The X-Pat Files -  March 2007

 (Brought to you by H&R Consultants)

  The X-Pat Files Community E-Newsletter provides a forum for the spread of information useful for English speakers living in Aichi.  You can use the newsletter as an informational resource, and of course you can send in information you would like to share.
  This newsletter is a community service from The Japan Real Estate and Relocation company, H&R Consultants (www.japanhomesearch.com), and is edited by Sue Conolly (www.sueconolly.net).

  Contents for This Edition

  1.  Pets in Japan
  2.  Dog Run
  3.  Eating Out in Nagoya
  4.  Fairy Dentist
  5.  Springfest '07
  6.  Rice
  7.  World on Demand
  8.  Meet & Greet Luncheon
  9.  Charity Yoga
 10. Habitat

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   1. Pets in Japan

There are three ways to have a pet in Japan.  You bring your own with you, you buy one here or you adopt one. 

To bring your pet from home (or to take one home again with you), the very best website outlining what you need to do is the Animal Quarantine Service website.  Please keep in mind that some airlines will not ship animals during the summer months, so special arrangements will have to be made with each airline individually.

Buying a pet in Japan is pretty straightforward, however please be aware that many pet shop chains practice unethical treatment of breeding animals.  A much safer and more ethical way of purchasing a puppy (or other pet) is to visit a reputable breeder.  Some dog breeders within driving distance of Aichi Prefecture listed below.  Please take note that the information has been gathered from the internet from pages that describe "reputable breeders", however it is always best to check the facilities yourself and meet your potential puppy before making a decision.  If you do buy a dog in a pet shop, ask about pedigree and if possible get information about the kennel into which the puppy was born.

Komada (Mie Prefecture) - Flat Coated Retriever, Pomeranian, Jack Russell Terrier, Border Collie, Poodle
Vanity Fair (Aichi Prefecture) - Golden Retriever
Apricot (Aichi Prefecture) - Collie
Thousand Spring (Aichi Prefecture) - Poodle
Dog Land Haru (Mie Prefecture) - French Bulldogs,Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Weimaraner, Burmese Mountain Dog, Newfoundland, Welsh Corgi, Miniature Dachshund etc
Paradise 7 Kennel - (Shizuoka Prefecture) - Labrador, Golden Retriever
SS Angel - (Aichi Prefecture) - Corgi, Dachshund, Chihuahua, French Bulldog, Schnauzer, Papillon, Dandle Dilmont Terrier

It is vital to be informed about the breed of dog you want to buy, as your new family member will be with you for a long time.  One extremely useful site which compares the pros and cons of many breeds is: http://www.yourpurebredpuppy.com/

If you are planning to adopt a pet and don't mind possibly accepting a mixed breed, there is a puppy adoption service in Nagoya, the Nagoya City Animal Protection Center (Japanese website only), which also has kittens, puppy training classes and other events.  The requirements for adoption are:

1　That you are a resident of Nagoya City
2　That you are an adult
3　That you live in a place where it is possible to keep a dog
4　That all members of the family agree
5　That you agree to take on all responsibility for the health and care of the animal, and for making sure the animal does not cause a nuisance for others.
6　That you will have the pet spayed, whether male or female.
7　That you will respond to post-adoption follow-up questioning.
8　That you will have the animal undergo responsible toilet training (information provided on adoption)
9　That you will undergo obedience training with your pet (information provided on adoption)

The process for adopting a puppy at this facility is quite lengthy, because they want you to make your decision very carefully.  You must meet the puppy, make your decision, apply and then the puppy will be granted to you if you meet the above requirements and you are the only person to apply for that animal.  If you compete against someone else for that particular animal, and lose the draw, you are not offered another puppy in its place.  This is to guard against people just taking "any" puppy and then regretting it later.  If you are not offered your puppy of choice, you can go through the choosing and application process again from the beginning.

Address: 106 Heiwa-Koen 2-Chome, Chikusa-ku, Nagoya (in Heiwa Park)
Phone Number: 052-762-0380
Fax Number: 052-762-0423

Please note: You may also take stray animals to this facility if you find them on the street and are unable to keep them yourself, but if you do leave the animals there it is in the knowledge that the animals may be destroyed if they are unsuitable for adoption.

Another good place to look for a dog to adopt is Animal Refuge Kansai, a non-profit organization animal rescue facility located near Osaka.  This website has a lot of information about the responsible practice of owning a dog in Japan.

Registration

You must register a dog but not a cat, at your local city ward office.  When you do this you will need to take the Quarantine Certificate that you were given at the port of entry.  You only need to do this once in Japan, although if there is any change in status, i.e. the dog goes missing (or dies), if your address changes or you leave Japan, then the city ward office must be notified.


Etiquette and Care

You are required to walk your dog on a leash at all times and if you live in apartment building, you will be required to carry your pet in the communal areas and elevators at all times.  You must also clean up after your dog when out walking, and your pet is required to have a rabies vaccination every year.


Pet Hotel and Grooming Salon

These are often attached to pet shops, but also exist individually. 

Pet Aid in Ishikawabashi is a grooming salon and pet hotel, and offers health consultation (English available).  The address is 5-4-1 Dankei Dori, Showa-ku, Nagoya (150 meters North of Ishikawabashi intersection, two buildings past the Shell gas station) and the phone number is 052-837-1123.  Please click here for a map.

Dog Training

I would like to recommend an excellent dog training system, and an English speaking dog trainer who will come to you home and help you to make your pooch the perfect partner.  The system was created by an Australian, John Richrdson who has been dubbed "The Dog Whisperer" because of the movie "The Horse Whisperer", and because he helps previously "unhelpable" dogs with problems like over-barking, aggression, and of course the regular stuff like jumping up, running away from you, generally being cheeky at dinner time.  The system all takes root from dog psychology, and uses no violent methods like yelling or hitting, in fact another reason he's called the dog whisperer is that he almost whispers some of the commands.  The book "The Dog Whisperer", also by John Richardson is available online at Amazon.co.jp.

The Nagoya representative of this system is Yuri Misaki, and she will come to your home for 8000 yen and stay for two hours.  During this time she will ask you a lot of questions about your family routine, meet your dog(s) and see them in their environment, and teach you some basic things you can start doing to impress on your pooch that you are the "Top Dog".  This instills in the dog a feeling that you are the leader, which makes him actually happier because he is never confused about his position in the pecking order of the family, and it makes him easy to train.

Yuri will come to your house as often as you need her, leaving a couple of weeks in between each visit so you can implement the work. 

Tel/Fax: 052-483-4655
Mobile: 090-1282-0008
e-mail: misaki@dogtechjp.com
website (Japanese) http://www.dogtechjp.com/
website (English) http://www.dogtech.com.au/

Another dog trainer I found on the internet is In the Dog near Hongo Station in Meito-ku (map here).  In the Dog's owner used to train service dogs in California. He was also a member of APDT (Association of Pet Dog Trainers, US) and a Delta Society Certified Pet Partners team evaluator. If you would like to learn to how to train dogs, please give him a call or pay the shop a visit.

Tel/Fax: 052-778-0211
Website (Japanese only): www.inthedog.co.jp




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  2. Dog Run

If you have a dog in Japan, you may have noticed that your garden (if you have one) is rather unsatisfying for a good run about.  The good news is, that there are places you can take your dog for some off-leash fun and socialization with other dogs. Mostly these dog runs cost money and are attached to "Dog Cafes" where the owner can enjoy a cup of tea with their pooch by their side.  However, one dog run in Nagoya is on public land, completely free and made possible by volunteers.  It is the dog run at Shonai Ryokuchi Park in Nishi Ward.

Open from around 9am until dusk, owners must be responsible for their own pets.  This means intervening if a fight should break out, and picking up your dogs own poo and taking it home (this is also the norm when walking your dog on the street).  There is a smaller pen of about 300 square meters, and a larger pen of about 800 square meters.  In addition to this, as if for the naughty puppies who don't get on with other dogs, there is a third enclosure which is seperated from the other two.

To use the facilities, your dog must have been immunized in the last year, and not be in heat.  Aggressive breeds such as attack dogs are not allowed.  Volunteers in the dog run are recognizable, but it is a condition of entry that each owner is entirely responsible for their own pet.

This map to Nagoya Soccer League doubles nicely for a map to the dog run, which is just past the soccer grounds, on the right.

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  3. Eating out in Nagoya
Yoko Takeuchi


Eating out in Nagoya provides a great chance for you to sample some great Japanese cuisine along with a range of international foods including; Italian, Chinese, Indian, Mexican, French and Moroccan.

Eating in a Japanese restaurant is usually a little more difficult than eating in a Western restaurant as the menus and restaurant names are usually in kanji or katakana.  Mastering katakana is very helpful when eating out.  The following terms and explanations should help in your first excursions:

    Bento （弁当)）– Japanese prepared lunch consisting of rice and small portions of other foods such as fish, chicken, vegetables, pickles, etc.  This kind of fare is readily available and priced from very low to very high.  There are even shops that specialize only in obento.

    Izakaya （居酒屋）– a Japanese pub, where the food is meant to be an accompaniment to the drink.  Usually small dishes are shared by the whole table.

    Kaiseki and Honzen ryori （懐 石•本膳料理）– traditional cuisine served in many small courses.  This can be quite expensive, especially when served by waitresses dressed in kimono.

    Sukiyaki （す き焼き）– probably one of the most well known Japanese foods in the Western world.  Thinly sliced beef, cooked together with various vegetables, tofu, and a kind of noodle (in the Nagoya area this is usually kishimen) in a communal iron pot at the table.  Stock mixed with water, shoyu (soya sauce), and a little sugar makes up the cooking sauce.  You take the hot ingredients from the pot to your own bowl and dip in raw egg.

    Shabu Shabu （しゃぶしゃぶ）– is very similar to sukiyaki except that the meat is usually of higher grade and is boiled in water rather a broth.  It is also eaten with a sauce not raw egg.

    Sushi （寿 司）– many Westerners believe this means raw fish which is not actually true.  There are many different types of sushi, the best known being nigiri-zushi which is raw fish on a lightly vinegared rice ball.  Norimaki is also a very popular type of sushi.  Norimaki consists of a piece of raw fish or cucumber at the center wrapped in rice and nori (seaweed).  The sushi is then dipped in shoyu (soy sauce) and mixed with wasabi (green horseradish), accompanied with pickled ginger.  It is usually more appropriate to use chopsticks when eating sushi but use of fingers is not frowned upon and in fact is the traditional method of eating sushi (that's what the hand towels are for, before you eat).

    Sashimi （刺身）– is very elegantly sliced raw fish.  It is usually served on a bed of shredded daikon (radish) or a shiso leaf.

    Tempura（天 ぷら）– consists of seafood and vegetables, lightly battered and deep-fried.  It can be purchased in very high-class restaurants or from your local supermarket.

    Tonkatsu （とんかつ）– is breaded pork cutlet (sometimes chicken and shrimp cutlets also) which have been breaded and deep-fried.  In Nagoya, miso-katsu, tonkatsu with a miso based sauce is a local speciality.

    Yaki-tori （焼き鳥）– usually grilled chicken on a stick.  Popularly served in izakaya style restaurants.

    Noodle Shops – are great places to catch a quick bite to eat and where you’ll find many people also slurping down bowls of hot (in the winter) and cold (in the summer) noodles.  The different types of noodles include: udon noodles（うどん）, which are thick wheat based noodles, soba noodles （そば）which are long and skinny noodles made of buckwheat sometimes served cold as zaru soba（ざるそば）, and ramen （ラーメン）which are thin Chinese noodles.

    As is well known, Japanese food is eaten with o-hashi (chopsticks) and if you are not familiar with their usage please take note of the following tips:

* Always hold then near the thickest end of each stick.
* Keeping the lower chopstick steady, move the upper one with a scissor-like action (actually like holding a writing instrument), pinching the food between upper and lower, narrow tips.
* When taking food from the communal dish, turn your chopsticks around and pick up the food with the thick end of the chopsticks.

The following tips are recommended to avoid in order to avoid upsetting your host:
   
* Waving your chopsticks around aimlessly over the food, trying to decide what to take next.
* Spearing food with the points of the chopsticks as if they were a fork.
* Pulling the dishes towards you using the chopsticks-always make sure to pick the dishes up in our free hand.
* Passing food to someone else with your chopsticks
* Above all, don’t stick your chopsticks vertically into the rice bowl - this practice is symbolic and only occurs at funerals.



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  4. Fairy Dentist
(Thank you to Jillian Sugiyama for this submission)

If you, or you children, need to visit a dentist for work, check-up or cleaning, I would highly recommend Fairy Dental Clinic in Kasugai quite close to Nagoya International School. The equipment is state-of-the-art, and the dentist is very kind and gentle. His clinic is very child friendly - there is a play area complete with a DVD and assistants who will watch your kids while you get your work done. You too can watch a DVD while you are getting your work done. He is very respectful of children. His wife speaks English and I think he may speak some too. Oh yes, and she has a lovely herb garden where you can relax prior to your treatment. No more excuses not to go to the dentist! Keep your smile looking great!

Fairy Dental Clinic, General and Pedodonic Dentist
Address: 7-5-10 Fujiyamadai, Kasugai City
Tel/Fax: 0568-94-6480
Hours: 9:30am - 12:00pm and 2:00pm - 7:00pm
(Saturdays open only until 5:00pm)
Closed: Thursdays, Sundays, Public Holidays
(Weeks that contain public holidays, also open on Thursdays)

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  5. Springfest '07
(Thank you to Sheri Yasue for this submission)


Sprinfest is a two-day multi-cultural annual event which brings together different elements of international music, food, art and style. Springfest is designed to promote environmental awareness. Springfest is fun and upbeat, energetic and colorful!!

Springfest is an event designed to bring together different cultures- and to help promote communication between different cultures through the exchange of great music, art, food and style.

Springfest is a free event for all ages to attend-and is a unique opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with artists, musicians, performers, and creators of many different cultures!

Artists and performers interested in taking part are encouraged to contact Springfest through their website for more information.

Dates: April 21st-22nd, 2007
Times: 12pm-7pm
Place: Central Park near the TV Tower, Sakae Station
Website: http://www.springfest07.com/


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  6. Rice

A full life in Japan begins with a full stomach, and a full stomach always begins with rice.  Walking through the supermarket you are always faced with giant bags of varying quality and price, but how to separate the "wheat from the shaft".

The answer comes in two parts, but first you must ask yourself the question: how much do you value taste and quality, over convenience and easiness to prepare.  If you don't care about taste particularly, then the easiest option for Japanese rice is to buy non-wash rice, or musenmai (無洗米) which you can use directly from the bag.  To a Japanese palate it won't taste divine, but if you're just new to Japanese rice then you may not even notice the difference.  There are various different brands of musenmai, but it doesn't matter which one you buy, since you're not aiming for gourmet taste in the first place.

For a true Japanese experience, avoid the label musenmai.  For normal, non-musenmai rice, it is necessary to wash or "polish" the rice to remove traces of starch.  If you have a rice cooker, you can prepare your rice in the morning to be ready in time for dinner, which will give your rice the soaking time it needs to be super-tasty (more than 30 minutes soaking time is recommended in summer, at least an hour in winter).

Here's the procedure I use to cook rice with my rice cooker:

1. Add rice to a large bowl full of water (usually the rice cooker bowl).
2. Cover with water, and wash in a clockwise circular motion.  I usually develop a little bit of a rhythm for this - if you can imagine a very gentle one-handed kneading of the rice you've got the right idea.  Don't press on the rice too vigorously though as you can crack the rice.
3.  The water will have white almost immediately, unless you've accidentally bought musenmai rice which does not need washing.  Discard the white water, then cover with new water and repeat the process 3 or 4 times (until the water only turns slightly white).
4.  Drain the rice, then cover with new water (I use filtered water for this last cooking process).  Let it sit for at least 30 minutes before cooking it (at least 1 hour is better in winter).
5.  To get an idea of how much water to add to how much rice, it is easiest to use the guide on the inside of the rice cooker.  Japanese rice storage bins dispense the rice in measurements of one cup per push of the rice dispenser.  If you have three cups, then the water level should be to the "3" of the line marked "white rice" or hakumai (白米 - check this website for a picture of this).  The other measurements are for if you are making okayu or soupy rice. You might have to experiment with this a little if you are not using a conventional rice dispenser to get the exact measurement for one cup.
6.  Set the rice cooker to a certain time, or just push the start button for perfect rice.
7.  When you open the rice cooker, "cut" the rice with your rice serving spoon, the shamoji.  This lets the air circulate around your newly fluffy rice.  Stirring the rice in this way will make your rice perfect, but after you've done this close the rice cooker again.  Never leave the rice cooker open unnecessarily as your rice will go hard.
8.  Rice left uneaten can be left overnight and used for breakfast, but the longer it is left after a certain time the less apetizing it will become.  One method to store leftover cooked rice, is to wrap well in cling wrap, put this packet in a ziplock bag and then freeze.  The moisture will be retained in the rice, and upon microwaving should return to its former glory (more or less!)

Now, if you're a real rice snob, then I'm told that gas rice cookers yeild the best tasting rice, and that next to gas then IH rice cookers are the best.  You'll want to talk to the electrical store before you purchase your rice cooker to get the latest information on rice-cooking technology.  People take this really, really seriously.

For those without a rice cooker, I found this illustrated explanation on the internet:  Use a heavy pot with a top. Add approximately 1.2 cups of water per cup of rice depending of desired firmness of rice. 1 cup rice is 180 cc, 216 cc water is 1.2 cups.  First, bring water and rice to a boil on a strong fire. Reduce to a medium flame, continue to cook for 5-10 minutes. Simmer on a low fire for 15 minutes. Breifly turn heat high to allow excess water to evaporate. Turn off fire. Do not open the top. Let rice stand for 10 minutes. If a heavy pan is not available, place a cup on top of the lid while cooking.

If you are going to get really into the rice thing, you're going to want to decide which type of rice tastes best to you.  The big ten kilogram bags take a long time to get through, so experiment with smaller packets to decide on which rice suits your needs the best. 

Here are some of the types of rice in Japan, listed by the region in which they are grown.

Hokkaido - Yukihikari & Kirara397  （ゆきひかり・きらら397）
Tohoku - Hitomebore & Sasanishiki & Akitakomachi（ひとめぼれ・ササニシキ・あきたこまち）
Hokuriku - Koshihikari & Hanaechizen（コシヒカリ・ハナエチゼン）
Kanto - Koshihikari & Kinuhikari（コシヒカリ・キヌヒカリ）
Chubu - Hatsushimo & Koshihikari & Nihonbare（ハツシモ・コシヒカリ・日本晴）
Chugoku - Koshihikari & Nihonbare & Akebono（コシヒカリ・日本晴・アケボノ）
Kyushu - Koshihikari & Hinohikari & Yumehikari（コシヒカリ・ヒノヒカリ・ユメヒカリ）

As you can see from this list, Koshihikari tops the list for the number of regions in which it is grown. Koshihikari (コシヒカリ, 越光) is in fact the most popular variety of rice cultivatied in Japan.  Koshihikari was first created in 1956, by combining 2 different strains of Nourin no.1 and Nourin no.2 at the Fukui Prefectural Agricultural Research Facility. It has become very popular now in Japan, in part due to its good appearance. It is one of the most highly-grown varieties of rice in the country, and its taste is said to differ per region. Some people think very highly of the Koshihikari harvested in Uonuma area of Niigata Prefecture and so traded at the most expensive price in all of Japan. The character for koshi (越) is used to represent old Echigo Province, which stretched from present-day Fukui to Yamagata. Koshihikari can be translated as "the light of Echigo".
Other rice varieties close to its strains, such as Akitakomachi, Hitomebore, and Hinohikari have been created afterwards by cross-breeding Koshihikari with other Japanese varieties of rice.

For some varieties of rice that may contain less preservatives than other forms of rice, you might try for Omi rice made in Shiga Prefecture on the banks of Lake Biwa.  In recent times much effort has been made to keep Lake Biwa clean as it supports the life of more than one million people who live around its shores.  In this area, you can find popular strains such as Koshihikari, Kinuhikari and Nihonbare, with some new varieties such as Yumeomi and Akinouta.  To try rice from this area, look for Shiga Prefecture on the label （滋賀）, or the kanji for Omi Rice （近江米）.

All of the above refers of course to white rice which is most popular in Japan.  Brown rice or genmai （玄米）has in the past been associated with poverty and wartime shortages, and was rarely eaten except by the sick, the elderly and as a cure for constipation. This traditionally looked-down-upon kind of rice is now more expensive than common white rice, partly due to its low consumption, difficulty of storage and transport, and higher nutritional value. It is a key part of the macrobiotic diet which was developed by Japanese philosopher George Ohsawa.

 
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  7. World on Demand
Steve Burson

World on Demand (WOD) is a new age television option. Streamed through the Internet, World on Demand is the first of its kind in TV viewing pleasure; you can watch on your PC or play it through your television using a "Set-Top-Box". WOD is a legitimate service (not underground television) and its viewing quality surpasses any Internet TV option you have ever seen.

WOD makes it possible to view TV in Japan that you couldn't see before. Channels are continuously being added to the service, and WOD already has rights to some viewing pleasures we have always been waiting for in Japan (eg. the cricket world cup).

World on Demand is the way TV is heading in the future. TV through the Internet, movies and documentaries "on-demand", and also the ability to build both open and closed "viewing communities", so that you can view your TV with other like-minded people (in an open community) or with your friends (in a closed community).

Try something new! Of course, you can sign up on-line immediately through an array of payment methods, and you will have instant access to the package or channels you choose. Take a look today at www.worldondemand.net !!!!


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  8.  Meet & Greet
(thank you to Helen Braithwaite for this submission)

Are you new to town?  Do you want to get out and meet new people?  Or do you just want a nice lunch in a quiet, relaxing atmosphere where you can chat with new friends and old friends?  The Meet & Greet lunch is held on the second Tuesday of the month at Shooters Sports Bar and Grill in Fushimi. 

 Date:  Tuesday, 13th of March
 Time: 11:30am -
 Place: http://www.shooters-nagoya.com/
 Price: 1500 yen for buffet lunch and a drink
 RSVP:  Please RSVP by Saturday the 10th of March 2007.  RSVP to Helen Braithwaite at helenagg@yahoo.co.uk or by phone 090-2186-3717 during office hours.

Shooters has a relaxed atmosphere and is closed during the day except for our event, so we have the run of the place.  This means that it is a VERY easy event for mothers with  babies or small children.  It also means, however, that I must ask for an RSVP so that Shooters can cater for the correct number of people.  Since they are opening the restaurant especially for us, I want to keep these Meet & Greet lunches well attended as they are a valuable resource for newcomers to the area.  Please mark it on your calendar - every month on the second Tuesday, and let me know if you can come.

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  9. Charity Yoga
(Thank you to Marie Langlois for this submission)

Do something for yourself while helping others at the same time!
     
When:  

Saturday, March 17th
6:30pm - 7:30pm

Where:   

ViAura Yoga Studio
Takasaka Building, 9F, 3-14-14,
Nishiki, Naka-ku, Nagoya
(30 second walk from Sakae exit #1, Higashiyama (yellow) subway line, click here for map)

Please contact Marie at mlanglois84@hotmail.com, or call 090-6581-8508 to reserve your place.

•    Limited space available
•    A minimum of a 500yen donation would be greatly appreciated
•    All proceeds will be donated to a local orphanage

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  10. Habitat
  Sue Conolly

I imagine myself as a wild animal, born into a habitat.  In my case, I spent eighteen years in my natural habitat becoming "tame", after which I suddenly moved myself into another wild and unfamiliar environment.  When I say suddenly, I mean that I woke up one morning with an idea to live in Japan, and three weeks later I was alighting from a plane on the tarmac of Narita Airport with a working holiday visa stamped in my passport.  Moving from one environment to another in such a sudden and seemingly unprovoked way was as frightening as it was exciting.  It was almost unbearable on the downward descent of the plane, that an actual tear or two rolled down my cheeks.  I was heading into wild territory.

As I write this on my little laptop in the Mister Donuts, two high school students who might well be just the age I was when I made that journey, are lamenting the fact that they can't sit at their table of choice.  I've seen them in here before.  I think I might be at their table.  Their only choice of seat seems to be along a counter or at a small table for two.  Iya daaaa.... iya da iya da iya daaaa... it seems that we really and truly are creatures of habitat.  Why did I make the sudden and drastic decision to change mine, and what happened when I did?

I changed my habitat I think because I sensed it would make me into a different animal, and while I didn't know what kind of animal this would be, I felt it would be stronger.  I had studied Japanese meaninglessly for six years at school, with minimal to no contact with real live Japanese specimens.  In my own little Australian bubble, I played with the words and grammar particles of the Japanese language much like one might crack a code in a Nancy Drew novel.  When I woke up that morning, I knew that I'd gone stale, and I wanted something fresh.  I called the Japanese Consulate, applied for a passport, got a loan, bought a ticket.

The first thing to happen in my new habitat was that I freaked out.  Tokyo is a monster city to a little Australian from the sticks.  My freaking out took me to other more habitable Japanese places - Okayama, Kurashiki, Iwate, Sendai.  I settled on Sendai and found my habitat in a two room tatami apartment on the first floor of a two storey nagaya.  It was the kind of run-down place you might expect to see in a Japanese TV Drama when the authors are trying to emphasize the poverty of the situation.  I loved it, though.  Me and my little red plastic black and white television, given to me by an English teacher who'd got it from the gomi.  It all felt right.

Paulo Coelo wrote in The Alchemist that when you are on the right path, the universe conspires to make it happen.  This is the way it was with me.  To the naked eye I was a wandering soul, being taken from Tokyo to Okayama to Iwate to Sendai with nothing behind my decisions but an awkwardly arranged homestay and a Japan Rail Pass.  To the universe, I was going exactly where I needed to go to meet the guy who turned out to be my husband and the father of my children.

What else has changing my habitat given me?  What hasn't it given me?  Through living in Japan, I've had to face each and every one of my demons, and I've carved out my own life in exactly the way I've wanted it.  I can see the potential in everything, and that's because I've seen that everything does not hail from my narrow little view of the world.  It's all so much bigger.  And it's all good.  I spent my years lamenting the negative aspects of Japanese culture as I knew them.  I've had my fair share of hissy fits at shop assistants who could not bend a rule to help me.  Far from enlightenment, I still struggle with the daily issues of my life, but now I get glimpses of how perfect the world really is, if you let it.  Struggling against the status quo and swimming against the tide doesn't get you anywhere, all you get is very tired, and stale again no matter what habitat you put yourself in.

To really get the most of your change in habitat, go with the flow.  Don't lock yourself away in a cocoon of Fox TV, Skype and Foreign Buyers Club.  These comforts from home were not available to me all those years ago on my working holiday visa and I feel that I was given a real opportunity back then to see myself in the light of a new habitat.  These days, I don't even have to change my address to change my habitat.  Now that I see the potential, I see that what I put into my life directly affects my immediate environment.


Note: I would like to announce my new website, also along the theme of habitat.  It includes my new blog, photos, photo movies and a podcast.  While it is still in its baby stages, I hope you will appreciate where it's coming from: my own very personal habitat!

http://web.mac.com/conolly

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