Enka By the Sea

I much prefer the version of jet lag I get heading to Japan from America, rather than the other way around. Whereas I get a debilitating version of jet lag heading to the US, which puts me in bed around 7 pm for the first few nights after I arrive, the only 'ill' effect I get coming this way is that I seem to wake up at 6 o'clock every morning. I actually love being up early in the morning, it's just that I rarely want to roll out of bed when the time comes. But with this version of jet lag, I'm suddenly wide awake at the crack of dawn, which is just fine with me.

I woke up bright and early this morning, brewed some coffee, and tuned in to the Red Sox pitiful loss to the Kansas City Royals, for the second night in a row. I bailed out about 3/4 the way through and went for a run, which will be the last mid-day run I take for a while. Mornings and evenings from now on until things cool down around here. After that I had a Japanese lesson, and then I headed down to the beach for a few hours.

I had the intention of flying my kite, and barring the arrival of giant, man eating jelly fish, perhaps a dip in the ocean. The thing that struck me as I walked from the parking lot down to the beach was the sound of music. And I soon realized the source.



I suppose I've seen these giant speakers on a cement pole in the middle of the beach before. I'd always assumed they were reserved for announcements regarding emergencies like tsunami, sharks, jelly fish, and things of that nature. I don't doubt that when such occasions arise, the speakers are used for just that. But when there is nothing dire on the horizon, they play Enka. Enka is a kind of Japanese folk music, and if you want to hear some you can go here.

I was a little put off when I heard the music. For one thing, I don't really Enka. For another, can Japan, for once, not use a friggin megaphone!?! It's the beach! You know, birds squawking, the wind blowing, waves lapping at the beach. There are a host of natural sounds, all a hell of a lot more pleasing to the ear than Enka, that some of aus ctually go to the beach to experience. So I stewed about that a little, but mostly I smirked at the idea of how retarded it seems to me that this beach had a giant cement pole in the middle of it playing music.

I unfurled my kite and flew it for about 5 minutes before the wind died, at which point I disassembled it, put it away, and went swimming. The water was warm, clean, and free of beasties--all good things. And then I sat on my towel next to the shore, and you know something...the sound of the wind, the waves, and the Enka in the background was pretty nice. For a little while. Though I still would have preferred no Enka.

A little public service announcement if you ever find yourself walking down a beach in Japan, lost in the sound of the waves and the Enka, look out for these guys:



I'm no biologist, but puffer fish have to be pretty low on the fish intelligence scale. I don't see how these things consistently find themselves 30 yards from the shore, dried up on the beach. Given their ability, as fish, to swim proficiently, and their lack of predators due to their gigantic spines, these guys have a lot going for them in terms of staying in the ocean and not being eaten. Yet there they are, time after time, way the hell out of the ocean, dead in the middle of the beach.

Despite my ranting here, I have to say that Kanazawa is very good place to live. Any place that's nestled between the big mountains on one side, and big sea on the other, can't be all bad. The proximity to real natural surroundings is something I missed when I lived near Tokyo.



I'll be on the lookout for more beach days in the near future, though time is short before we head up to Niigata, and by the time we get back, the jellies may be in town, which will prohibit swimming (for me at least). Time to go wash the sand out of my hair.