Long time, no write (Tour de Tokyo)

So many things fell out of place and now only just recently have they all come back together. After a series of unfortunate events (rusted head of screw popping off on an important handle-bar part, slip on mud that further damaged handlebar and my knee and elbow), my bike was not ridable for over two months during the best time of the year for riding. When I say a series of unfortunate events, I mean like every little thing that could go wrong in the worst order to did, but perhaps I'll write about that all later. Growing despondent and restless I bought a very cheap and light laptop, but after a premature upgrade to Windows 10 the laptop decided not to recognize many drivers and then refused to boot all together. So I sent it to the factory to get it fixed. It was bad timing because I just reignited my love for watching as many movies as possible and now the only thing I could watch movies on was my screen-cracked tiny phone. I suppose it wasn't all bad; my bike and computer were repaired for free, but it felt like I had to wait an unnecessarily long time for the bike parts to arrive. The worst part was when I sent them my address after they said they just got the part (about two, three weeks after my first inquiry). Two weeks after that, I emailed them again and asked how the shipping status was, and they said that they completely forgot about my email and needed my address one more time in English. And here I was, all getting ready for a package to arrive any day now!

Now that I have my bike and laptop, I feel stupid for feeling like my life was falling apart seeing as these are problems that only affluent young people with no real world problems can have. It just sucked having a problem that you have absolutely no control over, being in a foreign country and all.

But screw it! Now that my bike is ridable once again, I've decided to bike to Tokyo during Silver Week, with four extra days taken off for paid vacation (such an affluent, well-off lucky person I am). Here is a map:

Friday (tomorrow) I will leave for Yonago after work to take part in an open-mic night. Then Saturday is when the tour will really begin, with the first stop  being in Tottori City to stay at a friend's apartment. From there, the next three days and two nights will be spent riding and camping. At Nagoya, the halfway point, another friend has graciously said he'll put me up for a night to shower, bath, and sleep. From there, it will be about two to three nights til I get to Tokyo.

Yup! If you're reading this, then you are most likely friends with me on facebook, so you can check there for pictures. Work is now over, so I need to go home and actually pack, then drive to Yonago to practice with Michael for tomorrow night. So, uh, take it easy.

Day 7 Gaviotta

Day 6 Carpenteria

Day 5 Leo Carillo

Chile Verde

Day 4

Day 3 Dana Point to Hollywood

Day 2

Day 1 Border to whenever the sun sets

Nichinan's first big snowfall of the year.

Good evening to everyone, as well as good morning depending on where/when you are reading this. I am in the comfort of my small room typing this while drinking a refreshing whiskey 'n water. In Japanese, whiskey and water is called mizu-wari, (水割り,みずわり). The first character, mizu, means water, and the second, wari, means something along the lines of proportion, ratio, percentage, etc etc depending on the context. Nothing special, just some food for thought. I mean drink. Eh. *sip*.

It's cold here. Right now, Japan is getting hit with a lot of snow nation-wide. In fact, in Hokkaido (one of Japan's upper-most four islands), there are coastal cities getting flooded because of the ever-rising sea-level, thanks to the tremendous amount of snow that is falling there. Luckily, no such happenings in Nichinan, but I hope the best for the people north of me.

After work, I walked to the supermarket to grab some...things (*siiip*). On the way back, my inner cellphone photographer came out and felt inspired by the snowy scenery around me. So, I took some pictures for anyone who is curious to see.

The bridge over the Hino River. The tan building to the left is the junior high school where Henry Sensei and I teach. Just past that, following the winding road on the edge of the river is where the baseball field and elementary school is, which is also pretty much where my humble dwelling is.

On the aforementioned road, pass the junior and elementary school. To the right is the small parking lot for the baseball field, which is also where the uphill road is to where I live. In the distance there is the other bridge over the Hino River.

Standing in the same position from the last picture, turning right ninety degrees. The sign says, "Students have right of way: watch out for students walking."

There she is! Getting close...

Last night, when Kaho (a local friend of Henry and I) came to drop me off here (and Henry off afterwards), there was a car stuck on the hill. Henry, Kaho and I got out of her car and helped push the car until it got traction. Turns out it was the grandmother of my neighbor's family (mom's side). The mom and two of her children were also out trying to help. I ought to give them my phone number so they can call me if they ever need help again. To the right is what I believe to be the Kendo building (Japanese fencing). I can usually hear them practicing from my house. It is going under a renovation right now.

Mi casa in the very back-center. 

Doesn't look too bad from the picture, and I suppose it really isn't that bad (yet). As for now, the snow is up to my knee, but last year I remember when it was above my waist (I'm 185 cm, take that for what it's worth).

And the entrance. What the picture doesn't show (or can't show, rather) is that there is a considerable step from the porch to the grass, but you would never be able to tell as of right now.

When I left work for the grocery store it was still snowing, but finally ceased when I walked home and took these pictures. It has been snowing since early in the AM of yesterday morning. Last night and this morning my main water tap in my kitchen was frozen, so I had to use the water from my bathroom sink for cooking. Luckily, it actually warmed up a bit today and my tap is no longer frozen!

My room with two of my three heaters. The tall one is an electric heater, good for keeping the room warm, whereas the one in the corner, the gas one, is good for getting the room warm. My third heater (another gas one) is in the kitchen. The thing on the right is a guitar.

Remember that mizu-wari I mentioned earlier? Here it is in all of it's golden glory, drinking straight out of one of the jars my parents used to send their home-made jam. Thanks mom and dad for the hipster drinking glass! Oh, and the jam was good, too. 

Winter. Nichinan. Not too much else to say really. I believe I'll be renting a car this coming Wednesday, according to my vice principal, so there is that. Also, next Saturday (the 27th) I will be departing for a week long trip to the Philippines to escape this weather for a bit. I probably won't write till then, so until then, keep it real everybody!

Cheers.

*sip*

Mount Mitoku and the Chinese Garden

Hello, everyone! Sorry it has been awhile since I last wrote in here. I have been doing some interesting things with interesting people, but I have been lethargic in getting thoughts and pictures organized to write something meaningful. I will try better in the future.

This last weekend was a three-day holiday here in Japan. Every November 23rd is Labour Thanksgiving Day. To quote Wikipedia, "This national holiday was established in 1948 as an occasion for praising labor, celebrating production and giving one another thanks. Prior to the establishment of this holiday, November 23 was celebrated as an imperial harvest festival called Niiname-sai (新嘗祭)."

To celebrate not working on Monday, I and two others went on a day trip to explore two places: Mount Mitoku in Misasa and Enchō-en in Yurihama.

Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce you to two fine people. On the right is Amu Teramoto. Amu speaks phenomenal English (she taught Japanese in Australia for five years). She is a wonderful person to practice Japanese with, because when all else fails, she can explain particulars in English. On the right is David Evans from California. They both live in Yonago and teach English at the same company. 

Mount Mitokusan

Mitokusan is famous for a temple that juts out the edge of a cliff. Unfortunately, you cannot go in, but you can get just close enough to take some pictures. The climb up was not as long as climbing something like Mount Daisen, but the trail is less forgiving. You have to climb up tree roots, rocks, tip-toe on the edge of cliffs with chilling drops, and at one point you can climb up the side of a rock wall on a chain (there is an alternate path for those who can't stomach it). Before reaching the iconic temple, there are two huts that jut out above gigantic valleys. Upon walking along the perimeter of the two huts you are greeted with a hand-rail free walk way that extends into the valleys. If the view doesn't take your breath away, looking down definitely will; the drop is so intimidating one can't help but to experience a calm and terrifying sensation.

Beauty and death were only a two feet difference standing on the walk-way of the hut. It's also worth mentioning that people have died climbing Mount Mitoku, so we were told to be careful by the super-nice monks.

I'd like to mention that some of these pictures were not just taken by me, but also by Amu and David on their phones.

This picture doesn't really do it justice, but this part of the trail was very thin with drops on both ends.

Getting to the first hut that extends into the valley.

Once you overcome the butterflies in your stomach, enjoying the view is not hard at all.

The white sashes are given to hikers before embarking on the hike. There are some Kanji written on it, but unfortunately I didn't really bother reading it to figure the meaning. All the climbers looked like they were running for Mayor of some city.

"Put that jacket down! Wait, nooooooooooooooooooooo..."

The path went around the back of this hut.

And there it is! 

Enchō-en (Chinese garden)

After making the climb down back to the car, we headed off to Enchō-en. This place is a Chinese-styled garden, and according to Wikipedia, marks a friendship between Tottori Prefecture (where I live) and Hebei Province in China, both places which are known for their cultivation of pears.

We also fed the Koi fish and watched a twenty-minute long production of Chinese dancing. We could have taken pictures and videos, but I didn't feel like doing so because I wanted to focus on the performance. Rest assured, it was spectacular!

After leaving the Chinese garden, we went back to Yonago and had Ramen. Pretty good end to a pretty good day.

Well, there's that. I'll do my best to try and be a bit more consistent with writing things and uploading pictures. Also, for anyone who cares, I passed my drivers test on the second try and now have a drivers license! Currently looking to rent a car, and today I made some progress when I called up a place recommended to me by a friend. Fingers crossed that I can meet with them soon and roll out in some wheels!

Goodbye and take care, everyone!