Geography (地理)

I grew up liking geography; I've always liked to know where I am on a map, where I'm going, the different ways to get there, and also understand my place in the world in general. The Japanese call this "chiri," or 地理. I thought I was pretty good at it too, growing up being able to recite the 50 states and capitals of the U.S., until knowing absolutely nothing during the "geography" sections of the local bar trivia games.

Recently, I got interested in Japanese geography, as Japan, despite being what some might consider a small banana-looking island, has quite a few prefectures ,major cities, islands, etc. I've only been to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and some other major cities, so I don't know the difference between Saitama, Aomori, or any other distinct areas of Japan. Tokyo itself has a bunch of districts and small cities that encompass the total city of Tokyo that's pretty famous in Japanese history, and it's really part of the culture to know all those areas.

Interest in geography also probably sparks my interest in getting to all the different places in the world, as well as all the different baseball stadiums across America: the want of going somewhere new coupled with the interest in that place from having studied in geography. That's really part of traveling, I think: putting a face/ image with all one has heard about in the maps, stories, etc.

As I follow both the GOP and Democratic Presidental nomination races, I'm reminded of all the states in the U.S. and the demographics of the U.S. in general: how many people reside in Michigan (surprise win by Bernie Sanders tonight!) and how many of those are clustered around the Detroit area, that Iowa is predominantly white, how much rural area some of those states have compared to one central, metropolitan region. Mostly, I just like how the one demographic expert on CNN points out all the different counties of a state and which ones are going for each candidate. That's classic. It's also an important point that's really becoming an issue in this year's presidential election: state maps. Candidates need the delegates to get elected, and those delegates are more plentiful in big states like Florida, New York, Illinois, California, etc......all states that have not yet had their primary/ caucus. Still a far way from Donald Trump/ Hilary Clinton clash that most people are expecting.

Finally, I'm a little saddened that yet another piece of my childhood and nostalgic thoughts (along with reading books at the library, Blockbuster, and doing mental math) is being swallowed up by technology: really being able to read a map has become a thing of the past. Nowadays one can get by without a map, just type in the address on a GPS/ smartphone, and it will direct you on how to get there, just make right or left turns. What I really liked about my visit to the Boston Library was the map exhibit they had: I used to pore over maps as a kid to know where we are and plan how to get there, and look at maps of fantasy worlds like Redwall, Harry Potter, and Clue, really study them to get lost in that realm and fully immerse oneself, to know how the environments the main characters found themselves in fit in with one another. I guess one can still do that today, but not with the amount of urgency and enthusiasm as before.

In summary, geography's a big part of my life. Especially on days when I'm stuck in the office with nowhere to go and daydreaming about going to sandy beaches and majestic mountains, when I find myself staring at maps and picturing other places of world in my mind, geography comes in pretty handy. I'm gonna go pore over a map of Japan now.

Fantasize on,

Robert Yan