Konnichiwa: March 2012

Well, this will be my last post from the city of Fussa, where we have spent almost the first three months of our mission. Although we are eager to get to the Mission Office where we will be kept very, very busy, we will also miss a lot of very special Air Force families with whom we have associated over this time frame. So many of them have been so kind to invite us and the Elders for dinner--not just on Sundays but also on many other days of the week. We have really gotten to know some of them very well and will miss them. Of course, we also know that, on the other hand, we will be meeting and getting to know lots of very special missionaries coming and going through the office and at zone conferences.

So, all in all, it is still an exciting step in our eighteen-month mission.

Throughout our time here in Fussa, I have snapped a lot of pictures of various things that have interested me. Thus, this post will be mostly about the sights and scenery that I've gleaned while enjoying my daily walks. If someone were to ask me what is the difference between a Japanese city and an American city, I would venture to say that there are four things that instantly come to mind: the mixture of homes and businesses (i.e., no zoning regulations to separate such), their immediate proximity to the narrow streets where there are no sidewalks present, the amazing number of electrical wires overhead, and the daily display of laundry and futons airing out on apartment and house balconies.

No, these are not a "spring cleaning" event; it is what you see every sunny day, winter through summer! Most Japanese do not own clothes dryers. Part of that is due to space and cost, but equally important is their preference that laundry and bedding be sanitized by the sun. Futons and their quilts are hung over the balcony while laundry is cleverly hung from an assortment of drying apparatuses.

The next few pictures are an attempt to show you the narrowness of two-lane roads in which bikers and walkers are always present, trying their best to avoid traffic coming from both directions.

This two-lane street with many shops and houses is right near our apartment. Most businesses don't open until 10 a.m., thus many have the metal "garage door" type closures pulled down until they open for business.

Subdivision streets above and below. Notice how the properties' walls abutt the street!

These homes below are somewhat modern but still display some Japanese architecture. Note how beautifully the shrubs are trimmed. I call them "big bonzais," but I know that's not what they are.

Since they don't have lawns, I think many of them take pride
in their ornamental shrubs and trees.

Most Japanese homes do not have garages. And since they do not have lawns, they just park in the very little space available, which is usually right in front of the house!

Two of these homes are special as they actually have covered parking!

This photo captures both the parking of cars right out front as well as the airing of futons.

Since turning corners on such narrow streets is rather dangerous,

mirrors are very prevalent to assist one in avoiding a collision!

We jokingly refer to this as a Japanese "two-car garage"

and the pictures below as "Japanese mini-vans"!

We've actually heard of someone hauling four tots on a bike, but I've yet to see it!

Bike parking lots are very common near train stations and big businesses.

Our favorite transportation is the kindergarten bus.
Unfortunately, I have yet to get a picture of the front of it with face and ears.
It just makes you giggle every time you see one drive by!

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Now I'm going to comment on a few items found inside homes. First of all, we are very grateful that our apartment does not have what we refer to as a "squatty potty" pictured below. Many public buildings still have this form of toilet, and it is not very convenient for the American female! It is not a urinal on the wall. Note my foot next to it on the floor.

Most of our church buildings have the type of toilet below that we would "die for"! Why, you ask? Because the seat is heated! Our churches do not heat hallways or bathrooms, but thank goodness the toilet seats are often heated. It's very tempting to stay there and "forget" to go into the chapel!

Note your options below! Spray, wash, and even get a noise to come on so your personal noise is drowned out! Hilarious! There are also numerous choices for flushing, which is frustrating
since I don't know which one you are to choose nor when!

Click to enlarge so you can read all instructions--especially the one in yellow!

Below is Elder G's favorite appliance. His personal, hand-operated icemaker!

And have you ever wanted a disposal that doesn't chew up your silverware?! This one has a 100% guarantee never to do so! Seriously! See the black disposal cover in the bottom of the sink? Well, all your garbage goes through it into the mesh-bag-lined filter cup (in my hand). Every so often you just remove the black cover, pick up the filter cup full of your garbage, and quickly dispose of the oh-so-gross mesh bag yourself into your own garbage can! Ick! But never a ruined fork, I promise!

One last thing: a telephone this is not!

It is actually an intercom to the front porch. When anyone rings the doorbell, the phone rings and you can pick it up to talk to whoever is there. Unlike most Japanese homes, our apartment does not have the accompanying camera so that you can actually see and "screen" those whom you may consider to give entry!
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Next, I will show some of our favorite discoveries. Like, shopping at Costco and taking your cart with you up a magnetized escalator to the parking garage on the roof. The magnetism is so strong
that you don't even have to hold on to your cart!

Another interesting practice of the Japanese is that when they are remodeling or doing new construction, they completely cover the structure (even a skyscraper!) in plastic mesh. It certainly keeps the site
clean and debris free!

It is amazing how many vending machines there are everywhere--busy streets as well as subdivisions! Everything from cigarettes, to soda, to hot dishes, to fresh vegetables!

The yellow ridges or tracks in the sidewalk below are for the blind.

Very clever invention, if I do say so myself!

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In order to help gaijins (foreigners) know what to order at a restaurant, they either have
plastic displays of the food in the window or they have nicely done pictures.
Elder G says not speaking Japanese is no hindrance to him when eating out--
that just by pointing with his finger, he can order any Japanese food with no problem at all!

Another way to easily select your food is to visit a popular sushi-style restaurant in which small individual servings of varieties of sushi move around the restaurant on a rotating track next to your table. You can pick straight from the moving items or place an order, which also will be placed onto the track and ready for you to grab as it passes by. It was as fun to experience as it was tasty (surprisingly) to try the food!

I counted 33 plates, 4 dessert dishes, and 3 tempura dishes consumed by the five us us--our Branch President, his wife and daughter, and us! He said that was actually quite a small number for five people.

While we're on the topic of food,

I might as well add that America seems to have invaded Japan once again:

In case you're wondering, even though these are American chain restaurants, preparation and taste are still geared to the Japanese. Wendys was our first disappointing eye-opener to this fact. Somehow, a hamburger with teri-yaki flavoring is just not the same as one back home. And McDonald's Dollar Menu burger is not burger at all, but soy patties! But their 100 yen ice cream cone is truly awesome!

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Another site I enjoy visiting on my walks are the various Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines.
So far, I am unable to tell which is which, but they're certainly interesting to look at!

These are statues of monks. I guess someone is keeping them warm through the winter.

Very interesting!

Unusually large home nearby temple grounds

And here are a couple pictures of LDS temples or churches here in Japan

Camp Zama Chapel

Front & side views of our Fussa/Yokota Chapel

The Kunitachi Chapel where we drove weekly
with the local Elders to attend District meetings

Another look at the Fukuoka Temple

I have yet to get a picture of the Tokyo Temple as the spire is under construction. It appears that Angel Moroni was turned 180 degrees during last year's earthquake and is in the process of being realigned!

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Regarding driving in Japan, one needs to consult Elder G about that. I had fully intended to be driving here since I did so 40 years ago when we lived in Iwakuni. However, I guess the "golden words" are "40 years ago"! At my age now, I have absolutely no confidence in my depth perception. I just know that all the mirrors in Japan would not be enough to save a cyclist or the four fenders of our car! To give you a little idea of what I'm talking about, this narrow street turning left towards our apartment is a 2-way street! Elder G has totally mastered turning into it successfully--something I know I could never manage!

Thus, I am resigned to having my own personal chauffeur who does an absolutely fabulous job of staying in the left lane, backing into all parking spaces (he had that mastered long before coming to Japan!), understanding the nuances of our Garmin when it says "Keep right" vs. "Turn right," and playing "gaijin" enough when confronted by a traffic cop that they just basically give up, give us a warning, and let us go! ha!
Two interesting facets of driving here in Japan are: (1) One never "honks" unless really mad and (2) When merging into traffic one hits the hazard lights momentarily as a "thank you."

Thanks to Arnells leaving the Garmin in the car we inherited from them, we are able to go almost anywhere. It is not foolproof, however, and one must learn to be patient with nuances and "recalculatings."

Here's a sample of Japanese billboards.
I guess Utah isn't the only place to attack the scenery!

And my favorite road sign of all!

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Of all the many sights and wonders we have experienced here so far while living in Fussa, the highlight would have to be the many wonderful friendships we have made. We hope to reconnect with many of these people as we come back to Yokota AFB on "grocery runs" or when we attend the temple on District temple nights or when we attend mission conferences. Eventually, we hope a lot of these folks will look us up in Midway once we and they are back in the States.