Japan 6: first time in Hokkaido

The annual meeting of the Meteoritical Society always offers the opportunity to visit a new place. This time, it was Sapporo. For the 6th time, I went to Japan, supported by a bunch of reasons:

1. I like Japan, I like the food, the clean streets, the efficient transportation, etc. Besides, I've never been in Hokkaido before.
2. It was the last conference during the project that has allowed me to come back to Vienna.
3. A friend of mine, met in 2008 in the Netherlands at an organ summer school, recently moved to Otaru, close to Sapporo, and I'd like to meet her again.

Campus of the Hokkaido University

I flew with a German colleague of mine from the museum and, this time, with ANA instead of Lufthansa or Austrian. We left a hot Vienna on a Saturday and we landed in Tokyo on Sunday morning. We had to run through Haneda airport because we had just 45 minutes to disembark, pass the immigration, pick up the luggage, pass the custom, check the luggage for domestic flights, change terminal, pass through the security again, and finally board another plane. With the support of the ground staff of ANA, we made it. Despite the lack of sleep, we managed to take a bus to the city and to walk to the hotel. Our room wasn't available until 3 p.m., so we went for food and a walk in the beautiful Odori Park, enjoying the sun and the mild temperature. 

The conference was attended by a large number of scientists, but some groups were missing, including many colleagues, who are likely going to other competing and more specific meetings that will take place in the next months. This is why I didn't receive a lot of inputs on the current project, but I learned a lot on other topics, I developed new ideas, and I met new colleagues for  potential collaborations. As usual, there were other Italians, most of them with a foreign affiliation. The conference was organized in July to have the opportunity to follow live the second touch down of the Haybusa II probe on asteroid Ryugu. The social events during the conference were extraordinary good: icebreaker party with free ice cream, gala dinner with Japanese dance and drum music and delicious food for all (but the event ended at 9 p.m., quite soon for the Western habits), farewell party (although in this case the food wasn’t enough for all), several tours on Wednesday (I attended the one in the city, led by a very enthusiastic Japanese guide, who taught us something about Sapporo and Hokkaido playing quizzes), and long poster sessions with drinks and snacks. It was even offered to learn Japanese writing and to take part to a tea ceremony. Although it seemed organized in the last minute, overall the result was fantastic and the location, within the campus of the Hokkaido University, particularly beautiful.

 

The famous canal strolling in Otaru

On Saturday, all by my own, I went to the coast city of Otaru to meet the dear friend of mine I mentioned above, who had explained to me the Japanese mentality and culture much longer before I ever thought to come to visit the country. I also met her daughters, both talented musicians, especially the eldest, 6 yrs old, capable to offer a passionate interpretation of Bach, not just pressing the right keys at a good speed. Well, the mom is a musician, too, although she’s not playing the organ anymore. Otaru, a nice fisher village, famous for… glass, exactly like Murano (Venice). But also for bier, fish, and other products. The train journey from Sapporo offers a nice view of the coast, with the railway at a few meters from the water.

This part of Japan is peculiar, because a "nordic" landscape, with cows, forests, and facilities for winter sports, is mixed with the typical asiatic features, including skyscrapers, shrines, Ramen restaurants, etc. There are a lot of tourists, mostly from China or from Japan itself. The whole country is an interesting contradiction. The amount of packaging and plastic produced every day is "compensated" by the use of green ink or recycled paper. The technological advancement of the computer science is balanced by the traditional mentality about marriage and levels of respect in the speech. The enormous debts of the nation contrasts with the high cost of living and the luxury style. Slim people that eat anytime and not so light dishes. Every time in Japan is a "wow". So different and so lovely. See you soon again, Japan!

Japan and the Solar System: 12 days around Tokyo

Again in Japan, 3 years after the last time, 5th time flying to Tokyo, to attend a symposium at the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA). I realized that there are a lot of similarities between Japan and the Solar System: they are minimalist with a lot of “empty” space between a few objects, they are complex, they are old but always up to date and unpredictable, they are often affected by catastrophic events but they recover, adapt, and continue to evolve. Did you ever notice that as we have the Sun in the center of your Solar System Japan has the Sun in the center of its flag?

A kind of philosophical divagation for introducing this journey, which included some vacation, going around with a German colleague from the NHM of Vienna. The direct flight between Vienna and Tokyo is offered by AUA only in summer, so we had to transfer in Munich, a kind of black hole for luggage. This time, it happened to Julia to have her suitcase delivered to the hotel in Tokyo two days after our landing in Haneda. On the way back, we had better luck, the luggage arrived with us. Let’s talk about public transportation in Tokyo. It’s amazingly efficient, but overcrowded. People are pushed in, kindly but firmly. Although there is a continuous flow of people in and off the trains, everything is ordered and quiet. Unbelievable! The only black mark is the poor knowledge of English. I don’t like the language, but it is a necessity, you cannot aim to an international community without speaking a common language, which unfortunately is English. People are overall very friendly, but communication was constantly an issue.

After a couple of day in Asakasa, Tokyo, to overcome the jet lag (there are 8 hrs difference), we went to Sagamihara, where the JAXA is located, for the conference. We were staying at the local guest house, very cheap and convenient, but bureaucratically… “complicated”. It is always an interesting scientific meeting on the topic Antarctic meteorites, asteroids and space exploration. The group of attendees is small but selected. The international guests generally present review work, summarizing thoughts and measurements of years, the Japanese hosts present their high quality research and push the students to go international. This gives always the opportunity to learn a lot and to strengthen collaborations all over the world. The isolated location helps, too.

After the symposium, the colleague and I continued our trip going to Yokohama and returning to Tokyo (this time in Asakusa, in a lovely Japanese apartment booked through airbnb). Yokohama is cute, but disappointed my expectations. I thought of colonial buildings, I saw modern skyscrapers, a chaotic Chinatown, a reproduction of Burano as amusement park and an imitation of German Christmas markets with German and Austrian products. I liked the shore. Finally, I saw the other side of the Pacific Ocean, after the coast near San Francisco. In the remaining days in Tokyo, we saw all, really all what is listed in any touristic guidebook. The landmarks I especially appreciated, as this wasn’t my first time in town, were the cemetery district (Nezu) and the autumn colors in the peaceful parks. We also ate all what the local cuisine could offer, fish, tofu, soy, green tea, row, boiled, fried, paned, etc. We even cooked our own Japanese dinner. Everything is delicious, but I must admit that after almost two weeks I started dreaming of cheese, real bread, our beans, vegetables, and fruits. And cakes, with a crispy consistence, as well!

In about seven months, I’ll fly again to Japan. The next meeting of the Meteoritical Society will be in Sapporo. Finally away from Tokyo, exploring a different part of the country. Hopefully not as hot as Tokyo in summer. I look forward to this experience, because Japan is indeed an amazing country. If only there was a faster way to getting there… Well, the sunlight takes 8 minutes to reach the Earth and we are pretty close in comparison with other bodies in the Solar System.

Bonn, or the German Brussels

(sotto un riassunto in italiano)

First time in Bonn, the former capital city of Germany. I knew Bonn as the birthplace of Ludwig van Beethoven, who eventually died in Vienna, and as the place where some former colleagues did their PhD. Now, thanks to a conference, I have the opportunity to visit the city

First day: the journey

It could have been worse, but this doesn’t mean it was good. I woke up too early, so I anticipated all my plans and before 7 am I was already at the airport. The direct flight to Bonn was to expensive, now I have to change in Munich. The first flight was fine, just 15 minutes delay. The second flight was a nightmare: the gate changed twice and I had to go to another terminal by train, they had to change the aircraft, modifying the seat numbers and having people in overbooking, when we were ready to leave they realized that a cargo door wasn’t working properly and they had to load down half of the luggage, finally we took off with 1 hr delay, and upon the arrival at least 50 passengers didn’t receive their luggage, included myself. In the meantime, I had developed a headache. The airport Köln-Bonn is relatively small but disorganized. Even asking to some security guys, it has been difficult to find the bus stop. Thanks God, I didn’t have to wait for the bus and the bus driver was very kind and helpful. The main railway station in Bonn is as chaotic and bad populated as the Gare du Midi in Brussels. On the top, it is a construction site and the indication signs are poor. Eventually I got the train to Tannenbusch, district compared to Molenbeek in the press, where was the cheapest-but-still-expensive hotel I had to book because the Airbnb I booked had to cancel the stay. Tannenbusch indeed recalls some poor districts of Brussels, with men hanging around, graffiti over shop doors, and cars parked on the sidewalk. However, you can recognize that it is Germany, because clean and effective, expecially during week days. The hotel is fine, but I felt so broken that rather than enjoining the icebreaker party at the conference, I went immediately to bed without lunch and dinner.

Second day: shopping and conference

As it seemed that the suitcase would have not been delivered for a long time and considering that I had nothing but my laptop and an umbrella in my hand-luggage, I decided to buy the minimum stuff for surviving a couple of days, which means toiletry and a change. Such common things are much more cheaper here than in Vienna, even though I bought the same products in the same shop chains! I eventually got my suitcase delivered in the hotel at 9 pm, when I had given up the hope to see it for the day.

The impression of Bonn is of a cute city, but a whole construction site, including the already mentioned main railway station, the Münster, and even the main building of the university, where the conference takes place. This building is a beautiful baroque castle from the outside, and a terrible 70’ assemblage of classrooms and offices in the interior. Funny fact, in the main hall, there is a pipe organ  and in a large lecture theater there is a piano. I was afraid to spend a lot of time my own, because I feared not to know many people at the conference, which is mostly thought for the German geological community. In fact, I realized I do know a lot of people, considering the length of my academic experience (Ms degree obtained almost 15 yrs ago!) and the several changes of topic. For being the first day of the conference, I talked a lot, continuously switching between German and English, depending on the person I had in front.

Third day: just conference

This was my day, starting at 8:30 with my talk and closing at 6 pm with my poster. I met other former colleagues, friends, and acquaintances. For lunch, I went to a bakery and I enjoyed walking in the city. I like that it is mostly reserved to pedestrians. Actually, this is typical of many Austrian and German cities. Back to the conference, my early performance wasn’t at best, but I got positive feedback as interested questions, much better than having the audience bored or clearly disagreeing with the proposed idea. The poster wasn’t better, it wasn’t even my idea, but just reworking the analyses done by a former PhD student, who left after one year. It is not my field, strictly speaking. For dinner, I decided for the Italian next to the hotel, which is actually Italian but like thousands of Italians in Germany. People that emigrated at least 30-40 yrs ago.

Belgium? No, Germany.

Forth day: the conference dinner

The conference program for today wasn’t particularly interesting for me, so I spent the first part of the morning visiting Bonn. The first stop was at the old cemetery, where the Schumanns are buried. Then I walked through the city to the Rhine. I missed the water in Brussels, the small channel cannot be compared to a large river, such as the Danube or the Rhine. For lunch, a German colleague joined for visiting the local mineralogical museum, curated by the university. The location is gorgeous, in the Poppelsdorfer Castle, the exhibit is limited by well organized. In the afternoon, I followed some talks about outreach, which were much more self focused than I expected, and discussed about the limitations of a project with another colleague.

The event of the day was the conference dinner, organized in the new cafeteria of the university. Of the 760 participants, just ca. 400 attended the dinner. A considerable amount, in comparison with other conference dinners I attended. The food was on the average but the opportunity to chat and to meet other people from different fields was great. I felt sorry for the musicians, who played Irish folk music but where covered by the loud attempts to talk of the participants. As soon as I was done with the food, I left.

Fifth day: the ceremony

Last day of the conference, at least for the talks. The first part was dominated by the keynote talk of an old acquaintance, who proposed a kind of revolutionary interpretation but without the support of sufficient data (I know the feeling), followed by an interesting plenary lecture about seismotectonics (yeah! trying to understand earthquakes!) and by the award ceremony. What began in English, ended soon in German, as the conference was "supported" by the local geological, mineralogical, paleontological, etc. societies. The worst happened when an old professor said that he has been happy to hear a couple of talks in German and that we should use German again as language of science. What??? I’m not a fan of English, but as we dropped Latin, we have to use a common language, if we want to share the results of our research and to bring an advance in science, through global cooperation. It makes no sense going back to the national languages! If that professor does not understand that, why did he become the recipient of a prize? Another sad consideration about the conference, I’ve never seen so a few women on the stage. The spokesman of the organizing committee admitted that most of the work has been done by his French female colleague… but the truth is that he will be the only one remembered.

In the afternoon, after the last "scientific" lunch, I went for shopping at the Haribo, the famous company producing the chummy little bears, which I didn’t know originated in Bonn, and I went back to the hotel to work.

the Rhine

 Sixth day: the field trip

Finally, I have the opportunity to visit the volcanic field of the Eifel! This is what I fought when I registered for this field trip. In the years spent in Belgium, just on the other side of the border, I always dreamed of such an excursion. In fact, the field trip was mostly archeological, paleontological, and paleobotanical, but nevertheless interesting. I saw very old fossils (Devonian), very recent maars (ca. 30 ka), and the genius of the Romans. We, Italians, sometimes forget that our grand-grand-grandparents brought the civilization in Europe… As usual, I was the only foreigner in a German group, both as Italian and as coming from Austria, but as I do speak German (or at least I understand most of it) the explanations were given only in German. There was a pretty heterogeneous group of participants, not all of us were scientist and even among the geologists many different disciplines were represented. As true German, we arrived in Bonn exactly at 6 pm, but due to the French and Roman historical influences my train was broken and after a detour I got back to the hotel with an unwanted delay.

Seventh day: the museums

I should have left today, but the flight was too expensive. Of course, a night longer in hotel costs as well, but at the beginning I planned to stay elsewhere, saving research money. What to do? I have already seen almost everything I wanted to see and in the weekend, the trains are less thick. I spent a lot of time just waiting. The only highlight of the day was Beethoven’s house, even though he was only born here and his parents moved out when he was three.

Eighth day: the history

Before leaving, after the last delicious breakfast in a local bakery, I went to the church close to the hotel (catholic, even though I guess that the district is mostly Muslim) to attend the holy mass. Surprisingly, the church was full and not only with old people or with foreigners, as I thought. The organ is obviously made by Klais, local organ maker, and the organist played nice improvisations, but the chosen chorals were relatively modern and the tempo was relatively slow for the viennese standard.

I had to find a way to spend some hours before going to the airport, so I decided to visit the museum of the history of the German Republic after 1946. Very interesting! Highly recommended. Another part is in Berlin, where I’m going to very soon (again, fourth time this year). For fun, I’ve done the mandatory test to get the German nationality and I passed it, with 14/15 correct answers about the German constitution and history. I wonder if I could be so successful in an Austrian or Italian equivalent. In the museum, I had also lunch, with a Wiener Schnitzel. Already nostalgic? Yes, so much that I was at the airport 4 hrs in advance! The journey back was simply perfect, the flight was on time, my luggage was one of the firsts to come, I run to the train, and in less than a hour I was at home. Vienna, I missed you!

Wherever I go... I find a pipe organ.

Conclusion

Bonn is indeed similar to Brussels, for the style of some buildings and the inefficiency of the information system, but it is also typical German, for the habits of the locals (also integrated immigrants) and the general order. Bonn seems to be stuck in the 60’-70’. The whole city is a construction site because the infrastructures are old. What was innovative 50 years ago is now obsolete and insufficient for the modern traffic. I imagine that Germany invested a lot on Bonn when it was the capital city, but after the reunification moved to the update the former GDR, leaving Bonn far behind. Bonn is also a bit more "Mediterranean" than other German cities, due to the inheritance left by the Romans, the influence brought by French and Belgians, and the "frivolity" induced by the presence of the Catholic Church. Cologne, a few km away from Bonn, is much more German!

Versione italiana:

Approfittando di un convegno, ho visitato Bonn per la prima volta. L'ex-capitale della Germania è un cantiere a cielo aperto e sorprendentemente disorganizzata per essere tedesca. Le infrastrutture sono ferme agli anni '60-'70 e la stazione centrale ricorda la Gare du Midi a Bxl. Ciononostante, ci sono caratteristiche che la rendono pienamente tedesca e gradevole da visitare. A parte il centro storico, interamente pedonalizzato, non dimenticherò la casa natale di Beethoven, la ditta organaria Klais ed i suoi strumenti ed il museo della storia della Germania dopo il 1945.

Il viaggio in sé non è stato dei migliori, costoso e almeno all'andata problematico, con ritardi, cambiamenti e perdita del bagaglio (consegnato la sera successiva). Il ritorno è andato meglio, anche se l'aeroporto di Colonia-Bonn è un caos. L'airbnb prenotato non è andato a buon fine, per cui ho dovuto ripiegare su un hotel relativamente costoso, periferico ed in un quartiere paragonato a Molenbeek (ecco che ritorna Bxl). Il soggiorno non è stato affatto disagevole ed il quartiere, benché popolato da parecchi immigrati, è tranquillo e funzionale come mi aspetterei in qualsiasi città tedesca.

Ultimo viaggio a Sudest.

Con buona pace dei Leghisti, il Veneto si trova a sudest rispetto Bxl.  Se non ci saranno imprevisti, quello di qualche settima fa sarà stato l’ultimo viaggio in aereo verso casa partendo dal Belgio, perché i ritorni successivi saranno in direzione sud-ovest, partendo da Vienna. Viaggio programmato da tempo, dopo la Pasqua a Bxl, per festeggiare in famiglia i compleanni. Nulla di triste o malinconico. Tranne partire ed arrivare a Zaventem, nell’aeroporto appena riaperto. In realtà è filato tutto liscio, si sono organizzati molto bene. Gli unici segni visibili di quanto accaduto sono le vetrate rotte, le aree chiuse ed il checkin in capannoni d’emergenza. Brussels Airlines ed il personale dell’aeroporto non solo si sono adoperati per riaprire lo scalo prima possibile riducendo al minimo i disagi ma anche per operare voli piacevoli e puntuali. Nonostante lo spettro di uno sciopero a sorpresa dei controllori di volo e nonostante il clima di tensione dato dall’onnipresenza dell’esercito armato fino ai denti. Al contrario, l’aeroporto di Venezia ha confermato di non essere all’altezza, con il suo solito caos, affollamenti disordinati, ritardi nella consegna dei bagagli e personale addetto alla sicurezza che preferisce chiacchierare in dialetto (o quasi) invece che seguire i passeggeri alla scansione dei bagagli. Peccato, perché Venezia è sempre bella e la laguna dall’alto in un giorno di sole è magnifica.

Sottomarina. I murazzi.

Di questo viaggio a sudest, il giro a Bologna per rivedere un’amica e collega ha lasciato le impressioni più colorite. L’intercity dell’andata era in ritardo (20 minuti) ed il regionale veloce del ritorno era gelato in modalità freezer. Almeno  sul piano ferroviario nulla è cambiato in questi anni. Il treno era pieno di cinesi, questa è una novità per me. Il mercato della Montagnola ospitava anche banchi africani, come 15 anni fa quando vi comprai un portamonete che ancora uso. In stazione ci hanno chiesto informazioni in inglese. Fantastico! Bologna si sta avvicinando alle città europee multiculturali e variegate come Bxl. Pia illusione. È bastata una passeggiata verso il centro per capirlo. Bologna la rossa, con le decine di km di porticati, l’ironia sagace, l’università, etc.… era disseminata di banchetti della Lega Nord.

I colori ed il vento caldo di Sottomarina non possono mancare. Un vero anticipo d’estate, con tanto di folla a passeggio sulla spiaggia e di lunghe code in auto sulla via del ritorno. In chiesa ho avuto per un momento l’impressione di essere ancora a Bxl, grazie ad un sacerdote di colore con un forte accento francese. Anche qui, però, l’illusione è durata poco. Il primo canto urlato al microfono da una cantante improvvisata, martoriato all’organo da un suonatore della domenica, lo stile da Sanremo più che da chiesa ed il silenzio da parte dell’assemblea. No, è Italia, Veneto, a tutti gli effetti.

Il bosco fiorito.

Dal mare alla montagna. Letteralmente. Il giorno dopo la gita a Chioggia, siamo saliti a Lavarone. Non c’è più neve, la primavera sta per esplodere, tanto che il sottobosco fiorito mi ha ricordato quello di Halle, in Belgio. Veramente no, perché lo spettacolo profumato era solo per me e papà. Nessuno in giro. Mentre ad Halle si fa fatica a fotografare un angolo senza persone nei giorni di sole. A Lavarone invece regna la desolazione assoluta dalle case vacanze chiuse in giorno settimanale fuori stagione.

Finalmente veniamo al mio paese, Montegrotto. Anche qui i panorami felici si sprecano in questa stagione, con i colli a far da cornice, tra vestigia romane ed alberghi di lusso. Il quadretto è completato dalla diffusione del dialetto locale, che ancora comprendo ma che mi rifiuto di parlare quando sono a casa. Poi ci si mettono un supermercato chiuso per sciopero, una commessa poco collaborativa e le lunghe attese per sbrogliare inghippi postali (sia di persona sia per telefono, con affermazioni contrastanti ed inutili lungaggini burocratiche per un errore loro). Sembra di stare ancora a Bxl.  O forse è Bxl che sembra Italia? Già, con l’unica differenza che al mio paese posso anche rispondere per le rime nell’idioma a me familiare, mentre in Belgio, anche conoscendo una delle lingue ufficiali, si rischia sempre di usarla con la persona sbagliata. Ancora più frustrante che veder saltato il proprio numero in coda in panificio (non è successo, per fortuna).

Nel complesso, però, mi sono proprio goduta la vacanza. Per la prima volta da lungo tempo non mi sono messa al computer per lavorare nemmeno un giorno. Ho goduto della compagnia di parenti ed amici, ho rispolverato la bici, il pianoforte e l'organo digitale ed ho rieducato il palato ai sapori della cucina di casa.

P.S. Da quanto scritto sembra che abbia avuto sempre in mente Bxl durante questa vacanza. Non è vero. In realtà i parallelismi mi sono venuti in mente solo ora. Non era quindi nostalgia, anzi, al contrario, è la prova di quanto Bxl mi ricordi l’Italia e quanto questo m’innervosisca.