Blogs from Chiba, Japan, Asia - page 16

Well, for my first Golden Week in Japan - I'd say that it was pretty typical - Japanese style: *Made some new friends. *BBQed in the park Nihon-style, with beer, sochu, veges and sushi...then continued afterwards at an Izakaya. *BBQed in the park American-style with beer, burgers, salads and rice krispie treats. *Finally found the Great Buddah in Kamakura - with the help of some French-Canadians, their car - and of course, its GPS. *Took a million "hai - cheese" photos on a picture-perfect day. *Stubbornly attempted to speak my limited Japanese with a taxi-driver for 20 minutes in Kisarazu - searching for a non-existent ferry that crosses the bay, and an onsen with accomodation - only to end up calling my friend, staying in a business hotel, and taking a bus over on the aqualine ... read more

Well, i arrived safely in Japan, Narita. The flight was great, it was about 7 to 8 hours long, and when we touched down it was about 7pm and 5 degrees outside. Bloody cold !! Compared to hot and humid Cairns. Had a couple of meals, a couple of free alcolohic drinks - hmmm Champagne, a couple of movies, Walk the line and In Her Shoes. My Cousin Troy who works in Tokyo as a teacher, met me at the Airport, after i was really confused and almost got lost ! I checked into the hotel, Narita Nikko Hotel and went up to the Bar on the top floor overlooking the Airport, it was really nice. We had a couple of beers and caught up. Then we jumped on a shuttle bus, and headed into Narita ... read more

Hey Everyone, Today we decided to go to Asakusa, Japan which is in the heart of old Tokyo and has the most visited temple complex. We decided to be tourists and visit the Asakusa Kannon Temple and the many shops that are located around this area. When we first arrived at Kaminarimon Gate we decided to take a Rickshaw ride from Taka. It was a little weird have a man pull us around the streets like a horse, but we just relaxed and tried to stay warm. He showed us many interesting streets, shops, restaurants and history that we attempted to walk through on our own once the tour was over... One neat thing he showed us that we walked back over to see again was the famous Asakusa Kannon Temple "Senso-ji Temple". Here, we each ... read more

TRAVELBLOG ENTRY #3 January 23-February 7, 2006 Hey everyone (from Larry), I had my orientation and first week of OJT-'On The Job Training'. I had to venture into Shinjuku for my Nova orientation at the corporate office. Shinjuku is called the 'Times Square' of Tokyo, and their train station is one of the busiest in the world. I finally navigated my way to the corporate office 'what a beautiful building' and I was able to see Mt. Fuji from the floor we were on. Orientation was pretty boring, but I was able to meet a few other instructors and hopefully we'll all being going to the Sumo Tournament on February 3rd. Anyway, after our orientation we decided to go out for a few drinks at this Victorian Pub called 'Rose & Crown' and talked about where ... read more

Hi All, Today I move out of the dorms and into a hostel with Jenny and Annie from the States. I have to admit that this semester has been incredible and I'm not sure if I can comprehend it being over. The past week and a half has been an interesting mix of goodbye's and traveling. It was insanely difficult to say goodbye to the Ayase ladies and for awhile it was so lonely to be the only one left in the dorm. We grew so close over the four months of living here in Tokyo and it seemed unnatural and premature to have to be separated. But then someone pointed out that it is a bit unnatural in the first place to suddenly be immersed in Japan with a bunch of strangers. We had a ... read more