Agh! The calling card I bought that I thought would give me at least half an hour or so to talk with my family gave me less than 10 minutes! I talked with Tina and Mum and Sally, all the while watching the dollars tick away. So I'll buy another one and call again tonight (my time; it'll be Christmas Day then at home). But it was frustrating, to say the least. They're gearing up for a big Christmas dinner tomorrow, so ate light tonight (umm - lobster chowder!). At my stepfather's bookstore, they broke out the scotch (a fine, long-standing Christmas Eve tradition shared by some of the Odd Book regulars) at the end of the day. Sally is due in less than a month, and finding it harder to get around, but she sounds good. She and Chris are almost ready to move into their new home in Wolfville, up on Skyway Drive, but for Christmas they're with my parents in Hortonville. Tina came up from the city on Saturday (with Bartleby, of course; he's probably driving my parents' cats insane). So it sounds like a good Christmas - although as my Aunt Shirley moaned, without me, who is going to take the family pictures?

 

It's Christmas morning here, and the sky is clear, the air crisp and the sun reflecting on the ripples on the water almost too bright to look at. For most Japanese, this is a workday like any other; their big family holiday is New Years (oshogetsu). So I'm thinking of doing some Christmas grocery shopping, and maybe buying some cooler clothes.

 

Yesterday, biking against a stiff wind under a sky heavy with the threat of rain, I finally got down to the shores of Lake Shinji. I stopped on the grounds of the Shimane Art Museum and looked out at the gray water. Sculptures of modern art dotted the near landscape and further out were rickety-looking wharves and weirs. I took a few pictures there. Then I went into the museum, which was very quiet that day. I stopped into the gift shop and wandered the huge foyer. The wall facing the lake was panelled glass, and a subdued sign pointed out the best times for viewing the sunset; the conceit being that the sunsets of Lake Shinji were themselves works of art.  

 

Afterward I biked across the bridge to the north part of the city and the castle, taking a left to find for myself the budokan, or martial arts gym. It was a featureless gray-brown building like the ones around it, and for a moment I wasn't sure if I had the right place. But a closer look as I circled the building revealed windows covered with patterned squares of rice paper, so I went in to explore. A small sign near the door showed the different disciplines that could be practiced here: aikido, kendo, judo, karate, Japanese archery and one other I couldn't identify. Inside the door to the left was a counter and office, and in front of me, a small step up, were huge wooden sliding doors, each marked with a kanji, or Chinese character, leading to what appeared to be a large practice room. I couldn't read them of course, but I could feel that this place was THE REAL DEAL. To the right was a small room to change your shoes (and put on slippers...). A young woman came to the counter, and I managed to explain my interest in aikido. But after that, conversation broke down. She was trying to explain something about the class, and I was thinking to myself "Oh boy! This is going to be hard." Finally she gave me a name and phone number and signalled for me to call. So I have to get someone to call on my behalf soon.

 

I noticed in the grocery store that, in the absence of Christmas turkey, Christmas chicken is an acceptable substitute. Most Japanese homes, however, don't have ovens suitable for roasting chickens, so fried chicken sets were being sold, and chicken over rice, et cetera, plus lots of sushi and sashimi platters. The malls were in an uproar, and will stay that way here until New Year. I took refuge in a Mister Donut, and had my third real coffee since I got here December 1st. Real coffee is expensive here, but popular. 

 

I went home, relaxed for a while, and experienced my first tiny earthquake. It was so small that at first I thought, "What are they up to downstairs?" before I figured it out. Nihon e yogoso; welcome to Japan.

 

Then I got ready to go to Yonago for Christmas Eve. I went to the department store near the train station to wait for Momoko, the daughter of the couple who I had met at the break-dancing show last week. I also saw her perform last week as well; she was part of a group that had a lot of fun with its dancing, and showed a sense of humour. She and her friend met me at 5:45. Momoko (her name means "peach-child") is a tiny, round-faced, energetic university student. Her friend Mei (sp?) was a tall, skinny girl with red-framed glasses and long black hair. They were both in high spirits and very friendly as we drove the 50 minutes to Yonago. They didn't speak much English, but we got along fine as we drove. Momoko, like her parents, is a Christian (specifically Anglican), a very small group (2% of the population) in Japan. Mei is not Christian, but came along with Momoko anyway. We went straight to the church for the 7:00 service. The St. Nicholas Church is very large and barn-like from the outside, and large and white inside. The outside foyer was heated by kerosene heaters, and I greeted Michiko and Shogo there. Shogo is a warm, eager to please and wide-eyed man; Michiko, elegantly dressed in a black velvet dress with a glittering pendant, regarded her husband with an air of wry affection. Michiko is the organist here.

The service wasn't hard to follow, despite the Japanese; it was exactly like a simple Anglican service at home. Above the altar was a statue of a very Japanese-looking haloed Jesus hanging serenely from his cross. The carols were same, too, and I sang quietly along in English - although I realized that I only remember the first verse and chorus of most carols! Momoko had a lovely voice when she sang, and she followed the readings in the program with her finger for me so I could get a sense of the language. I was taken with the woman signing for a deaf woman in the front row. Her face and hands were so expressive and open as she translated. There were a lot of children there as well, and after the service they presented a Christmas pageant. While well-dressed mothers sneaked about changing the set, the children narrated and sang the Christmas story, including a tiny solemn-faced Mary-san with her hair flopping over her glasses and a tall bean-sprout Joseph. One of the two innkeepers was a tiny boy with a HUGE voice; every time he sang I had to laugh, especially when compared to the other innkeeper; twice his size, and prone to mumbling. Of the shepherds, there were five, shepherding two sheep; little girls, obviously the youngest of the congregation, in sheep's ear bonnets and fleecy white pajamas. One of the sheep beamed and waved her way through the whole show. Very cute.

Then with lots of fanfare, Santa Claus came! Santa was surprisingly svelte and very nimble, skipping and jigging down the aisle. He gave envelopes to all of the children there with little toys.

Afterwards in the hall across the foyer, we had a light meal; chicken soup, rolls, green tea, coffee, Mandarin oranges and cake. The children were fully revved up and ran back and forth between the tables. I met Momoko's sister Hanako, and had a great time with them. Many people practiced their English on me and I practiced my English right back. Children openly stared at me until I spoke to them, when shyness overcame them and they ran away. One nine-year-old with decent English would lean on Momoko's chair next to me and brazenly stare, before announcing "My name is Yutaka!" or some such. He looked like a real mischief-maker. The atmosphere was boisterous and friendly. Shogo took a group picture; I have to ask Michiko to send it along to me. I had a great time there. It was a good antidote for homesickness, although it did make me think of home.

Momoko wants to take me to the Anglican church in Matsue sometime. I don't know. I appreciate the offer, but I'm not very religious at all, and would feel like a fraud. However, the community feeling is very tempting, and the people are very kind.

 

I have today off, then I'm back to work for a couple of days, then eight days off. I'm going to concentrate on getting my phone and email in place at home. I've had some trouble opening my bank account, and have to go back to City Hall for another piece of paper. There is a lot of bureaucracy here.

 

I'm thinking of all of you, and want to wish you happy holidays. To my family at home, I'll call again soon! Take care,

 

Love,

 

Sarah