I have finally found some time to sit down and share my experience here in Onishi Japan thus far. Our travels here were not without some struggles, but problem solving and quick thinking helped us in arriving on time at the bus station to meet Kjell, our boss and owner of Shiro Oni Art Residency. I got a sense of how close the community was in the first few minutes in arriving as Kjell introduced us to a woman not twenty feet from the bus stop. We met lots of people who live in the area who joined us for dinner as well. I immediately feel so welcomed in this town, something that surprised me considering its rich culture and isolation from the rest of the world. Our neighbors Ken and Aya are some of my new favorite people. They love getting to know us and Aya speaks through google translate when she can’t quite get the english out.
The first several days were filled with lots to do. We toured the surrounding towns, biking through winding streets and up steep mountain sides where we met more friends of Kjell. We also toured the immediate Onishi area and met lots of people who will be in our festival group. They are all so excited to learn about the artists’ work and us in general. On this tour I was able to physically see a lot of the restaurants that I am designing english menus for as well, which helped me find a sense of direction in beginning that work. So far I’ve made three new menus and some other flyers to help visiting residents understand the language.
It’s interesting how the smallest things are harder to do in a foreign country. That seems odd to say because of course everything is different, but something as simple as finding what you need at the super market turns into a treasure hunt. I was actually surprised with my skill in finding what I needed at the market, I can thank my mom for that as she made me do things on my own at a young age. We also cook one night a week for the house, a skill I’m also happy to have. I learning to try new things, and not say “no” to anything. I’m never going to get these opportunity again right?
One of the coolest experiences so far has been rice planting. We drove out to a farm and were even given the traditional rice planting clothing and a hat to wear as we planted to get the full experience. Calve deep in mud, we planted our rice in the corners of the grid for a couple hours. Definitely makes you more inclined to finish every grain at the next meal.
I’m sure there’s so much more I’m leaving out, but I’m truly loving every minute of being here. Human connection is something I crave, and an aspect to my life that must be present in order to enjoy an experience, and I can say with confidence that this site is absolutely providing that. I hope I can give to the residency what it has given me in these weeks to come.