Miyama-cho: English Cafe

Tuesday, 15th April, 2014.

Mornings at Miyama-cho were quite chilly.  Frances has abandoned her western-style bed in her single room to come and visit us on the floor.

 

Chisa spent many years as an English teacher before she moved to Miyama-cho to establish Earthgarden.

Once a teacher, always a teacher.  Now, once a month, she holds “English Cafe”, a morning where local people can come to learn conversational English.

 

At English Cafe, everyone is invited to give a short talk in English, and then the others in the group can ask questions.  Here is Carol giving her talk.

 

One of the participants.  He told us that while he and his wife have no children, they have two dogs.  We later established that another participant (a young mother with two children) paid less for her car than he did for one of his dogs.

 

Chisa has been very concerned that a bus parking area was being built next to Earthgarden.  She had asked the developers if they would plant some evergreen trees to screen the buses from her beautiful rural aspect.  She hadn’t heard back from them, but out the window, during English Cafe, we could see this activity, so we all went out to have a look.  Yes, some evergreen trees were being planted.  Chisa was very pleased.

 

Some more trees, ready to be planted to screen the bus park from Chisa’s house.

 

A good start.

 

Encouraged, Chisa then gave us a tour of her garden (Frances’ photo).

 

The herb spiral (Frances’ photo).

 

 

 

(Frances’ photo).

 

(Frances’ photo).

 

Spring was springing.

 

 

The morning concluded with a very enjoyable lunch.  Thank you Chisa.

Miyama-cho: Around Chisa’s place.

Monday, 14th April, 2014.
Here are some pictures taken while walking in the area around Chisa’s house.  Firstly, we walked behind Chisa’s house on the main road to the houses closer to the surrounding hills.
This area is noted for thatched roofs:




Neighbouring farmers were working on their land.

Then we turned around and walked back to Chisa’s house, then along the road towards a collection of houses:



These palm trees were a bit of a surprise.  In winter, this area receives snow which is measured in metres.





More field horsetails – lots of them!





Juxtaposition – a thatched roof and a western chair.


This narrow bridge led to the next village, with even more thatched-roof houses, which we visited the next day.




Meanwhile, Chisa had prepared for us a beautiful traditional dinner, like Hosoki’s to be cooked at the table.
Another day, Chisa had prepared for us a dinner which included some local venison meatballs.  The only predator of the local deer was the Japanese wolf, which is now extinct, so hunters traditionally have been shooting the local deer, and preparing the meat for consumption.  For a while it looked as though deer hunting was a dying occupation, but now there are some younger men taking it on.  Chisa buys her venison mince from the local hunter/butcher.

Miyama-cho: Local Talent

Monday, 14th April, 2014.

Miyama-cho is a very beautiful place, and a lot of talented people either have lived there all their lives, or have moved there.

 

Chisa took us to visit some of her multi-talented friends.  This couple had a plant nursery …..

 

….. with some interesting plants …..

 

….. which included a bay tree.

 

There was a gift shop, which included pieces of furniture which the husband had made from wood …..

 

….. including little houses, Carol’s speciality ….. (the top left hand panel is empty, because Carol has bought the two houses which were there) …..

 

….. and a pizza oven in the back yard.

 

There was also a grand piano in the gift shop.  The wife was an accomplished performing accompanist.

 

This lead light panel was in one of the windows …..

 

….. and over the door was this nest of hungry baby birds.

 

We then visited another of Chisa’s friends, who had this tiny house in her garden.

 

In her main house was this immaculate sewing centre ….

 

….. and also an extensive collection of children’s picture books.