Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Bus Tour

     As I wrote several times before, I'm planning to visit Germany for the first time. My destination is Freiburg City. It is a small city which is located near the Black Forest in the southwest of Germany. I picked the city from among many places because the city is the sister city of my hometown. If the city is big or famous for sightseeing, there would be ready-made tour programs from lots of tour companies. However, to our regret, the city is not so big as Frankfurt and not so famous as Schloß Neuschwanstein. It means that we had to set it up all by ourselves.
     Germany has been the country of dreams for me since I started to learn German about 30 years ago, but I didn't have an opportunity to visit. My second daughter, Yuri, is majoring in German culture and told me this Spring that she wanted to visit the country. Consequently, I attended the reception for the friendship mission from Freiburg this April and figured out the outline of the city.
     Yuri is a beginner learner of German and I plotted to get her to make the plan during our five day stay in Freiburg. She tried to communicate with a tour company in German and it was maybe successful, I think though I made sure by an e-mail written in English. (grin)
     The essential reservations, like air tickets, hotels and trains were already done, but we have something to worry about. The number of passengers of the bus tour isn't enough for the company at present. If the number doesn't reach a certain amount, the tour will be cancelled. We had to think about a replacement.

(Vocabulary)
essential  不可欠な, 必須の

Wonderful Shoes

     I knew that my shoes haven't worn down flat since long ago. They always started to wear down from the outside. Everyone has their own way of walking and I didn't worry about it at all, but I realized that I easily got blisters. I wrote about my blister here. (link)
     Last year, I knew a German Meister about making shoes. He appeared in the German educational program which I was watching to learn German. He accommodates individualized orders from their way of walking. He says, "It's not uncommon that the size of both feet differs." While watching the program, I got to want to undergo his consultation, but he lives in Tokyo. It was not easy to commute to his office.
     The other day, I found the Meister's associated shop here in Matsuyama by chance. I dropped in at the shop and had a total check of my feet. As I expected, my way of walking is not good. No one had pointed it out, and I didn't feel any pain in my ankles, knees and hip joints. However, the sizes of both feet are different. The length of my feet are the same, but there's a difference in diameter at the Lisfranc and Metatarsophalangeal joints. I was surprised and decided to have some shoes made.
     The picture shows my new shoes. I tried to walk for about 40 minutes with them on. I don't know how to explain the feeling of the shoes, but it's like wearing the best ski boots. They fit my feet up to the plantar arch. On the other hand, how about their design? They are very good functionally, but do they look nice? Why can't craftsmen make them fashionable? Is it the German way?
     At any rate, I can't wait to take a walk on the stone-paved streets in Germany with them on.

(Vocabulary)
accommodate
1 [他] 〈建物・乗り物などが〉 …を収容する, 〈ホテルなどが〉 …を宿泊させる
The hotel can accommodate 200 people.
そのホテルは200人宿泊できる．
2 [他] 〈意見・要求など〉 を受け入れる
3 [他] 〈人〉 に便宜を図る
accommodate individualized needs  一人一人のニーズに合わせる
in diameter  太さが違う
Metatarsophalangeal joints  中足趾節関節
Lisfranc joint
Tarsometatarsal joints 足根中足関節
arch of a foot（足の）/ plantar arch  土踏まず

New Daypack

     As I wrote before, my favorite daypack was broken at its fastener. It was impossible to be mended and I decided to throw it away and get a new one. I'd used it for about fifteen years, and it must be its life span.
     I'll leave for Germany soon, and I bought the one in the picture. I bought it at an outdoor gear shop. I thought that all the daypacks were made for outdoor activities like hiking or climbing. It's not the case about this one. This daypack has a special space made for mobile PCs inside. It's suitable for me. I'll take my mobile PC to stock pictures, GPS data and trip notes so as to guard against the danger of memory overflow. I'll transfer their data into my PC and send them to the storage space on the internet every day in case of the loss of the PC, digital cameras and luggage. Even if I lose my possessions somewhere, I'd like to secure our memory.
     At any rate, this daypack seems to be made for city tourists rather than wilderness trekkers.

Imprinted?

     I've been devoting more time to learning colloquial German for the last couple of weeks. Naturally, it's because I'd like to enjoy the trip in Germany and I feel absolutely delighted to learn German though I'd got through a tough time in learning German in my student days. The German was nothing but a pain those days. I wonder what's the difference. It must be due to being with or without a motive. There's one more thing that surprised me. I didn't know, but I remember many German words and grammar deep in my mind. Is this my subconscious awareness? The word "imprinted" might be used on such an occasion. If I didn't dig these words out from the depths, the hard work I'd done in medical school would be useless. Also in this sense, this trip will be fruitful.
     I've already got my round ticket to Frankfurt and reserved the Savoy hotel in Frankfurt, and now I'm looking for a hotel in Freiburg. The main destination is Freiburg and places around the city like Basel, Strasbourg and Lake Constance (Bodensee). I'll stay in Frankfurt just a night when I get to Germany, so I will have only three to four hours for sightseeing in Frankfurt. I'm wondering where to go and have dinner now. I prefer the local cuisine.

(Vocabulary)
devote sth to sth (時間・努力など)を(…)に傾ける, 注ぐ
devote your time/energy/effort to sth
自分の時間［エネルギー，努力］を＜…＞に注ぐ
devote yourself to something  ＜…＞に専念する
devote something to something ＜…＞を＜…＞に充てる, 割く
The author devotes a whole chapter to the subject.
existence or nonexistence / with or without  有無
subconscious / subconscious awareness  潜在意識
fruitful 実り多い, 有益な, 効果的な
a fruitful discussion  実り多い議論

Prep for Trip

     My second daughter, Yuri, came back home and started preparing for our trip to Germany.
     Her passport ran out in February this year and at first she applied for a new one. When she got it ten years ago, I did all the procedures for her, but this time I made her do it. She went to the city hall and got a copy from the family register. She had her portrait taken at a photo shop. She successfully applied for it and got it a week later. I'd just told her to get it without any detailed instructions. It might be due to blind parental love, but I felt her growing up.
     Next, I gave her all the pamphlets and guidebooks that I'd collected up until now. Some of them were sent from the tourist information center of the German city of Freiburg. It is written in German, but she can understand German. I'm expecting her to set all the schedules.
     The development of internet technology brought us an umbelievable convenience for the trip. The reservation of hotels and transportation can easily be done on the internet. You can even know the time schedule of the train between Frankfurt and Freiburg from Japan. However, I'm afraid that she would make a mistake in making the hotel reservations and decided to ask the travel agent to do it. We are going to stay the night of 26th in Frankfurt and leave for Freiburg the next morning.

(Vocabulary)
apply for a passport  パスポートを申請する。
extract of family register  戸籍抄本
blind parental love  親ばか

Daypack

     Finally, my favorite daypack got broken. I bought it in Whistler in 1994. I took a ride on a snowmobile for the first time that year. I didn't bring my backpack from Japan at that time and I got one there. When I moved onto the snowmobile, I had to carry my stuff with me. Though this daypack was nothing special and was a very common one,  my mother especially liked it and took it to more than ten countries with her. The zipper jammed and couldn't be repaired. It's a shame, but I decided to throw it away.

(Vocabulary)
The zipper jammed. ファスナーが引っかかった

Weltenburger

     I didn't have any urgent work and I accompanied my wife to the nearest supermarket. While she was looking for stuff for dinner and some necessities, I just walked around and found an unfamiliar beer. Its label showed that it had been produced in Germany. The next instant, I found myself slipping the bottle into my wife's cart. I added some roast beef and nibbles and rushed to my house. While the bottle got cool, I checked it on the internet and found the website of the company; http://www.weltenburger.de/content/view/9/8/
     As many people know, Germany is the beer country. I'm making my first visit to Germany with my second daughter next month. I can't wait. I'm learning German now and this beer became enough motive for learning German. I'm going to record my trip in this blog. Don't miss it!

(Vocabulary)
slip something under/into/through something
＜…＞を＜…＞の下に［の中に，を通して］そっと滑り込ませる
nibble 少しずつかじる, つつく
nibble at/on something  ＜食べ物など＞をちびちび食べる
nibbles 《複数扱い》(英)(インフォーマル) おつまみ, スナック
Don't miss it!  お見逃しなく！／お楽しみに！／乞うご期待！

(KW: ドイツビール)

Bridge of Mikasa and Russian POW

     The first picture shows the bridge of the Mikasa. I climbed up there. There was a copper plate that is in the second picture. This plate was made from a famous painting and it was exhibited inside. I'd like to have taken a picture of it, but it was prohibited. I found an illustration of the painting on the internet and am showing you it here. You can see some people in the illustration. The top four officials of the Mikasa are drawn in the center of the illustration. Their position on the deck was pointed out with four plates. The nxt three pictures are the instruction board and the plates. Picture no.4 is of Saneyuki Akiyama, who was from my hometown and was a hero on the sea. Picture no.1 is of Admiral Heihachirou Togo, who is one of the three greatest admirals in the world along with Admiral Nelson and John Paul Jones. The last picture is mine. I'm standing in the spot of Saneyuki Akiyama.
     The title of the drama that I related in the last entry is "Saka no Ue no Kumo". My office is located in the center of the city. Nearby is the modernistic Saka no Ue no Kumo Museum, designed by Ando Tadao and dedicated to the novel "Clouds Over The Hill" by Shiba Ryotaro, which tells the story of the local Akiyama brothers and their roles in defeating the Russians in the Japanese-Russo War (1904-1905). A footnote to this conflict is the Russian Cemetery near Raigoji Temple with the graves of 98 Russian soldiers, of the around 6,000 Russian prisoners, who were held with a fair amount of freedom in Matsuyama. They could enjoy walking just about freely in the city and bathing at Dogo Onsen Spa, which was noted for the oldest hot spa in Japan. Some got married and started businesses. Russia was informed about this treatment and finally Russian soldiers got to shout "Matsuyama" when they waved the white flag. Though Russia took a few hundred thousand Japanese POWs into custody and they were treated inhumanely in Siberian labor camps, the Russian soldiers' cemetery has been kept clean and tidy for a hundred years by people from the neighborhood and the junior high school students nearby. I'd like the present Russian people to know this fact. The last five pictures are of the Russian cemetery.

(Vocabulary)
copper plate  銅板
wave the white flag  降伏する
Siberian labor camp  シベリア抑留
inhumane
extremely cruel and causing unacceptable suffering:
the inhumane treatment of political prisoners
I was shocked by the inhumane conditions.
―inhumanely adv

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 (KW:日露戦争　戦艦三笠　秋山兄弟　好古　真之　眞之　松山　ロシア人墓地　坂の上の雲)

Flag Z

     The title, "Flag Z", is my translation of a Japanese phrase, "Z旗". I don't know whether this translation is good, but I'll go on with the story, supposing that it's correct.
     The flag consists of four colors and stands for extreme resolutions. Battleship Mikasa, that I wrote about in the last entry, fought the Russian Baltic Fleet with this flag raised and claimed a perfect victory.
     This triumph led to the Russians' turning back and made their subject colored people awake to the fact that they're never inferior to white people. It literally changed the white-dominated world that had continued for 500 years. In this way, flag Z became the sign to show strong will in Japan.

(Vocabulary)
go on with the story  話を続ける
supposing that  （that以下）と仮定して
resolution  [C] 決意, 決心, 誓い
a resolution to do something ＜…＞しようという決意
raised 　掲げて
subject 《[名]の前でのみ》(フォーマル) (他の国・階級などの) 支配下にある, 被支配の
subject peoples  被支配民族
be awake to sth  ＜…＞に気づいている, を悟っている
white-dominated  白人支配の

(KW:日露戦争　戦艦三笠)

Battleship Mikasa

     On the second day in Tokyo, I dropped in at the Battleship Mikasa Museum. I didn't know that this ship had been preserved in this way. This museum is adjacent to the U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka (a United States Navy base), and is big enough so that you can see it on the Google map. I've lots of things to write about this battleship and I don't know where I should start. I just want to write about the highlights.
     This battleship was the first steel-made battleship in Japan and was constructed in Great Britain in 1902. At the Battle of the Japan Sea in the Japanese-Russo War, this battleship worked remarkably as the flagship of the Japanese Imperial Navy. They totally defeated the Russian Baltic Fleet on May 27th in 1905. Japan staked the fate of the nation on the Japanese-Russo War that started in 1904. Russia was invading to the south at that time, so if Japan couldn't win the war, both Koreas and at least the northern half of China wouldn't exist now. Japan would also have become one of Russia's colonies. Following Japan's defeat of the mighty Russian forces on both land and sea, the war was brought to a close with the Treaty of Portsmouth mediated by the United States.
     Getting off track, two heros in this war were born in my hometown, Matsuyama City. They were called the Akiyama brothers. The elder was a hero on land and the younger was aboard this battleship. His tactics were impeccable in the battle of the Japan Sea and brought a complete triumph to Japan. A drama featuring the Akiyama borthers will open this autumn. I hope that the battleship Mikasa will appear on the screen using CG techniques or something.
     Getting back on track, Mikasa was retired in 1926. It was placed and preserved at Yokosuka City as the symbol of Japanese pride and confidence. You can see the real and neutral history inside. I'm going to write about this topic again.

(Vocabulary)
U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka  横須賀海軍施設
Battle of Japan Sea  日本海海戦
Baltic Fleet  バルチック艦隊
stake sth on sth ＜…＞を＜…＞に賭(か)ける
defeat of sb/sth  ＜敵など＞に対する勝利, ＜案など＞の否決
Scotland's defeat of Spain スペインに対するスコットランドの勝利
get off track  話が脱線する

(KW: 戦艦三笠　日露戦争　東郷平八郎　秋山兄弟　好古　眞之　真之)

Offline Meeting

     I went to Tokyo just for fun. When I got the air ticket two months ago, I had a task, but it vanished later. I met my eldest daughter and had a party with my acquaintances, whom I knew only on the internet. I met them for the first time, but we hit it off from the start. Their careers and present jobs were far different from mine and it made my knowledge widen. Such a meeting would offer mental and spiritual sustenance to me.
     The Japanese style inn where we got together was located in one of the busiest areas of Tokyo, Shinbashi. This station is noted for the birth place of the train. The first railway track in Japan was constructed between Yokohama and Shinbashi. There's the steam locomotive square in front of Shinbashi station. An old locomotive is exhibited and it is often used as a designated spot.

(Vocabulary)
hit it off  会ってすぐに意気投合する
from the start 初めから、ぶっつけから、最初から
offer mental and spiritual sustenance  心の栄養になる
sustenance  [U] (生命維持に必要な) 食物, 栄養（物）
railway track 《鉄道》 線路

E-Ticket

     As I wrote before, my second daughter Yuri and I are visiting Germany for the first time in autumn. If I'm rich enough, I will buy the air tickets right before departure, but I'm not. I had to get the discount tickets far ahead of the flight and I bought them today.
     Though I have visited Canada every two years in the past ten years, every detail of the trip was done by my friend, who is teaching English in a college in Kobe. She was remarkably talented and when she took charge everything was perfect. However, this time, I had to do it all myself.
     I asked a travel agent, HIS, to get our air tickets this time because I've used this agent when my family traveled in Alberta and British Columbia in Canada in 1995 and they did their job admirably. I sent a lot of money from my bank to the agent and received air tickets and documents for various procedures at that time. The thickness of all the tickets and documents was irritating.
     To my surprise this time I sent the tickets' fee on the internet from my desk and received tickets via an e-mail! The air ticket is called an e-ticket and was added to the e-mail. I have only to print them out and take them to the counter of the air company with our passports.

(Vocabulary)
act one's part admirably  自分の役割［役目・務め・任務・責任］を立派に果たす

GPS Receiver

     I'm planning to visit Freiburg in Germany this autumn. I accessed the website of Freiburg City and got information for tourists. They sent me lots of pamphlets about Freiburg and around the city. I'm showing you them. I'm scouring these pamphlets now. I'm kind of a nerd. I have a great attention to detail and have to have everything perfect.
     I found that Freiburg was located ideally. I mean, the city is very convenient for sightseeing. I'm going to wander Basel in Switzerland, Strasbourg in France and around Lake Constance (Bodensee in German). Basel is on the border of Switzerland, Germany and France. Lake Constance is likewise the border of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. I will take a billion pictures and I was afraid that I wouldn't know where each picture was taken, so I bought a GPS Logger, which shows me where I was at any time later. It links pictures and places where the picture was taken by reconciling the time that the picture was shot. The second picture is of the GPS Logger. This device can record where I am every second for a continuous seven days. Can you believe it? I've only to put both pictures and my log into my PC and the PC makes up my album automatically. I'm sure that it will be open to the public in this blog.

(Vocabulary)
reconcile data  データを照合する

Travel Guide Books

     I made up my mind to visit a German small city of Freiburg this fall. I got the permission of my boss and bought some books about Europe today. I'll show you the books below; it says on each cover, Switzerland, France and Germany in Japanese. Freiburg lies near the border to Switzerland and France. I'm going to pass over the border and step into Basel and Strasbourg. Basel seems to be in the German-speaking sphere and my second daughter is helpful because she can speak German. I'd like to take my eldest daughter too, but her schedule is uncertain now. If she could come with us, she is also helpful because she's a good French speaker. Anyway, I'm thinking that I should study the modern history of those countries and it will make our trip more enjoyable.

(Vocabulary)
in the German-speaking sphere  　ドイツ語圏で
sphere   (個人・集団・国などの力の及ぶ) 範囲

(KW: フライブルグ バーゼル ストラスブール アルザス地方 )

Visitors from Freiburg

     My hometown, Matsuyama City has a sister city relationship with three cities in the world. The three cities are Sacramento, CA in the U.S., the Korean city of Pyeongtaek-si (평택시 平澤市) and Freiburg in southern Germany. It has been 20 years since the agreement with Freiburg and a goodwill mission visited Matsuyama City from Freiburg. The leader was the Mayor of Freiburg, Dr. Dieter Salomon. In response, Matsuyama City had a welcome party and I joined it. I'm not a good speaker in German. I had a little concern about the conversation with them, but the person next to me could speak English fluently and it helped me. While I was chatting with him, I became eager to visit Freiburg. I've never been to Germany and I think that many people would choose big and famous cities such as Frankfurt, Bonn, Berlin and so on as the first city in Germany. However, I got interested in Freiburg through the chatting.
     Freiburg is famous for its clean environment and is located near the border with Switzerland and France. I'd like to just spend time there and have a one-day trip to Basel in Switzerland and Mulhouse in France. Crossing the border between countries is interesting to me. Besides, Freiburg is a two and a half hour railway ride from Frankfurt which is directly connected with Japan. Freiburg is a small and rural city, but isn't so far from Japan in this sense.
     Anyway, this meeting motivated me to learn German.

Japan Surgical Society

     I was in Fukuoka City to attend the meeting of the Japan Surgical Society on Apr. 3rd. I have joined this meeting every several years. The purpose of attendance was naturally the absorption of the up-to-date techniques and knowledge, but I had another goal this time. It was a kind of a reunion.
     I'm a general surgeon and spent several years as the resident at a few hospitals. The staff members or fellow residents of these hospitals became separated now. Our occupation and/or our age are so busy that we can hardly take long enough days off at a preferable time. If we wanted to get together somewhere, it's almost impossible that a dozen people can arrange their schedules. Actually, a few people just met each other for the first time in the last 20 years.
     By the way, though our schedules are usually tight, it's easier to take days off in order to join the annual meeting of the congress. A friend noticed it and planned the reunion in Fukuoka City, where the surgical congress would be held. The date was set on Apr. 3rd, and the place was determined to be at Yahoo Dome Stadium, where the opening game of professional baseball would be played. You can see where we were seated at the game.
     The result is, the franchise team, Soft Bank Hawks won the massive victory. We and people around us got carried away. I'm not a fan of the Hawks, but I couldn't help being an instant fan of the Hawks.

Meal Coupon

     I went to Fukuoka City to attend the Annual Congress of the Japan Surgical Society on Apr. 2nd. When I was waiting for my flight in Matsuyama Airport, it was announced that my flight had been delayed more than one hour and a meal coupon was delivered to the passengers. It was the first time I'd seen this kind of coupon. It was because it took more time than expected to check the plane before depature, but anyway I felt bad for the company.

(Vocabulary)
feel bad for 　気の毒に思う

(KW: お食事券)

Reception Party for German Guests

     I was invited to the welcome party for the guests from the small German city of Freiburg. This city is a sister city of Matsuyama City, in which I live now. The leader of visitors will be the mayor of Freiburg City. I made haste to the nearest bookstore to get a textbook of German conversation. It is just thin veneer. (grin)
     I'm planning to visit Germany this summer with my second daughter, who can speak a little German. I'm wondering if there are some travel agents or someone in the travel industry in the group. If I knew those people, it would be helpful for our trip. I'd rather stay at a B&B, a kind of dormitory, youth hostel, or something like these than a luxurious hotel. I heard that the system of youth hostel originated from Germany in the early 20th century. What would the original youth hostel be like? I'm very interested.

(Vocabulary)
make haste to // rush at // scramble to   慌てて～する
thin veneer   付け焼き刃

 

Last Note of this Trip

     We enjoyed this trip to our hearts' content. I was glad to spend a few days with my daughter. The plane for Matsuyama was being prepared for take-off in the first picture. The second picture was of the meal in the plane. It was not good, but it's ok because I had many good memories of this trip. Through this trip, I began to feel friendly for South Korea. I will visit the country again and again. Next time,,,, I would maybe choose Jeju Island.
     By the way, look at the third picture. It was of the display in the cabin. Dokdo was displayed on it. I couldn't help laughing at it. As I wrote about this small island or rocks several times before, I won't repeat it here. However, it will take more and more time for Korean to grow up. If you want to read it, click the archives for "Korea" and search "takeshima". You'll find nine entries about that.
     When I switched on my cellular phone in Matsuyama Airport, I received an e-mail from my daughter with the last picture attached. I bought her an iPOD in a duty free shop in Incheon Airport. She told me that the manual for it was written in Korean. It was a nice punch line at the end of the trip.

Wandering in Incheon Airport

     I had to kill time in Incheon Airport. I thought about how to do it. Going out of the airport flitted througn my mind, but I was afraid I could lose my way back and I gave that up. I took a walk in the airport.

     I heard a tuneful melody of traditional Korean instruments. It was the booth for experiencing Korean culture. Some people were trying to make some crafts or use writing brushes. However, it was not unfamiliar to me. I enjoyed just the tune of the instruments.

     I saw the sign on the gate saying "TASHKENT". This city isn't so well-known in Japan. I realized that this airport was specifically an international hub airport. At the same time, I remembered the miserable history of some Korean people. Stalin adopted the migration policy of Korean people and many Koreans were forced to move into Central Asia about 70 years ago. Many descendants must have lived in Tashkent. Stalin did lots of horrible things against surrounding countries, but the present Russian Government hasn't apologized about them. What a lack of morals!

     This is the information board for international departures. Every time I see it, I feel my heart beating loudly. There are many places in the world and I hope that I can visit as many places as possible. I'm just thinking about visiting Freiburg, the sister city of my home town, this summer. It is only a plan now, but I'd like to make it come true.

     I tried some Korean traditional clothes on. These clothes sounded like they were for the nobles. There were many beautiful clothes for ladies here, and I regretted that my daughter had already left.

     This picture was of my lunch, ramen. This ramen was so-so, but it was intersting that kimchi wasw added to all the food in South Korea.

     After getting tired from walking, I moved to my depature gate. At that time I found a wonderful network service. I'll show you two pictures about it. It was called Naver Square. Naver is a famous network service in South Korea and offers free access to the internet around here. I dropped in at the square with a canned coffee and took my PC out of my daypack and turned it on. My pc was easily connected to the internet. It was very useful. I read some news in Japan while I was in Seoul. I checked my e-mails and replied to some of them and started writing these trip notes.

(Vocabulary)
flit through someone's mind   考えなどがチラッと（人）の心をかすめる
writing brush   毛筆
international hub airport   国際ハブ空港

(KW: 仁川空港)