Lots to see! Some new pictures are up. Click here for my newest set of pics from this autumn. For the new pic themselves, start in the middle and work your way up. Included in this set:

1. Kat's visit (Arashiyama, Kyoto, Tojinbo)
2. Spring & Nancy's visit (Ryoanji, Uji, Byodoin, Fushimi Inari) NEW! start here
3. Kaoru & Toshiyuki kino (Shirakawa, a village with old-fashioned thatched roof houses.) NEW! start here

Byodoin was one of my top "must see" places. I finally made it there. ^^

I just found this.

For anyone really curious about what my work and life has been like in Japan, check out this website designed and maintained by my co-workers:

http://jtjapan.com/

It's very detailed, but very easy to follow. I'm sorry I wasn't able to make something like this myself. XD

Hey, I'm back. :)

Mmmmm... I should admit something. You know those kids who run around the house, wreck it, then deny it and point their fingers at each other? Well, I was never one of those kids.

Thus, I freely admit, I broke my host's internet. >_> My bad.

Well, I think I did anyway, but my host blames our mistakes on the old box. ^^

That old box was replaced today, so I'm back online. What's happened in the last five days? Let me see...

Wednesday, I moved. Took less than a day. Let me introduce you to my host sister and brother. ;D



Kaoru, on the right, was my student, now, she is my roommate. :D She and her husband work at a cram school, leaving in the middle of the afternoon and working late into the evening. But we find lots of time to relax and just chit chat.

Thursday and Friday were days for adjustment. Friday evening, I had dinner with some good friends of mine.

Saturday, Kaoru and I ran errands around town. Then, she took me to a local culture festival.

Saturday evening, my hosts and I watched "SP". Seems they were already anticipating the new drama as they usually watch the late night drama at that time. It was delayed a good half hour, having to make room for the volleyball championship.

Sunday, we woke up early and headed towards Shirakawa-go, a real-life town showing off old style thatched-roof houses. On the way there, we stopped at a Family Mart. Lookie what I saw: :D



I'll be uploading quite a few pictures soon, so look forward to it!

Hi all,

I've been in Kyoto the last two days, meeting a few friends of mine from American and Singapore. It was a good time--

Until I got a call from a friend saying she's heard my neighbor and I were being evicted from out apartment at the end of the month. :(

Yeah, looks like my days in Japan quickly being whittled away.

Don't worry about me. Already, the friend who called to tell and comfort me offered her place as a solace. I plan to call the head office myself and see what's up. Then I'll talk to her to see what works for us. I'd hate to impose on someone for too long, as much as I'd like to stay in Japan longer. In my current state-of-mind, I don't plan on being with the company into November. Take advantage of me much more, and I'll be leaving before the end of thisnext week.

In other news, Kyoto was great! I'll post pictures hopefully soon... I visited one of my "most want to visit" sites, Byodoin Hall, south of the main city hub.

--And I have GOT to stop eating this Thai chocolate... XD

Yesterday, I was turned into something of a celebrity.

My friend Kosi invited me out yesterday, telling me he had a friend who wanted to meet me. "She doesn't speak English well, but she really want to meet you." I hadn't seen him in a while, and I figured it'd be fun to meet someone new. His last friend who "wanted to meet me" was nice besides...

I stepped out to meet them in the parking lot this afternoon and greeted him with a "'sashiburi" (ohisashiburi in this area's dialect). The girl about flipped. "Usotsuki!" ("Liar!") she yelled at Kosi. Seems he'd told her I don't speak Japanese--which I don't, just a few catch phrases and useful/slangish vocabulary.

Seems that Fumi's dream has been to meet and hang out with a foreigner, probably specifically an English speaker so she could practice her very rusty skills.

The three of us, in Fumi's car, drove to the north end of Lake Biwa to Maibara and passed into the next prefecture east, Gifu. We drove through the famous Sekigahara town and made our way to Yourou Park which I pointed out on the road sign since it didn't seem like we had any other destination.

The sun had already dropped behind the mountain we were on by the time we parked and found the falls. It was a pleasant, if short, jaunt through the woods.

All the while, in the car, on the walk, during sushi train dinner, it was evident Fumi viewed me as some sort of celebrity. She tried an English sentence here and there, but most of the time she giggled all embarrassed. It was cute. She was nice. It was a nice time.

At the end of the night as the dropped me off at my apartment, Fumi pulled out a piece of note paper with farewell and thank you messages scribbled all over it, and she read it to me. ^.^ That was the cutest thing ever!

Here's the first in a series of pics from the USJ (that's Universal Studios Japan) trip on Thursday.

And an additional photo taken at the rest stop on the way home, 'cause the literal message cracked me up.



I think they meant that the rest room is "...fully automatic.", 'cause it was empty when I entered, I swear.


And here's the souvenir I bought: Pink Panther. I knew he'd go well with the other guys. ^^



Why are big heads SOOO cute?! XD

I am a product of my society, easily influenced by a simple name:



Not sure what I'll give to/do for those who can tell me why I bought this. Maybe I'll let you pick. ;D Everyone gets a chance to guess. I apologize to those who can't read Japanese (dictionary might help!) or don't know a lot about me and my Japanese pop culture obsessions. (Those are obvious hints, but if I said any more it'd be too obvious.) Be specific or take a guess! I'm not picky; maybe I'll do something for those who even just guess! More amusing the answer the better! ;D

Oke, here's a run down of my week, complete with pictures and (I think) video. (Please tell me if the vids aren't working. *kicks Flash*)

Be sure to check out the rest of my pictures on Flickr. These are hardly the best. ^^

Friday, August 3

I was planning to take a day off, and not do anything after work, but it was too damned hot! Instead, to my surprise, Franco came over and he cooked dinner. Yum! Half Italian-sauce, half Chinese shumai, kinda like ravioli...

Saturday, August 4

Kate and I went to see "Harry Potter: Order of the Phoenix". I think I reported on this already...

Sunday, August 5

Omihachiman fireworks show.




( For those still using their 'Friends' page )

I've been really busy, and today I'm really exhausted. Apologies to the flist, but I'll see what I can catch up with later. This is just a post to say, "Hi, I went hiking yesterday and almost died in the heat.", "Kaidan, kaidan, kaidan, kaidan..." "Fireworks are cool.", and "HOMG V6 ALBUM!"

Pictures coming soon.

But here's a cucumber.



Today, "It's hot again.", "Hairu cutto, onegai shimasu!", and "HOMG V6 SOLOS!"

Oh, and because I'm still angsting about it, "Flash/Apple, you suck."

Saw "Harry Potter: Order of the Phoenix" tonight. ^^ It was good.

Themes about love and friendship are the best. :D

I bought M&Ms for the first time in over a year. ^^ They're good.

I'm going to a matsuri tomorrow night, banning rain. Hope all's good.

A co-worker bought a Tackey & Tsubasa CD randomly to give J-Pop a try, and everyone (foreign teachers) was mocking them. D: Not good.

All the while, I was thinking how much I don't fit in with co-workers and how much cooler it would be to have ANY one of you at work instead.

I was also thinking, "Darn it. I don't have that album. I need to buy that." :D

20th Century? "Precious Love"? *melts*

I had a GREAT day today. Totally relaxing. My feet hurt a little, but my mind was at ease.

I walked to the station to meet up with Franco. We wandered over to the all-too-familiar shopping center (my work is there). First, we scoped out the video arcade where he tells me the "coin pusher" machines are addictive and fun. I was skeptical. He decided to go shopping first and save the arcade for later. After dreaming about electronics and video games we couldn't/shouldn't/didn't buy, we returned to the coin pushers.



It was fun! Hard to explain how it works, but here goes:

You buy coins/medals and insert them into two slots on either side. The coins roll through a tunnel and into the game. There's this shelf that moves in and out and two platforms that are covered with coins. Your coins fall in and are supposed to push coins out for you to win and use to get MORE coins. I don't think you WIN anything other than more coins. Seems kinda silly, but like most gambling games, it's just the thrill of "winning".

But what made it fun for me though was the companionship. I couldn't have any fun if I was doing it by myself. We wasted a grand total of ¥2000 between the two of us. ^.^ No jackpots, just good times.

Best part of the day: I got him to go yukata shopping. *claps excitedly* XD XD



He's looks so suteki!! XD The fitting and trying on of yukata was a lot of fun with the staff and us trying to converse. They seemed to really enjoy his quirky behavior, too. They're really cool there; it's the same place I bought mine at. ^^ Franco seemed really happy with it, too.

After this we sat around for maybe an hour or so at the coffee shop, people watching, and had a really nice casual non-philosophical chat. ^^ "Easy-going."

And random pic spam because I HAD to capture the moments:



These two are such flirts. :D

I had SO much fun watching this, the 2005 "Gakkou" summer special. Poor Sakamoto-riida, used and abused by his own bandmates--I don't think I've ever seen Okada act to eVil!! XD

"Japanese guests look at the feeling and thought behind the service. Foreign customers always look at the product first, then the service."

-Malcolm Thompson, a former general manager at the Park Hyatt Tokyo and now GM of the Peninsula Tokyo, which opens Sept 1, on the difference between Japanese and foreign hotel guests.

I don't fit this generalization. "Always"? Never.

I'm about to run off to Kyoto with a friend ("Look at the whale shark!"). We don't know where we're going yet, but we're taking some books to decide while we're on the train their. We have about a half hour to mull over it. Must remember to grab my batteries which are charging before I go.

There's a typhoon headed our way, but I think it will miss us; we'll be home before then.

EDIT: Oke, I lied. I don't know when/where/how/as if the typhoon will come, but it just cxl'd my plans to Kyoto. Too windy. Now looks like I'll be hanging out at a game arcade. :D Wheee!

I forgot to post the most special souvenir of all from my Kaiyukan Aquarium trip. ^^



I'm actually CUTE in this picture. XD XD

Hmmmm... What could be in this package...


? ? ?

An expensive piece of cloth, that's what it is!! @_o

But I bought it. It's mine. ^^

Damn, this has been an expensive week...

Anyways, once again I can prove Japan is obsessive about presentation. Not only did they give me that nifty pink, clothy bag for storage, but everything's wrapped in paper and tissue paper, too:



Unwrap all that frivolty, and you get:



Yes, I went for the more expensive, more subtle, and more formal one. I still really like the other, but in the end I opted for best fit.


Back


Front

Here's a detail of the pattern both of the yukata and the obi:



I picked the obi out myself. It's really pretty AND double-sided. In my mind, it both matches AND contrasts well with the yukata.

Sooo... after the aquarium, the whale shark!, and the yukata, I really should but a clamp on my wallet.

Don...

Yesterday, I went to the Kaiyukan Aquarium in Osaka.

Lately, I've been feeling bummed and crappy. Nothing seems to amuse me (except V6), but when I went here, I swear I turned into a little girl again.

Fascinating! I loved seeing the animals. Kaiyukan is an 8-story facility with multiple levels of tanks. It's entire facility is themed after the "Ring of Fire", with each section a different region. In the middle, the big, blue Pacific Ocean, I took a video of my favorite "critter" and friends ^^:



There he is! The whale shark! I was fascinated by whale sharks before, but now, after having seen one, I adore him!



...as can be proven by the number of souvenirs I bought. @_o (I bought more, but these are all the whale shark themed things. :)

:D Geehee!



He's so cute! Sorry, So! The butterfly you gave me started to break off a few months back, and I had to remove it as my cell phone strap. It's oke, I still have it, but it's not safe to keep it on my phone. I miss having it there all the time!

Here they come, my photos from a trip to Himeji Castle last week. This picture is of my traveling companions, Helene, Franco, and Kate. There are many more pictures to see, just give them a click. ;D

Below is a panorama of the middle floor to show you the expanse and beauty of the structure.

I went to Arashiyama yesterday. It was a surprise visit, actually. A friend called, bored, and I came up with the idea to go out. See next entry for the reason why...

I'm avoiding a party tonight. Again. A bye-bye party for a co-worker I barely knew, and a few others occasions, but as usual, I feel out of place. Especially since they're going to a place called Beer Palace... @_o

In backwards order, newest to oldest news:

My evening snack, another odd drink to share with y'all:


I'm having a hard time placing the taste, but I think it's... cheesecake...? I like!

:GRR

I took my L-appy to work today to present pictures of typical American holiday moments, play music, share videos, etc. and since I brought it home, things aren't working right. :GRR My external drive won't connect, my mouse seems to be functioning strangely, and even typing is (was?, I may have fixed it) a chore.

My "Holidays" Voice lesson went really well! It was a "Club 7" where the lower level students are invited. I focused on 8 major American holidays: New Year's, Valentine's Day (to break their belief that "White Day" is of American origins), St. Patrick's Day (few Japanese are aware of it), Easter, Independence Day, Halloween (ROCK!), Thanksgiving, and Christmas (I was going to introduce Kwanzaa and Chanukah, but I ran out of time, oops.).

I wasn't expecting more than 3, maybe 4 people (I was, as always, fearing 0-1), but 6 people came. And a wide range. There was an older 60-something lady (higher 7A), and a junior high schooler (lowish 7C), and 4 woman and 2 men. Good turnout!

Anways, for New Year's, a very general, non-religion based holiday, I introduced vocabulary: toast, champagne, streamers, "clock strikes midnight", confetti, etc.

Valentine's was mostly to break the myth about White Day, and it being ONLY for boy/girlfriends.

St. Patrick's, to introduce a holiday they likely weren't aware of.

Easter, to introduce a more religion-driven holiday, and how much the celebration as changed, example, the wonder that is an Easter Egg Hunt.

Independence Day, to show-off a bit of America's fanaticismpatriotism.

Halloween (THE BOMB!), to show-off cute costumes, and I played this uber-cute video so they could get an idea of what trick-or-treating is like.

Thanksgiving, to give them an idea about the importance of family + food = bursting belts, showing off the enormity that can be The Turkey.

And Christmas and the myriad of ways people celebrate, particularly Santa in the shopping mall, a typical series of events on Christmas morning, and christmas light shows. Check out the video, it's pretty darned cool, and blew the student's away. ^^ I also showed off a bunch of the Christmas cards I received from everyone. Thank you, everyone! I made you briefly famous in Japan. ;D

The end of Voice was the best part. I wasn't expecting it, but everyone THANKED ME. They told me they had A LOT of fun. They were smiling and thanking me and... oh man, I've got tears welling up in my eyes. :_D They were so gracious. I was touched. ^^

^_^

Last night, I finally watched Okada Junichi's "Hana yori mo naho".



I really liked it. I liked the casual, maybe "modern" attitudes everyone adopted. It seemed more realistic than a lot of period dramas, which I think often over dramatize and make TOO MUCH emphasis on the fact it's a PERIOD piece. It turned Okada into such a sweetie, and he was surrounded by good, unique, often very strange, individuals. Omoshiroi! I may have to get my hands on a private copy. ^^

Finally, my favorite present in recent times, from roomie aoi_leann:


Miyake mirror

We got it. My roommate, aoi_leann brought home the kappa-bacon:



I liked it! It's about as sweet as I was expecting it, but they somehow managed to capture a very subtle cucumber flavor in what would essentially be 7-UP-sans-lemon/lime. Keep in mind it's a JAPANESE cucumber we're tasting, so if you've never had one, don't compare it to other cucumbers.

Still not a fan of the carbon... XP

I had a great dinner the other night, Monday, June 11th with a good frien and forgot that I'd taken pictures. Just for the memories:




Soft Serve (What is this stuff called in America? All I can think of is "Dairy Queen"