Big fun with some big men

A small bit of downtime during beamtime is a great time to write about huge people don’t you think. The experiments are going well after a horrendous 4 days of very little sleep or food. So now, as there isn’t much to be done, I’ll tell you a bit about the previous weekend.

It was something I’d been meaning to do since I arrived in Japan, go see a sumo tournament. This was actually a little trickier than I imagined, as there are only 6 held a year and only 1 of those is based in Kansai. Although it was a close call I did manage to get to the second to last day of matches of the tournament held in Osaka last weekend.

Sumo is possibly the oldest form of martial art in Japan dating back to around the 6^th century. Some even say that the fate of Japan rested on the outcome of a Sumo match, I think it involved the settling of some border dispute or something. Everything about Sumo is heavily steeped in ritual, from the layout of the ring, or dohyou, to the opening and closing ceremonies. It is all quite an amazing spectacle.

The tournament was held at Osaka prefectural gymnasium, which was a nightmare to find by car due to lack of road signs. The outside was decked out with nobori flags emblazon with the names of the highest-ranking rikishi. Inside was the usual stadium style seating of a sporting even along with small square ‘boxes’. We’d opted for one of these to get the authentic ‘Japanese’ feel though it may have been an error considering our group contained three very non-Japanese sized guys.

We were a little far away to get amazing views but could still see everything pretty well. The whole set up was pretty incredible. The dohyou (土俵) is built the day before the start of the tournament. It is a square ring of clay and sand. Within the square a circular perimeter is outlined with rice-straw bales called tawara (俵).Above the ring is an ornate roof based on those found at Shinto shrines with coloured tassels representing the four spirits of direction.

We arrived in the early afternoon to watch the makuuchi (highest division) sumo bouts since we figured these would likely be the most interesting. I can’t help but marvel at the fact these guys train year round for just 90, 15 second bouts, and not even that in some cases.

The wrestler themselves are just incredible to behold. They are absolute Goliaths. All above six foot and over 100kg. The exception to this was a Bulgarian wrestler weighing in at just 96kg. He was stacked, not an ounce of fat on him. Needless to say he lost against his opponent who was twice his weight but it is amazing that he has progressed to such a high rank with a tiny frame.

 

All the wrestlers names are Japanese, although I’d say nearly a third of the participants were from overseas. In fact every sumo has their own sumo name (or shikona), which they can select themselves or more commonly are given by their coaches, family or fans. This made it difficult to figure out who was fighting whom though. The easiest way to tell was their noses and chest hair as from our position we couldn’t quite pick out each individuals features.

 

Prior to the bouts all of the makuuchi walked up to the dohyou for the opening ceremony (dohyou iri) dressed in their colourful silk ceremonial garb (called kesho mawashi). When you see them lined up next to each other and the officials you really get an impression of just how massive these guys are. The 42 makuuchi are separated into east and west stables before the tournament arbitrarily. Combatants are not allowed to meet the day before their bouts.

The bouts themselves are also very ritualised. First salt is scattered around the ring to purify the ring. Then the sumo will clap their hands and stomp their feet (shiko) to drive out evil spirits. They will then face each other and extend their arms wide to show they have no weapons. Finally they will crouch down at the shikiri-sen and stare into each other’s eyes. This process can be repeated up to five times before they actually clash.

The bout begins when both wrestlers place their fists to the floor. They must spring forward simultaneously to meet (called the tachi-ai). The actual clashes were over in seconds. These guys can move incredibly fast, slap each others hands aside as they struggle to grasp each other to push or throw their opponent out of the ring.

 

I never ceased to be impressed at the speed of their movement and decision making. Some bouts were won before the clash had even taken place, one sumo stepped forward to meet, only to hold back a split second before so that his opponent came in low and could be knocked to the ground.

A match is over once one sumo is lifted from the ground, touches the floor with anything other than his feet, or any part of his body crosses over the circular perimeter. Short though they were some matches were fantastic. There is nothing quite like watching a 150kg guy dance around the edge of the ring or seeing someone lift and throw someone twice his side. In the latter case the winning sumo also took to the air through sheer momentum.

Upon winning a bout the wrestlers are handed a small envelope containing money. These come from the various sponsors of the bouts. They parade small banners around each ring prior to the match which, while a little annoying, was quite quaintly Japanese and added to the whole experience.

I’m glad I finally went, it made for a great day out and in the end being in our little box was a lot of fun. It gave a bit more flexibility for moving in and out than seating would have and also felt a bit ‘cozier’. I may go again given the chance though I’m not sure. I’ll definitely try and catch it on the telly though.

ja mata ne.

I can see clearly now (almost)

A little slow with this update but things are busy as always. The I’m a scientist get me out of here event is sucking up a fair amount of my free time at the moment. So many wild and varied questions from the quiz I’m loving it. I’m also learning a fair bit about physics in the process since I’m the only none physicist in the zone. Happily I’ve not been evicted first so fingers crossed I last the week (I didn't I got evicted today).

Right back to me then. Last weekend was pretty wild. It started with a trip to the hospital. As I’ve mentioned before I have a condition called kerataconus  (円錐角膜 in Japanese) that alters the shape of my cornea making it difficult for me to focus on objects. Well with a lot of help from a colleague I went to the hospital to get fitted for contacts to correct the problem. It was an interesting experience to say the least. My Japanese is getting better but I’m not at a level where I could explain my problems specifically enough or fully understand a Dr’s response so the help was pretty welcome. 

The little differences between countries are the ones that shock the most I think. In Japan eye charts are made up of circles with an opening at the top, bottom, left or right, rather than the alphabet we are used to. It took me a sec to click on to what was going on. Amazingly I could see down to the second bottom like once the lenses were fitted and focused, turns out my eyes aren’t so bad apart from being pointy. It was a real revelation. I had no idea just how much this was affecting my vision until I could see normally. I quite literally could not see the first line of  circles with my left eye. The nurse had to, rather adorably, hold up picture cards and move backwards slightly to test the limit of my left eye. I can’t wait to get my lenses in a week or so and see the world clearly.

So what else was I up to. Well after visiting the clinic I dashed onto a train bound for Osaka. I was due to go to a friends birthday party that night. Another first for me as there would not only be no guys, something I could handle, but no native English speakers either. 頑張ります。Actually my biggest concern was what to buy my friend for her birthday. I have no idea what Japanese girls are into. With a bit of help from some friends though I settled on a small chocolate cake.

We met up for a fun night at a 鶏肉　(chicken skewer) restaurant for a night of drinking and eating. It was good fun. Hadn’t seen my friend in some time and she was shocked how much my Japanese had come along. It turned out one of our party had spent a long time overseas so her English was amazing. In fact probably better than mine and we had fun chatting about the quirks of British English compared to the Americanized version most Japanese people are used to. Following that we went to, of all places, an Irish pub called the blarney stone. Well I guess it was St. Paddy’s day after all. The bar was chock full of rowdy English teachers and there was a wicked Ska band playing covers of current hits. Saturday was a great day all in all.

I ended up kipping at a hostel in Kyoto that night and met some wonderful people. Whilst staying at a friend’s would have been cheaper there is something to be said to staying in a hostel, you always meet interesting people. I got chatting with a lady who was visiting Japan from Spain. She was a massive Japanophile and her enthusiasm was infectious. It made me realize I really need to relinquish some of the jaded views I’ve been holding.

In the morning I had initially planned to head over to Arashiyama, the northern area of Kyoto, for the first time. Sadly I over slept and the weather was a bit rubbish so instead I went and explored the station.

I’ve written about Kyoto station before now but I can’t help but come back to it. I always come across something new in there. This time I took a meander along the suspended walkway that runs the length of the station. It’s even more impressive when you are up high. It also seems that this year marks 100 years until Doraemon, possibly one Japan’s most famous manga icons, will be born.

I should probably explain that. Doraemon is a robot cat sent back from the future to prevent a young talentless boy called Nobi Nobita from becoming a waster by his descendants. It is the most popular children’s manga ever penned and is essentially the Japanese Mickey mouse. To mark the clearly auspicious occasion a giant image adorned the steps of the west side of Kyoto station.

Since it would be mothers day the next day I decided to grab something for my mum and mail it back home. This was another first for me it’s not something I’d had to do before. Fortunately I was doing this in Kyoto so the clerks, used to tourists, were very patient and probably knew what I wanted without me asking. I hope you enjoy the tea mum. Now having lost time mailing the tea, and also searching for a museum that apparently no longer exists, I didn’t have much time left to go to Arashiyama. Instead I just decided to wander the streets of Kyoto a bit.

It’s easy in such an historical town to head towards the major tourist spots and not realize all the exciting things going on about you. Just a short wander from the station are many winding side streets with some surprisingly old buildings. Unless it’s a temple or a shrine you don’t see so much old architecture in Japan and especially not derelicts. In a country where space is at a premium, things are constantly being renovated and, on the whole, going upwards.

The general architecture of Kyoto is different to most of the cities I’ve experienced though. Nothing like the concrete jungle that makes Osaka, the streets are lined with quirky little houses. I love the slap dash nature of Japanese residential areas. Unlike Britain, where streets tend to be lined with more or less the same houses over and over again, Japanese vary wildly in shape, size and style.

It was nice to take a bit of time to look at my surroundings. I think now that I’ve been here a year I’m really starting to appreciate the smaller differences more. Even back home I’ve always been a massive people watcher and it was cool to take the time to watch people living their lives, wondering why they picked a house like that to live in and so on. After a wander and ponder I headed back to Osaka to play some Frisbee. It had been ages and to my happy surprise the team had grown thanks to some university students coming back home. Some of these guys could really play, leading to 3 hours of knackering fun that I’m still feeling now.

Mata neeeee

Sunday is for exploring

I spend far too much time thinking, “Flippin heck I live on a mountain in the middle of nowhere,” and not enough time thinking “Flippin heck, I live on a mountain in the middle of nowhere.” I woke up after midday after an epic night out, I hate waking up late but sacrifices must be made and it was an amazing party, leading to a 5am return.

 I was moping a bit thinking that now it was too late to go exploring, the next bus wouldn’t arrive till 3pm and that would give me 4 scant hours to travel to somewhere. Not enough time. That's a rubbish attitude to have though. Not sure what got me thinking it but think back to being 5. Every time you step out the door it’s an adventure, the smallest trip becomes epic.

I need to get that back to that or I’ll go mad up here. Now the weather is turning nicer I have no real excuses to keep me indoors. To that end I hopped on my bike, zipped up my swanky gortek coat (cheers Dad) and set out on the mountain roads to explore and take some piccies.

When the idea sprung up in my mind I was a little apprehensive at first. I’ve still got a few hang ups and sometimes I second-guess myself when I plan on going cycling, it's ridiculous really. There are a lot of bad memories tied into those 2 wheels that I’d rather put behind me. Recently though I think I’ve just been seeing it as another mode of transport and I’m starting to remember how much I love cycling.

I didn’t realize till I did this how little of my local area I’ve really seen, and surprisingly how much it’s been touched by human hands. There are dams all over the mountain and extensive tunnels piercing the landscape. Looking at some of the bypasses around here I have nothing but great respect for Japanese engineering.

That being said though there is still a lot of exciting natural landscapes, whether artificially arranged or naturally occurring I’m not sure. One thing that is almost ubiquitous around here is the Cedar tree. They were planted in great numbers during the 20’s and have since become a corner stone of the wood industry.

An interesting byproduct is that many, many Japanese are allergic to them. Hay fever, known locally as 花粉症、is a huge problem come the spring with many a Japanese person donning a face mask to fend off the invasive pollen. I’m thankfully completely immune, in fact I’m not bothered by hay fever at all over here which makes a nice change.

Another reason I need to get out and do this more is that it’s great inspiration for my writing.  Some of the stuff I snapped with my phone just screams, to me at least, to be written about. The small brook and rickety wooden house being encroached on by cedar trees in particular spring to mind. Whilst I am a city boy at heart I do love being outdoors. Sitting back and watching a stork fly off into the sunset was another great moment. I actually dove for my note book when I got back to the apartment to scribble down a load of ideas.

There is a whole world out there I never see, as per an earlier post. Taking the time to really experience it was a great thing and got me to thinking what is the real nature of exploration. It’s about the journey right? Not what you find at the end really.

So I think as much as I can I’ll set aside Sundays for exploring. This doesn’t need to necessarily be physically travelling. Sometimes it might be an inward exploration, or maybe going for a new experience. Perhaps the exploration will be of a virtual world of someone else’s creating in a game or a book. I’m not sure of the logistics really but I’ll have a lot of fun trying for sure.

On another note Venus and Jupiter looked incredible on Monday night. Gotta love those clear night sky views up here. Anyway hopefully I’ve inspired you to go and explore your own world just a little. 

Mata neeeee.

Big Buddha, Big Bridges and local trains.

At last some time to blog. Work has been hectic and exhausting so I haven’t really prioritized blogging, terrible really. Actually this weekend was almost a wash out. My plans for Saturday fell through and so I spent the day moping about in my apartment. This is exactly what I’d told myself I wouldn’t do this year. That evening I flicked through my guide book and decided to just go on a little adventure.

Rising early on Sunday morning I headed down to the station and headed over to a town called Hyogo. It’s just outside of Kobe and not particularly big, but it does have one thing going for it. One of the three daibutsu (giant Buddha statues) of Japan has Hyogo as it’s home. I figured it was worth a visit since it’s not so far away.

Sadly the weather wasn’t so grand, but hey I’m English I can handle a bit of drizzle. Hyogo whilst not so large does have a rather large number of temples. I figured that finding a giant statue of a Buddha wouldn’t be too difficult and set off in the direction of the waterfront.

I stopped of at a number of temples and shrines along the way, whilst they don’t have the grandeur of those found in Kyoto or Nara they were still fairly pleasant. To my surprise there were a number of people dressed in black at one of them. It’s not so shocking that people would go to a temple for a funeral really but it caught me a little off guard and reminded me that I was venturing into other peoples sacred ground.

 

After going the length of the promenade I couldn’t find the daibutsu but I did have a lovely hit of nostalgia. Ok so it’s not a spectacular little promenade but it just made me think of New Brighton, especially with all the drizzle. I started heading back towards the station since I’d come to the end of the temple quarter.

Still having not found the statue I was about to walk into a convenience store and ask for directions until I noticed another temple just behind it. I was happy I hadn’t as getting a bit closer I saw the top of the Buddha’s head. I would definitely have looked very silly.

The temple grounds were plain, nothing like the daibutsuen in Nara, but the statue is still quite a sight. I don’t believe it’s the original sadly, it was reconstructed in 1999, though it is a feat of craftsmanship nonetheless. Satisfied with my find I headed back to the station.

My initial intention had been to go to Kobe but for some reason I decided to ride the local train and see where I ended up. On the journey to Hyogo I’d noticed that there were many stops close to the sea and for some reason, maybe just a touch of homesickness who knows, I decided I wanted to just gaze out the window.

After about 20 minutes of riding I came to a stop under the giant Akashi Kaikyo bridge called Maiko. It is famous for having the longest central span (nearly 2km) of any suspension bridge in the world. I’ve passed it by so many times I though it was about time to give it a visit.

The first thing that caught my eye upon exiting the train, excluding the giant bridge above my head, was that there was a small pine forest right alongside me. It was really pretty and quite unexpected. In fact most of the stations environs have been converted into parks and other facilities for tourists. It was surprisingly peaceful, though that could have been down to the weather, so I sat there for a little while.

Some quick facts about the bridge. It’s total length is nearly 4km and it is about 300m above sea level. It was designed to withstand earthquakes upto 8.5 on the Richter scale and winds of upto 300km an hour. All great facts though you really can’t get a good handle on how impressive it is until you are up close. Standing below it with giant metal girders spread out above and the deep thrum of cars going by I felt pretty small and over awed.

 

After leaving the ‘pine forest’ I set out to the bridges visitor and exhibition center. On the way over a strange looking western-style building caught my eye and so I had to take a little look inside. To my surprise it was a museum dedicated to the Chinese revolutionary, Sun Yat Sen, and his connection to the port town of Kobe.

For those who don’t know Sun Yat Sen was a prominent figure in the 1911 Chinese revolution, helping to overthrow China’s imperial rule and start the formation of the Republic of China. I won’t go into the details here, google is a wonderful thing, but I will mention why this small museum is located in Kobe.

During his lifetime he was exiled from China multiple times for his revolutionary activities. He spent a fair amount of time in Japan where he had made contacts with other democratic revolutionaries. Quite a few of these were based in Kobe and also I’m sure Kobe’s large Chinese population. He also gave his final speech about his “Three principles of the People” in Kobe.

I’ll be honest he was a historical figure I knew next to nothing about and it was a nice surprise. I’m always up for coming across new things. The exhibits were almost all in English as well as Japanese and, thankfully, presented in a clear type face which is fairly unusual. The building itself is very nice, it put me in mind of some of the smaller rooms in the Williamson art gallery from the inside and the outside reminded me of the old Queen Vic.

My final stop was the Maiko Promenade. This is a small, about 200m, elevated walkway that is within the structure of the Akashi bridge and extends out into the Seto inland sea. After taking an elevator to the 8^th floor (about 45m) you can then walk along the underside of the bridge as well as check out a few viewing platforms.

There is not too much in there really but the views make it more than worthwhile. I’ll admit it would have been nicer on a clear day but I also like a good stormy seascape. Other than the views you can fiddle about with a camera mounted on one of the suspension towers and eat at Tom’s Café, which seemed to serve only octopus based dishes.

All in all a bad weekend turned good with a bit of enlightenment, education and exploration. I need to get back to my wandering routes and just hop on a train to somewhere when I’m bored for sure.

Ja mata neeeeee.