Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Dinner, Night Market and Beauty Salon

　　We had dinner in a packed restaurant "鼎泰豊", which is shown in the first picture. The dinner was included in our tour and even the dishes were set. As you see, it was so crowded and a waiter was checking the number of customers of each waiting group outside the restaurant. It seemed that he'd like to utilize the seats as efficiently as possible. As far as I saw, a half of the customers were Japanese. I thought that the restaurant had something of a pact with our travel agent. I tasted some real Taiwanese cuisine and it was very satisfying.
　　After dinner, the guide took us to a famous night market, which was busy and swarmed with lots of sightseers. We found various unfamiliar food items there, but we were sorry to be too stuffed to try some. The moment when we went down to the underground, we got caught by an unbearable stench of rotten food. We thought we were near a garbage storage room at first, but it was the smell of a particular kind of tofu. Anyway, it was an unbelievable smell.
　　Lastly for this day, the guide took us to a beauty parlor or something. The massage of the sole of the feet was included in the tour and additionally, following the advice of the clerks, I had my layers of dead skin removed, and my wife got an elaborate face treatment. Their pampering was nice!

(Vocabulary)
pamper  to look after someone very kindly, for example by giving them the things that they want and making them feel warm and comfortable:
She spent her childhood as the pampered daughter of a wealthy family.

National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall （中正記念堂）

　　Next, we visited National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, who is well-known also in Japan. Presumably our guide arranged the order of the sightseeing sites. When we arrived there, the changing of the guard, which was the principal tourist attraction of this facility, was just about to begin.
　　After we followed the guards for a few minutes, our guide took us to the floor where the statue of Chiang Kai-shek was placed ahead of the guards by another route. Just the moment we reached the statue, the guards appeared before us using the elevator. Their brisk movement and posture gave us a kind of refreshing feel.
　　While watching their movement, I thought of the history of Taiwan. Why was he honored in such a way? What do the Taiwanese think of him? He got away from China after the humiliating defeat against the Chinese Communist Party and invaded Taiwan. Moreover, he perpetrated a massacre, the genocidal killing of intellectual Taiwanese figures. I pestered our guide for his sincere opinion. "Taiwan is under the control of the Chinese now", he answered regrettably.
　　The URL below is linked with a map showing my flight route from Tokyo to Taipei. I'd like to have seen and taken aerial pictures of Senkaku Island, which China wants, but thick clouds prevented us from seeing below, and the route of the flight veered off the island.











Flight Route to Taipei:
http://kumo.typepad.jp/Taiwan13/TtoTaiwan.html

(Vocabulary)
a humiliating/crushing/heavy defeat  屈辱的な［決定的な，手痛い］敗北
a narrow defeat  際どい敗北

Streets in Sanxia and Yingge （三峡と鶯歌）

　　We wandered along the streets in Sanxia and Yingge for some time without our guide. Those streets were apparently old, but tidy. It was fun to see various new things there. At that time, an odd sensation crept over me. It seemed as if we had been in Japan of the old days. Most buildings along the streets dated back 100 years, when Taiwan was a part of Japan. In the Great East Asian War, the U.S. avoided invading Taiwan and a huge fortune was preserved and left intact, though they finally fell into Chiang Kai-shek's lap. There was a toy shop where some toys which I had used to play with when I was a child, were displayed. Antique shops were also fun. I was sorry that the time given us for walking around was only 30 minutes as it was too short.
　　Yingge is famous for its beautiful ceramics. The streets were lined with so many pottery shops. I found a pair of really nice cups in a shop, but they were a little high in price. I gave up.
　　Without our guide, I had some difficulty in communicating with ordinary people in Taiwan, though there were surely some personnel in our hotel who could understand Japanese or English. I keenly felt the need to learn Chinese. Before the next visit, I will.

(Vocabulary)
creep over sb〈感情などが〉＜人＞の胸に込み上げる
A cold realization was creeping over them. 無情な現実に彼らは気づき始めていた．
Chiang Kai-shek 蒋介石
line [他]〈道など〉に沿って並ぶ
be lined with sth〈道などに〉 ＜…＞が並んでいる
The street was lined with small shops. 通りには小さい店が並んでいた．








For your information:
http://mykafkaesquelife.blogspot.jp/2011/03/sanxia-taiwan.html

Qingshuizushimiao (清水祖师庙)

　　The picture shows Qingshuizushimiao, the mausoleum of the high priest Qingshuizushi who lived 900 years ago in the Sòng period. We entered inside after finishing a croissant ice cream. No entry fee and anyone was allowed to step in freely. There were seemingly no staff members or policemen. The facility must have been valuable. I wondered how easygoing the Taiwanese were. According to my travel guide, the building had to go through tough days of repeated warfare for a long time and had been repaired after the Great East Asian War. Some were similar to the equivalent of Japan, but most parts of the mausoleum were different from Japanese ones.
　　What attracted me most was its elaborate sculptures. It was really nice. The red items of a crescent shape in the picture were used to tell your fortune. Our guide showed us how to use them, and we tried and got a slip of paper also in the picture. The slip told us "not bad", according to our guide's words. I presumed that the possibility to pick up the good slips would be higher than the bad, but took it back Japan to examine what it means looking it up in the dictionary.
　　In the open space before the mausoleum, there were various people in a peaceful atmosphere. It was only 2 hours after setting foot on Taiwanese soil, but I felt relaxed.

(Vocabulary)
mausoleum 壮大な墓, 霊廟
high priest  (ある宗教の) 大祭司; the most important PRIEST in some religions
the high priest of something  ＜…＞の指導者, 権威者
Sòng　宋（960年 - 1279年）
crescent shape / crescentic form  三日月形
tell/ divine sb's fortune  （人）の吉凶を占う

     

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sanxia （三峡）

　　We joined one of the tours planned by ANA, All Nippon Airways, and we were told to reach Taipei by ourselves. We were supposed to get together with other members of the tour in Taipei SongShan Airport. Just after getting out from the baggage claim, we met our guide, but there weren't any other tourists. That is, the guide and the driver were there for us only. The car had been changed from a minivan to a Mercedes E280, which was so luxurious. The tour fee was not so expensive and we felt a little sorry, but it was not our fault. We got in the luxurious car full of joy.
　　It was cloudy and muggy. We realized that we actually were in a subtropical zone. Our car went south on the highway to Sanxia and Yingge. On the way, the guide told us about various things about Taiwan, every item seen through the windows, the traffic regulations, the climate, the country's history,,,
　　We arrived at the busiest site in Sanxia for about an hour. The driver dropped us and our guide there, and drove the car away. The guide took us to a stall famous for its original croissant icecream. It was nice and tasty. If you are Japanese, look at the first picture elaborately, and find the Chinese translation of croissant. Then I came up with a significant idea, and I'll write about it in the next piece.

Command Center of the Imperial Japanese Navy

　　On the last day in Okinawa, I visited the former site of the command center of the Imperial Navy. People in Okinawa resisted the U.S. until the last minute in 1945. The top officials of the Navy turned their guns on themselves or had their hand-grenades on their arms in this command center to take responsibility for the defeat. Some following pictures show the inside of the commander's room. You can see the bullet-pocked or damaged walls by the broken pieces of their grenades. There were brief descriptions in every room and they were enough to know the cruelty of the war. Who and for what started the last war? The answer is now being brought to light bit by bit. I'm going to write my opinion in this blog.
　　This center was constructed in the underground of a hill near Naha airport. When you stand there, you can get the whole view in all directions. It's maybe why this hill was chosen as the fort. A monument stood on top of the hill in memory of people who had departed around here. My wife and I commemorated them by a moment of silence. What were they thinking about in their fading consciousness. No one would want to die. I decided to write about the last war from the eye of a Japanese.

(Vocabulary)
bullet hole/mark 弾痕
a body full of bullet holes 弾痕だらけの死体
bullet-pocked 弾痕の残る
commemorate someone by a moment of silence  黙とうで（人）を追悼する

Aquarium

　　Dec. 23rd is the Ten-noh's Birthday. The Japanese word of Ten-noh has been frequently translated into "emperor." However, this English translation is wrong, if you ask me. My thought about it has already been written in this entry(link). Anyway, I had a hangover on such an important day. My wife's sharp eyes were scary.
　　We set out for the Ocean Expo Park by rental car. My wife was eager to visit an aquarium which figures prominently in the park. The Ocean Expo Park was planned utilizing empty lots of Expo'75 (沖縄国際海洋博覧会：Okinawa kokusai kaiyou hakurankai in Japanese). As I expected, the park was enormous. Because it was off season for sightseeing, we could park our car at the nearest parking lot from the aquarium. It was really lucky. If it was high season, we would have taken nearly an hour to reach the entrance of the aquarium. The first picture showing Iejima island was shot on the way to the aquarium. The acrobatic performance by dolphins was spectacular. I wondered how the trainers educate and control the dolphins. I also saw three Dugong dugons for the first time.
　　Next, we dropped in at Kourijima island, which is connected with the main island of Okinawa by the Kourioohashi bridge. This bridge is very beautiful itself and the scenery from the bridge is also beautiful. It was regrettable that the weather wasn't good.

(Vocabulary)
Ocean Expo Park  海洋博公園
1975年に開催された沖縄国際海洋博覧会を記念してその跡地に整備を進めている国営沖縄記念公園海洋博覧会地区。
Dugong dugon　ジュゴン
figure prominently in sth  ＜…＞の中で極めて重要な位置を占める
Environmental issues figured prominently in the talks. 会談の中で環境問題は極めて重要な位置を占めていた．

Ryukyu Dynasty

　　After the sunset, we visited the illuminated Shuri Castle, which had been the seat of power during the period of the Ryukyu Dynasty. The last picture was shot in a traditional restaurant in which we had dinner. The local musicians of cojaco and her friends were playing various Okinawan music and they were full of hospitality and really nice.

(Vocabulary)
Ryukyu Dynasty　 琉球王朝

Tsuboyayaki, Pottery

　　Next, we visited the birthplace of Okinawa's original pottery of "Tsuboyayaki", which was near the main street of Naha City. There remain several traditional houses along the street and we enjoyed wandering. I'll upload some pictures shot around the area. I bought a small cup for Japanese sake and my wife a cup for Japanese tea.

Medical Meeting in Yokohama

　　I joined the 25th Annual Meeting of the Japan Society for Endoscopic Surgery held in Yokohama City on Dec. 6-8th, which is located to the south of Tokyo and is also one of the best known ports in Japan and has lots of historic cultural assets. If I write about the medical items, most of the subscribers would be bored, so I'll write about one of the main tourist attractions of the city, a cargo and passenger ship, "Hikawamaru", which was built in 1930.
　　Before starting its story, I have to write about Seattle in the U.S.A. Seattle used to be a small town with a population of only 6,000. However, after the Great Northern Railway was built in 1892, and Japan's ocean transport company, "Nippon Yusen", introduced a new line between Yokohama and Seattle in 1896, Seattle remarkably developed as a relay point between the Far East and New York. A mayor of Seattle declared that the prosperity of Seattle owes much to the Great Northern Railway and Nippon Yusen, calling both of them the father and the mother of its prosperity respectively.
　　"Hikawamaru" was one of three ships operated in this line. It was requisitioned during the Greater East Asian War and served as a hospital ship. It had touched mines a few times, but survived until the end of the war. Generally speaking, the life of the ship should have ended after around fifteen years, but it had to work on the transportation of Japanese soldiers and citizens from overseas after the war. The number of people who are grateful for its contribution is countless. The Nippon Yusen decided to preserve her forever in the port of her hometown, Yokohama, in honor of her life.
　　I visited this ship which was permanently moored near my convention center. I'll show you pictures of the restaurant and the stairs to the first class cabin. How did they look to the Japanese people of the time? Sitting on a chair was not frequently seen in Japan at that time. I was eager to look at the front view of the ship and get on the sightseeing boat showing the visitors the inner section of the bay.

(Vocabulary)
introduce a new line between 　航路を開設する
relay / transfer point　中継点
requisition 　[U] (軍隊・政府などによる) 徴発, 接収;〈軍隊・政府などが〉…を徴発する, 接収する
How did they look to the Japanese people of the time? 当時の日本人の目にはどう映っただろうか？

Eging

　　You might think the topic "Eging" would be a typing error of "Aging", but this word is correct and even Japanese! I'll try to explain the origin or how it was made. You would be amazed at the extreme flexibility of Japanese. "Eging" can be disassembled into three parts; "e", "gi" and "ing". "E" means the bait and "gi" means wood. Then what do you think is "egi"? As you can guess, "egi" means wooden bait, i.e. lures for fishing. The English suffix "ing" implying actual action was added to a Japanese word "egi" and consequently "eging" was produced as the word describing fishing with wooden lures. It's very funny but really functional. The Japanese language is provided with phonograms called "katakana", which are used to express the sound of foreign words. "Eging" is the romanized spelling of the original expression by "katakana". "Eging" has become popular in recent years. This fishing technique is used for squid fishing.
　　Some enthusiasts always carry a rod and other tackle for "eging" in their vehicles and often try fishing wherever they suspect the habitation of squids. They don't need raw bait and so the tackle doesn't emit bad smells in the car. One of the participants was an enthusiast and tried fishing from the coast in front of the eating house where we took a rest. AND, he caught one as shown in the picture.

(Vocabulary)
phonograms  表音文字
romanized spelling  ローマ字つづり
suffix  接尾辞
tackle [U] 道具, 用具, (特に) 釣り道具
habitation [U] 居住; [C] 住居, 居住地
unfit for human habitation 人間の居住にふさわしくない

Kamikaze, Special Attack Force

　　More than 2600 years have passed since the foundation of Japan. However, Japan hasn't always stayed independent during this span of existence. Japan was governed by the U.S. for 6 years and 8 months about 60 years ago. The products manufactured in Japan during the governed period were stamped as "Made in Occupied Japan". That is to say, Japan wasn't independent for nearly seven years. Japan was forced to take a major role of minesweeping around the Korean Peninsula during the Korean War. It led to the successful invasion of U.N. troops onto the coast of Incheon and consequently the restoration of South Korea, but there are no appreciative words for Japan on the monument standing at Panmunjom, but it's natural because the independent nation of Japan didn't exist at that time.
　　In 1952, Japan finally attained its independence after all sorts of troubles and difficulties. However, Japan has completely changed. We were brainwashed and our Constitution, which was drawn up and forced on us by the U.S. 60 years ago, is still highly prized, while Germany, which had likewise lost the war, has modified their Constitution more than 50 times.
　　Oct. 25th is the day when the suicide attacks by fighters started. The leader of the first attack team was from Saijo City near my hometown. He left his newly-wed wife, charged toward an aircraft carrier and sank it.
　　What impressions will people have about the Greater East Asian War several hundreds years from now?

(Vocabulary)
after all sorts of troubles and difficulties  幾多の紆余曲折を乗り越えて

Seto Inland Sea

　　Seto Inland Sea, called "Setonaikai" in Japanese, is the waters between Shikoku and Honshu, both of which are the two of four main islands in Japan. In this area, there are lots of small islands and you can view the beautiful scenery composed of those small and tiny islands by several means. One of them is cycling. Honshu and Shikoku are connected by three routes which respectively consist of several bridges connecting small islands. One of these three routes has a bicycle path beside the main road for the vehicles. I enjoyed the landscapes from crossing the bridge and from a sightseeing boat later, which set off from a few ports on the route. I'll show you pictures shot from onboard. You would be amazed to see the rapid currents and beautiful sea.
　　I'd add one thing about a unique channel, called Kurushima Channel, in the area. It is unique in a way that ships sometimes could run through on the left side. As you know, ships must pass each other on the right side, regulated by  international law, when they face each other in a narrow space. However, in Kurushima Channel the route sometimes alternates between the right and the left. Kurushima Channel is the only place in the world where ships pass on the left side. The sea traffic control constantly monitors the currents and commands all the ships in the channel to run right or left.

(Vocabulary)
waters 《複数扱い》水域, 近海, 領海
the coastal waters of Alaska  アラスカの沿岸水域
They got permission to fish in Japanese waters.  日本領海内での漁が許可された．

Cycling

　　I joined an annual cycle ride event sponsored by Imabari City which is located near my hometown, Matsuyama City. As I wrote in another entry, Imabari City is the Shikoku-side terminal place of the Shimanami Kaido Route, one of three routes connecting Shikoku and Kyushu, both of which are the biggest and smallest islands of four big islands of Japan. The organizer arranged three routes, 20km, 40km and 100km. I chose the middle, 40km. I competed and successfully finished the distance of 100km last year and it was really hard. That's why.
　　Just before the departure after the ceremonial event, I came across an old friend from my elementary school, nearly a half century long friend. He was suited up in pink. Ordinary middle-aged Japanese people tend to avoid flashy colors, but the pink suited him. I'll post a picture of us.

Commute Route

　　I can choose one of three ways for commuting such as my scooter, my car and the train. I adopt one of them every morning depending on the weather and my work status. After night duty, because I'm afraid that I might get sleepy, I often utilize the train. On the other hand, when I can get back home in the evening and the weather is fine, I usually choose my scooter and enjoy riding it. My wife sometimes says that she can't differentiate commuting from just a fun ride seeing my preparation for commuting. Anyway, the picture was shot on the way to my office this morning.

An Historic Site, Shirakawa-no-seki

　　On this day we were in Fukushima prefecture, which had become well-known worldwide as the victim area of the nuclear accident. The disaster, however, was very localized and was far different from the case of the Chernobyl disaster. I place an emphasis on this point in the first place.
　　After saying goodbye to Y, we had some time until the departure time of the train. So, we visited a nearby famous historic site, which had long been a key junction from ancient times between northern and central Japan. That is a barrier called "Shirakawa-no-seki", which was already recorded in old literature written in the 8th century. The barrier had been functioning at least in the 8th century, but nobody knows when it was established. The barrier's function as a strategic point is thought to have disappeared as early as the 12th century and the accurate position of the barrier had long been unknown. It was identified during the Edo period.
　　I'd like to introduce Basho, who wrote many masterpieces while traveling in the northern part of Japan in the 17th century. He also dropped in at this barrier and left several poems called "haiku". In front of the Shin-shirakawa station, the statue of Basho stands. By the way, do you know about Mr. Donald Lawrence Keene? He is one of the Basho enthusiasts.

His Tomb

　　We had decided on one of the hotel restaurants as the rendezvous last night and got together at 6:30am, the designated time, after check-out from the hotel. I admired their punctuality and toughness. We grabbed breakfast from the tables of the cafeteria and headed for Tokyo Station to catch the bullet train. The nearest bullet train station from Y's cemetery is Shin-shirakawa and it took about one and a half hours to reach it. Then lively conversation followed as a matter of course. The primary topics were about the old days.
　　We rented a car and went to a supermarket at first. We got incense sticks, flowers for offerings, Japanese sake and a lighter. We were all non-smokers and nobody had a lighter. It was about 15 minutes' drive from Shin-shirakawa station to his cemetery. I'll post several pictures of his tombstone for other friends who couldn't visit it. Some cleaned his tombstone up by splashing it with water. Others pulled all the weeds in his grave unit. I lit incense sticks, and arranged flowers in a vase at his tombstone. We prayed for his peacefulness in the next world and wished we could have seen him someday, somewhere again.
　　When I visited last time a decade ago, his mother was alive. Now she was buried with her son and husband. I recalled her last words. "Always remember Y!" Yes, I swore I would never forget Y and his parents, in silence.

(Vocabulary)
decide on/upon sth [句動詞] (多くの選択肢の中から) ＜…＞を選ぶ, 決める
Have you decided on a career (×decided a career) yet? もう仕事を決めましたか．
複数の選択肢の中から一つを選ぶ場合はdecide on/upon sthを用いる．
rendezvous  待ち合わせ場所; (約束の時間に，または場所で) 会う, 落ち合う
rendezvous with sb  ＜人＞と落ち合う
as a matter of course/routine  当然［日常］のこととして
Safety checks are carried out as a matter of routine.  安全点検は日常的に実施されている．
light ［burn］an incense stick  線香をたく

Long Stories

　　The last person arrived at the hotel at about 20:00 hours. He left his hospital after the treatment of dialysis patients as the Saturday routine. As soon as he arrived, we went out drinking.
　　It was a quarter century ago when we got together last time. We were all single and still pretty green as doctors at that time. Now, we had got married, had kids and one had even a grandchild. Furthermore, we are at a certain position in our profession. It wasn't easy to adjust our schedules. We enjoyed chatting and drinking so much, but the most joyful one must have been Y, about whom I wrote in the previous entry.
　　We exchanged stories about each other's quarter century. To my surprise, a friend's wife was from the same year of the same high school as my wife. Time has passed by like a flash. However, it wouldn't be enough if we had a whole night to talk with. We had to get up early the next morning and came back to the hotel about 12 o'clock midnight.
　　The picture shows the Tohoku bullet train we took the next morning, which connects Tokyo and Aomori, the northern end of Honshu, the biggest island of the main four islands of Japan. Japanese bullet trains are really comfortable and have been in service for 50 years without any physical injury or death. Even in the recent catastrophic earthquake, seven trains running over 200 km/h successfully stopped. How amazing!

The Ontario Parliament

　　At the end of the trip, I visited the Ontario Parliament. This Romanesque building was standing in the Queen's Park and was built in 1893 according to my travel guide. Its brown wall was very beautiful in harmony with the surrounding greenery. In spite of its location downtown, I found several squirrels in the park, which would imply the ecological sensibility of Canadian people. I'd like to have seen inside the building, but to my regret, it was late for the official sightseeing tour. I found the statue of John A. MacDonald in the park too. It was because I came across him again that I wrote "too". I remembered I had seen his statue also in Charlottetown. According to the description beside that statue, I knew he had been the first Prime Minister of Canada.
　　I had supper at a Mediterranean restaurant near my hotel because I hadn't had Mediterranean cuisine before, so I just tried it. The cuisine in the poster put up on the window facing the street looked really nice, but I was sorry to have chosen the restaurant. It might be acceptable for local people. However, I didn't like it.
　　Coming back to my hotel, checking the weather report on T.V., I packed my possessions up. The next day's weather would be fine and I fell asleep with ease.

(Vocabulary)
Romanesque  ロマネスク様式の
greenery 青葉, 緑の草木
ecological sensibility  環境意識の鋭さ
put up a poster  ポスターをはる
with ease  容易に, 簡単に, たやすく

Clothing Optional Beach

　　Every time I visited foreign countries, I came across something new to me and they were always surprises and fun. I'd like to direct your attention to the first picture. "Clothing-Mandatory Beach" on the destination board in the picture made me a bit upset. I racked my brain over the Japanese translation of "mandatory". This word is frequently used like "continuous mandatory ventilation" in the field of respiratory management and I thought that I understood it. However, "Clothing-mandatory" was hard to comprehend. Do People have to wear their clothes during swimming around there? Or, was this something related to Islamic women? Several minutes later, I found another destination board, which is shown in the next picture. "Clothing-optional" was also new to me. I decided to walk toward the direction the signboard indicated. There were no signs like "No Trespassing". I went on and on. Abruptly, the sight of two naked women lying on the beach entered my eyes and I was so surprised. At that moment I understood what clothing meant. "Clothing" meant swimwear, and "clothing-optional" meant that nudity was allowed there. A dressed man was wandering around naked women and I just saw him with a vague spaced-out feeling, but when I saw him start to take his clothes off, I ran out of there, because I was dressed. Might there be a place where dressed people weren't allowed to step in.

(Vocabulary)
destination board / screen  行き先表示板
rack　《通例受け身形で》(肉体的・精神的に)〈人〉をひどく苦しめる
be racked by/with sth ＜…＞にさいなまれる, 苦しむ
Liza was racked by guilt. 　ライザは罪の意識にさいなまれていた．
rack your brain(s) (思い出そうと) 必死に考える, (アイデアなどを出そうと) 知恵を振り絞る
rack one's brain over the question of  ～という問題に頭を悩ませる
make someone a bit upset （人）を少しばかり悩ませる
vague spaced-out feeling ボーッとした感じ

(Vocabulary from comments)
prudish (性的なことに対して) 過敏な, 潔癖な