I had a really nice father’s day! Ocean and her two BFFs took their fathers to Escape Osaka. The girls planned it as a surprise and they were so excited! The idea is to use clues to figure out codes for locks that open up further clues. You need to go through a series of these to escape two rooms. It was very clever and a thoroughly enjoyable hour with our daughters. It really is a team effort, each of us making a different contribution.
The Victors Thanking the Monks of the art of Dark Zen!
After the escape room, we found a nice burger restaurant in Namba. Osaka city has so many great neighborhoods with thousands of restaurants and shopping areas. I will definitely miss this city.
In the morning I did some errands with Nadia as we continue to clear out our house in preparation for our move at the end of the month. I also did a quick workout of rowing and swimming.
The Clue Hunters
There was also some excitement in our part of Osaka. In the suburb next to Minoh, Suita, a man attacked a policeman and stole his gun. A manhunt has been taking place since it happened this morning. As I write this at 9:00 PM, he still has not been found. The city has ordered schools to close tomorrow. This is a rare event in Japan and the city was empty today as people are staying home. Sunday is a big day for driving and usually we get lots of traffic, but there were much fewer people downtown. Japan is a risk-averse culture and people are quite cautious here and are staying home until the gunman is found.
Both of my sons performed in the Senri Osaka International Schools Spring Concert on June 12, 2019. Music education is a focus of the school and is one of the best programs for international schools that I have seen. Many families in the community take classical music seriously and the school has produced many professional musicians through the years.
High School Concert Band Introduction
Owen and Oliver play brass instruments (trumpet & tuba respectively) in the winds program. The strong music program did not inspire them practice all the time, but they can sight read, play reasonably well and they have a stronger appreciation for music. The schools have different level of bands and both play in the intermediate levels. If we would have stayed, Owen would have been in the top level next year. Oliver took some time to find the right instrument, but eventually found the tuba and he likes it.
Nadia annually leads an after school program called “Girls on the Move” (GOTM) with upper elementary girls. The idea of the club is to help girls build self-confidence by discussing issues that can negatively impact the lives of girls and women like body image, traditional feminine roles, discrimination, relationships, etc. They also train for a 5 kilometer run which is the culmination of the club. I see that the girls in the club learn they can overcome both physical and emotional challenges. This should help them as they move into adolescence and adulthood.
Oliver, Nene and I are happy we finished!
We hosted our final GOTM last Saturday at the school. It was nice weather for a run, cool and cloudy, but no rain or cold wind. The course goes through the beautiful Kita Senri Park to the Suita Fire Station and back. All the girls and some boys, too, made it back. It is a family affair with Owen, Olver and I playing support roles. This time I was the photographer and all of us were “running buddies” for the boys that wanted to join the run.
Alona, Ocean, Elina and Emma show off their medals
Nadia got a bit emotional during the award ceremony, which was good to see! She does a lot of good work for female students at the schools that we work in.
During my bouts of insomnia, I finished Inheritance from Mother (New York Times Review) by Japanese novelist, Minae Mizumura. Having lived in Japan the past five years, helped me enjoy the book at a deeper level than a foreigner coming at it without an understanding of the culture and modern life in Japan. It is several stories in one, all centered around the main character, Mitsuki Katsura. She is a part-time French language professor at a private university in Tokyo. I work for a private university foundation here in the Kansai (west) region of Japan. There are many “part-time” workers, which are basically “hourly-wage” employees, doing the same job as full-time employees, but making much less money and receiving less benefits. There are a lot of people in this situation in a variety of fields. I am not sure how many exactly, but it is a way for businesses to save money and employ more people.
Mitsuki is in her mid-50s and facing a lot. She is taking care of a selfish and demanding dying mother, contemplating divorce from a husband she finds is cheating on her and plotting to divorce her and she is coming to grips with her own old age, both in a financial sense and happiness sense. I agree with the NY Times review in that the book drags on a bit, it took too many chapters for her mother to die. I think because the book was originally released serially in a Tokyo newspaper, it stretched out many parts, but fortunately, each chapter ends with a provocative little “cliffhanger” to keep people reading.
As my uncle and mom always say, “getting old sucks” and the book a good read for diving into the details of caring for sick parent. Mizumura the author, goes into the family background, giving an overview of each character through the generations of family. The book also gives insight to life here, especially the part that people outside Japan don’t know about. I also liked reading about long marriages. I’ve been married for over 20 years and feel lucky that I am still in love with my wife. Many marriages, and as I have been hearing from friends here, many marriages in Japan, older husbands and wives live separate lives and are together for financial reasons only.
The book does end on a hopeful note and it gave me encouragement that people can continue to grow and try new things even into their “old age”. I found the book in our school library and it was translated by Juliet Winters Carpenter. I would like to thank the Japan Foundation for funding the publication of the book.
I was happy to get back to work today after an exhausting Sunday. The moving company came to our house to pack our belongings to send to Tashkent. It was a bit stressful, deciding what we are shipping, what we need for the summer and what we will be getting rid of. We have done this exercise before, but it is never easy, especially with 5 people in our household. We lived in Japan for 5 years, so we have accumulated possessions, not as much as most Americans, but we still managed 140 boxes. This included a basketball court, 6 bicycles, book shelves, etc.
The container will go via sea to the port of Vladivostok, Russia. From there it is a long train ride to Tashkent. Kent, the owner of Fukuoka Soko Movers, advised this as the best and safest route to Uzbekistan. It should take 2 to 2 and 1/2 months. It left our house on June 9. I will update this post on the arrival date.
In Front of Our House
I like things about an empty house. I am valuing each individual item more because of scarcity. When you have one pot and one frying pan and one glass, you notice them more rather than our usual state of overabundance. We still have three weeks in the mostly empty home before we leave Japan.
Owen, Harry, Ryo and Yuki in front of the Osaka Central Public Hall
Nadia and I enjoyed the prom probably more than my son Owen. The Osaka International School annual holds prom in the first week in June at a hotel. Owen is in grade 10 and this is his second prom. Together with some other parents, we rented a limousine for Owen’s friends. The parents took a lot of pictures. Our children are growing up and high school prom is one of those events that mark the passing of time for parents, as our children are children are entering their teenage years (we have two teens and one that thinks she is a teenager). It is so rewarding to see the succession of events as they proceed through school and eventually leave us :(.
Owen with his date Do Hee at our home
Prom is an old American tradition, beginning in the 1800s on the university level in the north east. Graduating classes held a “promenade” or formal dance to help the students polish their social skills. I taught the boys how to put on a tie and it is funny to see them squirm in their formal wear. The tradition of prom eventually passed down to high schools and after World War II, many proms moved from being held in the school gymnasium to nice hotels.
In some ways Japan is a great place for teenagers. The conservative nature of the Japanese limits teenagers use of alcohol and drugs and other risky behaviors. It is quite innocent here compared to other countries.
As a leader in the school, I always try to attend prom as a chaperone and with my children now attending, it is extra special. We tried to stay out of way and help out. Nadia and I had a nice dinner afterwards and Owen went out with his friends after the prom. The prom started at 5:00 PM and ended at 8:00 PM, so we all got home at a decent hour.
Perfect roads, respectful drivers, beautiful scenery makes biking in Japan the best
The warm weather I think is hear to stay and with the longer days, I’ve been getting outdoors as much as possible. This is one of my favorite times of year with lots of fresh new green leaves, cool breezes in the evenings and mornings and bright sunny skies.
May ended yesterday and our time in Japan is winding down. We are leaving at the end of this month. The thing I will miss most about life in Japan is the ease of cycling here. Almost every morning I get out on the bike, at least for 45 minutes and it is so refreshing and a great way to start the day.
Owen and Oliver keep Ocean’s booth active during the exhibition
In going through my photos to upload to Flickr, I notified photos from Ocean’s PYP Exhibition that took place in mid-May. She got a migraine during the performance portion and had to go home. After the performance, her classmates continued with their table demonstrations. Without Ocean there, her table was empty, but her brothers, Owen and Oliver, stepped in and explained her booth to visitors. It was so cute how they helped their little sister!
We are also saying our goodbyes to the community. Last Sunday our friends Sharon Almog and Cary Mecklem organized a farewell picnic in Kita Senri Park. I really enjoyed playing Ultimate Frisbee with the kids and laughing at some good conversation in the park. We walk through Kita Senri Park often to go to the train station or on Nadia’s run and we have a lot of fond memories there. It was also nice to spend the entire day outdoors!
I was quite emotional yesterday on my 52nd birthday. I think as you get older, you appreciate all the good things in your life. It was a full day with our school hosting our annual School Festival. It started with Ocean performing in her last elementary school concert. Her class sang the Chainsmokers’ “All We Know” which became my theme song of the day. She is so beautiful and turning into a woman way too quickly. As I always say, she is the best of the Kralovecs.
Watching my gorgeous wife Nadia making my favorite meal, pizza rolls in the afternoon was touching. My mother used to make pizza rolls, which was a neighborhood recipe my grandmother picked up from her Italian immigrant neighbors. Nadia described it aptly as the concept of a cinnamon roll, except substitute the bread dough for pasta dough interspersed with ground pork and baked with a strong red sauce. A hearty meal that I eat many less in one sitting than I did when I was growing up. She also baked me an apple pie, something my mom did as well, instead of a traditional birthday cake.
Two of my favorite pies for my birthday – pecan and apple!
Each of my children wrote me heart-warming cards and I got two Amazon gift cards. Our close friends, the Boocks, came over and the two families had an enjoyable evening. True to form after a big meal, lots of laughter and a few glasses of wine, I fell asleep. The end of a magnificent day for me. You are not supposed to tell anyone what your birthday wish is, but I don’t really believe in this. My wish was that I could stop time and relive yesterday anytime I wanted to. I am grateful for all that I have in my life. Thanks to everyone for remembering me on my special day!
This is my last trip to Tokyo, the largest metropolitan area in the world. During my five years in Japan, I’ve visited Tokyo on numerous occasions, both for work and fun. The immense size of the city, both in area and number of people is hard to comprehend. It is a nice place to visit but would not be a good place for me to live. It has a much different vibe than other world cities like London, New York, etc. In many ways, it is much quieter and closed due to the highly rigid and contextual Japanese culture. They do get a lot of tourists, but essentially, Japan is extremely homogenous and it gives the city and nation, a distinctiveness that you do not find in other places.
Akihabara – The Electronics/Manga District of Tokyo
For this visit I stayed in Akihabara, the district famed for electronics and manga/anime. Walking through the streets to my hotel, I passed many young girls dressed in maid or cosplay outfits, advertising various manga-themed restaurants and clubs. There were also many bright lights advertising gaming stuff. I had a quiet night, walking over to Ryogoku kokugikan, the sumo wrestling arena. A grand tournament is taking place there this week. I was rewarded for my efforts by seeing three sumo wrestlers getting a bite to eat in a restaurant district. In Japan they build restaurants and bars often underneath elevated train lines.
Sapia Tower
I love hosting meetings in Tokyo. Kwansei Gakuin University, the foundation that owns our school, rents offices on the 10th floor of Sapia Tower, a huge building that overlooks Tokyo Station. The offices are like a corporate board room and with the luxurious meeting space and huge windows overlooking the city, it gives educators the rare opportunity to see what it would be like to be in the corporate world instead of the non-profit sector. The school heads also appreciate the convenience of meeting steps away from Tokyo Station. Tokyo Station however is only the fourth most busy station in the metro area with “only” over 900,000 passengers daily.
I am leaving Japan next month forever, but will remember fondly my time in the nation’s capital and all of the people I’ve had the opportunity to collaborate with during my five years.
As many of my readers know, my family and I are leaving Japan next month to move to Uzbekistan. I am taking the next 40-some days to enjoy the things I like most about Japan.
I led our school’s “Junior Sabers” baseball club and club supporters to the Kyocera Osaka Dome to watch the Orix Buffaloes host the Seibu Lions of Saitama, Tokyo last night. I appreciate baseball and am trying to instill this in the students and my children. It was a raucous night, with the Lions defeating the Buffaloes, 7-5 in 10 innings. The game entertained us with home runs, spectacular plays in the field, plenty of baserunners and the outcome was in doubt until the very end. The game provided many “teachable moments” for the students regarding the rules and strategies of baseball. It is truly satisfying to teach young people and give them new experiences. Even better, my daughter Ocean is on the team and my son Owen is assisting me in the coaching. I think I accomplished my goal of inspiring the students to enjoy baseball more.
Ocean and Dad
I would like to thank the Orix Buffaloes for their hospitality. They gave us a good deal on tickets, we received a gift packet upon arrival and we had excellent seats on the first line for 1,100 yen ($10). Attending a professional baseball game in Japan is an engaging experience and much different atmosphere to that of the USA. Japanese fans are soccer-like in their passion at the stadium. A highlight is the release of balloons during the seventh inning stretch. This is a tradition in many stadiums in the league. Japanese baseball is considered “4A” meaning better than the top level of minor league baseball but below the Major League Baseball. Ocean’s favorite player was DH Stefen Romero for the Buffaloes. He hit a homerun and also had a couple other hits. He is your typical foreign player here. Romero was the minor league player of the year for the Seattle Mariners, but couldn’t make the MLB roster for the Mariners. He played briefly for one season before being traded to the Orioles. Romero has been very good for the Buffaloes are two years ago, signed a 3-year contract for 2.5 million dollars a year. Not bad for someone who had a “cup of coffee” in the MLB. The other type of foreigner is like former Detroit Tiger Phil Coke. He helped the Tigers win the American League Pennant in 2012 and pitched well in the World Series. After several seasons bouncing from team-to-team in the MLB, he ended up pitching for Orix in 2016.
Panorama View of the Game (note Ocean on both sides of the picture!)
The Orix Buffaloes are famous for being the initial club of Ichiro Suzuki. He led them to the Japan Series title in 1996 when they were the “Blue Wave” The Buffaloes formed with the merger of Kobe’s Orix Blue Wave and Osaka’s Kintetsu Buffaloes in 2004. They are perennially losers and Orix, a financial group from Tokyo, is not a good owner for a baseball club. The Buffaloes are once again in last place in the Pacific League this year.
Ocean and Owen Outside the Osaka Dome
I’ve had many enjoyable moments with my children attending a couple games every year of the Orix Buffaloes or Hanshin Tigers, the two Kansai teams. I did not get to experience a championship in my 5 years here sadly, but will continue to follow the teams, especially the Tigers and hopefully, they will finally win another title, being shut out since 1985.
The OIS Junior Sabers Baseball Club in the Dome! Go Orix!
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