So, I thought I'd write a bit about the daily life in Japan. Garbage, for instance, is a pretty important topic to cover here. And I figured I'd talk about bugs, because, well, who actually talks about the bugs in the foreign countries they live in? I will, since in the spring/summer/autumn the bugs are everywhere, and quite a few of them are toxic. Rather like Arizona, actually.
Garbage in Japan
But first, garbage! It's actually a pretty complicated affair! You need to sort your garbage into five main categories: burnable, plastic, paper, bottles, and "big gomi." ("Gomi" is Japanese for garbage.) Below is a diagram that explains in a bit more detail the different categories.
Burnables are collected every Wednesday and Saturday in Shirasagi, and they must be put inside a specially-designated white plastic bag; the garbage can't be collected inside any other bag! Plastics include plastic bags or small plastic objects, but not PET bottles; they're collected once a week inside of specially-labeled teal plastic bags. Papers include just about anything, except corrugated cardboard and magazines; they're collected every two weeks and can be put inside of any paper bag. Plastic bottles must be crushed, with their labels removed (and put into plastic garbage) and their caps removed (which are collected at schools or grocery stores). Plastic bottles are collected twice a month during "Big Gomi," or big garbage, which I'll talk about in a moment. Corrugated cardboard containers must be unfolded and tied flat together, and they're also collected on "Big Gomi" days. Glass bottles are also collected during "Big Gomi."
"Big Gomi" is a pretty big affair, because on those days people can get rid of stuff that they normally can't. Many people will throw away perfectly good things, too, like old furniture or items. Big bins will be set up for the local community to dispose of the items. There are bins for plastic bottles, cardboard, metal items, wooden items, clear glass bottles, colored glass bottles, cloth items, carpeting, etc. If you don't mind waking up a bit early, you can sometimes find some pretty nice things for free at "Big Gomi." In fact, some bargain hunters will visit "Big Gomi" locations throughout Himeji looking for nice items!
It can be a bit tricky to keep all the different garbage organized and the dates straight, but fortunately, some genius predecessor living in my apartment created a rather brilliant method for organizing garbage!
The blue one is where I put my burnable garbage (it's getting rather full, as you can see!). I've got my bottle caps on the side, for whenever I get a chance to get rid of them at the Max Value. In the first green box, I've got my plastic garbage, and underneath is where I put my glass and plastic bottles for "Big Gomi." On the right I've got a big paper shopping bag full of paper!
It is pretty complicated at first, but it doesn't take too long to get used to. I do get frustrated if my cardboard starts building up between "Big Gomi" days, since I will usually lean the pieces along the wall in my hallway, but overall it isn't a bad system. It's definitely much more environmentally friendly!
For the very curious, here's an extra article about garbage collection in Japan.
The Creepy Crawlies
Now that it's winter, the seemingly constant onslaught of bugs has slowed down to just finding the occasional spider or moth outside of my apartment. But when I first arrived in August, I swear, there were bugs everywhere. EVERYWHERE. The scarab-looking beetles got particularly annoying, because they liked to commit suicide right next to my apartment door. You'd hear the "Bzzt Bzzt Bzzt" of them flying into the hall lights. It was almost as constant as the hum of the cicadas. The spiders were everywhere, I literally couldn't go 5 feet outside without seeing (or walking into) a cobweb with its creator still sitting on it. Although, to be fair, the webs could be very beautiful... from a distance.
I found this article once I was in Japan, because I wanted to do a little bit of research on the bugs I was running into. I really recommend reading it, because I'll be referring to it for the rest of this post! Be warned, though: some of the pictures are not for the faint of heart (when it comes to bugs)! Also, the writer has a sense of humor, which I appreciate.
Anyways, the better question to ask me is: which of those bugs have I not seen since I've come to Japan?
Answer: the Denki-Mushi, the Japanese Mountain Leech, the House Centipede, and the Huntsman Spider. All of which, by the way, I am grateful to not have encountered. Especially the Huntsman Spider. Apparently they have those in Australia, and they really like toilet paper. Super-speed Tarantulas aren't really my style, and I'm hoping I never have a chance to see one in person. And the leech, too. I'll definitely pass that opportunity by! And the house centipede... those legs shouldn't be legal.
The rest... ick. The cicadas really were constant. And they left their gigantic shells everywhere. I'm talking about carapaces that are easily 3-4 inches long. Everywhere. I'll take pictures next summer, just to prove it. The stink bugs were big and liked to hang out on the walls of Shirasagi, but they didn't bother me much, so I didn't think anything of them.
I'd see the cockroaches around, and even found one in my apartment, which then vanished into thin air after I squished it under my shoe, which made for a very fun sleepless night. Apparently my apartment doesn't get roaches too often, which is a relief. That was seriously the fastest roach I've ever seen. I'd rather kill scorpions any day.
I saw a giant centipede once hanging out outside my apartment door one evening. Suffice to say I didn't go anywhere that night. It was gone by morning, which was good. The Jorou spiders were everywhere, but it was easy to spot and avoid their webs.
And the giant hornets... A lot of people told me you rarely ever see those things, except for when they fly into your school when all the windows are open. One flew into the teacher's room during cleaning time, and I was the first one to spot it. It was huge! As the other teachers saw it, they went to turn off all the lights, and everyone got very still. The windows and curtains were opened wide, in the hopes that the bug would fly off on its own. One teacher got a broom ready, though I have absolutely no idea what he was going to do with it. This particular hornet did end up flying outside, after which all of the windows were promptly closed and locked. Fun times.
Much as I hate being cold in the winter, at least the bugs are gone, so I guess I should enjoy it while it lasts...
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