So. This is the first post in a little while, thanks for your patience with my lazyness. Last post, I promised some info on where I work and what I do, and I intend to deliver on that. First, however, I have some pics to post from a nifty little once-a-year event in Ashikaga, in the nearby Tochigi prefecture. It was the Coco farm and winery harvest festival, and it was a good old time.
I have the deepest respect for this little winery. To begin with, it's not just a winery, it's a home for people with mental disabilities. There is a large dormitory on site where the workers live, and they all work at planting, tending the crops and fields, and harvesting when the time rolls around. This is a great career for mentally handicapped people, they get to work someplace absolutely beautiful, producing something with real cultural significance that they can really be proud of. I may fake a mental disability just so I can live there (kidding. I know, tasteless, but I'm not always a tasteful person (^_-)) I believe it's government sponsored, most things for the public welfare tend to be, but this place produces some pretty high-quality wines and has its own non-insignificant income. I think the annual harvest festival is their biggest event, and all the residents and volunteers and workers on the farm without disabilities were decked out in festival attire. If you got a ticket, you got a bottle of wine and corkscrew, and there were all live bands playing classical and jazz music, and lots of food to partake of, and fine breads and cheeses, and a lot of people to just mingle with, and it was just generally great. The seating arrangements for the day were in what was their vineyard, prior to the harvest. It's on the side of a pretty darn steep hill. No kidding, really. It was physically a challenge to stay in one place while drinking your wine, and the danger of dropping your bottle down the hill was real. This conundrum was, of course, magnified by the fact that everyone was drinking at least a bottle of wine each. My actual souvenir wine glass was a casualty of this spatially disadvantaged situation. Still a wonderful time, though. Here's a link to their site so you can read up on it if you so desire, and also some eye candy.
http://www.cocowine.com/english/english.html
This is the crew from Shibukawa that went, minus Leah, who came a bit later. Left to right: Steven, me, Chau, Akira
Our grape friends, before and after the production process. A common comment was, "Hey, I have a picture of you on my underwear!"
(Again tasteless. For those of you reading this site who are unfamiliar with American personal garments, there is a brand called Fruit of the Loom, and every garment of that brand has a picture on the tag of various fruits. Wow, explaining that joke just wrecked the comedic timing.)
Some of the performers on the main stage, on the second floor deck of the winery. They were pretty high-quality, I have to say. These particular dancers were performing Irish dances, which was a surprise in itself. The fiddler in the middle (wearing the bobble cap) was darn good.
Some cool folks from Osaka we met and had lunch with.
Akira's pretty glass and ugly mug. Also an overview of the festivities, from the side of the hill
The hillside they forced us to perch on. Picturesque yet scary. Those lines criss-crossing the hill are steel wires that they hung the grapes from. They were right at head height, too. You had to watch out if you were tall, or you'd take your head off.
Leah, and looking up the hill as the carnival was winding down
Well, it's getting kind of late, and I've honestly had my share of difficulty adjusting my computer settings to optimize the efficiency of the blogging process. I'll make good on the promise to deliver some material on actual teaching at a later date. Hopefully soon, though, because I'm not limited to using the computer at school anymore! Woot again! Take care, everyone. Mata de.
3 comments:
Great pictures. That looks like a fun day.
Do you think you might want to stay in Japan for awhile and teach english as a career?
Just think, Jeffie, you could have been on a steep hill made of WADs drinking a bottle of 2:00 coke dodging the clothesline we like to call "Flow Management" instead! I think you're definitely getting the better end of this deal.
Just so you know what you're missing besides American underpants: Work is busy but Discovery is scheduled to launch on December 7th at 948 pm (Florida time). Yes that's right, you're missing a night launch!
And Saturday was the first Family Day since 9/11 so everybody: Jeff could have gotten you a tour of the Space Shuttle Endeavour and the VAB if he weren't off gallavanting around Japan having the time of his life!
Happy Thanksgiving, Jeff! Make sure you find yourself some Turkey-sushi and egg-nog-saki somewhere and think of us.
Jeff- Long time no type... The festival sounds fantastic. I'm so glad you're having a good time. I lost the little green post-it when I moved, but it has been found again. We missed you at Halloween. Nikki and Nick say hi. Email me!!!!
Same old email.
P.S. if you ever use the telephone again, my cell is the only number I have now.
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