2018/10/25 Trinidad and Tobago

Hi, everyone. I am Trinidad.

And I’m Tobago. We are two islands that make one country called the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

You can find us in the southern part of the Caribbean near Venexuela. We are only a little bit larger than Chiba Prefecture. Our national language is English, and the population is about 1.3 million. Oh, have you heard about our very big festival held every year in our capital, Port of Spain?

It's a festival for our famous musical instrument, the steel pan. A steel pan is made from a big steel can. Usually, a drum has a flap top, right? But a steel pan doesn't have a flat top. It looks like a bowl. You hit different places in the bowl, and it makes different sounds. Isn't it cool? People often tell us that a steel pan has a very sweet and beautiful sound.

Steel pans also have an interesting history. In the fifteenth century, Christopher Columbus reached Trinidad, and Spain took control of this island for about 300 years. After that, many countries ruled this area. In the eighteenth century, they brought African people as slaves to this island. The slaves used to play their African drums to wash away their pain and sadness. They finally became free in 1834. They continued to play their drums. But some people thought they were too noisy. So one day, they were ordered not to play their drums anymore.

But they used music and rhythm to express their culture. They needed an instrument. So they made a new instrument from bamboo that grew this island. They called it tamboo-bamboo. The bamboo was cut into different sizes to make different sounds.

But it became against the law, too.

You know the phrase, You can't live without music, right? Music cleans away our negative feelings and brightens up our positive feelings. Music is like food for our souls.

The people couldn’t play their drums or their new instruments. So they started hitting things like biscut cans to make music. Then, in 1039, a boy called Winston Simmon made a big discovery. He was fixing old steel cans, and he found that hitting different damaged places made different sounds. The original steel pan was born through luck. Later, many people made inprovements, and the steel pan got better and better.

When you hear more than 100 steel pans played together, you hear waves of sounds. It may sound like heaven getting larger and larger. The steel pan was made because the people of Trinidad and Tobago needed to express themselves. It comes from our people’s soul.

There's no life without music. People living here today enjoy playing the steel pans. Come and listen to us someday.

2018/10/24 My neighborhood

Cotton candy, anyone? It tastes so sweet and it looks just like a soft, white cloud in the sky. Hey, midori. Are you coming home from work? We are having a karaoke singing contest from eight p.m. you should come and join us.

No, thank you.

Oh, don't be so cold. Every year, there are fewer people in the contest… Can't you help me out?

I’m tired from work. Maybe next time.

Okay, sorry to trouble you.

At this time of year, the men in the neighborhood come together for the summer festival. They set up food stands and enjoy having parties. If I keep walking down this street, someone might talk to me again. I don't feel like talking, so I take a different route home.

What's wrong?

Mommy is gone.

The boy is lost. I really want to go home, but I can't leave a little boy alone in the street.

I'll help you find your mother. When did you last see her?

I don't remember.

What's your name? How old are you? Oh, please don't cry. Here, let me buy you some cotton candy.

I take the boy’s hand and go back to the cotton candy stand.

Hi again Midori. Did you change your mind? Are you coming to the karaoke contest?

Sorry, no. Actually, I’m looking for this boy’s mother. He's lost.

I think I've seen him before.

You know him?

I think he moved here last year, and he goes to the same kindergarten as the boy from the grocery store.

Wow. You know a lot of people in this neighborhood.

Wait a minute. I’m going to call my friend. He can probably help.

This man is going to find your mother.

Thanks. Do you live near here?

Yes, I've lived here all my life. I know a lot of people here.

But you didn’t know me.

What?

Do you know Kosuke from the bakery?

The bakery?

How about Yuko from the flower shop and Shigeru from the dry-cleaning shop?

No. I don't know anyone.

Do you really live here?

The boy’s words made me think. It's true that I've lived here all my life. But I haven’t talked to the people here for a long time. Maybe it's time to change that.

Hey, Midori. I found the boy’s mother. She was looking for him on that busy street over there. She is coming here now.

That’s great. You said the karaoke contest was from eight o’clock, right?

That’s right. Why?

I'll be there.

Really? Wow. Thank you. Hey everyone, did you hear? Midori is coming to the Karaoke contest.

Oh, look. It's mommy. Thank you Midori-san.

No, thank you.

What for?

For helping me remember how great this neighborhood is.

2018/10/23 The Yoro waterfall

Once upon a time, there lived a good young man and his father. They are very poor. The father was old and weak, and he could not work. The young man was a woodcutter in the mountains. He hado to work hard to get food for the both of them. But it was always difficult to make enough money. They were often hungry.

The father often said, I wish I could drink some sake. The good son wanted to make his father’s dream come true. But theyhad no money for sake. They didn’t even have enough money for food.

The old man became weaker and weaker. The son wanted to make more money. Then, he could buy some sake for his father. He started to work longer and longer each day.

One day, he was working very hard. He forgot about the time, and it became very dark. He was walking home, but he could not see very well. His foot hit a rock. He fell down and was lying on the ground. Suddenly, he could smell something. It was a very nice smell. I wonder what that smell is. Where is it coming from?

The young man looked around. He saw water coming out of the rocks. It was a small waterfall. The wonderfull smell seemed to be coming from it.

I think I'll try some of that water

He drank it and was surprised. It wasn’t water.

Wow. This is sake.

The young man had a bamboo bottle on his belt. He quickly filled it with sake and ran home. Father, I have some sake for you. How did you get sake? We have no money.

The son explained about the waterfall. What a strange thing. The father happily drank the sake.

From that day, the son always stopped at the waterfall and got sake for his father. Thanks to this, the father got better.

Everyone talked about the son and the waterfall. Soon the Empress heard about this good son. She thought it was a wonderful story. He came to meet the son. Together with the young man, she went to the waterfall.

I think this water became sake because you were working hard for your father. It is a miracle.

Then, the Empress said the young man could become a lord. The young lord took care of his father and two of them lived happily ever after.

Because of this miracle, the Empress changed the name of the era. She called it the Yoro era. Yoro means taking care of old people.

It is said the waterfall with sake came to be called the Yoro waterfall.

2018/10/22 A&B @ Mount Tsukuba

Hey, Ben. Remember that schedule I made? When are you going to start following it?

Sometime soon…

Do you even know where we are right now?

We are in Ibaraki. Ah. The air is so fresh.

The air is great. But is there anything to do here?

We can perform here.

But we need to perform in a place with more people. There aren’t many tourists here.

There aren’t? Then who are those people over there?

Oh, there are a lot of people. I wonder why.

Akito thinks we should perform in the city. Because there are a lot of people. He just doesn't understand. Street performers don't always have to perform in crowded places. If the performance is good, the crowd will come.

Ben, I found out where those people are going. They are tourist who are going to climb Mount Tsukuba.

Where's Mount Tsukuba?

It's that mountain right in front of us. Mount Tsukuba has always been famous as a spiritual mountain. Some people even say In the west, there is Mount Fuji. In the east, there is Mount Tsukuba.

Really?

At sunrise and sunset, the mountain looks purple, so sometimes it's called the Purple mountain. Also, there is a shrine halfway up the mountain. This shrine is said to be about 3000 years old.

That sounds really cool. So, is it difficult to climb?

Well, there is a cable car that can take us to the top of the mountain.

Then, let's go.

Now?

Yeah. Why not? Don't you want to know why there are so many people here?

Well, yeah, I guess.

What are they doing?

They are selling a special oil called gama oil.

Gama oil? What's that?

It's oil from a toad.

A toad? You mean like a frog?

Yeah, a long time ago, a man named Nagai Heisuke caught a toad that had magic pawers. Nagai took the oil on the toad’s skin and made a special lotion. Then, he sold it in Asakusa. It is said that lotion could fix almost any problem.

That sounds really useful. Hey. She is going to cut herself with that katana sword.

Oh, no. She’s bleeding. Akito, call the ambulance.

Ben, it's okay. Look.

She's putting the lotion on the cut? She stopped bleeding.

The lotion works like magic.

Okay. Let me buy some. We always get cuts when we perform.

Actually, it won't fix the cuts.

What do you mean?

That was a storytelling performance. Gama oil sellers are street performers, just like us. They surprise the crowdby by cuttingthemselves with the sword and then stopping the blood with the lotion.

That was a show? It was fantastic. I want to learn from her.

Aren’t we going to climb Mount Tsukuba?

We can do that later. Let's go and talk with the gama oil seller.

Ben, wait.

2018/10/19 Run,Melos! E3

What are you doing? I have to get back to the castle before the sun sets.

Melos was surrounded by mountain robbers.

Give us everything you have.

I have nothing, Only my life. Even that belongs to the king.

Your life is what we want.

What? Wait a minute, did the king send you to kill me?

The robbers did not answer.

They raised their wooden sticks to hit Melos. But Melos knocked down one man and took his stick.

I’m sorry, but I have to do this.

Melos hit three robbers and then ran away. The afternoon was very hot. It made Melos very tired and weak. Soon he could not run anymore and fell down. He tried to stand up but couldn’t. Melos looked up to the sky and said…

I swam across a fast river and even fought against the robbers. I know I can still run. If I don't, my best friend, Selinuntius, will die because he believed in me. That is what the king wants.

When the body is tired, the mind also becomes weak. Even the strong Melos started to have weak thoughts.

I have tried my best to keep my promise. I ran until I couldn’t run anymore. I am not an evil person. But I’m sure everyone will laugh at me. My family will be laughed at.

Melos continued to talk to himself.

The king told me to be late. He said that he would save me if I was late. I hated him for saying that, but that might happen. The king will laugh at me and save my life. But that is worse than death. Selinuntius, you will not die alone. I will die with you. I know that at least you believe in me. But wait.

Melos started to think differently.

Maybe I am the only one who believes in people. Justice, truth, love. When you think about it, they are only pretty words. For a long time, people have killed other people to live. So why shouldn’t I? I am an evil person. I don't care about anything anymore.

Melos gave up and lay down on the ground. His eyes started to close. Then, Melos heard the sound of water. He slowly rose up and found spring water coming out out from a rock near his feet. He drank some and let out a deep breath. It was like waking up from a dream.

I think I can walk now.

Melos felt his strength return. Hope also returned with it.

There is still time before sunset. I don't care about my life. I only care about keeping my promise to someone who completely believes in me. I must run. Run, Melos.