Enkai, Drinking Party, Japan – 13th March, 2011

People I haven’t heard from in years wrote on my Facebook page to find out if the Fukushima earthquake ate me – people like Jennifer Arthur and John Fiadjoe! But, apart from radiation poisoning, I slept through it. (There is no radiation poisoning according to the Geiger counter a friend’s father sent her).

A group of friends and I are taking items to a donations centre later.

Enkai

My visiting school invited me to an enkai (a work party) for the teachers on Friday. We had one jes’ las’ week after the graduation ceremony at my main school.

Now, it does look like somebody house yuh entering. My shoes were confiscated at the door by two women bowing like the foot pedal of a Singer sewing machine. Upstairs was closed tight, apart from the one entrance, like a pantheon. One wall line wid dese miniature tables (cause yuh know everyting in Japan miniature) – about twenty on each uh de long walls an’ four on de short wuns, wid a pillow in front of each. Yuh sitting pun tatami mats pun de floor. People legs is to tie in a bow.

After choosing a number so seating is random, I end up wid de only teacher (on my left) I would talk to if I could avoid looking in she mout. De one on my right doan speak to me. She probably frighten to embarráss sheself since I doan speak Japanese an’ she doan speak English. She would rather be rude. I used to say “good morning” OUT LOUD IN JAPANESE an’ dis wun in particular would pass me straight. Dat is when I laughed to myself, realising dat Barbados like it is de onliest place dat does got big rocks jes lying roun’.

Dis was not my first enkai, so I wasn’t surprised when, after one glass uh Asahi beer, dis teacher dat doan speak to me at school, all up in my armpit asking ef I like rice wine.

“You like rice wine?” Me…

Dat time de sake an’ beers flowing non-stop cause yuh doan pour yuh own drinks, it is up to yuh neighbours to fight to keep yuh glass full – something like paradise, only people teet doan look like dem does eat rocks.

By de end uh de night, teachers did getting pelt up in de air; one uh dem faint, fall pun he face an’ duh had to call de ambulance! De paramedic’s hands did trembling, so I decide never to let anyting requiring uh hospital happen to me here. After, all marinated, we sang de school song. It felt sacrilegious.

Anyways! I say all uh dis to say dat de food…. You! I does inhale deeply an’ brace myself for wuh ever under de cover pun de lil’ table at dese enkais…like on Fear Factor – principally at dese events when de food “extra special”. These Japanese dishes I enjoy are unlikely to have been invited: yakiniku (barbecued meat); yakisoba noodles; ramen with a slice of pork and a nori seaweed sheet and tonkatsu (Japanese pork cutlet) with an umeboshi sour and salty pickled plum to flavour the tasteless rice. Although, Echizen crab may make an appearance for winter.

At one point I cun stop laughing after looking up an’ seeing a raw egg yolk getting mix in some already unappetisingly cold buckwheat noodles. Wuh nastiness is dis now?! I thought, cause I did already push one-side a bowl uh fish dat did suh raw um still had de scales pun um. Dat was paired wid cold clam in uh soup uh slime, seaweed an’ sea smell. People nevuh hear bout lime an’ salt yet! Dah time de one nex’ to me (who teet yuh know dead because duh grey) slurping it up an’ I keckin’!

Cut out de sea smell!

Another Source of Culture Shock

I tell you how half de students got some skin disease? Might have someting to do wid filling up a tub of water and regularly bading in it. When I first arrive too, de water wasn’t on in my apartment and so the landlord offered his shower. Towel in hand, I close the door, and, after searching for hidden cameras, I looked from the bathtub – full of soapy water – to the plastic stool alongside it, to the shower head above the stool, and back. My only option was to bade in the sink.

I frighten to switch on the television and hear about earthquake and tsunami mortalities. Apparently, the latter caused most of the deaths…but I ain’ close. Let my people know that I good.

Much love.

BOW!

#cultureshockinJapan #enkaiexperience #TeachingEnglishinJapan