honolulu
honolulu is a city like any other, except it's in the middle of nowhere. as we were driven from the airport to the hotel, i was amazed at the amount of concrete, glass and steel they must have imported to build all this stuff. skyscrapers, highways, runways, office blocks, shopping centres, interstates, restaurants... honolulu is like every other cities, which makes it amazing that it even exists.
when we reached honolulu i was suffering sleep depravation from our exploits in maui. we decided to go shopping. we went to the biggest shopping centre in hawaii call the ala mona shopping centre. we went to abercrombie and fitch and i promptly sat down on on the leather sofa and fell asleep in the women's section. i must have slept for over an hour and the staff never said a word to me. that evening we went to a restaurant that our guidebook said keanu reeves likes to eat at. he wasn't there that night. it was a thai place in wakkiki.
that next day we rented a car from people that operated from a desk in an alley and dressed like cuban gangsters. they were suprisingly professional and helpful and showed us how to get to the north shore. before we went, we went back to the shopping centre and saw a japanese actress that stars in a volleyball drama here. i can't remember her name, but she's a lot smaller in real life.
we drove to the north shore, along 6 lane interstates that were still jammed. the north shore is a different world to honolulu and it reminded me of maui. there were no highrises or even hotels. there were small beach homes and fine sandy beaches as far at the sun could see. we stopped and we for one last dip in the pacific. the sound of waves and the immaculate beyond. the sun started to set and turned the sky to an orange, then bright red before fading to a heavy purple and dark blue. we drove back in along the dark roads before hitting the lights of the city once more.
we had breakfast in eggs and things, a local cafe. they did macadamia pancakes with big mounds of whipped cream. (it's the shells. they are so hard to crack that it take specialise machiney to do it. that's why they are so expensive.)
the flight from honolulu to nagoya took over 8 hours. again we passed the international date line so we jumped a day forward. i didn't know if the flight was rough or smooth because for the first time during the trip i slept.
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
i just got back
i went to hawaii last week. i went to the islands of maui and oahu.
the plane left nagoya at around 6pm on 18th june. we bumped and jumped our way across the sky, passed the international date line and landed in honolulu at 7am on 18th june. from honolulu we caught our connecting plane to maui.
maui airport is like an old school gym, with wooden strips and wooden benches. we met our tour representative who talked utter bullshit to try and get us to buy optional tours. we said we would think about it. the guy who dropped us off at the hotel discovered i could speak english, and told us we could check ourselves in. as i sit and type this now, i can't really recall anything about the hotel room. i think it had white walls.
we rented a car, the cheapest car from the company. it was a 1999 nissan sentra. it had scratches and dents along the door, the plastic lining on the windows was hanging off, the door handle wouldn't release properly, amongst other things.
we ate lunch and drove to big beach on the south of the island. i'm a bit shit at describing stuff so i will just use the most appropriate cliches. it had golden sand and clear blue water. it had picture perfect palm trees and a clear clean sky. behind the beach was a green mountain. it was glorious.
we left before sunset and went to kihei beach until it got dark. it wasn't as nice as big beach as the strip of sand was thinner and we could hear the traffic from the road. old guys that looked like they may be homeless drank beer on a nearby picnic table.
in the evening we went shopping in a shopping mall. i bought a disposible waterproof camera for the next day.
we were at the port at 6.30am and on the boat by 7am. we were going to molokini. the ship zipped atop of the waves. molokini was already surrounded by boats by the time we got there. we did snuba, a hybrid of snorkelling and scuba diving, and took pictures of all the fish as well as eachother. then we went to turtle town. i saw some turtles swimming in the sea. all i could think about was how pi in life of pi by martell decribes how to gut a turtle and eat all it's insides.
after the trip we drove to lahaina. we had lunch in a burger restaurant with the greatest view a burger restaurant will ever have: perched over looking the whole pacific. after lunch was some walking around and then i fell asleep on a grass bank. a security guard woke me as he was leading a hobo away from the park. he was just checking i was ok.
we drove further north to kanapali. kananpali was a ghost town, a typical resort area hammered down with super chain hotels and no people or life (except for in the hotel and on the hotel beach). we saw the sun set on the beach, which was far to crowded with loud families. we drove back to lahaina for dinner. we ate seafood in a restaurant which was fabulous.
the next day i set the alarm for 2.30am. we were scheduled to drive up the volcano to watch the sunrise. i drove the whole way, up the winding curvy roads for around 2 hours. i followed trucks full of bicycles. when we finally got to the top, it was too dark to see where the viewing platform was. we were 10000ft about sea level. it was cold. not chilly cold but arctic nipples cold. and it was cloudy, well it wasn't really cloudy, but we were standing in a cloud. visablity was less than 9 metres. sunrise was a total bust and we couldn't see shit. the best thing about it was we met this american guy who used to be in the navy and kept talking endlessly about his japanese roommates in college and how his loved those guys. he shook my hand before he waddled off into his SUV.
on the way down the view was amazing, once we got below the clouds that is. maui, the towns, the ocean, the hill and fields all lay before us. bikes zoomed past me as i crawled down the slope, drinking in as much as i could. on the way down we stopped by a shack and looked at the flowers. they were imported from south africa. we met another american. he told us why macadamia nuts were so expensive.
in the afternoon, after a stop in krisp kream, we were at kapalua beach. it too was a little overcrowded. the bay had a lot of fish though. we move to napali beach via maui tacos. the beach was better and i tried boogie boarding. even though the waves were only a foot or so tall, i still got a kick.
we caught sunset on the lookout point that in winter is a lookout for humpback whales, and then went to a restaurant called seawatch. we could hear the wave.
the next day we woke up early to have one last drive around maui before we had to leave for the big city of honolulu...
i went to hawaii last week. i went to the islands of maui and oahu.
the plane left nagoya at around 6pm on 18th june. we bumped and jumped our way across the sky, passed the international date line and landed in honolulu at 7am on 18th june. from honolulu we caught our connecting plane to maui.
maui airport is like an old school gym, with wooden strips and wooden benches. we met our tour representative who talked utter bullshit to try and get us to buy optional tours. we said we would think about it. the guy who dropped us off at the hotel discovered i could speak english, and told us we could check ourselves in. as i sit and type this now, i can't really recall anything about the hotel room. i think it had white walls.
we rented a car, the cheapest car from the company. it was a 1999 nissan sentra. it had scratches and dents along the door, the plastic lining on the windows was hanging off, the door handle wouldn't release properly, amongst other things.
we ate lunch and drove to big beach on the south of the island. i'm a bit shit at describing stuff so i will just use the most appropriate cliches. it had golden sand and clear blue water. it had picture perfect palm trees and a clear clean sky. behind the beach was a green mountain. it was glorious.
we left before sunset and went to kihei beach until it got dark. it wasn't as nice as big beach as the strip of sand was thinner and we could hear the traffic from the road. old guys that looked like they may be homeless drank beer on a nearby picnic table.
in the evening we went shopping in a shopping mall. i bought a disposible waterproof camera for the next day.
we were at the port at 6.30am and on the boat by 7am. we were going to molokini. the ship zipped atop of the waves. molokini was already surrounded by boats by the time we got there. we did snuba, a hybrid of snorkelling and scuba diving, and took pictures of all the fish as well as eachother. then we went to turtle town. i saw some turtles swimming in the sea. all i could think about was how pi in life of pi by martell decribes how to gut a turtle and eat all it's insides.
after the trip we drove to lahaina. we had lunch in a burger restaurant with the greatest view a burger restaurant will ever have: perched over looking the whole pacific. after lunch was some walking around and then i fell asleep on a grass bank. a security guard woke me as he was leading a hobo away from the park. he was just checking i was ok.
we drove further north to kanapali. kananpali was a ghost town, a typical resort area hammered down with super chain hotels and no people or life (except for in the hotel and on the hotel beach). we saw the sun set on the beach, which was far to crowded with loud families. we drove back to lahaina for dinner. we ate seafood in a restaurant which was fabulous.
the next day i set the alarm for 2.30am. we were scheduled to drive up the volcano to watch the sunrise. i drove the whole way, up the winding curvy roads for around 2 hours. i followed trucks full of bicycles. when we finally got to the top, it was too dark to see where the viewing platform was. we were 10000ft about sea level. it was cold. not chilly cold but arctic nipples cold. and it was cloudy, well it wasn't really cloudy, but we were standing in a cloud. visablity was less than 9 metres. sunrise was a total bust and we couldn't see shit. the best thing about it was we met this american guy who used to be in the navy and kept talking endlessly about his japanese roommates in college and how his loved those guys. he shook my hand before he waddled off into his SUV.
on the way down the view was amazing, once we got below the clouds that is. maui, the towns, the ocean, the hill and fields all lay before us. bikes zoomed past me as i crawled down the slope, drinking in as much as i could. on the way down we stopped by a shack and looked at the flowers. they were imported from south africa. we met another american. he told us why macadamia nuts were so expensive.
in the afternoon, after a stop in krisp kream, we were at kapalua beach. it too was a little overcrowded. the bay had a lot of fish though. we move to napali beach via maui tacos. the beach was better and i tried boogie boarding. even though the waves were only a foot or so tall, i still got a kick.
we caught sunset on the lookout point that in winter is a lookout for humpback whales, and then went to a restaurant called seawatch. we could hear the wave.
the next day we woke up early to have one last drive around maui before we had to leave for the big city of honolulu...
Monday, June 13, 2005
film time
i've watched more films over the past few months that i can remember properly. here are a few random shots over the face of time.
the treasure of sierra madre: badges? we ain't got no badges. bogart is so effortless at every role he plays that whenever i watch him, i feel like only he could have played that role.
i, robot: i thought this would be crap. it wasn't. will smith should make more clever blockbusters like this and less crap sequels like bad boys 2. so in the end, sonny is like moses right?
the godfather partIII: i heard it isn't as good as the first two. they were right. the problems are, as you already know, andy garcia trying to be james caan and sophia coppola's nose. add to that al pacino worst scene committed to film, right at the end when he's shaking her body. the best part though is francis ford's commentary: he is obviously either extremely bitter and paranoid or a self styled genius stifled by his own excuses.
25th hour: cast is great, especially barry pepper, who out acts edward norton and philip seymour hoffman i reckon. only brian cox's monologue at the end out does him.
view from the top: gwnyeth paltrow is too classical looking to be trailer trash. everyone gets hit with the shit stick.
the luzhin defence: i thought it would be weirder and darker. i thought it would involve more chess and less emma watson.
remains of the day: hopkins and thompson: british to the end. howard's end.
the united states of leland: a movie for 15 year olds looking for something deep and meaningful. god i miss those times.
shaun of the dead: i thought it would be funnier. i guess i wanted a feature length episode of spaced (and what the fuck is wrong with that?).
i am also still reading wind in the willows. is it really meant to be a kid's book? my massive gaps in horticultural knowledge is slowing me down.
i've watched more films over the past few months that i can remember properly. here are a few random shots over the face of time.
the treasure of sierra madre: badges? we ain't got no badges. bogart is so effortless at every role he plays that whenever i watch him, i feel like only he could have played that role.
i, robot: i thought this would be crap. it wasn't. will smith should make more clever blockbusters like this and less crap sequels like bad boys 2. so in the end, sonny is like moses right?
the godfather partIII: i heard it isn't as good as the first two. they were right. the problems are, as you already know, andy garcia trying to be james caan and sophia coppola's nose. add to that al pacino worst scene committed to film, right at the end when he's shaking her body. the best part though is francis ford's commentary: he is obviously either extremely bitter and paranoid or a self styled genius stifled by his own excuses.
25th hour: cast is great, especially barry pepper, who out acts edward norton and philip seymour hoffman i reckon. only brian cox's monologue at the end out does him.
view from the top: gwnyeth paltrow is too classical looking to be trailer trash. everyone gets hit with the shit stick.
the luzhin defence: i thought it would be weirder and darker. i thought it would involve more chess and less emma watson.
remains of the day: hopkins and thompson: british to the end. howard's end.
the united states of leland: a movie for 15 year olds looking for something deep and meaningful. god i miss those times.
shaun of the dead: i thought it would be funnier. i guess i wanted a feature length episode of spaced (and what the fuck is wrong with that?).
i am also still reading wind in the willows. is it really meant to be a kid's book? my massive gaps in horticultural knowledge is slowing me down.
Thursday, May 26, 2005
city roads
"i had nothing to do today so went on a bike ride. i hopped on my crappy bike, looked at the dead leaves in my basket and set off. i considered going to the park nearby, but then thought that i always go to that park. in fact, i have to ride through it everyday to go to work. so, unexpectedly, i decided to turn left instead of going straight on into the park. the left turn took me down some unfamiliar lanes, which were lined with identical houses. i rode to the end of the road and found myself on a wide triple laned artery, several of which bisect this city. i decided to ride down this artery and see where it would lead me.
as i rode the sun shone down. it's spring now, not too hot and not too cold. the chrome lorries thundered past me, and the busy cars tooted their horns. i rode past shops and restaurants: from little shops selling mirrors to grand shopping centres and small wooden coffee bars to glass and steel fast food joints. i kept riding until i reached a red signal. i stopped and saw a driving range with high green nets. i went to get a better look and maybe pick up some errant golf balls but to no avail: the range was closed and there were no golf balls to be seen. the signal turned green and i was off again.
i continued going again. the artery was straight and flat making riding a joy. buses rumbled past and old people meandered over the crossings. all of a sudden things started to look familiar in a way that they didn't before. i've been here, i thought. i looked up and saw a big blue brother sign. i recognised the building. below it was a subway station. i've been to that station. that's the station were i saw them remove a young girl's body on a stretcher. she was dirty, with the black grime you only find from industrial machinery: the grease between the cogs. i guessed there was an accident. that was nearly 2 years ago now. for a moment i felt lost; without a direction to go. my head was dizzy. then i looked back and saw the straight road; looked ahead and saw it was the same road. the signal went from green to red and i was stuck for awhile; waiting for it to change."
"i had nothing to do today so went on a bike ride. i hopped on my crappy bike, looked at the dead leaves in my basket and set off. i considered going to the park nearby, but then thought that i always go to that park. in fact, i have to ride through it everyday to go to work. so, unexpectedly, i decided to turn left instead of going straight on into the park. the left turn took me down some unfamiliar lanes, which were lined with identical houses. i rode to the end of the road and found myself on a wide triple laned artery, several of which bisect this city. i decided to ride down this artery and see where it would lead me.
as i rode the sun shone down. it's spring now, not too hot and not too cold. the chrome lorries thundered past me, and the busy cars tooted their horns. i rode past shops and restaurants: from little shops selling mirrors to grand shopping centres and small wooden coffee bars to glass and steel fast food joints. i kept riding until i reached a red signal. i stopped and saw a driving range with high green nets. i went to get a better look and maybe pick up some errant golf balls but to no avail: the range was closed and there were no golf balls to be seen. the signal turned green and i was off again.
i continued going again. the artery was straight and flat making riding a joy. buses rumbled past and old people meandered over the crossings. all of a sudden things started to look familiar in a way that they didn't before. i've been here, i thought. i looked up and saw a big blue brother sign. i recognised the building. below it was a subway station. i've been to that station. that's the station were i saw them remove a young girl's body on a stretcher. she was dirty, with the black grime you only find from industrial machinery: the grease between the cogs. i guessed there was an accident. that was nearly 2 years ago now. for a moment i felt lost; without a direction to go. my head was dizzy. then i looked back and saw the straight road; looked ahead and saw it was the same road. the signal went from green to red and i was stuck for awhile; waiting for it to change."
Sunday, May 22, 2005
hospitalization
i had to go to hospital the other day to see a dermatologist. i had to wait nearly 3 goddamn hours before it was my turn to see the doctor. luckily i brought along my copy of mr vertigo by paul auster.
mr vertigo is not as good as the new york trilogy. that's all i kept thinking. i kept thinking "this is so conventional" and "where are all the weird bits". mr vertigo has weird bits (a boy learns to fly) and has loads of cool american collocations, but nothing to blow me away; nothing to knock down the doors and break out. i liked it though, it just wasn't the new york trilogy.
*SPOILER WARNING - i am going to reveal the ending of the first part of the new york trilogy. if you think this will wreak it for you, then don't read the next paragraph.*
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
you know the ending of city of glass? the bit right at the end when the guy just disappears and becomes a book? well he just disappears and no-one can remember anything about him. his existence becomes a bunch of words. no-one knows what he look like anymore. he's just too far gone.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
*SPOILER END*
when i finally got into the examination room, the doctor diagnosed me in about 3 minutes and sent me away with a prescription. i am now reading wind in the willows by kenneth grahame. i want a house by the river and no anal surgery.
i had to go to hospital the other day to see a dermatologist. i had to wait nearly 3 goddamn hours before it was my turn to see the doctor. luckily i brought along my copy of mr vertigo by paul auster.
mr vertigo is not as good as the new york trilogy. that's all i kept thinking. i kept thinking "this is so conventional" and "where are all the weird bits". mr vertigo has weird bits (a boy learns to fly) and has loads of cool american collocations, but nothing to blow me away; nothing to knock down the doors and break out. i liked it though, it just wasn't the new york trilogy.
*SPOILER WARNING - i am going to reveal the ending of the first part of the new york trilogy. if you think this will wreak it for you, then don't read the next paragraph.*
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
you know the ending of city of glass? the bit right at the end when the guy just disappears and becomes a book? well he just disappears and no-one can remember anything about him. his existence becomes a bunch of words. no-one knows what he look like anymore. he's just too far gone.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
*SPOILER END*
when i finally got into the examination room, the doctor diagnosed me in about 3 minutes and sent me away with a prescription. i am now reading wind in the willows by kenneth grahame. i want a house by the river and no anal surgery.
Sunday, May 15, 2005
reading
finished the aspern papers by henry james and after the quake by haruki murikami.
the aspern papers: a jolly jaunt through the perils of journalism. he uses very long sentences sometimes. now that i have to teach grammar, i notice that long sentences easily confuse me when i think of them in a grammatical way. to combat this i just read all the words really quickly and hope the damn thing makes sense before i start the next one. it's amazing how far you can go with 3 people and an old house.
after the quake: a load of short stories relating to the kobe earthquake that killed loads of people. i used to hate short stories: found them pointless and unfulfilling. now i love a great short story. short stories are a fragment of someone's imagination that the reader has to complete. short stories are lean and taut. nothing is wasted. it's one hundred percent straight up, fresh from the farm with no additives or flavorings.
finished the aspern papers by henry james and after the quake by haruki murikami.
the aspern papers: a jolly jaunt through the perils of journalism. he uses very long sentences sometimes. now that i have to teach grammar, i notice that long sentences easily confuse me when i think of them in a grammatical way. to combat this i just read all the words really quickly and hope the damn thing makes sense before i start the next one. it's amazing how far you can go with 3 people and an old house.
after the quake: a load of short stories relating to the kobe earthquake that killed loads of people. i used to hate short stories: found them pointless and unfulfilling. now i love a great short story. short stories are a fragment of someone's imagination that the reader has to complete. short stories are lean and taut. nothing is wasted. it's one hundred percent straight up, fresh from the farm with no additives or flavorings.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
baby bamboo
i was in a bamboo forest at 5am on wednesday, wondering how to find the baby bamboo shoots.
i'm with the mori family again. last week, mr mori invited me to come over and see him and his family. they said they were having a barbecue on wednesday. i said i'd love to. after i accepted they told me i would have to wake up at 4am and go to the bamboo forest and look for baby bamboo, so i would be best to come over on tuesday and stay the night. i said that sounds fine.
i go to their home town, karia, after work on tuesday. mr mori picks me up from the station and we go to a korean restaurant and eat meat. in the restaurant is also mr mori's work friends and some of their family, maybe 12 people in all. they all say hello, and i say hello back. one guy stands up and starts bowing. i just wave my hand and grin. i get seated at the children's' table. they help me decipher the menu, with is all different kinds of beef, or different kinds of pork, so i just point at random things. if they say no or shake their heads, i choose something else until they agree with me. they also order me some soup, rice and salad. after the meat, they ask me if i want dessert. i point to ice cream. the waiter comes out with 3 bowls of ice cream, one for me and one each for the 2 little girls. it's the youngest girl's birthday: she's 13.
after the restaurant with go to a bar which looks like someone's house. we all crowd around the biggest table, and the mother behind the bar brings out the big brown bottle of sake with a name written on it. the youngest member of the work friends starts to mix drinks for everyone. the little girl leads me outside to a vending machine and recommends i buy the melon soda.
there is a tv i the corner of the bar which doubles as a karaoke machine. they ask me if i know the beatles. i said yes. this is an indication that i want to sing beatles songs. i decide to sing twist and shout and the whole table joins in at "ah, ah, ah" part. they all clap during the instrumental and they all clap at the end. then i'm press ganged into singing happy birthday for the little girl. they all clap again and ask me if i know queen. i end up singing we will rock you and (you know elvis don't you?) love me tender. they all smile and clap after each rendition and i start to feel my face go very red.
the next morning i wake up at 4am and get into mr mori's car in the black night. he drives around to pick everybody up. these are people from the neighborhood. they bring with them shovels, hacksaws and gloves. we also pick up the 2 little girls from last night. their mum bows as we drive away. we drive around the near empty streets as dawn begins to break. as we reach the bamboo forest, up a hill and off a dirt track, it is light.
we split into 2 groups: the neighborhood guys form one group; and mr mori, the 2 girls and me form the other. we go to find baby bamboo with a shovel. we walk around the forest as the bamboo sways above us, like long grass. the width of a trunk is about the size of a beer can. i ask how tall the bamboo grows. they said about 8 metres. the ground is covered in slippery leaves as mr mori leads the charge and we follow. we only find one baby bamboo shoot. everyone is a little disappointed.
meanwhile the guys from the neighborhood have hacked down 3 bamboo trees. they were now cutting them into three metre sections so we could fit them into mr mori's car. i wondered why we need all that bamboo.
on the way home we drop by a fish market, where mr mori buys fresh eel and prawns; and a convenience store, where we buy tea and coffee.
back home they start unloading the bamboo. there are about 10 three meter pieces. they take the hacksaw, and cut half way into the bamboo. then they get a chisel and hammer and use it to split the bamboo down the centre, until they reach the cut. they repeat this with another piece. we end up with 2 troughs. they get out a 3 step ladders, a hose, a pump and a bucket. they fix the 2 troughs so that there is a down ward gradient; one trough slightly higher than the other. they attach the hose to the top end and place the bucket at the bottom. they place the pump in the bucket and attach the hose to the pump. they then fill the bucket with water. they switch on the pump and the water flows through the hose, up to the top, down the trough, into the bucket then over and over again. we use the rest of the bamboo to make simple bowls, chopsticks and tinder for the barbecue.
the bamboo water feature is used to separate the noodles. the pump is switched on. the bowls filled with soy sauce, ginger and spring onions. everyone stands by, chopsticks raised and ready. the noodles are put at the top and the water runs down and drags them out. as the noodles run pass you have to grab as much as you can and put it into your bowl before slurping them down.
mr mori handed me a cup of beer at 10 in the morning. the sun was getting warmer and people started coming over for the party. the kids were in high spirits and they all gasped when they saw the bamboo troughs. the noodles were nearly ready to be separated. i drank the cool beer in the sun. it was going to be a hot day.
i was in a bamboo forest at 5am on wednesday, wondering how to find the baby bamboo shoots.
i'm with the mori family again. last week, mr mori invited me to come over and see him and his family. they said they were having a barbecue on wednesday. i said i'd love to. after i accepted they told me i would have to wake up at 4am and go to the bamboo forest and look for baby bamboo, so i would be best to come over on tuesday and stay the night. i said that sounds fine.
i go to their home town, karia, after work on tuesday. mr mori picks me up from the station and we go to a korean restaurant and eat meat. in the restaurant is also mr mori's work friends and some of their family, maybe 12 people in all. they all say hello, and i say hello back. one guy stands up and starts bowing. i just wave my hand and grin. i get seated at the children's' table. they help me decipher the menu, with is all different kinds of beef, or different kinds of pork, so i just point at random things. if they say no or shake their heads, i choose something else until they agree with me. they also order me some soup, rice and salad. after the meat, they ask me if i want dessert. i point to ice cream. the waiter comes out with 3 bowls of ice cream, one for me and one each for the 2 little girls. it's the youngest girl's birthday: she's 13.
after the restaurant with go to a bar which looks like someone's house. we all crowd around the biggest table, and the mother behind the bar brings out the big brown bottle of sake with a name written on it. the youngest member of the work friends starts to mix drinks for everyone. the little girl leads me outside to a vending machine and recommends i buy the melon soda.
there is a tv i the corner of the bar which doubles as a karaoke machine. they ask me if i know the beatles. i said yes. this is an indication that i want to sing beatles songs. i decide to sing twist and shout and the whole table joins in at "ah, ah, ah" part. they all clap during the instrumental and they all clap at the end. then i'm press ganged into singing happy birthday for the little girl. they all clap again and ask me if i know queen. i end up singing we will rock you and (you know elvis don't you?) love me tender. they all smile and clap after each rendition and i start to feel my face go very red.
the next morning i wake up at 4am and get into mr mori's car in the black night. he drives around to pick everybody up. these are people from the neighborhood. they bring with them shovels, hacksaws and gloves. we also pick up the 2 little girls from last night. their mum bows as we drive away. we drive around the near empty streets as dawn begins to break. as we reach the bamboo forest, up a hill and off a dirt track, it is light.
we split into 2 groups: the neighborhood guys form one group; and mr mori, the 2 girls and me form the other. we go to find baby bamboo with a shovel. we walk around the forest as the bamboo sways above us, like long grass. the width of a trunk is about the size of a beer can. i ask how tall the bamboo grows. they said about 8 metres. the ground is covered in slippery leaves as mr mori leads the charge and we follow. we only find one baby bamboo shoot. everyone is a little disappointed.
meanwhile the guys from the neighborhood have hacked down 3 bamboo trees. they were now cutting them into three metre sections so we could fit them into mr mori's car. i wondered why we need all that bamboo.
on the way home we drop by a fish market, where mr mori buys fresh eel and prawns; and a convenience store, where we buy tea and coffee.
back home they start unloading the bamboo. there are about 10 three meter pieces. they take the hacksaw, and cut half way into the bamboo. then they get a chisel and hammer and use it to split the bamboo down the centre, until they reach the cut. they repeat this with another piece. we end up with 2 troughs. they get out a 3 step ladders, a hose, a pump and a bucket. they fix the 2 troughs so that there is a down ward gradient; one trough slightly higher than the other. they attach the hose to the top end and place the bucket at the bottom. they place the pump in the bucket and attach the hose to the pump. they then fill the bucket with water. they switch on the pump and the water flows through the hose, up to the top, down the trough, into the bucket then over and over again. we use the rest of the bamboo to make simple bowls, chopsticks and tinder for the barbecue.
the bamboo water feature is used to separate the noodles. the pump is switched on. the bowls filled with soy sauce, ginger and spring onions. everyone stands by, chopsticks raised and ready. the noodles are put at the top and the water runs down and drags them out. as the noodles run pass you have to grab as much as you can and put it into your bowl before slurping them down.
mr mori handed me a cup of beer at 10 in the morning. the sun was getting warmer and people started coming over for the party. the kids were in high spirits and they all gasped when they saw the bamboo troughs. the noodles were nearly ready to be separated. i drank the cool beer in the sun. it was going to be a hot day.
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