Japan and the Environment 2017

I think there’s something to be said about a change of scenery. I know I’ve only been in Tokyo for about a week now, and I lived in Boston for 10 weeks last summer, but I guess I’m just not much of a city person. So hiking in Kamakura today was an incredibly fun and refreshing experience. I thoroughly enjoyed climbing and hiking and just enjoying the natural scenery (including several views of Mt. Fuji!). I was talking about this a little bit with Ethan, but it felt cooler in Kamakura than in Tokyo, probably because Tokyo is an urban heat island and in Kamakura we were surrounded by trees and breeze. Maybe I’m raving about this a little too much (and I guess you can only say so much about a hike), but I felt very much in my element today with hawks and crows soaring overhead and dragonflies darting in and out of shrine beams.

I think the hike put a different spin on the the shrines and historical places we visited as well. It’s hard to put into words. Learning about Shinto and Buddhism and Japan’s history through shrine and temple visits is definitely an interesting and novel experience for me, but I think sometimes it’s a lot to absorb at once, especially given how many we’ve been going to. Maybe it’s a matter of putting places into context and separating them in my mind. The Kamakura shrines were distinct to me because we hiked there and climbed 103 steps and because they were outside of urban Tokyo. Oh and it’s kind of hard to forget a giant statue of the Buddha (Daibutsu; literally “giant Buddha”) at Koutokuin. At our last stop (another shrine), we were witness to not one, but two traditional Japanese-style weddings. We caught the tail end of one and the beginning of another. Very cool!

Tokyo has certainly been keeping me very busy, between visiting sites around Tokyo with our group and spending hours on end researching in the National Diet Library with my advisor for my history project. For the most part over the past few days, I’ve gone to the National Diet Library in the mornings and then met with our group in the evenings for dinner.

I think the photos explain it all. Aesthetic Kamakura, the quintessential photographs of “rural” Japan. In China, there is a saying to describe the journey of a tourist: Sleep on the bus, see temples off the bus. That is exactly what Kamakura was for us. We saw temples and shrines throughout our hikes in the woods. Having two Japanese scholars with us, we got a very in-depth view of Japan’s history during the Kamakura period and later Meiji influences (see, I now know some of the names of Japanese periods). I came to Japan without knowing anything about Japanese history, especially not from the perspective of the Japanese documents/archives. Being able to learn the history in person is a very powerful event.

Because Kamakura was such a great setting for me, despite my sickly stomach issues, I want to take this post to talk a bit more personally about my experience. The history is fascinating since I had never heard of any of it before (except the Buddhism parts which I learned from a religion academic context rather than historical). I am a very quiet traveler. I don’t like people knowing where I come from and want to blend in as much as possible. My solution is to talk less and listen more, in addition, to hopefully observe the most from the ordinary. (As per senseis’ requests) I previously commented on how helpless I feel in Japan, not being able to communicate well, but being able to travel with a group that can understand, I do feel that I am getting much more than the “tourist experience.” For example, before entering a Shinto shrine, one should clean oneself by washing one’s hands and rinsing mouth. One tourist took the ladle and drank the water directly instead of dabbing the lips using the hand before spitting it out. As I saw the crowd of tourists at Kamakura yesterday, I wondered what they got from the experience in a country that they do not speak the language. I am interested in studying food culture, especially with the colonial dynamics of its history and the emerging attitudes based on increasing tourism. Does the average tourist come to Japan to visit the temples have even a brief idea of the history and politics behind the religious artifacts? Or, do they rejoice in updating their social media to show the “cool” and “cute” Japan with the “ancient, exotic” culture?

My body has failed me. すみません、みなさん！I woke up with immense dizziness and dehydration. Unfortunately, this meant that I had to stay back from the Kamakura tour today. It was really sad to be away from my classmates. Though I could always go to Kamakura, I will never be able to hear the 先生s’ insightful comments on historical and political contexts. Fortunately, this meant that more teaching in 日本語 was, I assume, achieved (because I am usually the only one who needs translation #shame)! Also, I did get to practice my 日本語 skills with Aridome 先生. He is amazing and stayed behind with me, which means he waited around while I napped and drank たくさん飲み物. We also went to Tokyo Hands, which was *hands* down amazing ですね！I need to go back; we left early because I wasn’t feeling too 元気.

Anyway, I am re-energized and ready to do more!!! Now I just have to do the reading for tomorrow….

Yesterday, we went to Yumenoshima (Dream Island) to visit the Daigo Fukuryu Maru Museum (Lucky Dragon 5). The land we walked on was made from compacted trash; even with the construction, however, the region is where I got some of my best #nature shots.

The reading emphasized the tragedy from multiple perspectives including the people, media, governments, and scientists/doctors. This shows that science is not neutral or apolitical. Personal interests for fame, as well as control of the information, play huge roles in the direction and goals of the research. The other reading spoke to the “waste” attitude. I feel extremely conscious about our decisions to use convenient plastic containers daily despite being on a trip called Japan and the Environment.

First, the presentation of the World War II history and nuclear testing. While the incident does not directly relate to the imperialistic Japan, there is a panel talking about Japan’s possession/occupation of some Pacific Ocean islands before the war. Those islands were later occupied by US forces and used for nuclear testing. The museum, run by the Metropolitan Government of Tokyo, obviously had a specific agenda to educate a certain version of history (the other group there yesterday were a huge group of middle schoolers). According to Amano-san, the layout of the museum, including an almost identical timeline of nuclear testing by country, mirrored the exhibits at Hiroshima and Nagasaki Museums. The integrated pictures of the victims are used to draw sympathy/empathy from the viewers. On the other hand, the massive amounts of scientific data and historical information give legitimacy to the claims and hold a very standardized authoritative voice. Additionally, the prevalence of cranes and signature books exist in these museums, which leads to my next point. There are some signs of activism and treaties, but these are all very vague. The museum doesn’t answer the question of what an average civilian, like me, can do. The power represented seems such a centralized attitude: a few making decisions for the rest of the world. I understand that these are big questions that may be difficult to answer, but I hope that these questions can be brought to conscious thoughts and trigger more people to be more involved.