This moment brought to you by....Japan

As I was walking to get lunch today, I watched a white crane fly past a row of cherry trees in bloom, with Mt. Fuji in the background. And I thought, "Is this a quintessential Japanese moment or what?" Then a ninja attacked me from behind, but I fought him off using my Kendo moves. Afterwards I went and bought tempura and rice for lunch, which I washed down with green tea. And I thought, "You know you're in Japan when you get cherry blossoms, ninjas and tempura all in the same hour!"

Ok, so I made up the part about the ninja and the kendo. But everything else is true! I really did see a crane fly in front of a cherry blossom tree with Mt. Fuji in the background as I was on my way to get my tempura lunch. This moment brought to you by Japan! It reminded me of another recent "Sponsored by Japan" moment I had a few weeks ago - My friend and I were at the local public bath, sitting in the tatami room enjoying soba noodles, mandarin oranges and tea while watching Pokemon. Seriously, is that Japanese or what? And then the samurai showed up!

It got me thinking though - There are so many concrete images that we come to associate with other countries - the parts of the culture that make their way across the oceans and borders, whether carried by books, television, photos or immigrants, and take hold in our imaginations. They are the things that come to mind when you hear the name of a foreign country you have never visited, and what you hope to see if you do ever go there. But how much of it is really accurate? Or at least alive and well in the modern era?

Try this - what comes to mind when you think of India? I recently asked my students the same question, and I bet you came up with the same things they did. Elephants, curry, Taj Mahal, turbans, chai, Gandhi, naan bread, bindis, Bollywood. I went to India recently, and yes, experienced all of those. Even Gandhi, but only in statue form.

Traveling is one thing - as a tourist, you seek out those images, foods and experiences that have taken hold in your imagination, because they are often the reason you where fascinated by the country in the first place. (In fact, there are a lot of people in the tourist industries that make their living because they understand this, which is why you can still get your picture with a "ninja" at Himeji Castle.) But living....living in a foreign country is a different story.

When I was living in Korea, a friend asked me, "So, do you eat kimchi every day?" The answer was YES, because Koreans really do eat kimchi every day, with every meal. But if you were to ask someone living in Mexico if they ate burritos every day, they would think you were a steteotypical idiot. So then comes the question - how accurate are our images of life in other countries? How much of it is just stereotype, or outdated, or simply wrong?

Is anyone out there wondering how often I eat sushi while living in Japan? Afraid to ask for fear of looking like you are making stereotypical assumptions about the Japanese diet? Don't worry, you aren't - they really do eat a lot of sushi here. Not every day of course, but it is sold in plentiful amounts at every grocery and convenience store, and each town has several sushi restaurants. As for myself, I eat it about once a week. It is, however, quite different than some of the sushi you get in the US!

All of this got me thinking about the popular image of Japan that prevails in the US, or at least the image I had in my mind, and how much of that I actually experience while living here. And I have to say that my foreigner's expectation for Japan IS alive and well. When I really examine my life here, a large part of my life is "sponsored by Japan. And much of it is exactly what I expected - no, hoped for, when I decided to move here.

So I made a list! This is based on MY idea of Japan before I came. It was actually really fun to think of all these. Maybe someday I will make another list of all the OTHER "sponsored by Japan" aspects of my life that I didn't expect (like brushing my teeth every day in the teacher's room or becoming intimate with the small of kerosene.)

My So-Called Japanese Life

I eat rice every day, often 3 meals a day.

I make miso soup, rice and sometimes fish almost every morning for breakfast.

I ride my bike through rice and tea fields when going to and from school. On clear mornings, I can see Mt. Fuji.

I go to the public bath about once a week.

My car is tiny and very fuel efficient.

In the Spring there are cherry blossoms everywhere, including, I'm happy to say, right outside my bedroom window.

I drink lots and lots of green tea.

I sleep on a futon.

Soba, mochi, tempura, gyoza, udon, tonkatsu, edamame, seaweed, whatever other Japanese foods you know, I eat them all the time.

I drink sake, but not much.

I take off my shoes before entering my apartment, and I have a separate pair of indoor shoes for work.

My apartment has tatami mats and sliding doors.

I own a yukata, which I wear around the apartment when it is warm enough.

I carry my own chopsticks (this is NOT very Japanese though, people here use the disposable wooden ones unfortunately)

I have seen live Sumo, and I understand it.

When I can afford it, I travel by bullet train.

I go to Karaoke, and love it.

I probably rub shoulders with yakuza all the time without knowing it; apparently this region is a "hotspot" and in the summer you can spot them at the beaches because of their huge tatoos.

Most of my neighbors prune their trees bonsai style.

I bow a lot.

I say "HAI!" all the time.

Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples, old castles, yes, seen my fair share of those.

I have accumulated a small collection of paper cranes.

And as a contrast list, I'll tell you what I DON'T get--

I don't have a koi pond in my yard.

I don't watch Anime or read Manga, but only because I don't like them. If I did, I would be in heaven here.

I haven't learned taiko, ikebana, kendo, judo or tea ceremony, although I probably could if I wanted to.

I don't see geisha - have to go to Kyoto for that, but I do see women in kimono pretty often.

No ninjas, sorry.

I have never seen a square watermelon.

No samurai, sorry.

I don't do Radio Taiso every morning.

I don't wear geta - the wooden "clip clop shoes." But I have on several occasions, and they are actually really comfortable.

That's all I can think of now. Anything I'm missing? Now is the time to ask those burning questions :-)