Kyoju 301!

The Metrics:

10.2          =  The number of kilometers WR wandered in Chikushino last weekend

2               =  The number of very short conversations WR has completed,
                      totally in Japanese.
288,754   =  The yen in WR‟s last paycheck (WHOOO!).

2               =  The number of “Margaritas” WR consumed, at a local Chikushino bar.

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Hello from Japan, loyal readers!

Yes, it is I! The “Row” of the “Rowstein.” I know it’s been a very long time since I’ve written for the blog (sorry about that). But, as of yet, the Japanese Telecommunication Gods have deemed me unworthy of Internet service. We’re hoping that will be fixed in the next three weeks or so (GAH, THREE MORE WEEKS, GAH!). The good news, though, is that I have a smartphone, which allows me access to my gmail, Facebook, Skype (sometimes), Viber, and WhatsApp. So don’t be afraid to drop me an email! I always enjoy hearing from my stateside buddies.

So, Japan. Where do I start? I’ve been here for over a month now. (Time’s really flying!) I feel like I’m adjusting pretty well, which is great for my daily life… but terrible for blog writing. Where to begin with a blog post? What do I talk about? I’ve asked myself, “Do I tell them about the funny foods I sometimes see in the grocery store?” Or, “Do I tell them how there’s corn and mayonnaise on nearly every pizza on the delivery menu?” Or, “Do I talk about my suburban hometown, Chikushino? Or my urban work and play-town, Fukuoka?”

I talked to my husband about the challenge of starting, and he suggested I start small. Something simple, something personal. Like… my apartment!

I live in a kyoshokuin jutaku, which just means “Teachers / Government Employee Housing.” Most of the buildings are old (as is mine) and most of the buildings are pretty ugly (as is mine). But my apartmen is in great shape on the inside and the rent is DIRT CHEAP (about $165 American, depending on the day’s exchange rate), so I can’t really complain.

As you can see, it’s not the loveliest of buildings. But, hey! It’s home!

The layout of my apartment is pretty standard for this era of jutaku. There are three tatami rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom (shower / tub, and sink), and the other bathroom (toilet and tank-sink). It’s pretty spacious, as far as Japanese apartments go. Heck, it’s spacious as far as Twin City apartments go! Since I have only a few pieces of furniture (bequeathed belongings from the former ALT), it remains a rather spare and plain place. But, what currently I lack in color and personality, I gain in having plenty of open space and an orderly, clean, and functional apartment. (Besides, in a few weekends, I’m going to go to the Fukuoka IKEA and go shopping for some furniture of my own! Yippeeee!)

Well, let’s start at the start! My apartment has a heavy, metal, submarine-like door, which makes a satisfying Ka-CHUNK when you close it. Dan has heard it many times over the phone, and can attest to its incredible noisiness. Just inside the door is a shoe-alcove (the Japanese word for it escapes me). It’s a recessed entry way, complete with tiny shoe closet, where everyone removes their shoes before entering.

At first, I thought it was silly and excessive to never wear my shoes into the apartment. But now, with how clean my floors stay, I’m a believer!

The first room you come across is my bathroom (the shower-tub kind). Here’s a photo.

Yep. That’s my “shower.” The big blue-green, square thing is my soaking tub (something I only use for hand-wash laundry, since it’s summer). The metal box, just to the left of the tub is the gas-powered water heater. There’s no mega-water-heater for the building. Each primary water outlet (usually, the kitchen sink and bathing area) has its own small heating unit. See the white hand crank? To make the water hot, I hold down a gas-release function and crank that handle until the gas lights. Then, the water is wonderfully hot! To shower, I switch the heater to the “shower” function, turn on the water, and use the handheld water wand to bathe. There is no shower curtain needed, as the room itself is made to get wet. See the drain in the floor? I just stand there and bathe. It’s strange at first, I’ll admit. But it saves water and it makes for a nice spacious place to shower.

The next room is my other bathroom.

I have a Western-style toilet (versus the traditional Japanese-style), a thing I’m very grateful for. (Google Japanese “squatter” toilets. Search it on YouTube, I dare you.) The back water tank has a very Japanese feature, though. See how it’s mounted on the wall? See the spigot and sink atop it? It’s a great feature that saves a ton of water! When you flush, the new water that fills up the back tank comes out the spigot and goes down into the drain, allowing you to wash your hands with the water from the future flush!

Pretty smart, no?

Next, is the kitchen. I have a small fridge (which is being replaced Tuesday, due to it spontaneously filling up with water), a microwave, a rack with a toaster and rice cooker, a simple utilitarian sink, and a two-burner gas cooktop, with a fish oven. What is a fish oven, you ask?

 

Well, it’s an oven for fish! (Or toast. Or… other small food items.) I’ve yet to use it, so I can’t really report on it’s functionality, but the cooktop is brand-spanking-new and works great for everything else. So, I’m sure it will bake fish with the best of ‘em!

The other three rooms are my tatami rooms. They are called tatami rooms, because they have tatami mats (up until now, all the other rooms I’ve mentioned have had a firm-ish, hardwood-looking flooring). Tatami is a standard-sized, organic, woven-grass mat that is the traditional floor in Japanese homes. It’s softer than a typical Western style floor and, when taken care of, makes for a very comfortable room. But tatami can be easily damaged or discolored, so it takes a little effort to keep it looking nice (hence the “no-shoes-inside-the-house-ever” policy).

I’ve not yet decided on the purpose or layout for my tatami rooms, but they’re currently used as 1.) My bedroom & living room, 2.) My spare bed & closet room, and 3.) The kotatsu room & where-I-shove-all-the-crap-I’m-going-to-get-rid-of closet. These titles will change, I’m sure, after my visit to IKEA. Most of my doors are a heavier, sliding-screen type (not paper screens… think heavy foam and wood). It saves a lot of space and allows for a lot of flexibility, as you can literally just take them down when you want more room. And the sliding aspect means you can put furniture right up next to it, and it’ll still function perfectly as a door. I like them a lot.

What else? My apartment is on the third floor, which gives me a pretty decent view of part of Chikushino, as well as the mountains beyond. It’s nothing breathtaking, but it’s a much better view than looking at the broadside of another jutaku.

I see this view a lot when I’m doing laundry, because my washing machine and clothesline are on the back porch (Oh, and I have a back porch). Washing machines are typically kept outside and dryers are non-existent, mostly because of the nuclear power crisis and the heavy emphasis on power-saving. But at least the washer is free to use (unlike my American apartment counterparts) and my clothes come off the line smelling like sunshine, if a little linty.

That’s all I have time for now! I’ll try to be better about writing in the future. If you have any specific questions about Japan or my experiences, write them in the comments below! I’ll try to answer them in later posts.

Thanks for reading! And, as DW says, don’t forget to feed the fish!

WR