Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Cargo Terminal

　　After the check-in at ANA Cargo, I underwent the possessions security check. It's why my possessions were taken out of the storage space of my scooter in the first picture. A young official started to examine the presence or absence of explosive substances in my possessions with a small piece of paper-like device. It would be routine work for the air cargo personnel. I doubted, however, if it was necessary because I would fly with my scooter. The young inspector seemed to notice my doubt, and the inspection became so simple and ritual. My scooter wasn't air cargo, but baggage!
　　Next, I was told to separate the end terminal from the battery and wrap it with insulating tape to prevent spontaneous fire. Naturally, I did it strictly.
　　Lastly, a cargo member of staff looked over my scooter with me to detect the scratches one by one. If I found new scratches after the transportation compared with his report, I could demand their repairs to ANA.
　　My scooter was elaborately fixed on the special pallet and was taken to the plane. It will be under lock and key until stowage. Next time I see it, I'll be in Hokkaido. Hokkaido has got no end of wonderful scenery, cuisine and shops, not to mention excellent public hot spas. It has more than its share of things to do and see...

(Vocabulary)
end terminal 端子
insulating tape 絶縁テープ
insulate〈物〉に絶縁［防音，断熱］処置を施す, を絶縁体で覆う
insulate sb from sth ＜人＞を＜不快など＞から遠ざけて守る［隔離する］
pallet（フォークリフト用）パレット, 荷運び台
under lock and key 厳重に保管されて
stow (場所・容器などに) …をしまい込む, 詰め込む [同意] stow away
stow away (on sth) （＜船など＞に）こっそり乗り込む
stow sth ↔ away ＜…＞をしまい込む, 収納する
have got no end of … ～は枚挙にいとまがない、際限のない～
Oh, it has more than its share of things to do and see...それはもう、することや見るものに事欠かないところなんです

　航空貨物の受付カウンターでの写真です。担当者はルーチン検査なのでしょう。爆発物チェックなどを開始しました。しかし、これは航空貨物ではなく手荷物です。預けた者が一緒に登場するのでそこまで必要なのかなと口に出したとたん、検査は形式的な物になりました。(^_^;)　バッテリー端子を外して絶縁し、荷物を詰め込んで、スクーターはパレットに載せられて厳重に固定。運ばれていきました。次にスクーターを見るのは新千歳空港です。いよいよ北海道！　行きますよ！

Dump Station

　　I arrived at an ANA-designated gas station about 3 hours before my flight. It was required that my scooter had its gasoline removed from the tank by ANA, All Nippon Airways. The picture shows a guy sucking gasoline out of the tank. I was supposed to get together with one of the members of this trip and he reached the station a little later. His motorcycle was also treated in the same way. There was another rider who got on the same plane. We chatted over each other's plans.
　　We headed for the ANA Cargo Terminal, which was 4km away from the dump station. The terminal was a restricted area and we showed our ID and signed some papers, and received permission to get in. The second picture was our ID card in the area. I passed through the gate with no problem, but my friend couldn't. His motorcycle stopped at the gate due to the shortness of gasoline, though the gasoline for the move from the dump station to the airport and from the destination airport to its nearest gas station should have been left in the tank. His machine was equipped with an up-to-date EFI engine, which requires the application of pressure of the gasoline. It means that it needs a little gasoline in the tank. He had to push his motorcycle for about a hundred meters in the hot muggy high noon.

(Vocabulary)
apply pressure 圧力をかける

　いよいよ、ツーリングの始まりです。全日空から指定されたガソリンスタンドに到着しました。ここで残っているガソリンを捨てます。相方のホンダＣＢ４００からも抜き取り完了。４ｋｍ離れた貨物ターミナルへ急ぎました。ところがゲートでＣＢ４００がガス欠。ゲートから受付カウンターまで押して移動。暑い中、大変でした。もう少し余裕を持って残してくれていたら良かったのですが、ＥＦＩエンジンのためガス欠だそうです。

The Instant Ramen Museum

　　I made a side trip to the Instant Ramen Museum next. I presume that you've eaten instant noodles, which are called Ramen in Japan. It's hard to imagine that we could live without instant noodles now. In the case of huge disasters, instant noodles are unquestionably one of the most important emergency foods. Anyway, who invented instant noodles and where? This question came up to me when I found this museum on a map seeking for places to kill time before my flight. The first picture shows the appearance of the museum and the statue of the person who invented instant noodles. He was a Taiwan-native Japanese, Momofuku Ando, the founder of Nissin Food Products Co., Ltd.
　　In the museum, a small wooden hut was exhibited. It was the reconstruction of the instant noodles laboratory. I stepped into it and saw old cooking utensils, some of which reminded me of my childhood. On the other side of the wall, numerous packages of the company's-made noodles were presented as you see in the following pictures.
　　The entrance was swarming with kids, who were going to create their own cup noodles. It was one of the events for kids. They were able to design the package as they liked and choose the ingredients. More than 50 teams of parents and kids were trying to make their cup noodles from the flour. It might be a good lesson for kids and would make them feel the joy of invention.

(Vocabulary)
make a side trip 立ち寄る

インスタントラーメン発明記念館にて。インスタントラーメンを発明した日清食品創業者。台湾出身の日本人がインスタントラーメンを開発実験を繰り返した小屋の展示、オリジナルのカップヌードルを作るイベント、、、創業者が大切にしていた勲章、タイムに偉人として取り上げられた記事、などいろいろ展示されてもおり、楽しめた。親子連れでごった返していた。

The Osamu Tezuka Manga Museum

　　Manga account for more than 30% of the total sales of all publications in Japan. Manga, which tell stories through pictures and words, are loved by people of all ages. To create a sense of immediacy, sounds made by characters and sound effects are expressed in words as well. Manga use this technique in a highly sophisticated manner.
　　The origins of manga can be found in a set of picture scrolls drawn about 800 years ago. Entitled "Scrolls of Frolicking Animals and Humans" (Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga Link1 Link2), the work depicts monkeys, rabbits, frogs, and other animals playing together. Here, a rabbit and a frog are grappling with each other just like human sumo wrestlers. Modern manga often include similar scenes, presenting unrealistic situations in a comical way. Developed for creating picture scrolls, the technique of telling a story through a series of pictures became the basis of modern manga.
　　Manga made great advances after World War II, and the artist who started the ball rolling was Osamu Tezuka.
　　I visited his museum in Takarazuka City near Osaka International Airport to kill time before departure, but the museum was not so good in comparison with his remarkable achievements. Though I dropped in at the museum to kill time, I felt ripped off. Next I headed for The Instant Ramen Museum.

(Vocabulary)
a sense of immediacy 臨場感
start/set the ball rolling 口火を切る、スタートする
I felt ripped off  損した気分
Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga　鳥獣人物戯画

スクーターのチェックインまでの半日を大阪観光に使うことにしました。大阪といっても正確には伊丹市周辺です。多分次の投稿で伊丹市周辺でないといけないわけがおわかりになると思います。まず立ち寄ったのが手塚治虫記念館。本当は和田岬砲台へ寄りたかったのですが、木曜日だけしか公開されていないそうで諦めました。手塚治虫の業績は認めますが、それに比べてミュージアムはつまらないものでした。わざわざ見に行く価値はないだろうと思います。がっかりしましたが、気を取り直してインスタントラーメン発明記念館へ向かいます。

Summer Vacation

　　My summer vacation has just started! I was going to visit Palau this summer with my wife, but her schedule is too tight to do so, and I decided to go riding in Hokkaido. Riding motorcycles in Hokkaido is very popular due to its comfortable climate and vast, beautiful scenery. ANA, All Nippon Airways, sells a package tour to ferry passengers with their motorcycles from Osaka to Hokkaido, so I reserved a place on the tour.
　　My hometown and Osaka were formerly connected by ferry, but the failure of the former DPJ Administration lead to the abolition of the service. I'm so angry with their foolish policies, even now. I had to go to Saijo City - it took an hour - to use the ferry service to Osaka.
　　The ferry leaves Saijo City at 22:30 hours and arrives at Osaka Nanko Ferry Terminal at 6:00 hours the next day. Passengers are allowed to get on board two and a half hours before the departure, so I parked my scooter at the designated area on the ferry a little past 20:00 hours and went straight to the spa! This ferry was newly built and its spa was very nice. The first picture shows my bedtime snack: jakoten, a kind of fish sausage, which is a local specialty of Ehime Prefecture and, naturally, some beer!
　　The ANA asked me to bring my scooter to the cargo terminal at Osaka International Airport before noon tomorrow, and so I'll be able to enjoy sightseeing until then.

(Vocabulary)
ferry  (船・車・飛行機で) …を運ぶ, 輸送する

　今年の夏休み、去年からパラオへ行こうと計画していたのですが、家内の都合が付かず延期し、北海道ツーリングとなりました。ラリーの仲間二人と北海道を巡ります。ＡＮＡスカイツーリングを利用するのですが、出発が大阪なのでフェリーを利用します。以前は松山から関西への直行フェリーがあったのですが、民主党の高速道路無料化で航路が廃止されてしまいました。ところが、今は有料になっています。フェリーは戻ってきません。民主党憎しと思う理由の一つがこのフェリー廃止です。フェリーよりも車を使わせるよう誘導することは、鳩ポッポが宣言した温室ガスの抑制目標に反するのですが。ポリシーの存在しない政権でした。

　出港２時間前には乗船し、スクーターを所定の場所に駐めて、風呂とビールを楽しんでいます。風呂は船の中とは思えないほどの湯量で、十分に熱く、気に入っています。つまみはじゃこ天。地元では「てんぶら」と呼ぶこのじゃこ天ですが、英語では何と呼べば正確に伝わるのだろう？今度ネイティブを捕まえて尋ねて見ます。