Tokyo mountains

Tokyo is the largest city in the world and incredibly densely populated with 35 Million people in the city area stuffed into a rather small piece of land. Still, some nature remains even in the close vicinity of the city. The most popular destination for excursions is Mount Takao. I have not yet had the chance to visit, but it seems a little on the overrun side with masses of schoolkids and families going there all year round.

This weekend I went hiking on a mountain in the very West of Tokyo, Mount Mitake. We were four expats lacing up our hiking boots and taking the Chuo line in direction of Tokyo`s outlayer. It takes about 1.5 hours from Shinjuku to get to the final train station. We had a little lunch right in front of the station. A local farmer was selling sandwiches and cucumbers with miso paste and chatted cheerfully with us. He also had some local bugs in a box, I was not quite sure whether they were supposed to be eaten as well... Then we took the bus and a mountain railway up to the top of Mount Mitake.
We did a beautiful round tour on Mitake that takes you through the little village, the large pilgrim`s temple and a lot of forrest area. I just love the look of the Japanese forrests and we were lucky to pick a good day for hiking, cool but not raining. My friends Andrew, Michael and Jim were trailing a bit as they constantly stopped to take pictures of mushrooms. They have grown very fond of growing and collecting mushrooms here in Japan. Not that I want to suggest it has something to do with the very strict anti-drug policy in Japan... There were two nice waterfalls in the forrest to which we climbed down. Climbing them up again was definitely better than any stepmaster in the gym. The guys freaked out a little bit because I drank water from the river. It`s supposed to be full of little bugs and their fecals here and cause of serious diarrea. But I was simply thirsty and the wasabi that I ate later probably cleaned up my stomach quite well, I didn`t face any problems later.
A lovely stonegarden was also hidden in the forrest. The atmosphere was just beautiful and it felt very far from Tokyo. Due to the clouds you could not even see the city either. People we met on the way were unusually friendly. It`s only hikers who greet each other with "Konnichi wa" here. (Other than that they just scream "Irrashaimaseeeee" (welcome) in every store - because they have to...). The hikers were of course superbly equipped as usually in Japan, with expensive and a little over the top (for such an easy hike) mountain gear. Strangely enough you don`t see those Japanese in sandals and shorts trying to climb serious mountains here in Japan. How often we laughed about them... They must all exile to Switzerland, seriously, you don`t meet them in their home territory.
After the hike we had a dinner break before heading back to the city. We found a lovely oldfashioned soba place on top of Mitake, managed by two elderly ladies. We had some cool beer and soba noodles. They served us some extra free goodies on the side which was actually clever. They were so good we all ended up buying them from the little store the ladies have as well. We were really tired (more from lack of sleep than from the hike) and felt like lying down right away on the tatami mats in the restaurant. Instead we had to do the 2-hour trip back to Tokyo and started snoring on the train, twisting our necks painfully.

Japanese literature - first recommendations

The one Japanese thing I`ve been really interested in before coming here, was Japanese literature and I have read quite a bit more since. So in this post I`d like to give recommendations for those who are interested in reading Japanese authors. After all, I was member of a literature club in Basel and maybe you girls back home want some tips since we never got to read Japanese authors in the club...
Here are the first two recommendations by two contemporary Japanese authors. I really like Ishiguro`s work, I have read almost all of his novels by now. He is maybe not strictly a Japanese author as he has been living in the UK for a long time and is publishing in English only. But definitely worth reading
Kazuo Ishiguro, "Never let me go" ("Alles was wir geben mussten"), 2005
The novel is set in rural England, sometime in the near future. Young people are living in a strict boarding school on the countryside. But they are not there to be educated for their future, they are clones and their reason for being is to serve as a human spare parts stock and are taught how to be good at that and are taken care of after each operation to continue serving until the lethal operation is necessary. The youth, despite being brainwashed that their existence serves only one purpose, try desperately to give their existence sense and maintain relationsships. This novel is a chilling future vision and was named one of the most relevant books of the year. Ishiguro is a Japanese native living in the UK and has published many other novels, among them the novel turned into a film "The remains of the day". Another novel of his that I highly recommend is "An artist of the floating world" which deals with the Japanese "day zero" after WWII and the question of individual guilt and collaboration with the previous regime.
Hitomi Kanehara - "Snakes and Earrings" ("Tokio Love") 2004
Lui is the typical Tokyo Barbie Girl, cute looking with a single focus: consumption, her nickname being a derivate of Louis Vuitton. But Lui is attracted to men with a darker side, her boyfriend being a instable punk and her lover a tatoo artist fantasizing to kill her. The menage a trois is linked by their interest in body art, tatoos and more extreme forms of piercings and modifications. Working towards Lui`s split tongue, the three delve deeper and deeper into sex and violence. Kanehara is in her twenties and considered one of Japan`s most promising young authors. "Snake and earrings" earned her two of the most relevant literature prizes. "Autofiction" is another work of hers that has been translated and well acclaimed.

Swiss dinner

Being abroad for an extended period of time, you sometimes crave a meal from home. Rumour has it that there are two or three Swiss restaurants here in Tokyo, but I have not checked them out yet. But home-cooked food is better anyway, right?

I had asked Joanna who visited in Marc to bring me some spice for "Zueri Gschnaetzlets" (sliced veal in a creamy mushroom sauce with potato pancake). So I invited my housemates Rinko and Hi-chan for a Swiss dinner. The ingredients for the dish are easy enough to find except for the spice that I already got. The main challenge was the Roeschti (potato pancake) since we do not have the right kind of grater in our kitchen and no pressure steam cooker. I cooked the potatoes in a regular pan and then grated them on a grater with smaller holes. Turned out a little mit mashy, but the Roeschti still turned out tasty, despite having a slightly different consistency. The mushrooms were not quite the right ones either, but nevertheless good.
We had a very fun evening, Rinko and Hi-chan seemed to enjoy the meal and we drank a bottle of sparkling wine that Rinko had bought. Took a some pics of my lovely housemates, see here...

Nakajujo hits back

The agency that we are renting our rooms in the Nakajujo Guesthouse from seems to feel the global recession too. They started to encourage us to save energy a in April. Well encourage means threatening us with additional charges if consumption would not decrease. Strange, because April was warm enough already not to use heating anymore which is consuming lots of energy and cool enough not to switch the aircon on which is equally consuming.
Knowing the Japanese tendency to accept rules however absurd they are and not to voice opinions too openly, I expected my housemates to comply and say nothing. Haha, I was wrong. A vivid discussion started in the house. Especially the three "oldest" tenants (in terms of length of stay) started pointing out to the agency`s failures (such as to provide a second decent-sized fridge or a bigger than baby-size rice cooker) and said they had no grounds for complaints as long as they did not meet their end of the deal. There was some discussion as to if the newest housemates who had moved in in March had caused the excess consumption, not really conflict avoiding either. Another suspicion was that agency simply pretended that consumption had increased and that we should check whether it applies to our house at all.
Well, last time I was at the agency`s office for signing the new contract they made me fill out a questionnaire on utility consumption. The tone was pretty much "please turn your housemates in and report their excessiveness in using energy". Methods used by certain doubtful state organisations... I did just put a few crossed that we always switch light off and so on and suggested that THEY put in energy saving lamps and such.
Now the cleaning lady put posters all over our house - that is next to any potentially engergy consuming item like stove, fridge, shower, light switch, etc. that says "Please turn X off after use". I didn`t even get upset anymore, I`ve gotten used to being reminded of rules everywhere I go here. But obviously one of my housemates got mad - justifiedly so. She wrote nasty comments in Japanese on the posters with permanent marker and little English comments like "Yes, Sir", "Yes, Commander" under the reminders. It`s very funny. There are two housemates who know that kind of English and I suspect it is Tomoko who is a pretty straightforward person in general. You go girl!

Kaohsiung, Southern belle

Kaohsiung is Taiwan`s second biggest city and about 2 hours from Taipei by fast train (Japanese Shinkansen technology). Economically it`s somewhat less relevant, though a major port in Taiwan. The city is rather large, but easy to navigate and has a more laid-back vibe than Taipei, despite (or because?) of the oppressing heat. I was staying in Kaohsiung most of the time as I was invited to stay with someone and ventured out from Kaohsiung as a base. So I got to know this city quite well.
Kaohsiung bustles with life at night. There are so many food stalls and a couple of night market areas where you can grab cheap and delicious food. There are also night markets with cheap clothes and accessories and other gimmicks which make a nice stroll after dinner. During the day there are fancier shopping options in the department stores and boutiques around town. Kaohsiung also features some of the famous Japanese department store chains like Mitsukoshi and trendy Japanese boutiques selling the latest fad from Harajuku and Co. So a large commercial city that is not that noticeable at first sight, but turns out to be charming with time. Lots of small coffee shops to relax, avenues with a lot of green and parks make it a leisurely spot too.
Really nice is the area in the North of the city where Kaohsiung University is located. I was quite blown away by the University`s location at the far end of the bay, overlooking the sea and with a nice beach right in front. My host who had studied there before found it less interesting, but coming from a country with no access to the sea that is a dream-come-true of a study location... Further up the road there is one of Kaohsiung`s major tourist attractions, the former British consulate (actually not a former consulate, but seat of a trading company). A red brick building with a temple next to it, steep steps leading up to its entrance.
Cijin island is a nice retreat from Kaohsiung`s bustle. It`s located right in front of the city, a long stretch of island that is connected to the harbour area by ferry and on the South end with a tunnel. We went for dinner on Cijin and the ride on the small, old, very cute ferry with flower paintings is really lovely. Dozens of fish and seafood restaurants line the main street. The available seafood is on display at the entrance of each place and all you need to do is point out the desired pieces and indicate how you would like to have them done. Very fresh and yummi! During the day Cijin has a long, palm tree lined stretch of beach and some temples and a lighthouse to visit.
There are two lakes in the vicinity of the city that make a quiet retreat as well. Lotus Pond and Chengching Lake. Lotus Pond`s Dragon and Tiger pagodas are a popular motive for postcards. There are two pagodas on stilts in the water, one of them has a dragon, one a tiger an oversize entrance figure (classical Chinese symbols). Shops next to the pond sell Taiwanese sweets (had to buy some "omiyage" for my housemates) and traditional Chinese theatre puppets and masks. Beautiful. Chengching Lake is a bit bigger, but does not feature and specific attractions around. The park announced the aquarium as one, but it was about the most old-fashioned, and sadly run-down aquarium we had ever seen. Fishing in the lake is forbidden, but you still see people sneaking around for fish.
Once I had learned how to ride motorbike, I really cruised around in Kaohsiung a lot. As this was my base for most of the trip and I had such a good time there I got really fond of it. Is it a must-see for other tourists? Well, at least Lonely Planet says too that it has developed into one in the recent years. And I`d say it`s worth a visit for sure.

Little Japan

Taiwan was occupied by Japan for an extended period of time, for around 50 years until 1945. Still some older people speak Japanese. Despite the occupation period, Japan seems to enjoy a rather good reputation in Taiwan, as opposed to other countries that have seen Japan as an invader. The fact that the Japanese lay the foundation for the country`s economical success that followed later by remodelling its infrastructure, namely transportation may have contributed to this.
There is a heavy presence of Japanese companies and brands and their popularity is soaring among young people especially. Japan seems to be considered cool and hip and technologically cutting-edge from what I have heard. Tokyo is an extremely popular destination for short trips, especially shopping trips. Japanese pop music is very popular. Japanese fashion is sold in hip boutiques and is considered super trendy among the young. Luckily though they show a bit more restraint in expressing their fashion sense... The large Japanese department stores and clothes brands have jumped on that train and opened branches in Taiwan`s cities. Mitsukoshi and Co. can be seen all over Taipei and other cities.
Japanese food is equally en vogue. Sushi now also features the menu on the night market where you can grab some dirt cheap nigiri. Some Japanese chain restaurants like Yoshinoya or the Japanese competitor to McDo, Mo`s Burger are very present and popular too.
The title of the article is provocative to a Taiwanese for sure. And it certainly isn`t "Little Japan" that much. But the influence of Japanese culture is visible and does not seem to be rejected. Is it a genuine love for all things Japanese? Or is it rather a second worst alternative for a country that tries to distinguish itself from the threatening "homeland" China from where most of its culture comes from? Obviously, the leaning towards America is strong as well. Besides all Taiwanese having an English name as well they also are quite keen English learners and way more successful than the Japanese. The Japanese language seems to have lost almost all significance, young people focus on English study and skip Japanese. However, Japanese words such as "sugoi", "kawaii" etc. are very trendy and you hear exclamations of those by the young generation very often, so again Japan provides the fashionable element.

Lanyu island

Before going to Taiwan I bought the Lonely Planet guidebook to get an idea of what I could do there. As I have always had a thing for small islands, I specifically looked at the various islands off the coast. I would have been interested in Kinmen, a Taiwanese island that is very close to the Chinese mainland and therefore heavily militarised. Yes, admit, I was less interested because of the beaches or other scenery and more for the atmosphere that must be pretty peculiar.
And then I came across the chapter on Lanyu. It`s a small island in the South East of Taiwan and quite off the beaten track still (well all of Taiwan is off the beaten track in terms of European visitors pretty much). It has an aboriginal population and is very different from the mainland plus it seemed to be naturally beautiful too. So a good destination for a hop off the main island.
I did the trip from my "home base" in Kaohsiung and my friends helped me organise the plane ticket and accomodation and a rental scooter. I took the train early in the morning to Taitung and then ventured to the small airport that had a very easy-tropical-breeze vibe. Except for being called back for a hairspray in my luggage the check-in was as quick as it gets. A tiny 19-seat plane is flying to Lanyu 6 times daily. Somewhat bumpy of course, but fun for anyone who is not afraid of flying. Upon my arrival my host mother waited for me with the scooter and I then rode it, following her car to the accomodation. Luckily I managed to do it well enough not to wake suspicions that I had barely sat on one before in my life...
I did a first tour of the island right away. The tour around the island by scooter takes around 1.5 hours if you don`t stop. There are many impressive rock formations around the island which itself is mountaineous as well. Little beaches that are virtually deserted show up once in a while. On some you can see the traditional long boats with beautiful paintings that are typical for the local Yami tribe. The locals like to hang out in small huts that are on stilts and right next to the road. Looked a bit like the "fale" in Samoa that my sister showed me. They were friendly for sure and always greeting and winking at me, the benefit of a rural place. There is little traffic on the island, most people ride motor scooters and there is just one bus that tours the island 4 times a day. The major traffic obstacle are actually the ubiquitous goats.
In the evening, after sampling some of the host mum`s fish soup (hm, very bony - soup, not the host) I went for a night tour of the island to watch animals. We were around 20 people to unite at the guide`s home. Robert, a Spanish guy and me were the only non-Chinese speakers and the whole introduction as well as the tour were in Chinese. We had some friendly translators though. We ventured out on our motorbikes to a small forrest on the hills to watch night animals like owls and various insects and endemic plants of Lanyu. The Yami, the local aboriginal tribe is still quite connected to nature and know how to use the various plants and have a lot of mythological stories associated with them as well. I got translated enough to make it interesting. The only annoyance were the long breaks because everybody wanted to take bad pictures in the dark. Not just a Japanese thing, this constant clicking obviously... We ended up in the harbour to see some fish that glow in the dark. I was glad to make it back home since I was running very low on gas. But I even made it back to the airport the day after, but then the tank was probably more than empty.
In the morning I had breakfast at the LP recommended cafe "Breakfast" and enjoyed delicious pancakes, coffee and fresh homemade soymilk. We could also delve into politics a little. It seems that the relationship with mainland Taiwan has not always been the best. The island was cut off for a long while and very underdeveloped. It was then chosen as a dumpsite for toxic waste which still lies off its South coast and of which the locals were not informed. The Yami also feel treated as a bit of a tourist curiosity for the Chinese descendant Taiwanese. Taiwan has a population with around 98% Chinese descendants who immigrated from Southern China mostly, a long time ago. The aboriginal tribes make up for few people only and have been somewhat instrumentalised, even though publicly nurtured by Taiwan`s government as they make a good argument for Taiwan`s cultural difference to the mainland.
In any case Lanyu was a very worthwhile trip and is probably naturally one of the most beautiful spots in Taiwan. It takes a while to get there, but the rewards are rich.