Day 2 of 30 day meme: What it is like to live in Inagi.

Day 02 – Describe your neighborhood in Japan.

I can’t say that I have been everywhere in the Tokyo area, or even half of it really, but from what I have seen I wouldn’t want to live any other place than Inagi.

During my stay in Tokyo I lived with my host family in Inagi which is about 45 minutes by train from Shinjuku. It’s located in the western area of Tokyo. My host father often would make comments at dinnertime about how quiet Inagi is compared to being in the heart of the city. He wasn’t lying, part of the reason I loved living there was because it was a relief to get away from the huge masses of the city streets. It isn’t like there aren’t a lot of people living in Inagi, I’d say there are a fair amount, but anything compared to main Tokyo seems small in comparison. Also I'm almost 90% there was some kind of Yakuza action in the area. I saw some pretty shady characters, and from time to time late at night (like 3am late) I would hear what sounded like motorcycles racing in the streets. So it wasn't ALWAYS quiet.

A creek where otters supposedly had been seen (there was a sign posted on the bridge). The white thing in the middle of the picture is some type of white crane.

Marsh that runs along the river.

Inagi also had a more down-to-earth feel to it (at least the side we lived on). There was quite a bit of nature in the area, even with all he houses crammed next to each other. There were small fields, creeks, and a river/park within walking distance of our house. My Okaasan (host mother) or host sister Maki would walk our dog Babe by the river everyday. Even though we had a grocery, there is still small family-owned (Ma and Pa) type shops in the area too. Right next to the station there is a small flower shop that was always nice walk by. I remember around Christmas they even put out poinsettias and mini Christmas trees (which I was very tempted to buy).  Right across from the grocery there was a vegetable/fruit shop that had this man (the owner most likely) who would yell out “irasshaimase~” (welcome) in the funniest ways. I want to say he was originally from some other area of Japan like Osaka by the way he would say it.  Whenever Maggie or I would walk by he always seemed to get louder too, which always amused me. 

 This is the moving shop that I would have to turn at everyday. Just past it is a small alley that leads to another small alley that leads to ANOTHER alley that my host family's house is located on.

Our house was about a five minute walk from the station (Inaginaganuma) and along the way, once you get past the shops and towards where the houses start, there was this lamp post that had this giant spiderweb with the biggest spider I have ever seen in it. Now, I suffer from arachnophobia, I can hardly stand to be in the same room as a spider, so this REALLY freaked me out with I first noticed it. At first I wouldn’t walk on that side of the street by it, but then I realized I was being a little silly since it was high up where it couldn’t get me. It was also kind of troublesome to always cross the street so I gave up. Eventually it became a part of my surroundings. I would check every day to make sure it was there, and when winter came, some time at the end of December or beginning of January (when it REALLY started to get cold) the spider disappeared. This will probably be the only spider in my lifetime that I am sorry to see die. It may sound crazy of me but once it had started to get chilly and cold in November and December everyday when I checked and it was still there I thought “Ah, it’s trying hard to survive isn’t it? I’m trying hard to make it here too! Ganbatte spider friend! (try hard/good luck)” XD Annnnnnnd... I can’t believe I just admitted that to the world, I AM SUCH A DORK.

The mama giraffe is kissing the baby giraffe. How cute!

Another quirky thing I love about Inagi is the mystery of the giraffe on the gate leading on to the main road (which is just in front of the station). I have long puzzled over this. Is the giraffe their mascot? Or does it have other meaning? I took it as a sign that I belonged there because my Dad’s favorite animal is the giraffe and we have a lot of giraffe themed decorations in my house (which I think are kind of lame but that is another story).  Also there is some Katakana on the gate (along with Kanji that I can read) that says ベアリーロード “Bearirodo” Beary road? Berry road? Very road? Is this the name of the main street with shops on it? I have no clue and for some reason I never asked either (should probably email Maki about this…). But it’s awesome either way, because at night there are Christmas lights on it that are up ALL YEAR ROUND. It was comforting coming home to them late at night. Some may find it cheesy but I think they are wonderful. There is almost a magical quality to it, so I took a video of them one night and here it is to share with you all: 

As for our neighbors, there was this very old lady that lived right next door. She had a tree that grew the fruit that they make Umeboshi out of, so she made her own every year. Too bad I’m not a fan of Umeboshi. She also sometimes gave Okaasan food to share with Maggie and I. She made these awesome rice balls covered in anko (red bean paste) they were one of my favorite foods. She would often be sweeping the yard in the morning when I left for school, I always said good morning and “ittekimasu!” (I’m going/leaving) and she would always say “itterasshai” (safe trip/go and come back). There was another lady that I would also sometimes meet in the morning or run into who lived a couple houses down. She would always greet me too, and she had the cutest little dog named Maru. We actually had a conversation once where she thought I worked there, and I had to explain that no I was just an exchange student. I was amused though. We didn't really talk more than these small greetings but they always made me feel good and more a part of the neighborhood instead of some other reactions I got (oh there is the foreign girl let's try not to make eye contact, walk quickly). I wonder how they are both doing. I hope I will get to see them again when I go back.

 Maggie (on the right) and myself posing in front of the Sakura trees that line the walkway along the river.

My friend Anna and I are hoping to go in the spring next year and I remember my Okaasan saying that the trees that line the walkway by the river are Sakura trees. I’m just dying to see them when I go! 

I leave you with this fun link to the "street view" (panorama) of the main street of Inagi. (That I did not just spend an half-an-hour playing with) You can see the flowershop on the left hand side, then a little bit down is the grocery and right across the street from that is the small veggie/fruit shop with the fun owner I mentioned.