Trip to Japan: Day 1 ６月１７日日曜日

I'm back in Taiwan after a week in Japan. My feelings are somewhat mixed at the moment - I really wish I could've stayed in Japan, but at the same time I missed Amber and Pamela very much this past week. For the next seven days, I'll post some pictures of the places I visited and write briefly about some of the things I did in Nippon.

There isn't much to report on for Day 1, actually. My flight to Kansai Airport 関西国際空港 on Cathay Pacific didn't depart until 4:15 in the afternoon last Sunday. Though the flight itself only lasted a couple of hours, the one-hour time difference, plus the time spent in Immigration upon landing, meant that it was around 8:30 in the evening by the time I left the airport. Taking the Nankai Line 南海 to Namba station 難波駅 in Osaka 大阪, I transferred to the Midosuji subway line 地下鉄御堂筋線 and got off at Shinsaibashi 心斎橋, and checked into my hotel for the night. So much for the first day.

While waiting for my flight at T'aiwan (Taiwan) T'aoyuan (Taoyuan) International Airport 台湾桃園国際空港, I took this picture of an Eva Air jet getting ready to take off. Love that Hello Kitty motif!

Next: Osaka to Yoshino 吉野

Fun in the water

I was supposed to go hiking in Tak'eng (Dakeng) 大坑 this morning with a couple of friends, but the rear tire on my scooter took a sudden turn for the worse yesterday. Low air pressure, a split tread and a tendency to fishtail when making turns led me to conclude it's safer not to take the bike out on the road, especially as tomorrow I'm leaving for a week-long vacation in Japan. And as it turned out, the weather this morning wasn't very cooperative anyway - it poured!

So instead of going for a walk in the mountains, I went with Pamela and Amber to our daughter's first water familiarization class, in T'aichung (Taijhong) 台中（たいちゅう）. Today was actually a trial lesson, and my main concern was how Amber would react to it all. As it turned out, she enjoyed being in the water. And while she cried at times, it was mainly because she wanted to do something other than what the instructor was trying to have all the children do.

The class is designed not to teach infants how to swim, but to get them accustomed to the water. We decided to sign up for six lessons, and I'm looking forward to joining Amber in the pool after I get back to Taiwan. Here are a few photos from this morning. I'd post more, but Pamela would probably kill me if I did so!

Tomorrow I'm off to Japan for a week. I'm going to visit Yoshino 吉野, Omine-san 大峰山 and Koya-san 高野山, and meet up with some former students from my days in Yokkaichi 四日市. It won't be easy being away from my family for seven days, but I do need the break from life in Taiwan.

じゃまた

A letter to the editor 投書

Wow. Not only has the Japan Times published my letter to the editor, but they kept it intact. The last time I wrote the newspaper (the first time, actually), regarding an article by Gregory Clark, the letter was edited to the point of incomprehension. It must have been a slow week in the editorial department this time around.

Here's the letter as it appears in the paper:

In Robyn Lim's June 2 article, "Lee should avoid Yasukuni," Lim grudgingly admits that, as a private citizen, former Taiwanese President Lee Tung-hui is free to visit Japan and has a right to religious freedom, which includes paying a visit to Yasukuni Shrine (Lee did visit the shrine June 7). Yet she makes the ridiculous claim that by doing so Lee would "provoke" China and somehow drag both Japan and the United States into war. 

Japan is a democratic society, is it not? Therefore, shouldn't Lee be extended the same courtesies and privileges as any other visitor to Japan? If other foreign tourists can visit Yasukuni, why can't Lee?

Lim is afraid that Lee will say something that will promote "independence" for Taiwan and thus "anger" China. If that's the case, then the Chinese government needs to understand that in a democracy like Japan, people are free to express their opinions, even those who are visiting from abroad. What right does China have to dictate whom the Japanese government should allow into Japan, and under what restrictions?

Lim seems concerned about "de jure" independence for Taiwan. Setting aside China's dubious historical and legal claims to Taiwan, the fact is, the Republic of China (Taiwan) has been a sovereign state since 1949 and is recognized as such by 25 nations around the world. Taiwan maintains unofficial relations with many other countries, including Japan and the U.S.

Lim paints a picture of Lee as a rabble-rouser, but neglects to point out that as president, Lee oversaw the transformation of Taiwan from a state run by an authoritarian regime into one of Asia's most vibrant democracies. In 1996, Lee became the first freely elected leader in the history of a Chinese state. No wonder Beijing feels threatened by him. It's harder to understand Lim's motivations.

In the news ニュース

Today's Japan Times is carrying an article entitled "Aso defends Lee's visit to Yasukuni" :

"Japanese Foreign Minister 外相 Taro Aso 麻生太郎 said Sunday that he sees no problem with former Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui's 李登輝 visit Thursday to the war-linked Yasukuni Shrine 靖国神社 in Tokyo 東京, dismissing criticism from China about Lee's recent trip to Japan.

'Mr. Lee is 84 years old and has retired to private life,' Aso said in a speech in Sendai 仙台, northeastern Japan. 'His elder brother is honored at Yasukuni Shrine and I wonder what problem there is in his having visited it while he is still healthy.'"

To quote Teddy Roosevelt, bully for Aso. It's reassuring to see the Japanese government seemingly understands that there is no conflict between adhering to the so-called "One China" 一つの中国 principle and maintaining diplomatic relations with China, while at the same time allowing Lee to exercise the same freedoms of speech 言論の自由 and religion 信仰の自由 that are permitted to all other visitors to Japan. Then again, seeing as last week a prominent Chinese dissident, Wei Jingsheng 魏京生, was denied entry into Japan to attend an event marking the Tiananmen Square crackdown 六四天安門事件, it might be more a case of the government of Prime Minister 総理大臣 Shinzo Abe 安倍晋三 letting the Chinese government know there are limits to how far Japan can be pushed around on the Yasukuni/Taiwan issues.

In any event, there's a great irony here: Taiwan's best friends, both in Japan and the United States, are often the kind of conservative, reactionary politicians you would never vote for back home.

A quiet Sunday 静かな日曜日

My father-in-law turns 82 on Tuesday, so today the family celebrated by going out for lunch. Pamela's two sisters and their husbands drove up from Hsiluo (Siluo) 西螺（せいら）, and joined my wife's mother, brother, sister-in-law and niece in observing the occasion. As my father-in-law is a vegetarian, we had a meatless lunch at a restaurant in downtown Fengyuan (Fongyuan) 豊原（とよはら）.

今週の火曜日に義理の父は82年になって、今日は妻のご家族と外で昼ご飯を食べた。義理の父は菜食主義者だからみんなはベジタリアンのレストランへ行って食事をした。

Most vegetarians (my father-in-law included) choose this lifestyle for religious reasons, unlike in the West, where the majority of vegetarians give up meat because it's perceived as being part of a healthier lifestyle. As a result, much of the food in vegetarian restaurants in Taiwan is designed to resemble meat or, as in the case with the photo below, fish.

ほんとうに刺身ですか。

As Pamela was wondering, why give up meat, and then eat food that's designed to look like meat? And vegetarians take note: vegetarian food is no more healthier than regular fare in Taiwan, which in real terms means it's often deep-fried and swimming in oil. To your health!

After lunch, Amber and I took a walk to the nearest Seven-Eleven so that I could buy a newspaper. On the way back she became very excited about the various arcade games spilling out onto the sidewalk.

Arcade and gumball machines in Taiwan contain so much Japanese written on them that I usually don't take any notice (I suspect many, in fact, are imported from Japan). The one that Amber is pointing to, however, is different. The Japanese written at the top ド子 in nonsensical. The Chinese is more interesting: "Tat'oumei (Datoumei)". Pamela thinks 大頭妹 ("Big-head girl") sounds cute. I will reserve comment.

One good thing about all the rainy weather we've been having lately is the clean air and nice views that follow in its wake. These pictures were taken from the roof of my apartment complex this afternoon. My attention was drawn to the fogbank off in the distance, something not usually seen in this area.

If only the air could be this clean year-round!

日本一番

Here in Taiwan, many products are sold by claiming that they are popular in Japan. The reasons why are not hard to understand. Japanese companies, after all, have a well-deserved reputation for putting out high-quality products. In addition, throughout Asia (Taiwan included) young people look towards Japan for the latest trends in design, fashion, music, 漫画 and アニメ. There's another factor at play here, as well: many Taiwanese look upon the period when the island was a Japanese colony (1895-1945) with a certain nostalgia, especially in comparison to the later, corrupt authoritarian rule by the KMT (Kuomintang/Guomindang) 中国国民党. This looking up to Japan means signs like these are a common sight all over Taiwan:

The first was taken in front of a drugstore 薬屋 in Fengyuan (Fongyuan) 豊原（とよはら）. Condoms are being promoted, with "No. 1 in Japan" and "Made in Japan" clearly visible. Above "No. 1 in Japan" is written 日本で人気No. 1・岡本コンドーム！！ ("Nihon de ninki No. 1, Okamoto kondomu!!") - "Okamoto condoms, the No. 1 most popular (brand) in Japan!!". Hmm, condoms...When I was living in Japan, I found that most Japanese-made condoms were, um, too small for me. The one exception was a brand called "Beach Boy", which came in a psychedelically-colored box (it's been years, however, since I've see any being sold in Japanese drug stores). In case you think this is a case of my ego getting inflated, I once read an article by Bob Greene, in which he described visiting a condom factory. While being given a tour of the plant, he asked a company representative how many different sizes were produced. The spokesperson replied that the question of size was a myth, and that his company produced only two sizes of condoms - a larger one for the rest of the world, and a smaller version for the Japanese market. Ouch!

The sign in the other photo was taken outside a store (also in Fengyuan) selling jeans ジーパン. "Nippon Blue" it says, with the characters written above 日本藍. I'd never seen the 藍 character before, as 青 is usually used for the color blue. There was some Japanese written horizontally (and read from right to left) on the right-hand side of the sign, but it didn't show up well in the photo. I suppose I could have tried to work out it what it said while I was there, but I didn't want to look like a dorky 外人 standing for a long time in front of a store window.

Sunday with the Family ファミリーサービス

The morning began with a downpour, and the pattern of rain, followed by sunshine, would repeat throughout the day. Nonetheless, Amber, Pamela and I had a nice afternoon exploring an older section of T'aichung (Taijhong) city 台中（たいちゅう）

Our neighborhood in the morning rain

On the way into Taichung, we stopped off for lunch. I had a fried pork cutlet on rice, a sort of Taiwanese 豚カツ, while Pamela ate beef noodles. Total cost: NT110, about $3.30, or ￥400.

In Taichung, we first visited the Ren Ren Itoman Swimming School, where Pamela inquired about water familiarization classes for Amber.

Pamela will take Amber there for a trial lesson next Saturday morning. The swimming school is located in one of Taichung's upper-income areas. A few buildings down is this exclusive residence, seemingly oblivious to the towering apartment blocks behind it. 

Next, Pamela suggested going into a nearby liquor store 酒屋 on Wenhsin (Wunsin) Road 文心路 to pick up some bottles of Belgian beer the store was featuring this month. Fortunately/Unfortunately, there was only one bottle left, a De Koninck blond, which we quickly snapped up for the sum of NT190, or $5.75/￥700. The beer situation in general in Taiwan is pretty bleak, so I'm really looking forward to enjoying this bottle at an opportune time!

Close to the liquor store on Wenhsin Road were some restaurants.

The sign on the left is for a well-known Taichung Korean-style restaurant. For some reason it says "Sumiyakiniku tabehodai" 炭焼き肉食べ放題 ("All-you-can-eat charcoal-grilled meat") and "Shabu-shabu tabehodai" しゃぶしゃぶ食べ放題 ("All-you-can-eat Shabu-shabu") in Japanese. The other photo is of a couple of banners outside a Japanese restaurant next to the Korean place. The banner on the left advertises Japanese box lunches ("O-bento") お弁当. The words above "O-bento" read "Dekitate hoka hoka" 出来たてほかほか, telling us that their lunch boxes can be done so that they're steaming hot. Why they chose to inform Taiwanese customers of this fact in Japanese is beyond me, however. The banner on the right announces appetizing set meals 旨い定食 ("Umai teishoku"), and welcomes us with an いらっしゃいませ. I don't get into Taichung very often these days, but it seems there are more Japanese restaurants around. Or more Japanese customers perhaps, as I can't imagine too many Taiwanese can understand the signage.

Further along on Wenshin Road, on the way to our destination, I spotted these two signs, a two-for-the-price-of-one barrage of Japanese.

The top one reads "Chosei kenko kan" 長生健康館, a literal translation of which would be "Longevity Health Hall", but the フリガナ above the 漢字 says ちょうせいヘルスショップ, the "Chosei Health Shop". The name "Kawasaki" is obvious on the bottom sign. Next to it, in ひらがな is written マッサージチェア, or "Massage chairs". Like English, Japanese is used in advertising in Taiwan to give the product or service a more sophisticated image.

Eventually we arrived at our destination, Nant'un (Nantun) 南屯. It's here that you will find Taichung's oldest temple, Wanhe Temple (1726) 萬和宮, where Matsu (Mazu) 媽祖, an important sea goddess in Chinese folk religion, is worshiped.

Across the street from Wenhe Temple, what the new Rough Guide to Taiwan calls the "Last-Name Show", was going on. These are performances on a stage given to entertain the gods. I hope they liked the show, because very few mortals were watching. Even Amber quickly lost interest.

Behind Wenhe Temple is Wench'ang (Wunchang) Temple 文昌公廟, popular with students who wish to pass their tests.

  

And what's so interesting about this picture?

Nothing really, except that on my first visit to Taiwan back in April 1998, I stayed with my friend Steve in the apartment on the top floor of the building on the left. The view of Taichung from the balcony was fantastic.

After checking out the temples, we took Amber for a stroll along the Nantun Old Street 南屯老街. It's a short stretch of road that has some old buildings, and reminded Pamela of her childhood growing up in the countryside. But despite being listed in both the Rough Guide and Lonely Planet Taiwan guides, I don't think it's worth making a special effort to see, unless you happen to be in the area.

       

Two pictures from Nantun Old Street that merit some explanation:

The sign in the first photo is for a school that teaches Japanese. The 日本語 at the bottom says "O-toiawasesaki" お問合せ先, which has the meaning of "Inquire within". The woman in the lower picture is preparing Ch'ou toufu (Chou doufu) 臭豆腐, Taiwan's notorious Stinky Tofu. I can't stand the smell or the taste. My wife Pamela, who ordered the dish from this woman, can't get enough of it.

After leaving Nantun, we headed for home, but not before making one last stop, this time at a shopping mall on the corner of Wenhsin and Chungkang (Jhonggang) Roads 中港路. This place had several Japanese-style eateries, such as Genteishoku 元定食, the signs for which included such Japanese as 食べたい ("I want to eat!") and おすすめ ("recommendation")...

...and a bento place called かおり, which means "good smelling" (though I'm not sure of the significance of the duck logo)...

...so naturally we chose MOS Burger, where Amber was just bursting with energy after being confined to her stroller for most of the day.

If the day ever comes that Fengyuan (Fongyuan) 豊原（とよはら）gets its own MOS Burger, Mister Donut and Subway Sandwiches outlets, I will truly and humbly apologize for all (some of) the bad things I've said about Taiwan. Honest.