Friday, May 30, 2008

Goodbye Nyukawa
After almost two weeks out in Nyukawa, I have returned to Hatoyama and New Life League headquarters. I stepped in the door of the guest room that I’ve taken over about 30 minutes ago. Just to let you know, I’m really not in the mood to be writing this, but I know I won’t be in the mood to write tomorrow either, so I figure it’s best to just get it over with.

Thursday, May 29th
I thought today was going to be another work day. I expected it to be slow since I only had the maze to finish. As it turns out, it rained today and thus Yoshi-san was unable to go work in the fields. Kelly-san loves rainy days for just that reason and likes to use them to their fullest extent. At breakfast this morning the two of them decided that with their rainy day they would take me to an onsen. “Onsen” is the Japanese word for “hot spring.” The Japanese have converted many of their hot springs into public bath houses with the water being fed directly from the hot spring. It’s a very cool idea if you ask me. It puts the springs to real use. Anyway, it was a really cool experience. The atmostphere was fully traditional with shoes coming off at the door, tatami mats covering the floor, no chairs, and sliding doors. The men and women were completely separate at Hirayu, the onsen we went to, though at some onsens they are not fully separate but use the same changing room. Most onsens, like Hirayu, have a wooden fence that separate the men from the women when bathing outside. As is traditional with onsens, you go completely nude. This was an uncomfortable idea for me, but I figured I might as well just go for it, so I changed into my birthday suit and proudly marched into the bathing area. You take a small towel with you when you go to one of these things. I’m not really sure of the use of it, but it comes in handy as a means of politely covering yourself when walking around. When in the pool it is customary to put the towel on your head to keep it out of the water, though most guys just set it on the rock closest to them. I kept it on my head, it was easier to keep track of that way and the rocks weren’t really dry so my head kept it drier than the rocks would have. The bathing area at Hirayu was separated into indoor and outdoor. I sat in the indoor pool for about 5 minutes to get used to the heat of the water before marching outside. Outside there were multiple different pools you could sit in, all were made to look like natural pools with large rocks lining the edges and plants growing around them. Each of the 5 pools had a minutely different purpose—a couple were just warm water that you could sit in, one had a spout about 6 feet above the water that you could stand under, one pool had jets, and another had exceptionally hot water that you didn’t want to stay in for too long. I used every pool in there except one. Of course, I was the most interesting thing in there for most of the guys. Not only was I the only non-Japanese, I was also by far the youngest man in there. It was a little disconcerting. I’m already butt naked and now everybody is staring at me. But, I got used to it pretty fast. The nice water was relaxing. There were also little white flecks dancing around in the water. I wasn’t sure what they were, but Yoshi-san told me the Japanese called them “yu no hana,” which means “hot water’s flower” in English. Really informative that translation was, yes. LOL! I still have no idea what those little things were, but they were fun to look at and kick around on the floor of the pools. Perhaps they had something to do with the slightly sulfuric smell? I don’t know, but I enjoyed myself thoroughly, despite the minor discomfort.

We went out to lunch after the onsen. We had ramen from Kelly-san’s favorite ramen bar in Hirayu. It was fine ramen. I got the kind that tasted like soy. At the end of lunch Kelly-san called a couple of her friends in the area to see if they wanted to get together. One of them was too busy with work, but the other invited her over. So, we all went up the mountain a bit to a place called Alumu Petit Hotel. Kelly-san’s friend, Mayumi, either owns the place or just runs it, I can’t remember. She served us coffee, a couple oranges, and some bean pudding with whipped cream. It was all very good. All we really did there was talk. Most of the talking was done between Kelly-san and Mayumi, of course. They talked for a good three hours. Kelly-san apologized for me having to sit there while they jabbered on in Japanese for so long, but apparently Mayumi hadn’t seen little Luka since he’d been born and there was some catching up that needed to be done. I didn’t care. I spent the time listening to their conversation and trying to figure out what was being talked about. I failed miserably, but at least it kept me interested.

We made it back to Nyukawa by about 5:45 PM, ate dinner, and I went up to my room to start packing things up for my trip tomorrow.

Friday, May 30th
It was travel day for me. I spent the morning finishing up the packing I hadn’t done last night. I packed all I could and then spent the day until lunch talking on audio chat with KrustyKuckles and working on my maze. I didn’t finish it this morning, but that’s fine. I’ll try to finish it this weekend sometime.

Lunch was spectacular. They served shitake mushrooms with melted cheese, potato cakes, and fried rice with the usual miso soup and green tea. I adored those mushrooms and ate all I could. When I had finished eating Oka-san presented me with a gift. It was a little octagonal pill box made out of origami! It is really cool! I am quite impressed by the little thing but worry I might not be able to get it all the way back to the U.S. without being crushed or destroyed. I shall do my best.

Shortly after lunch Kelly-san and Yoshi-san took me to the bus station, I boarded the bus, and got on my way. It was a much more crowded bus than the one I took coming out to Nyukawa. I was happy to have a window seat, but was unhappy that I had to sit next to someone else. Those bus seats are pretty small. I ended up falling asleep for three hours of the trip and woke up to find an empty bus. We had stopped at a roadside rest station and everyone had gotten off to stretch their legs, use the restroom, and get some food or drinks. I took the chance to walk around a bit and wake myself up. I spent the last couple hours on the bus reading and taking in the gorgeous scenery.

My bus trip terminated in Shinjuku at rush hour. That wasn’t any fun. Trying to navigate Shinjuku station is hard enough, but doing it at rush hour against the crowds while dragging a suitcase puts a whole new spin on things. I was thankful to make it to my train. The rest of the trip went without incident except for a short mental block in Ikebukuro when I couldn’t remember what train line to take back towards New Life League. I remembered after I saw a sign for the line, Tobu Tojo. So, as I said, it was about 30 minutes after I stepped in the door that I began this post, and it has now been a full hour and a half. I’m tired and I’m going to go watch a movie before bed.

Caesar1280's Anime Ticker

.hack//Legend of the Twilight, Air, Air: The Movie, Akira, The Animatrix, Appleseed, Aquatic Language, Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror, Beck, Black Lagoon, Blame!, Blood the Last Vampire, Bokurano, Burst Angel, Castle in the Sky, Cowboy Bebop, Cowboy Bebop: The Movie, Digimon Tamers: The Runaway Digimon Express, Egao, FLCL, Fullmetal Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Conqueror of Shambala, Gankutsuou, Gatekeepers, Genshiken, Ghost in the Shell, Ghost in the Shell: Innocence, Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society, Gin-iro no Kami no Agito, Grave of the Fireflies, Grenadier, Haibane Renmei, Hellsing, Highlander: The Search for Vengeance, Hikaru no Go, Howl?s Moving Castle, Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade, Jyu Oh Sei, Karas: The Prophecy, Last Exile, Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi, Midori?s Days, Milennium Actress, Mushi-shi, My Neighbor Totoro, Naruto, Naruto: The Movie, Nausicaa, Neon Genesis Evangelion, Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death And Rebirth, Ninja Scroll: The Movie, Other Worlds, Paprika, Perfect Blue, Pet Shop of Horrors, The Place Promised In Our Early Days, Prétear, Princess Mononoke, Read Or Die, Read Or Die: The TV, Samurai Champloo, Samurai Seven, Samurai X: Trust & Betrayal, She and Her Cat, Spirited Away, Steamboy, Tide-Line Blue, Tokyo Babylon, Tokyo Godfathers, Trigun, Voices of a Distant Star, Witch Hunter Robin, Wonderful Days, Wrath of the Ninja, X

Anime I've Seen - .hack//Legend of the Twilight - .hack//Sign - 5 Centimeters per Second - Air - Air: The Movie - Akira - The Animatrix - Appleseed - Aquatic Language - Ayakashi: Japanese Classic Horror - Baby Blue - Beck - Black Lagoon - Blame! - Blood the Last Vampire - Bokurano - Burst Angel - Castle in the Sky - Cowboy Bebop - Cowboy Bebop: The Movie - Digimon Tamers: The Runaway Digimon Express - Doorbell - Egao - FLCL - Fullmetal Alchemist - Fullmetal Alchemist: The Conqueror of Shambala - Gankutsuou - Gatekeepers - Genius Party - Genshiken - Genshiken OAV - Ghost in the Shell - Ghost in the Shell: Innocence - Ghost in the Shell: Solid State Society - Gin-iro no Kami no Agito - The Gokusen - Grave of the Fireflies - Grenadier - Haibane Renmei - Happy Machine - Hellsing - Highlander: The Search for Vengeance - Hikaru no Go - Howl's Moving Castle - Innocent Venus - Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade - Jyu Oh Sei - Karas: The Prophecy - Karas: The Revelation - Last Exile - Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi - Midori?s Days - Milennium Actress - Mushi-shi - My Neighbor Totoro - Naruto - Naruto: The Movie - Nausicaa - Neon Genesis Evangelion - Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death And Rebirth - Ninja Scroll: The Movie - Other Worlds - Ouran High School Host Club - Paprika - Perfect Blue - Pet Shop of Horrors - The Place Promised In Our Early Days - Prétear - Princess Mononoke - Read Or Die - Read Or Die: The TV - Samurai Champloo - Samurai Seven - Samurai X: Trust & Betrayal - Serial Experiments Lain - Shanghai Dragon - She and Her Cat - Spirited Away - Steamboy - Tekkonkinkreet - Tide-Line Blue - Tokyo Babylon - Tokyo Godfathers - Trigun - Trinity Blood - Vampire Hunter D - Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust - Voices of a Distant Star - Witch Hunter Robin - Wolf's Rain - Wonderful Days - Wrath of the Ninja - X Total: 93

Anime I Haven't Completed - .hack//Roots - Ah! My Goddess - Angelic Layer - Avenger - Baccano! - Bamboo Blade - Basilisk - Binchou-tan - Black Cat - Bleach - Blood+ - Boogiepop Phantom - Case Closed - Le Chevalier d'Eon - Chobits - Chrono Crusade - Code Geass - Coyote Ragtime Show - D.Gray-Man - D.N.Angel - DearS - Death Note - Dennou Coil - Desert Punk - Digimon - Dragon Ball Z - Ergo Proxy - Eureka Seven - Excel Saga - Fighting Beauty Wulong - Final Fantasy Unlimited - Flag - Freedom - Full Moon - Gantz - Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Gintama - Glass Fleet - Great Teacher Onizuka - Gundam Seed - Gundam Wing - Hayate the Combat Butler - Hellsing OVA - Higurashi no Naku Koro ni - Ikki Tousen - InuYasha - Jigoku Shojo - Kage Kara Mamoru - Karin - Kino's Journey - Love Hina - Loveless - Lovely Complex - Lucky Star - Makai Senki Disgaea - Marchen Awakens Romance - Meine Liebe - The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya - Mononoke - Monster - Moon Phase - Mr Stain on Junk Alley - Naruto Shippuuden - Negima?! - Negima! - Neon Genesis Evangelion: End of Evangelion - Nerima Daikon Brothers - NHK ni Youkoso - Night Walker - Ninja Nonsense - Noir - Peacemaker Kurogane - Pokemon - Prince of Tennis - R.G. Veda - Ragnarok - Rec - Red Garden - Robotech - Romeo x Juliet - Rosen Maiden - Rurouni Kenshin - Saikano - Sailor Moon - Samurai Deeper Kyo - Sci-fi Harry - School Rumble - Scrapped Princess - Shin-chan - Shingu - Shion no Oh - Shuffle! - Shrine of the Morning Mist - So Long, Mr. Despair - Solty Rei - Sousei no Aquarion - Speed Grapher - Spice and Wolf - Super Milk Chan - Tales of Phantasia - Tenchi Muyo - Tenjhou Tenge - Texnolyze - The Third - Tsubasa Chronicles - Urusei Yatsura - Venus Versus Virus - Welcome to the N.H.K. - Winter Cicada - X-1999 - Xenosaga - XxxHolic - Yu Yu Hakushou - Yume Tsukai - Zero no Tsukaima - Zipang Total: 116

Manga I've Completed - Cowboy Bebop - FLCL - Manga Messiah - Manga Metamorphosis - Q*Ko-chan - Saiyuki - Shirahime-Syo Total: 7 Manga I Haven't Completed - .hack//Legend of the Twilight - Black Cat - Blame! - Chobits - D.Gray-man - Darkside Blues - Death Note - The Demon Ororon - Desert Coral - Disgaea - Eureka Seven: Gravity Boys and Lifting Girl - Fruits Basket - Getbackers - Hayate the Combat Butler - Kamunagara - Legal Drug - Love Hina - Loveless - Megatokyo - Naruto - Negima - Read Or Die - Rurouni Kenshin - Tactics - Trigun Maximum - XXXHolic Total: 26

Anime I'm Currently Watching
Samurai 7, InuYasha, Samurai Deeper Kyo,
Boogiepop Phantom, and Shrine of the Morning Mist

Manga I'm Currently Reading
Read Or Die, Hayate the Combat Butler, and Megatokyo.hack//Roots, .hack//Sign, 5 cm per Second, Ah! My Goddess, Angelic Layer, Avenger, Basilisk, Binchou-tan, Black Cat, Bleach, Blood+, Boogiepop Phantom, Case Closed, Le Chevalier d'Eon, Chobits, Chrono Crusade, Coyote Ragtime Show, D.Gray-Man, D.N.Angel, DearS, Death Note, Dennou Coil, Desert Punk, Digimon, Dragon Ball Z, Ergo Proxy, Eureka 7, Excel Saga, Fighting Beauty Wulong, Final Fantasy Unlimited, Flag, Full Moon, Gantz, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Gintama, Great Teacher Onizuka, Gundam Seed, Gundam Wing, Hayate the Combat Butler, Hellsing Ultimate, Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, Innocent Venus, InuYasha, Jigoku Shojo, Kage Kara Mamoru, Karin, Kino?s Journey, Love Hina, Loveless, Lovely Complex, Lucky Star, Makai Senki Disgaea, Marchen Awakens Romance, Meine Liebe, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Mononoke, Monster, Naruto Shippuuden, Negima?!, Neon Genesis Evangelion: End of Evangelion, Nerima Daikon Brothers, NHK ni Youkoso, Night Walker, Ninja Nonsense, Noir, Ouran High School Host Club, Peacemaker Kurogane, Pokemon, Prince of Tennis, R.G. Veda, Ragnarok, Rec, Red Garden, Robotech, Romeo x Juliet, Rosen Maiden, Rurouni Kenshin, Saikano, Sailor Moon, Samurai Deeper Kyo, Sci-fi Harry, School Rumble, Scrapped Princess, Serial Experiments Lain, Shingu, Shuffle!, Shrine of the Morning Mist, So Long Mr. Despair, Solty Rei, Sousei no Aquarion, Speed Grapher, Super Milk Chan, Tales of Phantasia, Tenchi Muyo, Tenjhou Tenge, Texnolyze, The Third. Trinity Blood, Tsubasa Chronicles, Urusei Yatsura, Welcome to the N.H.K., Winter Cicada, X-1999, Xenosaga, XxxHolic, Yu Yu Hakushou, Yume Tsukai, Zero no Tsukaima, Zipang

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