Cold. It was bitterly cold as I stood on the train platform arriving in Nagoya from Tokyo. Although I left the cold and snow in Utah and had dressed as warmly as I could in layers, I still could not fight the wind blowing through me and the temperature chilling me to the bone. What must it feel like for those missionaries in our group who had been sent farther north in Hokkaido and Sendai? I was to be sent northward the next day from Nagoya to Kanazawa on the west coast. This was December of 1975.
At the mission home of the Nagoya Mission we had a cup of hot Milo, a malt-based powder similar in taste to hot chocolate and produced in Asia (Mormons don’t use caffeinated drinks). It tasted so comforting.
Relocated to Kanazawa
Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture was extremely beautiful, a snow and ice wonderland in the winter. It has a temperate climate with much rain which provides the lush surrounding greenery. It has a population of about 462 thousand.
Kanazawa was spared fire bombing by the USAAF during WWII, and so the city boasts an awesome architectural heritage not seen in many of the larger cities. It is noted for its castle and the famous Kenrokuen Garden.
Upon arrival in Kanazawa we went straightway to a street mall to introduce the Book of Mormon in Japanese to those who would listen or try to understand my feeble Japanese. I was again swept away by the bitterness of the cold. Kanazawa has an underground arcade, as is found in many snowy cities, for warmer shopping, and the foreign sights, sounds and smells of the arcade are engraved in my mind.
In Kanazawa four sister-missionaries shared a little apartment with a running toilet (many houses had the hole in the ground which is occasionally cleaned out by stinky trucks with hoses. I noticed that it was so cold inside our apartment that there was some ice in the toilet. There was a tiny gas water heater above the kitchen sink, lit to wash dishes.
We used a portable kerosene heater to bring some warmth to our living room/bedroom area (washitsu) when occupied. These kerosene heaters were practical as we could also heat water in a kettle, toast bread on top or cook sweet potatoes while heating the room and had a kotatsu short table for sitting on the floor with a blanket over our legs.
The washitsu living area was carpeted with traditional tatami woven mats and we folded away our futons (flat sleeping mattresses) in a closet when not in use.
Adjusting to the food, cold and bustle of the missionary routine was difficult for me and I fought colds and flu that winter. I wrote to my father who had been a prisoner of war in Japan during WWII, that I thought I knew a little of what misery he had felt there. Of course, my father had always been upbeat about his experience and came out of it with a love of Japan. I reminded myself to do the same, and with little time I fell in love with the splendor of the country.
The Ofuro Bathtub
We had a furo (names of items are made honorific by placing an o at the beginning as in ofuro) bathtub which was heated for soaking. Public ofuros are found throughout Japan and one can see men dressed in kimonos and getas (elevated wooden sandals) coming back home from their baths.
At the ofuro one meticulously cleans oneself before entering the bath and the water does not need to be changed frequently. When changed, the old water is often used for washing clothes. The room is very cold and the steaming hot ofuro is so inviting.
Paula I. Nielson - Paula I. Nielson, Ph.D., holds credentials and interests in anthropology, archaeology, religion, the Middle East and Asia.
