Food and Friends in Tottori, Yonago, and Shimane

Initially the weekend of December 12th was supposed to be relatively mellow. But then some of my younger coworkers invited me out for dinner Friday night. We went out to what I learned later to be the first shabu-shabu restaurant in Japan (according to one of my coworkers). Shabu-shabu is a Japanese style meal where you boil vegetables and thin slices of meat in a pot on your table. The meat and vegetables turn the water into a broth, which is consumed during the second course with ramen noodles. The company was good as well. I got to attempt to speak more Japanese and learn more about my coworkers interests and hobbies. One of my coworkers is apparently quite amazing at rhythm games, demonstrating her skill on a challenging smartphone game, scoring over 90% on the hardest difficulty.


I also learned some interesting facts about the Japanese education system. Japanese teachers are hired on yearly contracts until they take a rather rigorous test in their field of study. This test functions akin to tenure, and once complete a teacher can take a full time position within a school. But only a few teachers have the opportunity to take and pass these exams in each field every year. Additionally, teachers are evaluated by the school and board of education, and received different ranks based on their review. The higher ranking teachers receive larger bonuses during the end of the year.

The next day I headed across the prefecture to Yonago to join my friend Maria for a Christmas party at the house of a rather eccentric man, Nishikori. He is the rowing coach for an international rowing club in Yonago. He volunteers with an international welcoming board in his city and often recruits JETs, translators, and other English teachers for his teams. He himself is a rather well traveled globetrotter, having photos of his family all over the world littered around the house. His house reflected his personality, with tons of eclectic amenities. Some stuff included a bathroom sink with two faucets, once which had the functions of a kitchen sink nozzle, and another which could be pivoted to turn into a drinking fountain, a clock which played Ghibli music on the hour, and a permanent kotatsu table dug into his kitchen which heated from the floor (most are electric and heat from the underside of the table). Nishikori is apparently an avid skier, so he invited me along for one of his next ski trips once the mountains open up.

After eating a fantastic potluck dinner at Nishikori's, the next day I went to the nearby city of Shimane and did some quick shopping. While in the city, Maria suggested we visit Gessho-ji temple. We hopped on the rather festive tourist bus loop, which was filled to the brim with Christmas decorations, complete with a whole Christmas tree.


Gessho-ji features an ancient group of monuments for Japanese feudal lords. The monuments were quite large and surrounded by wide fields with rows of lanterns, weathered by the passage of time without looking dilapidated. The ornate gates at the entrance to each monument were carved by famous artists with various themes. The artists were able to create depth and bring realism into to their etchings on these ornate gates. These notable works of art stand as an appropriate tribute to the noble families buried here. Guarding the main monument was a massive, detailed turtle statue, which is said to come alive at night and patrol the grounds. Due to the poor weather, the temple grounds were completely devoid of people, adding to the mystique of the tombs.

But then, regrettably, I had to make the trek back to Tottori-shi. I look forward to visiting Shimane again and seeing more of the sights in a different season.

Classy Kobe

Tim, Maria, and I set out for Kobe to check out the seasonal sights on the weekend of December 5th.

We started our day in Kobe with a short hike to the Nunobiki Herb Garden, a sprawling mountainside retreat. The hike itself had some gorgeous views of a waterfall, a bridge covered in vines, and a massive mountain lake. This scenery alone merited a hike. Yet halfway up the mountain we reached the main attraction.



While we missed the prime flower viewing season, the vistas were still breathtaking since the fall leaves still in full form. The Herb Garden is a tranquil place, contrasting greatly with the usual density of Kobe, even though it is directly adjacent to it. Adding to the atmosphere were speakers playing soft piano music throughout the garden.

The greenhouse was a welcome respite from the brisk air, and featured a fun Christmas display in the atrium. The whole garden was an interesting blend of some Japanese style gardening arrangements while heavily featuring western designs and flowers, such as the Poinsettias and evergreens used in the Christmas displays.

 At the top of the garden lies a northern European style villa, complete with a concert hall. We found the music being played throughout the garden was a live feed from the venue, and spent some time listening to the pianist play.

Afterwards we wandered back into the city to an old Western residential quarter. In this area are a variety of European style houses, originally owned by representatives and international tradesmen who used Kobe's port as their hub. The houses now function as an odd combination of a museum and art gallery. In some rooms a variety of dresses by a specific designer were on display, and in other rooms select sculptures from traveling exhibits lined the counters. At points it was impossible to tell what, if anything, was an original furnishing of the house and what was art. But that added to the fun of the tours, and in my opinion definitely added value to the admission cost. In true Japanese fashion, throughout the houses there were also a few "lucky items", like a boar statue and a set of chairs you interact with for good luck. With the boar, your rub it's nose, pretty straightforward. However, the two chairs are separated by gender, the left for men and the right for women. You sit on your respective chair and make a wish!  While such traditions seem totally normal to do in historical Japanese sites, it felt very different to do so with western items.  

On our way out, Tim had us stop and get a caricature done by a local street artist. This guy was quite a character himself, with a definitively modern Japanese fashion style. Later that night we actually stopped by the artist's exhibit, which was hosted in a quaint cafe close to Chinatown. His studio work is substantially different from his more lighthearted caricatures, with a much more raw, emotional presentation.







We then set off to see the main event, the Kobe Luminaire. Originally the Luminaire was donated to the city by Italy after the Kobe earthquake to increase tourism to the city. They have continued this tradition, with new displays being constructed yearly. We thought we had arrived a bit early since it wasn't dark yet, but there was already a massive queue winding through the streets, with multiple city blocks shut off. We met up with a friend, Erika, and hopped into the line ourselves. By the time the procession had reached the Luminarie, the sun had set and we were met with the awe inspiring sight of a massive vaulted hallway of lights.  Wandering through the massive structure is reminiscent of walking through a cathedral, which is an appropriate analogy since the lights are sent by Italy every year.

At the end of the hallway is a park with more light structures, with a coin toss in the center where you try to hit bells with spare change. I managed to hit one after a few tries, it was quite satisfying.

After snaking through the Luminaire, we wandered into Kobe's famous Chinatown district. Welcomed by audacious gate, Chinatown in Kobe consists of a main street crammed with restaurants, street vendors, and shops all offering Chinese food and goods. The street stands in stark contrast to the rest of Kobe, a very modern, westernized city. The main street was filled with somewhat stereotypical Chinese lanterns, statues, and design aesthetic. As I walked through, it seems the shop owners play up what Japanese people expect of Chinese culture to attract business, creating what felt to me like a caricature of Chinese culture. Yet the food was definitely authentic, and delicious.




Afterwards we hopped on a train to the outskirts of town, and stayed at a seaside hostel with a nice bar and patio overlooking the ocean. The patio provided a nice view of the Kobe bridge, which is illuminated at night, so despite the cold it was nice to chill on the patio and listen to the relaxing sounds of the ocean.




If their main attractions are anything to go by, Kobe is truly a classy city.

The next day we headed into Osaka to catch our respective buses back to Tottori, but before we did we headed to an older section of Osaka for some great food. This part of town used to be the happening part of downtown many years ago before Dotonburi was built up. It's main feature is the Tsutenkaku, a large neon tower. All around it restaurants and shops had popped up, and today it feels rather dated, but not in a bad way. The appearance of the area caused me to feel like I had stepped back in time to the late 80s.  It was in this area of town we went to a delicious, Osaka style okonomiyaki dinner to end our trip.