Takasaki, Gunma * 高崎市, 群馬県
WWOOF Period: 6 June - 20 June
On the same day I left Asaba Art Square, I arrived at Takasaki Station, Gunma after about 2 and half hours of travelling in the train, up north of Kanto Region.
Upon reaching the station, I was feeling a little tired physically after standing in the crowded train during the first half of the ride, with my backpack on my pack. Found a public phone and contacted Tokko-san, my next WWOOF host in an organic farm in Takasaki. We arranged to wait for her at the East exit of the massive station.
Shortly, a lady got out from a small white Japanese car, in full farming attire waved to me and smiled. I mirrored her greeting and walked towards her.
Entering the car, I said, 'Finally, we meet.'
I was a little surprised with my spontaneous words. I had never said that to any of my other hosts. I think it's because Tokko-san and Kazu-san showed interest in my travel plan this year and the countries I have travelled. They often asked about it when I emailed them to notify them upon my arrival in Japan and a week before I was supposed to WWOOF in their farm. So, they strike a different impression through my correspondence in email with my hosts.
Tokko-san can speak some English. Her mild mannerism, warm smile and kind soft eyes resembles my dear friend, Shin's mother, Peck Har. I felt very comfortable with her instantly.
It was about 15mins car ride to her house in Takasaki. Takasaki is a regional transportation hub because its train station (Takasaki Station) is the junction of several rail lines as well as a Shinkansen ("bullet train") stop.
Takasaki is also a city of flat land, overseeing the few famous mountains like Mount Haruna lining its border. I saw lots of farm land with fully grown wheat plants and learned later that it is time for harvesting wheat.
Reaching the Otsuka household, I was impressed with the tidiness in their house.
Both Kazu-san and Tokko-san are in the late 50s. Kazu-san's elderly parents live in a seperate house just next to theirs, all within the same compound. A few years ago, they built a house for guests and WWOOFers just opposite their house . The whole interior is built with wood, which gives a nice faint natural aroma. Tokko-san and I lay out the futon mattresses, put on the bedsheets etc on the second level. I was reminded fondly of the time when I first arrived in Setsukei-an farm in Hiyoshi about 2 months ago, Setsu-san and I fitting the sheets for my futon mattresses and blanket.
At the gate of the Ostuka's houshold compound. Kazu-san and Tokko-san lives in a house on their own, Kazu-san's elderly parents live in another house just next to theirs. The compound also have small warehouses to store their produce and to pack the freshly harvested produce for delivery; one where the tractors and machineries are, another for seperating and drying of wheat and rice, and a small cosy house for guests and WWOOFers.
The wooden house built a few years ago for guest and WWOOFers... further right is where the farming tractors are parked in
The interior of where I stayed... to me, this is such a luxury and blessing.
One of the plots of farmland belonging to Kazu-san... Takasaki is really a flat land. This plot of land just had its wheat plant harvested....the 3 plots of land for planting wheat plants will be used to plant rice 2 weeks later. Kazu-san showed me where the water drainage system is and how it is channelled from the river. All padi fields in Takasaki will be able to recieve water during rice planting season.
Tokko-san prepared some ume juice from the feramented ume she made and baked potatoes. They have ume-trees in one of their farms. Like me, Tokko-san loves ume. It was nice chatting with Tokko-san as she is such a down to earth woman. She uses an electronic-dictionary to search for the English meaning when she encountered difficulty. Tokko-san shared something a former WWOOFer shared:
'It is useless teaching the Americans Peace education.
It is useless teaching the Chinese Moral education.
It is useless teaching the Japanese English education.'
That made me laugh at its sacarsm, yet ponder in its meaning.
I have shared with her what my first WWOOF host in Yufuin Country Road Hostel, Ryo-san explained to me why most Japanese cannot communicate well in English despite it being a language they learn in school since young. Beside lack of opportunity to use it and the Japanese rich culture and respect for their own language, it is also the other side of them being afraid of speaking poorly in the English language.
It was quiet and peaceful in the Otsuka's compound. Kazu-san was away to attend a meeting for organic farmers in Gunma prefecture and will be back only for dinner. Tokko-san was working in the packing room before she came to pick me at Takasaki Station. I offered to help her though she suggested for me to take a rest. Just like in Setsukei-an, with Kei-san and Setsu-san, when doing farming work, we put on our farming clothings but change into clean home clothings before we enter the house. Such is the expectations of cleanliness in most Japanese households.
In the packing room, which is like a small warehouse with piles of plastic crate containers, Tokko-san had arranged about 20 crate containers in rows on the floor. She categorised them in her own terms, Normal, Large, Small, Special Small, (once there is also a Special Special Small). Quantity of packing the vegetables or fruits harvested direct from their farms will be packed into each crate accordingly.
I saw that there were already some vegetables in each carton. I appreciate the way the vegetables are arranged to make sure that the weight is evenly distributed and that they will be in the best condition upon reaching their consumers' home.
After helping out with the packing of vegetables for early delivery the next morning, I had some free time to walk around the neighbourhood. The area is like a maze to me, with almost every household having some farmlands growing wheat and some vegetables.
I met Kazu-san before dinner. He is just like Tokko-san, very down to earth, humble and easy to talk to. He took some English lessons before but speaks less fluent English. However, both of them take such great effort to converse with me in English, using the electronic dictionary frequently, and I conversing in very basic Japanese mixed with English.
As I stayed on longer in the Ostuka household and WWOOFed in their farm, meal times or short tea breaks are times where much sharings of ideas, experiences, our cultures and beliefs, our individual perspective of the world, of politics in Japan and the world....with me asking them many questions too. I am so comfortable with Kazu-san and Tokko-san that I find myself sharing more about myself. They are the second host I share photos of my familiy back in Singapore. The first was with Kei-san and Setsu-san in Setsukeian farm. They are the only 2 hosts which I took time to share the pictures with them and talking about my family.
Meal times are the time I cherish here as it is where we chat endlessly... sometimes on serious issues, sometimes just silly talks and topics and having much laughter over it. It again shows me that language is never a barrier to friendships build in a foreign land. It is about 'en', the connection between two person and also the sincerity and genuinity from both parties.
I find them very forward thinking, individualistic in their thoughts and at a level, I feel I lack, where they know what's truly important for themselves and the world. A rare breed of Japanese, in my personal opinion... like th
With Kazu-san and Tokko-san, we are like close friends. They become friends of mine who are about a decade older than me whom I respect for their wisdom but also the similar mindset about life. Kazu-san was a civil engeneer and Tokko-san a secretary before they quit their job and focused on organic farming 28 years ago. Kazu-san comes from a family with generations of farming. In the Japanese culture, the eldest son in the family will take over farming in his father's farm. Kazu-san is the eldest, with a younger sister and a brother. His father was not doing organic farming and when Kazu-san decided to switch to farming, he was very clear of what he wants. Natural farming and to adapt a substantial lifestyle. Tokko-san shares her husband's dream and convictions.
Tokko-san is a great cook and I help her in meal preparation. In the organic farm, they consume produce from their own farms, with regular online ordering of some ingredients or meat such as fish or pork from COOP, a large grocery market based in every part of Japan. As in natural farming, they consume seasonal vegetables. That means, as it is summer now, they grow and harvest summer vegetables that grows well during summer but not at all in other seasons. Each season has a range of vegetables that grow well in. Hence, during the months in summer, the vegetables from farm to table will be mainly cucumbers, zuchini, brinjals, potatoes, onions,lettuce, pumpkins and cherry tomatoes.
It takes a creative cook like Tokko-san to churn out delicious dishes with the same types of vegetables but in different way of cooking and preparation. I never find it boring and tiring eating cucumbers or zuchini in almost every meal.
The Ostsukas have ten farmlands, all in different locations and about 3 to 5 mins ride from their house. I got to do a variety of farming tasks among the consistent ones like harvesting vegetables at 5.30am in the morning and packing them later in the morning for delivery to their consumer families next day. We do 3 times of harvesting per week and 3 times of delivery to the 60 consumers (families) of their produce. Kazu-san and Tokko-san started this farm 28 years ago with a clear intention not to be reliant on a middleman to sell their produce. They want to have their produce harvested by themselves and delivered directly to a fixed number of families living in Takasaki city. Their farming ideology is to respect the way nature works, understanding it and working along it. This is the farm I got to understand deeper what natural farming is all about. Natural farming is more commonly known as organic farming.
Harvesting of wheat. Kazu-san and his 80 over year old father harvested wheat, with the help of the harvesting tractor. It effectively cut and seperate the grains from the straw, then gathers the straw in bundles. Machines do save much time in farming work.
Kazu-san operates the tractor while his father gathers the bundled straws.
Tokko-san watching her husband, Kazu-san at work. Both of us were doing packing of that morning harvest and I expressed my interest to see how the harvesting of wheat is done. When we finished with the packing, she changed and asked me to hop onto her car and drove me out to the wheat land to see them harvesting. So sweet of her. Tokko-san and Kazu-san always try their best to meet my needs or teach me what I want to know about farming.
A few days after the harvest, we stacked up the bundled straws in interesting 'teepee' light way to let them dry. Straws are very useful in farming as they are used to cover the soil in the farms to protect it from being hardened by the sun or cold wind, and to discourage weeds from growing. Kazu-san has also been planting wheat grass seeds randomly on the soil surrounding the plantations of vegetables or fruits. Another method he is trying to protect the soil and keep it rich and fertile.
A few days after the harvest, we stacked up the bundled straws in interesting 'teepee' light way to let them dry. Straws are very useful in farming as they are used to cover the soil in the farms to protect it from being hardened by the sun or cold wind, and to discourage weeds from growing. Kazu-san has also been planting wheat grass seeds randomly on the soil surrounding the plantations of vegetables or fruits. Another method he is trying to protect the soil and keep it rich and fertile.
Morning harvest... Tokko-san in the common lady-farmer's attire. I am quite fascinated with it. I was digging and harvesting carrots from the soil a short distance away from the lecttuces garden. Took a shot of this quickly when my mobile phone camera.. ~_~
Kazu-san and I harvested so many onions...they filled up almost 20 cartons.
Transplanting leek plant seedlings. It is so interesting to watch how Kazu-san and Tokko-san work seamlessly together in preparing the rich, loose soil, digging holes with an aluminium tool in such speed. I planted the leek plant seedlings into the earth.
Tokko-san sewed these pair for me to cover the farming boots to prevent soil from entering into them
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