In an Instant we were there

Living in Japan for the last 6 weeks has been an amazing experience for Janice. She’s met lots of people, traveled across most of the country to some of its biggest cities, and eaten almost every style of food that Japan has to offer. What’s good for her has also been great for me. I’ve basically been able to do everything (and then some) that I did in my first month here, but with the added wisdom that being here for 6 months has brought me. Also, it is Janice that has taken over the role of wide-eyed astonishment, while I get to be her somewhat seasoned guide.

Also, because she is new to Japan, all of the Japanese people that I know and that have grown bored of my particular breed of foreigner, treat Janice with the same great hospitality that I received when I first arrived. Not only does she offer a fresh perspective on where we come from, but she also has such fresh enthusiasm for everything Japanese. It probably doesn’t hurt that she has light hair and blue-green eyes. I sometimes imagine that the Japanese people around me feel partially ripped off by the fact that their foreign Assistant Language Teacher doesn’t look quite like the North Americans that they are used to seeing in the movies. As such, the two of us have been invited to many dinners and have been afforded great hospitality over the last few weeks.

One teacher I work with offered to take us for sushi in Onahama the other night. I had been in the area a few times before where there is a massive building on the water that sells fresh seafood. One of the Japanese people that I was there with mentioned that this is the market where many people will shop at when they come to Onahama; the locals that live in the area however, know that the fish is usually cheaper and fresher at a smaller location just off the water across the street. I was delighted when we found out that the sushi place we were going to was just above this market.

Not only was the fish delicious – I had a tuna sushi donburi, while the other two had a sushi sampler with many kinds of sea foods over rice – but the teacher we were with also brought her new Fujifilm Instax camera. A year or so ago, Polaroid discontinued all production of their instant film cameras and film and now, in reaction to this massive hole in the instant photo market, Fujifilm is filling the void. I’ve never owned an instant film camera – and neither has anyone close to me. In fact, the only film camera that I owned was one that I bought about 6 years ago, which I replaced with my first digital camera about a year or two later. Now in the year 2010, I’m seriously considering buying my first instant film camera, which seem reasonably cheap.

We took a few photos of each of us as we ate, and we ended up with four of them by the end of the night. I think they look great. I’ve included some images that I took of the photos while they’re still here in Japan. The two photos with each of Janice and I are my favorites and I think they look great together on my kitchen table. Unfortunately, one of the photos will be leaving on a plane in the next few days and they won’t have a chance to be seen beside each other for another 6 months.