Blogs from Fukuoka, Japan, Asia
April 6th 2011
De eerste echte dag in Japan - de eerste echte redelijk uitgeruste dag, dan. We hebben alle drie goed geslapen. We zaten in de 'noisy room' op de vierde verdieping (men telt de 1e verdieping als de begane grond)- vlak naast de weg, maar daar hadden we geen last van. Het langsrazende verkeer was zelfs wel een beetje rustgevend. Om 10 uur 's ochtends moesten we klaarstaan in de hotellobby (het is maar een heel kleine lobby dus je kon elkaar echt niet missen) dus voor die tijd hebben we even een ontbijt gehaald bij de '7 eleven' of '7-i' zoals ze die hier noemen. Op bijna elke straathoek is wel een convenient store of mini supermarkt te vinden en de meeste Japanners kunnen best een woordje Engels als jij in het Engels begint te praten. ... read more
April 5th 2011
Héhé... We zijn er. De tweede vlucht was een stuk beter te doen dan de eerste. Niet zo vreemd natuurlijk, aangezien deze 'maar' drie uur was. Inchecken in Japan ging vebazingwekkend snel - alles ging heel efficient. We werden wel een paar keer besnuffeld door speciale speurhonden (drugs waarschijnlijk). We waren nog maar net uit het vliegtuig of we stonden al buiten met onze reisleider, Patrick. Natuurlijk hebben we nog veel meer te vertellen en ook foto's om te laten zien, maar het was een drukke dag, dus we laten het hier even bij. Co.... read more
February 11th 2011
In late November we had a little getaway to Fukuoka. This blog is quite overdue so some of the subtleties of the trip will be lost. Better late than never, I suppose. The flight from Incheon to Fukuoka took only about one hour, and the Fukuoka airport is right in the center of town, which makes it the perfect weekend escape for those living in Korea. The city is compact and the subway system is quite effective so a 3 day weekend is really all you need to get a good feel for the city. Most importantly, this is one of the most strolling-friendly cities I’ve ever been to. Looking at a map you may think that to get from point A to point B is several subway stops away, but in reality the subway ... read more
Prayers for Lasting Love and Fish Eggs: A Very Japanese New Year
Published: January 3rd 2011Asia » Japan » Fukuoka
January 3rd 2011
I was anxious to spend 5-days with my in-laws in Fukuoka for the New Year holiday. Not that I don't like them, I do actually adore them. But if one experienced New Year in Japan, its the most important holiday for them, but unlike most countries, the celebration is way too quiet compared to the usual big bang New Year festivities most people have grown accustomed to. If a city as big as Osaka can become so quiet during the New Year, I dreaded having to spend it in a countryside where my wife's family home is located right in the middle of a sprawling rice field. But after 4 years of living in the country, the time has come for us to take the trip to my wife's hometown for the holidays. So we booked ... read more
December 2nd 2010
Earlier this week i took a 30 hour trip to Fukuoka, Japan by ferry from Busan, South Korea. with 4 days remaining on my tourist visa in South Korea it was a "must" which i am thankful for. Fukuoka was a great time. i used it to unwind and take a breath from the busy, busy atmosphere in Korea. i roamed the Hakata-Ku which is an area full of old Buddhist temples and shrines among large corporate buildings and high rises. the sidewalks were full of well dressed business men and women going to and from work mostly by bicycle weaving quickly around those on foot. my brief time there was spent visiting the amazing temples and enjoying the small differences between the Japanese vs. South Koreans which were are noticeable after spending almost 90 days ... read more
September 18th 2010
Fukuoka With nowhere booked on the evening, we decided that a big town would be best to find a room for the evening. Everywhere was booked in Kyushu. The only placed we could book was about 16 hours away by train, which we managed to book for the next night. So Fukuoka was out place of choice to break the 16hr journey up. On the journey up I had visions of us sleeping on a bench or spending the night with the trendy youngsters in McDonalds, in Osaka that would be the norm and perfectly acceptable for the young, however a faux pas amongst the older generation. So much that we could not even get anyone over the age of 40 to even talk about it. After getting into town, we went straight to the tourist ... read more
August 15th 2010
Japan has been a long time coming. It is a country where you can find traditional culture and beliefs as well as being on the forefront of technological innovation of all forms. It has the fastest bullet trains, most densely populated cities, home of the Sumo, massive video game arcades, calm and orderly people, neon lights all over buildings, grown men reading manga comics, karaoke, super toilets, etc. Basically it's a place like no other and some might say almost on a different planet. Definitely a place I'd always been curious about visiting. The boat left from Busan on an overnight ride towards the land of the rising sun. On board I met a British couple who kept me company. We had beer and stayed up quite late. The boat arrived at six am and I ... read more
March 20th 2010
Between Japan Visa Run # 1 and #2, all that really happened was that I became a teacher. I have gotten more and more used to my role as the classroom leader and now, I am loving it. So, I went to school one Monday and was told that I'd be heading to Japan on Thursday morning. The school had received the visa issuance number that I needed to obtain the proper work visa and since I had been illegal for almost a month, the news was a relief. Apparently the Tongyeong school had a brand new English teacher who would come and teach my classes, as opposed to him having any actual training. This worked well for me, because I figured I had to at least be a better teacher than him with approximately 2 ... read more
March 1st 2010
I woke bright and early and looked around my apartment, which had things strewn about and was pretty dirty from the previous tennant. All I could think of was how much I'd like to sleep in a lot later, then wake up and start to work towards making my apartment feel like home. But, I knew Laney and the taxi driver would be there soon to whisk me away to Busan to catch a ferry to Fukuoka, Japan for a visa run. I've forgotten to mention that my friend Bryan gave me a ton of Starbucks Via packets (instant coffee) and it was one of the things I was most grateful for in my first weeks...I'm not sure I would've made it through the observation period and this trip to Japan without them!! So thank you ... read more
A Rainy Weekend in Fukuoka, Japan: Part II
Published: February 15th 2010Asia » Japan » Fukuoka » Fukuoka
February 1st 2010
The next morning it was still overcast and raining on and off, so we gave the 'hogs' a rest, grabbed the umbrella, and opted to walk/take the metro. Our first stop was Ohori Park, a large, gorgeous, park with a pond in the middle of it. The pond was previously used as a moat for Fukuoka Castle (whose ruins we visited later in the day). After walking a semi circle around the pond, we found the Fukuoka Art Museum. I thought the ticket to see all of the exhibits was expensive, about $13, but it was totally worth it to see the Ancient Egypt in Torino exhibit. The Fukuoka Museum of Art had borrowed several pieces from the Egyptian Museum of Torino, Italy's collection. I read in the exhibit that many of the pieces had never ... read more
