Day Four - 062306 - My Theory of Ramen

Okay, so here is a picture of my old veteran denshi jissho, the Canon Wordtank IDF-3000 and the brand spanking new Casio EX-Word XD-GT6800 that I got that I don't fully know how to use yet. Neat-o. The old Wordtank was and is a great beginner's jissho, but it just wasn't fitting my needs.

I was just forwarded a cool link by Limin from the University of Chicago on Kikkoman and his adventures: http://www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/Kikkoman-e.php. This clip is truly ridiculous. But damn entertaining.

Okay, so my theory of Ramen. My theory is that Americans need to drink more soups. Soups are just not that much a part of the American diet, and I think that most Americans are vastly dehydrated on a daily basis. This contributes towards overeating since if most Americans had a higher fluid intake during mealtime, their stomachs would feel fuller and thus they would not feel as much of a need to overeat. Also they would have better skin due to the hydration they would receive. Also, their overall health would be better because when you drink hot soup like Ramen, you tend to run at the nose, which tends to drain ambient airborne germs and the like. So, I think that people should drink more soups like Ramen or Pho or whatevers.

One of the Ramen-ya that I like to go to here in Yokohama is very close to Sakuragicho-eki, called Onomichi Ramen: http://www.onomichi-jp.com/. The picture above is the entrance to the store. They have some very tasty ramen, pictured to the left, often with these little globules of fat on the surface, which must be very bad for you but undoubtedly add to the flavor. Actually, the picture doesn't do it justice as I ate one of the chashu and one of the eggs before I remembered to take the picture. But I'm sure you get the idea. Umai!



The only other thing of interest going back to the Okinawan theme is that they have these new drinks that I take as more evidence of the whole Okinawa fad: http://www.suntory.co.jp/rtd/okinawa/. There is a picture of some to the right. They are made of sake and fruit juices. Yay, more commodified culture!

Oh, also today class orientation continued and we formed our groups. We already have homework for Monday.

Day Three - 062206 - The Tokugawa "Peasant" Mating Game

Okay, to continue with today's story, I went to the Doitsu Nihon Kenkyujyo, which is the German Institute for Japanese Studies (http://www.dijtokyo.org/) . My understanding is that this is the last lecture that they are holding in this location and are currently in the middle of moving to a new location over this summer.

Anyways, at the center I heard a talk by Professor Satomi Kurosu, who is a Professor of Sociology at Reitaku University. She was giving a presentation on marriage practices in 18th and 19th century Japan among rural villagers. In her study she looked at two villages in the northeast in Fukushima Prefecture and examined marriage patterns based on local registers. While she cautioned that it is hard to extrapolate from such a small population to Japanese society as a whole, what she found was extremely fascinating.

In her discussion, she suggested that marriage patterns in the Tokugawa period for these two villages reflected an extremely high rate of divorce and remarriage, reflecting similar rates to what we see in U.S. levels today. Interestingly, she found that overall such patterns were similar for both men and women, though when analyzed deeper, she found that women who were widowed tended to remarry less.

Overall, her study suggested that within peasant families in this area, and possibly in Japan, that marriage practices were much more flexible among the peasantry than we might think, and offered much more diverse patterns of familial arrangements than previously considered. Of course, the practice of marriage as an institution was very different then, with "love" marriages being less important in deciding on marriage. However, as Japan entered the Meiji period, such patterns and practices of divorce seemed to change dramatically as a more traditional, long-term pattern of marriage practices emerged. This has changed in Japan recently, though of course marriage means something very different today. Overall an incredibly interesting talk with important historical ramifications for those who lament what they consider to be a more stable pattern of marital arrangements that they imagine as happening in the past.

Day Three - 062206 - Yasukuni Jinja

{Holy crap. Japan just scored against Brazil in something like the 34th minute. Amazing. }

Okay, so today I went to Ichigaya-eki to attend a talk, but had some time to kill, so I went to Yasukuni Jinja (http://www.yasukuni.or.jp/) to the Yushukan (the first picture on the left shows a big phallus, uh, I mean gun, that was used during the war). The last time I was able to go there, I took so long reading the displays that I wasn't able to go to the store to look at the books available for purchase. I really wanted to see if they had a book that had the actual wording from the displays available, since the historical perspective on display is, how shall I say it, contentious. I was able to get the museum guide and I plan to go over it carefully later.

I had commented a bit on the Yushukan here (http://www.buddhahead.org/writing/oped_110905.htm) but thought it would be good to add some additional pictures to show what some of the displays say.

{Ronaldo of Brazil just scored an amazing header against Japan in the 46th minute, so Japan must still score at least two more goals to proceed to the next round}

Okay, so the first exhibit picture posted shows the historical perspective on the Treaty of Shimonoseki, which was signed between Japan and China at the end of the Sino-Japanese War. In it the English translation states "With the Treaty of Shimonoseki, Korea achieved true independence which Japan had long hoped for." This is a very controversial statement. While the treaty did a great deal to limit Chinese influence in Korea, the wording does little to talk about the increasing Japanese colonial presence in Korea. Also, there is no mention of Japan's colonial control over Taiwan (Formosa) that was accomplished with this treaty.

As another example, here is the English wording (a bit blurry) from the display on the Rape of Nanking. In it, it refers to the "Nanking Incident" under the following terms: "... [General] Watsui told them [the military under his command] that they were to observe military rules to the letter and that anyone committing illegal acts would be severely punished." The display states that the Commander-in-Chief of Nanking was told to surrender, but refused and after being defeated, that "inside the city, residents were once again able to live their lives in peace."

Quite a far cry from certain other depictions of the Rape of Nanking, namely those of John Rabe, a German Nazi Party member who reported widely on the atrocities committed in the city. And of course, there is Iris Chang's controversial work on the subject as well. To suggest that the occupation of Nanking signaled a return to peace, is a rather cruel statement indeed.

{Brazil just scored again against Japan in the 53rd minute. Nothing short of a miracle can turn this game around.}

There are other aspects of the exhibit that are contentious, though I must add, that some aspects are rather true in the sense that Japan, in the context of the colonialism being practiced by other European countries at the time definitely felt threatened and thought that they had few alternatives but to compete as a colonial presence. It is hard to look at Japanese colonialism without placing it in the context of the broader international situation of the time. Of course this is no excuse, but an important contextualization.

{Brazil just scored another goal in the 59th minute. It is beyond over at this point.}

All told, I would suggest that folks check it out for themselves and make their own opinions. But people should not use it to suggest that in the American context that historians are superior to such blatant historical one-sidedness. As shown by the Enola Gay exhibit, historians in the U.S. are far from superior in this respect, even regarding a war that the U.S. won! But I would have to say that this is bad history and does little to promote anything like historical objectivity or complexity and should be discussed and critiqued in broad academic debate.

Day Three - 062206 - School's In For Summer

So school started today with a placement test on a somewhat overcast day as seen from the picture of Yokohama's famous ferris wheel landmark. It is great to be back at the Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies and I hope to take full advantage of the program in ways that I wasn't able to last summer, since I was so preoccupied with my thesis writing work. The overall class size seems a bit larger than last summer, and I think that only myself and another student, Dennis, who ironically is also from the University of Chicago are the only two students from last summer. Dennis had been a great help in giving me advice upon my arrival to the University of Chicago, and it's great that he is here again, as I think some izakaya visiting is in the works.

The orientation was great, and we did the usual self introductions before we were able to get some great food courtesy of the center. The sushi was very tasty!

Right now I am watching the Japan-Brazil game, and the score is currently 0-0 in the 25th minute. Japan has to win by two goals in order to advance to the next round, so we'll see how that goes.

Day Two - 062106 - Rocking Down to Electric Avenue - contd.

I don't know why, but when I made a small correction to the previous post, the picture disappeared. Oh well, here I am posting that picture of Akihabara again, which with respect to Eddy Grant, I am referring to as "Electric Avenue" (great song by the way).

I should add that from what I understand, Akihabara has been changing in recent years, and that anime (along with porn) has become more prominent as a major revenue provider as other large electronics stores have grown to compete with the district's traditional dominance. As evidence of the anime aspect, I am here posting a picture of some girls that have been hired to dress anime-like to advertise in the area. As someone who, as a kid, was into anime (when it was much less trendy), I don't exactly know when it became a lifestyle, but it is just a little bit strange. I mean, I like my anime like the next person, but the whole "kosupure," or "costume-play" aspect of dressing up for conventions or even just to wear on the street is downright weird. Of course anime in Japan is a fully developed genre, and there are some amazing pieces out there such as Millennium Actress, Grave of the Fireflies, or Perfect Blue. But really, it's just a bit too much for me. But who am I to knock some people's worlds?

Day Two - 062106 - Rocking Down to Electric Avenue

On the way out the door I bumped into an Okinawan food restaurant that served all kinds of stuff like Goya Champuru and the like. I'll have to check it out later, as it wasn't open at the time. It's all part of the Okinawa craze that has been sweeping over the country for some time now, especially with Okinawa in the news and the Okinawa diet craze and all. I think you might be able to make out the shisa on the top of the roof. I think this'll be a recurring theme on this trip, considering my research interests. On TV today, there was even a show on the military base problem this morning that was very interesting (from what I could understand). It was quite a long program giving a great deal of attention to the problems there. I will write more on this as time goes on.

Later in the day, I caught the train to Yokohama-eki and went to the nearby Citibank branch to draw out some money. I've been told that withdrawing money through the ATM will get you the best exchange rate, so we'll see how this goes. Also, I looked into possibly opening a Japanese Citibank account but doing so will have to wait until September when I get my Alien Registration Card and requires an insane minimum balance of $5,000 minimum. Geez.

Went to Akihabara, where I found the model of denshi jissho (electronic dictionary) that I had been researching. It's kind of a beast, sizewise, but it has a ton of books loaded in it that should be able to help me with my work. Akihabara was all blinking lights and craziness, but I was able to comparison price at a few different stores, and saved probably 2000 yen (~$20) by doing so.

Been watching the World Cup games a lot but kinda missed the last few days. Tomorrow's Japan-Brazil game should be a trip, though it's a big challenge ahead for the Japanese team. After their last minute blunders with Australia they were able to come back a little in the next game, though they weren't able to get a win. Their passing game is good, they play like a team, but in the last game their defense seemed weak, and they just weren't able to close the deal in the offensive section. Over here World Cup fever is everywhere with advertising and people wearing blue jerseys on TV. Fun.

Well, school starts tomorrow with a placement test. We'll see how that goes. Tired for now.

Day Two - 062106

Okay, so the first big thing is that I got my internet phone to work so I should be able to call and get calls from home for practically nothing. Should save a bundle of money talking to my fiance considering what we ended up spending last year. Here's a pic of the setup. These things weighed a grip in my suitcase and took up a lot of space, but I think it's worth it. Next time, I'll try to get a smaller phone! But considering that we'll be moving here next September, this looks like a great way to cut costs and keep in touch with people.

I started out the day wandering around and ended up eating a Mos Burger, since I was feeling hungry. Pretty good stuff. Then wandered into some place called the Yokohama-shi Kyouiku Bunka Sentaa. It was cool as there was an art exhibit going on at the time that was free and actually had some very nice art from folks from around the country, called the Gunen Exhibition. Very nice work, and some kind people working the desk of the exhibit who talked to me for a little while.

Me

Okay, so this is me, the guy doing the blog. It is now day two and I have been walking all day. Damn tired.

The Prodigal Son

I arrived in Tokyo Tuesday afternoon, and am in my weekly mansion in Yokohama. Yeah. . . Though weekly mansion sounds grand, it is actually a very small room by American standards, and made for the short and mid-term budget traveller. Pics to come shortly. . .

By the way, on the plane ride over I sat next to a very nice artist woman and we talked about her trip to Thailand and her previous trips to Indonesia. Here is a link to her website and her very interesting art: http://www.artistsofcleveland.com/bjel.html.