Back to Routines

December is going to be a busy and glorious month. Three golden ladies toastmasters were born in December, including Irene, Pamela, and Linda. They plan to hold a three-in-one birthday party at Pamela's home Saturday afternoon, December 11th.

In December, there are countless Christmas parties, at the nursing home, at Hsin-tien community center, at the flamenco dance school, not to mention many chorus recitals lined up in December, and many sudden activities.

The daily routines were resumed the moment I returned to Taipei, including the weekly class of Japanese dance, flamenco dance, chorus practice, plus a part-time job as a pharmacist at a local pharmacy in the neighborhood.

Soon year 2010 will be over. Before I write the new year resolutions for yeare 2011, I need to fill up the calendar of December with many activities, to accomplish as much as I can in 2010, including to deliver a prepared speech at the last meeting of Grand Toastmasters Club to wrap up the toastmasters activities in 2010.

Time and tide wait for nobody. How can we let Year 2010 be gone with our hands empty?Seize the moment! Ganbare!

Toastmasters Cooking Gathering

I received a surprise phone call from Toastmaster Linda Chiu When I was at Mongolian National Day Party at Hyatt Hotel yesterday evening. Linda invited me for afternoon tea at her place, I accepted her invitation immediately.

Just think about it! It must have been more than six years since I last saw Linda at a Toastmasters event. I was eager to know how Linda has been doing recently and I wondered what the occasion might be for a sudden afternoon gathering on the three-in-one election day.

Linda prepared a full table of food, including steamed meatballs, stir fried green bean noodles, vegetables, oats buns, when I arrived at her cozy home on the 12th floor at two Sunday afternoon. We sat by the window in the sun, looked over the beautiful mountain view of Taipei city, Linda kept making more and more varieties of food, yummy icecream, mouth-watering chicken porridge, just to name a couple, with her Vorwerk, a multifunctional kitchen appliance with cooking function. She was so fond of her new kitchen toy and she was so eager to share with her family and friends the new recipes she developed.

Linda looked at me with a big smile on her face and tole me that she invited me for the afternoon cooking gathering was because that I was interested in cooking and eating. How flattered I felt! Who would mind to be complimented as a gourmet? I don't!

There is a Chinese saying, "a workman must first sharpen his tools if he is to do his work well." I am really happy for Linda to find a career she enjoys. I am really happy for me to have another chef friend. As Linda is an active representative of the Vorwerk group, I'm obliged to provide contructive and valuable evaluations to the creative and innovative dishes she makes. I won't turn down any party of hers as her toastmaster friend. Linda grabs my heart by sastifying my stomach!

PS: Linda invited me to her kitchen again Friday evening, December 3rd, to help her take a few photos of her newly developed Almond Oats Cookies and Chocolate Pie to compete at the Vorwerk Cooking Contest 2010.

National Day of Mongolia

I was still planning my itinerary in Japan when I received the invitation to the Mongolian National Day in Taipei by Mr. Choidorj, the Representative of Ulaanbaatar Office in Taipei, Monday morning, November 1st.

I met Mr. Choidorj for the first time in early January, one day before I departured for Ulaanbaatar to charter a Toastmasters club. Mr. Choidorj was kind to see me in his office and spent one hour introducing his country to me. With his help and advice, I felt more confident about my Toastmasters mission in Mongolia. And I felt less scary flying alone to a country where I knew nobody in person.

I was very excited when Mr. Choidorj invited me to attend his National Day Dinner Banquet. How could I miss the chance to meet with his beautiful wife and many Mongolians and their Taiwanese friends at the Grand Hyatt Hotel on November 26th? I flew back from Japan on the Thanksgiving Day, one day before the National Day of Mongolia.

The banquet reception started at 6:30PM. Mr. and Mrs. Choidorj stood at the door to greet all guests, including foreign diplomats, government officials, Taiwanese business elites, and Mongolian students and employees in Taiwan. It was a warm and glorious party.

At 7PM, Mr. Choidorj delivered a heartfelt welcome message on stage to thank Taiwanese people to help him achieve many important missions in Taiwan. My toastmaster friend Mayumi Hu was impressed with Mr. Choidorj's outstanding presentation skills. Mayumi told me that she attended many National days in Taipei, Mr. Choidorj was one the best speakers.

On the huge screen, a video of Mongolia was played to introduce the Mongolian cultural and people to the audience. A talent Mongolian singer and student performed a couple of songs in Mongolia and Mandarin on stage. He won a big round of applause from the floor. He reminded me of the happy time in January in Ulaanbaatar for three weeks with Mongolian friends.

Mr. Choidorj is interested in seeing a toastmasters club soon be chartered in Mongolia. He agrees to visit a Toastmasters club in Taipei where I deliver a speech about his country. It is my sincere hope that Mongolia will be the 104th country to have the Toastmasters clubs where people can learn the communication and leadership skills in a friendly and positive environment.

Thanksgiving Day 2010

Toastmaster Kiminari Azuma's mother was waiting for me when I arrived at the Information Center of Hakata Station at 8 o'clock in the morning. At the first sight of me with my luggage and backpack, Azuma's mother teased me about my appearance. She told me that she expected to see an elegant lady in fashion, in stead of a sturdy woman from the mountains.

What a compliment indeed it was for a hardworking traveling toastmaster like me, of versatility, flexibility, and agility! We took the subway from Hakata station to Fukuoka Airport, had a cup of coffee at the airport cafe’ and chitchatted for one hour before I rushed to catch my flight back to Taipei.

Toastmaster Azuma’s mother and I shared many interests and hobbies together. We could talk day and night exchanging crazy ideas about singing, dancing, and toastmastering with a sudden spark in our minds. It's a pity that the bilingual Toastmasters club in Fukuoka is in recess and there is no Japanese speaking toastmasters club in Fukuoka. Just imagine how skillful and enthusiastic Azuma's mother is by looking at her Toastmaster son. There is a Chinese saying, "A tiger father does not have a puppy for a son". In another word, like mother, like son!

It was raining when the shuttle bus arrived at Taipei Train Station at one o'clock. I walked across the street in the rain to get to the metro station and arrived home before two o'clock.

I couldn't express more thanks to my fellow Toastmasters friends and their relatives in Japan for their friendship and camaraderie on the Thanksgiving Day in 2010. I won't be able to see, to experience, to enjoy, so much with a tight budget of fifteen thousand Japanese yens.

One Chance in a Lifetime

I saw Toastmaster Kyoko Kawano's parents at Amakusa this afternoon. Kyoko's mother wore a big smile to invite us to join the tea ceremony held at her living room. Kyoko's father gave us a warm welcome after his siesta. I was so happy to see them again that I gave them a big hug.

It was the day of departure. I got up early to pack before I had breakfast at the lobby. It was the sixth consecutive day staying at Room 1021 since last Friday. I was kind of used to the layout and facilities of the room. It was a pleasant home away from home at Toyoko Inn Kumamoto Station.

At 8:30, I finished the check out procedures and left my luggage behind the counter. Toastmaster Kyoko Kawano and Teiko Uemura came to pick me up at 8:45 and we went straight to Amakusa.

Amakusa is a remote city, at the far west region of Kyushu. Amakusa was one of the areas where Christian settlers arrived in Japan. Amakusa is famous for cathedral, it is also famous for sea food. Kyoko was eager to invite us to the most delicious sashimi shop, but we were too early before the shop opened. We settled at a restaurant of shrimp specialty for lunch. We sat by the window, looking over the blue sea against the blue sky in the sun.

After lunch, we first drove to Shimoda hot spring, then to see the cathedral. There was almost no sight of people on the streets, except an old man and his dog.

When we approached the Amakusa city, there was more traffic. We were 30 minutes late for our appointment with Kyoko’s mother, because Kyoko was lost at her hometown. We needed to stop the car to ask for directions from local people from time to time.

Long Live the 8th Dorm

ちょちょけ飛んで來い
江津湖の岸に
なにか夢見る中の島
ソレ、熊本火の國祭り
サアサ手拍子
踴る手拍子、足拍子

Wrote Teiko the lyrics in her book 八寮バンザイ about her childhood memories. The little Teiko sang loudly and cheerfully the Kumamoto folklore of the Land of Fire Festival on the small fishing boat drifting upon Lake Ezu one summer afternoon with her family in one chapter on River Excursion.

Toastmaster Teiko Uemura was sweet and kind to keep my company today! She arrived at Toyoko Inn at ten to nine. I told her I changed my mind not to visit Miyazaki brothers Museum in Arao. In stead, I preferred a city tour in Kumamoto. It would be more meaningful if I could pay a homage to Miyazaki brothers in Arao next year (the 100th anniversary of Republic of China) for their support to Dr. Sun Yat-sen to found the ROC in 1911.

I told Teiko that I'd like to see the special exhibtion of Hosokawa Yuusai's collections at the Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Art. I became interested in the artistic achievements of Hosokawa Fujitaki after I saw the Heritage Classroom (古今伝授の間) in Suizenji after D76 Fall Conference Sunday afternoon.

It was a sunny, but windy day today. Teiko and I left Toyoko Inn at nine. Before we arrived at the Tram stop in front of the train station, I had to return to the hotel to fetch a scarf to keep me warm.

Teiko and I got off the tram in front of the City Hall. We walked to the museum. The big yellow Ginko tree with falling leaves dancing in the air caught our attention on our way to the museum. We were excited to feel the power of the falling leaves on us. I asked Tieko to jump up and down in the air, to mediate beneath the Ginko tree. Teiko turned out to be a supermodel at her age of 70!

After seeing the special exhibition of Fujitaka, I couldn't help but falling in love with the interesting and versatile scholar. His handwriting of the Tale of Genji on the framed wooden partition was playful and heartwarming. I like his name of Yuusai (幽斎) particularly. He could indulged himself in the literary activities in his quiet study and devoted himself in preserving the heritage of civilization in Japan..

On our way to lunch, we passed the Kumamoto Traditional Craft Center. Teiko told me that she used to serve tea when working there. I was curious if they still served tea for visitors. Even no tea was served, Teiko and I were treated as VIP. I bought two handmade round fans of ink painting, one with Amakusa Bridge, the other with Kumamoto Castle. Upon my request, Teiko composed a Waka (Japanese poem 5 7 5 7 7) and wrote it on the back of the round fan of Kumamoto Castle.

熊本城前にて

紅葉せる
故里の城
訪ねたり
吾と外つ國の友
よく語り
上村禎子
平成二十二年十一月二十三日

Teiko insisted to buy a pair of Ginko Leave chopsticks stands for me for souvenirs at the craft center. When I arranged them to make a brooch for my winter coat to remember the beautiful autumn of Kumamoto, a city of Ginko trees, the designer told me that many young people used Ginko leaves stands as a pair of earrings. That was an awesome idea, so I thought and thanked him for sharing.

Teiko took me to the original store of Komurasaki for a bowl of authentic Kumamoto noodles. The store was full of loyal patrons even at 2 o’clock in the afternoon. Three cooks behind the counter prepared all kinds of toppings for the noodles. A bus boy was busy taking orders and cleaning tables. The lady owner was smiling collecting the money at the door. Everybody was uplifted at the store of a nostalgic atmosphere.

Honestly speaking, I couldn’t tell the difference between Hakata and Kumamoto noodles, but I liked both of them, just the same. I love noodles, Kanto Noodles, Kansai Noodles, Korean Kinchi Noodles, Taiwanese Beef Noodles, I always drink the soup till the last drop to show my gratitude to the delicious artifact of the heart by the revered chef.

After lunch, we took the bus to Tatsuda Nature Park to visit the tomb of Hosokawa Yuusai. When we passed the campus of Kumamoto University, Teiko told me that she graduated from English Teaching Department. During college days, Teiko joined the tea ceremony circle and participated in annual tea ceremony event at the Hosokawa resident at the foot of Mt. Tatsuda. Tea ceremony has been a heritage in Kumamoto since Hosakawa times.

Mt. Tatsuda formerly known as Mt. Kurokami, is a large hill reaching 152 meters above sea level. With my bus pass, I got the free entrance to visit the tombs of Hosokawa clan located in the beautiful moss garden of 495 square meters. The autumn foliage at the garden was a must see. At the four tombs of Yotsugobyo, I saw a large chozubachi in front of Lady Garcia's tomb. It was her favorite. Just before she committed suicide, she meditated while gazing at her reflection in the water.

PS: It's the third encounter of Teiko and me. When Teiko gave me a package of two books of hers upon my arrival in Kumamoto, I didn't open them till I got home. Long live the 8th Dorm was like Teiko's autobiography form her early childhood in Taiwan till her graduation from Kumamoto University and worked as a high school teacher.

Action Speaks Louder

It was raining in the morning! Just about when I was thinking about taking a day off, dozing off at the hotel, watching TV, and drinking coffee. I read an email from Virginia, inviting me to see the photoalubm of her recent trip to China. What a wake-up call it was, I decided on the spot that I couldn't afford to take a break. I should go out to take as many photos of Kumamoto as possible while in town, rain or shine. I had no reason to be lazy being away from home!

It seemed to me that young people in Kumamoto didn't know their city well. When I was at the information center of JR Kumamoto station, I asked a young lady on duty how to get to Musashi's grave, she didn't know where it was and had to check with her colleagues.

Miyamoto Miyoko 宮本美代子

Miyamoto Miyoko is my pen name in Japanese. There are three reasons behind the pen name. First, the pen name means Lady of Leisure when it is pronounced in Taiwanese. Second, Miyamoto Musashi is a famous Japanese swordsman in Taiwan. He won every duel. Third, I admire the spirit of the sword master Miyamoto Musashi and his philosophy. He is an action taker. He left the world with his Book of Five Rings.

Nothing could be in my way, when I made up my mind to go to Musashi's grave. In the rain, I saw the statue of Musashi Miyamoto and I prayed in front of his grave. I felt contented I was able to join him for a few moments during my journey in Japan.

After a short rendezvous with Musashi, I took the train back to Kumamoto, returned to Toyoko Inn to recharge my camera battery. When I asked the staff for information about Kumamoto, they had no ideas where to visit in Kumamoto. I asked them about the Kikuchi Valley, they told me it was too far. I wouldn't be able to get there without a car. When I asked them about the Goddess of Mercy, they told me that they had no ideas. Fortunately, I could use the free internet for on-line information by myself.

I bought a bus pass at 500 Japanese yen at JR Kumamoto Station Information Center, got on the tram from the train station to the Bus Center. Kumamoto Bus Station is huge, local buses as well as buses from all over Japan stop here. I was told by a lady at the information center that a bus was about to leave for Takahira on Lane 33, the next bus would leave in an hour. I rushed to get on the bus on lane 33 without paying much attention on the sign. In the end, I was on the wrong bus.

When the bus arrived at the bus terminal, every passenger got off. I was still on the bus. The bus driver looked at me and asked me where I planned to go. I told him that I wanted to go to Takahira. He shook his head and told me to remain on the same bus back to the Bus Center. He dropped me off at Tsuboibashi and told me to wait for the next bus to Takahira.

I knew Tsuboibashi, because Teiko and I walked across the bridge to visit the old residence of Natsumeisouseki. As I had one hour before the next bus, I decided to visit Natsumesouseki even though I knew the residence would be closed on Monday. In the rain, I visited the residence for the second time by myself. I always took it easy to walk around in the neighborhood till the time I got on the bus to see the Goddess of Mercy in Takahira.

When I saw the Goddess of Mercy* of Kisaburo Matsumoto at the Joukokuji, I felt blissful with tears in my eyes that I was able to worship her in person. The smiling face of Goddess of Mercy reminded me of the Goddesses of Mercy at revered Mount Putuo, southeast of Shanghai I visited in September this year.

I felt the blessing from the Goddess of Mercy when I knelt down to pray and to recite a sutra on the stand. It was the peaceful moment. When I told the monk I was from Taiwan, he gave me a pamphlet of Joukokuji in Japanese and a flier of Zazen in English.

Before I got on the next bus back to Kumamoto, I had about 45 minutes of free time. I took a walk to the nearby You You Kumamoto Vegetables and Livestock Market to see if I could hunt for something for my stomach. On the shelves, there were many fresh vegetables. In the refrigerators, there were all kinds of raw meat. I bought a chocolate pudding and a box of sweetened chestnuts for lunch.

I took the bus back to the city hall, hopped on the tram, got off at Hatcho-baba stop, went to Park Ezuko. It was a pleasant stroll along the river of springs. I saw many plants, animals, and joggers on the protective land of nature and literature. Many stones engraved with Japanese poems by many famous writers were displayed along the trail. Lake Ezu was big, composed of two areas, Kami Ezu and Shimo Ezu. There was a toilette at the entrance. I was regretful I didn't take advantage of it timely.

Just about I decided to find a private place to take care of my biological need, I saw Kumamoto Prefectural Library in front of me. What a relief! When I saw a classic coffee shop in the library, how I wish I could read a book at ease, sipping a cup of freshly brewed hot coffee at the sophisticated and elegant place, looking at the sunset at Lake Ezu from the window wall, but I knew I didn't have the time of leisure, if I wanted to make it to the evening concert of Musashino Music School at Kumamoto Prefectural Music Hall in the evening.

I changed my mind when I saw the entrance to Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Modern Literature across the library lobby, I couldn't contain my curiosity to see what the museum had to offer. I didn't know that many heavyweight Japanese writers were born or used to live in Kumamoto. I liked the display in the museum, and I liked the paper sculptures of famous literati. I could stay in the museum for hours if I had had the time.

After a quick tour of the museum, I asked the lady at the information center how to get to Kumamoto Prefectural Theater, she told me there was a bus stop three blocks away next to the 7-11 store, but the bus didn't run often. I rushed to the 7-11 without knowing if I was heading for the right direction. I asked the staff at 7-11, he told me there was no bus to the theater. I didn't give up and walked toward the bus stop at far. I asked a policeman on the way, he told me there was no bus to the theater. I didn't give up. When I arrived at the bus stop to check the schedule, the bus to the theater arrived in front of me. It's my luck day!

It was the first concert of Musashino Music School Kumamoto Branch and I happened to be one of their supporters by accident. The concert started at 6:30PM, featuring three splendid soprano singers in the first half of the concert. The second half was the orchestra performance. I liked the evening concert in Kumamoto and I liked the huge and old fashion concert hall.

After the concert, I couldn't find the bus back to the train station. Two ladies on the street helped me find the right bus station and decided to give me a lift back to Toyoko Inn. It's another fruitful day in Kumamoto. The longer I stay in Kumamoto, the more I like this historic city with a lot of natural beauties.

*Goddess of Mercy plays a very important role in the hearts of people in South East Asia and Kyushu Island. Mount Putuo is one of the four sacred mountains in Chinese Buddhism, the others are Mount Wutai, Mount Jiuhua, and Mount Emei.

D76 Fall Conference 2010

Being an early bird to the conference this morning, I invited all ladies toastmasters to join me to take a photo with IP Pat Johnson. Then I picked up a front seat next to Toastmaster Masaki Oshiumi. I saw Toastmaster Oshiumi mumble looking at a slip of paper in his hand. Toastmaster Oshiumi was determined to advocate a Toastmaster song for all Toastmasters in the world at the Q&A with International President. He stood up tall to read the slip of paper in his hand, explaining why a Toastmasters song would be beneficial to the Toastmasters International. It has become a big mission of his in Toastmasters.

Following Toastmaster Oshiumi's request for a Toastmasters song, I also stood up to ask Pat about the possibilities of a joint D67 & D76 Speech Contest in Japanese in the future. I was told that it would be aginst the Toastmasters Bylaws to have a speech contest among Districts, but I was contented to voice out on behalf of Japanese speaking toastmasters in Taiwan.

During the intermission after the conference symposium on Vision of D76, Toastmaster Mayumi Shimamura told me that Toastmasters in Taiwan and Japan could always enjoy joint meetings together to exchange the communication and leadership skills in Japanese. I agreed with her comments.

After the break, it was the English humorous speech contest, the highlight of D76 Fall Confrence. It was a full house of laughter. I enjoyed all six contestants. Language might be a barrier, but it is also a bridge of gaps among people of different nationalities. Toastmaster Kazuhiko Kawashima from Division E was the first speaker. He talked about how to evaluate his boss in office in a Toastmasters way. He won the championship. After the hard hearing lesson from the humorous speech contest in Japanese yesterday afternoon, I made a smart move this morning by sitting in the front. I was contented that I could observe the performance of six contestants in details within a short distance.

I skipped the Hall of Fame and District 76 Council Meeting after the lunch break. Toastmaster Teiko Uemura took me to the old residences of Natsume Souseki and Koizumi Yakumo in Kumamoto. When I rushed all the way back to the conference hall before 3:50PM only to find many toastmasters come out of the PAREA Hall. I was told that the closing ceremony was adanced for 20 minutes.

Oh, I missed the closing ceremony! What a pity! I missed the chance to be called upon the District 76 Governor to say a few farewell words. When I arrived on the 9th floor, the organzing committe members were packing. At least, I could provide my helping hands to take a few photos of the hardworking members of Nakakyushu and Kumamoto Toastmasters Clubs.

As it was still early, I decided to visit Suizenji. At the Water Pipe tram station, I asked two high school students if I could walk to Suizenji. They told me I'd better take the street car, because Suizenji was far away. On the street car, I struck a conversation with the girls. I told them that I just visited Natsume Souseki and Koizumi Yakumo's residences, they replied they knew nothing about them, to my surprise.

Achieving Greatness Together

I didn't sleep tight with a full head of curls on me last night. I woke up early this morning to blow my hair. It was a big day for me as the sole representative from District 67 to D76 Fall Conference 2010. I left the hotel at eight o'clock and arrived at the Conference venue at Parea at 8:30. An old toastmaster friend from Higo Toastmasters Club greeted me with a big hug at the entrance of the building. It felt really good to see old friends in Toastmasters.

You raise me up as I can stand on mountains;
You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;
I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;
You raise me up ... to more than I can be.

International President Pat Johnson opened her keynote speech by singing an inspiring song to acknowledge the people who helped her become who she was today. She encouraged us to take every opportunity to help others to achieve the greatness together. I heard Pat sing the song the first time at D67 Spring Conference 2010 in April. I was more touched to listen to her speech once again and to know the Toastmasters who assisted her as the first timer in Japan.

I knew the level of my Japanese language proficiency was dropping, when I listened to the six contestants (from six divisions of D76) at the Humorous Speech Contest in Japanese Saturday afternoon. Honestly speaking, I could hardly understand them all, even I knew five out of six contestants in person. One of the reason, I couldn't comprehend the speeches as much as I could before, maybe because I sat at the far end of the conference hall. But, it felt just fine to be immersed in a full house of laughter while dozing off in my daydream!

I was really happy when Toastmaster Mayumi Shimamura received the plaque of championship of Humorous Speech in Japanese from IP Pat Johnson. Mayumi joked about how conscious and sensitive women were in terms of the volume of the food intake in her hilarious speech. She gave me a bottle of Kumamoto soy sause as a souvenir to take home with me.

I changed to red chipao at Toastmaster Kawano Kyoko's room and arrived at the gala dinner party full of excitements. The banquet was full of local dishes. Among them, I liked Karashi Renkon the most. Unlike the sweet lotus root cuision in Taiwan, Karashi Renkon was stuffed with mustard. The dish was invented by Mori Heigoro to cure Hosokawa Tadatoshi, the appointed Lord of Kumamoto Castle by Tokugawa Ieyasu, after the battle of Seki-ga-hara.

Toastmasters are invincible. Two years ago, at the Joint Anniversary of Success & Kumamoto Toastmasters Club in Taoyuan Saturday evening, October 11th, three toastmasters sang Ode to Joy at the dinner party, including Oshiumi (tenor), Lydia (alto) and me (alto). To our joy, a small Toastmasters chorus of three transformed into a big Toastmasters chorus of twenty plus singers in four parts at D76 Fall Conference 2010 dinner party. It was indeed a giant leap to showcase the Toastmasters spirit to achieve greatness together. Many thanks go to Kitakyushu Toastmasters Club and Kumamoto Toastmasters Club for their full support. Special thanks go to Toastmaster Kazuo Yamaguchi of Hiroshima Toastmasters CLub for taking the conductor role at the last minute.

Freude, schöner Götterfunken, Tochter aus Elysium,
Wir betreten feuertrunken, Himmlische, dein Heiligtum!
Deine Zauber binden wieder, Was die Mode streng geteilt;
Alle Menschen werden Brüder, Wo dein sanfter Flügel weilt.

Toastmaster Oshiumi burst into tears of joy after the performance. He thanked all the participants in singing Ode to Joy on stage. As the toastmaster who took the initiatives to organize the Toastmasters chorus, Toastmaster Oshiumi has been advocating a Toastmasters song for toastmasters all over the world earnestly and persistently.

At the dinner party, the organizing committee members distributed the fliers of D76 Spring Conference 2011 in Tokyo. I was very impressed by the efficiencies of Japanese Toastmasters. Toastmaster Takimoto announced that D76 Spring Conference in Tokyo will take place at National Olympic Memorial Youth Center, May 13th till 15th, 2011. The conference theme is "Build up Your Confidence".

After the banquet, Toastmaster Masuo Watari from Dazaifu Toastmasters Club invited me to join the 2nd party at Kentucky Colonel Charlie Nagatani's country music club a few blocks walk from the party venue. Four of us, including Hiroshi Nishiyama from Iizuka Toastmaters Club, Jonathan Borock from Kyushu University Toastmasters Club, had a crazy and boisterous night with Charlie and his band The Cannon Balls. It was eyeopening to see many Japanese fans of country music in Kumamoto. Charlie has sung country music sine 1956 and has organized the Internatioanl Country Music Festival (Country Gold) in Kumamoto since 1989. In my hand, showed the 22nd Country Gold Festival 2010 at the Kumamoto Open Air Theater in ASPECTA, Sunday October 17th.

I was so uplifted when I saw the full house of country music lovers up on the feet dancing, including a few kindergarten kids and a bunch of salary men. As a dancing queen, I wouldn't give up the rare opportunity to dance all night to the country music in Kumamoto. It's hard to believe, wasn't it? It was after midnight when I took a taxi back to the hotel. What a fruitful and joyful Toastmasters day and night in Kumamoto!

Venture to Kumamoto

Just about when you felt frustrated you missed the train, it turned out to be the wrong train. I almost got on the train to Nagasaki if I arrived at the Hakata station one minute ealier this morning. Fortunately the right train to Kumamoto was waiting for me at the next platform! And I made it in time.

I got on the rapid train at Hakata Station to Omuda at 9:28. There were not many passaengers on the train. Before the train took off, I saw a fashionable senior lady across the aisle. I became interested in her when she took up a file of music notes. She started glancing the songs in various languages. I gathered my courage to say hello to her and invited her to sit next to me. That's how I got to know Shimoshiro san. She is a soprano teacher and has many singers friends in Taiwan. She left me her home address before she got off at Kiyama for her music class. I was happy to make acquaintance with another singer in Japan.

The train arrived at Omuda at 10:27. I had 30 minutes break to buy the ticket to Kumamoto, bought two freshly baked breads from Trandor, got on a regular train at Omuda at 10:58 and arrived at Kumamoto at 11:45. After checking in the hotel, I got on the Kumamoto City Tram. To my surprise, Toastmaster Tamura Minoru got on the same tram one step ahead of me. Now I had someone to rely upon to get to the next destination.

The moment I walked into the lobby of Kumamoto City Internatioal Center at 2PM, I saw Toastmasters Takashi Suzuki and Hiroyasu Tezuka, I joined them for an afternoon coffee. Then Toastmasters Rio Imamura, Setsuko Noda and many toastmasters showed up. We had a cheerful Toastmasters round-table discussion till 2:30PM, the meet up time to visit the Kumomoto Castle.

D76 Fall Conference 2010 organizing committe invited a senior interpreter to accompany us in Kumamoto Castle. He not only informed us of the history of Kumamoto Castle, but also guided us to see important historic documents and architectures. We also saw the differences of castle walls between Kyomasa and Hosokawa.

Kumamoto Castle is considered as one of the three premier castles in Japan, along with Himeji Castle and Matsumoto Castle. It celebrated its 400th anniversary in 2007. In 1607, Katou Kyomasa completed the present Kumamoto Castle as a large and extremely well fortified castle. In 1632, Hosokawa clan took over the castle and ruled Kumamoto for 240 years. It was besieged in 1877 during the Satsuma Rebellion, and the castle keep and other parts were burned down.

On our way to visit the newly renovated Lord's Inner Palace, I invited Toastmaster Rio Imamura to take a photo with me behind the historic figures. I didn't know who Lady Garcia was till I visited her cemetery at Mt. Tatsuda Park in the northeasern party of Kumamoto City.

Lady Garcia was the wife of Takaoki. Her real name was Tamako Akechi. When she was baptized, she was given the Christian name Lady Garcia. "Garcia" means gratitude in Latin. Lady Garcia married Takaoki Hosokawa through the go-between Nobunaga. When Lady Garcia was 38, she committed suicide as the hostage of Mitsunari Ishida. Lady Garcia wrote the following poem before her death.

"As blossoms fall
I see my fate
In this world
Blossoms pass away
And so must we"

In order to recharge myself before the welcome party in honor of IP Pat Johnson, I found an udon chain store in the shopping mall, I ordered a big chunk of fried burdocka along with a big bowl of plain udon from the counter. I added a big spoon of tanuki on top of my udon. Coincidentally, I found Toastmaster Rio Imamura at the same shop. We sat together to enjoy the most popular plebeian cuisine among Japanese people. Rio told me that he liked Kitsune Udon from childhood.

At the welcome dinner party, International President Pat Johnson delivered an educational speech. She talked about her story of knowing Toastmasters club in 1983, her first encounter of Toastmasters, and she grew with other toastmasters in the past two decades.

After listening to Pat’s inspiring story, the luxurious dinner was served, to my surprise. I was not informed of the dinner. With a full stomach of udon, I still gobbled a big quantity of the delicious dinner without reservation, sashimi, basashi, fried chicken rolls, spaghetti, sushi, cakes.

Toastmaster Taruaki Fujii sat next to me. When he told me that he sang the bass part of No. 9 at Kumamoto Freude Chrous, I found him an angel from the heaven. I recruited him to Joint D67 & D76 Toastmasters chorus immediately. What a lucky Toastmasters day I had from the morning till the evening!

A Cycling Tour of Fukuoka

I got up late this morning. It was a free day. I didn't have any appointments today. I took it easy to walk into the kitchen at 9:30. When I saw the delicious fried egg in the plate of a female Taiwanese worker on holiday in the kitchen of Khaosan Fukuoka, I didn't hesitate to ask her to give me an egg. She was generous to offer me a piece of bread and a slice of ham, in addition. How nice it was to meet my country fellow abroad? At breakffast, I asked her if she was interested in joining me to a free noon concert at ACROS. She recommended I borrowed a bike from Khaosan free of charge. And I followed her to ACROS in Tenjin.

It was a fantastic noon concert. The beautiful voices of seven female vocals of Two Leaves were very pleasant and impressive. The one hour free concert at the Communication Area attracted a full house of listeners. Two Leaves sang acappella various famous songs in four to five parts, from Japanese folk songs, classical songs, opera, to Christmas carols. Being a serious singer-to-be, I wish oneday I could give a concert in public.

A Full Course of Fukuoka

Toastmaster Kazue Fujino and I greeted each other at Japan Railway Ticket Center at 10 o'clock in the morning. After a short discussion, Kazue and I headed for the Canal City. When I saw the interior design of Moomin, I proposed we had brunch at the lovely store. It was the first time I knew about the Moomins, and I loved the white and roundish carefree characters immediately. Kazue and I chose a table to sit with Papa Moomin. Kazue had seen all series of the Moomins, and I planned to catch up with her as soon as I got home.

Kazue brought a box of Origami paper with her. She showed me how to make a flower ball during brunch. After lunch, I bought a Moomin winter underwear as the first purchase of the day. It is the second winter underwear I bought in Japan. I guess I was obsessed in warm winter clothes because I was frozen to death when I was in Ulaanbartar in January.

The Canal City in Fukuoka was decorated with all sorts of Christmas accessories. The hourly water dance in the middle of the canal was charming. I couldn't help tapping my feet on the marble floor by the canal in the sun. "We wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas and Happy New Year! la, la, la, ~~~~"

After lunch, we went shopping at the Canal City for one hour, and walked along the river from Nakasu to Tenjin. When we walked through the Central Park, I saw the magnificent building with many layers of trees on the roof. I simply liked it very much.

Toastmaster Fujino was kind to postpone her dialysis schedule from 9AM till 4PM, in order to show me around Fukuoka City. She told me she would join me at D76 Fall Conference 2010 Sunday, without mentioning that she would be the chief judge of English humorous speech contest.

After I said goodbye to Toastmaster Fujino at Nishi Tetsu Station in Tenjin at 3:30PM, I rushed to Parco Department to take care of my biological need. To my astonishment, I found the fantastic lady’s room with the fountain in the middle on the 2nd floor of Parco. What a serendipity it was to experience a lady's room of paradise, for girls to powder, to chitchat, to hang around, simply amazing!

Kitakyushu Citizens Freude Chorus

It was a chilly morning! I arrived at Hakata Station before 8 o'clock. In stead of taking a rapid train from Hakata to Kokura at 8:06, I took a regualr one at 7:58. Being an early bird with ample amount of time, I thought it would be a smart way to learn the right pronunication in Japanese of each train station one after another (I can pronounce all train stations in Mandarin, except スペースワールド station). Besides, it really felt warm and cozy on the train (In Taiwan, we don't have the heating facilities on the train).

At 9:12, I arrived at Kokura station, fifty minutes before the appointment with Toastmaster Masaki Oshiumi. It was windy at the station hall. I had to seek for a shelter immediately. I walked into Cafe' Croissant doddling around till the time to meet up with Toastmaster Oshiumi at ten.

Toastmaster Oshiumi showed up at the ticket gate punctually. I was so excited to see my old Toastmaster fellow that I gave him a big hug. Then we crossed the street to reach a small shopping matrix, spent one hour discussing our performance of Ode to Joy at D76 Fall Conference 2010 dinner party at the Starbucks Cafe'. When the waitress heard us humming Ode to Joy at the coffeehouse, she volunteered to take a photo of us. Then we rushed to Yamaha Music Store to fetch the songbooks ordered in advance at 11 o'clock, only to find the door was closed. It was an off day of Yamaha.

Without wasting much time, Toastmaster Oshiumi and I went to another music shop in the neighborhood to search for the songbooks of female vocals. I bought four of them for my chorus conductor in Taiwan.

At 11:30, Toastmaster Oshiumi and I rushed back to the train station to meet up with Toastmaster Yumiko Ozuka and Kunihito Yanaga, two members from Kitakyushu Toastmasters Club. We had Chinese food for lunch at Eight Immortals Restaurant. Surprisingly, all four of us were of the same mind, ordered the same course of luncheon.

After lunch, Toastmaster Yanaga gave me an envelope of five past issues of Kitakyushu Bridges. I later knew how much Kitakyushu had evolved in the past century from a highly polluted city of economic and military success to a model Eco-town in Japan and how many efforts the residents of Kitakyushu had made to make their hometown friendly to the world.

After Toastmaster Ozuka left for school and Toastmaster left for home, Toastmaster Oshiumi took me to his private Mandarin lesson at Kitakyushu International Association (KIA). I was moved to observe Mr. Shinji Mori, a senior Japanese gentleman, teach Toastmaster Oshiumi the Mandarin, the language of my mother tongue. After the class, Miss Kazumi Kawano, a friendly young lady staff of KIA, recommended Toastmaster Oshiumi and I visit Mt. Sarakura, a symbol of Kitakyushu.

We took a taxi to get to the Hobashira Cable Car Station from KIA, got on a cable car, transferred to a slopecar, to the top of Mt. Sarakura (622 meters above the sea level) to see the magnificent panoramic view of Kitakyushu. Mt. Sarakura is now famous for the spectacular "10 billion dollars night view" in Japan, in addition to three old night views of Hakotade, Kobe, and Nagasaki.

The indoor mountaintop observatory at Mt. Sarakura was free of charge, but Toastmaster Oshiumi and I didn't stay there long. We took a walk circling the top of Mt. Sarakura for one hour in the cold wind. Toastmaster Oshiumi showed me the various wards in Kitakyushu, including his home in Wakamatsu.

After dinner at Matsumotoya, Toastmaster Oshiumi and I took a taxi to Kitakyushu Municial Gender Equality Center (MOVE). It was the event of the day for me. It was the reason why I came to Kokura. It was to learn how to organize a citizens chorus and to practice Ode to Joy with the 200 members of Kitakyushu Citizens Freude Chorus.

Kitakyushu Citizens Freude Chrous has a proud history. They practice every Tuesday evening from August 3rd till December 20th for their 33rd consecutive year end 第九の夕べ at the Soleil Hall Wednesday evening, December 22nd.

I sat in the group of alto part, next to a lady who had joined the chorus for more than two decades. I was happy to sing next to her and learned much from her. I was grateful to Director Seiji Nakabayashi and Pianist Ms. Chiaki Kiyokawa for the precious chance to learn vocalization skills and to learn important music notes of Ode to Joy.

After the chorus practice, a singing couple of the Freude chorus gave us a ride to Kokura train station and showed us the beautiful illumination of Kokura city along the way. On my way back to Fukuoka, I first got on a regular train and changed to Sonic express train at Orio, and arrived at Khaosan Fukuoka before 10PM. Many thanks go to Toastmaster Oshiumi for a frutiful and enjoyable day.

PS: If I have a chance to visit Kitakyushu again, I won't miss a ride on the "Super-coasters" at Space World and on Wakato Passenger Ferry in the breeze. I'd like to attemp paragliding from Mt. Sarakura, and enjoy a hiking on Hiraodai Limestone Plateau. It would be my dream if I could sing "Ode to Joy" with Kitakyushu Citizens Freude Chorus on New Year Eve one evening in the future.

Shopping Queen in Town

I was feeling excited first day in town. The Ginko trees along Chikushi Avenue were turning yellow. On my way to Hakata Station, I took many photos of the colorful autumn foliage. Toastmaster Yoshiko Mohri and I greeted each other at 11 o'clock at the information center of Hakata Station. Yoshiko looked happy with a bag of bread from the Trandor Bakery in the train station. She told me she loved the freshly baked bread from the oven. I suggested we could go on a picnic in the park in Tenjin.

We took a bus to downtown Tenji. When I saw a Crocs shop in Tenjin, I walked in and tried out a few new Crocs, but I couldn't find the right size for me. In the end, I bought two crocs shoe charms for my red crocs, one is a blue daisy, the other is a yellow ribbon. I didn’t think twice, because they were of my favorite Toastmasters colors. After the first purchase of the day, Yoshiko and I walked across the street to have the Monday brunch at Seattle's Best Coffee.

While we were chatting in English, a gentleman approached us and introduced himself to us. Mr. Sam Hooi told us that he was a Toastmaster in Hong Kong. He now lives in Fukuoka and he founded FILE (Fukuoka International Language Exchange) Club. There are 400 members now. Mr. Hooi majored in counseling at graduate school. He was enthusiastic about organizing conference and event and was interested in joining Fukuoka Toastmasters Club to create more opportunities to develop Toastmasters and FILE clubs.

After brunch, Yoshiko and I went shopping at Daimaru and Mizukoshi Department Stores. I had my second purchase of a Hello Kitty winter underwear in red, which I thought would be a perfect match with my woolen red dress I bought in Ulaanbartar. While we strolled around at Mizukoshi Department Store, Yoshiko was so eager to show me a fantastic lady’s room with a fountain inside, we checked every floor to look for the fantastic lady’s room, but failed to find it!

After Yoshiko went home to take care of Toastmasters business at 3:30PM, I continued the shopping journey by myself at the Tenjin Underground shopping matrix, shintencho, and Tenji Core till sunset. I was contented to see as much of the new winter fashion in the windows for six hours straight in Fukuoka! What a shopping queen I was indeed! The first day in town, I added another one kilogram to my luggage! Who said traveling light was the best policy in the first place?

I was exhausted when I returned to Khaosan Fukuoka. I had Yoshiko's bread from Trandor for dinner in bed and retired for the night. I was too tired to go out!

On the Road Again

I didn't make up my mind till the last minute whether I should attend D76 Fall Conference 2010 in Kumamoto or not. Last Monday, when I finally booked my airline tickets on line, the price went so high. In the end, I had to arrive in Japan a few days earlier in order to cut down the price of the tickets.

Cathay Air 0510N 2010/11/14 17:50 Taoyuan 20:55 Fukuoka
Cathay Air 0511N 2010/11/25 10:25 Fukuoka 12:05 Taoyuan

To be honest, were it not for Toastmaster Kyoko Kawano’s invitation to visit her parents in Amakusa three days after the Fall Conference (Kyoko will be escorting IP Pat Johnson after the conference), I wouldn't attend D76 Fall Conference 2010 as the sole visitor from Taiwan, simply because the yen is outrageously strong (1 JPY = 0.3718 TWD).

Toastmaster Kyoko Kawano came to D67 Spring Conference 2010 in Taichung in April. It was her first time to visit Taiwan. Kyoko returned to Taipei with her parents and her younger sister in September. Toastmasters Michelle Chen and Erick Suen and I were invited to a sumptuous dinner at the Grand Formosa Regent Taipei. When I heard Kyoko’s father utter a few Mandarin words at the age of 90, I was touched. Kyoko's father graduated from Manchuria Medical School and practiced Medicine in Amakusa during and after the Second World War. After dinner, Kyoko's mother invited us to visit her house in Amakusa to enjoy the seafood in November. I found myself a reason to attend D76 Fall Conference 2010 in Kumamoto.

The Journey of Traveling Light

For the first time in my life, I decided to travel light. I had a small hand-carry suitcase plus a backpack bag with a total weight of less than 15 kilograms. I left the beautiful clothes, shoes, and accessories at home. I carried only a few books and electronic devices plus a new chipao for D76 Fall Conference dinner party.

There are three reasons behind the change of my traveling philosophy. Firstly, I overheard a lady complain her tour group member carry six overcoats in Hakkaido to show off two days before my departure. I felt she was sending out a signal to me. I agreed that beauty was only skin deep, and I didn't need to change clothes and shoes everyday while traveling abroad. Secondly, as I get older, I catch less attention from the people around me. Nobody really cares what I wear anyway. Thirdly, I refused to be the slave of my appearance anymore. It is time I traveled light from now on.

The Journey of a False Eyelash

Human beings are carriers. When people move from one place to another, they carry known and unknown items along with them. A person might carry quite a few seeds on his pants and jacket by accident after an afternoon stroll in the park.

I carried a false eyelash dangling on my Crocs to the airport. It stuck on the Crocs after I performed the debut line dance "Mambo Five" with four golden ladies Toastmasters at Irene's brother's campaign for the head of Yu-chen Borough Saturday morning (Irene's brother won the election two weeks later). I didn't notice it until I got back from the wedding party at Miramar Shopping Mall Saturday evening.

The eyelash hung on my Crocs mischievously even I changed three subways to get home. The following Sunday morning, I saw my brother in the hospital with the eyelash on my Crocs. My husband teased about my journey to Japan, a journey of eyelash. And I was curious where the eyelash would eventually settle down. In the end, the eyelash dropped on the floor of the airplane. I guess it would like to stay on cloud nine as much as I do.

The Journey of Japanese Courtesy

I wore a big smile walking out of the immigration desk till I was singled out to open my hand-carry suitcase and backpack bag on the custom counter. Then for unknown reason, I was requested to enter a private room for a thorough inspection.

The young lady customer officer looked at me with suspicious eyes and asked me repeatedly if I carried any drugs with me, pointing at a board of controlled substances. Being a pharmacist, I couldn't have known better the damages of the drugs than most passengers. I waved my head and said "no" to the inspector friendly. Her eyes turned stern and asked me to walk behind a curtain. She pulled my bras, and thrust my private part with her elbow. I was in no position to take offense, I observed the humiliating incidence with interest, because it would make a speech in Toastmasters one day.

Nevertheless, I couldn't help but feeling pathetic for the young lady inspector. What a challenging job she had to examine people around her with the suspicion of terrorists and drug dealers. After the unexpected body inspection for the first time in my life, I was the last passenger of my flight to leave the empty hall of custom in Fukuoka. All custom officers watched me leave as I had done something wrong being a regular visitor to Japan. If I should have known what I had to go through at Fukuoka Airport, I would have a serious thought about my attending D76 Fall Conference 2010 in Kumamoto.

The End is Well, All is Well

Traveling light was indeed a smart move. I felt like a bird meandering along Takenoshita Avenue after I arrived Hakata Station. When I saw a couple of food venders on the street and I was so curious to peek at what's going on behind the curtains. No sooner than later, I bumped into a love couple on the bike. The young man riding the bike shouted at me, "please watch what's in front of you while walking". I apologized to the young man and his girlfriend at the back. I was just too excited to see the journey of Japan in front of me.

I arrived at Khaosan Fukuoka late but safely, fetched my room key at the counter on the first floor, took a hot show on the 3rd floor, snuggled in a warm bed at Room 301, slept like a top, had a good dream of my first night in Japan.

Three in One Election 2010

Upon Irene's invitation, five golden ladies performed "Mambo No. 5" at her brother's campaign center for Borough Director (南港區玉成里長) this morning, November 13. Irene's brother is enthusiastic about community affairs. Even he failed in the last election four years ago and he is determined to come back to win this time.

In order to break the leg on stage, Pamela, Michelle, Trini and I arrived one hour in advance to rehearse as much as we could. Luckily, we had the chance to chat with other invited performers from Lion's club. The opening three shows performed by Lion club members were awesome, including Face off (四川變臉), Flamenco Dance and Belly dance. Mambo No. 5 was the last show, and golden ladies wowed the audience with our lively dance, dazzling costumes, most of all, with our heights. At the end of our Mambo No. 5, the Master of Ceremony introduced us five golden ladies, 白嘉莉 Sherry, 美黛 Trini, 趙曉君 Pamela; 冉肖鈴 Michelle, 鳳飛飛 Irene! We took a deep bow and received a full house of applause from the floor.