After a sumptuous breakfast the next day, some of us went
ahead to board the bus, while others, including myself waited in the common
room of the inn for the rest to finish breakfast. While we were waiting, the
inn keeper came to us to show us our photo in the local newspaper. It was a
photo taken while we were at school the day before. It was just a short news
column but it felt so exciting to be featured in the local newspaper. We had
unintentionally become official visitors from Malaysia to their schools. I
rushed to inform Kak Shomi, Kak Yanti and Kak Izan, who were still having
breakfast, of our newfound fame! They were unimpressed because they weren’t in
the photo unfortunately. Only a handful of us were in it namely Muhaimin, Kak
Shaz, Mak Tok, Kak Huda and myself. We took photos of the photo using our
phones and resolved to buy a few copies of the newspaper later on for our own
keeping.
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All of us got onto the bus and set off for our next
destination. Hardly 5 minutes into the journey, suddenly we received a message
from Kak Shomi in our Whatsapp group, asking where everybody was. We had left
her behind without realizing it. Subhanallah!
Luckily we had only travelled a short distance, so it wasn’t a big hassle
for the bus driver to turn back and get her. And thereafter we put Muhaimin in
charge of making sure everyone was on the bus before it moved. Kak Shomi from
that moment on became the symbol for the readiness for departure. Kalau Kak Shomi ada, maksudnya boleh jalan. What
a dramatic and amusing beginning to the day!
Nishigaya Waste
Management Plant
It was a clear and beautiful day. Since Mount Fuji is
located in Shizuoka Prefecture, we could see the magnificent mountain through
most of our journey by bus to Nishigaya Waste Management Plant.
When we arrived at the plant, Mr Shiratori was already there
waiting for us, along with two workers at the plant. One of the most striking
things about the place was that there was no stench at all. Not even a hint!
With a view of the surrounding mountains from the entrance to the plant, it
felt more like a holiday resort than a waste management plant. The compound was
so clean, and the waste trucks coming and going from the plant were also so
clean, cleaner than normal vehicles! We were invited into the building and as
usual had to remove our shoes. We were then taken to a seminar room for a short
video presentation and briefing about how waste is managed in Japan generally
and at the plant in specific. You could feel how highly the Japanese regard
people who work in the waste management industry from truck drivers to workers
at the plant. It is seen as a noble job.
We learnt that trash is not sorted out at the plant. It is
not a recycling centre. The Japanese separate their trash in different bags.
Only those that cannot be recycled, true trash, will be sent to the centre. Of
course sometimes people don’t sort out their rubbish, but the plant does not
have the manpower to separate the rubbish especially since a great portion of
it would be unrecyclable. Whatever arrives at the plant is to be melted.
The ferromagnetic metals that sink to the bottom are cooled
and then separated using powerful magnets so they can be reused. The other
melted materials form slag which are also reused. The promenade in the compound
of the plant is made from the slag. The gases released from the melting process
are used to power the plant and to keep the neighbouring hot spring hot. Any
excess energy is sold to the power companies. All other toxic gasses produced
are filtered thoroughly through a long and extensive filter measuring many
metres, leaving only non-toxic gas to be emitted from the chimney of the plant.
Only the sediment and particles trapped the filters are sent to landfills. That
way, Japan saves a lot space. They need to think of efficient ways to use their
limited flat land because there is very little of it squashed between seas and
mountains. Nishigaya Plant is the manifestation of that effort to be efficient
and environmentally friendly. Visiting the plant reminded me of a documentary I
had watched about a small town called Kamikatsu in Tokushima prefecture which
separates its waste into 34 categories for recycling and is aiming to be waste
free by 2020. We find it so difficult to separate our trash into 3 bins, let
alone 34! The resident of Kamikatsu were initially unhappy about the policy but
slowly they saw the importance and benefits of the policy. It wasn’t easy at
first, but with the whole community getting involved and helping each other to
do it, they are doing just fine. I suppose the foundation required to achieve
something so arduous yet important is a well-knit and caring community whose
members support one another, coupled with strong values about what is right and
wrong.
There was some discussion among us about the cost
to run Nishigaya Plant. It is costly, but if you take the positive
externalities into account like better physical and mental health due to living
in such a clean environment, preserved ecosystems, increased tourism due to a
preserved natural environment despite developments then I think it's not costly
at all. Sadly, positive externalities are difficult to measure and in many
countries, are often discounted altogether in cost benefit analyses, which is a
shame really.
After the meeting, we were taken on a tour of all
the main areas in the plant as well as the adjacent building handling
recyclables. At the recycling centre, members of the public can come to learn
about recycling and join classes. Some of the classes include how to melt glass
and reshape it, which we saw being done in one of the rooms, how to make crafts
from unused Kimonos and other classes. There was a section displaying all the
different beautiful handmade crafts from various used materials. Some of them
looked nicer than brand new items.
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| Crafts made from unused Kimonos |
Next, we visited the hot water spring next to the
building. There were already a few elderly folks there, soaking their feet in
the warm water. Mak tok and few others took the opportunity to do the same,
while the rest of us just walked around the compound taking photos of the plant
and the scenic surrounding area.
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| Hot water spring adajacent to the plant |
There was not much time to spend at the plant as we
had to make our way to Gyokuro-no-Sato for our visit to a traditional Japanese
garden where we were supposed to observe a Japanese tea ceremony. So after a
quick soak, we bade farewell to the plant staff who escorted us, and got onto
the bus.
Gyokuro-No-Sato
It was a long but scenic drive to Gyokuro-No-Sato,
located in the suburbs of Shizuoka. Again, the view of the mountains with trees
of varying colours, tea farms and the tranquil atmosphere was a real treat to
the eye and soul. Upon arrival, we made our way across the road from the rest area
to the little Japanese style house located amidst a most picturesque Japanese
garden to watch a demonstration of a Japanese tea ceremony. We were greeted by
a middle-aged lady dressed in Kimono who showed us to the main room where the
demonstration was to be held. We all took our seats on the floor while the lady
and two others prepared the articles for the tea ceremony. Each of us too were
given a small block-shaped candy on a wooden tray which we consumed with the
tea after the ceremony. There were a few types of pots, some cups and of course
some ground green tea. One of the ladies dressed in soft peach coloured Kimono
then began the ceremony with Kak Shaz translating for us as the lady explained
the steps. Some of the steps included cleaning the cups delicately with some
hot water, measuring the amount of tea leaves with a simple device, making sure
the water was not too hot before mixing it with the tea leaves, gently shaking
the mixture in a circular motion and finally pouring the tea. She then demonstrated
how to drink the tea and said that it was custom for those who have drunk the
tea to say something nice about the cup, as a symbol of appreciation towards
the host’s kindness. It was quite a fascinating ceremony. Who would’ve thought
drinking tea could involve such an elaborate ceremony! But this is what makes
learning about other peoples’ cultures interesting, even though such ceremonies
globally are dying out because the younger generation is too busy to be
bothered learning and practicing such intricate and rather time-consuming
observances. It is quite a shame really because these ceremonies, apart from
playing a role in fostering strong bonds among members of a group, often add
layers of meaning and beauty to activities we usually take for granted.
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| View from outside the cottage |
After the tea ceremony we headed back to the rest
area for lunch. Some of us took the opportunity to buy the fresh fruits from
the local vendors in the area before and after lunch. The restaurant owner was
kind enough to give us the whole wooden platform at the back to ourselves, not
just for lunch but also for prayer. After lunch, we moved the tables aside to
make space for prayer. There was some confusion which I caused with regard to
the Qibla. Everyone’s compass pointed northwest, which did not make sense to me
because Makkah is located southwest of Japan. Actually it did not really matter
that much because the Syariah is quite flexible about the Qibla. How flexible?
Well some scholars say there is a 90-degree allowance on either side of the true
Qibla i.e. as long as you are facing in the general direction of Makkah, then
you’re fine. But this matter of the Qibla not being in the direction I expected
it to be, bothered me. Only later would I discover from some research that
determining the Qibla using simple geography based on a flat map isn’t accurate
because the earth isn’t flat. Working out the Qibla on a map uses Euclidean
geometry whereas working out the Qibla on a sphere involves non-Euclidean
geometry. To demonstrate this discrepancy, imagine two points on the Equator
some distance apart and draw a line from each point towards the north pole. The
angle of both lines from the equator would be 90 degrees. Now if you draw
another line to link those two spots on the Equator, you will get a triangle
whose total internal angle adds up to more than 180 degrees. That’s
non-Euclidean geometry. So the Qibla software on all the compasses was right
and I was wrong.
Anyway, we prayed in the restaurant while other
customers ate their lunch quietly around us, with some soft music being played
from the speakers. It felt slightly awkward but we were grateful the restaurant
owner allowed us to use a corner for prayer.
After the prayer, Dr MAZA treated all of us to some
delicious green tea ice cream. While we were eating the ice cream outside, one of
the vendors came to us with a newspaper to ask if we were the guys in the photo
in the paper. It was the same picture we saw in the newspaper which the inn
keeper showed us earlier. We had become celebrities in Shizuoka! Mr Auslan
asked if he could buy the paper from the man but he kindly gave it to him
without taking any money. Apart from the ice cream treat, we took the
opportunity to buy green tea of different varieties with different tastes at
the rest shop. We then got onto the bus and made our way to our next
destination, Shizuoka Disaster Management Centre.
Shizuoka
Disaster Management Centre
The disaster management centre is a place where
people can learn all about disasters: How they occur, what to do when they
occur, what preventive steps can be taken to reduce the impact of such
disasters when they occur etc.
We learnt quite a lot about disasters and what the
Japanese government does to make sure the citizens are safe before, during and
after a disaster strikes. Japan is situated on the Pacific Ring of Fire, which
is why it has a lot of active volcanoes and is prone to earthquakes which can
cause devastating tsunamis like the most recent one in 2011 which caused much
destruction in Fukushima.
We first watched a video showing a theoretical
situation of an earthquake which caused a tsunami. The main takeaway from the
video was that, there is hardly any time at all to run to safety when a tsunami
warning is issued. Earthquakes themselves cannot be predicted with any reliable
accuracy and so if it occurs out at sea, it will be a matter of minutes before
a tsunami reaches land. Japan has loudspeakers installed in every area which
are used to inform people about disasters like tsunamis. Strong steel towers
with platforms have also been erected in many places for people to climb to
safety. We also learnt that even a tsunami measuring two feet in height is
still dangerous because it can wash away a grown man given the force of the
water. The key takeaway message of the video was, never underestimate the
seriousness of a tsunami warning.
We then walked around the centre, looking at the
miniature exhibits with explanations about how earthquakes and tsunamis form.
There was an exhibit explaining an interesting consequence of earthquake which
I hadn’t known until this visit, namely soil liquefaction. It occurs when
tremors after the earthquake shake the ground so much that water beneath the
water table slowly saps upwards and softens the soils, causing buildings above
it to sink into the soil and become severely damaged in the process. The loss
of life from this consequence of earthquake is scarce because it is quite a
slow process, but the damage to buildings is serious. There was a hands-on
exhibit involving turning a lever as fast as possible which Omar excitedly
tried to mimic the effect of tremors causing water to rise from deep
underground resulting in soil liquefaction.
There was also an earthquake simulator which I had
the opportunity to try. You just needed to sit in a chair, fasten the
seatbelts, and ‘enjoy’ the show. The chair would move in a jerky fashion and
the intensity of the movements depended on the intensity of the earthquake. It
didn’t feel very scary because it wasn’t the real thing. But I suppose if one
was living in a high-rise building and experienced such jerking with shelves
coming off the walls and furniture moving all over the place, one would be
terrified indeed.
One of the exhibits was a comparison of 2 rooms
with exactly the same furniture, but with different amounts of damage,
primarily due to whether the furniture was fastened or not to their places, be
they the walls or the floor, with various fasteners which Japanese citizens are
advised to use. One conundrum I had was about their advice to run into high-rise
buildings during a tsunami. I asked our guide, wouldn’t running into high-rise
buildings to safe ourselves from a tsunami be counterproductive given the
danger of high-rise buildings toppling due to the earthquake itself? She said,
most buildings in Japan are earthquake-proof, so the danger of a high-rise
building toppling from an earthquake is quite low, especially if the building
is new. Therefore, running into a high-rise building is always safer than not
doing so during a tsunami.
Upon completion of the tour we took a group photo
in the foyer of the building which featured a tall poster showing the possible
heights of tsunami waves. The highest on the poster was 30 feet, which is about
2-3 storeys high, but a really powerful tsunami can reach a height of 100 feet
(30 m) with a speed of 800km/h if travelling across a great distance.
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| A bunting showing the possible heights of tsunamis |
Off to
Shin-Kanbara
After our visit to Shizuoka Disaster Management
Centre, we made our way to Shin-Kanbara for dinner. There is a small restaurant
owned by a gentle old lady who is an acquaintance of sister Miwa. The dining
area was quite small but the hall upstairs was much bigger, with typical
Japanese sliding doors and decorations. We performed our maghrib and isya’
prayers upstairs in the hall and then went downstairs for dinner. All the food
prepared for us that night was halal. We had fresh tiny prawns with blue eyes,
udon, rice and sashimi. I don’t think I have ever eaten so much of raw food
before. After dinner, we went back upstairs to look at and try on Kimonos the
lady sells along with an array of prayer mats made by the lady using unused
kimonos. She has quite a lot of Muslim customers because of her link with
sister Miwa and so sister Miwa had suggested to her to make the prayer mats and
sell it to her customers. There was a variety of standard sized mats as well as
smaller ones the size of handkerchiefs which people can use to place in front
of them for prostration. I bought one black and gold prayer mat, not because I
needed it, but because of its novelty. It’s now my mother’s favourite prayer
mat. It was a tough decision though, because all of them were so pretty and unique.
At first I was reluctant, but Kak Shomi cajoled me into buying one so that she
wouldn’t feel so guilty buying two.
After our minor shopping spree, we bade farewell to
the kind old lady and made our way back home to Nihon-kaku.
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| Dinner at Shin-Kibara. Just look at all that raw food! And the prawns with blue eyes.... |
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| Attempt at being The Last Jadah |
Night of
Secrets….
When we got back to Nihon Kaku, Kak Shaz, Kak Huda,
Kak Shomi, Afiq and Muhaimin and I went out to a nearby convenience store to
get some supplies. I bought some chocolates to munch on during the coming days.
The others bought their own stuff. I was the first to be done with shopping and
so I waited outside. Kak Huda was next, and so while waiting we both chatted
about how obesity is such a problem in the country and some of her experience
anaesthetizing obese patients along with the problems that entail anaesthetizing
such patients. One by one the rest came out, and we bumped into Dr MAZA too who
likes to take a stroll alone at night, exploring places. Kak Shaz then came out
and said, “Okay, everyone’s out, let’s go!” So she happily started walking when
we reminded her, “Kak shomi is not here yet lah!”
Kak shomi lagi. Luckily we
realized her absence and so waited for her. Kak Shaz said, “Please don’t’ tell
her we forgot her again.” But of course, that is the first thing we said to her
when she came out. It was all very amusing.
Because all of use wanted to get a copy of the
newspaper with our picture, and because kak Shaz wanted some coffee, we went to
the nearest 7 Eleven store not too far away from the Inn. Muhaimin, Afiq, Kak
Shaz and I each got a copy of the newspaper, Kak Shaz got her coffee and we
made our way back to the inn. Dr MAZA suddenly made a joke about how when he
was lecturing in USM, he told his students, that they should be proud because
the new Japanese Prime Minster was a Kelantanese. We were baffled when he told
us the joke, his students we also baffled when they heard it. “Betul ka doktor?” They asked. “Ye la, sebab orang panggil dia Abe.” We
all laughed and I thought, “Boleh tahan
jugak lawak Dr MAZA ni…”
Upon reaching the inn, we sat in the common area
and started chit chatting. Most of the others had already gone to bed. We were
just talking about Japanese culture, about their punctuality and cleanliness.
Kak Shaz then pointed out an interesting fact about the Japanese. They have two
faces, a face they show others which is usually positive and their true face,
which is what they truly feel about things. There is so much of pressure to be
compliant in Japanese society, that there is a deep dissatisfaction in large
sections of the population because of their inability to express what they
really think. It could also be an explanation for Japan having one of the
highest suicide rates of the developed world. I chimed in about something I had
read not long ago regarding this phenomenon of having ‘two faces’. There are
companies in Japan whose workers are actors, who can be hired to act any role
they are paid to act. They could act to be a girlfriend or even a wife to a man
who does not want to be in relationship but is expected to be in one by his
parents. It could be a worker who must apologize to his bosses (who frequently
don’t know who their subordinates really are) for a blunder but does not dare
do it because of the severe rebuking his will receive. Or even the role of a
father to a girl whose real father ran away. This last one was what really hit
me in the article I read, that there is something really wrong with the
society. The actor said that he agreed to act as the girl’s father at the
request of her mother because the girl was frequently teased in school for not
having a father. He has been doing it for close to 10 years now and the girl
still doesn’t know that the man is not her real father, because he comes and
goes, on the pretext of having to travel far for business. I suppose this is
the cost of extreme compliance to norms in a society. The lack of a spiritual
component to norms may also be a factor in this distressing phenomenon.
From there, we went on to talk about other related
things, but the highlight of the night was Dr MAZA’s sharing with us about his
voluntary and involuntary dealings with various influential people within and
without the country. We were hooked to his stories whose themes were mainly
betrayal and espionage. It felt like we were watching one of the Bourne series!
It would not be proper for me to divulge the details of all that Dr MAZA
decided to share with us since it was done upon his trust in us, but if there
was something I could surmise from the anecdotes, it is that issues within the
country are more connected to global politics than we think or would like them
to be.
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