Year 3

Summer “vacation” is upon us here in Nagano, which means I have 3 weeks of sitting in a hot office and pretending I have things to do.  So, it’s also a good time to catch up on blog posts and reflect on life.:)

This past week was the start of my third and final year in Japan.  To say I have conflicting feelings is a bit of an understatement.  I think the more accurate description is my feelings ricochet wildly from almost being in tears at the prospect of one more year pretending to have a purpose in a place I’m not wanted or needed (i.e. Friday morning at the first semester’s closing ceremonies) to being borderline obsessed with soaking in as much of this amazingly beautiful country as possible before I’m back to sweating in St. Louis’s humidity, smog, and suburban horrors.

So as is so often the case with life, it’s best to make a list of pros and cons and go from there.  It’s nice to end on a positive note, so let’s just throw all the stuff I’m NOT looking forward to this coming year out there straightaway.

1. Restraint, rules and bad attitudes

            I’m terrible at hiding my feelings, prone to speaking without thinking, asking more questions than is strictly necessary, and arguing about everything.  In my school, it’s all restraint all the time—it’s a rare day I manage to not slightly offend someone.

            I thought this would get easier with time, but it only gets harder.  Particularly at school, since I have been at the school longer than half the teachers, their expectations of me are much higher than those of the previous teachers, especially regarding language and customs.  But the levels of formality that exist in Japan are much greater than those in America, and though I recognize these levels when used by others, I am nowhere near skilled enough to use them much myself.

 I’m even more unsure of what my role should be, and with each crop of new teachers that arrives, people talk to me less and less.  Last year, I lost the 3 people at school who comprised my support system all at once (a support system that was so weak, I never realized I had it until it was gone), which leaves me having to bow and scrape to teachers who have made themselves less approachable when I need help.  Most days, I have fantasies about shaking everyone violently and asking them if they are Vulcans.

2. Too much time

            98% of the things I am not looking forward to this last year are work-related.  The number two thing I hate about my job is too much time on my hands and not enough responsibility.  I thrive on multi-tasking and thinking fast, which is why I love teaching in an elementary classroom, where you are always troubleshooting lesson plans gone wrong or students misbehaving.  Teaching junior high in my school is about as interesting as watching paint dry most days.

3. My junior high 3^rd graders graduating

            This class has been my favorite since I first came to Ikusaka.  They were first graders then, and unlike most classes, haven’t mellowed much with age.  Genki, outspoken, interested in English…. There isn’t a thing I would change about this class.  When they leave, the school will literally be a whole lot quieter—and lonelier.

4. Fear of unemployment

            A and I both tried looking for jobs for some time before leaving St. Louis, and we struck out.  But this time, striking out isn’t an option, and our past failures loom in front of us like giant walls.  What do we do if we can’t find good paying jobs?  We’re married with two cats—we’re too old and have too much baggage (literally) to move back in with our parents, as many do when returning from living abroad.  The prospect of failure is at times absolutely terrifying, and it’s so tempting to try to avoid making such a risky change.

5. “Fun” is a four letter word

            I wish I could video one of our “pep rallies”.  It involves getting yelled at by a cheer team while waving one`s arm rigidly forward and back and screaming the school song.  If you don’t sing loudly enough or don’t wave rigidly enough, you are forced to do it over and over again until it meets with the cheer team’s requirements.  The team being cheered at must stand like soldiers on the stage devoid of emotion while this is occurring.  I’ve always wondered if the students actually find this motivating…

            Friday was the last day of school before summer vacation.  You would never know it.  Nothing special in any of the classes, no parties, music, excitement—nothing. While it’s true most of the students will be at school for bukatsu or studying at jukus over “vacation”, still, you’d think they’d be at least a little happy.

            But here, fun is a four letter word.  If it’s fun, it’s not allowed.  Just rules, discipline, rigidity and long boring speeches. 

Practicing balance in Okinawa

            I know this sounds judgmental.  It’s not meant to be interpreted as such.  Merely, I have decided the values espoused here are not ones that are meaningful to me.  I like fun *and* discipline, rules *and* occasionally giving a little slack, working hard *and* relaxing.  Life is about balance, and here balance is extremely difficult to practice.

But despite all of these things, every time I drive home from pretty much anywhere, I have to smile at how beautiful it all is.  The number one thing I will miss about Japan is obviously:

1. Nature

Trail running this weekend.

            Nagano is where I would live if I could live anywhere in the world.  I wish I could pick it up and just take it with me to America.  It’s so easy to take for granted that 3000m+ mountains are less than an hour’s drive away, beautiful rivers, ravines, lakes and the sea, trail running, wild animals in your backyard, flowers, green, space… I love everything and the thought of leaving it hurts my heart.  I remind myself every day to smile and be thankful for what I’ve been given.

2. Transportation

            Japan has a fantastic system of trains and buses that go everywhere and are almost always on time.  The one time I rode the Amtrak train it was dirty, out of food and drinks, filled with smelly drunk people, and so late A nearly missed his flight.  I will never ride it again (sorry Amtrak, no second chances after that disaster). 

3. Customer Service

            Japanese customer service’s reputation is well-deserved.  Even what would be considered “menial” jobs like sales clerks, gasoline attendants, etc. are unfailingly polite, helpful, and well-groomed.  Especially as a foreigner who doesn’t always understand the language or customs, Japanese people are much more patient than most Americans will ever be.   

4. Friends
         
           In America, I was always busy.  I never had time to make any good friends that I saw regularly.  But here in Japan, I have more time than I need, which has taught me to appreciate the value in friendship.  Especially as an outsider working in a job with little support, I rely much more on my support system than I ever did in America.  I hope my friends know how much I appreciate them, because I sorely underestimated the challenges of living abroad...and there's no way I could have made it this far without you guys.  (kisses, kisses!:)

Cheers to one more year!

"You can't always get what you want...

but if you try sometimes, well you might find... you get what you need."

Sums up my weekend.  After a long week full of skyping with my student loan company about mucking up pretty much everything, getting "kicked out" of the 50k race I really wanted to run, and being thwarted at every turn in my attempts to get to the trail head for Kitadake, I was just about ready to give up and spend the weekend sulking at home.

It's a long story, so get comfortable. Because the weather finally looked like it might cooperate, I made plans to climb Kitadake, the second highest mountain in Japan and only a few hours away by train.  I applied for nenkyuu to leave early Friday afternoon and made a hotel reservation near Kofu station so I could take the 4:30 a.m. bus to the trail head Saturday morning. By 6:30 a.m., I'd be on my way to Kitadake, summit and stay at the hut, then continue to Ainodake, the 4th highest mountain in Japan, returning home Sunday evening.

However, as I was finalizing my route, I discovered the road to the trailhead had been closed for a week from a landslide.  Its estimated re-opening time: unknown.  So in between classes Friday, I researched alternate routes.  Finding a possible detour, I asked my amazing friend J to confirm the route by phone, as I wanted to be 100% sure of the plan before going all the way there only to find out I made a translation mistake.

Finally, a half an hour before I had to catch the bus from Ikusaka, I made the decision to take the risk to go.  The new route would take me almost 5 hours out of my way, and mean I wouldn't start climbing until at least 10 a.m.  I decided climbing Ainodake most likely wasn't happening under these time conditions, so I revised my climbing plan to include only Kitadake.

Taking the local train to Kofu Friday evening, I stayed overnight near Kofu station in time to catch the 5:20 a.m. train to a small station called Minobu.  I arrived in Minobu around 6:30 a.m. and met 5 others also going to Kitadake.  We compared plans, and piled into the local town bus at 7 a.m. headed for Narada.  The road in to the trailhead for Kitadake is closed to private vehicles, so you have to catch a bus from one of three places--the place closest to Kofu station being closed due to the landslide.  After riding for an hour and a half on the local bus with an entire junior high track team, we arrived at Narada to take the 9 a.m. bus to the trail head at Hirogawara広河原.  When we finally arrived at Hirogawara around 10 a.m. I was feeling a bit queasy from the mountain roads and smells of sweaty people in close quarters.  Who needs altitude sickness when you can just get carsick?

Access to Kitadake

I was a bit dismayed by the amount of people at the trailhead, as I had hoped that the road closure and the fact it was a tad early in the season would mean I might have a chance at a peaceful climb.  So, not wanting to stand in a queue up the mountain, I hurriedly used the toilet, checked my gear and headed out before most people had even gotten to the main building.

The first hour of climbing is a bit steep in places, and just when you are about done with it, flattens out for an easy half hour or so of walking.  Apparently, I made good time, as I made it to Shiraneoike 白根御池小屋in less than 2 hours.  I was so surprised to be there already, I even asked one of the other hikers if I was in the right place, despite the name being plastered everywhere.  I took a short break, and hiked up the small patch of snow to the beginning of the trail up to the ridgeline.

Shiraneoike--not an ike this time of year, just snow.

Alpine flowers along the ridgeline.

The maps said this trail was steep, and it is.  But, this time of year, all the alpine flowers were in bloom, so taking a look at one was a good excuse to stop for a short break.  The views don't really appear until you reach the ridgeline, so I do recommend going this time of year as the alpine flowers make the otherwise not so interesting route much prettier.

Once you reach the ridgeline, if the cloud isn't in, look immediately to your left and Fujisan will be staring right back at you.  From here, it's about a half hour or less to the Katanokoya hut北岳肩ノ小屋, with beautiful alpine flowers and views of all the Alps all around you.  I arrived at the hut just after 2 p.m., and because I was so early, I asked a few other hikers around me for their advice about course plans.  As I made such good time, it was possible for me to do my original plan of summiting Kitadake Saturday and staying at Kitadakesansou, continuing on to Ainodake early in the morning to reach it an hour or so after sunrise Sunday.

 But, after talking with other hikers and the hut staff, the main route from Ainodake back to Hirogawara is typically through the Happonba col, which apparently was still dangerous this time of year.  There was another route from Kitadakesansou as well, but several people also advised me against it, and I really didn't fancy retracing my steps back up and down Kitadake as the third option. Additionally, Kitadakesansou is apparently very popular with climbers, while Katanokoya not so much, meaning the likelihood of Kitadakesansou being crowded was quite high.  So, as it was the very first time I've ever climbed a mountain in nice weather, I checked into Katanokoya, bought myself a beer, kampai-ed towards the summit, and sat sipping it slowly and taking in the views.

I think traveling alone makes you a bit more approachable, as I met so many friendly people at the hut.  Mountain climbing is a lot like running, I've discovered.  For example, when you travel for a marathon, you always end up chatting with people around you about the marathons you've run, training strategies, goals, etc.  I often will run into people at races that I rode the bus with to the start line, or met at the hotel, and check in with them to see how their race was/is going.

Mountain climbing is the same.  I met a particularly friendly group of 3 women and 1 man with whom I chatted until lights out.  We compared mountain climbing stories, gave each other recommendations, and talked about our favorite and least favorite climbs.  From a couple people, I did get a few of the "Why do foreigners...?" questions, where I feel I'm expected to speak for all non-Japanese (i.e. Why do foreigners like climbing Mt. Fuji so much? Why do foreigners go to so many temples? etc.) but for the most part I was included in the conversations just like anyone else, and I learned a lot from others' experiences. In Japan, I

Mt. Fuji seen from Katanokoya

don't get this kind of light conversation often.  At work, I pretty much only talk to my students as everyone else is either too busy or not interested in talking about anything.  I met several of the people I rode the buses with from Minobu at various points along the trail, and a few at the summit Sunday morning, and we recognized each other and checked in.  It was great to feel a part of a community again, if only for a short time. 

Katanokoya was the perfect amount of people, with us sharing 3 people to 2 futons rather than the usual 2 people per futon.  After sharing a taxi back to Narada with a father and son who stayed at Kitadakesansou, I was very happy I chose to stay at Katanokoya instead as they said it was terribly crowded, windy and cold.  The Katanokoya staff was friendly, toilets clean, and water only 100￥.

I woke up at 3:30 Sunday morning and began my short trek to the summit about 3:45.  Though I was using a headlamp, it was still quite dark, and I stuck behind another climber with a brighter lamp.  I thought the trail was a bit difficult, practically crawling up some of the rocks for the first 20 minutes.  On my descent, I discovered the hiker I

The summit of Kitadake.

was following had taken the wrong trail, and we climbed up on the wrong side of the chains, hence the difficulty.  Also I think the paint marks were sprayed by someone coming from the summit towards Katanokoya, as they were easy to follow on the descent, but difficult to see on the way up.

I reached the summit at about 4:20, and sat down to eat breakfast and watch the sunrise.  You have a perfect view of Mt. Fuji from the summit, and I entertained myself taking various photos from many angles.  It wasn't terribly cold or windy, and there were very few other people.  After about a half hour, I headed back down to the hut, where I met most everyone I had met the day before just heading out. I ate some breakfast at the hut and then started back down the mountain trying to beat the rain.

Sunrise on Mt. Fuji from the Kitadake summit.

Though the Minami Alps are beautiful and I'm certainly no experienced climber, I found I prefer the ruggedness of the northern Alps to the southern.  The southern Alps apparently have many of the 3000+meter mountains, but the features of the mountains are less interesting than the rocky formations you can see in the north.  In fact, I decided to change my plans for August and go to Mt. Tsurugi and possibly Tateyama instead of my original plan of Mt. Warusawa and Mt. Akaishi.  Ideally of course, I'd love to climb every mountain:) but I have to prioritize and there are so many in the Kita Alps I want to do.

Sunset from Katanokoya.