Reality of Ramen
Today I have a written post and a video log. I also posted more pictures.
I ate ramen for the first time today. It was amazing.
Now don’t freak out- it’s just food.
But it was good. The only ramen I’ve had up until lunch today was the standard cup-o-noodles ramen. A product meant to be fast and cheap, but still authentic. But needless to say, the thicker noodles, the miso-based broth, the fresh onions and bamboo shoots, the fried garlic… There is no shortcut to ramen like this.
Much like Lester Bernham of American Beauty, I feel like I’m waking up. This ramen today served to be much more than noodles- it was a metaphor. Or perhaps an explanation. How many other things have seemed like ramen to me? Trying to be real, but not quite making it to the real thing. How many other things were merely surrogates for what they were supposed to be? How many things were cheap imitations?
Are the things in your life authentic? Do you fill your days with real ramen activities, or just cup-o-noodle-style distractions? Does your job satisfy you, or merely fill you? Are you developing relationships without shortcuts, or does fast and easy work for you?
These are the questions my lunch asked me today.
Minority Now
And now for the first IN JAPAN blog. I wrote the following on the plane:
It’s been awhile since my last blog. I visited family in New Jersey, then spent the week hanging out with friends and packing. In the end, I took two very large checked bags. But both were under the 50 pound weight limit. And a lot of what I packed is gifts (omiyage) for the people I will be meeting and prizes for my students.
Yesterday I had orientation at the Japanese embassy. It was pretty cool but a really busy day. In the evening, we had a reception at the ambassador’s residence. It was really cool. It was a very pretty building and had a tea house. I also made a speech (which you can view by going to the video tab). It was a very good evening.
It was hard saying goodbye to my family. Especially my dog, Kayla. She is sick and I know that I will never see her again.
This morning was an adventure. I meant to get up at 4:45 (we had to leave the house at 6). You know, get a nice breakfast, maybe have time to enjoy one cup of coffee or walk up my street. Take my time to shave and pack.
Nope.
I rolled over feeling very rested. That should have been my first clue. I set my computer to wake me up at 4:45, but I checked my alarm clock. 5:35. I jumped out of bed, and the thought of “How did this happen?” quickly gave way to-
“Let’s do this.”
I packed my stuff quickly. At 5:45 I noticed that no one else from my family was up either (due to varies technological difficulties). I had to laugh. When it rains it pours. I woke up my parents and my sister and we were soon all out the door, miraculously at 6:00 AM. Right on schedule. I started a timer on my watch the moment I stepped out the front door, intending to not stop it until I entered my hotel room in Tokyo. (Unfortunately, the watch must have hit something. I checked it later and the timer was stopped. I’ll do the math later- for the record, I left at 6 AM EST, which is 7 PM Saturday evening in Tokyo.)
Other than a miscommunication about which airport we were supposed to be headed to, everything went smoothly. I checked in and later boarded the flight to Chicago. I had a good time talking to the people around me.
After a brief layover in O’Hare I am now on the flight to Tokyo. The flight should be thirteen hours. We are about half an hour into the flight.
I thought I would have more to say regarding my feelings on the flight, or the trip in general. Maybe it’s the amount of time I’ve spent preparing, but I really don’t have many remarks to make. At least right now. I’m not nervous. I’m not particularly excited- probably because I’m tired and just want to get there. But I am happy, and believe I will enjoy this.
-That ends what I wrote on the plane. I am currently at the hotel in Tokyo on the second day of orientation. Tomorrow morning (Wednesday) I head for Nabari. I am very excited.
Orientation has been helpful but also very busy. Last night I went out into Tokyo and did karoake. It was cool. I will post a video of my singing when I have an internet connection with more bandwidth.
The first night, I went out exploring with a friend of mine. He had a very interesting comment that I have been reflecting on.
“So how does it feel?” he asked.
“What? Japan?”
“Yes. You are the minority now.”
