Hi friends, I forgot I took this video on the shinkansen from Osaka to Hiroshima. The train goes so fast. Also, the Japanese countryside is beautiful.

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This is a good way to end this travel journal, with pictures of how beautiful Japan is!


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I’m back in America now. Just like before, the transition is difficult. I feel embarrassed again when I accidentally say “sumimasen” to the flight attendant, who is not Japanese. On some level, it feels unfair. It takes me weeks to cultivate the instinct for courtesy in Japanese words, so that I never trip over “thank you very much” and “I’m sorry ( Read more... )

First of all, Mike and I are heading off to Hiroshima tomorrow for four days, and then it's back to the states for me. I'm SUPER excited to see Miyajima, which has the enormous, beautiful red torii in the ocean. Pictures of that will likely be posted when I'm back in America ( Read more... )

was posed to me tonight at dinner. It was the goodbye "enkai" (work-related party) for the JETS that are leaving. I thought this meant that I was exempt from going, but ten minutes after Mike left, he burst back in, saying that they wanted me to come also. One of the teachers drove me over there! Five star treatment ( Read more... )

has been awesome. The greatest motivation for me to learn more Japanese is to be around students that want to talk with me. At least now I have a limited repetoire of questions to ask them in Japanese when they stare at me ( Read more... )

My mom left to return to the US yesterday, after we spent five days in Kyoto together. I've visited Kyoto three times in the past six months, and every time it seems more achingly beautiful to me ( Read more... )

Which means I am doing lots of things and taking lots of pictures, and not having much time to write about them. Let's post the pictures shall we?

Here is a picture of endless lotuses at Ueno-koen in Tokyo.

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On Monday, Mike convinced me (against my better judgement) to come help him with some lessons at a Japanese elementary school. Those of you who know me well know that I am terrified of children. This is in contrast with Mike, who seems perfectly at ease acting crazy and making them laugh! Besides, Japanese elementary school children speak almost ( Read more... )

Went out to dinner a couple nights ago, a going away party for the JETs that are leaving soon. Thrown by Ido-san, who knows them from the Kishiwada gym! Do you know of any Americans that would take a person out to dinner because they used the next treadmill over? But maybe these people do exist...

( Some pictures, courtesy of Christine )