The rest of the morning

After the museum, we drove to the Hokkaido International Foundation (HIF) building where my older sister studied as an exchange student while staying with this host family for two months. I met the coordinator of the program, who remembered Emily well, and we talked for a little while.

Then, we went to the pier area where there is an old beer factory that has been renovated into a souvenir shopping mall. We walked around there for a short time, then we went to lunch at Lucky Pierrot’s, a Hakodate burger joint that is very popular. I ate their special Chinese Chicken burger (on Momo’s suggestion), which was very good. After lunch we drove to the airport, where I said goodbye and got on my return flight to Nagoya.

Just a little more research

Today was my last day in Hokkaido. This morning after breakfast, I went to the Hakodate Northern People’s Museum with my host mother and her two children (who had the day off of school). Unfortunately, I was not allowed to take pictures of this beautiful collection of artifacts as they had some particularly nice specimens of carved-wood ritual ornaments and tools and woven elm-fiber clothing. We were also able to watch a short, but very interesting and informative movie about the efforts going on today to preserve and spread Ainu culture (as there are no longer any Ainu remaining that live in the traditional way of life – all have assimilated to mainstream, modern Japanese lifestyles).

A pleasant evening

I spent the evening with the Ishida family at home. We ate dinner (lamb meat and vegetables in a Hokkaido special marinade) together while watching video camera footage from the morning’s Undou-kai, reliving the events. We then sang karaoke for a while before turning into bed early (because the children were still tired from the long day in the sun). I sang The Star-Spangled Banner for the parents after the kids went to bed as my final song (upon request) and then Ikumi sang the Japanese national anthem (which is the shortest national anthem in the world). It was a fun way to end the day with a small exchange of culture.

Hakodate sightseeing

After the Undou-kai, Ikumi (Emily’s former host mother) stayed at home to prepare dinner while Ryousuke (the father) took me and the children in the car to the top of Hakodate Mountain, so I could see the view of the city and the bay/port. We then drove along the coastline (by this time both Momo and Hanako were fast asleep in the car, tired out by the long day in the sun).

We next went through the city to look at the many preserved church buildings and foreigner cemeteries. After a long time being closed to foreigners during the Tokugawa Period, Japan initially opened 5 ports for use by the United States after the intimidating appearance of Mathew Perry. Hakodate was one of these original 5 ports and was particularly sought after by the US as a place for Pacific whaling ships to dock and get supplies. It was later opened up to trade with foreign countries besides the US. This means that Hakodate has a fairly rich history when it comes to the mixing of cultures, and therefore a lot of foreign architecture and European influence can be seen throughout the city.

Undou-kai (Sports Festival)

I got up with the Ishida family very early this morning to prepare for Momo’s Elementary School Sports Festival. This event has become a large part of Japanese culture and is a very grand affair. The events run from 9:00 in the morning until around 2:00 in the afternoon, and include relays and other games. The families of the students, often not only parents and siblings but aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents, all come together to watch the event and cheer. The students’ mothers make incredible picnic lunches (Ishida-san included) that the whole family eats together during the lunch break. I helped to make some rice balls for the event, but otherwise just enjoyed the atmosphere and the beautiful sunny weather.

To Hakodate

I said goodbye to Seino-san and Yokoyama-san, thanking them for all their help, and got on the train for Hakodate. This time the train was right on schedule and I didn’t run into any problems. Emily’s former host family, the Ishida family, met me at the train station and we went back to their house where we had a wonderful dinner of grilled chicken, crab, and make-your-own sushi.

Momo found out that I was doing research on the Ainu and gave me his small textbook about Northern Peoples that he had used the previous year in elementary school. It is very simple and easy to read, and although it does not have much in-depth information, it is very interesting to see what Hokkaido children learn about Ainu in public schools (it is not very much).  

I then played with the children, Momo and Hanako, doing origami before calling it an early night.

Readings

I took the morning (after my walk) easy, using the time I had left in Noboribetsu to read and take notes on the books that Seino-san had prepared for me before my arrival (which I had to return before leaving). This was time well spent gathering background knowledge about Ainu traditional beliefs and way of life. I read about many subjects including clothing, the separation of men’s and women’s roles, marriage, birth, and naming.