's schedule was free and we were able to meet. After work Michelle and I drove to their small town, a farming village that lies between Obatake and Iwakuni stations. Her house was literally surrounded by huge, flooded rice fields. After we parked our car we still had to walk a good 500 or 600 meters along a narrow path among the rice paddies to get to her house. It felt like we stepped back in time hundreds of years! The tranquility of the place was incredible. Her house and small family were beautiful. They made us some of the best Hiroshima style Okonomiyaki that we had ever had. Then, after dinner, and even though we were on a rice field in the middle of nowhere, we played a couple games on the Playstation 3. Big win.

Reflections on Oshima

I went back and ran some numbers. It's June 2nd, which means that to-date we have been in Japan for 313 days. We just bought our tickets home too, and will be flying out of Japan on July 28th (to Bangkok, and then from Bangkok to San Antonio on August 5th), meaning we only have 56 days left in Japan - less than two months! Now that time is really starting to wind down, I thought I would do an in-depth post about my thoughts on our placement in Oshima. This is a follow up to my previous (and more general) post on Yamaguchi Prefecture. I apologize for the length, this is definitely my longest post to-date!

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..." The intended use of this quotation within the context of its book is completely missing here, but I feel the quote sums up how Michelle and I feel about our year living in Oshima. Living here has been both amazing and amazingly difficult. Oshima is beautiful. Quite possibly the most beautiful place in Yamaguchi Prefecture. The island's beauty seems to be matched only by its isolation.

Oshima is an island in the inland sea located in the south-west corner of Yamaguchi Prefecture. There are four towns on Oshima: Oshima, Kuka, Towa and Agenosho. The four of them were incorporated a couple years back into the one town of Suo-Oshima. In total 20,000 people live on the island. Michelle and I live in Agenosho, which has a population of about 3,000 people.

Map of Yamaguchi Prefecture, with Oshima highlighted in dark green

Cool Google Maps view of Oshima

Oshima and the locations of the four major towns. We live in Agenosho.

The first thing that needs to be said is that Oshima has truly some of the most beautiful and breathtaking views of nature I have ever seen. On a clear day, one can peer miles across the Inland Sea to take in seemingly hundreds of small, uninhabited islands that sprout out from the smooth blue glass. The great shadows of Shikoku's distant mountains are visible in the foreground and look as if a painter brought them into being with a masterstroke of his brush. The ominous and solemn Dake-San (Mount Dake) sits directly adjacent to our town, overlooking it like a sentinel. There have been many days that I have been simply awe-struck as I walked to and from school by the sheer beauty and magnitude of the island's nature. I don't know if we could have been placed in a more beautiful spot if we had tried.

Our town of Agenosho, taken from one of the island's many mountain roads

The town of Towa in the distance, taken from a lookout on Mount Dake

Mount Dake on a misty morning

The town of Agenosho a couple hours before a big rainstorm. The mountain at the center of the photo is Mount Dake.

Unfortunately, Oshima is like most islands in the inland sea. It barely survives off the proceeds of a dying fishing industry and the pension checks of its senior citizens. The island's population has been shrinking for years. There used to be four public high schools on the island, but within the last 15 years all have shut down except for the one I work at, Suo Oshima Senior High School, which is located right by my apartment in Agenosho. There are very few people living on the island who are between 18 and 35 years of age. After high school people seem to bolt at their first opportunity. As a result, the percentage of Oshima's population that are senior citizens is shockingly high.

As for Agenosho, the town consists of one main street that has a bunch of small residential roads that tie into it. The main street itself is stocked with a number of liqueur and clothing stores, but we have rarely seen anyone shopping in them. We truly have no idea how they stay in business. Our town market is really nice and quaint, but is only open until 6pm each day, and closed on Sundays. We do at least have some really nice "hole-in-the-wall" restaurants that serve some good local fare and ooze atmosphere, even if there hours aren't the best.

Old stores and restaurants lining the main street of Agenosho

Oshima is actually quite large, and logistics have been one of our biggest issues here. Agenosho is a full 30 minute drive (with no traffic) and 45 minute drive (with traffic) to the Oshima Bridge, which connects Oshima to the very small town of Obatake on the mainland of Yamaguchi Prefecture. Our closest train station is here at Obatake. From here though, it's still another 15 minute drive to the city of Yanai, which is the only halfway real "city" that we have close by. Any trip into Yanai takes a total of two hours round trip of driving! This makes it hard to leave the island on a weekday, as the two hour drive can really become a beat down. Especially since Michelle already has to make the trip every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday for her job in Tabuse, a small town past Yanai.

Photo taken from the town of Obatake on the mainland of Yamaguchi Prefecture, looking out towards Oshima and the Oshima Bridge

Obatake Station, our closest train station

Overall, I think living in such a rural place has been a positive experience. My city life in Texas was way too frantic. Between working overtime and having constant email and internet access on my phone and computer, my attention was always diverted by an endless river of distractions. I didn't know how to slow down. Living on Oshima has forced me to do that. After work, Michelle and I take walks through the quite back streets and stroll along the Agenosho's rocky shore line. We relax in the nearby onsen and climb up the nearby mountains. It has been an incredible escape from the confines of city life. I need to make sure I remember this lesson and maintain some balance when I return to the States.

On the other hand, "Island Fever" is as real as the flu or the common cold. Some nights I would have sworn that we weren't living in Japan but some tiny speck of an island in Micronesia, thousands of miles away from everyone and everything that we had ever known (which I guess we still were...). Obviously being in Japan, every JET has to deal with feelings of isolation. Oshima certainly didn't lend any favors though. If we are lonely in the evening, there isn't any store, restaurant or coffee shop that we can go to and kill time at. If it's 7pm or later, making the three hour commitment to go back and forth to Yanai to do something is not feasible either. We have tried to deal the best we can. We both have torn through a ridiculous amount of books - about thirty each (and counting). Even still, there have been many times, especially in winter, that the isolation and loneliness that Michelle and I have felt has been palpable. Our friendships, both with Tiffany, the other JET from Hawaii that lived 20 minutes away in Towa, and with our neighbors and other ALTs, are really what have helped us make it through.

As amazing as this last year has been, it has been anything but easy. Now that Michelle and I are emerging from the opposite side and looking back, we are starting to realize what we have accomplished. If given the opportunity at any point during the year, I'm pretty sure we both would have jumped at any possibility of getting closer to a big city on the mainland. Maybe it was better that we didn't though. Not only would we have missed out on the island's stunning beauty, but for the first time in our lives we were literally forced to slow down a little. In March and April we went back and forth on if we should of stayed a second year here, but now that we are getting closer to leaving we both know without a doubt we made the right decision. We are excited to move on to the next step in our lives. We will never forget though the memories that we made here on this tiny island in the Inland Sea.