16th of September

Day 13/63

Today started well, my husband dragged me out of bed and we were on our way to Ishinomaki by nine. We stopped by at the station to pick up reserved seats for some of the shinkansens that we’ll be travelling on in the days to come. We’ve got two weeks of Japan rail passes, which cost us around 350 of euros/pounds each, but it means that we can travel on JR lines as much as we want, including the Shinkansen.

It’s about an hour to Ishinomaki. While on the train, we got to see the Matsushima airbase, where some pilots were practising their flight movements – beautiful.Then 20minute taxi to see the San Juan Babtista, which was our main target of the day. My husband is thinking of writing a book about this guy who was basically send against his will in the 17th centrury to built the 500 ton Galleon and sail it to Europe to see the pope. This man was called Hasekura Rokuemon Tsunenaga. He was sent to Europe by Lord Masamune of Sendai who had an evil plan to try and persuade the Spannish (Hispania as it was then called) empire to trade with him and in return, he’d let the people of Sendai to be turned into Christians.

I visited the ship, San Juan Babtista, or actually the well made replica of this gorgeous piece that now served as a tourist and school children attraction. It’s a tall ship that you don’t really see in the Tall ships race back home in Turku every year, gorgeous and huge. The fact that it actually took 180 people to Mexico and Philippines was really astonishing to me. It had three levels of living/goods sections and at the back, I think around four.

This guy Tsunenaga must have had a lovely seven years on sea trying to complete a mission that was doomed to fail when he left in 1613. Japan on those times had convinced that Christianity was destroying their own culture, which is why they slaughtered everyone who wouldn’t deny the fact that the Christian god exists by swearing on a plate. My husband wrote a book about Shiro Amakusa, who was a young, Christian boy leader samurai, who fought to the bitter end back in 17th century for the Christianity. We investigated him on our previous visit in Japan and went through Kyushu for that.

Japanese are a cruel kind when it comes to torture and death, which you probably know… However, boiling people alive in hot springs, crusifying them and letting the tide then drown them, burning people alive in their straw rain coats and buring them up to their necks alive and then stomping on their heads with a horse while their wives were watching – were just a couple of the charming examples on what would happen to you if you had *anything* to do with Christianity in Japan, in the 17th century.

Despite of the excellent visit to the San Juan Babtista, we’ve had a bit of a low day. This was due to a lost wallet with four credit cards and a huge amount of cash inside. In an occasion like this, it’s very difficult to enjoy the day as it is – I even if had Whale on a stick as my lunch…

We made a visit to the local police station, where we completely fucked up their computer system, as they didn’t really get Gaijin who loose their wallets… Like, ever. That was about half an hour when they took all our details, and another hour on the train back to Sendai. I cancelled my one card in three minutes in the internet. Jay for Finnish banking system. Don’t come and tell me that Sampo is a bad bank… I already ordered a new one as well. It wasn’t quite as simple for my husband’s cards though, due to the difficulties we had for not having a working cell phone at the moment. Who knew, that the number *before* the actual number that you need to dial before you get out of our land line hotel phone to abroad is:  0-001010 and then the actual number… This took about an hour and a half. Finns are efficient, what can I say.

After all this upset and faffling around, we decided to have a 7-11 dinner with some booze at the safety of our hotel room. Sushi, salad and stringy cheese with wine… On a day like this you have to look at the perspective: 1. Neither one of us is dead. 2. We are not ill or injured 3. We still have access to money, 4. We’ve got our passports, our tickets and our railpasses (which btw, saved us a ton of money since we can get as many seating tickets on the Shinkansen as we want) So to be far. It could be worse. And as one of our very best friends told us before we left: “There will be a day when you reach the bottom. For me it was when I woke up on the beach with a crab eating my hand.” So could be worse, there’s no crabs in this hotel room yet:)

Off to Hokkaido – I am skipping the last two days of training in Hombu, because I believe there is more non-kenshis reading this… I will however point out that Hombu summer camp is always a good idea.

I learned a lot in those days, specially talking to the Japanese young university students… They technically train Kempo for a year and become shodans, by the time they leave university, they are perhaps even sandans… But then the reality hits them and many of them told me that they will have to stop training because of the demanding life of working in Japan. Finns are so lucky: We are not expected to do 12 hour days at the office (or stay at home with kids), where there is no room for hobbies… Sadly enough, many of these kenshis I will never see again. How different is your life if you are born to Jyväskylä than to Tokyo… You may think the level of living is similar, but I couldn’t help but to think that living around the clock working life like that is like living in a modern prison. I know it can be like that in Helsinki or London as well, I’m just glad that’s not my life.

On Saturday morning I woke up at 6am after lovely three and a half hours of sleep on the futons. This day is what I call a Gasshuku hangover. Yes, I also had a real hangover, too much biiru, desu ne. But what is evident when ever one has dealt with something so intensive as a Shorinji Kempo camp – there is always the Gasshuku hangover. It means you are in vain trying to find your schedule sheet and check when the Chinkon Gyo starts, you are doing Gassho at all the doorsteps, including the bathroom’s and even the traffic lights are looking like they are standing in Kesshu gamae.

This week in Tadotsu was indeed one of the best weeks of my life. I met awesome people, my Japanese communication has really picked up: I can say “Move your leg there”, “Let’s try one more time”, “Well done! You are very good”, “Let’s take it slow”, “Punch me to the head with your right hook” and other very useful phrases that you should know when on a martial arts camp with mainly non-English speaking kenshis.

We eventually went out to Yokota’s every night, and as always, the sessions turned into Seiho parties (meaning that everyone massages everyone at the tatamis). Yokota’s best dish in my opinion, is not the Doshin So Chiken btw, but the Kimchi rice. That is to die for. On the last night we had some of the senseis come out as well, specially helpful was Mika sensei, who can speak english. The whole day was mixed feelings of goodbyes. I was specially unhappy to say goodbye to some of the new friends that I’m unlikely to see again. Eerik the Swede-Japanese and Cedric the German-English I am confident that I can see again back in Europe. Evandro however, I don’t see popping into Brazil anytime soon. It is so precious to meet so many great people in so little time…

What I feel most lucky about is that I have family who can come with me to experience something like this. Kirsi, Timo and I made a five year pact to come back and try to take also the two other training members of our family with us.

Kati’s personal smallish advice for surviving in Greece

1. Bring sun cream. Cover your nose, your ears and specially your back with it. Your legs can also burn so pretty much more the cream on the better. Of course this is also the possible way to socialize with attractive fellow travellers or Greekmen “Could you do my back?”
2. Drink all the time. This means you’ll need about 4litres of water every day and you’ll get very familiar with the local loo facilities and their cleaning ladies. But this will stop you from collapsing and dehydrating, possibly the most important part of your well being.
3. Salt. When you are drinking water all the time, you need to bear in mind that you need much more salt to keep your body going. I recommend olives.
4. Hats & Scarfs, if you are in the sun. Cover your head or the sun will knock you down.
5. Be social, people will probebaly touch you and get to your uncomfort zone, but be prepared and non jumpy, even if you are a Finn with a huge personal space complex. Be active, you get so much more out of your time in Greece. Throw in a few “Kalimeras”, perhaps think about smiling sometimes – this will get you far. Greeks are really generous and welcoming people. Embrace the possibility to wake up from your Finnish social hybernation.
6. Realise that Greek red wine is much stronger than wine back home. There is probably going to be some Raki later, so keep in mind that your over heated body will get dizzy faster than back home as well. There is always a stronger Booze.
7. Early dinner is at 2200. After that, there is night clubbing. This is due to it being so much less hot during the night. Get your body sorted out with the late dinners and weird eating times in general.
8. Keep your Siesta for sleeping. There’s a reason why nothing happens in the afternoon – do not do it like me and schedule work on those slots. Just have a nap, or the ‘cover sleep’ to cover the 5hours lack of sleep you’ve gotten while staying up until 4am on the Beach. You’ll be feeling so much better at 6pm when it’s time to work again. The Greeks sleep in two phases: from 2am to 7am and 1pm to 5pm.
9. Air conditioning can also give you a sore throat or keep your cold going for a week.
10.Realise that your body is not used to Greece. It’s a full time job to just keep you going and manage your survival.