Yikes! How did two months slip by?

Last time I wrote I was in the middle of my summer vacation. Two weeks into the new semester and vacation seems like it was ages ago! Tokyo was fantastic. What a cool city and so easy to get around; The metro system is quite impressive!

After Tokyo, I went to Korea for a few days and then I ended up back at "home" for a little R&R before school started. Whew! So here I am, back in the saddle again! Yi-haw!

The picture above is of two co-workers at a "100 yen sushi restaurant. " Little plates of sushi are made in the kitchen and put on a conveyer belt, which transport the sushi past the booths where customers sit. Customers can just grab whatever looks tasty! At 100 yen a plate (about 1 buck a piece) you can have some great sushi at a low price. It may not be the BEST sushi, but my palate is not such that I can distinguish really good sushi from the dollar stuff. Anyhow, I love it! Anyone who makes it out here for a visit will get to visit this place... so Chilly Bean, when are you coming out?

Yokahama

A good friend of mine from Kanazawa has been staying in Yokahama where she's been taking boxing lessons. So naturally my co-workers and I went out for a visit. What a cool port town! When Japan opened its borders to foreigners, many moved to Yokahama so there is a strong European influence in the town's architechture and layout. The above pictures are at the Harbor View park and there were lovely fountains and gardens- not your typical Japanese layout.

Yokahama also boasts having the biggest China town in the country.

There is a very contemporary part of the city too, which makes for a very interesting contrast. You can walk down a street in China town and see dumplings for sale that are bigger than your head and then one street over you can find yourself in Motomachi, a contemporary and high end shopping sector, complete with Louis Vuitton and Tiffany's.

Of course, I need to mention the world's biggest ferris wheel is in Yokahama. You can see it in the cityscape pitured below, it's hidden behind the building on the right.

Ah, there it is. We waited in line for about 1/2 an hour to ride the ferris wheel and the ride was a mere single revolution- that lasted for about 15 minutes.

While walking down the street in a foreign country, one may come across sights that beg for questions, such as "How does a horse bum sticking out of the wall help advertising?"

While giving directions you could say, go straight until you get to the horse bum and then take your next right. It is memorable, right?

Ah, this one was fun. What does an organic restaurant, camel and westie have to do with one another? Any guesses? I'd probably be able to tell you had I gone into the restaurant... sorry guys!

I actually thought of my dear mama when I saw the westie sign hanging off the camel's ear. Yes, I often see things that remind me of my fam!

Take me out to the ball game

I saw my first professional ball game last night. It was a showdown between the Swallows and the Tigers. Now, with names like that, who do you think won? The Swallows or the Tigers? Yes, sad to say, the mighty Swallows lost to the Tigers, 7- 9. Irregardless, it was great fun to see fans cut loose and get a little crazy. Between umbrella dances, cheering and jeering, cute, young girls walking around with mini-kegs on their backs while cute, young men sold cold, bottled beer, there was never a dull moment. Oh, Sake was also available, which of course, helped the crowd get a little more loose and lewd. Yeah, baby! I loved it!


Here is a shot of the foreign fan club for the Swallows. Pictured left to right is Carolyn, Hye Young, Thatcher, Chris and myself.

Chris is the young man responsible for introducing us to Japanese baseball. He is a die-hard fan (please note that he is sporting a Swallows baseball cap) who has come so many games that the vendors know him. Now, for the ladies on the left; don't let their loveliness fool you, they are crazy baseball fans too.

Personally, I have to say I've never been a big baseball fan, nor a fan of any sports team, for that matter. However, if I stayed in Tokyo long enough, I could easily become a fan/groupie! GO SWALLOWS, GO!

Tokyo

They call it the concrete jungle and it seems to be aptly named; afterall the city is hot, humid, and teeming with wild life. And unbelievably so, this small town gal is loving. I've never felt so safe and have been able to get around so easily in such a big city. Nor have I ever met so many helpful people.

Picture this: a co-worker and I rolled into town at 6:00 am on July 5th. Bleary eyed-we rolled our luggage and draged our carcasses out of the bus station... we needed to find the subway station, but where? As we looked at the subway maps and scratched our heads in confusion, a nearby security guard reprimanded 3 hoodilums for skateboarding in the streets.

Upon asking the guard to help us find the red line, one of the so-called "hoodilums" literally came leaping over to us and said "How can I help you?" When he found out where we wanted to go, he tucked his skateboard under his arm and he and his friends led us to the red line, showed us how to pay and sent us on our merry way. This was my first interaction in the big city and I knew right away that I'd like it here.

My neck of the woods

The illustrious EEC building. This happens to be my home away from home.


Outside my apartment, there's a lovely little park and a bikpath along the river. The building in this shot is the library on KIT campus. The library is where I teach my classes.


Welcome to Tamura Residence aka "The KIT dormitory." There are at least 6 English teachers living in this building, but it is right next to the school, so who could blame me for wanting to live so close?

Home sweet home. I was lucky to be able to move into a furnished apartment. With that said, I am making small changes so that it feels more like my place.

Bamboo Groves

Just a mere 15 minute bikeride from the city, one can arrive in the mountains and enjoy walking through the bamboo groves. It's wonderful having the groves so close; sometimes one has to get out of the concrete!

These mild-mannered deer run wild in the grove and from what I understand, many Japanese have never seen one; it was a lucky day.

We began our walk with pleasure.

It was my first time in a bamboo grove, so naturally, I was excited.

This is a bamboo shoot and the brown "skin," if you will, is surprisingly soft. As the bamboo gets taller, the soft fuzz peels away and reveals a startling green.