NovemberNovember was an interesting month packed with a variety of activities. To start the month I was invited by one of the 3 bosses at the board of education for a sleepover at his house. Konno-san lives about 20 minutes away in a modest place out in the middle of the rice fields. He has about 5 head of cattle and a bunch of rice fields around him that he manages.
When he invited me in October he told me I could bring some friends if I wanted, and with him not speaking any English and my Japanese choppy and basic at best I sent out an invitation to the local JETs around me, but alas, no takers. He picked me up at 3:00 from my house and showed me some good backroads out to his town (Semine). We dropped off my stuff and sat for a bit enjoying some coffee and sembei (rice crackers) as is custom here in Japan. Then we were off to pay a visit to a local wetland area that was currently host to a ton of migratory birds. We arrived there as the sun was beginning to set, so all the birds were cruising in from their daily exploring to share about their adventurous day, where they had found some great food, bragging about how great they looked, and calling out trying to find their best friends and snuggle buddies.
The rice fields were a cacophony of sound which was very welcome to my ears since it seems there aren’t as many birds vocalizing here as much as they do around my house in Portland. Being around the wetlands made me think about my dad, Bob, and I heard him next to me identifying birds and noting behavior. He would have liked it there. Konno-san told me that 10 years before the wetlands had been rice fields and they brought back a chunk of the native land for the birds. I was very happy to hear this since it is pretty much agreed that Japan’s native wildlife and natural areas have been all but wiped out. Japan is so small and packed with so many people that every inch of land that can be cultivated for food is. The native forests have all been replaced with a monoculture of this one type of cedar tree that 60% of the population is allergic to (including me), and walking through these forests with the neighbor dog I have notice that indeed, these, too are silent with the lack of wildlife. Anyway, after the wetlands we headed to the local onsen for a bath and then back to Konno-san’s place for a feast of yakiniku (yaki=grilled, niku=meat), sake and beer. He had purchased all this food
for me an my friends but, of course, it was only me so he called up some of his neighbors and they dropped by and helped us with the food. It was a grand time, and after a few beers we were all communicating with gusto! In the morning I had a horrible hangover… shouldn’t have had the few cups of sake that I did, and went for a walk to get some air. Despite my pounding headache in the barren rice fields at 6 AM, I was still able to admire the beauty of the low mist creeping through the rice fields around hugging the surrounding hills. I noticed an object in the sky and to my amazement it was a hot air balloon. At first there was only one, but soon others floated up from the mist and with the birds quacking and squaking, the cows mooing, and the dog barking at the crack of dawn in Japan, well it made for a very surreal moment that I absolutely loved. Usually with a hangover like that one I can’t eat till dinnertime, but after Konno-san’s wife insisting that I drink some clam-in-the-shell miso soup I felt amazingly better and was chowing down one of the best breakfasts I’ve had in Japan; the
aforementioned soup, a grilled chunk of fresh salmon, some sushi slabs over a mound of mountain potatoes, and handful of mini shrimp over some steamed collard greens, and of course a bowl of fresh (shinmai=this year’s harvest) steamed rice and green tea. Absolutely scrumptious and healthy. After coffee, Konno-san dropped me off at home where I took a nap and read a book. I must mention that is has been the few experiences like these that haven been the richest in my time here in Japan. Hanging with the locals and doing what they do is so insightful and rewarding. I continually find myself humbled by the Japanese- not purposefully of course, but it’s my own awareness humbling my own self/ego.
After these times I am reminded why I am here, and the amazing rewards of traveling. What an amazing time. Konno-san had a good time, too and wants to have me back again before I go.
Here's a pic of the breakfast I was talking about. So good and healthy! Click on the pic to zoom in. See the little shrimps? They just eat those whole, and they eat the big ones whole, too! The soup was my favorite because I love clams AND miso.
One day at school I went outside and here was a tree cutting crew and I just thought it was cool. Japanese gardening style is all about manipulation and contoling the plant, topiary I guess, but in a more extreme way. Although I prefer the natural wildness of the plant, I really think Japanese gardens look so cool when they're matured. 
My neighbor, Kukuchi-san is a very famous oil artist in this region, and luckily he was outside one time I was driving home and he came over and asked when I could have dinner with him and his wife and son. We had AMAZING food! As fresh as can be! His name is the same as a particular type of flower, and the yellow dish you see near him is flower is the Kikuchi flower petals that have been pickled and sweetened. They really smell like flowers as you're eating it. A meal like this would have cost around $50 in the states, easily. 
Two of the teachers I work with at my school came over for yakiniku at my house. This is Dai (Big) sensei on the left and Takuya sensei on the right. All the girls say Takuya is so cute. This was my first time hosting yakiniku at my house and it was a success! Ahh the magic of meat!
Finally, just last weekend was Corrie's birthday (2nd from right). In Japan, any kind of buffet is called, "Viking" which cracks me up. This buffet put all American buffets to shame. They have: a sushi bar, make your own soba/ramen bar, salad bar, yakiniku meats to choose from (see the cooker in the middle of the table?), fried foods bar, crepe making area, cake case, ice cream case, make your own cotton candy machine, drink bar, and of course the staple steamed rice. All for one price of about $18 and you can't go wrong. Check us out, we got our money's worth. I've probably gained 10 lbs this month. Afterwards we went to bowling right across the street. Next time, Asobihodai! (all you can videogame)
