Change. And the sense of life, its routines, familiar faces and places, sounds that have become a part of me, as grains of sand slipping through an hourglass. Bare feet squeaking, clinging to the glass wall, brushing the last grains of sand from between my toes. Grains that once were frustrations, loud speaker mini vans running through town advertising noise pollution and rules whose senses evaded me, impossible sidewalks, I watch drop below me and I feel nostalgic. Good-bye tatami mats and green tea ice cream, the hypnotic buzz and whir of cicadas, the computer friendly voices that speak fro [View Full Entry]

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Thursday: Come Again to Kamakura! How's the sushi in Zushi? I had to make some quick changes. The camping trip to Yamaguchi was off. May 3rd, Constitution Day. Takeshi and I were getting along famously. Standing at the JR wicket where I learned it was no problem to extend my return journey free of charge, I asked if I could stay with my host the rest of Golden Week. He agreed. At his suggestion, we caught a noon train out of Shinjuku headed to Kamakura. The train was packed with holiday makers, seniors, families, a nice break from the suits. [View Full Entry]

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Tokyo & Kamakura Kevin Gurr Monday Evening: Rendez-vous couchez avec moi ce soir? Takeshi and I had met on the internet. I learned he used to live in Hiro, the next stop after my old hometown of Kure. He'd been manager at Moss Burger, a popular not so fast food chain, for eight months. It was a big change from Tokyo for him. He enjoyed the spacious apartment, four times the size of his Tokyo place and rent at a quarter the cost. He enjoyed his small town co-workers too, their motherly kindness and how they treat [View Full Entry]

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Getting there is half the cost Tokyo lies 1000km east of Hiroshima. A one hour flight connects the two cities but airport connectors, queuing, waiting, and queuing some more quickly becomes four hours, the same time a bullet train takes. And I don't need to book a seat. I just show up at the machine with my credit card, punch in my details and wammo, i am ready to go. Japan invented convenience. There are at least two direct nozomi super express trains each hour connecting Fukuoka and Tokyo on the Sanyo/ Tokaido line, the longest stretch of shinkansen track. [View Full Entry]

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Ahh, Spring. I love this time of year. The month of April is like a Xmas advent calender except instead of a little piece of chocloate, each day offers a new bloom. Vibrant pink and red Plum blossoms, the much celebrated Cherry blossoms, or Sakura, magnolia trees burst with fist sized flowers along the river banks, foreign tulips and dafodils sprout from baskets in front of bakeries, daisies, black-eyed susans, followed by miles and miles of well pruned azaleas and my favorite, the ever fragrant creeping, twisting wysteria vines. It makes the walk to work less burdensome. The advent [View Full Entry]

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My fourth winter in Japan. No snow this year or any trips to the ski hills. I wasn't prepared to pull my back or bust my camera again snowboarding this year. Seiki bought a new car late last year so we enjoyed a drive to Yamaguchi, toured the old seaside town of Yanai. It was famous a century or two ago for its production of linseed oil. So not many tourists make it out there. We picked mikan in a little village and enjoyed a sunset soak in an onsen on Tsushima Island. In January my friend Dee celebrated her 24th. [View Full Entry]

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I'd spent the May holidays in and around Beijing three years back and felt no need to revisit any of the sites save for the Great Wall which I hoped to photograph covered in a blanket of snow. I booked into Leo Hostel, mainly because I'd heard positive reviews of their off-the-beaten trail Great Wall tour, and because the hostel is located in Qianmen Hutong, a very short walk to the Antique street and to Tian'Anmen Square. On arriving I was confused how the YH scored so well on various websites. I found the place quite cold and dank, the food [View Full Entry]

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There was a problem at the train station in Luoyang and all they could afford me was a standing ticket. Standing, or at best, curling up on my backpack in the doorway between cars travelling an 11-hour night train sounded a little daunting but I didn't feel too worried. It was in fact easy to find a free soft seat and once aboard, the conductors weren't the least bothered to check tickets. I sat up the first few hours learning language and dialect differences with my neighbours, a computer programmer from Hong Kong and three young people from Guandong. I read [View Full Entry]

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It's a five hour train ride from Xi'an to Luoyang across the loess plateau, a geographic term to describe the chasms of clay soil and dry river beds, where homes have been carved into the cliff faces. In the trees of the farming villages hang large decorative bunches of dried corn. On a distant hilltop a factory spews smoke into the yellow-brown mud puddle sky. Bring a book or a deck of cards. I practice tai chi and I think zazen is pretty cool but I had no interest in visiting the Shaolin temple. I came to Luoyang to see the [View Full Entry]

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Jingle bell, jingle bell... in a one horse open slee... It took all afternoon and late into the evening to fly from Hiroshima to Xi'an via Dalian and Beijing. While passengers boarded or deplaned, The airline's xmas recording ran through its three song cycle, also including We Wish You a Merry Xmas. Who in China could recognize a figgy pudding? and a third doubtedly festive Chinese number. The man across the aisle whistled along as we taxied into Xi'an Airport. By my third flight, I was less enthused. As the wingflaps manoeuvred and the 737 touched down, I was immediately aware [View Full Entry]

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