Huh?

I have no idea what this shirt is trying to say, yet another example of the crazy English you can find around the area.

Crazy Shop

Today was a fun day, I got to show my fellow teacher, Lisa, around our area in order to get her acquainted with her new home. We stopped by Cool's Mall again, but this time we walked through some of the shops, including the crazy one I posted about a few weeks ago. Let me tell you, I could waste a lot of money in this place. There is so much kitchy junk that it boggles the mind. Tons of random books, plus small trinkets which have absolutely no value, but were still fun to look at. I mean, a whole section of Elmo plush dolls, seriously. Here are some of the pictures, they pretty much speak for themselves.

Whew...

Busy day today with many new lessons, so I don't really have much to post about. But I will put a picture up of something cool I saw in the castle gardens yesterday. It's called a Suikinkutsu, a not quite decoration, not quite musical instrument that can be found in many traditional gardens. Basically, it's a large empty pot which is buried upside down in the ground. A small hole is drilled at the top, where water drips in from the bamboo above. When you put your ear to the other piece of bamboo, you can hear a very pretty rhythm caused by the water hitting the bottom of the jar. Kind of sounds like a slow sprinkler on top of a cymbal. Very peaceful, and very functional for watering plants. Cool, huh?

Even More Matsuyama Castle

More Matsuyama Castle

Matsuyama Castle

Today I went and visited Matsuyama castle with some friends. It sits on top of a 130 meter hill in the middle of the city, and was built back in the 17th century. There are three ways to get to the castle: walking, tram, or chair-lift. We decided to take the latter. By chair lift, I mean exactly that, you can see from the pictures that it consists of individual chairs attached to a pulley system that pulls you up the hill. The castle itself was quite impressive, every facet of its design was made in order to repel attacks from invaders. There were spaces for around 500 archers to shoot into advancing hordes. The castle itself was full of armor and weapons in display cases, seriously scary stuff. Pretty hard to describe, so I'll just post a ton of pictures!

Dogo Onsen

Our last stop for the day was Dogo Onsen, the oldest onsen that stands in Japan. An onsen is a traditional bath house, and the Dogo onsen is probably the most famous onsen in all of Japan. Apparently, the hot springs here were mentioned in poetry written around 3,000 years ago. I didn't get a chance to go inside the actual bath house, as I needed to catch a train home, but I did manage to dip my feet in the hot spring fountain they have for travelers outside. Very comfortable. Right next to this stopping spot is a mechanical clock which was put in during a centennial celebration about 15 years ago. I caught it at just the right time, for most of the day the clock is about half the size, but at every :30 the clock comes to life, expanding to twice its size while displaying various mechanized scenes from Soseki's Botchan. Very cool, reminded me of It's a Small World in Disneyland! I'll definitely have to return here and get the full experience sometime. Very interesting piece of history!

Kimonos and Obis, oh my!

My friend, Ayumi, was showing me around more of Matsuyama today, and on our way to Dogo Onsen, we made a stop at a kimono store where one of her friends works. For those who don't know, the kimono probably one of the most symbolic garments of Japan. After looking around the store at all of the beautifully embroidered finery, her friend insisted that I try one on. Of course, I couldn't say no. The kimono is basically a large robe, tied off at the middle by an ornate sash called an obi. I have to say, I liked the fit. It was pretty hot, the thing doesn't breathe too well, but it's also extremely loose and comfortable. It does constrict movement though, I found myself needing to shuffle along in order not to undo the obi knot. I was very impressed, but then I looked at the price tags on some of the items in the shop. Turns out a complete outfit can easily run you $10,000 or more! Some of the obis on display cost more than I make in a month! But considering the level of detail that went into some of the more ornate designs, and the fact that each garment is completely hand-sewn, I can understand the high price tag. Still, it would be a great look at a fancy get-together, no?

Okonomiyaki

I had another introduction to some interesting Japanese food today. The name is Okonomiyaki, which translated means "whatever-you-like grilled." Basically, its a mishmash of a bunch of different foods, all glued together by several eggs. You order what you want, and they hand you a bowl full of goop, pictured at the top. This particular bowl has beef, shrimp, scallops, and other nameless things. You mix everything together, and pour it onto a hot grill which is built into your table. After letting it cook for a few minutes, flip it over and cook some more. Once it is nice and hard, it is basted with an A1 tasting sauce, and sprinkled with a combination of shaved fish scales and parsley. Cut it up, and enjoy. Really tasty, and really filling!

Tea!

One of the things I'm really starting to love about Japan is the fact that while the vending machines here carry a few sodas, the majority of drinks offered usually takes the form of green tea. I already liked tea before, but the choices here are just amazing. So much healthier than soda! Of course, there's still a ton of caffeine in tea, but at least it doesn't have all of the high fructose corn syrup and preservatives that soft drinks have. Here's a picture of a bottle I grabbed just a second ago out of the vending machines close to my apartment. I'm not kidding, probably about 10 varieties of tea just in one machine! Right now, one variety tastes pretty similar to the other, but my goal is to be able to distinguish between the different types. Same goes with all the different types of rice you can buy in the supermarket, they all have their distinct flavors. I'm just too Americanized to tell right now, but I'm sure I'll have a more discerning palate after a few more weeks. Bottoms up!

Another night, another place to eat

Had another great night out with some of my friends in Matsuyama tonight. I really like the nightlife here in Japan. It's not really the same as the US. In the States, you go eat at a restaurant, and then go drink at a bar. Here in Japan, you stay in one place the whole time, eating and drinking for the full duration. I have no idea what the name of this place is, but everywhere seems to carry at least two beers: Asahi and Kirin. The sign at the top is advertising their happy hour special! This place started us off by serving a bowl of fried potatoes along with some vegetables which seemed to have come from a can. Still, extremely tasty!

Speaking of bugs

Going along with my last post, here's a nice picture of one of the spiders which makes its home outside my apartment. I'll try to get some more pictures of the local insect life, though it's hard to tell from the pictures at the size of these things!

Oh my giant bugs...

Interesting side note: there are some giant bug species here. Especially cockroaches. I say this because as I came home from my last lesson of the night and turned on the light in my living room, there was a roach the size of my palm sitting on my wall. I've seen some small ones around the apartment before, but nothing compared to this monstrosity. Bad news: I tried to kill him and missed completely. Even worse news: now I can't find him at all. At least the things don't bite. I've closed all the doors to my bedroom, but I have this sinking feeling that he may have found his way in there. Hopefully I don't swallow this guy in my sleep. I'll keep tapping around, maybe I'll get lucky. Except the prize in this game is a giant bug. Note to self: buy some traps tomorrow. I hope they sell some that are big enough...

Update: Got him! How the heck these guys keep getting into my apartment is beyond me though. Still gotta get those traps.

Lab BBQ

I have to say, people here have been extremely outgoing and nice here. This evening I was invited to a BBQ by some of the graduate students and post-docs who I give lessons to. Lots of fun, though the actual grill was about a quarter of the size of the grills in America. It was out next to Shigenobu river, which, as you can tell from the picture, is not that high during the non-rainy season. In fact, it's almost completely dry. Interesting side note, fireworks are legal out here, as my friends soon showed me. Luckily, no one lost any eyebrows. Unfortunately I couldn't stay too long, as I had to give another lesson shortly thereafter, but I was there for enough time for my shirt to smell like sulfur and BBQ sauce. Scientists are so much fun!

My Office

Just a couple pictures of my office in the medical school. A little out of the way, the good thing is they have plenty of teaching materials from years past for me to use. All it needs is a little dusting, my poor allergies have been going nuts!

Mmm, liver...

Ok, you may be wondering what that is I'm holding in my chopsticks, and about to eat. Telling these adventurous epicureans how much I like exotic foods, they decided to challenge me. Included on the sashimi boat was some cut up turban snail, which was pretty chewy, and not the best. The thing that I am holding was it's liver. It's hard to tell from this picture, but the thing was covered in mucous, and so slippery that I could barely get a hold of it. Without a doubt, one of the most disgusting things I've ever eaten. Instead of a solid middle, the thing is filled with some sort of foul tasting liquid, which I could swear was ink. The whole thing tasted like a salty, fishy, gooey mess, and for those who will ever travel to Japan, is best left uneaten, and if possible, thrown out before it ever gets put on the plate. All things considered, I would say the boiled cow tendon was much more palatable than this gooey wonder. Oh well, when in Rome...

Another Dinner in the City

Another great dinner in the city tonight. There's a ton of these little places scattered all over the city. Apparently some of my new friends are part of a food and drink club, which basically means they go all over the city looking for good places to eat. Very good people to know, considering how much I love different foods. The second picture is a plate of various boiled things, including eggs, potatos, seaweed, cow tendon, and a big Japanese radish. The next picture is a bowl of boiled octopus, which was delicious. The white part is actually the eggs of the octopus, which are quite chewy, and don't really have any taste. The fourth picture is a big old sushi boat. Right after Azami ordered, the chef went outside, and came back with a flopping fish in his hands, which was then cut up, and served. Talk about fresh sashimi! And of course, the last picture is some more ramen, which the dinner wouldn't be complete without. Gotta love Japanese cuisine!