When I first started working in Japan, I lived in a neighboring city called Takasaki. My apartment there was an old, somewhat run-down place that wasn't improved in the slightest by the fact that the previous tenant had left it incredibly filthy. Incredibly. Filthy.
The least of his filth was a pile of old wine and beer bottles on a sticky floor in the corner of the kitchen.
Incredibly. Filthy.
I hated that place, even though it was in a relatively good location life-wise -- a grocery store, 100 yen store, electronics store, used book store, everything was within a 10-minute bike ride. The schools were around 20-30 minutes away, but it was good exercise and helped me slim down a lot when I first got here.
After a year and a half, I decided that I'd had enough. It was time to move to Maebashi, where my schools were. I spent a bit of time looking around online and finding places close to my schools. Not only did I want to be able to bike to school more easily, rather than pedaling like a demon for half an hour and arriving drenched in sweat, but I also wanted to see my kids on the road or in stores. It sounds weird, I know, but I really liked them.
Another not-so-small point in favor of living close was that it would be a lot easier to go to school events.
I was really attached to my students.
I saw them a lot, too. The mall, bookstore, video store, grocery stores, all kinds of big stores were nearby and we all went to the same ones. It was pretty neat running into them outside of school.
In any case, after three years teaching in that area, I was moved to a different school. That wouldn't have been so bad -- I always figured that it was going to happen sooner or later, since they rotate regular teachers every seven years. What was bad is that I was getting transferred to a different school that was so far away that commuting by bike in normal weather would be terrible -- at least two hours, if not more.
So I had to move. No question about it.
I fought it in all kinds of ways, going through the typical stages of grief, before I finally started looking for apartments. After a number of struggles, I found one that I wasn't happy with, but at least I was satisfied with it. So I moved up into the mountains. Or more specifically, onto the side of Mt. Akagi.
This is the view from my apartment's parking lot. It's a beautiful view, to be sure... but for me, for now, it just reinforces how I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere. It also smells like pig and cow shit when the wind picks up.
People say that the water tastes better and the air smells fresher, but I haven't noticed.
Also, like I said... pig and cow shit.
The main inconvenience for me is that the closest grocery store is at the foot of the mountain, at least a 20-minute bike ride down a couple of steep slopes... which means that it's probably a much longer bike ride coming back home up the mountain with a load of groceries. I haven't tried it yet.
As far as other stores go, there are two that are close to me: Komeri and 7&i.
Komeri is a small hardware store chain that carries a variety of home improvement items, tools, and then some random snacks, school supplies, and working clothes. I've been going there a lot lately to pick up the things I need to whip my new apartment into shape. It's practically right next door to my apartment, but due to fences and houses, I have to go out to the main road, walk down a bit, and then go back down Komeri's parking lot.
Down the main road (and a steep slope) from Komeri is 7&i, better known as 7-11 in America. In Japan, it's actually 7&i Holdings, a bank.
Whatever you call it, it's been my main source of food so far. They have premade dishes ranging from salads to spaghetti, rice bowls to sushi, some condiments, and of course, fries and fried chicken. It's also where I'll be going to pay my bills, since bills are by and large, paid at convenience stores.
If you turn left on the main road just before 7&i, you'll see the bus stop, my link to Maebashi. The intersection between the bus stop and 7&i is actually one of the busiest ones in the area, though it's not the largest one. The largest one is kind of empty -- I'm not sure why it's so large, unless it's for the trucks that blow by at night.
My friend Don came to visit a year ago and observed that Japan has a ridiculous number of phone/electric lines... and you can definitely see them in this picture, facing the 7&i from the bus stop.
The bus is about 30-40 minutes away from the train station, which is my link to the rest of the city. The fare (one-way) runs about five bucks. As if that weren't bad enough, the bus only runs once an hour or so, with the last being close to eight at night. It's better than nothing, though.
I found out that some of the buses will allow you to take a bike with you, so I did that once -- it makes the city much more accessible once I get there. It's strange, though, because when I went back after a week, it felt sort of like I had Come Home.
Even though I'm still bitter about having to move up here, to the middle of nowhere, I have to admit that the views of the mountains and city are gorgeous when the weather is good. When it clears up a bit, I'll probably try to take some pictures.
I guess those pictures will come with another long entry after my bitterness has passed.
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