Japan Bucket List Check-Off!!! #2, #20, #22, #14

As per the usual, I am behind on some of these but now is the perfect time to update you all on this, my Japan Bucket List. :]

#2: Master the Transportation System

While I'm sure that everyone has their own way of qualifying what "mastery" truly is, this is my version. After about a month (whoa time flies) of being in Japan I think it is acceptable to say that

1) enduring quick, blink-of-the-eye transfers
2) muscling way through crowds
3) being sardine-packed several times a day
4) not being freaked out by the consequences of said sardine-packing (closeness, smells, awkward positioning, etc.)
5) not taking the wrong train (directionally, destination-wise [rapid vs. local], etc.)

counts as a mastery of sorts. Now when I can read a book in Japanese while standing on a crowded train I'll have achieved the highest level of capability. Until then, Game of Thrones it is. ;]

#20 Visit Book-Off

This I have done already so many times it's not even funny. This place literally has everything from CDs, DVDs, video games, books/magazines, sports equipment, figurines (for all the crazy anime fans out there), and more. How many times can you say that you could easily purchase a new/gently used book for about $1? Unless you troll thrift stores I would say not too often. Well let's just put it this way, my carry-on luggage, upon my return to the States, will consist of books, books, and more books because I plan on taking home a whole series of my favorite manga . . . IN JAPANESE! This is a particularly peculiar book with an interesting plot but can look that up on your own time if you like.


These are the other books I bought and plan on reading (of course with the help of my trusty dictionaries). The authors include Tanizaki Jun'ichiro, Natsume Soseki, Yoshimoto Banana and Kirino Natsuo (three other book buys are not pictured here).

I want to emphasize how much of a dream this place is for me because at this juncture I own 12, count 'em 12 books in Japanese for the price of what one book would cost me in America. One. Case and point. Period. Sad right?

#22: Get a Kokeshi Doll

Kokeshi dolls are little hand-carved and painted wooden figures, usually in the likeness of girls, that are covered in a thin coat of wax which I assume protects the wood and the paint. While I was at the Narita Drum Festival I found a nice lively little shop with plenty of customers and even more cool souvenirs such as these. There was a wall of kokeshi dolls, all of them pretty, but I didn't want to spend the cash to get them (and they were rather big so getting them home would be a slight issue ... that is until I realized that they accepted my credit card, but I still didn't buy one, lol). For at most $30 these things were pretty sweet but I opted for a wee key chain kokeshi doll wearing a cute purple kimono. In the future, if I feel a strong draw to a particular kokeshi doll, I'm sure I will get one.

#14 Learn How to Play a Traditional Instrument

Weeks ago I was lucky enough to catch a post from our program's Facebook page about some free cultural workshops that were happening at Kanda University. Looking at the line-up I saw that they were briefly teaching some really cool traditional arts: 書道 [しょどう | calligraphy], 三味線 [しゃみせん | shamisen], and 箏 [こと | koto]. The first of the workshops involves writing with a brush and special ink on special paper. One must be graceful and determined when doing this (my high school Japanese class showed tried but could really give an inkling of how this truly works). The next two words pertain to classical Japanese stringed instruments (think three-stringed guitar and a thirteen+ stringed floor violin/piano/harp respectively). I opted for the 箏 because it (today) was the only day I could do it.

 

 

This wonderful instrument, if memory of the completely Japanese explanation serves, has tons of movable bridges to change pitch/tone whereas the violin only has one that is fixed (or should be unless you break it). You play it by plucking with the three picks affixed to your thumb, forefinger and middle finger. And, you can even apply pressure by pressing down on the strings towards the head of the 箏 so as to change pitch/tone as well. You can fit them with thinner strings (for a soprano sound as our 先生 [せんせい | teacher] put it) or thicker ones (for an alto sound) much like how one can play the first violin parts, second violin parts, viola parts, cello, and bass parts in an orchestra. They are about 6 feet long (much taller than me) and very beautifully made. I believe this is often used in Kabuki plays and can be heard in some Japanese films (it has a real Asian twang to it, I love it!).

 

When we actually sat down and started touching the thing (which I didn't think they were going to let us do), I felt a sudden rush come over me when I got the hang of it. I was so surprised that I could even be that delicate with an instrument even though the instructors at times seemed to pound the hell out of them (it was oh so amazing and it didn't occur to me to record one particularly moving arrangement, but oh well). Before we came in the room they gave us sheet music which was apparently for us to play a song together and I could actually still read music!!! Granted it was organized in a different fashion than reading violin music (the good old days) but it was in Treble Clef and still understandable. Getting used to how to hold your hand and avoiding hitting the strings with the other finger picks, now that was the difficult part.

 

All told, this made me love music again. I hadn't felt that way since I was in the 8th grade in Mrs. Garcia's orchestra. I even made a friend by the name of Wakana, a student at Kanda, who was impressed with my strained Japanese and my ability to understand what the ladies were telling us about this instrument. AND, it made me want to research how much these things cost (because I want one . . . now). Scratch that, my quick research tells me that the average 箏 would run me $1,175+ with all the necessary equipment but not including shipping. So maybe it can be a hobby when I'm older . . .

So to end this triumphant post I will leave you with a video of a live-performance from our three beautiful instructors who were quite patient (and sometimes micromanaging) in their teaching of us novices. Enjoy! じゃまた！