Helpful Websites For People Living or Traveling in Japan

This autumn is just flying by.  Hard to believe in just four days it will be Halloween and that there are already Christmas decorations in the stores......even out in town. 

Anyway, I've recently stumbled across some good websites for those living in, or traveling to Japan. You can never have too many resources.

www.mustlovejapan.com    This is a wonderful site where you can view things in Japan via video.  There are tons of different topics that this site covers.  Try clicking "like" on their Facebook site so that you can get regular updates on all the fun and exciting things to do in Japan.

www.japanbases.com   This site is obviously geared towards the military community, but has pretty good forums, local job information, etc.  I went onto this site before we moved here just to see what other people had to say about the questions I had.  Check it out.

http://www.hyperdia.com/en   I just found out about this website yesterday.  I can't believe we've been here for over 10 months and we haven't used it.  This site will help you navigate the train systems from point A to point B, give you the amount of yen you will need, what trains to catch, etc.  I can't wait to use it.  Others swear by this site!

We've had many fun things the past couple of weekends.  Look for my upcoming blogs about roller derby, the Mikoshi Parade, and of course....Halloween.

Relay For Life

This past weekend, the younger boys and I participated in
the American Cancer Society's Relay For Life.  This was our first 

time at such an event, but not the first time its been held in our area.  I'm grateful that my roller derby team signed up for this walk and that we were able to camp out and show our support for people who have been touched by cancer.  An amazing $65,000+ was raised!

Survivors lap.

One of the speakers was a Japanese woman who was a doctor and a cancer survivor.  She spoke on behalf of Japanese Relay For Life which debuted in Japan in 2006.  This was the first time I'd heard of the relay being in other countries.  When I looked into this further, I found out that Relay For Life is held in over 20 countries around the globe.  For more information on International Relay for Life check out this link:http://www.cancer.org/Involved/Participate/RelayForLife/international-relay-for-life-one-world-one-hope

The human spirit is stronger than anything that can happen to it.  ~C.C. Scott

At around 9pm, the luminaria ceremony began.  This was very touching because the track was lined with bags (with candles) that had messages on them.  You could donate a luminaria in Honor, Support, or in Memory of a loved one.  They were very emotional to read especially since we have so many people we know that are survivors, currently battling the disease, or have lost their lives to cancer. 

A message for my uncle who is currently battling cancer.

My son and his friend walking around the luminaria.

Sumo

The dohyo or sumo ring.

Last month we attended our first Sumo tournament up at the Kokugikan in Tokyo.  Sumo is Japan's national sport and dates back some 1,500 years ago, with its origin being of a religious nature.  Sumo, along with dramas and dancing, were performed inside shrines as rituals to ask the gods for bountiful harvests.  Although the sport has made many transitions since its beginning, the Edo Period was credited for shaping the sport and how it is played today.

Sumo is played in a dohyo, or ring and  measures 18 square feet by 2 feet high.  The stage is built of clay, has a sand surface and the bouts are performed inside a 15 feet in diameter circle.  This is not much space to bout especially given the size of the wrestlers.  Basically, the first person to force the opponent outside the ring, or push them down inside the circle wins.  The bouts were rather suspenseful especially when the more advanced wrestlers were in the ring.  I found myself covering my eyes many times.  Most of the time the bouts were quick but we did witness a few wrestlers being thrown off the dohyo.  One wrestler even hit his head, and another one got a bloody nose.

Chiri-o-kiru.  Means sumo will respect fair play.

Sumo trivia:

• There are 6 grand tournaments a year that are 15 days in length.
• The average age of a sumo wrestler is 20-35.
• Wrestlers live together in a place called a stable.
• Each player has a ritual of throwing salt in the ring.
• There are many foreign sumo wrestlers participating in the Japanese Sumo circuit.
• The loincloth the wrestlers wear is called a mawashi.  It measures 10 yards in length/2 ft in width.  There are approximately 70 winning maneuvers a wrestler can use with the mawashi during a bout.

Here are some websites if you are interested in additional information on sumo:
  
  http://www.sumo.or.jp/eng/

  www.sumotalk.com/rules.htm

  en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumo

Space Available

Happy to get onto this flight bound for Osan AFB in Korea.

I'm hoping to get back into blogging every week.  September was a busy month, and its only bound to get busier from here on out especially if I start working full-time.  I have so many topics I want to cover that I better get a move-on.

Today's blog is about Space Available flights (also called MAC or Space A).  One of the many perks we have living abroad is being able to take advantage of these military flights.  Each family member is entitled to 2 EML (morale leave) flights per year.  We can fly to such places as:  Korea, Hawaii, Alaska, Singapore, Guam, Okinawa, etc.  We're very fortunate to live within a couple hours of two bases that offer Space A.  The most important things you will need to travel are:  EML orders (I got them drawn up from Justin's command) or not if you're flying in the lowest category, your passport, military ID, patience and  some faith.

I like the price for the flight.

My friend asked me earlier in the year if I would be interested in taking a Space A flight to Korea.  Of course I said yes!  So, the week before last, we ventured up to Yokota Air Base and attempted to get onto our first Space A flight.  We weren't sure how it was going to go since the typhoon had knocked out power to the AFB air terminal.  We still had hope since the plane we wanted to go on was still scheduled to fly out that day.  Its very helpful that you can call the air terminal ahead of time to hear a recording of scheduled flights for the week.  Of course you need some flexibility because flights are subject to change. 

When taking these flights you can email or fax your orders ahead of time so that your name is in their system.  This is advantageous since anyone flying in a lower category (we flew in category IV) than us, had lower priority.  The reverse is also true.  Anyone flying in categories I-III had higher priority than us.  This did cause a bit of concern, but we still checked in upon arrival to the terminal, and tried to patiently wait until roll call.  If they call your name during roll call, then you made the flight.  Luckily, we were flying on a large airplane that had extra seats so we were able to make it to Korea.

The trick is to make it back to your original destination.  Fortunately, we were able to get onto the flight back to Japan.  This isn't always the case.  That's why you need to truly look at this as an adventure, give yourself extra time, and do your research.  There's always the possibility that you may have to pay for a ticket to fly on a commercial airplane if you cannot return via Space A.

While I certainly enjoyed my time in Korea, I cannot wait to take a Space A flight with my family! There are so many places for us to visit.....plus you can't beat the price!

Our First Visitors

Yeah, they made it to Japan!

We've been really busy with our out of the country house guests.  My mom and brother made the 10 hour plane ride from California to visit us for two weeks.  While we saw and did a lot, we didn't get a chance to show them everything on the bucket list.  Its just a perfect excuse for them to make the trek back here sometime in the future so we can show them more of this wonderful country.

First off, I'm so happy they came for two weeks because the jet lag was pretty bad for them the first week.  Many naps, and early evenings.  Luckily, we had a pretty good balance of down time and being on the go.  Here's some of what we did in a nutshell:

Linkin Park concert

Week One

• Stayed in Tokyo (1 night @ New Sanno/ 1 night @ Hardy Barracks)
• Emperor's Palace
• My brother and I took my oldest son to "Linkin Park" concert in Shin-Yokohama.
• Ferry to Sarushima Island
• Tons of shopping, napping and eating
• Toured the base
• Went to Ikego and Zushi
• A zillion trips to Lawson's (my brother loved the pancakes in a package).

At horse archery in Kamakura.

Week Two

• Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse and World Porters
• Kurihama Hana no Kuni (Flower World)
• Toured USS Blue Ridge
• Sumo Tournament in Tokyo
• Horse Archery (Yabusame) in Kamakura
• Tons of shopping, eating and not so many naps
• Dinner Show up in Shinjuku
• Sunday Brunch at Officers Club
• Went to Back To School Nights 

On the bus to airport.  Sayonara!

We had a wonderful visit.  Arigato gozaimashita for coming to see us.  Our doors are open to anyone else who would like to visit us in Japan.

Music To My Ears

Some of my favorite things about living in Japan are the various songs/melodies you hear.  I'm not talking about songs on the radio, or music videos, I'm talking about daily life in Japan.  Here are some of the major melodies we hear when we are out and about:

• Train Stations- When you are the train station, there will be a melody played that signals that a train is coming or passing through the station.  Also, certain train lines use certain melodies. 

•  Garbage Trucks-  When we first moved into our house, I could not for the life of me understand (literally) why almost every morning I would hear a certain song played around 9:00a.m.  This puzzled me for months until I saw the garbage truck driving down the street with the speaker blaring the tune.  Now, I welcome the warning especially if I'm late in putting out my garbage.

• Its 1700 or 5:00p.m. In The Neighborhood- In just two minutes, I'll hear the daily 5:00p.m. neighborhood melody that signals the kids to come home from the park.  I was also told by a Japanese friend that this daily melody began as a way to test out the tsunami warning system.
   

• At Work and School- There is music for the bells at both work and school on base.  This may also be true out in town.  One time I was at my husband's work at the end of the workday and just about did a leap out of my seat when I heard the afternoon bell/siren go off.  I thought there was an emergency. There wasn't, it was just time for everyone to go home for the day! 

Here's a video I found on You Tube where you can listen to a melody at the train station.....not sure what's up with the piano solo at the end of the video.

School Uniforms (Gakusei-Fuku /Seifuku)

Local school's uniform.

Although its not the beginning of school for kids on Japanese school year schedule, it is for my kids which prompts me to write about school uniforms.  I think uniforms were such a rarity where we lived in America, that I can only think of one private school in town where the kids wore uniforms.  I personally think they are a great idea, even though I have heard they are quite expensive in Japan.  Some schools include the uniform fee in their tuition.   At least it eliminates the worry about what to wear everyday. 

It is a very common sight in Japan to see children in public, private, and International Schools wear uniforms.  Most children from preschool through High School and even some women's colleges require students to wear school uniforms.  While the sailor uniform used to be a very popular uniform for girls, most kids around where we live, or that I see on the train, wear a parochial-style uniform that includes the following:

• Yochien (Kindergarten) girls- pinafore, shirt, socks, jacket and hat.

• Yochien (Kindergarten) boys- shorts, shirt, suspenders, socks, jacket and hat.

• Elementary/High School girls- pleated skirts, white shirt, tie, blue or white socks that go mid-way up the calf, loafers, and sweater or blazer with school crest.

• Elementary/High School boys- dress pants, white shirt, tie, blazer with school crest.  

Ready for yochien.

The above are just some random observations I've made.   There may be variations of the uniforms depending on the school and season.  What I do find interesting is that I've seen High School girls hike, or roll up their skirts so they are quite short.  High School boys, when not in school,  may take off their tie and lower their pants.  Instead of judging these kids, I've come to realize its just a way of being individual in a world where all your peers dress the same. 

Formal Friday uniform at International School.