Chapter 61: CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE

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CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE

The second semester sort of dragged after that conversation with Fumie. I just couldn't wait to become a full professor. And to know that I could very well be teaching many of my present second year girl students next academic year. And the year after that, as well.

None of my freshman boys seemed like they were going to continue into their sophomore year. But who knows? One just might turn out to be another Watanabe.

To kill time until then, I usually went out drinking with John on my Fridays or Saturdays and took the circle drive north of Kyoto on my bike on Sundays. Occasionally, I stayed at the minshuku. And once towards the end of November, at the Kokumin minshukusha because I didn't think I would be able to once December and the winter snows began.

And as another regular-work-day-Christmas approached, that God damned Japanese Oshogatsu New Year started looming up at me. I shuddered just thinking about how boring and lonely it was going to be.

That's when I got the phone call from Ruriko.

"David? Unless you've already got other plans, how would you like to spend Oshogatsu with me and my husband at his parents house in Fukuchiyama? I remember you saying you were really bored and lonely last Oshogatsu."

"Hey, that would be fantastic! But are you sure it's OK? I mean, I thought you said Oshogatsu was a time to spend with your family. And I'm not family."

Ruriko giggled. "Maybe not to you. But to me you're like family now. And my husband would really like to meet a gaijin who speaks almost perfect Japanese."

"But where will I stay?"

"My father-in-law has a huge house in the countryside of Fukuchiyama. There are plenty of rooms for you to stay in."

"Well, if it's really OK . . . But wait, how can I get out to you? I mean, I can't do it on my bike in winter. Too much danger of snow and ice on the road."

"Oh, just take the train from Kyoto Station to Fukuchiyama. It's only a little more than an hour by limited express. And JR Japan Rail runs ten or so limited expresses a day. Make sure you leave as soon as you can once winter vacation begins at school, though. And buy a reserved seat ticket. The trains get more and more crowded the closer we get to Oshogatsu."

"But how am I going to get from Fukuchiyama Station out to your father-in-law's house? You said it was in the countryside, not Fukuchiyama City itself, didn't you? I'll bet the snows are really deep there."

"Yes, they are. But my father-in-law has a four wheel drive car and chains for the tires. And their house isn't too far from Route 9, the main highway from Kyoto to Tottori Prefecture and the western coast of the Sea of Japan. So they keep it snowplowed to stay open the whole winter. We'll pick you up at the station. So will you come?"

"Ha-ha! I'd be stark raving crazy not to!"

Kyoto Station was already getting crowded, mostly with college students who were most probably going home for their schools' Oshogatsu vacation. After all, among many other things, Kyoto is famous for being a college town. When I looked at the prices of the trains for Fukuchiyama, I couldn't believe how cheap they were compared to the few times I took the Shinkansen bullet train to Tokyo. But then Fukuchiyama is a hell of lot closer to Kyoto than Tokyo. And I was going by a regular limited express train, not a bullet train.

So, what the hell? Why not splurge and go by Green Class, as they call first class in Japan now? I've never ridden in Green Class before.

I'm glad I did.

Not only were the seats much wider and reclined more than regular class, but when I went to the shared wash facilities and toilet between the Green Class car and the first of the regular class cars, I peeked through the window of the sliding door into the regular class car. Even though it was clearly marked "Reserved Seat Car" and all the seats were full, there were many passengers standing in the aisle crowding in on them. And luggage was stacked everywhere. The overhead luggage racks were completely full, suitcases jammed the aisles, and some of the passengers were sitting on them.

My Green car on the other hand was practically empty and the conductor made sure no regular class ticket holders came in to take an empty seat or stand in the aisle. The overhead luggage racks were also almost empty. But I didn't even bother to put my small suitcase jammed with clothes, underwear, socks -- whatever I could think of -- up onto one but simply tossed it onto the empty seats on the other side of the aisle.

As we left Kyoto City, the scenery quickly changed from urban sprawl to open rural countryside. And though there was a sprinkling of snow in Kyoto, the snow in the countryside must have been at least half a meter deep.

I was enjoying sitting in my very comfortable Green Class seat and watching the changing scenery so much, I almost felt disappointed when the train stopped at Fukuchiyama Station.

"Dave! Over Here!" waved Ruriko when I entered the rather small Fukuchiyama Station from the train platform. Standing next to her was a rather elderly, middle-aged man.

Could he possibly be her husband?

When I approached, Ruriko explained, "This is my father-in-law. My husband still has to work in Kyoto until his Oshogatsu vacation begins. Poor thing. He'll have to come out when the trains will be at their most crowded. He might even have to stand the whole way."

"Ruriko, as I just found out coming here, tell your husband to take the Green Class car. It's not that much more expensive and he can be sure to get a very nice comfortable seat and no crowding in the aisle."

"Really? We never thought of that. I'll call him when we get to Dad's house. I call him 'Dad' because I'm his daughter-in-law after all. Oooh! It's so freezing in here! Let's get out of this station and into Dad's car."

I bowed my head to the father-in-law as he did the same, both of us saying the standard Japanese greeting of "Dozo yoroshiku." Which very roughly translates as something like "Please, good". . . . But then come to think of it, "How do you do?" is pretty meaningless, too.

The three of us hustled out of the station to the parking lot where 'Dad's' car was parked. It was good-sized Nissan and I noticed the chains on the tires.

As we were driving along Route 9 I couldn't believe the piles of snow along the side of the road, some more than a meter high. "My God! Those piles of snow! Are we in Snow Country here?"

'Dad' laughed. "No, we're much farther southwest of it. Snow Country is in Tohoku Northeast Japan. I went there once in wintertime. The snows there were way over my head. And they have to shovel their roofs at least once or twice a week and a lot of times more."

"Shovel their roofs? Not their driveways?"

"Ha, if they didn't, the weight of all that wet heavy snow would crush their houses. People get killed every year from falling off their roofs while shoveling it"

"Ooh, I'm sure glad you don't live in Snow Country."

After about ten kilometers, he turned off Route 9 and onto a narrow road that obviously had not been snowplowed. But his four-wheel drive and chained tires kept us driving in a straight course in spite of the snow on the road that must have been at least a quarter of a meter deep. And without using the tire tracks on the right side he made when he came out to pick me up at the station.

At last we arrived at the house.

As Ruriko said it was a large two story house. And judging by the few other houses I could see that were really spread out from each other and what seemed like fields between them, I guessed it was actually a farm house. We parked next to a mini-pickup truck. And something that looked like a big motorized lawnmower. But I'd seen many farmers pushing behind one to plow their fields as I putted by their farms in the countryside and knew it was some kind of farming equipment.

'Dad' nodded towards the pickup. "I usually go into town using that, particularly when the snow's really bad. But it can only carry two people in the cab."

"Let's get into the house," Ruriko said opening her door. "It should be a lot warmer there."

Submitted: January 03, 2025

Romance romance japan gaijin travel-in-japan japan-1970s