Summertyme in Japan

March 11th, 20011

2011-03-15T18:55:00.001-07:00

Friday, March 11th, 2011. This day will be forever remembered as the day I was SO close and yet still far enough to evade a HUGE natural disaster. I have had my scares in the past with Mother Nature: a few tornadoes here and there dancing around the house, a couple of hurricanes blowing past as my brother and hunker down in the downstairs bathroom praying that we would still be there when my mom arrived from being held at work. Hell, I've even had other life-threatening situations: almost drowned on 3 occasions, being caught up in a drive by at the park (shhh, my mom doesn't know about this one), being chased down by a black Trans Am while pulling my baby brother as we walked home from school (I didn't grow up in the best neighborhood), and almost being tossed off a carnival ride into the middle of traffic. All of these I managed to come out unscathed; both physically and mentally. However, the events that took place on Friday March 11, 2011 managed to reach a deeper part of me, a part I thought I had well protected from outside events.

Friday, March 11th, I was at school having a really good day. My schedule for the week had changed and I didn't have as many lessons to teach. So, I did what I usually did during my free-time, I went to see what the students were up to. I decided to hang out with my favorite bunch-the 7th graders and one of my favorite teachers Kasagi-sensei as she taught 5th period Kokugo （国語)-Japanese class. It was a pretty interesting lesson in which I only understood about half (junior high Japanese/kanji is a bit over my head). The presentations the kids did on the different types of very casual forms of the language and how it differs from region to region was very intriguing. After a successful lesson, it was time to for us and the students to prepare for the 6th and final period of the day. It was during the 10 minute break when it happened. I was helping Kasagi-sensei carry here material to her next class when we started swaying. At first, we had NO idea what was happening. One of the students said, "Look at the lights, they're swaying." We looked and suddenly it hit us, we weren't the ones swaying, the building was; EARTHQUAKE! Kasagi-sensei and I started yelling for the kids to get under the desks and hold on. "Protect your heads!" We shouted. As some of the other 7th graders were coming from another class into our section looking drunk from the swaying, we quickly told them to get under a near by desk. The announcement came over the speakers "This is an earthquake..." I couldn't hear the rest from trying to keep it together. We swayed and swayed, back and forth, left and right. It lasted for such a long time I thought I was going to be sick. In my mind, I kept waiting for ball to drop and this massive quake to hit that would toss us all over the place. But it never came, we just swayed and swayed. Kasagi-sensei looked over at me and said that she was extremely worried about her son who was in kindergarten. Around this time, he would be preparing to go home on the school bus. I couldn't say anything in return; I was so far in my own head just waiting to be thrown from the safety of my desk. Finally, after what the LONGEST shake-up I have ever experienced, it stopped. After waiting a few seconds, Kasagi-sensei and I got up and started telling to kids to do the same and head outside onto the open field. There, would be one of the safest places to be if it got worse. I noticed as we were all clambering from under the desks, a few of the girls were crying from the scare. I thought to myself, "now is not the time to break Summer." So, I went over to them and comforted them as we walked the halls, down the stair and outside. Along the way, I saw a group of 5th grade girls still squatting in the hall covering their heads as they were caught outside of class during the quake. A couple of teachers were sweeping up some broken glass from stuff that feel off the walls-not much glass at least. We never made it outside because we got a call from the staff room saying that everything was ok. With the kids taken care of, I made my way to the teacher's bathroom and broke down a bit-not much, but I did allow some tears to flow. I gave myself about 1 minute to feel it and then had to stop and pull myself together. Kasagi-sensei came in shortly after and spotted me. She helped in the calming process and gave me some much needed comfort. She said that it might have been worse because we were on the 2nd floor and the swaying was much more noticeable. So, I decided that for 6th period, I would go back to the staff room on the 1st floor.

Friday, March 11th, I entered the staff room. The administrative staff were moving around hurriedly, the big screen TV was one showing fires that had erupted somewhere. I made it to my desk and sat. My co-worker Derek came over and said "Are you ok? Your eyes are red." I told him that I was well aware of the color of my eyes. "Did you cry?" he asked. "Yes, that was scary." I replied. With a look of compassion in his eyes and fear in mine, we ended the conversation. I tried to make sense of was what going on on the TV, but I started feeling sick to my stomach and dizzy. Now, I have never been the type to succumb to motion sickness, so I thought this was highly out of the ordinary. I looked up and the lights were swinging. Another earthquake! It felt as if the ground beneath us wasn't connected any longer and was just sliding around. I hoped it would stop before I puked. Luck for me (and the laptop on my desk) it did...only to pick right back up a few seconds later. After that last tremor and my failed attempt at understanding the television, I made my way back upstairs (the movement of the earth on the ground level was worse than upstairs for me).

Friday, March 11th, I was back upstairs with Kasagi-sensei. We were with the second group of 7th graders. She had the radio turned on as announcement after announcement blasted about the quakes. At the moment, I still didn't know where the epicenter was or where those fires were. But I did pick up "tsunami" amidst all of the static. I was a little concerned because my school was very close to the port, but I didn't think the tremors down here were big enough to cause a destructive wave. There were to be no presentations for this class, everyone sat at there desks, did some worksheets and listened.

Friday, March 11th, as I was walking to the bus stop with the librarian, I discovered that the epicenter was in Sendai (about 200 miles away) and that it was 8.9 in magnitude. At the point, only 32 people were confirmed dead. I thought that that wasn't too bad considering how big it was. I wasn't happy that people lost their lives, but 32 was a number I could live with.
The bus and train ride went smoothly and I was able to make my way back home. That is when things started to take a turn for the worse; not for me, but for those up north. The "tsunami" I kept hearing wasn't in regards to my area, but for the thousands in Fukushima prefecture. These waves took out everything in their path: building, houses, people, cars, whatever. It showed no mercy as it made its way through the already hurting towns and villages. I was dumbstruck at seeing the devastation. To know that I was only 200 miles way from all of that hit a chord. I cried for those who were lost, hurting, or just left homeless with a feeling of despair and hopelessness.

Saturday, March 12th, the death toll climbs, from 32 to 60, to over 200, to over 1000+. As if the earthquake and tsunami weren't enough, BOOM! Explosion at the nuclear plant! Meltdown? We all wait...no. BOOM! A second explosion! A 2nd reactor is now in danger. As the day progresses, I sit and wait, listening to update after update. A 3rd reactor is now threatening to meltdown. "What is going on?!" "Why weren't these safeguarded for an event such as this?" I know that I'm hundreds of miles away and that the likelihood of being terribly affected by the radiation that might seep out, but I could only think of those who would.

March 12th-19th, still trying to wrap my brain around everything. A trifecta of events that happened back to back to back and I was able to witness them almost first-hand. I think that these events touched me so because they weren't man-made (like the terrorist attacks on 9/11). Like Katrina, they were an act of nature non of us could control. All we could do was hold on for the ride and hope it wouldn't be our last. For thousands, it was their last. Their lives ended in panic and fear. They aren't here to write about their feelings and post them for everyone to read. They won't be able to tell this story to their children and their grandchildren in the future. Their feelings, their stories have all been swept away and buried. I could have been one of them. I could have been in that area teaching, or visiting. Or, the massive quake could have taken place a few hundred miles to the south destroying Nagoya instead. Although I don't like living in the could have, would have realm of existence, I can't help but visit there every now and then.

Sunday, March 20th, I sit here rambling on about the past week hoping that it would make me feel better. At least, now when I think about it, my eyes don't tear up anymore. I will continue to do all that I can when I can in donating to those who need it. I will continue to live my life as if it could end in the next few seconds. I will continue not taking anything or anyone for granted and thanking God for the little blessings I receive daily. I will continue...

More Snow @ School...2011

2011-01-24T04:13:00.000-08:00

Let the snow continue! And yes, it did. I was hoping to go to bed and wake up to a snow-less morning, but alas, it was not to be. Monday came and the snow was still on the ground. Of course I was waiting for the call informing me that the kindergarten I work at on Mondays was closed, and it came...only to say that...it was OPEN >_< So, I packed on the layers and trudged out to work. This is what I was greeted with...

Cute aren't they? Meet Konoka and Nonoka (no relation :p)

Needless to say, we were all late for class this afternoon!

She wouldn't...would she??

She DID! But he deserved it, he initiated combat.

SNOWBALL FIGHT!

Needless to say, I was hit by the odd snowball or 12, but I didn't hold it against them...

Monday came and went, but the snow didn't! By Tuesday, the snow on the grounds of the kindy were no more than dirty slush, but the roofs were still decorated. Wednesday is when I start work at the elementary school, Tobishima. I live in the city, and there, there was NO snow. But in Tobishima village, WAY out in the boonies (1.5hr commute), the cold white stuff still lingered. Yes, it was pretty, but COME ON! You have overstayed your welcome frozen rainy drops!
*Breathes*
On the last leg of my commute (a 5min walk to the school), I couldn't resist the urge to take out my camera. My fingers on the other hand put up a mighty protest! Before I gave in to their demands here are some shots I took as I hurried along to get to work on time:

Yes, it's early in the morning (about 8:20ish) That's the school in the distance.

A sea of white where the sea of rice used to be.

Tobishima Academy, basking in the morning sun.

SNOW 2011!

2011-01-22T22:48:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, I woke up to a nasty surprise; SNOW! If you really knew me then you would know that I really don't like snow. I may even go so far as to say that I hate snow. Why you ask? Well, IT'S COLD! My name is Summer (just in case you forgot) and I really live up to my name in that I don't do too well in cold weather. Granted, the weather actually warmed up a bit while it snowed because before then, it was too cold for it. Anyways, I of course had to take a pic of the disaster.

Little did I know that this was only the beginning.

Later that day, I was supposed to go over to the Brits' place for some fun and video games. I thought, "self, it's not going to snow all day. I can just go over later when it lets up a bit." Boy was I wrong. But never to be thwarted by the elements, I wrapped up and prepared myself for the journey. When I walked outside, I was greeted by a mini winter wonderland! I have to admit, it was beautiful, but that did little in the efforts of making feel all warm inside.

Yes, cars were out and about. In winter, most people put snow tires on their cars whether it snows or not; they are always prepared.

This little on was outside just having a blast!

The trees dressed up in their winter best.

I continued my walk up to the main road. It wasn't fun slipping and sliding all over the place, but I was determined; I was going to get to the doughnut shop :p Just for the record, I wasn't just going for me, it was my task to bring the snacks; Lauren was going to cook dinner, and Paul was in charge of the video games and ice cream. We were going to get fat that night (^o^)! Anyways, while on my epic adventure through the blizzard of deadly snow, I did manage to take some more pics it's beauty.

I'm SO glad I have indoor parking for my bike Orenji-kun O_O

Do you see what's behind the trees?

How about now?

There it is! The house that winter forgot :p

Finally, I made it to Mister Donuts and promptly got a taxi from there to the Brits' apartment. It's not that far but I didn't mind paying the $10 to get there. However, the ride there was TERRIFYING! How dare he drive at normal speed in the slush?! I almost peed myself in fright! TERRIFYING!
*Breathes* But, I did make it there in one piece. I even received a bit of help along the way from my friends :-)

By the end of the day, I wasn't too worse for wear. I survived the day of snow...but I wasn't out of the woods yet...

To be continued....

Green Ramen

2011-01-15T21:41:00.000-08:00

On the same day of the fire drill, the other teachers and I got the chance to go out for lunch. It was still the beginning of the term and school lunch hadn't started yet. This time however, we didn't have a long time to drive around looking for a good place to eat. So, we went to a ramen shop not too far from the school called Takura Ramen (Treasure Ramen). I'm usually NOT a big fan of ramen shop ramen because it NEVER tastes the same from shop to shop, but being that I like to try new things, I say sure let's go. When we got there it was packed. Luckily, with it being a ramen shop, seat open up quickly. We sat down and ordered something I figured I would like. When we got our bowls, boy was I in for a bit surprise. My shouyu (soy sauce) ramen noodles were GREEN! Apparently, they are made of or with spinach and nori (seaweed). I like those 2 ingredients separately, but as a noodles...not so much. Additionally, I was in for another surprise when I saw the "treasure" that was waiting for me in my bowl O.O Needless to say, I will NEVER be going back there again!!!

The spread. Looks normal enough...

Wait! What's this??

GREEN!

SURPRISE! I'm watching you!! I HATE SHRIMP!

Just couldn't finish it after that...

Moutain View

2011-01-15T21:31:00.000-08:00

Last week, my school had a fire drill. I had no idea it was going to happen because I missed the morning meeting in the staff room say so. Nevertheless, me not knowing didn't stop it from happening. I usually don't mind them, but the location of my school (at the bottom of several mountains) means high winds and in winter, that means near death for me. It. Was. So. COLD!! Yes, I did manage to put on my coat and bundle up, DAMN! The wind just wouldn't let up. The elementary kids were alright; most of them had on coats, but the poor junior high kids only had their uniform jackets on. Moving on, as we stood out there waiting for everyone to evacuate the building, I got a good look at the beautiful mountains that surround our school. I knew they were there, but now that they have a snow-cap, they are more noticeable. So, I decided to take some pics. First, I had to wait for the announcements or whatever from the staff to end before we could go back inside.

I would have taken more, but my fingers were starting to freeze to the camera so I gave up. I will eventually snap a few more shots (better shots) when they are really covered!

One Piece Pizza

2011-01-15T20:02:00.000-08:00

So, I was over at the Brits' place watching some Shrek 4 and we decided to order pizza. My personal favorite Pizza Hut doesn't deliver over there so we had Domino's. The burden of ordering for 4 people fell on me. I called and was DELIGHTED to hear that the One Piece (my favorite anime) special was still going on and was good with any pizza ordered. So, I ordered a large pizza, chicken wings (4 in a box), some potato wedges, potato smiles for Lauren, and ice cream. Needless to say, all that was EXPENSIVE (about $70) but I got a cool One Piece pizza box AND a super cute mug. Put that together with my iphone cover, you can see just how big of a One Piece fan I am :-)

New Year's Celebration 2010-2011

2011-01-15T19:13:00.000-08:00

The New Year has come and gone and I'm posting about it 3 weeks late! That's just how I roll :p

My friends and I decided to keep the celebration small and simple this year. So, we got together and did all night karaoke!! We started at 11pm and finished around 5am. I've done all night singing I think 3 or 4 times, but this was Paul and Lauren and MAYBE Simone's first time. What babies :p We started off as a group of 4, then it went to 6 and then back down to 4 as they Rob and Mie left, then down to about 2 as Paul and Lauren ran out of juice. It was one of the best times I've had during New Years. We sang, danced, drank, and just had a blast. What we love about this place (Joy Joy) is the all you can drink bar and cheap food. Nothing beats Japanese karaoke!

One of the pics in our room...What do you see??

Goodbye Hard Rock Nagoya

2011-01-15T18:52:00.000-08:00

I'm back! Did ya miss me? I know you did, I don't know why I asked :p Now, where did I leave off...ah after Christmas. Well, we had a few days before new years so we all went out to dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. I didn't know that it was closing O.O I've never been a huge fan of the place because it's SO EXPENSIVE! But, we went anyways. It was me, Paul, Lauren, Rob, and Mie (who I ALWAYS call Michiko for some odd reason). This time, the food was actually REALLY good! However, the prices were much higher. I didn't care this time because damn that was a good burger! We all had a moment of silence for our burgers...except Lauren who ordered...something Mexican, can't remember...fajitas I think.

It just so happened that that night they were having a live cover band playing. That would explain the 1.5hr wait. We didn't mind so much because he was actually pretty good. The ONLY thing that sucked about the outing was that we were in the smoking section! I know, I know, Japan still has a smoking section. It was my fault because I didn't hear when the staff called my phone telling us our table was ready; we were next door at the game center. When I called back they said it had been taken and we had to wait for the next available-which was in the smoking section. Other than that, fun times were had by all!!

The Guys

The Couple

The Others :-p

The Food!

The Dessert

The Aftermath

The Paul

The Hard Rock Cafe

I have to admit, it really was a pretty good and expensive restaurant!

Christmas from Home!

2010-12-31T01:09:00.000-08:00

A couple of days after Christmas I was chilling in the apartment watching...something on my computer when the camera intercom when off. Apparently someone was paying a visit. So, I checked and he said he was from the delivery service. I let him up, to discover that he was carrying a HUGE package for me (LOL! Don't make the joke; it's too easy). So I did my sign thing and went straight to opening it. It was a package from my mom!!! I was too happy and just ripped it all open to find gifts! Man, my mom LOVES me!
Lovin' my new jacket. It will keep me warm while I'm at school...at least while I'm walking through the non-heated halls. Wait, there's more!
I GOT A SNUGGIE!!! How awesome is that?! I mean, Japan doesn't do the whole central heating and air here plus their homes are not insulated well, so to heat the whole place up at once will cost you at least an arm! So this will come in handy big time!

There was more in the box including drugs that won't make me loopy (I hope) and super fabulous jewelry stand I have named Diva and a lovely trinket clay holder. I just LOVE everything. The pic of my mom and my 2 brothers (1 blood and 1 might as be related) was just the icing on the cake. Thank you so much mom! LOVE YOU OODLES AND OODLES!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-31T00:50:00.000-08:00

Christmas has come and gone, but I have to say that it was one of the best I've had here in Japan! My mom got me into the Christmas spirit right in time and I was able to enjoy that blessed day. I started my day off with a Christmas breakfast and a viewing of A Christmas Story.

Later, after cleaning the place up, and finished wrapping presents, I got dressed and made my way over to the Hilton hotel were my friends and I were to have Christmas dinner. It was amazing! It was buffet style, slightly expensive, and WELL WORTH EVERY YEN!

The night was a complete success! We all have a very lovely grown-up style Christmas; and that's saying a lot considering how much we like to goof off :p
I was glad to have been here to spend this time with all of my friends. The only 2 missing were Margaret and Linda, but they were there in spirit! I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! I know I did ❤

Christmas Eve 2010

2010-12-28T21:11:00.000-08:00

Christmas eve has come and gone. It was a pretty good day. I finally got into the Christmas spirit and it was just in time! Thanks mom! So, I woke up and decided that it was finally time to go Christmas shopping for my friends. I went up to Sakae and went nuts! I'm not going to even divulge how much I spent, but let's just say, my wallet was begging me for a break by the end of the day. In fact, I think I might have to buy a new one :p But that will just have to wait until next time.
While shopping, I say that there is a small ice-skating rink in Oasis 21. It was uber cute and when I say small, I mean small. But it looked as if the kids were having a good time. All of Oasis was decorated nicely. I spent a lot of time there going back and forth between shops and deciding what to buy. I ❤ Oasis 21!

After a day of shopping, I got together with my good friend Simone. That night, I bought us tickets to see The Nutcracker. I can't believe how many people who have NEVER seen this ballet!! Simone was one of them! SHOCKING! Thanks mom for getting us out and properly educated in the arts :-) Anyways, we were SO excited about seeing the show. When we got there we discovered how small the venue was. I mean the building is HUGE, but I guess they were using one of the smaller stages. That worked out for us because we ended up being even closer to the front. To be honest, that had to be THE WORST version of the Nutcracker I have EVER seen! And I used to see the show every year as a child. I have deemed it the "Japanese "International" ghetto ballet performed to the music of the nutcracker". For starters, the audience was actually clapping throughout the performance. Simone said it was like watching figure skating; whenever a dancer did a spin (didn't even have to be a special move), the audience would clap and 1 random guy in the back would shout "BRAVO!". Seriously! CLAPPING DURING THE PERFORMANCE! Moreover, there were kids running up and down the isles or going to the bathroom DURING the performance. I even saw a woman drinking! Plus they took WAY too many liberties with the story. The child in the beginning, Clair, was ON POINT and wasn't A CHILD. She isn't supposed to perform on point, NOT YET! And, they switched dancers at the wrong moment. The story was just WRONG! The best performance that was actually correct was the Pas de Deux at the end...kinda. Ok, I'm going on and on, I'm going to stop now. I just love The Nutcracker; that's all :-( At least Simone enjoyed it and that was all that mattered since it was her Christmas present from me. But when we get home, I'm going to have to treat her to a proper performance.
Now to update my culture list in Japan; I have seen 1 symphony performance (Beethoven I believe), 1 musical (Jesus Christ Superstar), 1 opera (オペラ座の怪人ーPhantom of the Opera), and 1 ballet (くるみ割り人形-The Nutcracker).

After the show, we decided that we needed something to drink, so we went to a pub. We ordered the cutest classes of champagne called Rudolph. It has a little red sugar cube at the bottom to give it the red nose appearance.

Finally as we journeyed home, we were stopped by one of Simmy's co-workers and bought more drinks. This time we kept it J-style and went with the ume-shu (Japanese plum flavored saki on the rocks) and ume-chuhai (kinda the same as before but fizzy). As I said earlier, it was a pretty good day :-)

Thanksgiving in Japan '10

2010-12-27T23:03:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving this year was pretty...uh...special. Special meaning...something...different. Nevertheless, I wouldn't have traded that day for anything else! I spent it with friends and good times were had. Linda, Simone, Joseph, and I gathered at my place and we had a veritable Thanksgiving feast provided to up by the lovely people at Pizza Hut :p

The gathering; oh how happy they are to have their pic taken. In truth, we were just waiting for our food to arrive.

Additionally, Linda made cookies which were fabulous! On top of all of that (I know, there's more!), we laugh and almost cried with awesome holiday movies: The Polar Express and Nightmare Before Christmas. There were "tender lumpy-kins" everywhere!

Our "feast"!

Uber delicious pecan sugar cookies (courtesy of Linda)

The gang! I'm behind the camera :-)

VAMPS`

2010-12-27T22:51:00.000-08:00

Last month, Linda, Simone, and I went to see our favorite Japanese rock band VAMPS live. I must say, MONEY WELL SPENT! The tix were only about $70 a piece, but SO worth it. We rocked the hell out that night. The venue is perfect for them. Zepp Nagoya isn't that big so there is no need for any big screens and no matter where you stand, you will have a good view of the performance. We decided to stand on the first level near the back because it was slightly elevated and we could easily look down the middle to the stage. To make things better, Hyde came to the back and down the balcony to perform just to us!! Then, he noticed us; well me (kinda hard to miss the 1 black chick in a crowd of Japanese) threw his guitar pick (I would have caught it but the masses of tiny J-girls flying for it made me think against even trying. Then he yelled "ONE MORE TIME!" It was pretty awesome! Afterward, we hit the stands and bought bought bought! It was a WONDERFUL concert and it was even better with friends :-)

Cheesecake!

2010-12-27T02:56:00.000-08:00

Hi! I know that it's been awhile...again. But what can I say, I'm just not good at this blogging stuff. I mean, I have lots of stuff to share, but just too lazy to actually type it all out. I guess you just have to be here. Well, I'm going to try now. I'm going to take today and do some needed updating. So, here goes.

Ever since my best-est friend Margaret left Japan, I have had NO ONE to bake with. She was always here to make sure that I didn't burn the place down. Well, she isn't here anymore so I decided to test the waters and bake by myself. My first adventure was with chocolate chip cookies. It wasn't my first time baking cookies, but for some reason, NOTHING turned out right. They were the WORSE cookies I have EVER made here. It's pretty pathetic when the chocolate chips are the thickest part of the cookie. I mean they were FLAT and not really tasty either. It took a couple of weeks for me to get over the cookie catastrophe and venture on to bigger and better projects.

My next project was a marble cheesecake. I know, big project, but hey, you gotta go for the gusto right?? I got the idea to try it after my friend Linda dropped a cheese-flavored Kit-Kat on my desk. Yes, you read right CHEESE kit-kat! Here, I have proof:

I had to try it, and yes, it really DOES taste like cheese-flavored chocolate. It wasn't bad, but I don't think I would buy it for myself. Anyways, after that, I thought: "self, let's try making a cheesecake." And that's what I did. This is what came of that impulse:

I have to say; YUMMY!! I made quite the mess in the kitchen and just getting the ingredients for this mammoth here put a dent in my wallet, but the end result was deliciousness! I think the next time I try this, I will half the recipe.

I think my next under-taking will be cinnamon rolls...maybe.

Catching Up!

2010-11-10T15:57:00.000-08:00

Well, long time no write! This is a total my bad and I do apologize. I have just been so lazy when it comes to getting this done. On top of that, work has been a bit on the busy side lately. On Novemeber 12th, about 350 people from all over Japan are coming to my school to see how we function! We are like a one of a kind school (a public academy with both elementary and junior high school students. We also have a "Western-style school building with heating and air!). Anyways, they will be coming to see if our system actually works. During the 2nd term, we have been pretty busy preparing for their visit.

Enough about that, I'm writing this blog so that I can update you on what has been going on in general and share some pics I've been taking along the way. I won't be posting them all here because there are just too many. Instead, I will just post the links were you can find them and give you a bit of a description of what you are looking at. Speaking of pics, I finally paid for the Flickr account pro thingy! Now, I can upload all I want!!

Well, let's get started!

Up 1st we have my WONDERFUL trip to Tokyo Disney Sea. Japan is the ONLY place in the world where you can visit Disney Sea! We went there for my friends Lauren's birthday. It pretty much turned into a 3 day trip to Tokyo. We decided to take the bus up there because Lauren found a GREAT deal. We only paid $70 round trip for our bus fair! How awesome is that?! Let me tell you, it's pretty darn AWESOME considering that we would have paid over $200 round trip to take the bullet train O_o. We arrived one hot afternoon in July, spend the afternoon shopping in Akihabara (techie/anime capital of Japan), eating in Tokyo station and finding our way to our hotel in Chiba. Day 2, Laruen's birthday, was spend in the glory that is a Disney theme park! I was SO excited that I almost cried! I mean, this was my first Disney theme park experience!

Off to Tokyo Disney PICS!!

Next up and fresh from my trip to Tokyo, we have the Toyota Fireworks Festival. This was my first year going to the festival because in the previous years, I think I was either busy or broke. In the case of this year, I was broke (Disney was an EXPENSIVE trip), but I managed to make it :-) Once again, the Brits and I teamed up for a lovely trip out to Toyota. It's not that far, but being on a train crowded to the point of bursting makes is feel as if it took FOREVER! However, the fireworks were SO worth the trip. STUNNING! I will try to get you some video as well, but for now here are some pics.

Fireworks PICS

Moving right along, we have God Fakers-my favorite rock band in Japan. These guys aren't pros or anything...just yet, but I support them whenever they have a concert. 2 of the members are former NOVA students of mine and I was with them when they first started thinking of forming a band. A couple of years later, they are rockin' the hell out! This post is mainly for my bestie Margaret, because she too shares in the wonderful-ness that is God Fakers! So, Maga- this is for you buddy!!!

God Fakers pics!

My summer vacation wasn't too excited, but it was VERY EXPENSIVE! I mean the Disney trip was the climax and after that, things just didn't live up to it. That, plus the fact that Margaret left me here in Japan without a bestie T_T Oh well, I'm still wishing here OODLES of luck back in the States in Grad school. Anyways, summer was cool, I bought a cool black Nintendo Wii, some games, a 2 terabyte hard-drive, and something else that cost WAY too much that I can't remember. Oh and I went to go see about 8 movies :-) At $20 a pop, I think it's pretty safe to say that by September, I was pretty much scraping the yen off my floor!

September came, and with it came the start of 2nd term at school. Talk about busy! We had to prepare for our Culture Festival and Sports Festival which were to be held at the end of the month. First up, Culture Festival (Sept. 24th). On this day, grades 5-9 have a singing competition, get to display their talents in a bit of a talent show, play games, and experience various parts of Japanese culture: flower arrangement, preparing green tea, origami, and other forms of art. The younger kids study for the first half of the day and then get to participate in the cultural activities. This year, I stayed with the older kids. This was my first year being able to see what happens at this time. It was a pretty interesting experience, however, I thought that it would have been a bit better if they included cultures from other countries as well.

Culture Day Pics

September 25th, Sports Day. The time has come when we all compete against each other in games, relays, song, and dance. The school is broken up into 3 groups: red, yellow, and blue. I was on the red team and my co-worker Derick (junior high ALT) was blue. During this gloriously sunny day, the kids ran, skipped, and danced their hearts out in hopes of bringing their team the honor of being this year's champion. After a full day of sports and games, the numbers were all tallied and Tobishima Academy's 1st Sports Day ended in a first EVER 3-way tie!! The numbers were counted over and over again, and as fate would have it, EVERYONE played to win...and they did!! What a day to remember!!!

Sports day!

Well, enough of school for a while. Linda and I were invited to take a trip out to Shiga Prefecture, Nagahama city with her old co-workers. Linda and I have already been there (we make glass pendants), but we decided to go again with this group. After arriving, we walked around the small town, taking in it's old-fashion atmosphere. Eventually, we made our way over to the area where we could pay to play with glass. This time at Kuro-Kabe square (the glass making area of town), we were able to participate in a different activity: sandblasting! It was harder for me because I have NO talent for drawing things. Not only that, we had to cut out the drawings to boot. I ended up with something simple with my name (in kanji) on the bottom. I'm still VERY pleased with my creation! After that, we ate lunch, did a bit more walking around, and made our way over to Hikone Castle. The last time we were here, Linda, Margaret, and I wanted to see the castle but ran out of time. This time, we made it. After climbing the mountain it sat upon and providing the mosquitoes with a feast, we finally got to tour it. No one told us that the stairs within the castle were so damn vertical and just as dangerous to climb!! Anyways, we got to see the castle and it's little mascot-Hikonya. Don't really know what it is, but whatever. After arriving back in Nagoya, Linda and I were starving and decided to go find some 'meat burgers'. Couldn't have asked for a better ending to a great day :p

Trip pics

Ok, moving right along, I'm going to take you back to my school. I got to go on a field trip with the 5th graders. The only reason I chose to go with them is because they were going places I haven't been before. The other classes were going on trips as well, but I have been there and done it. So, I donned my hard hat, I was off with the 5th graders to see the wonders of creating steel. It was in fact, pretty darn cool...and VERY HOT! We got to witness as the hot stuff was being poured down the long path and stretch out to just about 1km long. As it went down the path at over 1200 degrees it's gradually flatten. I didn't get to take pics inside 1) because of the heat and 2) because they said that I couldn't :p After that, we went to see a MASSIVE thingy that did stuff! I believe, if I understood correctly, that it does important stuff such as hold and burn...stuff. I wasn't really paying attention because the sight of it looked as if it was from Ghibli's Howl's Moving Castle; I was too busy starring and taking pics. Finally, we made our way out to Toyota to visit the Toyota factory. Last year, I went to the Honda factory, so I knew that there were to be NO CAMERAS allowed. Sorry. It was really cool though :-) I got to seem them put together cars and the different parts moving all around the factory flying to get to their places. In the end, they gave us all a Prius...it was a toy of course and we had to put it together, but it's the thought that counts.

Day with the 5th graders pics

Time for another break from school...kinda. Last month, one of the teachers at school asked me if I wanted to be on a tug-o-war team. Of course I said "YES!". Little did I know that this was an actual sport! I mean we had training practices and everything. There is an actual technique to this game and boy does it HURT!! So, I endured the pain and suffering for the sake of the experience. In the end, we made it to the competition. I was the youngest one on my team and quite possibly the ONLY one who DIDN'T smoke, so it was pretty safe to say that we were screwed. We were up against club that specialize in this game!! All in all, my record for the day was 2-2. I had a FABULOUS time and met A LOT of people. I became the famous one of the day that EVERYONE just had to be around! You know me, must be at the center of attention :-)

Tug-o-war pics

Almost finished, I promise...but it's back to school, this time, my kindy English club. I might as well include my elementary school as well. A couple of weeks ago we had our Halloween classes/party. I didn't do too much this year in regards to dressing up; wasn't really motivated, but I did manage to have a good time. For the English club, we made masks and at my other school be played some Halloween games; 2 "popular" ones: pumpkin pass and mummy wrap, and one I made up: zombie hunter. We all had a wonderful time! My 3rd grade class really got into the spirit and dressed up a bit! Too cute!!

English club's Halloween Time!

Elementary kids' Halloween Party!

Ok, FINISHED!! You are now caught up...kind of. There is a bit more, but I haven't uploaded those pics (SO glad I purchased the Flickr pro account!). Anyways, more on that later. I hope that you guys had a great time viewing my life one pic at a time. Nothing special, but I like it :p

Sayonara Margaret

2010-07-28T07:21:00.001-07:00

So, my best friend has left Japan. Actually, she left about 3 weeks ago. I just haven't put up anything about it. In fact, I'm just now looking at the pics from that fateful last week. If you haven't guessed by now, the person I'm talking about is Margaret; yup, she has crossed back over to the other side (of the world).

She is well missed among her circle of friends. For her journey home, her sister Katy came to help her with the cats. She also brought Squirrel with her (the little bundle of joy she carries in her tummy). While she was here, we had fun playing around at our favorite game center, eating at our favorite izakaya (restaurant) and just goofing off.

Linda, Shannon, and Hanako were able to join us for a lovely dinner. Our schedules rarely allow all of us to hang out, but this time we were lucky!

The roommates. Shannon and Margaret have been through a lot. They were pretty awesome at sharing a nice Japanese apartment together for 3-4 years.

See ya later Margaret dear buddy. I'll see ya on the other side.

Toodles Katy and Squirrel! Can't wait see ya again/meet the little one!

BFF!

Here are the rest of the pics from that week.

Click for more pictures

Singing with Yuki & and Guys

2010-07-02T08:07:00.000-07:00

Ok, I've finally caught up! These pics are from June 27th. My good friend Yuki was about to head off to the US for some training on how to be a better personal trainer and he asked if I was free to hang out before he left (he left on the 30th). Being that we have already gone out to eat, to the movies, and to an awesome game center, I was left wondering what we could this time. So, I suggested that we go to karaoke with my friends: Margaret, Shannon, Joseph, Paul, Lauren, and Hanako. Besides, it was time for him to meet my friends.

As usual, karaoke was a blast. We sang, danced, drank, and just had a great time. Being that Yuki isn't very confident with his English, he almost shied away, but me being me wouldn't let him. Who knew the boy could sing O_o. By the end of the night, everyone loved everyone and we all had a spectacular time!

Come sing with us~ There's room for 2 more~

Don't mind if we do :-) Yes, that's Yuki trying to steal my shot

Me and Yuki-kun

Yuki and Paul...very manly :p

Shannon between her bitches (they were singing Bitch byMeredith Brooks)

JOSEPH!!

Gots to lurv the Shannon :-)

The one and only Paul

The ladies: Me, Margaret, Shannon, Lauren, and Hanako

Once again, fun was had by ALL!

X = Nakama Foever

2010-07-02T06:14:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, Margaret and I went to a One Piece theme park. Well, it was really Laguna-a small theme park/water park in a town called Gamagori. This little park was having a One Piece (an AWESOME anime about pirates) event for a couple of months. With us being HUGE fans of the show, there was NO way we could miss out on all of the goodness. So, we hopped on a train out to Gamagori and the adventure began.

Upon arriving in the very small town, we managed to locate the bus we needed to take. However, we neglected to see what stop we needed to get off at and ended up getting off at the wrong stop. This didn't deter us in the least. Being that we are so very used to getting lost, we just looked at this a yet another oops in the many-adventures-of-Summer-and-Margaret. So, we walked and walked and walked around the marina. Finally we found our destination and all of the pirate glory.

Once inside the park, we rode the many (and my many I mean few) attractions, ate, walked around, took pics, and have a FABULOUS time. The most interesting thing to see were all of the people in cosplay. We saw so many people walking about and taking pics dressed as their favorite One Piece character. Most of them were girls and wow, they dressed the roles to a tee. It was pretty cool to see all of the effort they put into their costumes. It was even more impressive to see them walk around in their HUGE platform shoes (they needed the height to play the male characters). In addition to that, there was a large and very nice pavilion dedicated to everything One Piece. There were different scenes from the anime, cut-outs, interactive pieces, videos, the works. It-was-AWESOME!

Now, you know I took pics of the fateful day but, there were just too many to load onto this blog, so I uploaded them onto my flickr account. Here's the link:
Luffy says "CLICK HERE FOR PICS"

Enjoy!

Sending off Simone...kinda (pt2)

2010-06-29T00:42:00.000-07:00

Well, Simone deserved more fun before she left. So, a week after our dinner, pics, and singing, we decided to go to one of the ultimate game centers called Round 1. This place has it all. There's video games, golf, putt-putt golf, tennis, table tennis, roller rink, archery, basketball, baseball, all other types of ~ball you can think of, karaoke, and more video games! You can pay for 1.5 hours or 3 hours of pure unadulterated fun. Obviously, we payed for the 3 hours of fun and went to town!

Hey Lauren, you stole my shot!

Simmy working on her hook

Lauren and Margaret getting there jockey fix

FOUR! Did I hit it this time?

Lauren loves the mini-bowling

Can she get the spare?

Hmmm...I don't think I can sing that song...

Where did my ball go?

J-girls can play hoops in heels...but not really :p

Let me out of this soccer field!

The Bull Rides

The Inevitable

You guessed it-more karaoke. Hi Kentaro :-)

Where's Simone??

There she is! Hi Paul and welcome to the fun:-)

Sending off Simone...kinda

2010-06-29T00:00:00.000-07:00

Way back in May my good friend Simone was going to leave Japan for another job in Malaysia. Now, Simone and I go WAY back. In fact, we met on the plane coming over here 5 years ago (we both had to pee but there was a line). Then we saw that we were going to the same place to work for the same people and our friendship just grew and grew. We managed to get lost together 3 times over the course of 5 hours during our first day in Osaka. We tasted takoyaki (fried octopus balls) together-DISGUSTING! And so much more! Knowing all of that, the girls and I decided to send her away with some awesome memories of...well...us :-) Where else can you make awesome memories other than in a karaoke room with lasers going about everywhere singing our butts off? Nowhere I tells ya! So, that's just what we did. Well, actually, we ate dinner first at this Italian restaurant, then took some pics at the game center, and then went singing. But, I digress. Here are just some of the pics of us acting a fool at the Karaoke-kan in Sakae.

Summy and Simmy!

The dynamic duo :p

Roomies for life :-) Me and Linda

Simone getting her top model on

She can't be stopped

...uh...something's wrong here...

...Oh screw it! We are sangin'!!

Now someone's happy :-D

As you can see, super fun happy times were had that night. Here's to Simone and her now life and job in Malaysian

Drinks & Songs w/the Brits

2010-06-28T05:39:00.000-07:00

My Brits: Paul and Lauren-how I do love them! I don't always understand the words that come from their mouths, but I love them nevertheless :p Well, they discovered a lovely pub out and about that serves actual ale, beer, and other weird British drinks that they crave. Me, on the other hand am a cocktail girl so it didn't really matter. However, this place RULES. Our server is too cute and ONLY answers when I call him. *sigh* How I do like Daiki (that's his name). Also, with Shannon and Margaret there, the fun is endless. We have discovered this awesome Terrorist Go-Fish game that keeps up consciously aware that out drinks can come rushing out of our noses at any moment. This game is meant to be played under the influence; we shall NEVER break that rule!

Here are some pics from one of our many nights at the pub. Oh and you can't have slightly drunken fun without a bit of singing. So needless to say, there was karaoke involved later that night :p

The Paul-being all British with his some-fancy-named-beer or whatever it was. All I know, it was DISGUSTING!

Shannon! Got to love the Shan-dog, I know I do.

The lovely Lauren. The posh-like Brit; meaning, she isn't as hard to understand....

My bestest friend Margaret. Can't go drinking without a proper drinking buddy. Then again, Paul can really put them back :p

ME! No, that is NOT my beer (I HATE beer). But, that is me with Paul's beer giving a taste.

Taking a swig...

GAG! BARF! YUCK!

Lauren giving it a go...

"Mmmm...not bad. Pish posh. Tally Ho!" She's going to kill me :p

KARAOKE!!!

My School

2010-06-28T04:59:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Has it been a long time? Yes, yes it has. Sorry about that, it's a total my bad; I've been crazy lazy with a touch of busy :p

Anywho, I'm here now and in the updating mood. So, brace yourself for pics, pics, pics, and more pics of ME~

Now, let's start with some pics I took a couple of months ago. In January, my elementary moved to their brand new school. It is a top of the line school made for elementary and junior high kids together. It's so good that it is not the most visited school in Japan. I swear we have visitors in class or just taking a tour of the school EVERYDAY! Here' a peek of my school:

My desk. Yes, that is a pic of me drawn by one of my students :-)

The staff room

The entrance for the 5th -9th graders

The library on the stairs. This is part of the 2.75 libraries we have.

1st & 2nd grade classrooms

My space!!

My classroom! Yup, it's all mine; MINE!

Needless to say, I'm pretty happy at my school :-)

Ps. How cute is my hair?! I mean I just LOVE it! I'm going to have to do the curly look more often.

Alice in Wonderland

2010-04-19T06:43:00.000-07:00

So, last night (4/18), my friends and I went to see Alice in Wonderland. Yes, I know, I'm late, but it just came out here. Anyways, we decided to pay extra ($22/ticket) and see it in IMAX 3D. We had awesome seats. My seat was dead center and I felt as if I was being pelted by all of the flying objects. It was a pretty good movie. The pics below however, are not of the movie, but of us looking fly (yes, I said 'fly') in our 3D glasses!

Lauren and I

Margaret and Paul

Simone and I

See, I told you we were pretty darn fly in those glasses! I bet you won't doubt me next time!

Bye Bye Saturday Class

2010-04-19T05:22:00.000-07:00

Well, I started almost 1 year ago with this Saturday gig, but, things just didn't work out. One of the women REALLY didn't like me...and to be honest, I couldn't stand her either. So, we decided that it was best to part ways. Actually, she talked the class into it, but I wasn't too hurt by the decision. Yes, I got paid $60 an hour for a 2 hour class, it wasn't worth it to me. I really didn't enjoy going out to the country to teach HER. The rest of the class was pretty awesome.

Oh well, that's life, and I will move on. But, before I could, they took me out for a lovely goodbye lunch. We had all-you-can-eat Shabu-shabu (thinly sliced meat boiled quickly with veggies and dipped in sauce). All I can say is that it is the BEST thing EVER! I mean seriously, MEAT and lots of it. It is cut thin enough that all you have to do is swirl it around in the flavored water (mine was soy sauce based) and it's cooked. By the end of the afternoon, I had eaten about half a cow, a baby pig, some veggies and was stuffed. Only the Japanese (and alcoholics) don't have problems with drinking before noon! Anyways, enough talk, I will just have to show you!!

First, we start off with our flavored broth. This was mine.

This was the other popular choice in the group-wakame (seaweed).

Hello pork!!

Now, let's greet the beef!

My dipping sauces (egg yolk or soy sauce based sauce)

Take your meat and dip

Dip in the sauce of your choice (here egg)

Lookin' good :-)

Ooh! Who knew raw egg could be so good! (The hot meat cooks the egg)

Yup, 3 trays of meat + 1 of veggies

Now, top it off with some ice cream

...and a glass of sake

Followed by some tea

All of that equals a VERY happy and satisfied Summer

Christmas Eve with Mom (Day 2)

2010-01-09T01:18:00.000-08:00

Day 2 and it's Christmas Eve. The moms and I spend the whole day together running errands, shopping, movie watching, dining out, and opening presents. It was a classic mother-daughter outing. I didn't take many pics this day because we were SO busy. We were running all over the city seeing people, then it was back to her side of town for a quick movie (saw 2012 for the 2nd time and still LOVED it). After that, it was dinner at Applebee's and some quick shopping at Old Navy. Starting to feel the strains of travel, I sucked it up for the 10pm showing of a Christmas Carol. After all of that, we still managed to have the energy to go back home and open presents. It was a fabulous non-stop day. Totally worth the bags under my eyes from lack of sleep :-p

The daughter

The mother-hey pretty lady!

Mom's place all decked out for Christmas

Not as big as before, but hey, moms is never really at home to really enjoy a large Christmas tress. Nevertheless, it is pretty :-)

Santa is just chillin'

Family pics and more!

My haul from mom! Loved it all!

...especially one of the watches she gave me. I guess 3 years will do the trick.

Coming to America~

2010-01-09T00:00:00.000-08:00

I'm coming home!! It's been over 3 long years, but I'm finally going home for a visit. So, was back to ATL for me and I was thrilled to going back. I knew that I had a long trek ahead of me, but I couldn't care less. I mean, HOME! It just doesn't get any better than that. With everything packed and ready, I was off for my 14hr journey back to the good ol' USA!

Right about to walk out the door.

My plane! It was a massive double-decker.

Guess who flew business??

You guessed it-ME! Upper deck business that is :-D

Check out the leg room. This was my 1st time flying upper-deck business.

Mmmm...OJ. Just couldn't bring myself to drink alcohol so early

Upon arriving, I was greeted by my lovely mom, my best friend Ethan, his beautiful wife Layla, and their bundle of joy Jacob. I didn't get to take many pics then because I was pooped from all of the flying, moving watching, going through customs, and blah blah blah blah. So, we will pick up at my mom's place

Papa and son-how cute are they?

Layla and Jacob.

My new god-son (Yea, I'm his "self-proclaimed god-mother)!! A.K.A Spit-bubbles, aka pookie-dookie, aka Jacob :p

Screw the spit, he just lets it all come out! LOL!

The beautiful family: Ethan, Layla, and Jacob! I LOVE these guys! They are my best-est friends back home.

WAL-MART!!! I had to go-it's MASSIVE!

Look! Random Black people! *whispers* They were everywhere! GAWD I loved being back!

A dozen cupcakes with tooth-breaking icing was only $5! That would cost well over $15-$20 if they had them in Japan! Did I buy them? YES!

Look at all of the sweets. I just had to get a pic.

Have you seen some many different types of Oreos?!

Mmmmm, snack cakes...just looking at them made me gain 5lbs and my teeth hurt :p

Sweet Layla with the sweets

Yes, they have Bleach (Japanese anime) Yes, it's in both English and Japanese. Yes, it was dirt cheap (only $20). No, I didn't buy it...I've seen them already :-)

What? It roared at me first!

Yea, he thinks I'm crazy

We couldn't end my first day back without going to the Waffle House!!

Oh yeah, fix that waffle...sexy~

I love America! When I say "no ice" they still give me a full glass of drink. Unlike here where I would only get half (maybe).

...it was heaven (and as Layla says: grease) on a plate. D-freakin'-licious!

Gochisousamadeshita!

Breakfast!

Well, that was day 1! It felt sooooooooo good to be back. I still had another 12 (and a half) days of good times ahead of me!

Birthday/Halloween Party '09

2009-11-02T07:55:00.000-08:00

Hello all!! I know, I'm late, but at least I remembered that I forgot to post these pics. Oh well, you know me...better late than never right? Well, here are some pics from my birthday/Halloween celebrations. As you can see, I was a lovely vampire. How awesome are my fangs? I totally freaked my kids out when they saw that they couldn't pull them out. Not to mention the eyes, they are still asking how and when my eyes would change back to being red. However, because the fangs were really put in well, I had to be careful not to keep biting my lips and drinking my own blood throughout the night. Not an easy task! But, good times were had nevertheless. Anyways, Margaret and I went out clubbing on Halloween. Not only did I get to dance the night away, I was also surprised when the DJ stopped everything to have everyone sing happy birthday to me. Yes, I was on the stage (I was up there most of the night), and YES, I did enjoy all of the attention :p

So, have a look at my night!! Tell me what you think if you have the time.

Yup! I made a HOT vampire!

Picking up the buddy. Margaret made the cutest pirate

How cool are my eyes?!

Yes, Dan, show them what I did to you :p

New friends at the club. Pole dancing school boys dressed as school girls.

Drinking through a straw with fangs is NOT easy

Peace to you too hommie!

I got a bit thirsty from all of the dancing and photo taking.

My new friend for the night-the Mad Hatter

His boobs were almost as big as mine!

What a lovely Greek goddess.

I believe you have Robin, Alice, and a cop.

I always thought Joseph would taste good...

Pirate vs. Ninja-the showdown

Me again!

Me on state with my stripper friend and...I don't know who that is O_o

AH!! It was Supergirl!

Mad Hatter showing us how mad he is-wearing a red thong over his stocking O_O

Got to LOVE this guy!!

How short am I? Actually, Margaret is just a mini giant :p

Random astronaut...

Yup, I was right...he DID taste good!

She was SO cool! We even a duet pole dance routine (there were 2 poles)!

I still look good after a night of clubbing!

Cake in a Cup

2009-11-01T07:55:00.000-08:00

Well, Linda and I were out and about getting our shopping on when we happened upon an interesting box of cake mix. It's like the Japanese version of the cup cake. Now my question as to why my students NEVER understand me or are highly confused when I talk about cup cakes from home has been answered. They actually bake the cake in a cup! Seriously! I poop you not! Take a look:

It says: To make a cup cake, just add 1 egg and microwave for 2 mins.

Linda and I tried. Here's mine in my Cookie Monster mug. I had vanilla.

Linda's in here Spiderman mug. She had caramel.

His brains are popping out!

Spidey's too!

The end result! 2 cup cakes-literally. They were pretty good considering the effort put into making them-not bad at all.

Phantom of the Opera

2009-11-01T07:39:00.000-08:00

Here's another late posting-sorry. October 11th, the girls and I, along with a few other friends of ours had a date to see The Phantom of the Opera. We had to buy our tix way in advance because they were selling out very fast. They had to extend the show to support the demand. Well, we bought our tix (not too expensive ~$80-85) and were set to go. Surprisingly, I had never seen the opera before (go figure with me being a theatre major and all). So, I had to brush up on it before the show. My roommie (Linda) gave me the DVD to watch (in English) so that I wouldn't be completely lost during the performance (in Japanese). Granted, I would have figured it out, but knowing the story ahead of time did help. Also, a few things were lost in translation. All in all, it was money well spent. I even teared up at the end. The singing was absolutely amazing!!! I would LOVE to see it again in either language.

We saw the 4937th show

Peek-a-boo Joseph

Grrrr! Linda's gonna getcha!

Another Sat. Night @ the Bar

2009-11-01T07:24:00.000-08:00

Now, this was a while back, so please forgive the lateness. I have just been a bit busy with life that I just haven't had time to update. Anywho, this was way back on the 10th (of October) when Margaret and I decided to go out (again) for some after after work drinks-you know to chil-lax a bit from the crazy week we had. Well, on this day at one of our fav bars, the bartenders (who I have befriended-you know me) asked if we would like to have our own room/space. We were like cool and the next thing we know we were up in like a loft above the everyone else in our own little room with table, tv, and play station. Talk about super cool! We even had to take off our shoes! Funny stuff.

Slightly overworked chil-laxer: ME!!!

Slightly overworked chil-laxer: Margaret!!!

Isn't the tv super cute?

We needed to play something-couldn't let the playstation go to waste

Couldn't help it! Oh how I do love ME!!

Me & The Boys in Tokyo

2009-10-16T06:34:00.000-07:00

My boys came to Japan!!!! How happy was I to hear that they would be making an appearance over on my side of the world. However, they arrived and stayed in Tokyo which is about an hour and 45mins away from Nagoya on the Shinkansen (bullet train). All of that would have been alright if I didn't stay up all night the previous night. When I received the call that they were in town and would like to meet me for lunch, I had just properly fallen asleep. Oh well, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have fun with my beloveds so, I decided to take a day trip up to the big city to spend some time with my babies.

Here comes my train

I caught the super fast one

I don't look too bad considering I only had 3 hours of sleep

I have arrived!!!

Harajuku

Meet Rommie

And here's Paul

My new friend Richard

And Brian...he fits right in :-p

It's crepe time

Let the walking begin...and boy did I walk them good!

Can't help myself-I like taking pics of me :-p

Did we go in Kiddy Land? What do you think?

Paul having WAY too much fun on the bouncy thing-almost destroyed the little one behind him

Oh come on!! You know we had to have a look

The Boys putting on their "happy face"

How they really felt about all the walking we did

I love this guy! The boys wanted a pic taken with him, but he wanted his pic taken with me-how cool is that?!

Got to love Harajuku!

I had to sneak in another one...

The Yankees

He was getting his twist on!

Ooooh vending machine...

Welcome to Shibuya-home of the world's busiest pedestrian intersection

I got caught up in all of the action

This is what it looks like every time the walk signal pops up...I kid you not!

Dinner time at Lock Up-a jail themed restaurant in Shibuya

Rommie, the naughtiest one of all-he's been a bad boy

Richard enjoying our cramped cell

Brian all stretched out to make the best out of a tight situation

Hey pretty lady!! Me sipping on my beverage

Rommie!

Hi Paul!

He's our monster who came to visit us when the lights went out. I got a lucky shot of him as he scared the crap out of me!

Time for me to say goodbye and head back home

But, not without one final shot of me and my wonderful boys!!

A Day With My Little Ones

2009-10-16T06:17:00.000-07:00

Now, this was an interesting day at work. When I walked onto my kindergarten's property, I was met by the principal's wife. She, cheerful as always, quickly handed me a mask to wear for the day. Apparently, a student came down with the "new flu" and instead of closing the school for the week, they made everyone wear a mask. Not a bad idea, but trying to teach a class full of 4 and 5 year olds with short attention spans with a mask over your mouth is easier said than done. I kept almost suffocating myself when I inhaled to much. It was tough, but I made the best out of it-plus, I thought I was kinda cute with my little (big) mask on :-p

Who's the pretty lady??

Little one's gettin' down and funky J-style as they practice their routine

Look at the cute little bundles of germs....I mean joy...

We have our eyes on you....

Rockin' the Shamisen

2009-10-16T05:06:00.000-07:00

So, me and Margaret were out on the town one Saturday night-doing some shopping, a bit of eating, and eventually some drinking, when we came upon this guy on the corner rocking out on his shamisen. Needless to say, I had to stick around, take some pics, and make a new friend :-) He gave us a bit of a performance and then gave me his autograph. He's a really cool guy who didn't mind being bothered to 2 random foreigners.

Addiction...

2009-10-16T01:56:00.000-07:00

Ok, I think that I have a problem. I was able to hide it for a few years while here and Japan, but recently, it has decided to show it's face again. Now, back at home, I was able to somewhat tame this "habit". Due to credit card limits and time restraints, I wasn't able to feed the flames of this debilitating problem. Also, being here, indulging in this practice could be quite costly. However, in less than 2 weeks time, I have re-discovered the little demon within and he is back with a vengeance.

If you haven't guessed by now, I do have a shopping problem. I buy what I want usually when I want it. I have a room bursting with bags, a cabinet full of shoes, and tons of other stuff I don't even remember purchasing. But, I'm cool with all of that. But, my main problem shows it's ugly head when I'm in a shop full of lovely DVDs. I know weird right? But, I just can't help myself. I have a nice library at home, but here, DVDs are like $40-$60 a piece, so I haven't been buying them much. However, recently, I have gone out of my mind and went on a spree and bought whatever I saw, liked, and could fit in my hands. The collection you see below is from about a week and a half of being on holiday from work, having too much time, and money to spend. Now, my roommie Linda has contributed to the collection as well (about 3-4 movies), but the rest is all me. The beast has been awakened and I don't think I can put it back to sleep. I just LOVE movies!!!!!

I think I need help. The current bet going around is that I will be able to fill up another DVD stand by the end of the year (many think much much sooner)! But, what they are forgetting is that I have to work now and don't have as much time as I did before.

...Help!!!

体育祭 (Sport's Festival) '09

2009-09-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

Well, it is that time of year again-Tobishima Elementary and Junior High Sport's Festival. This year, as always, the weather was just beautiful. The sun was shining, wind blowing in my hair, and face slightly glistening with exercise moisture :-p I had a fabulous time chillin' with my fellow ALT and buddy Derek. We even got to participate in some of the activities: tug-o-war and tama ire (basically throwing balls into a basket). I had a blast cheering on my team (GO BLUE!), joking around with Derek, and getting sun burnt :-( Have a look at some of the 200 pics I took that day.

Well, hello there pretty lady :-p (Team Blue)

How you doin' cutie! (Team Yellow)

The dynamic duo for the day. (Together, I guess we make green?)

My most favorit-est teacher and fellow team mate-Tatematsu Sensei

Let's get started with team red marching in.

GO BLUE!!!

Yea yellow!

Running of the colors and the flame

Team captains

Me and team blue

Pumping up the spirits in the kindy section

Me and the reds

There was cheering

Running

Me tugging

The Hurricane game

Junior High girls getting their dance on

While the guys performed stunts

Derek playing with one of the cutest little girls ever!!

2nd graders

Oh and the kids got their tug on too

I guess he tugged a bit too hard. Don't worry he was just fine-just hamming it up

Lunch

More cheering, this time for points

I don't know what this game was called. All I know is that it involved running around the track inside of a hula hoop in teams of 3 with a ball in the middle.

Being cool while chillin' in the shade

This game involved 3 people running with either a ball or a cone...

In this one, they had to kick a net of 2 or 3 balls around the cones

Carry a ball between the bars around the track...

The final score. My team came in 2nd

But we were still happy

Chocolate Cookies Anyone?

2009-09-21T22:06:00.000-07:00

Here's another baking blog for you. This time Margaret and I decided to bake some chocolate chip cookies for our friends. We were invited to a NOVA-tomo (friends) party at the park and they asked us to bring something from home. We didn't know if they meant home country or just our apartment, so we figured we would do both with good ol' fashion CC cookies.

Meet the cooks: ME!!

The lovely Margaret

And of course, the fat cat Lizzy

The ingredients. We used both baking powder and soda for this batch.

First, mix in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into one bowl. Mix the butter, sugars (brown and white), and vanilla in another bowl.

Get your mix on!

Add in the eggs 1 at a time and mix them in thoroughly. Then add in the dry stuff to the mixture

Grab some chips and just go crazy!

See what I mean-just go nuts

Drop them onto the baking sheet

And there you have it! Delicious cookies for everyone. We made about 40 and they were devoured in about 10 mins! I guess our buddies really liked them :-)

Another Saturday Night

2009-09-21T21:31:00.000-07:00

Ok, another Saturday night out has come and gone. On this particular Saturday, I had dinner and games with Margaret, then was off to join Linda and Joseph for some singing. Fun times were had by all

ME!!

Margaret and the drinks for the evening: vodka tonic and of course the long island

Onion rings! I really hate onions ><

A delicious "meat burger with cheese"-that's what I called it :-p

Who will come out on top: Smiling tall one?

Or vicious short one?

Dancing on the chairs in karaoke. Who said that they were only for sitting?

Oh Joseph!

Say CHEESE!!

"Take my hand. We'll make it I swear! WHOAAAA! Livin' on a prayer!!"

The face I saw on the bathroom door....needless to say you need a bit of alcohol in you to see it :-p

The Drunk-ish Guide to Killing Time

2009-08-31T20:58:00.000-07:00

Well, this was supposed to be pics of me and the "tall one" at the Night Aquarium, but there was a change of plans. Apparently, while Margaret was doing laundry, one of her cats jumped on the machine and stopped it. This little incident went unknown to Margaret for quite some time and by the time she realized it, the time needed to finish it and make it down to the port was too much. So, we had some time to kill. I wanted to do something, but didn't know what. I suggested we go to the game center. Here is the damage:

UFO catcher: ~$6 each
Taiko no Tatsuji game: ~$3
Mario Cart: ~$2
Shoot-'em-up-zombie game: ~$2
Guitar Freaks: ~$4

After that, we still had time; the night was still early, so, we decided to go to this Japanese bar/restaurant called "Skunk". *Note to self, drinking on an empty stomach can be fun!*
After a few drinks and finally some food, we racked up a bill of a touch over $50. Not bad I think.

Now, drunk-ish, we still needed something to do. Hmmm, karaoke anyone?

We had a great time killing time that night. I think we might make it a habit...as long as we have the money to do it :-)

At Skunk

Margaret and her beer

Me and my Long Island (talk about strong, I think he tried to kill me!)

...and Margaret too!

Dude! This smoked chicken breast was off the hook!

I think this was fried white meat chicken sticks

Delicious!

Needed some green in our lives and this salad did the trick

This was like something involving potatoes, cheese, and bacon...I think. At this point, we were well on our way to being tipsy.

See what I mean.

Kamikaze

I think I liked it

For some odd reason, Margaret let me poke her beer. It must have been the "beverages" making all of her decisions at the point. But dammit, I poked her beer and it was fun :-D

Let's sing...well kind of, we more yelled and screamed the lyrics...

Bakin' Rolls of Cinnamon

2009-08-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

One day, Margaret and I decided that we wanted a cinnamon roll. But, they don't really have those here. So, we decided to make some. It takes a long time to make them because you have to wait for the dough to rise twice. Oh, and the amount of butter you need is sickening. But, in the end, they were good enough to sell. You can only eat one about every other day, nevertheless, they were delicious. Because we knew the process was going to take a while, Margaret and I decided to do a Pirate of the Caribbean marathon (I love buying DVDs). But, it took longer than we thought and didn't finish them until around midnight, so, we decided not to actually eat one that night. Otherwise we would have been up half the night on a massive sugar high. Anywho, here is my how to guide for those who would like to try.

Step 1: Take super cute pic of the cooks

Step 2: If there is a pet, take a pic of it as well. Here you have Lizzy (Elizabeth) a.k.a "the fat one"

Step 3: Measure the ingredients. 7 cups of flour, dry yeast, sugar, and warm water.

Step 4: Mix the yeast, sugar, and warm water in 1 bowl and add in the flour/sugar slowly and mix. Eventually you can remove the dough and knead it. After adding the 7th cup, knead the dough for an additional 10-15 mins.

Step 5: Put some oil in a large bowl and place the dough inside. Cover it. Put the dough in a warm place to rise for 45mins.

IT HAS RISEN!!

Step 6: Roll the dough out (about 15x12)

Step 7: Smother it in melted butter (disgusting)

Step 8: Mix in 3tbs of cinnamon and 3/4c sugar in a bowl and sprinkle it onto the dough

Step 9: Roll it

If you are me, you can pretend to roll it for a photo :-p

That's one fat roll!

Step 10: Pour more butter into the baking pan (ewwww!)

Step 11: Cut the roll into about 12-15 slices

Step 12: Place them into the pan to allow them to swim in butter

Step 13: Place in a warm spot to rise for another 30-45mins

THEY HAVE RISEN...again!

Step 14: Bake them (can't remember for how long and the temp)

Step 15: Remove them

Step 16: Let them cool. While you are doing that, you can make the icing. You will need powdered sugar, more melted butter, vanilla, and hot water.

Summer Fireworks on the Beach

2009-08-25T07:59:00.000-07:00

Last week, the gang and I went to Utsumi beach to view the fireworks show there. After the hour train ride, we approached this show like any other: it's going to be good, but most fireworks shows here are good. But, we were pleasantly surprised to see that this show was phenomenal!! Who knew that watching fireworks on the beach would be so AWESOME!! We were so close to them that it felt as if we could reach up and feel the sparks on our hands. Here are some pics and video I took from the show.

Me and the roommate

Tell me, what do you see?

The night sun

Rainbow comet

Do you see butterflies?

I think I have a knack for capturing weird firework images

A Night at the Night Zoo

2009-08-25T07:28:00.000-07:00

So, on the week the Night Museum 2 was due to come out here, Margaret and I decided to have some fun and go to the Night Zoo event. Higashiyama Zoo is one the most depressing zoos EVER!! I mean the animals are just sad. But, we figured: maybe at night, they wouldn't look so sad, thin, and crazy (I swear, the polar bear is insane!!) Well, we were wrong. So, I didn't take any pics of them. But, we did discover this awesome tortoise shell and we decided to play with it.

Look! I'm a tortoise!!

Margaret coming through.

She made it! What I neglected to say was that it had just finished raining and things were a bit sticky

Random kid making sure we didn't break it :-p

Traditional Japanese Singing in the Garden

2009-08-25T07:10:00.000-07:00

Catching up...kinda...about a week and a half ago, the girls and I decided to go to Tokugawa Koen (Park) to see some traditional Japanese performances. It was a beautiful evening filled with cool music, relaxing atmosphere, bugs, and bats (thanks God for bats). Even though we didn't understand anything sang that night, we still had a great time just sitting and taking in the surroundings.

The lake

The performers singing very old very traditional Japanese songs

As you can see, we were lost in the little piece of old Japan for a while...

Universal Studies Osaka, Japan '09

2009-08-20T03:24:00.000-07:00

It's me again!! Well, of course it would be me...who else would it be :-/ Anywho, a couple of weeks ago, I gathered up the girls and dragged them down to Osaka (yes, Osaka again) to Universal Studios Japan. I put us on one of the earliest departures on the Shinkansen (bullet train). That meant that I had us up around 6am to catch a 7:30 train. It only takes about an hour and some change to get there, but I wanted to get there when the gates opened. As usual, I was the "giddy" one, Margaret and Linda were..."normal"...I guess...compared to me at least...

Well, here are some of the pics taken on that fateful day. Fun was had by all and of course my wallet got a really nice workout as well :-p Apart from the $130 each spent on tix and transportation, I think I did pretty well...for me at least...under $300 is good right? Anyway, here you are. Enjoy!!

*Hi, this is Linda, I've decided to crash Summer's blog and add my commentary in italics. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA*

Arrival!!

Universal welcomes Linda
Thank you, thank you.

Universal welcomes Margaret, but she doesn't welcome the harsh sun's rays

Universal welcomes ME...is it really ready for me again?
No, it's not.

I finally got them in the "giddy" mood
Giddy? I think I look quite normal, thank you very much.

I just can't help myself. I love ME!
Narcissist!

1st up: Spiderman 3D adventure. Hands down best attraction in the park \(^0^)/
Someone needs to make an anatomically correct Spiderman - with the webs coming from the correct body part...

The rule...

The rule-breaker. I guess he's fired
Totally fired.

Margaret and Linda waiting the long 80mins + 20mins of attraction down time due to some issue
It was a long wait...

Me waiting the long wait. I tell you, it's hard to kill the "giddy" in me :-p
Yes, yes, it is.

Margaret looking fabulous in her awesome 3D glasses

Need I say how cute we are? Yes? Ok, we are just fabulously superbly out-of-this-world cute!

Next up: Back to the Future

After spending over 3 hours waiting for 2 attractions, food was needed. When Margaret says she is hungry, she means it. DO NOT get in her way! LOL!
So. Very. True. (love ya Margaret)

We met up and danced a bit with Ernie and his crew

Then it was off to solve some crimes with Snoopy and the gang

After a bit of food, play time, and walking, it was time to enter Jurassic Park

This time we were all "giddy" while waiting in the summer heat of Osaka.
I dunno if it was giddiness or heat stroke...

2 of us came out unharmed...but the same couldn't be said about Margaret.
Poor, poor Margaret...

We managed to escape the man-eating dinosaurs only to run into THE man-eating shark: JAWS. As you can see, he was in the middle of grabbing a bit of a snack when we approached.
JAWS...what are you thinking eating a skinny jboy? There's no meat or nutritional value!!

A bit of ground art done with water. Guess who?
The artist did that w/ a squirt bottle while rollerblading, how cool is that?

Yes, I have Shrek ears. Yes, I did buy them. Yes, I did walk around the park with them all day. Yes, that is Margaret's arm. Yes, we did go see Shrek's 4D adventure and it was AWESOME! We even sang songs while standing in line. 4D RULES!
And yes, we did walk by her the entire time. All the way back to Nagoya.

Oh, and Yes, we did buy Spiderman fans to keep up cool.
Why is the "yes" capitalized? Btw, do you mean uS?

Moving on to the Terminator 2 3D experience.

Last up, Hollywood Dream. All I can say is that I lost my voice on this roller coaster. Oh, and ALL roller coasters should blast music in your ear as you ride. Each seat had speakers and a remote so that you can choose between 5 songs to listen to. Margaret and I rocked out to VAMPS.
Yeaaaaah, just free your miiiiind. Yeaaaaah, let's get it on. Noooowww. Woo woo!
HYDE is my hero.

Bye bye Universal
Are you that happy to say goodbye??

Dinner time!

Remember what I said earlier...
Yes, I remember...

Oh wait, maybe I forgot...

My haul. What can I say, I like shopping. Yes, mom, there is something in there for you :-) Yes, I did have to pay for the bag. They charge for EVERYTHING.
I can't believe you had to buy the bag...lame.

Still ME. Arrival back home. Even at the end of a very LONG day, I still managed to take a nice pic of myself.
All together now - NARCISSIST!! <3 ya, Summer =D

Off to Osaka Aquarium with Portia

2009-08-14T23:00:00.000-07:00

The fabulous duo strikes again! This time in Osaka on, you guessed it, another day-trip. After a couple days rest from the last one (and more money spent shopping), we decided to go to Osaka aquarium. It is one of the largest aquariums in the world (3rd largest...I think) The great ATL has the largest :-) Anywho, we packed our purses, deprived ourselves of a full night's rest, and were off back on the road again.

PS. For some odd reason, my pics are coming out a bit grainy on this site. I do apologize for that. I just got a new camera and I think that I have it set too high for this site. It just can't handle the awesomeness that is my camera.

Considering we only got like 4-5 hours of sleep, I think we look pretty darn good

My new notebook. Got to love Japan...

...they tell you how to use the item right there on the item itself. Brilliant!

On the train again~I just can't wait to get on the train again~The life I love is makin' music with my friends~And I can't wait to get on the train again~ Everybody sing!

Arrival at the aquarium~

Get out of my pic Portia!

Gotta love sea otters

I got to witness first hand the growing love between a sloth and a turtle. It was beautiful

The fact that they are completely a different species didn't stop these 2 love birds

I managed to get this dark on the walk from the station to the aquarium. Look at us 2 chocolate drops lookin' all delicious and stuff.

Whale shark dancing with his followers

Now, he is trying to get away from them

My favorite marine animal!! Just breath-taking. The wing span on this beauty was astounding

He was so happy to see me

Hey look! It's me again!!

...and Portia!

Absolutely terrifying! Ewww! Spider crabs!

Jellyfish are cool

We found Nemo's siblings. Turns out that they weren't eaten by the barracuda.

Like I said before, P really doesn't like animals. And yet, we find ourselves going to places full of them.

Can someone tell me what this is?

After a day of fish, it was time for french toast. This was P's first time eating french toast that wasn't made in Europe. I don't think she liked it very much.

A bit of night site-seeing.

On the train...again, heading home.

So, that was our trip! We had a fabulous time in Osaka. Oh, and what you didn't see is that at the end of the aquarium, we got to touch some of the marine life. The rays are so smooth and there was this one shark that felt like rough bone. It was AWESOME! We also got splashed a bit by the larger rays that swam by waving. Oh yeah, there was also a lot of shopping done as well-can't leave that part out.
Well, stay tuned, there is more coming!!

Kisses

It's all fun, games, and karaoke!

2009-08-11T20:47:00.000-07:00

Day 3 with my buddy Portia. After a long day trip, the body needs to rest (not to mention the wallet), so, P and I decided to do some local activities: shopping (this just couldn't be avoided), bar hopping, game center, and karaoke.

P and her beverage of choice-a margarita (this one was very strong)

Me and my lovely cosmo

Mario Cart!

Linda came out and joined in on the fun

Waiting for our karaoke room

P getting her sing on

Once again with the multitasking: singing and eating fries. This chick is talented

Linda getting her sing on too while Portia chooses the next song to destroy

"Holding out for a Hero" and jamming while we do so

Rock on!!

Burnin' up that air guitar

How cute are we? Very cute.

2009-08-11T07:25:00.000-07:00

Day trip to Nara with Portia

2009-08-11T05:47:00.000-07:00

My dear family and friends, it has been far too long since my last post. Sorry for that, but to be honest, I haven't been doing picture worthy activities lately. Well, all of that has changed. Prepare yourselves for oodles upon oodles of pics coming your way. Today is only the beginning.

First up, my good friend Portia came to visit me from England. She used to live here 3 years ago and has decided to grace the "land of the rising sun" with her presence again. After a day of rest from her long trip and another day of shopping (man did we shop), we decided to get out and go on a bit of a day-trip. This is from our first big outing. We went to Nara, Japan. We had a great time riding trains through the mountains and rice fields, playing with dear, and acting all tourist-like in summer heat. Have a look.

Me lookin' cute and travelin'

Portia doing the same with a British twist to it

If I were good tourist, I would be able to tell you the name of this place...but, I'm not :-p

P trying to multitask: play with camera and take a cute pic with me

P with one of the many pagodas

She said she wanted to see the dear of Nara...she lied

I think there may be more pics of Portia than me...SHOCKING (0_0)

Some greenery

I found Bambi, but when I asked my roommate if I could bring him home, she said "no".

His father was a greedy little one.

Unlike my British friend, I like animals

...don't look now...I think I'm being followed...

My new friend. She followed me throughout a quarter of the park.

She had food. Dear wanted food. Dear chased food. Dear got food.

Dear that pray together...

We went to Todai-ji (Temple)-Great Buddha Hall As you can see, it's a World Heritage Historical Monument

The dear wanted to go too. They were EVERYWHERE!

One of the gate guardians

My sista from another motha

Todai-ji-The world's largest wooden structure

World's largest wooden structure behind the world's cutest tourists.

Meet Budah, he lives inside the giant temple. In fact, he is the largest Buddah statue in the world!

One of a pair of guardians watching over the temple

The grounds. It's very rare to see actual grass here, but when you do, beautiful

Rounding off the trip with another 5-layer pagoda

Heading home...

The Day I Became NINJA...and did other stuff in Mie

2009-06-29T23:03:00.000-07:00

WOW! It has been a while. Sorry about that, but I haven't been doing much since my last day trip. Unless you wanted pics of me at work or in meetings or what not, I had nothing for you...until now.
I think the title pretty much sums up everything. But, I guess I will give you bit more details on my day. Linda invited Margaret and I on a trip to Iga, Mie. The trip was set up by her part-time bosses of MMM English School. I went to their party a few weeks ago, and for some odd reason they liked and asked if I wanted to go with them to Iga. Of course I said yes. And here is what we did there:

Don't we look all snug as a bug.

After an hour of driving, we arrived in Shiga. One hour down, about an hour and some change left...on the road again.

Our first stop was to Tanuki Mura. The Tanuki is a well endowed Japanese mythical creature that has become somewhat of a good-luck charm for bringing prosperity. Here in this part of Japan, they are EVERYWHERE! Here is the group I went with as they are being surrounded by the somewhat scary things.

Sometimes I feel like some body's watching me and I got no privacy...

We are being watched...

The SUPER CUTE clay turtles. I had to buy one: the yellow one, and her name is Na-chan (ナッチャン) which is the nickname given to girls here named Summer.

Stop 2: we painted clay plates. I have no idea what I painted, but if you can see something, then it was a success.

Here's the back. The kanji at the bottom is my name (Natsu-夏).

Me and the Tanuki. Do you see what I mean? His "danglies" hang pretty low there.

Creepy huh?

Next up, lunch. On today's menu was chicken, beef nabe (hot plate) with udon, rice, and the yellow stuff in the bowl I gave away to Margaret (along with all of my icky mushrooms).

Beef nabe with udon...yum-a-licious

...and still they look on...

Me and my new roommate Linda!!

Ninja Tanuki-a preview of what my life will soon become.

Tiny ninja in training taking a walk with mom.

The castle we must invade.

Almost there...

LOL!! It had to be done

Off to battle

Summer...

Linda...

Margaret...

Don't test me...I have a sword and I'm not afraid to use it.

Kage bunshin no jitusu!

Our store of weapons

Katana-刀

Like Vega from Street Fighter, I scratch you...LOL!

Round 1...FIGHT!! WE ARE NINJA (忍者）!!!

For Kunoichi (くの一) only (female ninja)

For the boys to get their tinkles on

Our final stop: Kameyama. We took a breather here and got some ice cream. It was a great way to wind down our day of playing with Tanuki and fighting.

A Day in Nagahama w/the Girls

2009-06-05T02:07:00.000-07:00

Ok, I know that it has been a while, but nothing really interesting has happened since my last posting. But, now I have something to share. Last weekend, the girls and I took a lovely day trip out to Shiga Prefecture to the city Nagahama. We saw the largest lake in Japan-I can't remember the name and Nagahama Castle. Also, Linda wanted to go because it has the kinda famous glass making school where people can come to learn how to work with glass-and that is exactly what we did. Here are some pics from that wonderful day.

ME!!! I was sitting on one side of the 4 person see-saw.

Linda sitting on one of the other sides about to pee her pants with laughter.

Margaret channeling her inner child. She didn't have to dig far to find it.

See what I mean...

...and she is off!! How awesome does this look?

Now how cute is she? Super cute I tells ya!

Random monkeys in a cage in the middle of the park.

The greenery was very...GREEN.

Well, I look good backdropped with green.

Peeping through woods

The girl and the lake

Wind-swept

Gazing

Margaret and I braving the strong winds and looking purdy :-)

See how windy it was...but I still look fierce :-p

Linda and I trying not to blink, but still looking cute.

I believe I can fly...at least they do...

Even my shadow is caught up in the breeze.

Nagahama Castle...I think

Which way should we take?

Beautiful stained glass

Just funny. This belongs on failblog.org

Down the streets of Nagahama

Nagahama Ramen

Linda and her new boy-toy outside the action figure museum.

Us after hours of toiling with fire and glass to make pendants.

Look! I made a phone dangly...But I really did make the blue marble from scratch with fire and glass. I thought that making this was much harder than creating the pendants.

The 3 pendants I made!!

Grrr...scary Margaret on the train going home.

Linda and her creations.

My works of art

Aren't they pretty...

Jesus Christ Superstar

2009-04-20T03:36:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, the girls and I had a wonderful day at the New Nagoya Musical Theater. We saw the show Jesus Christ Superstar Japanese style. It was AMAZING!! You would think that the style coupled with the 70's hippie music would clash horribly, but they blending well together. And yes, everything was in Japanese. But, it was a pretty good translation from what I could understand. I have some pics below for you to enjoy. The ones of the performance I took from the program I bought so I DO NOT OWN THEM. I'm just borrowing them to show you how awesome the show was. Sorry for the poor quality but the light in my room is horrible. But you will get the picture.

In walks Judas...

Jesus and Mary Magdalene

Judas

Mary Magdalene

Kaiafas and crew

Jesus was hitting some notes

Pilot and Jesus

King Harrod

So, interesting? Did you like?
I look forward to filling my camera up with more pics to share with you guys. Until then, kisses and toodles!!

花見ーCherry blossom at Okazaki Castle

2009-04-19T04:24:00.000-07:00

Spring is the time for cherry blossom viewing in Japan. Thousands of people gather at the parks to "look" at the beautiful blossoms before they fall...at least that is what they say. The truth is, this is just a time to go to the park and drink until you are stupid drunk. Me, I like the flowers, so I tend to avoid the drinking and focus on the beauty of the moment. You can drink anywhere at anytime, but cherry blossoms only bloom for about 2 weeks out of the year. So, during my spring vacation, my friend Simone and I took a day trip to Okazaki Castle to enjoy the exquisite blossoms.

*Okazaki Cherry Bloosom Festival

Me and my good buddy Simone

Weird...just weird...

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