At long last. . .

I finally have internet! Now I can begin a long journey of reacquainting myself with the world outside of Japan!
So updates.
I guess not a whole lot has changed since my last post. I'm starting to feel pretty settled in Japan. I mean, I never really felt uneasy about coming or worried about adjusting to Japanese life. . .but I'm starting to really like my apartment and my city and living by myself/being solely responsible for my self and my living quarters. I've met and become friends with lots of awesome people from Japan and a bunch of other countries too. The partying is starting to die down, which I am most certainly not complaining about, it's about time for a rest I think. I'm getting used to my job and the ups and downs of it. Usually it's all ups. . .but there are occasional days where I get kind of pissed off. Almost never because of the kids at the schools though, usually it's the teachers that make me angry or feel uncomfortable.
Aichi is starting to get kind of chilly, but not anything like Canada (5 deg C tomorrow!!!). Here it is still around high teens, low 20s. The nights and mornings are chilly with no indoor heating though. It should be fun in winter!
Alright, so now stuff I've been up too. . .=pictures!! (yay internet connection!)
So I guess the first pictures I can post are from wayyyyyyyyyy back in September when I went on a bike trip to Tahara. Tahara is a beach off the left claw of the crab that is Aichi prefecture (it looks like a crab.). It was a really beautiful beach and the waves were a surfers dream. . .actually there were tons of surfers catching waves.



And next I had an Okonomiyaki party with some teachers from my office. Okonomiyaki is kind of like a bigger and better omelette. Depending on the region of Japan you're in, okonomiyaki usually has at least one different/special ingredient that sets it apart from other regions'. . .or in the case of tokyo, a different way of cooking/eating it. The teachers from my office teach Spanish and Portuguese and they are really cool. When we had the Okonomiyaki party we talked a lot about strange things that happened at our schools. For example, if there are students from any other countries or even if they are half Japanese, they are ALWAYS pointed out by the teacher as being x-ethnicity. It's really strange to me because it would be incredibly inappropriate to do this in a school in Canada. Anyways, it was a good night and we're getting together again for a Brazilian food night in about 2 weeks.


Next, I have a picture of a demonstration of some guys building a traditional style Japanese house. It's smaller than a normal one of course but it only took them like 20-ish minutes to get the frame done. . .but building seems to get done EXTREMELY quickly in Japan. Like, an entire apartment complex close to my house was built from the ground up to completion in about 2 months.

Nagoya castle

Alright, so next in chronological order was the weekend that Yuriko and Satoko came to visit me in Nagoya! We went to Nagoya castle and ate some delicious and famous Nagoya food. . .likeee Hitsumabushi! Hitsumabushi is essentially Unagi on rice (but really delicious Unagi) but before you eat it all, you add green tea, green onions, a bit of seaweed and wasabi and eat it as Ochazuke (kind of like a delicious soup). Anyways, it's probably one of my favourite foods in Japan.




And of course I have to include a picture of my favourite food!

We're getting caught up rather quickly! Ok, so next I have some picture from an Ikebana exhibit that I went to.
There's tons of them so I'll just post a few.




And that brings us all the way up to the past weekend! (ie. Hallowe'en weekend)
BUT I think that deserves a post all to itself. . .so I will post about that immediately following a bathroom break. ^^

Who needs diamonds?

Or chocolate or hot water or all you can eat vegetarian food or constant electricity or constant internet or Japanese food or bike tours or poetry slams or. . .


When you've got a SWEET GUITAR!!!!

Thoughts on Mandela

I’ve had a really hard time coming to terms with what I feel about the passing of Madiba. I’m not even sure I feel entitled to call him Madiba, as I feel that I haven’t been as committed to the fight for equity, justice and human rights as I should be. I feel farther removed than an African or a person of any colour, race, sexual orientation or tribe that has been systematically oppressed for many generations, or even one generation. One generation is enough. And I am not a South African, so the name Madiba, is not something that has historical or cultural resonance for me. In English, our names for great heroes and sages are antiquated and have been replaced by words like doctor, PhD candidate, nobel laureate, president and prime minister. None of those come close to encompassing a proper title for Nelson Mandela. Madiba, although I don’t really understand the cultural significance, seems to symbolize a deep level of respect and appreciation.—a fondness and affection and an almost parental connection. I’m not sure that this is a true understanding of the word, or just what it has come to envelop through my own distant understanding and associations of the word used by others. In my own mind, I understand it to be a word with a similar connotation as Mahatma. Great Soul. And I think that way of thinking about Nelson Mandela is the most appropriate and accurate way to describe my sentiments.

Nelson Mandela has been one of my heroes, probably since the end of my university years. I wasn’t very aware of what was going on in the world until then and when I started learning more about some of the roots of inequality in the world through a Canadian culture/history class and an African History class that I took, I started becoming more and more aware of the significance of leaders like Mandela.

I read Mandela’s biography when I was an English teacher in Japan. Back when I taught in 25 different elementary schools. As hectic as it seems, I had a lot of time between classes and sometimes on weekdays, too. Since I was an impermanent staff member, and a 'Gaijin' who may speak nothing but English, most of the teachers didn't know what to do with me and it was hard to establish relationships while they ran in and out of the staff room with arms full of lesson materials. Occasionally a brave teacher would sit down beside me while I poked at my bento lunch and start a typical conversation: "Sugoi! You like Japanese food!?" or "Sugoi, You use chopstick!"

I primarily spent my time alone in the staff rooms studying Japanese and reading. Those two years in Japan helped me to learn a lot. I read personal accounts of victims of the Khmer Rouge, and the Vietnam war, I read about atrocities committed in Congo and Japan’s assault on Nanking during WWII, I read Aung San Suu Kyii’s biography and I read A Long Walk to Freedom. I also passed the 2 Level of the JLPT.

And that was only the beginning of my search for knowledge about the world. It’s still continuing now much to the dismay of many of my career-focused mentors, parents, and probably rationally minded friends. I haven’t yet been satisfied by the status quo and have always admired people like Mandela throughout history who had the determination, courage and stubbornness to stand up for the greater good, equality, equity, justice, freedom, in the face of extreme and intense opposition.

In Nigeria, people are talking about how great Mandela was. They are also talking about how much a British businessman wants to pay for the site where Mandela is now buried. They talk about how much money he will make. They talk about how Nigerian leaders would never be celebrated like Mandela. How the name Mandela would open doors for any of his relatives. How names like Obasanjo could get you stoned in the street. They use Mandela’s name to beg taxi drivers for honesty and fairness in their fares and will use it again to beg forgiveness from the same taxi drivers when they pay them less than they asked for. They claim they would prefer to become the Mandela of women since they can’t make it to be as great as the real Mandela. They nickname the girl that they have called over to the table Winnie 1, and laugh.

For me, it is overwhelming to look at the pictures that come up when you google “World Mourns Nelson Mandela”. It brings me to tears to see the world united about a man who, I think, would have been happy to see a world unified for what he stood for. Of course, it is not. Inside and outside of south Africa, the struggles that he fought to overcome still continue in different places and for different reasons.

In Nigera people say that the world will never see another person like Mandela. He’s the only one that will ever be as good as he was, as great as he was.

I don’t believe that. I can't.

I believe that there are individuals today and that will go on into the future who will face circumstances as dire, perhaps even more harsh than Mandela’s, who by some divine providence will be spared from death and will be raised to the forefront of the collective consciousness. There is always a struggle that will touch the heart of the human population, because it is fundamentally unjust. It may take decades for a critical mass of people to understand why or how it is unjust, but that is why there will also always be someone who will refuse to be broken in the face of that injustice. That is something that I truly believe. That is something that Malala Yousafzi, who was shot for going to school, or Nabila Rehman, another Pakistani girl who’s grandmother was killed in a drone strike, a Palestinian who is resisting Israeli apartheid or a Bangladeshi child who’s parents were crushed in a garment factory, could be credited with many years into the future. It could be a First Nations person from Elsipogtog nation or any other nationaffected by extractive industries in Canada. It could be an Inuit person who fights for action against climate change. It could be an Egyptian, a Turk, a Ukrainian, a Honduran, a Cambodian, or a multinational person. It could be Julian Assange or Bradley Manning or Edward Snowden. It could be anyone of us who are staring in the face of a future we don’t want. A future that is leading up to a denial of everything we have grown up to believe in. Especially when we hold Mandela as one of our international icons. There are huge and powerful forces now that loom over the future of humanity, that want it bought and sold, no matter how much radiation or toxic sludge it will be covered in. There are many people around the world that are standing up against these powers, that are protesting despite state secrets bills being arbitrarily passed, despite muzzles being put on the gatekeepers of their industries. They are standing up despite pepper spray and unprecedented police violence. They are standing up even though everyday that a new bill or agreement is passed into law, there is less hope for a better future. A critical mass is realizing this and a critical mass is standing up.

I fear that it might be too late, but I hope it is not. Now that Madiba has left us, we will see our next great soul rise up from the masses and stand as a beacon of hope and strength for the masses when our battle comes to a head. Although this time, with so much interconnection and connectedness, I feel that we can all be the great soul, collectively. In fact, we need to be, in order to continue at all.

I'm thankful to Madiba for such a clear and great example of how to be in the world. I am happy that I have been able to share the planet with such a great man for 28 years. I would like to talk to other people from varying age groups and social classes about their ideas regarding Mandela. I'd like to know the feelings that people had when he was in court with the Apartheid government, when he was called an international terrorist, when he was in jail for 27 years, when he was released and accepted the nobel prize with the Apartheid leader at the time, when he was president. I know that he had and has opposition. The only reason that he is so widely celebrated today is because he endured a particular struggle that transformed to serve him. He was persecuted by his predecessors for challenging the status quo, as many of us are today. If he hadn't lived as long, say, died when he was in his 50s, there wouldn't have been near as much of an outpouring of grief. That is something to remember.

But, I guess the take away message is that it's never a waste of time to fight for a better future. . .

October so far.

It's been a while. again.
Of course, most of the reason behind this is my seemingly permanent non-existant internet service. Sigh.
It's ok though, I cancelled my old application and just recently applied through something that's seemingly a lot quicker already!
Sooooooooon I should be posting like a fiend.
Anyways, October has been interesting so far. Last weekend my friends Yuriko and Satoko came to visit me in Nagoya. They've never been here before so we did some sightseeing at Nagoya Castle and also ate LOTS of food that's famous in Nagoya.
I have pictures. . . . . .but. . . .only at home :( but I will post them ASAP.
Anyways, it was great fun! And I ended up using Japanese or listening to Japanese for the whole weekend which was great practice! I still get frustrated alot at studying Japanese especially because teaching small children everyday kind of wears me out and I really don't like studying after work. . .BUT I am noticing myself gradually getting better at Japanese which is really rewarding. Day by day I notice myself understanding more, being more comfortable with responding. . .etc. But of course, I still have a long way to go!
I also knit my first sock!!!!!!!!!!!! Now THAT was an accomplishment!! I'm maybe 1-3 done the second one now! so guess what everyone will be getting for x-mas! hee hee!
I also recently taught myself how to make Indian curry!! Ok, I guess I've just been really bored! haha no, that's actually not true at all. I've been extremely busy but I loveeee making stuff! So, I have!
AND my friend just booked our x-mas getaway to Thailand!!! We're going for 2 weeks from December 20th - January 3rd! I'm sooooooooooo excited!
Ok. I have to leave this internet cafe now because my time is running out. This is a HORRIBLE post in terms of how little of what I've been doing it describes. I need like a whole day and probably 5 pages to get into the more interesting stuff, but it will come. Maybeeee next week (fingers crossed).
Here's one pic to tie you over!
Me playing a taiko drum!

Perth - Gracias 2010/11: Canada World Youth Adventure II

A lot has happened since I last updated and so it seems like it has been a lot longer than about 2 weeks (?). . .
That last paragraph may seem a bit contradictory.  And it is, but that's just how it is!  Traveling is kind of like being lost in a time warp where there is no time. . .it seems to go really slowly AND really quickly simultaneously. . .so this may be another lengthy update.

taste-testing!

Heritage tomatoes from Greta's Seed saving workshop

Drying seeds for saving

Farm work is going really well.  I really enjoy being outdoors all day picking veg, weeding, planting, tilling, going to market and selling the veg every Saturday, extracting honey, mosquito bites (? ok i don't love those >.<), lying in the hammocks that are made my by host family (!!!).  It's pretty awesome :)  It is definitely not easy work, but it is fun and rewarding!  The farm itself is in a beautiful location.  The population of the town (? village? hamlet?) I currently live in is about 800 people!  It's really hilly and so it's great training on the bike!!  Which, btw, I have had brought to me by my lovely parents who won a stay in Kingston (approx 1 hour from Perth).  I'm so spoiled! :) hee hee
 

Greta's farm house

My counter-part Gaby and I have been doing a lot of things besides farm work too!  We've gone swimming in the rivers close to the farm, fishing for dinner(Gaby is a pro at fishing apparently. . .although it was only her second time!) and biking (to get homemade icecream 10k away!).  We are having a really good time together and getting along really well.

Blue Chicory Farm

As a part of the Canada World Youth program we are scheduled to meet up with the rest of the group every week for an "Educational Activity Day" (EAD).  Each counter-part pair is assigned to a different work project but our program (Perth-Honduras) is focused on Food Safety and Security/Environment and so all of the work projects are related to that theme.  Gaby and I are working on Blue Chicory Organic Farm (as I mentioned last time), other pairs are working at: The Salvation Army,  The Food Bank, Rideau Valley Conservation Authority, The Art of Being Green, Plenty Canada, Rideau Environmental Action League, to name a few.  Through our different experiences, we learn different aspects of the program's focus that we are expected to share with the rest of the group; hence the EADs.  Last Tuesday Gaby and I were assigned to present the first EAD to our group!!!  Our topic was "Power, privilege and oppression in Farming" which we decided upon ourselves.  We didn't know we would be the first pair to present though o_O  BUT, thanks to my Japanese mom Hirano-san, I had lots of good ideas from her wonderful workshops that I attended in Japan and was able to incorporate some of them into Gaby and my presentation!!!  Everyone was really impressed with the EAD that we ran and the supervisor's were happy that we set the bar high :)

Blue Chicory Garden

cute summer squash :)

For one part of the EAD we watched part of the excellent documentary "The Future of Food" (you can watch the whole thing for free if you follow the link!).  We also had Susan Quipp, a Perth resident, come in and talk to the group about her involvement with the activists working against closing the Prison Farms in Canada.  You can learn more about the issue and the organization working against the government here.  Margaret Atwood has also spoken out about the issue. It's a really interesting and troubling issue that is having a huge effect of people just around the corner from us here in Perth.

And finally, if you have watched the video that I attached you may feel inspired, or you may already feel inspired to add your name to this petition to stop the FDA from approving genetically modified Salmon for human consumption!

All in all, I'm learning a lot, loving life, and doing great here in Perth :)  SUPER FANTASTICALLY excited to be going to Honduras to be totally thrown out of my comfort zone in less than 2 MONTHS!!!!

Job Searching. . .

I'm looking for a position that:

Pays at least moderately well.  You know, so I could say. . .rent an apartment and pay the necessary living expenses involved, have meals 3 times a day, travel home (or to another destination) on occasion, make bike repairs as needed, be able to go out with friends a couple times a week and save some for the future.

I desire to work in every day that I am required to work (or at the very least the majority of days I am required to work).  If work is going to require a large portion of my time, it follows that I should enjoy that work and certainly, will perform better if I do.

Doesn't require all of my time and energy.  Although I would like to be invested and feel a purpose for working in whatever position I may find (that satisfies my conditions, of course), what's the point of working to make money to work to make money to work to make money to work to make money etc. repeat until death or retirement?

Helps me to develop my skills and interests simultaneously, both personal and professional, whatever they may be.  In this category I would accept anything related to Japanese/English language, International experience and relations, cycling, reading, cooking delicious vegetarian/vegan food, organic farming. . .etc.

Doesn't directly OR indirectly harm people (be they in my country of employment or otherwise) OR the environment.  This can include a pension plan that is invested in companys/coorporations who are scrutinized for destroying the homelands/environment/living conditions of people and violating their basic human rights (even if they are not in the country in which I am working), extracting resources that are polluting the environment in the extraction process, following a long transportation, and thus CO2 emitting, line, not paying workers in the country of extraction fair wages or working to develop their local economy (and if the amount being paid to the country for their resources could be called "fair" but it is being eaten be government officials and/or their sons/daughters, it doesn't count).

Is committed to developing and investing in a sustainable future for all of the 7 billion people living on this earth.  A position that doesn't only exist because of the number of people it can exploit or have under it's finger or the forests and water tables that it's destroying.  A position that isn't just going along with "the way that it's always been" because "the way that it's always been" clearly does NOT work for the majority of 7 billion people nor will it work when natural resources (LIKE WATER!) which are already scarce for many, become non-existent/unusable for everyone.

Is fun and restores my faith in humanity and the world. . .

is that so much to ask?