I’ve been in Oshika-hanto (Miyagi Prefecture) over a week now, and I receive lots of emails from people curious about how I am personally managing here, so today I’m going to let you know (any gentlemen who are squeamish about girl stuff just ignore today’s blog!). Let me just make it very clear that I am not whinging at all, and I am fully aware of the hardships people have had to deal with here — if they were still dealing with the same kinds of difficulties I’m sure I wouldn’t find my own situation quite so amusing.
I came here fully prepared to not shower for a month — I wasn’t sure what access local people had to personal hygiene facilities so wasn’t about to wander off for a luxurious shower or bath every time I felt like it. As it is, all the temporary housing units have showers and baths, and there is a public bath on top of one of the mountains. And the community centre where I am sleeping has a shower unit. You’d think there would be no excuse for me not to be clean every day.
But it’s bloody freezing so I don’t want my icy fingers going anywhere near my own body!
Already I have started to think that if I don’t absolutely need a shower then not to bother. I went from Saturday until yesterday (Wednesday) without one. So I wake up, stick the little gas heater on (I can’t sleep with it on because I am worried about gassing myself), and psych myself up for taking my clothes off in a room where I can see my own breath. Or not taking them off as the case may be. Yesterday I was Skyping Mr W as I was getting up (the time difference makes it difficult to talk so we grab the moments we can) but was too cold to put a different set of clothes on so honestly just got the baby wipes out and “cleansed” myself without taking one item of clothing off, all the while chatting away to Mr W as if nothing was happening. He thought my new morning washing style was hilarious — you know it’s love when he stills fancies you like mad even after seeing that, don’t you?!
The fishermen took me to Sendai last Friday — three or four times a year they all go off for a trip to the onsen but this was the first time since the earthquake. I tried to tell them that I wasn’t here for a holiday but they insisted I went with them, and Hiroyuki told me that it would make them all really happy if I did. So I joined them and went into the onsen twice but hadn’t had a shower or bath since … until yesterday when Hiroyuki and I went to the public bath. Honestly I have never appreciated undressing, bathing, and dressing in a warm room as much as I appreciated it last night.
I got my period on my first day here but had come prepared — my jacket’s inside pocket was full of tampons and disposal bags for four days although there wasn’t anywhere appropriate to dispose of such items so I just had to deal with it all in as discreet a way as possible when surrounded by old fishermen!
And as for the clothes — I am one of the worst people for feeling the cold (anyone who’s shared a bed with me will say my feet are constantly like blocks of ice) so I knew I’d have to wear lots of layers. I’ve got my underwear on, then a pair of tights, a vest top, thermal leggings (they belong to Mr W so always make me smile and think of him when I put them on), a thermal top, a normal top, jeans, thick socks, and my trusty blue fleece. On top of that goes my down jacket, a thick scarf, my woolly hat, and a pair of gloves (sometimes two). I brought bright pink fluffy pajamas with me, more for the purpose of making people laugh a bit than anything else (and it worked — everybody is learning to sing that Coming Round the Mountain song … “She’ll be wearing pink pajamas when she comes”). The only parts of me that are cold are the tips of my fingers and my toes, upon which I have four massive chilblains that would impress anyone. I used to get them twenty years ago until somebody told me if you weed on your feet they went away (it works, by the way) but I don’t think it would be appropriate to do it here.
Not that inappropriate behaviour is something that I’m avoiding, as proved by what I’ve done with my laundry.
I travelled light so at some point knew I’d have to do some washing, but instead of throwing everything in the laundry bag whenever I like as I’d usually do, it’s got to fail the sniff test first. I found a little washing machine round the side of the community centre and threw in the clothes that required attention — no separating anything — then turned on the machine and added some hot water from the kettle too. It works for about six minutes then you rinse everything and stick it in the spinner. I remember my grandmother using something like it when I was a child. Hiroyuki told me to hang my clothes up in my room but I was brought up never to do that and think that clothes need to blow about in the wind outside. So I found a couple of places where rope is hanging outside and proceeded to hang my clothes out.
Hiroyuki started freaking out at me hanging up my underwear, saying that Japanese people never hang their underwear outside, but Kucho-san laughed and asked me to make a beautiful display to cheer everyone up. Hiroyuki’s not local and Kucho-san’s the boss so I do as the latter says and pretty soon my bright pink and leopard print knickers are hanging outside the community centre for everyone to giggle at. The bus comes along and the driver gawps, and Kucho-san says he is pleased because all the local teachers are meeting at Ohara Elementary School today, and everybody will feel happy. At dinner that night, everyone is talking about who has seen the English girl’s underwear and who hasn’t, and whether they should all treat it like a shrine and pray to it, in the hope that love will come to Ohara.
I am so happy that my knickers have made everyone laugh so much.
Since the earthquake I have scaled back on my previous professional activities in order to be able to provide support to Japan, especially from the UK. While delivering donated items from the UK to Oshika-hanto in May 2011, I met the people of Ohara, a tiny town that was almost completely wiped out. I am currently spending one month living in Ohara, delivering donated items from people in other parts of Japan, financing small projects with funds raised in the UK, spending time with people as they go about their normal lives, and blogging to raise awareness of what their lives are now like. Read more about Caroline Pover here.
