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Walter: As I mentioned in my first posting, I’ve been practicing Iaido for a short while as a way to become more directly immersed in the Japanese culture. Iaido is an ancient traditional art form originally used to defend against surprise enemy attacks in fifteenth and sixteenth century Japan. Iaido, “the way of the sword,” embodies methods of quickly drawing, cutting and returning a long, curved sword to the scabbard. I also decided to practice this art as a means of stress relief and to improve my mental focus. Since your opponent is imaginary, you don’t actually spar or interact directly with other practitioners, but you spend a lot of time refining the kata (form). Because of this focus on kata, you might say it has more in common with tea ceremony (Chado) than with say, Karate or Kendo.
Before WWII you had martial arts in Japan like Jujitsu, Iaijitsu, etc. Shortly after the end of WWII, these were seen by the occupying forces as fighting methods with military application so they required that Japan basically stop practicing these techniques. However, the Japanese came back and made a case that these were culturally important art forms with very limited military value (can you imagine a bunch of guys with swords and sticks facing a modern army?) and so changed the suffix to –do, meaning “way” or “path.” Now you have Judo, Iaido, etc.
I started practicing in Cambridge with a wooden “sword” (bokken) under the guidance of an excellent sensei at Boston Iaido. The dojo in Tokyo is located in Shibuya and is lead by one of the most highly respected teachers in all of Japan and hence the world, Esaka-sensei (he is immediately to my left in the photos). This guy is well into his eighties and sharp as a whip. I saw him do a demonstration for a group of French tourists that included some rare forms involving structured sparing and he was amazing. Upon arriving for my first practice in Tokyo, they informed me that I would be using a sword (Iaito or Katana) from the start. After borrowing a katana for a while, my own arrived (see photo).
Most of my instruction came from the dojo treasurer, Nashima-sensei (immediately to my right in the photos). He is one of the most senior sempai (senior students) at the Esaka-dojo. He instructed me mostly in Japanese which, as you can imagine, was a slow process. But one of the phrases I heard most often in English was “more softly please.” I had a tendency to grip the katana tightly and power down into the cuts with all my strength. The proper form is to grip the katana more loosely with some fingers and use the right hand only to guide the alignment of the sword while the left hand provides moderate power (I’m leaving out many details). In short: less effort, more skill. “More softly please.” This is really a lesson that can be applied to life in general. We tend to exert extraordinary effort to deal with problems or day-to-day tasks, only to waste a tremendous amount of energy on things that actually don’t matter or to get poor results when less effort would have been more effective. Isn’t it better to back up and evaluate a situation and decide what is the most skillful path before proceeding? The most skillful action might be to do nothing at all.
At work, I sometimes find myself pounding my keyboard at as I type on my computer or gritting my teeth when I’m in a politically charged meeting. At one such meeting, I felt myself spending a lot of energy getting ready to resist some guy’s political agenda and feeling terribly annoyed by it all. I just stopped myself, decided that it wasn’t going to be threatening to me, my career or my agenda and then I could calmly listen to what the dipsh*&t, um, colleague, had to say. I just accepted that this guy had a point of view (no matter how much it was politically motivated) and could relax and decide what to do next. There are probably better examples, but you can use your imagination. “More softly please.”
The opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author.
Genevieve: One of my favorite things about this time of year is the food. In general, I’m not a big fan of cold weather, in fact I kind of hate it. But one thing I do enjoy is sipping hot cups of tea, baking warm treats, and making winter dishes like seafood nabe. Typically, you cook the nabe (hotpot) right at your dining table, using a portable gas burner. I was told that sharing nabe with someone can mean that you want to become their friend or show that you feel comfortable with them to relax, sit back, and nosh. After all, you are basically dipping from the same bowl.
Our friend Takei recently sent us a lovely care package after his visit to us a few weeks ago during my dad’s visit. Many years ago he lived in the States and specialized in making organic miso and homemade mochi. The package was filled with local organic vegetables, homemade umeboshi (pickled plums) and mochi (pounded rice patties) from Gunma ken, where he lives. Takei lives out in the country about an hour by shinkansen from Tokyo where you can still find farmer’s markets. All of the vegetables were so sweet and delicious. Many of them ended up in the seafood nabe pictured above, but I had enough left over to make a vegetable pasta primavera later in the week. I’ve found that I can only eat so much Japanese food in the span of one week—even though I love it!
Photos of wax shops along Kappabashi Dori featuring sushi, beer, pizza, pasta dishes, salads, fake meat, sundaes, bento boxes, etc.
On our recent trip to Kappabashi dori, a famous wholesale cooking area in Tokyo, I bought the nabe pot you see in the top photo. I have a weakness for Japanese dishes (inherited from my mom), so we spent a lot of time in pottery shops. The one in the photo was so filled with pottery from the floor to the ceiling, that you literally had to hold your purse and jacket against you to make sure you didn’t accidentally create an avalanche of broken dishes. Along with pottery, you can also find stores specializing in those wax models you see on display in front of restaurants here in Japan. I saw a documentary the other night that showed how each model is hand made by a craftsman—hence the steep price (a single glass of beer costs around 5000￥, roughly $50). There are also shops specializing in laquerware, bamboo, knives—just about anything you can think of related to cooking or eating.
Genevieve: Grandpa (or “baba” as Kenji calls him) returned home earlier this month after a 3 week visit. During his time here, he was really busy visiting all of his family and seeing old friends, but we managed to get in some good time with him too. Since the last time he had visited, it had been 15 years. Somehow time had passed more quickly than he planned, I guess. So it was a big deal for him to come back home, although I think America has replaced his definition of home. Although he can still speak the language (he first left when he was 23), he’s more American than Japanese now, both in the way he thinks and acts.
Genevieve:As I mentioned in my post on Yamagata, we had the most delightful experience at a Japanese Hotspring Inn (Onsen Ryokan) there. Yamagata is famous for its hotsprings, so I had made sure that this would be part of our agenda. It’s one of those experiences that you definitely don’t want to miss if you ever have the opportunity. Of course some are nicer than others, and there really is quite a range both in price and feel. Some can be really utilitarian, while others are very natural and often feature outside baths. We were lucky to stay in the latter, at a place called Matsunoyu.
Our room had its own private hotspring bath with skylight, and was traditional, in that it featured tatami mats and low tables. A yukata (cotton robe) was provided for each of us (even Kenji), along with all of the toiletries we would need, including a small souvenir towel to be used in the bath. My mom and I wrapped these around our heads as we sat in the hot baths after washing ourselves down. Since I’m pregnant I didn’t stay in the bath for long since it seemed pretty hot, but it was still really enjoyable and relaxing.
From the accommodations to the food, everything was incredible. The food was not only delicious, but probably some of the most beautifully presented that I’ve ever had. On the plate in the photo, you can see just a portion of our dinner there: salmon roe with fresh lime, walnuts and ginko nuts, saikyo miso fish, marinated mushrooms with chrysanthemum petals, raw egg with black roe and edible flowers, and kombu with herring roe. In the photo above with my mom and Walter, you can see tuna and other assorted sashimi (raw fish) on the yellow plate, along with an udon nabe pot with fresh vegetables for each of us.
Breakfast was also enjoyable, although the salad featured mayonnaise, which if you know Walter, you know that he despises the stuff. We had our own special room and attendant for all of the meals (which was arranged by my Uncle), so the service was impeccable. Although the one thing that I’ve noticed is that the Japanese don’t drink nearly as much as we do. And when they do drink, it often consist of caffeine. I’ve found myself often longing for a simple glass of water. Honestly, I drink more than anyone I know here.
Here are some additional photos of the ryokan…sorry mom for the not-so-flattering photo. It really does help capture the experience though, don’t you think? At least you don’t have rice on your chin like Kenjiroo. Click here for a pic of Walter and Kenji at breakfast: Walter feeding Kenji breakfast
That evening, snow was still falling outside as we entered the steam filled baths. It was quite peaceful.
It was Thanksgiving when we stayed there, but all of us were so overwhelmed by the experience that we forgot the holiday somehow. But it was the perfect way to celebrate it, with family and great food. And hey, no clean-up!
Genevieve: So a few of you have asked me for pics that actually show my belly—proof that I actually am pregnant. Believe me, at this point I feel VERY pregnant (even though I still have 100 days until I’m due—but who’s counting?)
Here are some pics which include some friends in Tokyo who I’ve occasionally been teaching prenatal yoga to.
Genevieve: My dad was born in Yamagata, a Northern prefecture of Japan. Although he moved to Tokyo when he was in high school, 2 of his elder brothers remained in Yamagata. The rest of his siblings also made their way to Tokyo where they all still currently reside. His oldest brother who lived in the family home where my dad was born, passed away in October. His other brother Noboru, is the superintendent of public schools in Yamagata. He came to Walter’s and my wedding in 2003 where some of you may have met him and his wife, Seiko.
It takes about 2 1/2 hrs by shinkansen (see pic Kenji on shinkansen with Obachans) to get to Yamagata from Tokyo. In November, we went there over Thanksgiving with my mom (see pic Rascal and mom) who was visiting at the time. Noboru was our host and brought us all around Yamagata, despite the unexpected wintry weather. Among the highlights was a stay in an onsen ryokan (Japanese hotspring inn). It was amazingly beautiful and relaxing, and the food was incredible. We took a ton of photos, but I’ll post them separately since there are so many!
Near my dad’s homeplace in Minazawa, our cousin, Gen, has a big fruit farm stretching into the surrounding mountains. He grows everything from grapes (that they handpack in tissue paper while they’re still on the vine) to la france pears to cherries. We were lucky enough to hit grape and la france season as they harvest the fruit late. We sat outside and ate fruit and drank hot tea before heading into the orchards for a small tour of the farm. See pic eating grapes.
While we were there, my uncle also hosted a party with all of my cousins and their children. It was so great to see them, and Kenji was in complete heaven. He’s really enjoyed meeting his Japanese family, as have we again. It’s really nice to have such a large extended family here, it’s definitely made our visit more complete and will make our return to the states bittersweet. Kenji doesn’t seem to understand that his cousins will be staying here in Japan (see pic Cousins in Yamagata).
See video of Kenji and cousins below:
done
Pics of Kenji and young cousins
Kenji discovered that treats and adoration come easy when you’re 2 and visiting from America.
The visit was marked by some sadness though. Both my Uncle Atsushi (as I mentioned before) and his son Yoshimasa, passed away last year (see pic of Alter for my Uncle Atsushi and cousin Yoshimasa). It felt strange being in their home without them there. The house seems even larger with just my aunt Michiko (see pic of Kenji and Michiko) and cousin, Kyoko, there.
…This may be what it would look like. At least for Kenji. He adores his cousin Yuka. She’s just the right age for him to still be able to play with, look up to, and be bossed around by without getting annoyed. In this pic we were on our way to the train station and then off to the restaurant that Yuka’s parents own — Mirumaru.
He also really adores my cousins (his first-cousins once-removed), Shinichiro (see pic Shin and Kenji fighting over beer )and Takiko (see pic Yuka, Takiko, and Kenji ). When they come over he gets giddy with delight. Seriously, he is the happiest boy alive when those 2 are around. It might help that Shinichiro always seems to have chocolate with him when he shows up, or that Takiko treats him like a prince who can do no wrong. Oh, how much we’ll miss everyone.
Genevieve: Occasionally, Kenji and will take the train to a park nearby Walter’s work and meet him for lunch. It’s gotten cold now, so we haven’t gone in a while, but the last time we did Kenji and I witnessed the most peculiar game. There was a group of Japanese school kids there from the adjacent public school, and after playing some rather vicious looking dodgeball, they moved on to a game which basically entailed the teachers running around after them with a huge thick paper paddle. The object of the game? To hit the kids with paddle. This of course caused a great deal of panic and excitement, but all in all most seemed to enjoy it. Hmmm…
The playgrounds here are filled with monkey bars and rickety see-saws, items that we enjoyed in our own youth, but have long since been removed from American playgrounds as they were deemed too dangerous. I brought this up in an earlier post (the poor condition of most playgrounds here), and my mom commented on how she had seen a documentary about a group of moms in Tokyo trying to get a new playground and the bureaucracy that they came up against. That’s one thing we’re definitely looking forward to upon returning home on the 31st–playgrounds! Arlington has so many wonderful playgrounds and all of them are practically new. We’re very lucky, although I guess that’s where those high taxes are going.
Genevieve: I might have mentioned that we went on short trip to Korea in November to renew our visas. You can only be in Japan for 90 days on a tourist visa, and since we were unable to arrange anything different before we left we had to make the trip. Seoul, Korea is only an hour and a half flight from Haneda Airport in Tokyo, so the trip was quite painless. In fact, it was quite enjoyable!
Walter’s company put us up in a really nice hotel on the top floor in a very fancy 2-floor suite! Among other things, the room had a huge jacuzzi and lots of fresh fruit (see pic of Kenji with nashi (Asian pear).
Seoul is really interesting with tons of great food, interesting shopping (we went to the famous shopping street Insadong), and warm people. Although we were there for only 2 days, we really had a fun time. I would love return again for longer next time!
…sometimes you get sick of Japanese food.
This place (in Ebisu) had the most amazing Thai food. It completely hit the spot. They had a great display outside too–complete with Santa, Thai goddesses, and a tuk tuk. Seems like I enjoy spicy food even more when I’m pregnant. Maybe that’s why Kenji’s loves his kimchi.
Oh, and if you’re out there and reading this, feel free to comment. We love to hear them, and it makes us feel as though people are actually reading our blog.
