It's time to go home. I can't believe it. I've waited until the last possible day to leave, and now I'm struggling with saying goodbye. It was a magical year that I would trade nothing for. I learned so much about other cultures, and a great deal about myself. I saw many amazing places, and met even more incredible people. It's not going to be easy to leave all of this behind. My last few weeks of school were filled with goodbye lessons and games, as well as farewell ceremonies. Each school treated my leaving quite differently. Some didn't do much, [View Full Entry]

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Summer in Japan is really an endless festival. Actually festivals in general in Japan are endless....but the summer is the peak season. For my last weekend in Innoshima, I attended the Habu fireworks. I'd like to think is was a farewell party for me, but actually it was the kickoff to summer holidays. Never before have I felt more like a celebrity! Cruising down the mainstreet with Dana, we were pretty much greeted by everyone that passed by. Every student knew either one of us, and stopped with their families to say hello, take a picture, or just wave. It was [View Full Entry]

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Originally I had planned to visit Vietnam this week, however because of difficulties with getting a Visa (meaning, my travel agent just didn't get one) I found myself with a week of no job, no house and no committments. I decided to head to South Korea. I thoroughly enjoyed my trip. I noticed some similiarities between South Korea and Japan.....mostly in touristy desintations. It could have been the overwhelming numbers of Japanese tourists that did it for me. After hitting up a few palaces and museums, I took to the streets to find the "everyday" Seoul. I had intended to take [View Full Entry]

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It has been a few months since I left Japan and returned to Canada. In my last few weeks I got so caught up in last minute travels and of course packing up my life, that I neglected my blog. Again the same thing happened when I got back home....visiting and unpacking. I've had a few requests to finish everything up, so I'm going to jump back in time and complete my year with a few entries! During my time in Japan I have developed a few obsessions. One being karaoke, which I have written about a number of times on [View Full Entry]

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We arrived at the Kyoto Tourist Information Centre to see a big sign reading ''NO VACANCY IN KYOTO, JULY 17''!!! Uh oh!! Dana, Linda, Zoe and I went through every possible scenario and decided the best option would be to stay up all night. It was the Gion Matsuri (festival), one of the biggest in Japan, therefore the city was maxed out with tourists from all over the country. It sounded too good to be missed, so we hit the streets. We spent the day on Sunday dodging rain drops, and visiting . We mostly took it easy knowing it would [View Full Entry]

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In April I bought tickets to the Colplay concert in Osaka which seemed like a million years away...but it's has now come and gone. It was a long weekend in Japan, so Dana and I planned to visit Osaka and Kyoto. A little while later I found out that my lovely friend Linda was going to be in Japan! She and her cousin Zoe from Hong Kong joined us and it was GREAT! Friday night Dana, Linda and I met at the station in Osaka, checked into Hotel Kinki, and set out for a night to remember! We sang until we [View Full Entry]

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Ishizuchi Mountain was my second mountain climb in Japan. It is the tallest mountain in Shikoku (the central-south main island of Japan), at 1982 meters. It is a holy mountain, as climbed by many Japanese as a religious pilgramage. Our group of 20 people spent 24 hours together...we climbed, we got wet, we prayed and we partied. The invitation for the climb came from my iaido (martial art) teacher. He and his friends were doing the climb, and asked our class to join them. Dana, Daniel and I tagged along, and I'm really happy that we did. We met at 10:30p.m. [View Full Entry]

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June is over! Where has the time gone?! This blog is a couple of weeks late, because I am just realizing now that it's July. I mean, I have known that it is July everyday for the past two weeks, however it hasn't really hit me until now. I have less than two weeks until my job is finished and I move from my apartment. I've been too busy to notice the time fly. Here's a few things that I've done in the last month.... On June 6th,, I went to see Ben Harper in Hiroshima. The concert was held at [View Full Entry]

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A teacher I used to work with, and now one of my closest friends in Innoshima is Hiroka Katayama. I call her Katayama sensei (because that's the polite way to address her). She always brings me food, and occasionally takes me places. It has been so great having her as a friend. She has introduced me to how a Japanese household works, which I wouldn't have experienced otherwise. She has also fed me many times when my fridge was very empty! This weekend she invited me (as a birthday present) to visit Wakayama Prefecture to see Koyasan, a famous mountain and [View Full Entry]

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At home in Canada I would rarely consider driving five hours to go to a party for one night. However, since in Japan I've become used to going the distance....and I totally don't mind. This weekend I went to Tottori Prefecture for a beach party...it was a wild time, and a great way to celebrate my birthday! Tottori Prefecture is north-east of Hiroshima where I am, and is on the Sea of Japan. The San-In Beach Party was held on a private beach, for a weekend of camping, relaxing, music, parties, swimming..... Many people headed up on Friday night to get [View Full Entry]

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