Ruben Bar-b-q'ing Lamb Meat on the Genghis Khan Grill

After walking around the Historical Village, we relaxed over a fine meal in the dining hall. Ruben ordered the Genghis Khan Grill. Here he's melting the cube of lard so as to coat the grill.

Looking closely at the hand of our waiter, do we see a tatoo - or is it a stigmata? Or perhaps it is just an on-the-job injury.

According to legend the Genghis Khan grill is shaped like the top dome of the helmets the conquerer's army wore. They would use their helmets at the camp fire to cook their meat. According to Buzz, however, the grill originated in Hokkaido.

What better way to end a meal of grilled lamb but to practice spinning your homemade Spinning Top!

Nopporo Forest Snake

Walking back from the Historical Village on the edge of Nopporo Forest Park, we saw a snake that we're identifying as a Ryukyu green snake. If you look closely in the photo Ruben's in, you can see the snake beginning to slither up on the guard rail. Reportedly its food is frogs and earthworms. No indication that it is poisonous.

Nopporo Forest Park

As we've mentioned, Nopporo Forest Park is only a few minutes walk away from the Sapporo Coleman's. It was designated as a State Natural Park in 1968 to commemorate Hokkaido’s centennial. The tower is the Centennial Memorial Tower. Most of the area, 5,068 acres, is designated as a wildlife sanctuary. We wanted you to see the dense foliage through which Ruben and Phil jogged.

This is one of the few forests in Japan that’s in a major city. There are more than 510 plant species, including 110 tree species, as well as more than 200 species of mushrooms, 140 species of birds and 1,300 species of insects. Yezo squirrels, Japanese hares, Yezo brown frogs, Hokkaido salamanders and other animals inhabit the park.

We're really lucky that Buzz and Yukari and Ren live so close to it.

toilet experience...uuughhh

hey guys its Ruben makin a post. yesterday I experienced a setting on a toilet where it squirts water on your butt, buzz told me that he thought it was weird the first time he used it, man was it weird. the bad thing was that I didn't know how to turn the dang thing off because everything was in Japanese! I started pressing random buttons until I finally I pressed the red button and that happened to be the off switch.

At the Historical Village of Hokkaido

The Hokkaido Historical Village is about a 20 minute walk from where Buzz and Yukari live. It is in Nopporo Forest Park where Ruben and Phil went jogging several days ago. The Village, on about 135 acres, is really an open air museum. There are about 60 typical structures from the mid-19th to 20th century.

The Shinano Shinto Shrine. It is the original building from 1887, rebuilt in this setting.

Every Shinto Shrine houses a diety. Apparently the diety in this one was respresented by a mirror. (Interesting existential implications.) However, the mirror was removed when the structure was rebuilt. Ruben and Buzz seem satisfied with the camera being their mirror.

"Monkey Sweat (Low Sodium)" Currently Unavailable

An earlier blog post pictures Phil holding a bottle of Pocari Sweat drink, a Gatoraid-type beverage sold here. This inspired a blog-reader to request Phil to "please pick me up some Monkey Sweat (low sodium). Can't wait to drink it. thx."

Here, in part, is our reply to this request:
"We haven't yet seen any Monkey Sweat here. However, we'll try our darndest to get you some Bear Sweat as we plan on visiting the Hokkaido Bear Park [the island of Hokkaido is famous for the Ussuri brown bear] very soon. I hear there's an "All Natural" type, but not sure yet about "low sodium." We've just bear-ly got here.

"If my blog-partner and traveling companion, Ruben, stumbles across any monkey sweat, I'll let you know. As long as he doesn't hoard it for himself. I had no idea it was prized so highly."

Bird Eggs Sushi, Green Tea Ice Cream

We enjoyed sushi at a nearby restuarant the other day. Here are two of the more interesting looking items that we ate. The sushi pictured is birds' eggs with a bean and onion concoction. The ice cream cones that Ruben and I ate are chocolate chip and green tea. Guess who ate what.

Wading in the Water

Buzz and Ren and Phil and Ruben enjoy walking in the Odori Park's fountain overflow in downtown Sapporo. And it was a hot day! It was so hot that later Ruben roasted marshmellows on his belly!

Phil's Favorite Jogging Store in Sapporo

When I Want to Drink Some Sweat, Make it Pocari Sweat!

Ren 'Mongst da Daisies

Ruben's First Post

hey this is Ruben making a post. Ive had a great time in japan and hangin with the Colemans. Me and Ren have made a game where we exchange noises and that gets him hyped up. Ive really enjoyed the places that we've been to, like, the Korean barbecue (my favorite), the nearby park, forest jogging trail, sushi restaurant, downtown Sapporo. Im looking forward to going out to the country and picking fresh strawberries and eating them. mmmmmmmm.....ssttrraawwbbeerriieess. Im out!

Ruben Bar-b-q'ing at Korean-syle Restaurant

They kept bringing the meat, four or five different kinds, and sliced pumpkin and onion, too. And we kept grilling it and eating it. (Phil even bar-b-q'd the parsley and some lettuce covered with meat juice.) And, by golly, we didn't eat any supper that night!

Ren Coleman Learns Toilet-using Skills Via Educational Children's Book

Yukari, with the aid of an educational media package that they get monthly, is introducing Ren to the whole using-the-toilet scene. The book comes with a DVD that creatively reinforces positive toilet behavior.

I was very impressed with the the comprehensiveness of these materials. The DVD actually showed a little cartoon kid sitting on the toilet and peeing. Very graphic and instructive.

 

 A doll is included in the package. Yukari uses it to demonstrate the correct toilet-sitting method.

Pushing the buttons on

the right side of the page

triggers a flushing sound. 

In the left and the right images above Ren "cuts" a watermelon, one of several foods displayed in the book that represent good nutrition and effective digestion.

The sheet to the right of the book contains stickers to apply to the bathroom toilet, creating a friendly atmosphere for the child.

Ruben and Phil after Jogging in Nopporo Forest Park

These shots are across the street from the Sapporo Colemans' pad. Before breakfast yesterday Ruben and I went jogging in Noporro Forest Park near Buzz and Yukari's. It was a very fine 43 minute run along a white birch shaded dirt trail, lined also with some pine and some short bamboo-looking shoots and occasional huge elephant ear plants.

There is lots more trail than we could run. Would like to walk the area with Buzz, Yukari, and Ren to see more.

There is also an Historical Village in the Forest Park which dipicts the story of the indignant Ainu people. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ainu_people] We're planning to check that out tomorrow.

First Day in Sapporo

Day One @ Buzz, Yukari, and Ren's included R&R, visiting with Yukari's parents and with a cousin. Following a meal of delicious rice noodles and meat and salad, there was some gift-giving and fun and laughter. Yoko-san, Yukari's mom, shows off her new "Keep Austin Weird" shirt. Ren and Ruben both challenge her to a match of Sumo Thumb Wrestling. Phil and Sato-san (Dr. Teruo Sato, eminent veterinarian specializing in husbandry) discussed his latest project regarding the analysis of cow bellows as they relate to rabies and his solution to the current Gulf Coast oil spill crisis.

Yoko-san, Yukari's mom

Yoko-san demonstrates the art of Sumo Thumb Wrestling to Ren.

 

Ruben challenges Yoko-san to a friendly game of Sumo Thumb Wrestling.

Dr. Teruo Sato

Yoko-san, helping to "Keep Austin Weird" 6,000 miles away.

Back Pack Man flies to Sapporo, Japan and meets "Mystery Back Pack Man!"

Ruben "Back Pack Man" Coleman points the way to board the plane to Sapporo, Japan at the beginning of a 24 hour travel day. At the Tokyo Narita airport he commandeered a cart of our four huge suitcases through customs and airport security while Granddad asked for directions (mostly in English). We were so glad to arrive safely and enjoy the company of Buzz and Yukari (Ren was asleep) and to take hot showers and hit the hay.

O no! Mystery Back Pack Man (aka Buzz Coleman who picked us up at the Chitose Airport outside Sapporo).

Upcoming "Agricultural Bus Tour"

Yukari has succeeded in signing Ruben and me up for a day-long “agricultural bus tour” on or around July 1. I’ve been turned on by the idea of this experience.  Ruben's looking forward to it, too. We appreciate Yukari handling all the application processing.

We'll get bused out to the country and pick pick broccoli, eat a farm fresh meal with delicious soba (buckwheat) noodles, pick strawberries (eat all we can pick). Does this sound like slave labor for foreigners? Really, we'll probably be the only non-Japanese participants. Sounds great, right?

A few days ago Yukari got more info and told me the program requires you to be a resident. I think she told them we are residents because we’re residing with them while we’re there.

I just learned that she also told them I speak Japanese! Ha-ha. (Have been learning the language. But skills are minimal at best.)  I have about a week after we get there to learn some sentences for the bus tour. O boy. I think I’ll start by learning how to say, “Can you guys take a joke?”

... Will keep you "posted."

Ren Coleman in a Coleman

(Sapporo, Japan - May 2010)

Soba (buckwheat) fields in blossom, Hokkaido, Japan, August 2007

Sunflower field, Hokkaido, Japan, August 2007

Shot during Ruben and Phil's last visit to Japan. This was part of a 100 acre field.

Getting Started

I'm working the trip to-do list which included setting up this blog to communicate to family and friends during our trip.

Uploaded a photo to the blog profile of Ruben and me during our last trip to Hokkaido in 2007. It was taken at the Lavender Fields.

Hokkaido is the northern most island of Japan. The capital city is Sapporo where Buzz, Yukari, and Ren Coleman live. It's latitude is the same as Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Our departure date is June 22. We return to Austin, Texas, July23.