Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Baseball; not as boring as you might think


Before arriving at Koshien stadium last Sunday I was sceptical to say the least about spending four hours watching baseball. Having only ever watched (American) baseball on TV before I, like many before me, had labelled the game tedious and boring. How can you have a game that lasts for so long only to finish 1-0, I thought. With these doubts hanging over me I gave the live version of the game a try during Golden week. As it turned out the game finished 2-1, hardly a high scoring contest, but boring? No chance. Baseball in Japan is a different prospect from the American game it draws  its inspiration from. It could have finished 0-0 for all I cared, for baseball on this side of the globe is as much about the crowd as the game itself, and the crowds in Osaka are quite something.

Irrespective of my preconceptions of baseball I had actually wanted to attend a game in Japan for a while. As much as I can tell it’s the national sport and having bumped into Hanshin Tigers fans at the central Umeda station with great regularity I’ve been able to get an idea of just how passionate Japanese baseball fans are. To add to the draw, the Hanshin Tigers home is Koshien stadium, which is to Japanese baseball what Wembley is to English football. It’s the sort of place that Japanese children dream of one day playing and dates back as long ago as 1924. After a brief hiatus following the Great Hanshin Earthquake, capacity crowds of nearly 50,000 now regularly attend games. Last week’s game was no exception and I formed part of a sell-out crowd to see the grudge match between the Tigers and the Yomiuri Giants from Tokyo.



The atmosphere around the stadium before the game reminded me a lot of the first time I ever watched Arsenal play football at Highbury. Nothing beats the feeling of anticipation that comes from a sell-out crowd enjoying a sunny day before a match, whatever the sport, and at Koshien there is an incredible buzz. The stadium is surrounded by stalls selling all manner of memorabilia and the smell of the food from the various food stands is intoxicating. Entering the stadium is a breeze and the only hold-up comes from having to decant any cans or bottles of beer into cups or plastics, a small price to pay for bringing in your own cheap booze, a fact seized upon by a large proportion of the crowd.

For those who don't really know the rules of baseball it can take a little while to get into the game itself but at Koshien this is not entirely down to a lack of baseball knowledge. The real spectacle for a newbie is the crowd. Virtually every crowd member arrives with mini plastic baseball bats to hand ready to bang together to the tune of the brass instrumentalists who play well-rehearsed chants prepared for each individual player. A merry band of ‘crowd conductors’ then lead the crowd of nearly 50,000 to sing and bang together for virtually the entirety of the four hour game. It's quite something to watch. 

One of the best parts of the day comes at the end of the seventh innings when the opportunity to witness one of the newer traditions of Koshein takes place. Having purchased some balloons at a memorabilia stall before the game, I joined in with 50,000 others and let them deflate into the sky in unison. Such a description hardly does justice to just how brilliant this is to watch (this video should give a better idea). Its only right that a traditional stadium has certain traditions and though this one may not date back quite as far as 1924 it will no doubt continue for a good while yet.

Baseball in Japan really surprised me. It was far from the bore fest I had expected and even the game itself is quite entertaining. Like most things in Japan it's the unique Japaneseness of the event that makes it that little bit more special though. Next stop on the Japan sport trail for me is football. The crowd will have to be something special to beat the fans down at Koshien though.

Saturday, May 5, 2012

The Maple Leaf Trail to Minoh Waterfall


As I begin to learn more about Osaka I'm starting to realise that there are plenty of relaxing places to visit surprisingly close to the hectic urban sprawl. Minoh waterfall in the north of the city provides an excellent example of such a place. For just 30 minutes of your time and 280 of your yen you can access Minoh on the Hankyu line from Umeda. Upon arrival a 2.8km walk awaits you that leads to a pretty impressive 40 metre high waterfall set in quite beautiful surroundings


After working in Senri-Chuo in the northern suburbs for the past month I’ve encountered a lot of students from neighbouring Minoh city and all have recommended a trip to the waterfall. Having combined this advice with a little bit of my own internet research I decided to follow up the recommendation last Sunday; the first day of golden week.

Golden week inevitably means that Osaka is even busier than usual with the cities businessmen taking up the opportunity to have a few uncharacteristic days off work to spend time with their families. Judging from the train journey to Minoh it also marks a busy period for Japanese trainspotters. Virtually every station from Umeda to Minoh was packed with middle aged men armed with cameras waiting for a glimpse of their favourite train. This was certainly not a sight I was expecting in Japan!

Deep fried maple leaves
Like many ‘cities’ in Japan, Minoh city isn’t really a city, it’s a small suburban town that thrives around the twin themes of the waterfall and its maple trees. For those in need of a snack for the walk up you can even combine the two by buying a pack of the local delicacy; deep fried maple leaves, to keep you energised. Personally the attraction of paying 700 yen for a bag of battered leaves is minimal so I made do with a packet of crisps.

The walk to the falls may only be 2.8km, but the uphill nature can be a little hard work, especially on a hot day. Thankfully the stunning scenery along the route makes it a little easier and if the walk does become a bit too much there are plenty of opportunities for refreshment on the way up too; together with several stalls selling drinks and snacks there is a butterfly museum and the beautiful Ryuanji Temple Benzaiten to keep you entertained. On Sunday there was even a rather talented woman playing a grand piano loaded on to the back of a truck!

The waterfall itself isn’t bad as waterfalls go, I’m no expert, but I enjoyed it. Equally rewarding was the scene around the waterfall with families picnicking around its foot, and dozens of children playing in the river. Even out here in the country there is no escaping the crowds though and after a taking a few pictures it was nice to get back on the path down and enjoy the relative tranquillity of the rainforest.

In Osaka peace and quiet doesn't really exist, not properly anyway, but Minoh does provide a nice release for those who fancy some fresh country air without having to spend a long time travelling. With a long hot summer ahead such spots will be invaluable.