Purpose of Trip, History, Geography, Travel, Time Changes, Years
Diary
Starting a diary- finding the phot albums, Life in Alabama, Fitting in.
HISTORY OF HIRATSUKA
Although it is not clear when people started living in Hiratsuka, the ruins show, there was life almost 2000 years ago.
It was probably around the 13th century that the population of Hiratsuka started growing, when the new government (Bakufu) was established in Kamakura, only 20 kilometers (12 miles) from Hiratsuka. Because of Hiratsuka's location, it became a base for both land and water transportation, and started functioning as a stage for travelers.
These characteristics of Hiratsuka continued in the Edo era (17th - 19th centuries) until the modernization of Japan started in 1867 with the collapse of Edo Bakufu. Up to this period, the major industries were farming and fishing.
Once the industrialization began, it changed Hiratsuka rapidly. In 1887 the train station was built and the center of the economy moved to this area. In 1905 the gunpowder factory of the navy started operation, which would eventually lead to the tragic bombing of the city in the Second World War. Cotton-spinning had also become the major industry when a factory opened in 1917.
During the period of WW2, most of the factories were producing munitions supplies. When Hiratsuka was bombed in 1945, 70% of the city burned to ashes. After the war, new factories were built where the gunpowder factory used to be. Today the northern part of the city is an industrial area that produces rubber, automobile, machinery and chemical products.
People in Hiratsuka began celebrating Tanabata in 1951, hoping that the city would recover from the devastation of WW2 as soon as possible. Now it is one of the largest festivals in Japan, and attracts millions of people from all over the country.
GEOGRAPHY OF HIRATSUKA
Hiratsuka is located on the Sagami Bay about 25 kilometers (16 miles) southwest of Tokyo. It is also located on Tokaido, for hundreds of years one of Japan's busiest roads connecting Tokyo and Kyoto.
On the eastern border of Hiratsuka runs the Sagami River, which has played a very important role in trade among river towns for centuries. The fact that Hiratsuka was also a relay point for marine transportation in those days made the city even more important as a junction of river and marine transportation.
POPULATION
Hiratsuka: about 250,000 - (see "Tanabata Festival" program)
Japan: about 124 million (6th most populous nation in world)
Population Density (as of 1989):
Japan: 324 persons per square kilometer
U.S.: 27 persons per square kilometer
Population Growth Rate:
Japan: .35%
Europe: .3%
World Average: 1.7%
figures from Japan A Pocket Guide, 1992 edition Foreign Press Center, Tokyo, Japan, 1992.
TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
The transportation system in Japan is very well organized and almost always on time. Most commuters use public transportation, especially in larger cities. Buses, subways and trains are very handy for getting around Japan. You may want to avoid using public transportation during the rush hours (7:00 AM to 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM).
Rairoad/Commuter Stations are the hubs of Japanese cities since the railroad came to Japan in the Meiji Period. The Yokohama to Tokyo railroad opened in 1872. No country is as well connected by rail as Japan, and in no country are the trains so well maintained and on time.
One aspect of the efficiency of Japanese rail systems is the mechanized ticket buying machines -- there are also automated machines which can tally up the extra owed at the end of a trip for those who may not have bought the right ticket initially. It is interesting to not, however, that many stations with automated ticket sales still have a human ticket taker and noarrow wickets through which the rush hour crowds must pass.
Sations are also commercial hubs. Many stations have department stores adjacent or built over them, and indeed many trainlines, as in the Osaka area, were built by department stores, which established their terminals as convenient locations for nearly captive shoppers. This has been called "terminal culture"--no fatal implications intended.
YEAR
Since the beginning of the Meiji period (1868), the Japanese year corresponds to the living emperor. When there is a new emperor, the year changes, as it did with the death of Showa emperor Hirohito in 1989 when the Heisei emperor Akihito took over. Heisei 1 was also Showa 64 because the Showa emperor died in January of Showa 64. There was no new years day for Heisei 1.
To convert:
add 1925 to Showa year to get western year.
add 1988 to Heisei year to get western year.
TIME
Japan is one day later than the United States. In summer, 13 hours later than Boston; in winter, 14 hours later, due to daylight savings time.
02 - TAXI RIDE
FN: Tanabata Myth, Tourist Brochures
DIARY: Remembers Tanabata from youth
CEREMONIES
Ceremonies, holidays, and rituals are an important way of maintaining group feeling and cultural continuity.
Oshougatsu (New Year's Day)
Seijin Shiki (Coming of Age Day)
Omatsuri (festivals)
OMATSURI
Japanese people like festivals. In particular, during the summer, you'll see people wearing yukata and participating in community folk dances called Bonodori. Hiratsuka City is famous for its Tanabata festival.
Oshougatsu
During the New Year's holiday, people go to a Shinto shrine to wish for happiness, health, and good luck for the coming year. This visit is called hatsumoude. You will also see many women wearing kimono (traditional Japanese clothing).
Friends, relatives, and acquaintances send each other New Year's greetings.
MATSURI
Matsuri is an annual local festival in Hiratsuka. Traditional dress for males for this celebration is a happi coat. The collar is printed with the name of the family soba shop, in Mr. Miyagawa's case, "suehiro." A Mikoshi is a portable miniature shinto shrine. The mikoshi holds a divine spirit and is stored at the Shinto shrine throughout the year. During Matsuri the people take the Mikoshi out and carry it through the streets, to ritually cleanse and purify the city. Borne on two wooden beams, it requires 20 to 30 people to carry.
Tanabata:
A Japanese 'Romeo and Juliet'?
...If you go into the Japanese countryside on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month (usually on a day in August), you may be surprised to find curious rows of freshly-cut bamboo stuck into the ground in front of people's homes and adorned with colorful strips of paper. If you look closer you'll see that these papers are covered with poems that children have written in celebration of Tanabata, the Weaver Princess...
Tanabata, the Star Festival, is the fourth largest festival in Japan (the first three being Oshogatsu -- the New Year, Hinamatsuri -- the Girls' Festival, and Tango no sekku -- the Boys' Festival). Its origin is unclear, but it seems to have been introduced to Japan from China, where it had been observed for a long time, in the year 755.
The Tanabata Myth
The daughter of Tentei, the Emperor of the Stars, lived on the eastern bank of the River of Heaven (the Milky Way). She spent her days and nights dutifully weaving clothes for the many gods who lived in her father's great mansion. She was always so absorbed in her work that she took the nickname Shokujo, or "Weaving Girl."
When Shokujo became old enough to marry, her father chose Kengyu, the "Ox Puller," a young man who lived on the western bank of the river, to be her husband. For Shokujo and Kengyu it was love at first sight, and the two of them ended up taking a much longer honeymoon than had been planned for them. During their absence Kengyu's Ox grew thin, and the gods in Shokujo's father's house grew annoyed at their lack of new clothing.
In a fit of anger at their irresponsible behavior, Tentei condemned the newlyweds to live separately, again on opposite sides of the river, and permitted them to meet only once per year -- on the seventh night of the seventh moon.
The River of Heaven is very wide, and no permanent bridges can span it. Every year, therefore, when the night of the couple's meeting arrives, all the magpies in the world fly to the river in a great flock and form a living bridge that Shokujo can cross to meet her husband. If, on this day, a magpie is seen on earth, it may be pelted with stones by children for not joining in the effort to make this romantic meeting possible.
Unfortunately for the lovers, magpies are unable to fly to the stars in bad weather. If it rains on the day of the meeting, the event is cancelled and the lovers are made to wait another. Many children in Japan, therefore, begin the day of the Tanabata festival with the invocation, "tenki ni nare! tenki ni nare!," "may it be good weather!"
03 - MIYAGAWA HOUSE
FN: Traditional Japanese house, Japanese bath
DIARY: Remembers Tanabata, Family Tree, Boy's Day
Children's Life
Japan children spend more time studying and in school than children in the United States.
Children's play has been changing in Japan during the last couple of decades. In the past, children played with simpler toys and they played with their friends outside. But nowadays, many children play with more sophisticated toys such as what they call terebi geimu (video games) and they tend to play alone in their home.
Tango-no-Sekku
The Boys' Day celebration or Tango-no-Sekku occurs on May 5 of every year. The origin of this celebration, and also that of Girls' Day (March 3), dates back to when infant mortality rates were high and families would offer prayers for the health, strength, and long life of a newborn child. The disease of a sick child would be cast into an effigy and the effigy hurled into a river, removing the child's sickness with the current. From these simple effigies evolved the sets of fancy, detailed dolls presented to a boy on the first May 5 after his birth by his parents, grandparents, and other relatives and brought out for display each succeeding Boys' Day. The dolls given to boys symbolize the virtues families desired for their sons, amoung them, strength, power, determination, and endurance.
Another custom of Boys' Day is to fasten three carps made of cloth to a pole and place it outdoors. The Carp symbolizes endurance and strength because they swim against the current. As the wind blows into the open mouth of these cloth carps they stretch out and look like real carps swimming upstream.
A common food eaten on this day is Kashiwamochi, a special sweet wrapped in oak leaves. The oak represents strengh.
Girls' Day is also known as Momo-no-Sekku meaning the Peach Festival. Peach flowers represent the feminine qualities of grace, beauty, and gentleness. Girls receive sets of dolls related to these virtues, representing the imperial court.
May 5 is now called Childrens' Day and is a National Japanese Holiday.
THE JAPANESE BATH
In traditional Japanese homes, baths were made of cedar and other wood, and heated by charcoal braziers under the tub. They are deep and narrow, and the bather sits upright rather thatn streaching out. Before entering the tubthe bather washes completely and rinses wiht a shower or bucket. Floors of bathrooms have drains so that rinsing and washing are done directly onto the floor. The bathwater in the tub can therefore be used by all members of a family in turn, usually eldest male first down to the youngest bride. It is customary for parentsto bathe with small children, and such baths, always at the end of the day, are usually constucted in the same shape, with showers added, and the same routine is followed except that it is likely that a middlec;ass husband will be the last, not the first to bathe, as he will arrive home late at night.
04 - LIQUOR STORE
FN: Pre-war Akashisho & Hiratsuka, Saki notes
DIARY: Describes the Soba Shop
KURO SASETA HOO GA II
The memories of WW2 ae fresh in the minds of the three generations who experienced it; the very old, prewar generation, those educated during it, and the children of war survirors, who learned the lessons first hand and second hand. For such people time is marked from the war years, and a sense that the experience formed them is common. Saying that the young do not understand hardship is common -- the expession kuro saseta hoo ga ii, it's good to experience difficulty, is common amoung such people, when referring to child development.
05- KIMONO SHOP
FN: History, Genji & Haiku quotes.
DIARY: Family, Shop woman photos.
Chirimen (crepe) is a silk weave with a nubbly texture that can be used for making kimonos. In Japan, kimonos made from chirimen, which is a very luxurious fabric, are always expensive.
Modern clothing in Japan is usual in the Western style, although traditional clothing is still worn for ceremonial purposes, on certain special occasions, and by some older people as ordinary daily wear.
KIMONOS
Many older women wear kimono throughout the winter because it keeps them warm, but for those who do not wear it often, it can be very uncomfortable. Older women wear a more casual kimono made of cotton, and although the construction is the same as the more formal kimono, the fabric is not as heavy and is therefore less restricting. The formal kimono is worn to weddings, funerals and other ceremonies and celebrations.
Omiya mairi
Omiya mairi is a visit to the Hachiman (Shinto) Shrine to receive the priest's blessing for health, happiness, and a long life (omiya=shrine, mairi=going for a blessing). A formal kimono is worn for this occasion and On either side of the dark-colored part of the kimono is the family crest or kamon (ka=family,mon=crest). The name of the Miyagawa family crest is Daki Myoga. Daki means to hold or embrace, and myoga is a kind of vegetable. Each round crest is dyed into the kimono fabric and shows two myogas embracing. Every family has their own crest which may have a flower, vegetable, bird, or other animal represented. Crests are usually round, but are sometimes square.
BUDDHA'S BIRTHDAY
On April 18, Buddha's Birthday, there is a celebration where people dress in kimonos and go to the Buddhist templeto pray. Obachan is a term of honor literally meaning grandmother.
A furisode is colorful kimono with flowing sleeves that hang almost to the ankles.
A furisode is appropriate for an unmarried woman to wear on formal and ceremonial occasions, such as Seijin Shiki and weddings.
Kimono-Care
Traditionally, to clean a kimono, you unsew the kimono, clean and press the pieces of kimono fabric separately, and then resew the kimono. This method is called araihari, from arau ('wash') and haru ('spread'). Since all of the seams in a kimono are straight, it is easy to take a kimono apart and remake it. Cleaning a kimono in the traditional way works very well, and doesn't damage the fabric of the kimono, so that a kimono can last for decades.
Cloth is cleaned by araihari before being made into kimonos. The man has spread the washed cloth and is now starching it, before pressing it.
Kimono-Fabric
Most kimonos are made of silk, although inexpensive kimono may be made of cotton or other cheaper fabrics. Yukata are generally made of cotton. The price of kimono fabric is dependent on the material (silk or cotton), the weave (plain, or a fancy weave such as Chirimen), and the method and type of decoration such as Yuuzen.
What fabric is suitable depends on the wearer and the occasion.
Kimono-How to wear
First, a thin under-kimono and then the outer kimono are put on and fastened. No buttons, snaps, or zippers are used. Instead, the kimono is carefully aligned, draped, and held in place with cords, thin scarves, and sometimes short elastic belts with clips on each end.
Both women and men wrap the right side across the chest first, and then bring the left side over to be fastened by the right hip. After the kimono is firmly in place, the obi, or sash, is tied at the waist.
Types of Kimonos
There are various types of kimonos. The examples you see here are furisode and yukata.
Kimonos
Kimonos are the traditional clothing of Japan. There are many types of kimonos, and they are worn by both women and men. The cut, color, fabric, and decoration of a kimono vary according to the sex, age, and marital status of the wearer, the season of the year, and the occasion, such as ceremonies and festivals, for which the kimono is worn.
You may want to know how to wear a kimono and how to take care of it properly.
Modern Clothing
Japanese people nowadays (not only young people but also middle-aged and older people) wear Western clothes, for example, jeans, suits, skirts, etc. Traditional clothes (kimono) are worn mainly for special occasions such as Seijin Shiki and Oshougatsu.
Since modern clothes come from the West, most of the vocabulary for modern clothing is "borrowed" from English.
Obi
An obi is the sash tied around a kimono. Men wear narrow, simple obi. An elaborate woman's obi may be a foot wide before it is folded in half at the waist, and 13 feet long.
It may take half an hour or more for someone to tie an obi in one of the complicated styles appropriate for a young, unmarried woman on a formal occasion. The young woman would not wrap and tie it herself.
06 - FRUIT SHOP
FN: Fruit as gifts, prices, women in family business
DIARY: Mother working in soba shop, mother's role in America
MOM and POP STORES
Family Run businesses, "Mom and Pop" stores can stay open longer and maintain a lower profit margin because family members tend the shop, and there is little in the way of benefit packages or pensions or other overhead for other employees, who are often part time. Living inor overhead for other employees, who are offten part time. Living in or over the shop makes it much easier for the family to maintain the household and business at the same time.
07 - MODEL SHOP
FN: Tragic hero, story of Yoshitsune, post war attitude toward technology, America
08 - TAKAGUCHI WORKSHOP
FN: T family decorations, Film of T's father
DIARY: Father taking over business
TAKING OVER THE FAMILY BUSINESS
Mr. Takigushi, like so many small shopkeepers and tradesmen, took over his father's business. It is still common for a son to do so, or if no son is available or willing, a daughter will bring in a husband who might be adopted into the family, take the family name, and carry on the business. Especially in smaller cities and towns, it is expected that there will be family continuity in the area, and indeed, in the rural areas, 65% of the older residents have been there all their lik=ves. Younger people may leave for the urban ares, but generally on or more children may return to the hometown when their parents become dependent elderly.
AMERICAN MOVIES
The popularity of American movies in Japan was particularly high in the 1950's and 1960's, and is now matched by Japanese-and Chinese-made films. Most Japanese films seen in the U.S. are considered "art films" in Japan, but few ordinary popular films from Japan are seen in America. Since the mid-1970's there has been a craze for American 1950's culture, and James Dean, Marilyn Monroe, and Elvis Presley have their own "industries" of goods and labels popular amoung the young in Japan.
09 - FISHING BOAT
FN: History of fishing, history of warf
DIARY: Fishing w/ suka grandfather at Yokohama, a big port
HISTORY - HIRATSUKA WHARF
Hiratsuka developed as a city partly due to its natural port where the Sagami River flows into the Sagami Bay. Ideal for both trade and fishing, boats were able to land right on the beach. The wharf burnt during WW2. In 1955 the fish market was rebuilt and, in 1965, was expanded to three times its original size.
'MANCHURIAN INCIDENT'; 'MANCHUKUO'
Fishing has always been considered one of the major industries of Japan.
10 - FISHERMAN AND WOMAN
FN: Fisherwoman's story, women at work, statistics on work today: what jobs people hold
ecology, oceans, fishing industry
DIARY: Knew fisherwomens size at shoe store
HANDING DOWN
Land reform after the war was related to the destruction of large family holdings and to the family held cartels called saibatou. Even amoung the less affluent, however, handing down property has been problematic in recent times.
Handing down your boat to your eldest son ws the tradition in the private fishing industries, but this changing as fewer sons (in agriculture as well) want to continue in such arduos trades. There is so little security, so little predictability, in such work. The old people despair of the continuance of old ways and crafts; the young want more regular employment and time to themselves.
And indeed there is a significant factor now: young women do not want to marry eldest sons of fishermen or farmers, and it is work that cannot be done without women as domestic support. In sone areas, farmers and fishermen are importing brides form Southeast Asia to fill the gap.
11 - FISH MARKET
FN: Describe auction, fish in diet
DIARY: Personal starting to change.
Fish consumption is much greater than meat consumption in Japan. Because of its geography (that is, because Japan consists of four islands), people can get fresh fish on a daily basis. One of the most popular fish dishes is sushi.
12 - BUS RIDE PART 1
FN: Burned out city
DIARY: Shigeru on bike
13 - BUS RIDE PART 2
FN: Post war Reconstruction, American role
14 - SHOE STORE
FN: Shoe Store, Lunch drawing identity family food referances geta, War in Manchuria
DIARY: Hiroshi's story, Manchuria picture
Rice has been always considered the staple food of the Japanese people. Occasionally, Japanese eat noodles instead of rice. Nowadays, bread is getting popular, particularly among young Japanese.
The Japanese diet is based on vegetables and fish. But since World War II, the Japanese people have been introduced to many Western styles of cuisines.
Fast food is very popular among the Japanese. People buy ready-made meals at convenience stores, in addition to going to fast food restaurants.
Fast foods (sometimes called instant foods) have become very popular in Japan. You can see many fast food restaurants-not only Western types of fast food restaurants such as McDonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken, but also Japanese types such as noodle stands.
Department stores, supermarkets, and convenience stores in Japan also sell a wide variety of precooked and ready-prepared foods.
SCHOOL UNIFORMS
Uniforms play a much greater role in Japanese society than in the United States. Besides providing business for such shoe shops, the institutionalization of uniforms in schools was said to promote equality and comfort amoung children. Most schools and teachers feel children arehappier when they are more like each other, and uniforms minimize differences in wealth and tastes. Most Junior and Senior High schools, and most private nursery schools, have such uniforms. In the 19th century, the style of secondary school uniforms was borrowed form Prussia and other European models, and many schools still use variations on those costumes- semi military looking jackets for boys, middy blouses and skirts for girls. Amoung some teenagers, altering the uniform slightly, such as adding a gaudy lining or pegging the pants legs, is an act of creative individualism -- or if caught, an act of "school violence."
EDUCATIONAL REFORM
"Access was improved by raising the period of compulsory education from six years to nine and by establishing new universities..."
page 175
Tames, Richard
A Traveller's History of Japan
Interlink Books, Brooklyn, NY, 1993.
DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY IN WW2
"The war had cost Japan 1,855,000 dead and 678,000 wounded or missing... A third of all industrial machinery had been destroyed by bombing and a quarter of all buildings. Of the major cities only Kyoto, Nara and Kamakura had been spared devastation. When they landed at the end of August 1945 even the conquerors were stunned at the scale of the destruction. "
page 167
Tames, Richard
A Traveller's History of Japan
Interlink Books, Brooklyn, NY, 1993.
NAMES
Japanese name order:
Family Name, Given Name
American name order:
First Name, Middle Name,
Last Name:
In Japan the family name is passed down through the sons. If there are no sons, a family might adopt a boy; or the oldest daughter's husband may take over his wife's family name (and the business), if he is not a first born son.
SCAP
Supreme Commander of Allied Powers (in the person of American General Douglas MacArthur).
HIROSHI
I asked my mother about her brother Hiroshi's experience taking over the family business.
ME: Was your younger brother happy about taking over the shoe store?
MOTHER: I think he wanted to ba a school teacher. He attended Waseda University, one of the best, in Tokyo. As soon as he graduated he took over the business. I got married and left home. It was a gradual taking over...Hiroshi was an apprentice -- father gradually retired.
ME: Do you think his son will take over the shop?
MOTHER: No, Hiroshi doesn't expect that. Satoshi works in the local government.
ME: What will they do with the shop?
MOTHER: They ...don't know what to do with the shop now. They may close it. It is difficult to compete with the big department stores. But they have a contract with the schools for sneakers, for the shoes children wear with school uniforms.
ME: How long has the shop been in the family?
MOTHER: My grandfather started the shoe business. These days sons take over their family business, but usually, if they don't want to, the parents don't force it.
15 - QUEENS
FN: Describe, show brochure
16 - MIYAGAWA HOUSE
FN: Shamisen music
DIARY: Musicians in family grand father, grand mother's teacher, Shigeru on stage.
17 - HIGH SCHOOL
FN: Baseball in post war Japan, school-Shigeru's trips, war bombing in Hiratsuka
DIARY: Coal bus- Mrs. M's story, base ball picture.
18 - BUDDHIST GRAVEYARD
FN: Buddhism- brief history
DIARY: Anniversary of Grandmother's death, mother's relationship to mother in law, grand mother pictures.
