During the past two years, I have taken two groups of LSUS students and one group of local educators to Japan under grants from the National Security Education Program and the Fulbright-Hayes Study Abroad Program, respectively.  This special edition of the LSUS Japan Studies Newsletter features a description of the most recent trip and a series of short essays based on the experiences of the participants during all three trips.   These experiences are primarily drawn from the journals submitted by the participants at the end of each trip. Many of the explanations of cultural differences are, however, my own.

I hope that the cultural observations contained in the essays will provide the reader with additional insights into the differences and similarities between American and Japanese culture.  Moreover, I hope that the reader will be inspired to visit Japan in the near future and, like Pam Hauer in the winter of 1997,  "experience, taste, feel, and breathe Japanese culture, one very unlike that from which we have come."

Mieko Uchida Peek
Japan Studies Program Project Director
 
 

I.  1997 Study Tour of Japan:   December 15, 1997 - January 6, 1998

Under a grant from the National Security Education Program, the second Study Tour of Japan for LSUS students took place from December 15, 1997 to January 6, 1998.  The purpose of the trip was two-fold: 1)  to give local language students a chance to enhance their skill in Japanese; and 2) to enrich their understanding of Japanese history and culture.  The participants were selected after the submission of a letter of  formal application, a completed application form, an essay expressing their reasons for studying Japanese including related future educational and/or career plans, and two letters of reference from faculty knowledgeable of the student's academic work.  These students had studied the Japanese language from one to three semesters, so they were anxious to try their knowledge of Japanese firsthand.  As one put it, "I am going to see how much I can understand."

Prior to departure the participants met four times for two hours each time.  In preparation for these meetings they  read Japan: Its History and Culture and Japan: Profile of a Nation.  At the first meeting the participants were given information on do's and don'ts while in Japan, what to bring and what not to bring, and other tour related information.  Over the next three sessions they reviewed basic conversational expressions in Japanese and gave short presentations based on the readings.  They were also given the opportunity to watch at home twelve videotapes on life in Japan and to read four short books on Japanese culture.

December 15 - 17

The participants were introduced to Tokyo during the first two days of  the study tour.  During this time they visited the Port of New Orleans Far East Office, where they learned about the trade taking place between their home state of Louisiana and Japan, and the JETRO Business Support Center, where foreign businessmen can display their products.  The students were amazed by the assistance the Japanese government offers foreign companies in order to minimize the trade friction between Japan and other countries.  Then the tour participants went to a kabuki play to experience an important part of Japan's traditional culture.

December 18 - 20

After two days in Tokyo, we headed to Nagasaki by Shinkansen and limited express train. The participants were astounded at the 211 km per hour speed reached by the Shinkansen. In Nagasaki they visited Hirado, which is most remembered as the site of the first Western trading settlements in Japan in 1550. Hirado is also associated with Eisai, the famous Buddhist monk who introduced Zen and green tea to Japan from China. Hirado is further remembered as the place where the famous Jesuit missionary, Francis Xavier, started his missionary activities in Japan. With Toyotomi Hideyoshi's anti-Christian decree in 1587, the expelling of all foreigners but the Dutch, and the relocation of the Dutch trading settlement to Dejima, a man-made island in Nagasaki in 1640, Hirado's connection with the West came to an end. While in Hirado, the participants were quite excited by their first visit to a Japanese castle.

Before leaving Nagasaki, we visited Dejima and its museum, the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum, the site of Martyrdom of the Twenty-six Saints, a shrine to Confucius, the Japanese National Museum of Chinese History, and the Chinese Palace Museum. The evening before our departure, we enjoyed karaoke, an important part of Japan's current popular culture.

December 21

Next, we headed to Hiroshima. On the way we visited Hakata Bay, where we saw the sea walls used to stop the Mongol invasion in 1281. We also stopped at Dan-no-ura, where two major clans of Japan, Taira and Minamoto, had fought in 1185. There the students imagined an eight-year- old emperor, held by his grandmother, jumping into the sea followed by other men and women as their supporters faced defeat.

December 22 - 23

In Hiroshima, the study tour participants visited the  Hiroshima  Peace  Museum,   where  they  again experienced the destruction of the explosion of an atomic bomb. They also visited Itsukushima Shrine on Miyajima Island, which was completed by the Taira family when they were in power around 1100.

Then the participants visited Himeji Castle, one of the most beautiful castles in Japan. Construction of the castle started in 1346, but the castle did not take its current form until 1618. During that time several daimyo (war lords) including Toyotomi Hideyoshi occupied the castle. Himeji Castle, and the Horyuji Temple which we visited in Nara, have been recognized by the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO. The students walked up the main tower of the Himeji Castle, which appears to have five stories but actually has six floors and a basement. On the way up they observed a display of scrolls drawn by daimyo, the picture of weapons used during the period when the country was at war, and other artifacts. The students signed their names in Japanese in the signature book on the sixth floor, exchanged conversation with the guard there, and viewed the surrounding landscape from the windows.

When we came out of the castle, we found a couple of dozen young Japanese playing kick ball, so several of the participants joined in the game.

December 24 - 26

From Hiroshima we traveled to Nara. Nara was the capital of Japan from 710 to 794, and was heavily influenced by the Tang Dynasty of China. Professor Harumi Ito from Nara University of Education and his students joined our group on our second day in Nara. Both groups of students enjoyed the opportunity to exchange views on an array of issues.

One of the main sites visited in Nara was Todaiji Temple, which holds the largest Buddha statue in Japan. Students were fascinated by the size of the Buddha, and enjoyed crawling through a hole in one of the temple's pillars that is said to be the same size as the nostril of the statue of Buddha.  Another was the Hokke-do Hall (Sangatsu-do), which has survived in its original form for 1,200 years. The hall contains fourteen famous statues of Buddhist images, and most of them were made in the 8th century. While at the temple the students engaged in meditation in order to get a better understanding of this religious practice. They also visited the Kasuga Grand Shrine which was the Fujiwara family shrine during the Tenpyo Period.

On December 25, we visited Horyuji Temple, the world's oldest wooden structure and a designated world heritage, and Yakushiji Temple, both of  which were constructed before the Nara Period. Near Yakushiji stands the Toshodaiji Temple which commemorates the Chinese monk, Ganjin, who came to Nara to spread Buddhism. Near from Toshodaiji is the key-hole tomb of Suijin Tenno (Emperor), an earthen mound so large that the students had trouble recognizing it as a tomb.

December 26 - 28

The following day we arrived in Kyoto, the capital of Japan from 794 to 1868. We were able to visit only a few of the thousands of temples and shrines scattered across the old capital. One of them was Byodoin Temple which was built by the Fujiwara family and completed in 1052. Its Phoenix Hall was built in 1053 and is the only original building remaining today. Another was Sanju-sangen-do Hall, which was rebuilt in 1251 after a major fire. It currently holds 1,001 Kannon Bosatsu (Goddess of Mercy).

On the next day in Kyoto, the participants visited Nijo Castle. Then they visited Horinji, Daruma Temple, which had been recommended by Dr. Neill McFarland during his NSEP sponsored lecture at LSUS the previous October. Some of the study tour participants remembered his speech, so with their help everybody was fully able to enjoy the collection of daruma, a good luck doll, at this temple.

Next they went to Kinkakuji, Temple of the Golden Pavilion, which was built in the 1220's as a comfortable retreat for Buddhist monks. The third Shogun of the Ashikaga period converted this villa into a breath-taking structure covered in gold. After his death, the pavilion became a Zen temple in accordance with his will. At Kinkakuji the students took part in the tea ceremony. After that they were off to Ryoanji Temple and its simple yet remarkable garden consisting only of white sand and fifteen rocks laid out at the end of the 15th  century.  The students engaged in meditation while sitting overlooking the garden.

Later that same day the study tour participants visited Koryuji Temple, which was built in 603 and is the oldest temple in Kyoto. Among the temple's famous wooden statues is Miroku-Bosatsu (the depiction of young Buddha), the oldest statue in Kyoto, which dates from the Asuka period (552 - 645). Koryuji is one of the seven temples Prince Shotoku built in order to preserve and promote Buddhism in Japan, which had recently been introduced to the country. We then visited Kiyomizu-dera, a Buddhist temple located on Mt. Otowa. It was originally built in the 8th century, but the present structures were built in the 17th century. The temple is dedicated to Kannon Bosatsu.  The participants enjoyed the beautiful sunset from this temple which commands a grand panoramic view of the city of Kyoto.

The next morning we were off to Ginkakuji. This temple was built in 1482 by Yoshimasa Ashikaga, the eighth shogun of the Muromachi Shogunate. After his death in 1490, Ginkaku became a temple for a Zen sect. Ginkakuji is famous for its garden covered with a sea of silver colored sand representing the West Lake in China. The garden also contains a small sand hill shaped like Mt. Fuji and called Kogetsudai. From Ginkakuji the study tour participants walked to Nanzenji Temple and Heian Shrine.

December 29 - January 2

On December 29, after walking to Nishijin Weaving Hall and Kyoto Imperial Palace, we left for Nikko by Shinkansen and a local train. We stayed at the Nikko Suginamiki Youth Hostel which is owned by a Kendo (the way of the sword) master. The owner arranged for the participants to join 30 of his school-age students in Kendo practice. Kendo is one of the most popular club activities in junior high schools and high schools in Japan because of its heavy emphasis on moral and spiritual development drawn from Confucianism, Shintoism, and Buddhism. The youth hostel owner also provided the students with the opportunity to participate in the traditional eating of buck wheat noodles at the end of the year.

On New Year's Eve, the students visited Toshogu Shrine, the mausoleum of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Tokugawa family, early 17th century. We stood in line in front of the Shrine with many Japanese while listening to the priests' chants welcoming the new year. At midnight, the gate to the Shrine was opened, and we went inside to pray for the new year. The next day we revisited this Shrine to see its famous works of art such as the Sleeping Cat, and the See No Evil, Hear No Evil, and Speak No Evil Monkeys.

January 2 - 6

From Nikko we went to Kamakura where Minamoto Yoritomo established the first samurai-led government in 1192 after he beat the Taira family at Dan-no-ura. Kamakura's Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine is one of a small number of major shrines to which the Japanese people flock during the new year's holidays. The students from LSUS were totally amazed by the size of the crowds they encountered during the new year holidays.

As the end of the study tour approached, we returned to Tokyo where we attended a performance of a Noh play and visited the National Diet Building, Tokyo-Edo Museum, and Imperial Palace. Before leaving Japan, we visited several bookstores with large collections of books on Japan in English.

Since returning to the States the participants have shared their experiences with friends and family. On January 24, 1998 they also shared their experiences with the K-12 teachers who had attended the two previous summer institutes on Japan at LSUS. Even more exciting is that the friendship developed with the Kendo instructor in Nikko resulted in a visit to Shreveport in March 1998 of some of his students to conduct a Kendo demonstration at LSUS and other local sites.

The students that participated in the study tour presented the required journal and paper. The topics addressed in the papers include the public transportation system in Japan, why the capital of Japan was moved from Nara to Kyoto in 794, Japanese attitudes in business, the influence of Christianity in Japan, a comparison of Greek tragedies and No plays, the religious origins of bushido, and the history of kendo.

A. Transportation

1. Train:  Japan's rail system is designed to move the mass of the Japanese population from one destination to another efficiently. It also symbolizes the cultural emphasis on the needs of the group over the preferences of the individual. It is an appropriate contrast to American culture where the car is a symbol of individualism because if you have a car you can go wherever you want to go any time.

For most of the participants it was their first time to even get on a train. They had to get accustomed to getting on and off the train in an orderly manner, which is especially critical when traveling in a group. In Japan
the trains must run on a very tight schedule due to the volume of traffic. Thus one can literally set one's watch by the trains. During the trip in 1996, some of the participants somehow got separated from the rest. After that little mishap, I always attempted to get on and off the train last. Still, to prepare them for the unexpected, I spent extra time explaining the Tokyo train system. They needed to be able to get around by themselves in the evening if they wished and to find their way back to our lodgings. On one other occasion we got separated, but it was not long before they had found their way to the Youth Hostel at Iidabashi. I was very proud of how they had handled the situation; they were even more proud of themselves. It turned out to be a positive learning experience.

The taxi fare is quite high unless in a group, and traveling by taxi alone is very slow in the crowded Tokyo metropolitan area. I myself want to jump out of the taxi whenever my taxi stops at an intersection more than 10 minutes, for during that time I might have been able to walk to the nearest train station. If you are in good health and have a Tokyo map which includes the railway and subway system, the taxi is the last thing to rely on.

While I prefer the train, I do not care much for buses. During peak hours the buses are often even more
crowded than the trains and are often behind schedule due to heavy traffic. Thus much like the taxi, I use a bus only when I am not in walking distance of a train station. Doug Claycomb summed it up when he said, "The trains are a very efficient system for traveling around the city of Tokyo. You just have to familiarize yourself with the direction and correct train to take."

Many participants still believe they experienced rush hour in Tokyo. However, to avoid the peak travel times, I planned our outings to begin after eight thirty in the  morning and end before six in the evening. I did this for me as well as them. I still have vivid memories of rush hour train rides so crowded it was difficult to breathe due to a purse or briefcase pressing against my chest or feeling like a piece of paper in a hole puncher as somebody's high heel dug into my toe. I am convinced that the quality of eyeglasses made in Japan is partly a function of the common experience of being pressed face first against the door of the train. Just in case, I gave the participants three pieces of advise: 1) if the train is crowed, wait to board the next train so that you can be first in line; 2) take the first or last car whenever possible; and 3) avoid boarding the train near the stairs because those cars will take the brunt of the last second surge.

Prior to departure the participants were told to be prepared to walk a great deal in Japan. Just the walking distance within a train station came as a shock to some, especially when we had to transfer from the public railways to a private line. Additionally, we often had to walk to our destination from the train station. And in many cases the taxis were not able to stop right in front of our destination, so we walked the rest of the way. James Kidd quite appropriately but comically described our group of people walking through the crowd of people, "What an entertaining little line of ducklings we made, all of us paradoxically head-and-shoulders taller than our would-be mother duck."

2. Shinkansen:  Shinkansen, the bullet train, is one of the things that tourists in Japan most remember. It was inaugurated in 1964 just before the Tokyo Olympics, and now runs to every major area of Japan except Hokkaido and Shikoku. The Shinkansen has a maximum speed of 270 kilometers per hour (168 miles per hour).

There are three kinds of Shinkansen: Hikari, Kodama, and Nozomi. Nozomi is the fastest since it stops at very few stations, whereas Kodama stops at every major station. Hikari falls between Kodama and Nozomi in the number of stops. For example, it takes only two and half hours to travel from Tokyo to Shin-Osaka (New Osaka) by Nozomi, whereas it takes three hours by Hikari and four hours by Kodama. The distance between these two stations is 552.6 kilometers (about 345.4 miles).

While snacks are available on all Shinkansen, a long-distance Shinkansen also has a dining car located in the middle of the train. The seats on the Shinkansen are so comfortable that participants, while stretching out in the reclining seats, observed, "These are much more spacious than the seats on the airplane!"

While on a Shinkansen heading to Hakata in late December 1997, I invited my students to a table in the dining car. There we observed snow capped Mt. Fuji, rows of tea fields, the Pacific Ocean, and the smoke stacks at the base of Mt. Fuji. It was quite a contrast to see this beautiful mountain surrounded at its base by smog. At the time the electronic sign in the dining room indicated that the train was traveling at 211 km per hour. Wow! During the course of lunch, more than one of the participants realized how relaxing traveling can be when one doesn't have to drive or ride in a car.

3. Taxi:  Riding in a Japanese taxi was quite an experience for most of the study tour participants. Many noted how clean the taxis were and how polite and pleasant nearly all of the drivers were. In general, Japanese drivers treat their automobiles as their home. Therefore, they clean the inside quite often, and the seats usually have white seat covers, which are sometimes made of pretty lace. Some drivers put a little flower in a tiny vase on the dashboard so that customers will feel they are viewed as guests. Most taxi drivers are men, but we did encounter a few women drivers.  The drivers usually wore a cap and a suit and tie.  It is quite a contrast with the taxi service in New Orleans and New York where the taxis are often dirty, without air conditioning, and frequently driven by an individual that will likely make a negative impression on tourists by their appearance and attitude.

Japanese taxi drivers are often an important source of information, especially in a town visited by many tourists. Whenever I take a taxi in an unfamiliar town, I ask the taxi driver all sorts of questions such as what sites the locals visit, where to dine, where to stay, and which souvenir shop to visit. Most drivers willingly provide this information and offer additional helpful information. I have had a few cases, however, in which the driver went on to tell me about his life, which was not often upbeat and sometimes very depressing. Who wants to be lectured on the hardships of life while traveling?

Students were surprised by how narrow many of the streets are in Japan and the speed at which Japanese drivers were able to maneuver around various obstacles. Katherene Loften, during the trip in 1997, observed, "they (taxi drivers) drive like maniacs but it seems very few ever hit anybody and drivers do not get annoyed with each other." Another stated, "I get scared in a Japanese taxi because they drive so fast." While these observations are not unjustified, they to some extent reflect differences in driving practices. Some of the fear comes from the fact that Japanese drive on the left side of the street; and as a result, the steering wheel is on the right side. In short, the car's and driver's movements are often in contrast to the American passenger's expectations, thus generating anxiety.

Other differences include a driver bowing to express thanks to another for yielding the right of way, honking to indicate that you can cut in, and turning off the main headlights at an intersection so as not to interfere with the vision of the driver in the car in front of them.

4. Ambulance:  Shortly after 10 o'clock on Monday evening, December 29, 1997, one of the study tour participants became quite ill all of a sudden, so we decided to call an ambulance. I, of course, rode in the ambulance with him to a nearby clinic. When we arrived at the clinic, we found out that the X-ray technician had gone home. Therefore, the ambulance had to take us to a hospital which was about an hour away. Throughout, the paramedics remained attentive and took great care to ease the concerns of their non-Japanese speaking patient. After a day in the hospital, the student was up and around and ready to continue the adventure.

Strangely, I found the two pitch (third interval) tone of the ambulance more soothing than the high pitch sound of an American ambulance.

5. Rail Pass:  While staying at an inn in Nara, Chris Edney barged into my room and relayed, "I have bad news for you. I lost my rail pass." I was equally concerned since a rail pass for unlimited travel on the national rail system in a specified time period is quite expensive and cannot be replaced if lost. Next, I remembered the old adage that when you lose or misplace something, think about the track you took, and you'll most likely find the missing item. We knew that he had the pass when we got off the national line in Kyoto, but did not have it when we arrived in Nara on a private line. So if he lost it, it should be somewhere on the line between Kyoto and Nara. I called the Nara Station and was told to call back in 10 minutes since the train we took was already in the garage. I called back in ten minutes, but the rail pass was not in the car where he sat.

On my way back to the restaurant where everybody was anxiously waiting, I thought about my father's tripod. On New Year's Day many years ago my father noticed that one of the screws on the bottom of his tripod was missing while he was setting up the camera to take our annual family pictures in front of the 500 year-old tree on the grounds of a local shrine. Just before the picture taking, my father happened to buy an omikuji, a little piece of paper that tells your fortune, which he usually does not buy. His fortune told him that if he lost something he would find it if he just looked around. So that was what we did and shortly found the missing screw.

Back at the restaurant I again asked Chris to think hard about when he last saw his rail pass. He thought a moment and told me he was going to show the rail pass to the train conductor when he came around to check the tickets. What he did not realize was that he did not have to show the rail pass on the private line. Then I asked what he was doing when he was about to show the railpass to the conductor; he said he was reading a manual for Pam who had just purchased a camera. Then I realized that she might have accidentally put everything in her bag when we arrived in Nara. I asked her to check her bag, and there it was. Finally, we were able to really enjoy our meal.

6. Luggage:  Carrying a lot of luggage in Japan can be close to torture when traveling by train. Japanese tend to travel light and can do so easily because even relatively inexpensive Japanese inns provide wash towels, yukata (cotton type kimono that can be worn in place of pajamas), shampoo, soap, toothbrush and toothpaste, and in most cases a hair dryer.

Americans, in contrast, are used to hauling around a number of bags in the trunk of their car. I do the same when traveling in the States, but not in Japan. Though I had more than once explained to the participants the necessity to pack light, we still ended up with more luggage than we could easily manage up and down the stairs of the train system. In a few cases, the result was a short delay in the departure of a train as we loaded and unloaded luggage.

The amount of luggage also at times required the hiring of an additional taxi, and a protracted search for lockers big enough to hold the larger pieces. A few times curiosity got the best of me and I would ask what they had packed. The answer was usually "nothing much." Perhaps, but that nothing was big and heavy.

Because of previous problems with luggage, prior to the last trip I insisted on the stair test. I asked the participants to simulate what they would encounter in Japan by carrying their luggage to the fourth floor of Bronson Hall. For some reason, we had no significant problems with luggage on this last trip.

B.  Culture

How did the participants manage in a culture very different from their own? American culture is based on individualism, whereas Japanese culture emphasizes the group even though individualism is more and more accepted by the younger generation. In the States, the importance of individualism is reflected in many aspects of daily life. For instance, think about how you write your address on an envelope. You start from the first name and end with the abbreviation for the state plus a zip code. In Japan the address starts with the prefecture, equivalent of the state name, and ends with the individual's family and then first name. I call this phenomenon "general to specific in Japan and specific to general in the States." The study tour participants' reaction to this trend of general (group) vs. specific (individualism) often explains their hesitation and resultant culture shock while they were in Japan.

I have had the same reaction as a Japanese since I set foot in the States for the first time. Being in the States so long, now I have so called reverse culture shock when I visit Japan. Whatever the nature of their reactions, I enjoy the participants' impressions of Japanese and American culture because they more often than not broaden the perspective of the participants and myself.

1. Toilet: Three surprises greeted the participants as they used the restroom in Japan. The first surprise came after we left Narita Airport and some of my students had to use the toilet. A couple of the girls went in and out of the washroom in search of a Western style toilet. One of them finally said, "Where is the Western style toilet?" Most toilets in Japan are set in the floor and you have to squat to use them. Some say it is filthy to squat to do your business. Others say it is much more sanitary to squat since you don't have to sit on a potentially dirty toilet seat. In either case, it was not long before the students got reasonably used to Japanese style toilets.

The second surprise is some toilets are so high tech. The toilet at the International Youth Hostel had a heated and cushioned seat. We did not have to even use toilet paper because it automatically sprayed a jet of warm water, rinsed thoroughly, and dried our bottom at the push of a button. When we arrived at the Youth Hostel, I took all the girls to that automated toilet and explained how to use it. I did not know if the boys' bathroom had one, so I did not even mention it. But one of the boys found out about it, and he became a great admirer of the automated toilet. When we came back to the States, he said he realized he was in the States because he had to use toilet paper. In Nikko, which was really cold, one of the participants even said, "At least the toilet seat is heated, I might just go down to the restroom and spend the night."

The third surprise is that one cannot assume that the toilet is equipped with toilet paper, though the number so equipped has significantly increased in recent years. Accordingly, one must carry around portable tissue paper in case. Paper toweling is even rarer, so additional tissues and/or a handkerchief for drying one's hands is also a must. This situation is a result of the high price of paper products due to limited natural resources. I personally like having to carry a handkerchief, especially one made in Japan. Women's handkerchiefs in Japan are brightly colored and decorated with flowers, plants, birds, butterflies, historical sites, and even maps to popular sites. I can coordinate them with the dress of the day. I feel really sophisticated when I pull out my color coordinated handkerchief in a Japanese bathroom after washing my hands, and in addition I don't have to waste paper towels.

2. Bath: Japanese traditionally take a bath at the end of the day, while many Americans take a shower in the morning. For Japanese a bath is both for cleanliness and relaxation. Before they soak themselves in a hot bath, the Japanese first wash and rinse themselves outside of a large bathtub and then take a bath. Because they have thoroughly washed before entering the tub, it is possible for more than one person to use the same tub of water. The use of the same bath water for more than one member of the family is also related to the shortage and high cost of such natural resources as oil, coal, and gas which are used to heat the water. These same factors contribute to the popularity of resorts with large baths heated by natural hot springs.

Japanese children take a bath with their family members at home from a very early age until they can safely take a bath by themselves, and accompany the same sex parent to the public bath when traveling.  Japan is a country of hot springs. We go to hot springs to relax, to sightsee, to eat, and to escape from city life. Hot springs mean a big relaxing communal bath. All these cultural experiences contribute to the fact that we are not hesitant about entering a public bath with complete strangers of the same sex.

Though I explained to the participants how to take a bath in Japan before we left the States, it was still difficult, especially for the women, to use a traditional Japanese bath with others around. While few expressed their feelings to me or other participants, many of their journals reflected their hesitation. To ease the situation, once in Japan I again instructed them on where to take their slippers off, where to place their clothes, and where to wash once inside of the bathing area. At first not all the women ventured into the large bathtub after washing at the nearby faucets, and a few made it no farther than the dressing room before returning to their rooms. In time, however, most came to look forward to soaking in a hot tub at the end of the day.

I am not unfamiliar with their feelings, but being raised in Japan my surprise came when I observed American college girls sunbathing in a public area in skimpy bikinis. I still remember the passing car that swerved as the male college student driving turned and stared.  I also experienced culture shock when I saw young girls going to class wearing clothing clearly selected to show off their figure. I was used to the public bath, but not these types of public displays.

After they got used to the facilities, the guys were soon looking forward to a hot bath at the end of the day. In fact they began to express their disappointment when our lodgings occasionally did not have the traditional bath. Towards the end of the trip, nearly all the participants had conquered their feelings about taking a bath with others, and actually enjoyed soaking in a hot bath, especially on days when they had to walk a lot. James Kidd reflected the feeling of the average Japanese when he observed, "After a sit-down shower, you soak in a scalding hot tub, draining you of every last bit of tension in your body. Then you shower again and leave, jelly-legged and ready to sleep. I have never felt so warm and comfortable as I did that evening."

When we were at the International Youth Hostel in Tokyo, there was a foreign girl in a swimsuit in the bath with everybody else. How could she wash herself before getting in the bath while wearing a swimsuit?  I felt the water was filthy, so I took a shower, but did not take a bath that evening.

While a hot bath is a blessing when you are tired and/or it is cold outside, it is a chilling experience when the moisture that has collected on the ceiling falls on your back while you are taking a shower. This is not an uncommon experience if you live in Japan. My students experienced these cold drops from the ceiling of the bath while we were in Nikko. I told them, "Welcome to the real life of the average Japanese."

3. Recycle:  Out of necessity born of limited natural resources, the Japanese have developed a sophisticated system of recycling. Among the materials recycled in large quantities are paper, glass, tin cans, steel, plastic, and aluminum. Japanese divide their trash by the type of material used and then set it out accordingly to the pickup day specified for a certain type of trash. In addition, ash is collected once a week, non-recyclable waste twice a week, large items such as desks, bicycles, furniture, and electric appliances once a week. Imagine, at every train platform, there are several sets of four trash cans for different types of trash.

My students quickly learned which trash box they should use for each type of item. However, when they returned to the States, they as quickly returned to throwing all types of trash into a single trash can. I guess it is true that "When in Japan, do as the Japanese do. When at home, do as everybody else does."  Yes, old habits are hard to break whether living in Tokyo, New York, Kumagaya (my hometown), or Shreveport. But perhaps recycling is one of those old habits that can be altered under the right conditions as my students demonstrated.

4. Clothes Dryer: Most Japanese still prefer to dry their clothes and air their bedding in the sun. Even high rise apartment complexes in Tokyo have rows of clothing and bedding drying on a sunlit veranda. If you have ever slept on a freshly aired futon, you can begin to understand why Japanese have not rushed to buy large clothes dryers. Yes, a number of Japanese have acquired a mini-dryer that can be used to dry a load of clothing sufficient for the next day. One does have to have a way to deal with the rainy season in June and July.

Given the availability and size of Japanese clothes dryers, Americans visiting Japan tend to encounter a problem when it comes to washing their clothes. Not only does one have to do multiple small loads, but also re-dry such items as blue jeans. Even then one might have to hang the clothes up overnight or tolerate damp clothing the next day. For example, when we stayed in Miyajima, 30 minutes away from Hiroshima by train, some of the students washed their blue jeans and then ended up hanging them up overnight in a warmly heated room in hope that they would be dry by morning. Unfortunately, one of the students had to begin the next day in a slightly damp pair of jeans.

When we arrived in Nikko, the students again needed to wash some clothes. There were three washing machines in the boys' bathroom, but each was a small and older machine. Each machine was divided into two compartments, and they had to put warm water in the first compartment by hand from the bathtub. Large hot water heaters are rare in Japan; most Japanese have a small water heater for the bath and a smaller one for the kitchen. So when you wash clothes, you either carry the warm water from the bath to the washing machine by bucket or use the cold water from the faucet. The male students used cold water to wash their clothes. Then they placed the wet clothes into the second compartment which had a spin cycle. Altogether they spent a couple of hours washing and hanging their clothes.

In contrast, the girls enjoyed using a big Western style automatic washing machine located in the girls' bathroom. They still had to hang their wet clothes in their room since there was no clothes dryer and it was too cold to hang them outside. When the boys found out the girls could wash their clothes in an American style washing machine and had heated toilet seats, they felt a form of discrimination that they had not expected in a cultural setting in which men are held to receive better treatment than women. For a moment they forgot that in Japan it would be the women and not the men who would be expected to do the wash. In this case, it was Mrs. Yoshihara, the owner, who would wash the linens and towels used by the guests, so the big washing machine was "naturally" in the women's bathroom. Probably the older washing machines in the boys' bath were rarely used by male guests.

5. Everything Is Closed!:   When I took students to Japan the second time, it was during the Christmas break. Since it is not our custom to celebrate Christmas, I was not worried about places such as shrines, temples, stores, and restaurants being closed prior to the new year holidays. However, the Japanese people do celebrate the new year. Therefore, most businesses, all schools, and many other establishments are closed a few days before and after the new year. Accordingly, I tried to arrange for the students to stay with host families at this time. This proved not to be possible since my hometown was busy entertaining a group from its sister city in New Zealand. As an alternative, I arranged for the students to stay at a youth hostel in Nikko from December 29 to January 2.

However, we did encounter some unexpected closings. While we were in Kyoto visiting historical sites, the explosion of signs saying "Closed" began. First, Nijo Castle was closed. I was quite surprised when the guards told us it was closed. Students' disappointment was tremendous since they had studied about its structure, paintings, garden, and sculpture before they left for Japan. When I inquired of the guard as to why it was closed, he said, "The Castle is governed by the city of Kyoto; therefore, all the employees of the Nijo castle are civil servants. It is Saturday today, and all the civil servants take a new year break from Saturday, December 27 to January 4. The Castle won't reopen till January 5." Oh! No! I didn't even know Nijo Castle belonged to the city. It makes sense then why they close for a whole week, because they close anyway from Dec. 28 to Jan. 3. Being Japanese, I understood their explanation, but I could see how it might be very frustrating for visitors from abroad.

One more place that was closed while we were in Kyoto was Myoshinji temple, where a well-known picture of a dragon is drawn on the ceiling. The dragon appears to stare directly at you no matter where you stand in the large hall. The students were quite disappointed because they could not see this work by the famous artist, Kano Tanyu.

We came back to Tokyo on January 2 before going to Kamakura. At Tokyo station, we went to the underground shopping mall to find a restaurant for dinner. I had never before seen this area so quiet. Most of the stores were closed, and many of the rest were in the process of closing when we arrived. Here it was only eight o'clock in the evening, and Tokyo station was already looking like the wee hours of the morning. I guess I have been away from Japan for too many New Year seasons.

We went to Edo-Tokyo Museum on Saturday, January 3, and it was closed. I had completely forgotten that even museums would be closed for the first three days of the new year. On Monday, January 5, after we left the Diet Building, I tried to take my ducklings to the Government bookstore, which was also closed. The next stop, the Imperial Palace, which I never thought would be closed, was also closed.
     We were able to revisit most of these places with the single notable exception of Nijo Castle in Kyoto. I hope that my students will again visit Japan and include the castle on their itinerary.

6. Hatsumode (Paying the First Visit of the Year to a Shrine): We visited some of the most famous shrines in Japan between December 31 and January 2 to experience the traditional pilgrimage during the new year holidays. To some extent, it is almost a necessity since most other attractions are closed for three days at the beginning of the new year.

Toshogu Shrine in Nikko, which was built for Tokugawa Ieyasu, is one of the most popular places to pay the first visit of the year. We stood in line to wait for the gate to open on New Year's Eve. Luckily there were not very many people at first, but by 11:30 p.m the line became quite long. My students expressed their surprise with, "Wow, a lot of people everywhere!" while I was surprised because there were not as many people as I had anticipated.

It was freezing cold, and everybody was bundled up from head to toe. Some of them were covered up so well that all we could see were their eyes. A couple of my students became quite restless; they had to walk around to keep their feet from becoming numb due to the cold. While climbing up the stairs to see what was going on, they saw Shinto priests chanting for the new year.

At midnight, the gate opened. We followed the crowd and threw a coin into an 18-wheeler-truck-size wishing box prepared just for the occasion. It did not take even 15 minutes to come down the stairs on the other side of the shrine because everybody moved in an orderly manner.  We moved on to where we were served amazake, sweet sake without alcohol, and to where we could buy a good luck arrow. I had never visited a shrine at midnight before, so it was a great experience. My students were expecting a party like those that take place at Times Square in New York, so they seemed a bit disappointed.

One of the participants tried to buy a daruma, a good luck doll. This was one of the few occasions when the customers could bargain over the price they would pay, so he decided to ask how much it was. The vender said 1,500 yen, so I told him to counter with 800 yen. The vender snatched away the daruma from my student saying there was no way he could sell at that price. The vender should have been a better sport. Then both parties would have enjoyed the bargaining process. Oh, well, my student was able to find the same size daruma much cheaper somewhere else.

The next shrine we visited was Tsurugaoka Hachimangu in Kamakura which was dedicated to the legendary emperor Ojin, the legendary empress Jingu, and Ojin's spouse. The Minamoto family adopted it as their tutelary shrine in the late 12th century. If Toshogu Shrine was crowded, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu was many, many times more crowded. One of my students said, "Where did all these people come from?" It took a long time to get to the Shrine as the pace slowed the closer we got. Police on high platforms were there to control and direct the crowd through loud speakers. Part of the crowd control efforts included a giant TV screen on which people could see themselves as they passed.

One shrine would have been enough to show my students what many Japanese people do on New Year's day, but I took them to three. Perhaps I was subconsciously catching up for all the New Years I had missed while in the States and/or the ones I would miss in the future. I tried to take them to Sensoji-Temple, but when I saw the long lines at the train station I changed my mind and headed towards Meiji Shrine, which was built for the Meiji Emperor. This shrine was not as crowded, or so it seemed because of its size. However, near the saisenbako (wishing box) we were almost hit by coins being thrown from behind us.

7. Kabuki:  Kabuki, Noh, and Bunraku are the three unique forms of Japanese drama, so I tried to take the participants to one or more of these shows.

During the first two trips I took the group to eat sukiyaki before we went to see a kabuki play. This was part of a bus tour, so we were shown only a portion of a kabuki play. On the last trip, I decided to take the group to the whole series of three plays which lasted a total of five hours. I made a reservation for nine and went to pick up the tickets just before the performance. When we got to the theater, there was a very large crowd outside. After paying for the tickets, I turned to pass them out, and to my surprise I found an unknown woman reaching for one of the tickets. I can still remember this woman's facial expression indicating, "I almost had a free ticket."  Without a word she then walked over to another person with a handful of tickets. Mistake or cunning?

I warned my students that the theater seats at Kabuki-za were very small, narrow, and hard. I put the taller students near the aisle, but still they did not know what to do with their legs. With their legs falling asleep and their bodies still recovering from jet lag, it was really hard for them to fully enjoy the plays. However, all of them praised the dance performances in Renjishi, depicting a pair of legendary shishi lions. The parent lion pushes its child over the edge of the cliff and waits anxiously for it to come back. It was written by Mokuami and was first performed in 1861.

This is the second time for me to enjoy this dance, and both times it was performed by a real-life father and son duo. The first one I saw was performed at the Itsukushima Shrine in Miyajima, with a backdrop of the sunset followed by fireflies. It was beautiful, and so I fully understand when my students said how much they enjoyed it.

What the participants did not care for was the male impersonators of women characters. The actor we saw in the third play was Tamasaburo, who is considered the number one kabuki impersonator of women. A lot of people come to kabuki just to see his performance. He is graceful in his kimono and more feminine than many women. Yes, he only plays female characters. No, he is not gay. A few of the students felt uncomfortable with a man playing female characters, but that is part of kabuki.

8. Noh: The Noh performances we saw on January 3 were traditional selections at the beginning of the new year, which means they were designed for happy occasions. In Tsurukame/Gekkyuden (The Crane and Tortoise/the Palace of the Moon) the crane represents the new year (new beginnings) and the tortoise longevity (a long and happy life). Together they depict the Chinese emperor's long and peaceful reign during the Tang Dynasty.  During the play a crane and a tortoise perform a dance for the Emperor and his court, and the Emperor dances to pray for the peace and prosperity of his countrymen.

I kept telling my students on our way to the Noh Theater that even if they fall asleep during the performance it is all right so long as they do not snore. Given the length of the plays, it is not uncommon for people to doze off from time to time. One of my students took my comments as a challenge and declared, "If I don't fall asleep, will you give me 10, 000 yen?" He took my silence as a yes, and announced his wager to the other students.

The nine of us were seated in three different areas of the theater, so I was not able to see this particular student during the play. I did see him during the intermission, however, where he admitted that he had fallen asleep. Those who sat with him claimed he fell asleep about five minutes into the play. I, of course, also dozed off a couple of times even though I am a big fan of Noh performances. When I took local teachers to a Noh performance, I had to gently elbow one of them because he started snoring.

Kyogen, classic comic theater with lots of action, was another play that we watched. Most people understood the content of this play and really enjoyed the exaggerated gestures and other features of the play. We also saw Daihannya (The Sutra of Great Wisdom), which is about a Chinese Buddhist pilgrim-priest, Sanzo Hoshi, in the seventh century who travels to India to receive the "Sutra of Great Wisdom" that will save mankind. He encounters an Old Man by a river. This Old Man is the guardian deity, who helps Sanzo Hoshi to cross the river. This Noh is categorized as phantasm Noh, and is for the beginning of the new year.

9. Karaoke:  Karaoke has become an important part of popular culture in Japan. Kara means empty, and oke is the shortened loan word for orchestra; thus karaoke means a prerecorded musical accompaniment without a singer. How did karaoke start? Music-only tapes were used at recording studios and radio stations in 1960s, but in the 1970s bars started using karaoke sound systems, which became very popular with their patrons. Nowadays even some university dorms are equipped with karaoke rooms for up to twenty people. Some karaoke bars even supply musical instruments such as tambourines and maracas so that patrons can play and/or sing along with the recorded music.

The tour participants really enjoyed visiting a karaoke bar. They were thrilled to find out that there were quite a few songs in English. With the help of some drinks and popcorn, they were for a moment whoever they wanted to be or able to just release some of the stress of traveling in another country. By the way, who did the pelvic-thrust dance?

10. Pachinko:  Pachinko is a form of upright pinball and is very popular in Japan. It started in Nagoya in 1948 and spread all over Japan. You buy a number of steel balls, load them into a pachinko machine, and turn a lever to flip a ball to the top of the machine. If the ball enters a winning hole, you will receive more playing balls. Losing balls fall into a hole at the bottom of the machine.

When I took my husband to a pachinko parlor for the first time, he was mesmerized by the movement of the balls, but after five minutes said, "My eyes are going in circles and I feel dizzy." When you finish playing, you can trade the balls in for a variety of item from candy to tobacco. Recently, some of the pachinko machines have been replaced by machines very similar to slot machines.

I do not play pachinko myself, but since it is a part of Japanese culture I have taken a few participants at their request to a pachinko parlor. When I took the first group of students to Japan in the summer of 1996, my husband showed one of my students how to play. Emi Matsumoto-Donato won so many balls that she left the parlor with several packages of cookies, some chewing gums, and some toys for her son. If you are considering going to a pachinko parlor, you need to know that they are frequented by many heavy smokers.

11. Bedding:  Japanese bedding is quite different from American bedding, so when the participants stayed at a Japanese style youth hostel, they are puzzled as to how they were supposed to arrange the bedding. This was not a problem when we stayed at a typical Japanese inn, since the maids spread out the futon while we were at dinner. Japanese put the futon in a closet in the morning. This saves floor space and allows a room to be used for multiple purposes.

Futon replaced straw mats in the mid-16th century. Shikibuton is used underneath you, and kakebuton is used over you. We put a bed sheet over the shikibuton, and a covered kakebuton over us. At the youth hostel at the bottom of Mt. Fuji, the students complained that they were cold. I discovered that they had slept on the shikibuton and kakebuton and had covered themselves with only a thin blanket.

12. Host Family:  Staying with a host family is one of the best ways to experience daily life in any country. The first group of students and the Fulbright teachers had an opportunity to stay with a host family in my hometown of Kumagaya and in Nara. My hometown held a welcome party which included city officials and the host families. The city provided bus transportation and arranged visits to local schools, a Nikon factory, a Hitachi Metals factory, and a local craft center. I really appreciated the efforts of my hometown. I was never more proud to be from Kumagaya.

The Nara International Foundation, which was established to commemorate the 1988 Silk Road Exposition held in Nara, also arranged for host families. As the ancient capital city from 710 to 794, Nara is a major tourist center with a heavy demand for host families. Still, the Foundation was able to provide four host families for the 1996 participants and ten for the Fulbright participants.

Unfortunately, because of cultural differences, a few of the participants were not completely comfortable staying with their host families. While the main problem was language, some of the students found their evening activities unduly restricted, and a few felt that the husbands did not treat their wives in an appropriate manner. At the time I was reminded of Jacinta Ingram's observation that "people of different cultures should try to meet each other halfway" by studying each other's language and respecting each other's culture.

Most of the participants, however, enjoyed staying with a Japanese family in spite of some language and cultural barriers. They were grateful to the host families for welcoming them into their home and making a special effort to show them daily life in Japan. In short, the participants experienced a part of Japan that few visitors do. It was truly unfortunate that the second group of students were unable to experience this aspect of life in Japan.

13. Hugging and Touching:  Most Americans like to hug and kiss those dear to them. Japanese are not used to this kind of open display of affection. Though I have been in the States close to two decades, I still do not feel comfortable being held or hugged by non-family members.

On the other hand, there were times when I deeply appreciated the hugs of thanks from one or more of the participants. Still, this Japanese mother duck felt more comfortable a short distance from her ducklings, a distance that allowed her to make sure they were all right as they individually explored their surroundings.

14. Automatic Doors: Many of the office buildings, hotels, inns, and department stores in Japan have automatic doors that slide to the side. So when I return from Japan to the States, I often find myself standing in front of doors waiting for them to open. Moreover, since many automatic doors in the States open away from the approaching person, more than once in the States I have been almost hit by an opening door as I approached the exit of a building.

Even quite a few small shops have automatic doors in Japan. The problem is that the automatic door is often triggered by the passers-by because the walkway is so narrow. During the last trip I encountered one door that would not open until I noticed a button on the door next to the words, "Please push to open." At the time, I was impressed with this new energy saving device.

15. Amidakuji (Drawing Lots): I had to decide who was going to be roommates at an inn in Nara. There was one room for girls, but two rooms for five boys. They couldn't decide, so I pitched in with a drawing method I used to use when I was a child. I drew five vertical lines on a sheet of paper, and then I put lines between two lines at random. I wrote the room number at the bottom of each vertical line and had boys choose the top part of the vertical line. Then I started a zigzag line wherever the first vertical and horizontal lines met. My students didn't have the slightest idea what I was doing, and they suspiciously looked at me. So I said it was an ancient method for drawing lots. I believe they are still puzzled as to what I was doing.

C.  Historical Sites

1. Mt. Fuji: Mt. Fuji is the highest (3,776m) and the most beautiful mountain in Japan. There are five routes to climb the mountain. I took the first group of students and the Fulbright teachers by bus to the fifth station on the easiest route up Mt. Fuji. Most Japanese begin their climb at the same station as they make their way up to the tenth station near the top of the mountain. It takes about five hours from the fifth station to reach the top of Mt. Fuji on foot.

Most people stay overnight at the eighth station so that they can observe the sunrise the following day. Quite a few people, from the very young (I saw a five-year-old child climbing with his parents) to the very mature (yes, a few are over 70 years old) climb Mt. Fuji. Some climb at the end of December in order to see the first sun of the new year, while most climb in July and August when the mountain is officially open to the public (July 1 to August 26). Some people carry their bikes to the top of the west side of the mountain and ride them down the east side from which one can see the Pacific Ocean.

The first group of students that I took to Japan had just passed the sixth station when one of the members in the party ahead of us could not control the speed of her decent. Fortunately, another foreigner grabbed her arm and pulled her to the ground. While she was not seriously hurt, she did have multiple small cuts from the volcanic rock. We helped clean and cover her injuries with a small first aid kit that I was carrying. Not surprisingly, my students and I decided not to continue our ascent of Mt. Fuji. While we were descending, Cory Fulton told me that he had to lean backwards in order to prevent himself from picking up speed.

The following year I was very proud of myself when I could finally reach the seventh station with some of the Fulbright participants. I was so excited that I forgot about the girl who had fallen the year before, and I started walking down the mountain too fast. Near the fifth station I fell and skinned my elbow. Yes, I again had brought a first aid kit along.

2. Kamikaze: Most American, when they hear kamikaze, think of the suicide pilots of World War II. In contrast, Kamikaze, which means divine wind, reminds Japanese of the storms that forced the Mongols to withdraw during invasions of Japan in 1274 and 1281. I included Hakata Bay in Kyushu in our winter trip plan since it was on the way from Nagasaki to Hiroshima. We visited the stone sea wall which helped the Japanese defend their country against the second Mongolian invasion that began on June 23, 1281 and ended on August 16 when a typhoon destroyed most of the Mongolian fleet and forced them to withdraw.

Since three of the study tour participants studied Japanese history at LSUS, they were looking forward to visiting this 700 year-old wall. At the wall, they let their imagination travel back to the late 13th century Japan where they saw Japanese warriors on horseback fighting against Mongol archers. They visualized small Japanese vessels attacking the larger Mongolian ships. More than one student felt compelled to take a small piece of the wall back to the States.

3. Nagasaki & Hiroshima: I hesitate to take Americans to Nagasaki or Hiroshima. I know what most American think about the atomic bombs that were dropped on these two cities at the end of the WWII. Simply put, most Americans believe that the Japanese brought these events on themselves. Even some of the study tour participants felt that the displays at the Nagasaki and Hiroshima Peace Museums tilted towards American bashing. Christy Burgess summarizes their feelings, "I am not real comfortable here." Around December 7 each year I get a similar feeling as I hear, "Remember Pearl Harbor," to which I think to myself "No More Hiroshima."

When I took my husband to Hiroshima Peace Park some years ago, I did not go inside of the museum. When my husband came back, he told me it was an  eye-opening experience about the horrors of nuclear weapons. So when I took teachers to Hiroshima, I visited the display with them. Inside I could sense that some of the participants felt uncomfortable with the graphic nature or perceived tone of the displays. I heard at least one say, "It's Japan's own fault."

When I took the second group of students to Hiroshima, I opted not to see the display again. Being back in Hiroshima brought to the surface images of parents searching for their children under mounds of rumble, mothers clinging to their children as they tried unsuccessfully to escape the accompanying fire storms, and doctors tending to the thousands exposed to radiation. At least one of the students had a somewhat similar experience which he described thus: "when walking through the peace museum, I felt sick and all I could think about was getting out of there as soon as possible. I forced myself to walk through and look at the horror, the horror."

We all felt a sense of relief as we strolled through the park adjoining the museum. The students enjoyed seeing a pigeon drinking water from a water fountain. It is amazing how such a small event can change the mood of a group of people.

In the park is a statue of a girl who died of leukemia caused by the atomic bomb. The statue is usually covered with strings of paper cranes made by children from around the world. Every time I see this statue, my eyes become misty with joy as I think of the educators and children who took the time to make these symbols of mankind's hope for peace. While I may or may not return to the museum, I will return to the Hiroshima Peace Park to experience the catharsis that occurs while viewing this statue and remembering what it symbolizes. Katherene Loften put it this way; "The saying that we should learn from our history is so true when you see the atrocities that occurred. Nothing like that should ever be allowed to happen again."

4. Sacred Deer:  Why do we view the deer in Nara Park and Miyajima as sacred?  In the Shinto religion deer are often portrayed as messengers from the deities, kami. The origin of this belief is not known. However, as one watches the deer gracefully walk about the park, one can sense why Japanese in the fourth and fifth century might have come to that viewpoint. Deer are also mentioned in the life of the Buddha and thus are viewed with reverence by Buddhists as well.

The deer in Nara Park and Miyajima are tame and not afraid of human beings due to frequent contact since who knows when. The deer will nudge your back, thighs, arms and legs begging for food. If you have food in your purse or pockets, they will smell it, and in the worst and yet funniest case they will stick their nose into your purse or pocket to get hold of the food.

In Nara my husband was bitten on his backside while he was feeding another deer. I had a map snatched away by a deer while I was giving directions to one of the Fulbright participants. Katherene Loften and Kenneth Aulds had their brochures snatched away by deer on separate occasions. During the 1996 Study Tour, one of the participants was startled and screamed as a deer sought to partake of her lunch. I later learned that Chris Edney was bruised on his thighs by a demanding deer at Miyajima.

My students asked if they could eat sacred deer. They wanted to know if sacred deer tasted different from regular deer meat. I was unable to answer since I have never eaten deer meat, let alone sacred deer meat. I responded that the Todaiji Temple, which houses the Daibutsu, the big Buddha, is in charge of the deer, and once a year they cut the deer horns so that the deer won't injure themselves or human beings, and jokingly added that the eating of deer meat could result in them being expelled from grace by Buddha, so watch out. In fact, the Japanese do hunt deer, and as a result the deer population has declined significantly.

In Nara and Miyajima a popular snack is peanuts covered with chocolate. Since they look like deer droppings, they are packaged under that name. As a joke I offered my students the snack saying, "Do you want to try deer droppings?" as I threw one of the snacks into my mouth. You should have seen them stare.

5. Sunset at Kiyomizu-dera: Kiyomizu-dera was built around 798 in the eastern part of Kyoto on the side of a mountain. It was destroyed by fires, earthquakes, and warfare several times. The last reconstruction was begun by Tokugawa Iemitsu, the third shogun, and completed in 1633. We arrived about an hour before the temple was scheduled to close. As Kiyomizu-dera is famous for its panoramic view of Kyoto, I quickly escorted my students to the main hall which is built out over a cliff.

When I was about to take my regular group pictures, we were struck speechless by the beauty of nature. The students' journals contained the following comments: "The view of Kyoto from this temple is majestic. No other sunset I have seen in my life compares to the one I saw there. As the sun sets behind the city, all the lights in the town light up in a cascade of neon set on pink and purple sky" (James Kidd). " To say this sunset was absolutely beautiful would be an understatement. This was the most awesome sunset I have ever seen in my life! It started off at the horizon a brilliant gold, and then slowly faded into blue and purple, and then into black. The stars were visible over our heads, and we could still see the sunlight peeping over the mountains. God, it was beautiful. There's no way a camera could capture the majesty of the moment. It was too beautiful for words" (Chris Edney). The whole city was "on fire from the beautifully setting sun. Never ever have I seen a sunset so majestic. I know I took half a roll of film worth of pictures just of that sunset" (Pam Hauer).

I still remember the first sunset I saw in the States. When I came out of a shopping center, I turned around and saw this huge burning sunset with gray clouds dotting the vast Iowa sky. I can still picture myself as a little spot underneath this boundless sunset. It was beautiful and unlike any sunset I had ever seen in Japan. It seems that sunsets transcend cultural differences.

6. Love Charm: Various types of charms, which are believed to bring good health, household safety, and financial success, are sold at Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines. As the society diversifies, so do the kinds of charms sold at these places. There are charms for first love, marriage, childbirth, passing the entrance examination, safe driving, safe travel, and so forth.

The study tour participants were most interested in the first love charm at Jishu Shrine behind Kiyomizu- dera. There are two rocks about five meters apart, and if you could walk from one rock to the other rock with your eyes closed, your wish for first love will come true. Some of my students took a fancy to these rocks, and had fun walking/running between them. Some even purchased love charms. I wonder if their wish has come true.

7. Dream Island:  In Tokyo Bay there is a place called Dream Island, which was built upon material waste deposited in Tokyo Bay between 1957 and 1967. Emi Matsumoto-Donato said, "It is amazing that Tokyo can build a city out of garbage. Incredible! It is also kind of eerie because Dream Island looks so futuristic." When we took a sightseeing bus at night to Dream Island, I felt strange as I viewed the lights coming from the tall buildings because they reminded me of a space age city.

According to our bus guide, there is a wonderful golf course on Dream Island. However, cigarettes are prohibited on the greens because you might trigger an explosion. Fact or fiction?

D. Food

1. Japanese Cuisine: Food plays an important role in learning about a different culture. However, it is hard for anybody to eat food to which they are unaccustomed. I explained to the tour participants ahead of time what kinds of food they would encounter and might wish to try. For example, sashimi, raw fish including octopus, tuna, squid, shrimp, and salmon, is thinly sliced and arranged in a manner pleasing to the eye. Still the participants looked at each other as if they were about to be poisoned the first time they were served sashimi. In time I learned to order beer or sake along with the sashimi so as to make the meal more pleasing to the palate.

By the end of the trip many like James Kidd came to like sashimi, even octopus. Still, I avoided ordering the type of meal experienced by Dennis Myatt, a Centenary graduate and student at International Christian University in Tokyo. He ordered, without knowing what he was going to eat, a meal prepared from a live sea bream and did not feel comfortable because the fish was still wiggling when served.

Fulbright participants invented a way to eat sashimi. At dinner, a little grill was prepared to cook sukiyaki and other types of cuisine. These little grills are fun to use. While I was happily munching away, I found my neighbor placing sashimi into the grill. I was surprised to find out how they were eating sashimi, for in Japan there is no word for grilled sashimi. Then I remembered that when beef was first brought to Japan during the Meiji Restoration, it was Japanized with the addition of soy sauce, sugar, and vegetables.

The longer the trip is, the more culture shock you experience. However, you are often so busy you don't immediately realize you are suffering from culture shock. When I had my own experience with culture shock, I had a continual craving for noodles, but, of course, I could not find Japanese noodles in Iowa. I even dreamed of noodles. So when the tour participants were willing to walk very long distances for a hamburger, fried chicken, or pizza, I understood.

Kenneth Aulds had to wait seven minutes before his double cheeseburger combo with no onion was ready. The waitress came and gave him a soft drink while he was waiting. He commented, "I thought that was pretty neat, because in the States, that kind of service is very rare. I was also taken by surprise by the man coming and handing me my order and apologizing for taking so long." Even McDonald's is Japanized.

2. Sticky Rice and Soy Sauce:   Japanese rice sticks together much like the Japanese people, who emphasize the group rather than the individual, whereas American rice does not stick together, much as one might assume in a society that emphasizes individualism.

Soy sauce is made from soy beans, which has been a Japanese staple since it was introduced from China more than 2,000 years ago. Japan produces only 5% of the soy beans that they consume, and the rest has been imported mainly from the U.S. since WW II.

Most of the participants poured soy sauce over their sticky white rice in order to make it more tasty. Japanese people do not usually pour soy sauce over white rice. Eating rice with soy sauce implies poverty as one cannot afford to buy a side dish to eat with the rice. When I saw students eating rice with soy sauce, I was also reminded of how much American culture has influenced Japan as more and more young people view individualism as a positive trait. Critics of this cultural influence are, however, more likely to view the soy sauce imported from the U.S. as unsticking the unifying elements of Japanese society.

3. Where is the Dr. Pepper?:  It is especially hard to travel in a foreign country when one is hooked on a certain type of drink, cigarette, or food not readily available outside one's native country. I have a couple of students whose passion is Dr. Pepper. Wherever we went in Japan, they intensely sought out Dr. Pepper. Periodically, I would hear them shout with excitement, "Dr. Pepper!" One called my hotel room and said, "I went to the third floor, but I couldn't find Dr. Pepper. Which floor should I go to?" Some bought half a dozen cans of Dr. Pepper at a time and carried them around in their backpack.

Some foods go well with different types of drinks, and some do not go well at all. For example, sushi is good with either sake or beer, though sake is much better; but not with Dr. Pepper or Coke. Some participants had Coke with every type of food: Japanese, Korean, Chinese, and French.

Diet Coke is hard to find in Japan. Hopefully someone will invent a powdered Diet Coke and Dr. Pepper for American tourists to take on their world travels.

4. Sickness:  When we climbed Mt. Fuji, one student got sick after consuming orange juice, spaghetti, and ice cream. The combination is questionable, especially at an altitude of 2,000 meters.

Another student got ill after eating a huge sandwich just before dinner. He was so hungry he went to a convenience store and made his own sandwich not realizing dinner was soon to be served. Since I was not there to see what he bought, I still wonder what kind of meat he put in the sandwich. He, however, blamed a Japanese rice cake for his condition.

One student almost choked on a piece of meat and nearly passed out. Another student did the Heimlich maneuver on him which helped him dislodge the meat. When the Kendo group was in Shreveport in spring, 1998, one of the members almost choked, but the same student helped again.

II. Concluding Remarks

The participants learned that full understanding of another culture comes from firsthand experiences and not just book learning. They also learned that initial excitement can quickly give way to culture shock. For some, the first tinge of culture shock came with their first traditional Japanese meal, for others sleeping on futon, and for still others the public bath. While in time nearly all the participants rebounded from culture shock to acquire a deeper appreciation of things Japanese, it did take much longer for some than for others.

Most of them enjoyed evening get-togethers with other participants who they did not know well before departure. Both 1996 and 1997 study tour participants loved to play UNO while in Japan, though I do not think they would have played UNO if they were in the States. Playing UNO provided an opportunity to bond with the familiar, share experiences, and seek help adjusting to the unfamiliar.

While playing UNO, they became very close friends as they talked about politics, religion, life, school, family and everything else. "We talked about life, morals, society, the sort of things college students talk about when they are around one another. Those big, heated, heavily opinionated talks. It gave me a chance to see how their minds worked, and at the same time we were becoming better friends" (Cory Fulton).

Through their shared experiences they left a life-long impression on each other. They also left their mark on the roof of Todai-ji temple and Yakushi-ji temple in Nara. They donated a slate roofing tile on which they wrote their names on the underside. What a wonderful memory for them and story for others!

When some of the 1997 winter participants played kick ball with some Japanese youths, they learned to decide a disputed call by playing paper, scissors, and rock. One participant contrasted this with what happens in professional sports in the US and other countries. Conflict does exist in Japan, but this incident shows that American individualism and the Japanese focus on the group can cooperate to mutual benefit.

Though all the participants were glad to be back home, they also missed Japan. Is it not these mixed emotions out of which international understanding grows?

Many of these participants, especially the students, had not been overseas before, and for some it was their first time to fly.  Few had previously experienced a lengthy flight and/or traveled long distances by  train.