Anna's Here!!!

Sunday evening, Matt and I headed to Naha to pick up my friend, Anna Blue, from the airport. Anna and I have been friends since we traveled to Austria together on the Alderson-Broaddus Study Abroad program. She called us about a month ago and asked if we would like a visitor and since then, Matt and I have been getting our guest room in order and planning activities to fill her visit.

On Monday, Anna (who is impervious to jet lag) and I walked around the neighborhood and had lunch at Coco Curry and pedicures with Brittany at Cocok Spa. All three of us must have been thinking pink because we each ended up with a different rosy hue on our toes: I opted for cherry blossoms in honor of our upcoming trip to Kyoto, Anna chose sparkly flowers on an "electric magenta" background and Brittany's toes were covered with pink flowers and dots. Later that afternoon, I also made sure to introduce her to Japanese snack foods and infomercials while we relaxed on the couch and caught up on each other's lives.

Shopping and beach walking were the order of the day on Tuesday. We spent some time in Jusco looking through the bin of t-shirts with funny English expressions and racks of clothing that often left us wondering "shirt or dress?" We also walked to Sunset Beach for Anna to get a view of the East China Sea and the Sunabe Sea Wall before heading back to Hana Mansion. We ended our excursion with a ride back to Hana Mansion in a Japanese taxi replete with self-opening doors, white lace seat covers and a lot of pointing to the map from both me and the driver. Banzai!

Toes - the cherry blossoms might be my favorite thus far.

This was an excuse to use the "cuisine setting" on Anna's new digital camera. That is positively the only reason we purchased chocolate and Doritos. 

NEWSFLASH: My Husband's "Bum Foot"

Rest assured, it's not too serious. Details to follow.......

Beijing: The Chairman is Watching

Portrait of Chairman Mao, Tiananmen Square

Beijing: Forbidden City

Teppanyaki Time

As I was loading the construction photos onto my computer yesterday, I came across some pictures of our visit to a teppanyaki restaurant a few weeks ago. The word teppanyaki is derived from two Japanese words: teppan (iron plate) and yaki (grilled). The food is prepared by a chef who quickly chops and grills the food (meat or seafood and veggies) on a hibachi directly in front of your table. Our chef was working so quickly, his hands were blurred in our pictures.

Katherine and I enjoying our frou-frou drinks. Mine came in a shisa glass that I got to keep. I'm not sure the drink was delicious enough to warrant another round for a matching set.

Matt and I on the front balcony of the restaurant, overlooking the lights of Mihama.

Home Repair Central - It's Better to Be Away

First, there was the lockdown and I wasn't able to leave our house. Now, for the past week, droves of Japanese construction workers have swarmed our building kicking up storms of dust and debris and I've been finding as many excuses as possible to get away. Each day brings a different crew - some tear things down and others put them back together. Yesterday, a team of painters arrived at 8:30, so I packed my school books and laptop in a bag and walked to Starbucks to study. It was amazing how much work I could accomplish without constant drilling and banging or the shadows of workers crawling over the balconies and past the windows (especially creepy with the outlines of their masks and goggles). No such luck today - Before I could get out the door, I was plastic wrapped inside the apartment for spray painting on the exterior.

Why is all of this work taking place? A little backstory for you: In December, our housing agency informed us that there would be construction in January to soundproof our building per mandate by the Japanese government. As an added bonus, we were told, the Japanese government would provide new air conditioning units for each room of the apartment. However, there was a catch :). We had to "pretend" (the housing agency's word) that we were currently without air conditioning for a government inspection. That meant that on a Wednesday, the housing agency came and removed our air conditioners and the next day, I had to be present for a walk through inspection with government officials. I was worried they would ask me questions, especially since there were cords hanging from the bare spots on the wall and the control panel was in plain view, but the visit went off without a hitch.

Unfortunately, there was another catch :). We would not be getting our old air conditioners back and would be without air conditioning until the new units arrived. Finally, after almost three months with no air conditioning (and thankfully temperate weather) the workers descended on Hana Mansion. And it is my opinion, after fostering a great and inquiring relationship with the lady at our housing agency, our apartment has been the first to make its transformation :).

Beijing: Exploring the Hutongs

When we returned to Beijing after our trip to the wall, Trezi took us on a pedicab tour through some of the historic hutongs. The hutongs are the traditional residential streets of Old Beijing and consist of narrow passageways lined with homes and shops off the main thoroughfares in the city. Although many of the hutong and their surrounding homes have been demolished to make way for modern buildings and skyscrapers, there are many well-preserved examples that are designated as protected areas.

Matt and I huddled under a thick blanket as our pedicab (bike with attached carriage) was peddled down the path into a world that seemed far removed from metropolitan Beijing. The hutong was bustling with activity – Chinese on bikes and foot, children playing, men sitting on a corner playing Chinese checkers. Paper lanterns and laundry were hung across the fronts of stores and homes and the smells of meat, spices and coal smoke permeated the crisp air. When we came around a corner, our driver had a brief confrontation with the owners of a cart that was blocking the road. Our driver prevailed (but not without strong words from an older woman in an apron and kerchief).

Near the end of the tour, we visited the home of a Chinese family that owned one of the traditional residences along the hutong. In these houses, called siheyuan, the rooms surround and open out onto a courtyard area that often features a large tree or Chinese garden. The woman we visited took us through her home, which her family has owned for many generations, and served us tea and roasted pumpkin seeds. We had a brief conversation with her that was translated by Trezi and our local guide and learned that she had owned a teahouse and her mother had been a kung-fu performer.

Bundled up and ready to ride. The pedicab was actually a much smoother ride than I thought it would be.

Trezi (left) and the lady who owned the siheyuan we visited. I can't remember her name, but she was very sweet and you could tell she was proud of the history of her home. 

Doorway of a home along the hutong. In Old Beijing, the status of the family was marked by the even number of pegs above the doorway. Four pegs meant a relatively wealthy family. The emperor's residence had the maximum number of twelve pegs.

Beijing: The Great Wall of China

Throughout my travels, I have always had an affinity for certain structures or locations that I have identified as markers of a culture or civilization. My first visits to Pompeii and Delphi both made such an impact on my impressionable teenage mind that when I was able to return later as an adult, I was full of anticipation to see if second visits would have the same effect. Without a doubt, they did. Needless to say, when Matt and I first started discussing a visit to China, the Great Wall was placed high on our proposed itinerary.

Before leaving Japan, we had booked a private tour with guide and driver to take us to the outskirts of Beijing for the day and explore the wall and Chinese countryside. As we drove away from the hazy brown city (I know I keep remarking on the air quality, but it was remarkable what a mysterious essence it gave to our visit), our guide Trezi discussed many aspects of Chinese culture and history with us. I had been intrigued to see exactly what she would say since the government so strictly controls the tour industry and the marketed perception of China and Matt and I were careful not to cross any controversial boundaries, but I think she still managed to convey a lot of insightful information about China and the Chinese people.

As the car traveled into the Juyonguan Pass, we began to see sections of the wall through thick green trees and vegetation. The section of the wall we visited was accessible by a short cable car ride. After a briefing from Trezi (and several reminders to watch our footing), Matt and I hiked from our entrance point along the steep stone path to the watchtower at the peak of the Badaling section. The wall itself – wide enough to accommodate 10 horses across – was impressive, but the view of other sections of the wall streaming out like ribbons and winding effortlessly across the mountaintops as far as the eye could see was amazing.
Did you think I would let you get away without a history lesson? The wall was built and maintained from the 5th century B.C. through the 16th century A.D. to protect China from foreign invaders. 

The wall was constructed of stone from nearby quarries, bricks and packed earth. Several sections (including Badaling where we are pictured getting ready to hike) have been repaired and maintained for tourists to visit.

The wall is shorter on the Beijing side and taller with spaces to accommodate archers on the sides facing enemy territory. Watchtowers were placed intermittently along the wall to provide command posts and shelter. 

The wall is over 4,000 miles in length and despite popular rumor, it cannot be seen from outer space. Another large (but somber) statistic is that over 2 million Chinese workers died during construction of the wall.