Healthcare for Local People

The other day, in the Shitada district of Sanjo City, I had a drink with Dr. Mikio Kitazawa and his son, Jiro Okuyama, a dentist, at a restaurant in the Iiyuratei Hot Spring. The spa is located next to one of the doctor’s 12 hospital, nursery schools and senior care facilities where he is both the healthcare corporation director and a doctor.
Physician Kitazawa is a happy-natured self-made man. His main interest is medical care for the aged in rural areas. However, when he was a younger man, he studied to become a Buddhist priest and what he learned during that period influences him still.
His studies lead him to believe that a doctor’s job is not simply to treat ailments, but to holistically help his patients live longer and happier lives and, when the time comes, to provide them with the means to have a peaceful death.

To this end, he and his family moved from the more metropolitan central Sanjo area to the depopulated Shitada Village 16 years ago to assume the weighty responsibility of providing health care to this region’s mostly aging population. Seeing a need, he built eleven of his facilities in the immediate area and one in Sakae District in Sanjo City. 
He runs hospitals with departments of internal medicine and psychiatry, special nursing homes for the aged and care support facilities, all of which had long been requested by the local residents. However, he has not grown complacent. In April, his medical corporation established the Jiro Dental Clinic run by his son.

Jiro too has learned from his father’s philosophies. He told me that many of his patients rarely ventured into the city and many of them had not been to see a dentist in 20 years or more and he added that he felt his hard work in setting up the clinic had been rewarded when he heard his patients tell him that they were now able to more fully enjoy eating.

All in all, while the doctor has created hundreds of jobs and has greatly contributed to the economy, he told me that he feels happiest when he is out talking with the locals, making sure that they are doing okay and satisfied with their lives. So, in his free time, he likes to take strolls out into the fields to see how his patients where they live and work. “A rural life,” he said, “is the life for me.”

SANKO Sanjo High School

Sanjo High School will celebrate the 111-year anniversary of its founding on May 1. I am an alumnus of the school and even taught there until I moved to a nearby university eight years ago.

These days, I am a board member of the alumni association and I make it a rule to attend the annual founding celebration. I hope to see many of my past students as well as older graduates at this year’s ceremony.

Azaleas are at their best

My daughter is safely off to college, the weather has become more comfortable, the days grow ever longer and the azaleas are in full bloom. Finally, spring has truly sprung, and one of its most relaxing pleasures is to take in all the beautiful flowers while having a cup of hot black tea on the wood deck in my garden.

However, these relaxing moments seem to happen less these days. We had a very long winter and too much snow this year. Last week our area had unusually strong winds. Not to be outdone, the very temperate central Tokyo area was pummeled by hail. Most unusual of all were the many tornadoes that surprisingly struck the Kanto area in the early part of May, something I cannot ever recall happening before. It looks like abnormal weather is becoming normal in many parts of the world.

KAKURI Corporation

Mr. Mutsuhiro Kato, the vice president of KAKURI Corporation, is like a magnate, attracting the attention of other entrepreneurs in Sanjo City. He often tells people that dreams can become goals if you work hard.

He said he used to dream of selling his wares all over the world, but it now is a goal that has been partly attained. “It takes time,” he said, “but I never give up.”

(The chisels won an award for Good Design from Japan Institute of Design Promotion.）↓

Sanjo City has long been noted for the production of hardware and metal ware tools and goods. KAKURI Corporation, which deals mainly with carpenter tools, such as saws, planes, chisels, knives and kitchen cutleries, stands out amongst its competition.

Mr. Mutsuhiro Kato, who is in charge of the KAKURI Corporation’s factory sector, KAKURI WORKS LTD., said that half of the products made by the factory are sold to overseas clientele. Its high-quality tools are particularly popular in China, where it has shifted much of its production.

While he had some struggles breaking into China’s market, after doggedly negotiating with Chinese buyers for ten years, he gradually gained friendships and trust and slowly built the company’s reputation there.

Mr. Kato, who continues to tirelessly meet with businesspersons from around the world, hopes to expand his company’s global sales even further. His next dream is to increase sales in Europe, and he, along with other young, up-and-coming entrepreneurs in the Tsubame-Sanjo area, make an annual trek to display their commodities at a trade fair in Ambiente, which is in Frankfurt, Germany.

Likewise, when Europeans and other foreign businesspeople visit this area, they often visit his company and he acts as their host. English, he says, is the language they often communicate in.

 (Mr. Kato with Chinese students at his factory in Sanjo City.)

He is such a diligent worker that many people ask to hear about his successes; however, he is not reluctant to disclose his failures, and welcomes anyone who wants to learn from him. If he is asked to talk about exports from Sanjo City, he never hesitates. He often gives lectures to business and community groups and sees these as opportunities to volunteer his knowledge.

He loves these opportunities to greet people from all over the world and views these “chance meetings,” as he calls them, as very important. Whether it is in Japanese or English, he loves communicating.

(With consummate skills, KAKURI's accomplished, experienced hand finalizes ultimate-level blades.)

Time-Honored Classy Onsen Ryokan, Rankeiso

Rankeiso, located in the Shitada area of Sanjo City, is popular among “onsen” lovers young and old as it is one of Niigata’s best hot spring inns. http://www.rankei.com/

When I was a high school teacher in Sanjo, I often volunteered to be an organizer of school parties in order to choose Rankeiso as the venue as it is an ideal setting for relaxing parties.

Recently, I met Rankeiso’s president, Keigo Otake, who is the fourth-generation manager of this family-owned inn. Though he comes across as a bit shy, he is not timid when he speaks about the three points that make his inn one of Japan’s best secluded hot spring spots.

First, he noted, the quality of the inn’s onsen baths is outstanding. The cold spa water is quite rich in minerals and surprisingly tasty. It is a little salty and tastes like seaweed tea. He even uses the water to make Onsen-gayu, a special type of rice porridge for breakfast.

A second factor that makes this inn an unforgettable experience, he noted, is the tantalizing cuisine. Four distinguished chefs turn any of the inn’s traditional country-styled dishes into a high-class banquet. (Having recently attended a family reunion at the Rankeiso where we partook of many of the inn’s best delicacies, I can personally attest that this is no exaggeration.)

              
The third element, he touched on, and perhaps the most important, is how the inn lies in gentle harmony with it natural surroundings. Scenic woods envelope the inn while the Sumon River runs beside it, allowing those who come there to feel as one with nature.
              
During our talk, Mr. Otake noted that the “Go” in his given name, Keigo, means “five.” In this way, his parents and grandparents consigned in him five wishes. He didn’t say a lot, but he knows what his family expected of him and he is obviously full of high hopes for his inn.

              

He didn’t brag about his high ambitions to expand his business, but he did modestly mention that he would like to keep pace with the times. He then concluded my interview by saying he envisions the future of his inn, the village and its people, all the time.

Iiyuratei Spa Reopens in Novemeber

Two months have passed since a dreadful torrent washed away several places in the Shitada district. Most of the devastated areas have been restored, but there are still many places along the mountainous roads and rivers that have not been. Full restoration will take more time.

One such area is Shitada’s most popular resort facility. Its name, Iiyuratei, is a pun based on a local dialect, meaning “It’s indeed good hot water.”

The spa, which looks down from the spectacular view atop Mt. Yagigahana, just upstream from the Ikarashi River, was damaged to a great extent and will need another month of repairs before reopening. Once it does, I highly recommend going there as it is in walking distance of the beautiful rice terraces of which I am particularly fond. The hot spring and health facility, which welcomes Onsen lovers throughout the year, is also connected to the Hayabusa Sports Center and is in the vicinity of the Yagigahana Auto Camping site. I think it is an ideal place to spend a weekend. http://www.iiyuratei.com/

We’ve had enough natural disasters.

In Japan, everywhere, except Hokkaido, experiences “the rainy season” before summer. Traditionally, we have had very steady rain during that time. We have also tended to get our fair share of typhoons in summer and fall. These rains have made our country rich in water and crops.

However, recently, it never rains but it pours. This week, another big typhoon, the second in a month, rampaged through Japan. It is now common to read in the reports of the Meteorological Agency phrases like “the most powerful typhoon on record,” “the warmest day/summer/year on record,” “the largest storm in recorded history,” and so on.

The Ikarashi River in Sanjo City, famous for its beauty, was believed to have been rendered harmless after its banks were reinforced following what was believed to have been a 100-year flood that damaged large portions of my hometown seven years ago.

However, on July 31, we experienced rainfalls so heavy that even this new infrastructure was overwhelmed and the overflow again destroyed many houses, buildings, roads and even the terraced rice paddies that I mentioned in a previous blog. “A natural disaster strikes when people lose their memory of the previous one” is an often quoted Japanese saying. These days, with the last disaster still fresh in our minds, another one comes without mercy. If these recent abnormal weather patterns represent my country’s new normal, then we truly need to learn how to live with disasters.

 These pictures show Sanjo City in 2004.

http://www.mlit.go.jp/river/pamphlet_jirei/bousai/saigai/kiroku/suigai2004/hokuriku.html

 This one was taken this past August. http://www.kenoh.com/2011/07/29rain.html

Harpsichord producer restores medieval music

Living in a tranquil and snow-deep countryside, Shitada, in Sanjo City, a serene artisan sedulously has produced cembalo, an Italian word for harpsichords, and clavichords for many years. Yashushi Takahashi, now a half-century old, is also my old high schoolmate.
The harpsichord was believed to be invented in the late Middle Ages. European harpsichord makers were making the instrument as far back as the Renaissance and Baroque music eras. Due to the rise of the piano in the late 18th century, it lost popularity. However, after gradually making a comeback in the 20th century, it is once again resurgent today. Players now perform both older works and contemporary music with the harpsichord.

The clavichord is also a European stringed-keyboard instrument. Its history is a little longer and was mainly played for practice purposes and as an aid in composition.
Surprisingly, Yasushi collects materials, designs the instruments and, with the exception of such things as nails, screws and strings, he makes and assembles everything in his studio workshop.
He is normally reticent and genial, but if you get him talking about his instruments and music, he becomes impassioned. When it comes to his craft, he is even willing to bring (drag) his harpsichord across oceans and continents, to show off his wares as he did at an international exhibition and convention in Italy in 2009. There, he spoke at length in English about both his large masterpieces and production activities in Japan and received the applause and adulation from those in attendance. (The subject of his speech was “A Study of Clavichord Scale Design.”)
He is now dreaming of holding a small concert and gathering in Niigata for devotees of older musical instruments to exchange and share knowledge, ideas and love of music. Please feel free to visit his website and learn more about medieval musical instruments. http://www2.plala.or.jp/clavier/
Of course, you can also buy one.

Niigata Prefecture in White

Looking at Mt. Yagihana covered with snow makes me feel peaceful. People from outside of Niigata may want to enjoy beautiful snowy scenes and skiing on the hills, but for most of Niigata’s residents and many other people in the northern part of Japan, this year’s huge snowfall is a matter of life and death.

My residence in Sanjo City usually does not have too much snow, but as you can see in the pictures below, my house is buried under a blanket of white snow. The snow is not what you might call a “powder snow,” but rather, it is damp and heavy. My biggest worry is that it might collapse the house so I had to clear it from the roof.

Until the early February, we were fighting against the snow, plowing and shoveling. Unlike us, some people living closer to the mountains were completely snowed in, especially the elderly. Fortunately, there is a lull in the weather.

It reminds me of the snowfalls Niigata used to receive in my youth. As the years went by, however, my prefecture has received less and less snow each year, at least until this year. Perhaps our unpredictable weather patterns are due in part to global climate change.

A Farewell to Night School

On November 3rd, I was invited to Sanjo Senior High School to attend the “Closure Ceremony” of its night school. I find it sad that from now on, no public night courses will be taught within its walls.

In the era of high economic growth, many high schools taught night courses for those students who worked during the day but who wished to continue their studies. Of Sanjo City’s four public senior high schools, three used to hold night classes.

However, recently, fewer students have been enrolling in such courses. With the closure of Sanjo High School’s night school, there are no such remaining schools in the city and only a handful in all of Niigata Prefecture.

Besides alumni and the final class of graduating students, there were many special guests in attendance, including the Niigata Prefectural Governor, Hirohiko Izumida, and Sanjo City’s mayor, Isato Kunisada.

On a side note, Governor Izumida and I attended Sanjo Senior High School during the same period. He was my junior by two years.

We Japanese are a ceremony-loving people, and there were two on this occasion. The first was the actual closure ceremony for the night school held in the gymnasium. This was followed by a second ceremony to unveil a memorial stone in the night school’s honor and this was held outdoors on the school grounds.

In this picture, Niigata Governor Izumida (center, wearing the red ribbon) prepares to unveil a memorial stone for Sanjo High School’s Night Course students.

A Direct Talk with Sanjo’s Mayor about Equal Rights

At a meeting convened by the Sanjo Women’s Forum this morning, I had a chance to participate in a “direct talk” about equal rights issues with Sanjo Mayor Isato Kunisada at the Gender Equality Office in Sanjo City. Kunisada-san, who was once the youngest city mayor in Japan, is now in his late-30s and is planning to run once again in the upcoming city election.

Admirably, he is willing to talk with anybody about any agenda.

While I am not an active member of the women’s forum, I have been interested in gender-related issues for many years and am an equal rights activist. Certainly, then, if there is one thing that needs to be discussed by the citizens of our city, it is how to further improve the status and rights of women.

I often hear it said that many people in Japan, especially those in rural areas like Sanjo, have very traditional and conservative views regarding occupational and homemaking duties. In a nutshell, working women spend a lot more time than men on household chores, child care, shopping, elderly care, and so on.

After the enactment of the Equal Employment Opportunity Law in 1986, the number of female workers increased, but even today, many more females work part-time or as temporary employees. Furthermore, few women hold supervisory roles, even in city hall.

Another area of concern is the field of education. For instance, in a field with one of the highest rates of full-time female employment in the country, you will find less than ten female principals for the one hundred senior high schools in Niigata Prefecture.

I believe government must lead the way on this issue. Unfortunately, our talk with the mayor did not lead to concrete proposals to enhance the status of women in our area, but we did agree to hold a follow-up meeting soon to deepen our discussion.

Who pays 100 dollars for a nail clipper? - Me!

SUWADA’S fancy nail clippers, which actually look more like nippers, fly off the shelves. In fact, I bought a very expensive pair myself. However, according to the information I learned about its edge and usability, I won't ever have to buy another one.

You may be asking yourself, “Who on earth is SUWADA?” Actually, it’s a company named SUWADA Blacksmith Works, Incorporated. The president is Mr. Tomoyuki Kobayashi, an up and coming whiz, who chairs the “Japan Brand Committee” at the Sanjo Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

http://www.suwada.co.jp/

He is also an active member of the “Sanjo Japan” group, which is exclusively composed of manufacturing companies whose origins are in the city. The members of this group go overseas together to place their products on international exhibition. One of the biggest events for the Sanjo Japan group is to display their traditional and state-of-art products at the International Trade Fair held in Ambiente, Frankfourt in Germany.
http://ambiente.messefrankfurt.com/frankfurt/en/besucher/willkommen.html

SUWADA also specializes in the sale of Bonsai shears and pliers.

Relics of an Ancient Civilization?

The Yoshinoya area, where Isurugi Shrine is located, is also noted for its archaeological sites. On my way back home from seeing the great work by the Michelangelo of Echigo, I visited an excavation site (as shown in the photos). Though the findings have not been confirmed, the shards of earthenware and other unearthed articles were said to be from around the year 1000 during the Heian Period. They reminded me of the shards I dug up around my hometown during the summer breaks of my childhood.

A Painter in Sanjo

I’d like to show some of the paintings of Mr. Mitsunari Hasegawa, an ordinary business person and engineering graduate who is also a talented artist. He excels at realistic penciled renderings as well as oil and water paitings. He often holds one-man exhibitions and displays his works at many local galleries, but he belongs to no artistic societies.

For your viewing pleasure, I present his paintings of Mt. Awagatake, as viewed from Shimagawara, Mt. Sumon, and Mt. Hakkaisan. He painted them all earlier this year.

Please visit his homepage gallery; http://www5.ocn.ne.jp/~sunset/toppeji.htm

Sanjo on YouTube

As a Sanjoite, I'm proud of Sanjo City.
Please visit the Official City of Sanjo English website and enjoy watching and learning about my city!

Sanjo's Past, Present, & Future 

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http://www.city.sanjo.niigata.jp/enindex.html
Sanjo City Office/955-8686 3-1 Asahicho2, Sanjo-shi, Niigata
Tel:+81 256-34-5511 (ext.314) Fax:+81 256-34-7933