When one first sees pictures of 9000 men dressed only in fundoshi (loincloths) running around and engaged in a giant brawl the first thing that comes to mind is “what the hell are they doing?!” The Japanese participants believe that if they end up with the shingi (sacred stick) at the end, it will bring a year of good luck (aided by a large cash sum), and if not, they will still receive blessings from the two deities Senjukannon and Goousho Daigongen, just like their fathers, and their fathers’ fathers. We knew none of this though. However, either being tired of living or, simply, as one teacher put it, being henna (strange) gaijin, we decided to join in for the craic.

Before the break AJET had our annual Bonenkai. On December 15, 45 JETs headed to Café Bien in Hiroshima to celebrate the end of a great year. There were good drinks, great food and amazing people. And of course, no Japanese Bonenkai could be complete without a game of BINGO, where many winners took home gifts. Shout out to Desmond… sorry about the star, or was it a candy cane? Better luck next time!

Some fifteen years ago, when watching “Jurassic Park,” (anyone else suddenly feel old after that statement?) a standard was set to which all other children’s terrified faces could be compared. As the T-Rex approached the overturned car of children Lex and Tim, no look could more appropriately convey “this is the end of it all” than young Lex’s. That is, of course, until I went to the Betcha Matsuri in Onomichi on November 3.

Buono!Musica!2007: a weekend spent at a musical oasis. There was no J-pop. We didn’t hear the Beatles once, perhaps because of the absence of department stores and konbinis… Buono!Musica!2007 was simply a beautiful day and night of music, delicious food and camping. Held in a campground in Sera-Nishi, a small town an hour drive north of Onomichi, it proved to be a secluded spot with plenty of green-space, overlooking a peaceful lake. There was room for lazing around with a beer, or even tossing a frisbee, if you felt up to that strenuous task! In the evening, a big bonfire was lit for people to relax around. There were also barbeque facilities near the stage, so we loaded up on supermarket goodies before we arrived. It really was an excellent little valley for seeing some great live music.

“For those about to rock we salute you!” There are no better words to describe my feelings about the Fuji Rock Festival. Let’s be honest here; going to this festival is a true testament to your love of rock. The three-day ticket costs 40,000 yen, the Shinkansen costs another 40,000 yen, and then all the food, drink and swag you buy at the concert is going to cost you as well. Of course, you clever people will have figured out that there are cheaper ways to get around Japan, but I couldn’t go with the clever option. I had a workshop the day before and made the last train out of Fukuyama. I was off and ready to rock out with my wallet out!

Rainy Day + Movies = Great Time!

Bill Lawson reviews Fukuyama Let’s Film Festival 2007.

Hello JETs! Here at Hiroshima AJET headquarters we have been busy working on some exciting upcoming events: Early April we are planning a quiz night. Come see if last year’s winners (Jeff Niemetschek, Berin McKenzie, and Russ Tyler) can retain their title! All the money raised that night will go towards the Bangladesh Habitat for Humanity trip, which is being led by Hiroshima JETs, Shannon and Peter Coelho. During Golden Week their team is going to Bangladesh to help build houses for needy families. The quiz night fundraiser will be a guaranteed fun night where you can see if you truly have lost all of your capacity for intelligent thought while in Japan – plus you’ll be helping out a good cause.

What was it? A crazy Japanese festival that takes a childhood pastime and turns it into a competitive international sport. What were we doing? Training for weeks on end (well, does walking to school count?) with the Hokkaido-based national championships within our sights… or you know, just trying to survive and have a laugh. Let’s begin by painting a brief picture of the contest. The Yuki Gassen is basically a 2-day hardcore snowball fight, the winners of which go on to compete in the national championships in Hokkaido where teams from all around the world come to participate.

Akemashite Omedeto Gozaimasu, fellow JETs! We hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday season full of bonenkai, travels, friends, family, and keeping warm as the temperatures have dropped. We want to thank everyone who came on the trip to Fukuoka and those who attended the first ever Hiroshima AJET Bonenkai. Both events were a huge success, and we hope that you had as much fun as we did.

October is, in my opinion, the best month here in Japan. The weather is perfect, there are four whole days off work (!!), and of course, there are two days every October when people from all over the country come to the town of Saijo to drink copious amounts of alcohol. In fact, when attending the famous Saijo Sake Festival, you are expected – encouraged, even – to drink lots and lots of sake (I even saw kiddies who would have been at least ten years under the age limit tastetesting some of Saijo’s finest with their parents!) and everyone looks the other way if you end up acting like a complete fool.