Kayaking the Big Lake

This last Sunday, Papa Kazuhiro and I drove to Lake Biwa in ShigaPrefecture. It was a long drive, but it was completely worth it! Lake Biwa is the largest lake in Japan, which isn’t a lot to say, I suppose, with how skinny Japan is, but Lake Biwa is actually very large! It’s 670.4 km^2 (258.8 mile^2) and surrounded by mountains. There are fish in it; mostly Largemouth Bass which were introduced at some point and ate up all the native fish. We drove up the western side of the lake and met a friend of Papa Kazuhiro and Mama Akane’s, Higuchi-san and his family. We visited Shirohige Shrine while we waited for a restaurant to open. It’s a cool place and there were many people there having children or cars blessed. The coolest part was the archway. It was in the lake about 30 meters from shore and the setting was perfect for it.

I think that Shirohige Shrine is the best name for a shrine you could have. The name means White Beard. I have no idea why it’s called that, but why not?

After lunch, we drove further north to a small drive in campground right on the lakeshore. There were a bunch of people there already. A small kayak shop was having a kayaking renting day and Higuchi-san brought his two kayaks to splash around in. It was a lot of fun! The most interesting part about the kayaks was that they were foldable. Instead of having a hard body, they were built of tough rubber and had a removable frame that was put together like tent pools. There are also a couple of inflatable air sacks that get stuck in the bow and stern compartments. The kayak, when folded, fit into a large suitcase. They are surprisingly durable , but have the limitation of balance because they are extremely skinny and shallow.

We paddled around all day and had a blast! I had the opportunity to try three different kinds: a short black one for rivers, a long yellow one for the ocean, and a long green one that was designed after the kayaks used in the Aleutian Islands, meaning it was very skinny and tippy. There were many interesting people there and it somehow got around that I canoe. I got to talk with the kayak shop owner. He teaches telemark skiing in the winter and kayaking in the summer. This summer, he went spent three weeks paddling around Queen Elizabeth Island off the coast of British Columbia. How cool is that! I also got to share photos from my canoe trip to the Arctic this summer with everyone there. I think they enjoyed seeing another country as well as learning about canoeing. It was super nice of everyone there to let me try the kayaks and I’m very happy that Papa Kazuhiro was ok with driving that far.

There are several topics that I’ve been wanting to write about but haven’t had the chance too. I’ve been too busy writing about my adventures!

First off, food! Yes, Japanese food is absolutely incredible! There are, however, foods that are questionable both by foreigners and Japanese people alike. I have finally found foods that I dislike! It’s a weird feeling to say that because there really are very few. One of these unfavorable foods is a dish called Natto. Natto is made from fermented soybeans. It smells ok, but as soon as you start to prepare it, anything that made you think this was a good idea to try goes out the window. The consistency is like hot rice crispy bars, except that as you stir it, it becomes more and more sticky. The taste is the least favorable part. I can swallow the majority of a mouthful alright, but the slime sticks to the roof of your mouth and is very difficult to get rid of. The taste stays for the rest of the meal! This is a food that I will be avoiding for the rest of my stay. Fortunately, it is not eaten as a regular part of the meal.

A food that I have found I am quite partial to is Udon. Udon is hand-rolled noodles that about the thickness of a pencil. They are absolutely delicious and are served in a soup with leaks. Also in the broth is some sort of meat. My favorite is Tempura Udon, which is Udon with some sort of fried vegetable or meat in it. At most restaurants that my family and I go to, I order Udon because I cannot get enough of it.

Another topic that I’ve been itching to write about is the flora and fauna of Japan. It is completely the opposite from that of the Midwest USA. There are many deciduous trees with very thick leaves and they grow everywhere where there isn’t concrete. Nothing stops them. After a landslide, they move right back in! It’s a good thing there are so many, too, because without them, Japan might slide into the sea. My favorite plant in fall so far is Higanbana. It has red flowers in the fall. You’ll see it next to golden rice fields and in between the two lanes of traffic. It is very pretty and many children make necklaces with them. The animals that are in Japan that you will not find in the Midwest include wild pigs, monkeys, and poisonous snakes. It almost makes it scary to go for a walk in the country! You see snake carcasses everywhere on the roads. On several occasions, my family and I have seen monkeys swinging off into the forest as we drive by. There are also signs that warn about them crossing the road. The birds hear are very odd. It seems like there are very few or just very few varieties. I think the most populous are the crows and pigeons. They are everywhere and can be heard at anytime of day within a mile or two. There are also Black Kites that fly in groups and can be seen hunting fish on reservoirs or lakes. At Lake Biwa, we saw one skimming the water for fish.

There are also a ton of waterfowl on Lake Biwa including herons and swim around in flocks.

The last topic I will talk about in this post is thinking in Japanese. With every week that passes, I’ve been thinking more and more in Japanese. It’s been very interesting and I don’t understand how it happens. As I learn new phrases and words, they begin to pop into my head instead of what they would be in English. When Mama Akane and I went to see Les Miserables in Osaka, I accidentally bumped into a man in the subway station. I immediately turned to him and apologized in Japanese and continued walking. It wasn’t until a few moments later that I realized that he had responded in English and was an American. I’ve started to feel comfortable with the language! It’s a great improvement! I’ve also began to understand what everyone around me is talking about. This isn’t always the best thing, because, as a foreign student, I tend to unintentionally be the topic of many conversations. Yesterday, I was walking home and passed a group of students. They immediately began to talk about “that foreigner” and if anyone had talked to him yet. It’s nice to know that people are interested in me, but to not have the courtesy to talk about me out of earshot isn’t so great. I may not understand a lot of Japanese, but I can understand high schooler’s language.

It feels great to finally be understanding what people ask and say to me! It is going to be a long time before I can properly carry on a conversation, but it’s a start!

またね！

Wes