May 23rd: Real work is starting..

Yes !  We are starting real work = Physical work = Muscle work from today.
We are going to tackle with mud and rubble.

Currently, there are many volunteer centers all over the Tohoku area, the effected area, and the Ishinomaki-city has one.  This Ishinomaki-city Volunteer Center is a bit special one compared to other centeres because they provide a tent site with some Porta-Potty restrooms and the car parking area for volunteers at the track field of Ishinomaki Senshu University.  They are one of the first group to accept people from outside of its prefecture, and they make easy for volunteers from all over Japan to come and stay.

click to expand the picture

see the porta potty rooms lined up behind the tents?

 When you first come to the volunteer center, you need to register yourself.  You have to have a volunteer insurance to work.  This special insurance is available from your local welfare & volunteer service office.  I paid mine for 650 yen (about $8.00) for one year.  Also in order to work here, volunteers are required to prepare the adequate tools by themselves - gloves, dust masks, safety goggle, safety boots, etc.  In front of the Volunteer center, the sign is up for all volunteer to see.

We look just like this picture on the right.  You won't recognize me if you see me there....

How the volunteer work is organized here?  It is just like the day labor market.

The volunteer center receives the requests (job tickets) from the residents who need some help for removing mud, rubble, and wreckage of houses inside and outside. Then the center assigns these works to volunteers who show up in the morning and make a group by job ticket.

The volunteer counter starts from 8:30 am (!!) every morning, and the workers congregate around the counter.  We are separated by the group with a car and without a car.  Workers with cars will carry people and tools, such as shovels, wheelbarrows, brooms, and hundreds of poly sand bags.  Once a job ticket is assigned with a worker with a car, workers without a car are called.  "Three more workers without a car needed here!! "  "Yes!   I am available !"   Just like obtaining a day labor job, I guess.... 

As you know we came to Ishinomaki with three of us.  However, we decided to work separately so that we could go different places and learn the different way of working.  This plan worked out really well.  Many of volunteers come to Ishinomaki alone, so sometimes it is easier to work as a group with all strangers, in the environment like this especially hard work is required.

My first day was very easy and light work.  It took us only two hours or so.  Well, we had 9 (young ) guys and myself, and there were very thin layer of mud under the floor.  We were back at campus by 2 pm, and other two came back around 3. 

We went to the public bath setup by Self-Defense Forces ( I will explain this more in the following post.  I know you want to know about this.), and made dinner.  I don't remember what we cooked this day....maybe spaghetti with Japanese style source, either mushroom or Mentaiko (spicy cod roe)  yummy...

We each talked how our day was, and I realized I really got lucky today by getting a light work.

my friends relaxing after dinner

Well, it is only first day.  Let's see what I get tomorrow..