You know how when you go to a new place sometimes there are things you just can't get enough of? For me, it's been man-hole covers. Shawn doesn't understand my passion for these little gems but that's
ok. I find it really charming that different towns stamp a decorative emblem, like this one, on the covers. I think it's a nice reflection of the attention to detail and
aesthetic the Japanese have with everyday items. I'm hoping to find
someone to publish my coffee table book entitled "Decorative Man-Hole Covers of Japan". Any takers? :)
I hope I don't offend anyone with my "potty talk" but this won't be the last you hear from me on the bathrooms here. It's just one of those things that is so different that it begs to be discussed even if it is a little off color for some. This is the bathroom in Nova's school. You can see the "toilet" slippers stationed at the front. Both sexes use one bathroom, a practice not only reserved for 2-6 year
olds. Dual gender bathrooms can be found throughout Japan though I haven't had the
pleasure of sharing one yet.
You may have heard about Japanese vending machines. They are
everywhere and contain everything. These are located on
mainstreet Nishio. The one on the left is exclusively cigarettes.... have I mentioned smoking is allowed even in the middle school? The one on the right offers soda, water, tea and coffee. Nova is mildly addicted to the cold coffees in these machines. She sneaks the remnants out of Shawn's cans.... hence her new nickname, "Little
Kohee".
Shawn and
Kurata-
sensei at the English speech competition in
Asahikawa. In Japan, when you have a cold, you wear these masks. It still freaks me out a little. They even make children's versions with cartoon characters on them. Very civilized I think.
I felt a little ashamed to be seen taking a picture of this Mickey D's in
Asahikawa. This city of 300,000 is 2 1/2 hours away. I was
approached by an Australian couple after I took this shot. It was my first contact with another non-Japanese person (
gaijin) since I've been here. They were headed for the Tully's coffee shop across the street. Seeing other "westerners" in public places is startling and for some reason a little
embarrassing. Shawn thinks it's because we see ourselves in them and how out of place we are. You are wise in the ways of the
gaijin Shawn-
sensei.
Participants in the English speech competition. Shawn's students are the two in the back on the far right
Minato and
Akane. They did very well but the win went to a girl from another part of Hokkaido. I concur with Shawn that, "we were robbed" ! One of the judges was an American. See if you can you find her in this picture. Functions like these are very stoic. No smiles from the winner or her
sensei during the award
ceremony. On a whole, emotions are kept pretty private.
Jr High teachers vs students..... Shawn-
sensei hits it out of the park.
Kurata-
sensei, his wife
Maki and super cute son at the game. Many thanks to
Kurata-
sensei for enduring my endless questions about Japanese language and culture to and from
Asahikawa. You rock!
So I wasn't exaggerating about the spiders. They're HUGE! But then you all know I have issues with spiders. The word for spider is
Kumo which is also the word for cloud. We have three of these bad-boys stationed outside our home. I've made a deal with them.... I protect their webs if they stay out of my house. I hope they're listening. Shawn walked through a giant spider web when we first got here and got one down his shirt.... I am both shuttering and gagging as I type. Luckily these are not poisonous.
Shawn and Nova at some falls near
Nishiokoppe. The weather has been unseasonably warm. Locals say summer temps were higher than in Okinawa this year. As a result, it hasn't felt chilly until the past couple days.... but the trees are turning slowly and it is quite beautiful.
Nova takes advantage of a heavy but warm rain storm. We got quite a few looks as we raced through town, Nova in her bikini and me in my rain gear. It was such a novelty for us to be in rain this warm in September. In Juneau, we are conditioned to expect rain all day when it starts. We've been pleasantly
surprised to enjoy a sunny day after an hour or so of the wet stuff.
You know how when you go to a new place sometimes there are things you just can't get enough of? For me, it's been man-hole covers. Shawn doesn't understand my passion for these little gems but that's ok. I find it really charming that different towns stamp a decorative emblem, like this one, on the covers. I think it's a nice reflection of the attention to detail and aesthetic the Japanese have with everyday items. I'm hoping to find someone to publish my coffee table book entitled "Decorative Man-Hole Covers of Japan". Any takers? :)
I hope I don't offend anyone with my "potty talk" but this won't be the last you hear from me on the bathrooms here. It's just one of those things that is so different that it begs to be discussed even if it is a little off color for some. This is the bathroom in Nova's school. You can see the "toilet" slippers stationed at the front. Both sexes use one bathroom, a practice not only reserved for 2-6 year olds. Dual gender bathrooms can be found throughout Japan though I haven't had the pleasure of sharing one yet.
You may have heard about Japanese vending machines. They are everywhere and contain everything. These are located on mainstreet Nishio. The one on the left is exclusively cigarettes.... have I mentioned smoking is allowed even in the middle school? The one on the right offers soda, water, tea and coffee. Nova is mildly addicted to the cold coffees in these machines. She sneaks the remnants out of Shawn's cans.... hence her new nickname, "Little Kohee".
Shawn and Kurata-sensei at the English speech competition in Asahikawa. In Japan, when you have a cold, you wear these masks. It still freaks me out a little. They even make children's versions with cartoon characters on them. Very civilized I think.
I felt a little ashamed to be seen taking a picture of this Mickey D's in Asahikawa. This city of 300,000 is 2 1/2 hours away. I was approached by an Australian couple after I took this shot. It was my first contact with another non-Japanese person (gaijin) since I've been here. They were headed for the Tully's coffee shop across the street. Seeing other "westerners" in public places is startling and for some reason a little embarrassing. Shawn thinks it's because we see ourselves in them and how out of place we are. You are wise in the ways of the gaijin Shawn-sensei. 
Participants in the English speech competition. Shawn's students are the two in the back on the far right Minato and Akane. They did very well but the win went to a girl from another part of Hokkaido. I concur with Shawn that, "we were robbed" ! One of the judges was an American. See if you can you find her in this picture. Functions like these are very stoic. No smiles from the winner or her sensei during the award ceremony. On a whole, emotions are kept pretty private.
Kurata-sensei, his wife Maki and super cute son at the game. Many thanks to Kurata-sensei for enduring my endless questions about Japanese language and culture to and from Asahikawa. You rock!
So I wasn't exaggerating about the spiders. They're HUGE! But then you all know I have issues with spiders. The word for spider is Kumo which is also the word for cloud. We have three of these bad-boys stationed outside our home. I've made a deal with them.... I protect their webs if they stay out of my house. I hope they're listening. Shawn walked through a giant spider web when we first got here and got one down his shirt.... I am both shuttering and gagging as I type. Luckily these are not poisonous.
Shawn and Nova at some falls near Nishiokoppe. The weather has been unseasonably warm. Locals say summer temps were higher than in Okinawa this year. As a result, it hasn't felt chilly until the past couple days.... but the trees are turning slowly and it is quite beautiful.
Nova takes advantage of a heavy but warm rain storm. We got quite a few looks as we raced through town, Nova in her bikini and me in my rain gear. It was such a novelty for us to be in rain this warm in September. In Juneau, we are conditioned to expect rain all day when it starts. We've been pleasantly surprised to enjoy a sunny day after an hour or so of the wet stuff.
