Safety

Japan is a safe country. Even when you accidentally abandon your wallet in a bar, a taxi or a train, you still have a very good chance to get it returned with your cash and cards in it.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/y3-34-bil-in-lost-cash-handed-in-to-police-in-2014

This is a photo Mr. Awano took in Japan.

Someone left a knapsack on a platform of bullet trains to keep his (her?) position to be the first in line to get on a train. You can see another one at the back. Owners are out of the site. They are maybe waiting in a waiting room or have gone to buy lunch. No one takes the baggage. If you want to wait in line, you would wait after the knapsack. This is Japan.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/28/travel/discover-japan-kansai-vs-kanto/

Mr. I

Mr. I is the last person for me to meet in Japan.

He is from a countryside of Japan where I have never been.
He speaks Japanese with an accent.
He doesn't know Tokyo. He doesn't like a crowd.
He likes golf and he likes Charlotte.
He believes Charlotte is a big city.

I am from Tokyo. I speak fairly standard Japanese without an acceent.
I don't care about a crowd.
I am more fascinated when I see things in a city like NY.
I don't think Charlotte is a big city.

He is brusque, but has a very warm heart.
He loves Charlotte, and he encouraged me to enjoy the life in Charlotte.
He taught me how to use a car washing machine.
He checked my car's tire pressure.
He took me out for a drive, because I can't drive much and tend to shut-in.
He connected me to his friends before he left Charlotte.
I don't belong to Japanese society in Charlotte, and I didn't have Japanese friends except Mr. and Mrs. Awano.
Men's friends cannot always be women's friends - he doesn't know it but wanted to make sure I have friends.

We stay in touch even he's back in Japan, and he still supports me.
He is nice.

Charlotte Journal: Back to Japan 10/31/2014

Charlotte Journal　　2014.10.31

Two years passed since I came to the US in October 2012. I have been writing about the life in the US almost every month, and this is my final issue. I will go back to Japan in November 2014. Two year’s living experience in the US has changed me a lot, and I’ve got the guts to face different culture. Iam no longer afraid of the people who speak English. I don’t hesitate to ask questions. I’m not surprisedat seeing the people who look different. These may be natural things for some people, but they were the challenges that I had to overcome. I had a complex about my English that I can’t speak fluently. I wasembarrassed about being ignorant and shut-in. I wanted to change myself, prepared conversation topics and motivated myself to speak. I gained self-confidence when I spoke well, but the confidence I gained would shrivel in the next moment. I was gradually relieved from my inferiority complex as I gained living skill or as I got less sensitive.  Or, I might have just understood my limitation. I have come to think it natural that I don’t understand everything. It is also natural that I can’t speak well. It took me two years to overcome the fear to get in different culture.     When I travelled to NY the other day, I took a tour bus to see around the city. There was a guide on the bus, and she was a middle-aged Chinese woman (probably living in NY). She tried hard to explain the touristic spots with a lot of gestures when the bus passed by them. But her English was not good at all. The passengers looked at each other with puzzled, and the children were giggling. Indeed, she spoke with a strong accent, but it was still understandable. I was encouraged as I listened to her speech. Ithought that it should be fine if non-native English speakers don’t speak perfect English - as far as we speak in a sincere manner. I had been trying to speak English with correct grammar and correct accents. I was embarrassed when I made an error. I got upset and would lose track of what I was talking about. I still experience this confusion, but I’ve got used to the feeling and I can keep myself calm. I have learned many things from the life in the US, and it was my greatest result that I had this “experience” to manage the confusion and communicate.     I had a lot of support from many people in Japan and in the US. I would like to express my tanks to those people and conclude my Charlotte Journal. Thank you very much.

State Quarters

I am an introvert and a weird person. This is about me secretly having fun with a snack vending machine in the office. 

I am collecting the US state series quarters. Mr. and Mrs. A, my Japanese ex-neighbors, told me that some US quarters have a different design, and showed me their collector map for the state series quarters. It is going to be a good souvenir when I go back to Japan, and it will also help me to learn the location of each state. I went straight to Barns & Noble and got the collector map. I then talked about that to another Japanese friend, Mr. I. He has lived in the US for five years and had many quarters he could exchange with my normal ones. When he returned to Japan, he left me all the coins he could not use in the US, and there were many state quarters. My collection book looked very good for that of a person living in the US for just one year. But even with his help, there were still many empty states to fill.

In fact, many of my quarters came from a snack vending machine in the office. I noticed that I always got a state quarter when I used the vending machine. I do not buy snacks often, but when I do, I put one dollar and five cents in the machine to buy a 80 cent snack so that I may get a quarter back. Or, I put one dollar and twenty cents for a 70 cents snack to get two quarters back. I have been making that silly attempt, and I often got state coins to be added in my collection. It was my secret hobby.

Last week, however, I noticed something even more stupid but awesome. I entered a normal quarter in the vending machine, but there was nothing I wanted to buy. I pressed a button to get the money back. To my surprise, it was not the plain quarter I entered, but it was a state quarter that came out. Besides, it was the state quarter of Arkansas that I did not have. I tried that again with another normal quarter, and got another state coin. It was a state coin of Washington I did not have either. This does not happen in Japan. We always get the same coin back when we press a return button.

I still want a quarter of 16 more states. I am not stealing anything, but just getting a coin of the same value returned. Do you think it is fine to exchange coins through a snack vending machine?

Mr. and Mrs. A

I always think it was a miracle that I met Mr. A at the main entrance of the apartment building on the evening I submitted my lease application. After thinking it over and over, I finally decided to live in A apartment. I was unsure until I met Mr. A whether it was right to live in the apartment because the rent was rather high, but I convinced myself that I had to pay for security in the US. I was also worried about living in a room on as high as 11F. But the decision I made turned out to be perfectly right.

Mr. A was living in the apartment with his wife since November 2012, just one year before I moved in. Their room happened to be the one on the same floor just across from mine. The main entrance was on the other side of the apartment building and he did not usually use the entrance. The Japanese population being so small in Charlotte, there was a very little chance of my bumping into Mr. A at the entrance. I was with a relocation agent who knew him. We got introduced and exchanged business cards. Mr. and Mrs. A gave me e-mail on the same day asking me to go out for dinner on that weekend, and we started to communicate.

Mr. and Mrs. A and I had the same, or at least similar, sense of value of life. We had many small things in common. Mr. A liked coffee, and had the same French-style espresso machine that I had. Mrs. A worked as a professional in Japan but found the time out of her busy schedule to practice Japanese tea ceremony. We both liked to explore the neighborhood looking for good restaurants and sweets shops. They also shared the same surprises I had in the US. They agreed with laughter when I said that I was shocked to see men jogging without wearing a shirt in Charlotte. The style is literally called “naked” in my country. They told me that I would get used to it in a couple of months. I always enjoyed spending time with them. They were smart, and knew the American history, geography and pop culture. They tried many US (Charlotte) things from football games, doughnuts, cooking to travelling, and had their own opinions and thoughts about what they saw and experienced in the US.

Mr. A is a pediatrician and Mrs. A is an ophthalmologist (she was not working as a doctor in the US). Mr. A was working at XYZ as a medical researcher. Both Mr. A and I were not “expatriates” sent to the US by a Japanese company but came to the US by ourselves. None of us belonged to the Japanese Association of Charlotte, which is a membership community primarily for the employees of Japanese companies in Charlotte. Mr. and Mrs. A had a fresh memory of what had to be done to start the life in the US and understood the difficulties I had in settling down. They gave me the information about the apartment community, the neighborhood, the government procedures and the rules of life in the US in general. They often took me out for lunch and dinner and cheered me up. They even took me for furniture and grocery shopping until I got a car. Since they are doctors, I could consult them about my health and ask them about the US healthcare system, doctors and medicines. I do not know how much I learned from them and how to express my thanks for their help.

Charlotte Journal: Super Bowl 02/08/2014

Charlotte Journal　　02.08.2014

I feel bad about writing about the same thing, but you cannot live in the US in this season without this. So, let me talk about the Super Bowl, the annual championship game of the NFL.       The Super Bowl is not only the biggest game of American football but also is the biggest sporting event in the US. The game enjoys tremendous popularity. The Super Bowl has continuously been the most-watched American television broadcast of the year (the viewing rate is over 40%), and “Super Bowl Sunday” is the second-largest day for U.S. food consumption after Thanksgiving Day. Not only about the game itself, but people also enjoy talking about which musician plays what in the pre-game and halftime show. It is a proof of popularity for singers and musicians to sing the national anthem of the US in the pre-game ceremonies or to perform the halftime show.  Even watching and discussing the broadcast’s commercials has become a significant aspect of the event. There is a competition of Super Bowl advertisements, and companies develop a new advertisement for this broadcast. Because of the high viewership, the cost of commercial airtime during the Super Bowl broadcast is increasing every year and was $4m (JPY 400m)per 30 seconds this year. By the way, the tickets for the game cost at least JPY 250,000 at the regular price. People still scramble for those tickets, and it is always extremely hard to get one. There was even a lawsuit claiming that the tickets are not fairly distributed and cannot be purchased. The problem is not about the price but that the event is so popular that the ticket cannot be bought for money.   The Carolina Panthers, the American football team based in Charlotte where I live, proceed to the playoff tournament this year. Although the Panthers were seeded, they lost the game with the San Francisco 49ers that came through awildcard. The 49ers were, then defeated by the SeattleSeahawks, and the Seahawks moved on to the Super Bowl. They fought against the Denver Broncos. This was an exciting match between the leagues’ strongest offensive team (the Broncos) vs the strongest defensive team (the Seahawks). It was a big experiment to decide the winner from “a sword that penetrates any shield” or “a shield that blocks any sword”.   I wanted to feel the American culture on site rather than watching the game at home. In the same as I did last year, I went to a sports bar. The game started 6:30 PM. I went to a bar at 5:00 PM, but the barwas already full (they did not take reservation). Everyone had a glass of beer and was ready for the game. I ended up watching the game in a smaller bar. Football fans usually get excited at the home team’s games cheering and crying at each play. The bar I went was rather for the older people, and there were not many people who were enthusiastically watching the game.  The game itself was one-sided. As compared to last year, it was a quieter Super Bowl Sunday. But still, it was exciting to be a part of a big event. It was fun.   I heard many people in Japan had an ‘Ama-loss symptom’ after the popular morning TV drama seriesof ‘Ama-chan’ ended. Now that the season of American football is over, I have got an ‘Ame-losssymptom’. I look forward to the next season.

NY

I came to NY.

I sometimes need to breathe the air of city. There was a risk of the flights to be cancelled. I came without telling my friends. I did not want to be embarrassed when the trip was cancelled. I also wanted to spend good part of my trip at art museums and theaters.

I am now at the metropolitan opera to see Carmen waiting for the doors to open any time soon. How lucky I am to be here in NY to see the live Met Opera. It is already the highlight of the year. I am very excited. I am glad I worked in the US. 

The Day World War II Ended

When I was a primary school student, I wanted to study English and see Japan’s history from different perspectives. It was my history teacher at a cramming school that told me there is more than one way to look at the world history. I told you about this story last week.

So, I went to Discovery Place last weekend and saw a 3D movie of “D-Day” at the IMAX theater. The movie ended with narration saying “the Empire of Japan surrendered on September 2, 1945 and the World War II came to an end”, and I thought “Oh”.

In Japan, we consider the World War II ended on August 15, 1945. Japanese government notified the Allies on August 14 that Japan had agreed to make an unconditional surrender and accept the Potsdam Declaration. Emperor Hirohito gave a recorded radio address across the Empire on August 15 and announced the surrender of Japan. Emperor had been treated as a living god, and it was a highly exceptional and extraordinary thing that, although the speech was recorded, Emperor addressed directly to the nation. Since the military regime had been controlled the media, ordinary Japanese people did not know the real war situation and were told to fight for the country to the last. As the government accepted to surrender, there was no way other than asking Emperor to speak to the nation to make the whole nation convinced of the defeat. At noon of a very hot sunny day, people sat square on the ground, bowed their heads and listened to the radio. The World War II ended in Japan on August 15. Japan chose the date to remember the end of the World War II and holds a national event each year to remember the war dead and wish for world peace. On September 2, 1945, Japanese foreign affairs minister, Mamoru Shigemitsu, signed the Japanese Instrument of Surrender on the US Navy battleship USS Missouri. By the way, when Japanese people say “the recent war”, it generally refers to the World War II.

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Japanese hostages held by the Islamic State

One of the two Japanese hostages held by the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group has reportedly been killed. IS posted a new video clip on the internet on Saturday, a day after the 72-hour deadline passed for a $200m ransom that was demanded by IS to release the two Japanese hostages. The video shows an image of Kenji Goto, a 47-year-old freelance journalist, holding a photo of decapitated head and body of the other hostage, HarunaYukawa. A voice claiming to be Goto said Yukawa has been killed. He also said that the militants are no longer seeking a ransom but the release of a female prisoner held in Jordan for the safety of Goto. Yukawa is a military maniac and runs a private military company. He travelled to Syria on business, captured by IS and disappeared in Syria last August.

I heard the audio from the video clip in a Japanese news program. Goto spoke in English slowly and clearly. His voice was amazingly firm and steady for a person in the custody of a terrorist group and under the threat of death. Goto’s mother, Junko Ishido, spoke at a press conference on Friday. She appealed tearfully that Goto was working for the children in the area on humanitarian grounds and is not a part of any military acts. I sincerely hope Goto to be rescued by some means or other.

Japan’s Prime Minister Abe seems to be using this case as an opportunity to get closer the other great powers. Rather than taking actions to rescue the hostages, he has been appealing to the world that Japan fights against the terrorists together with the US and the other countries. Abe says repeatedly that Japan is now a target of terrorist attacks but we do not give in to terrorism. Because of the Japanese constitution prohibiting any military act as a means to settle disputes, Japan cannot be a part of any military intervention lead by the US or the UN. Abe has been in a dilemma since he took the administration that Japan cannot be a US military alliance. It is criticized that Abe’s performance may make Goto’s situation worse.

It is naturally a country’s responsibility to protect the citizens, and that the government should do everything possible to save the hostage’s life. In Japan, however, there is a debate about the two men’s “self-responsibility” of going to the area of conflict. Some people claim that the two men should take the consequences themselves because they went to the dangerous area at “their own risk”. Those people say that the Japanese government should not spend tax payers’ money on rescuing the reckless men. Although this debate is rather extreme, their thoughts originally come from Japanese morality derived from Confucianism. Japanese people are taught not to cause a trouble to the others, and we believe it is a sin to create disorder in the community. Japan, unlike the US or the other countries, does not have real armed forces, a good intelligence organization, or political negotiation power. We are not protected in the same way as an American journalist and we are more vulnerable to military threats. Once anyone is taken as hostage in the area of conflict, one person’s life has a great impact on the country’s political situation. I am concerned if more Japanese people follow suit and cause an unnecessary trouble to the country as well as to the sensitive regional situation.