Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Morning Walk

     I got up earlier than usual. I wanted to explore around the area that my daughter lived in. I started out for a walk around my hotel early this morning. I took a few pictures on the way. The following picture shows my daughter's university, which is one of the most prestigious universities in Japan.
     This university is located in Bunkyo City, where Tokyo University is located too. I felt something historical or traditional during the walk.
     I wanted to see the sights of Tokyo with my daughter, but she was too busy in her group activity to accompany me. After thinking a little, I decided to walk around Ueno Park, which is noted for being one of the attractive sites to see cherry blossoms in Tokyo, because I might miss the best season of cherry blossoms in Japan while I'm in Canada.

(Vocabulary)
Bunkyo City　   文京区
to see the sights of Tokyo  東京観光をする
group activity    サークル活動
after thinking a little    少し考えてから

（ＫＷ： お茶の水女子大学 お茶大 文京区 上野公園）

Beautiful Kyoto

     Two pictures came to me from a medical doctor living in Kyoto who was a year my senior in my high school and medical school. I posted them here for dozens of my blog's subscribers.
     They show the Kinkakuji Temple, one of the most famous temples in Japan. I've only been there a couple of times and the season was summer both times. After seeing these pictures, I was eager to see the Kinkakuji in a snow shower.
     If you have a chance to visit Japan, be sure to enjoy sightseeing in Kyoto that weaves the traditional with novelty. Many tourists will be moved to feel the atmosphere of Kyoto.

(Vocabulary)
Kyoto weaves the tradition with the novelty.
京都には伝統と目新しさが混在している。(英辞郎) 記事の方が良いと思うがどうだろう。

(KW: 金閣寺 京都)

Jumping Off The Treadmill

     I haven't been sure if I'm coming or going for these past few weeks. Today was a half-day off and I started out riding my scooter for a change. The sky was clear as you can see in the pictures. It was so comfortable. The course that I chose was the coastal route between Matsuyama and Nagahama town. This road is wide, but not so winding and not crowded. The scenery around me was just starting to change to the spring.

(Vocabulary)
get/jump off the treadmill  単調な繰り返しから抜け出す、飛び出す
do not know whether I'm coming or going　混乱して何がなんだかさっぱり分からない
start out  出発する, 出かける = set off, set out

(KW: Majesty マジェスティ ヤマハ )

A Funny Sign

     I found a funny sign in the castle. It says "Don't climb up this stone wall!" Everyone thinks who would try to climb up such an overhanging wall.
     To tell the truth, when I was about ten I tried. I just wanted to play cool in front of my girlfriends. I think it was foolishly reckless. As I went up to about 5 meters high, I became frozen to that level. In the end two police officers and some firefighters brought a long ladder and rescued me.
     I wondered if this sign was put there because of me. It could never happen, because my reckless behaviour was 40 years ago. I asked the guide if there are such reckless guys who climb up this wall now. To my surprise, the guide replied that a young man successfully climbed up without any climbing gear. His name is Saneyuki Akiyama. See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akiyama_Saneyuki
     He is a hero from the Russo-Japanese War along with his brother, Yoshifuru Akiyama. If these two heros hadn't shown up at that time, Japan would have lost the war. As a result of the defeat in the war, the northeastern district of China and the Korean Peninsula would be occupied by Russia and also Japan. I'm really grateful to them and felt a little happy to know about his feat, because it was just like my feat.

(Vocabulary)
play cool  落ち着いて振る舞う、格好をつける、いい格好をする
feat  〔勇気ある〕手柄、功績

(KW: 秋山眞之 秋山真之 秋山好古 松山城　秋山兄弟　日露戦争　英語　石垣)

Training Session of an Industrial Physician

     I'm a surgeon and also an industrial physician. Have you heard of industrial medicine? This is a medical science for people who work. There are many kinds of industries in Japan and some people might get injured on their job. Industrial medicine is to keep their working conditions away from anything bad for their health. Enough illumination? Clean air in the office or factory? Any irritating noise? Any work related disorders? Any mental problem? From these points of view, industrial physicans work in companies and give advice to the employers.
     Authorities oblige the companies that hire twenty or more people to have a contract with industrial physicians based on the company size. Consequently, this requires a significant number of industrial specialists and clinical doctors like me come to be in charge. For this reason, I have to attend the training sessions on industrial medicine about twice a year.
     I've had lectures in various places, like an atomic power plant, a fire department, a petrochemical complex, a seafood processing factory and so on. Today's lecture was in Matsuyama Castle administration office, one of the municipal facilities. The picture shows members going up to the top of the castle. An aerial tramway runs between the top and the bottom of the hill and the condition of the employees who get in the gondola daily was one of our topics of today's lecture.

http://www.city.matsuyama.ehime.jp/lang/en/sightseeing/castle.html#HONMARU

(Vocabulary)
lecture class / training session     講習会
industrial field    産業分野
petrochemical complex　石油化学コンビナート
aerial tramway    ロープウェイ

(KW: 松山城)

Heavy Snow

     The Buddhist memorial service for my late father-in-law was held in my wife's original house which is in the north of Okayama prefecture. I got up at about 4:30 and started at five o'clock. It was four hours' drive to the house.
http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2007/01/my-father-gone.html
     His picture and offerings were put on the altar and the Buddhist monk recited a sutra. This ceremony was without doubt for my late father, but I thought that this ceremony was for us. After the parents pass away, their children will drift apart from each other. I felt that this ceremony might be wise of us to unify the relatives. My wife and I enjoyed talking and having lunch with people who got together. Some of them took more than a half day to attend the ceremony. It will be two years later for us to see them again when the next ceremony will be performed.
     We left Okayama about three o'clock P.M. and hoped to arrive at our house before 7:00, but we were caught by a heavy traffic jam caused by the snowfall. Our hometown has a relatively warm climate and most drivers aren't accustomed to snow. Though our car had winter tires and was ready to run on the snow, we ended up getting to our house at about 10:00. So exhausted!

(Vocabulary)
Buddhist memorial service    法事
recite (人前で) …を暗唱する, 朗唱する
sutra 《ヒンドゥー教・仏教》経典
drift apart (人が) 疎遠になっていく, 離れ離れになっていく

Ski Schedule

     Our next ski trip to Canada has been scheduled. All members but me will visit Whistler on Mar. 21st. I couldn't take enough days off and will leave here on Mar. 23rd alone. I'll enjoy skiing in Whistler and Blackcomb for four days and stay in Vancouver on 28th and go back to Japan on the next day. Our plan in Vancouver is up in the air yet, but I'd like to visit the statue of Mr. Inazo Nitobe which is near UBC.
http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2007/08/taking-a-walk-i.html
     These pictures were taken in Hokkaido University which has the oldest department of veterinary science in Japan. My youngest daughter is eager to become a veterinarian and wants to be a student of this university. She'd like to proceed to higher education like UBC Postgraduate School and become a researcher. I'm going to ask a taxi to drive slowly in the campus of UBC.
     She's also looking forward to joining the ski school in Whistler.
http://kumo.typepad.jp/weblog/2006/04/the-last-ski-da.html
     This time her English is better than two years ago and she's going to try talking to lots of people on the slopes and in the village. It would be a great experience for her.

(Vocabulary)
proceed to something  (フォーマル) ＜…＞に進む
= move on to something

     My mother, Eri, Yuri and me in front of one of UBC's domitories in 1995.

A Comfortable Walk

     Today was a really comfortable day. I went out for a walk. Matsuyama Sogo Koen (comprehensive park) is within 5 minutes's walk from my house. I took some pictures. If you want to know more about Matsuyama City, click "My home town" in the left column or see: http://www.city.matsuyama.ehime.jp/eng/sonota.html

When I was about to go out of my house, I heard some birds screeching. I could get a flying bird in the picture.

Enjoy beautiful leaves!

This is Gogoshima Island that I wrote in the previous entry.

This is the symbol of this park. It is an observation tower.

 

This is the symbol of this city, Matsuyama Castle.

The altitude of the base of the observation tower is 126 meter and the top of it is 141 meter.

(Vocabulary)
screech  (鳥・動物などが) かん高い声で鳴く

(KW: 松山総合公園)

A Monument

     I got to feel like riding my scooter around suddenly seeing blue sky last Sunday. I went to Gogoshima Island, 10 minutes off the shore of Matsuyama City. The picture shows my scooter on the ferry boat and a monument that I found by chance honoring the victims of a submarine accident in World War Two. When the accident happened, the submarine was on the way to the battlefield and was repeating the training of going underwater and bursting to the surface. The monument seems to have been placed at the nearest point from the accident site on the island. I got sad to read the words on the monument. I shouted in my mind, "No more war!" I didn't know about this accident. Though more than a half century has passed since the accident, the monument was managed in a neat and tidy manner. Some oranges, fresh water and some plants were placed praying for the souls of those who perished in the accident. I guess they were deeply sorry, not that they had to die, but that they couldn't join the war.
     The last picture was taken at almost the highest point of the island. As you see, it is a destroyer of the Maritime Self-Defense Force of Japan. It looked like the warship had just come out of Kure Base, where Yamato, the all-time biggest warship, was constructed just before World War Two.

(Vocabulary)
cruise underwater / go underwater / navigate underwater 潜航する
burst to the surface 〔潜水艦が〕急浮上する
pray for the souls of those who perished in the fighting  戦争に殉じた人の冥福を祈る
warship 戦艦, 軍艦
all-time  空前の, かつてない


(KW: 潜水艦事故)

Touring to Yakuri-ji Temple 2

We got to Yakuri cablecar station. We were lucky and it was getting sunny. One of our purposes was to get on this cablecar. There was a narrow pathway to the temple on the left side of the station, but I didn't walk there.

This is the map of the area around us. This area has three famous temples that belong on the Shikoku Pilgrim's Way. We climbed up to Yakuji-ji Temple that is illustrated with white letters in the red-purple box. Three letters in the red box indicate where we are.

This is the cablecar that we are going to get on.

Two of my friends in the cablecar.

We are climbing up and passing another cablecar.

Yakuri-ji Temple, but I was more interested in the wall behind the temple. I wanted to try it, but I heard that rock slides often happen and rock climbing is prohibited now.

A staff member of the temple is writing something. People are collecting the signature of each temple on the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage.

The cablecar that we are going to get on to go down.

Leaves around us were starting changing their colour to red. Some people were taking pictures.

Our scooters. The white one is mine. Just after this picture was taken, we went to the last Udon restaurant that was old-fashioned and a little expensive. I showed this restaurant in my previous entry.

(Vocabulary)
the Shikoku Pilgrim's Way　 「四国８８か所巡礼」をこのように訳してみました。

(KW:八栗寺 四国８８カ所参り 四国遍路)

Japanese Traditional Cuisine; Udon

    Udon is kind of noodle. Kagawa prefecture, where Yakuri-ji Temple is located, is famous for its delicious Udon. Three of us were from Kagawa and knew many Udon restaurants of repute. We decided to go Udon restaurant-hopping. Enjoy the pictures!
     The Udon restaurant that we went to first was just beside the parking lot. The restaurant was small and stood in obscurity beneath the steep slope of the hill. The price of Udon was cheap but delicious. As expected, we were in the midst of the Udon prefecture. The 2nd picture is the menu.
     There are many Udon restaurants in Ehime prefecture where I live and I often go to some of them. I thought I knew Udon well, but it was the first time I had seen such a scene shown in the 3rd picture. The thing that was delivered to our table first was two raw pieces of radish and two radish graters. We grated the radish waiting for our Udon. The 5th picture is the soy sauce Udon that I ordered. It was a very simple Udon that was doused in soy sauce. The next picture shows the outside of the room I used. The last three pictures are the 3rd Udon restaurant we went to.

(Vocabulary)
of ill repute  評判の悪い、悪名高い
do a pub-crawl  はしごをする
go bar-hopping  はしごする
go from shop to shop    店から店へとはしごする
in obscurity    ひっそりと 世に埋もれて
grater おろし金［器］
grate [他] (おろし金などで) 〈チーズ・野菜など〉 をおろす
douse (火) に水をかけて消す=extinguish ; (書き言葉) 〈明かり〉 を消す
douse sth in/with sth  ＜…＞に＜液体＞をかける

(KW: 讃岐うどん)

Touring to Yakuri-ji Temple

     Two months had passed since I got a new scooter, but the total mileage was only 650km on Nov. 18th. The manual of the scooter tells me not to rev over more than 5000 until the mileage reaches up to 1000km. It's for kind of warming-up the engine. I kept to this rule faithfully, but I wanted to rev more than 5000 so I went out for a one-day trip to add mileage and for a change. The destination was Yakuri-ji Temple, which was the 85th of the Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage and was 170km away from my home.
     I enticed my friends to go with me and two of them got together. Another three riders joined us at Toyohama on the way to Yakuri-ji Temple. The pictures below were taken at Toyohama where we took a rest and had a late breakfast.
     At any rate I could see many kinds of motorcycles here and had fun. I'd like to have a BMW next.

To be continued.....

     This picture shows our six scooters. Our ages were between 40 and 70. The scooter is very easy to ride on and suitable for older people.

    Just after we parked our scooters, a clutch of young men came in the parking lot. They seemed to be in their twenties. Their motorcycles were heavy and powerful. I used to have this type of motorcycle in my student days.

     Ten minutes later, a group of more than 1000cc motorcycles came and parked between the young men and us. Some of them were Harleys.

   When I started, I found another group who had European motorcycles at the entrance of the parking lot.

(Vocabulary)
rev  (エンジンなど)の回転数を上げる; (エンジンなどが)回転数を上げる
for a change / for a switch / for recreation  気分転換に
The Shikoku 88 temple pilgrimage  四国霊場８８か所巡礼
entice sb to do sth ＜人＞をそそのかして＜…＞させる
a clutch of sth  ＜…＞の小集団, 何人か［いくつか］の＜…＞

(KW: 四国遍路 八十八カ所 弘法大師 八栗寺)

Toyota Automobile Museum

     I called in at the Toyota Museum on the way to Nagoya Station. Toyota is that Toyota that is one of the biggest companies in the world. You can understand the history of automobiles and the wisdom of human beings there. I saw a Ford Model T that is known as the world's first genuinely mass-produced car.
     The first domestically built automobile was exhibited at the entrance. This car must be an achievement of Toyota and also the starting point of Toyota. I let my mind drift back over the early 20th century. All the Japanese were struggling not to be left behind by the developed countries in those days. Consequently present-day Japan exists now.
     I sometimes feel that present-day Japan might be inferior to that of 100 years ago in many ways. Present-day Japanese, of course, including me, have been living in secure and comfortable circumstances for a long time and became blind to the incidents of the world. Japan has no religious confrontation with any other country and keeps good relationships with all countries except China and both Koreas. I think that Japan must work for world peace from now on because Japan has enough power and modesty to do so.
     While I was thinking that way I found the first car that came to my house about 40 years ago. I remember my father, who was younger than me at the equivalent time, was delighted to be able to polish the car. I'm thinking that I'll take my parents there.

The signboard on the roadside

The truck that is powered by charcoal

The daily necessities in Showa era (30-50 years ago).

It's a portable gas station that supplies gasoline to automobiles, but it has already disappeared.

This picture shows a kind of car for single use. This car was demonstrated at the latest motor show in Tokyo.

(Vocabulary)
call in  ～を呼ぶ; 〔助け・援助などを〕求める; 〔場所に〕立ち寄る、訪問する、寄港する
domestically built automobiles 国産車
achievement [C] 業績, 成果, 偉業
let one's mind drift back over   ぼんやりと～のことに思いをはせる
present-day  現代の, 今日(こんにち)の
religious matter   宗教的な問題
religious confrontation  宗教的な対立
respect religious freedoms   宗教の自由を尊重する
equivalent  同等の, 同価値の

(KW: トヨタ自動車博物館)

Nagoya Castle

    I stopped by Nagoya Castle that I had wanted to see for a long time. This castle is famous as a symbol of Nagoya City. There's a beautiful and magnificent castle in my hometown and I wanted to compare them. You can see the picture of Matsuyama Castle which is in my hometown.
     Japanese castles are constructed for Samurai's daily life and protection against opponents once the fight has started. There are many devices to fight off the invaders. On the other hand, castles have kitchens, wells, vault toilets, archives, storerooms for food and many other necessities. We can see how the medieval life was when we walk around in the castle. I was expecting that kind of thing, but I was disappointed to visit Nagoya Castle. I didn't feel any nostalgia that many people were actually living here until 150 years ago. I couldn't smell the medieval air of Japan.
     The castle was made of concrete and, to my surprise, it had elevators in it. It was just a modern building that has a medieval castle's appearance. The inside was a museum of medieval life; streets and shops were recreated and exhibited there. It was nonsense to me. I just wanted to see the castle.

(Vocabulary)
vault toilet くみ取り便所
archives  記録文書, 古文書, 保存資料; 記録［公文書］保管所, 文書館
recreate  …を再現する

(KW: 名古屋城)

University Festival

     I arrived at Nagoya station at about six o'clock on Nov. 3rd. I got on the subway to my daughter's apartment. I had two hours to go until the opening of the festival and could take a nap in her room.
     Have you ever seen the magnetic levitated train? We call it the "Linear Motor Car". Test runs of linear motor trains are currently under way. Linear motor trains will connect Osaka and Tokyo in about one hour, with a maximum speed of 500 kilometers per hour in the not so distant future. The first commercial linear motor line is in Nagoya City and my daughter uses it every day for commuting.
     The first two pictures show the train. The next two show my daughter making octopus dumplings at her class stall. The last is the octopus dumplings called "Takoyaki" which are very popular in Japan. They were delicious.
     I could walk around the campus and see a few facilities and bulletin boards. The best thing I could do was that I had the chance to talk with her friends. I could understand the atmosphere of the university and it made me feel happy.
     This time last year, I hoped that she would get into the local national university and I thought it was enough, but she didn't think so. She wanted to try a higher level of university and succeeded. I was afraid that she would have many dificulties away from home, but such a concern proved unfounded.

(Vocabulary)
levitate [自] 宙に浮かぶ; [他](まれ) …を宙に浮かべる
That concern proved unfounded.  その不安は杞憂に終わった。

A Canned Coffee

     A really lot of kinds of canned coffees are sold from vending machines in Japan. I like these canned coffees. I'm not particular about the company and materials of canned coffees and I usually choose one from its name or looks.
     When I took a short ride around here last month, I got a canned coffee that is shown in the picture. The name of it is as you see. I wondered if there is a noted production area of coffee beans in Europe. I also wondered if Georgia in the U.S. is famous as a producer of coffee beans, or Georgia means the Republic of Georgia and this country is known as a producer of coffee beans.
     I don't know the reason why this is named as "European". The manufacturer may want us to have a feeling of travelling in Europe. Anyway, I got back with a feeling that I was riding in Europe.

(Vocabulary)
Many people are very particular about the way they cook rice. 多くの人がご飯の炊き方に強いこだわりをもっています。
have (a) feeling of being there     その場にいるような気分になる

Little Kyoto in Ehime

     Kyoto City is the most famous sightseeing point in Japan. This city is surrounded by mountains and has a big river in it. People discover the rich culture and history here. People also hold an admiration for this city.
     By the way, there are some places called "little Kyoto" across the country. These places are surrounded by mountains and have a river in them just like Kyoto City. People named them from an admiration for Kyoto City. My homeland, Ehime, also has a little Kyoto and the picture shows a scene in the area. This picture was taken when I rode my scooter around the area last autumn. The upper scene is the local bus station and the lower scene is a river that looks like the Kamogawa river in Kyoto.

(Vocabulary)
hold admiration for　あこがれを抱く

The Family Tomb in Japan

     I had been working at a local clinic that was founded by the local government for three years until close to 10 years ago. At that time I had a favorite pub near my house and used to drop in there like once a week. I enjoyed local dishes there in every season with my drinking buddies.
     When two years had passed after I left the small village, one of them passed away. A week before his death I met him at the hospital where he was staying. He knew his death was near-at-hand and asked me not to forget him. I promised him that I was sure to visit his grave every year around the anniversary of his death.
     The picture shows his family tomb. I cleaned up around it and put skimmias on his grave.

(Vocabulary)
close to 10 years  １０年近く
boon companion / compotator / drinking buddy / drinking pal   飲み仲間
near-at-hand　すぐ手の届く所にある、手近にある、身近な所にある、間近に迫っている
put flowers on sb's grave　墓に花を供える

Mini-touring

     Though it was raining this morning, I went out touring, which I promised to do with my friends a few weeks ago. I was going to start at 9 o'clock, but it was raining at that time and I delayed the time after seeing the weather. Finally we started at 10:30 and the rain stopped around noon.

     At the beach side park in Futami town with two other scooters. After 30 minutes' riding it stopped raining. The nearest scooter is mine. We started for Uchiko town after 20 minutes' break. We turned left from the national road onto a narrow municipal road.

    The road was paved but narrow and tightly winding. I rode my scooter slowly because I was a beginner on the scooter. TTR (the name of my former off-road motorcycle) was excellent on such a winding road but my new scooter is not so good. Maybe it's because the turning radius of my scooter is wider than TTR. Anyway we passed the highest point and the border of the town. The greens around the road were very beautiful with the dew of the rain. The picture shows a covered bridge that we encountered. It's just like the bridge in Madison County though there was no lady around here.

     We went on and on without checking the map. At every bifurcation we decided the way we went according to the mood of the moment. We came across another covered bridge that is shown in this picture. An old and mossy shrine stands over the bridge and people can visit there by walking on this bridge. The next picture is a distant view of this bridge. The frame of the bridge looked so fragile. A friend who is an engineer said to me, "The arched structure of the bridge must hold the bridge." I really think so.

 

     A street vendor hut. There's no one around here. If you want something here, you have to put coins in the can hanging on the pole. All the goods were harvested this morning and put here by farmers, so they are fresh. Moreover, the cost of the transportation is nothing so it comes at a lower price.

     It's a watermill that we ran into. We enjoyed walking around the mill. This area was very intersting. The road was like a spider's web. The riding itself was fun. I thought I would be back before you know it.

(Vocabulary)
municipal roads　市町村道
turning radius　回転半径、旋回半径
covered 《[名]の前でのみ》屋根のある, 屋根付きの
according to the mood of the moment  その時の気分次第で

(KW: 内子町 中山町 屋根付き橋)

Highway in Hokkaido

     After taking a short rest we left Lake Kuttara and got on the highway for Chitose City, where Shin-Chitose Airport is located.
     The picture is Tarumae service area where we took a rest on the highway. We could see the magnificent view of the Pacific Ocean just in front of us. It was a totally bright sky as was the case every time I visited Hokkaido. Every time I stay in Hokkaido, more than 80% of the days are cloudy or rainy and only the last day was literally clear. I used to come home with painful reluctance every time.
     By the way, our car, a Honda Civic Hybrid, demonstrated a very good performance during our trip; Jammed Sapporo City, a winding road over Nakayama Pass, a highway, , , the gas mileage was 18km per litre (42 mile per gallon). When I stopped the car for even a moment, its engine stopped. As soon as I stepped on the gas, the engine quickly started. It was amazing and I thought it was effective for saving on gasoline. Next time I buy a car, this car would be one of the choices.
     A was eating an ice cream here too. This trip was planned for her. What feelings did she have to see Hokkaido University? I feel she received an intense impression from the University. The huge city, Sapporo, surrounded by a rich natural environment must have given her motivation to learn veterinary science here in Hokkaido.

(Vocabulary)
with painful reluctance　後ろ髪を引かれる思いで
gas mileage  燃費
veterinary science　　獣医学

(KW: ホンダ　シビック　ハイブリッド)