Kendo and Mountains

hey all,

Here is a pic from a special kendo meet we had a few weeks ago. There are padded gloves and of course a helmet to go along with the breastplate and skirt, but then how would you know it's yours truly?

Some pics from our trip to Mt. Yatsu the weekend before last.


View Mt. Aka Hike 2013 July 14~16 in a larger map

Strange translucent flowers

Sign warning that the climb ahead is dangerous, and should be left to pros.

Michi on the first chain stretch.

Mt. Aka on the right

Some walrus-looking rocks

We have a proper vacation coming up and we're heading all the way up to Hokkaido, so after that expect more videos and pics.

Cheers,

E3 and Work

hey all,

So the same teacher who was sick a few months ago has been absent for the last two weeks. Classes are really crazy right now, with some special classes for the morning students starting, etc.

E3 has just finished, and I'll probably be picking up a PS4 next year. There are still some great looking games coming out for the PS3 until March next year, so after that I'll probably pick one up.

Games:

• Dark Souls II
• Watch Dogs
• Ryse: Son of Rome (I know this one is XBOX only but it looked good.)
• Witcher 3 (PC?)
• Elder Scrolls Online
• Total War: Rome II (PC)
• Batman: Arkham Origins
• Beyond: Two Souls
• Thief
• Battlefield 4

I'm really far behind on the Assassin's Creed game series, so I'm not sure if I'll pick up AC4.

Anyway, I'm going to Akihabara to check out some games today.

Cheers,

Mt Kinpo and Mt. Mizugaki, And Daily Life

hey all,

Here are some pictures and videos from our last trip.

We went to two mountains: Mt. Kinpo and Mt. Mizugaki, both of which are on the 100 Famous Mountains of Japan list.

On the hike up to Mt. Kinpo

On the hike up to Mt. Kinpo

On the hike up to Mt. Kinpo

The view from the top of Mt. Kinpo

On the hike down from Mt. Kinpo. The sign is buried in about 3 feet of snow.

I apologize for the funny expression, but Michi sat the hike up to Mizugaki out, so I had to try to take my own picture.

Showing off my new tights. When you position those grey bands just right, they support your knees and shins.

So that was the trip we took last weekend.

In other news, we've been watching the HBO Rome series on Hulu, and that has been pretty fun. And I've been playing through the original Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite, and I'm really pleased with both of them.

Below are some home-made curries that we've enjoyed in the last few weeks.

Cheers,

Ryogamidake

hey all,

Some pics and video from the last trip. We have another one this weekend (as it is a four day weekend), so gotta keep it short.

The second day's hike started on the right and followed the ridge to the left. Yes, that means we did have to go up, climb down the other side, then climb back up again.

Sign says that if you die while trying to climb the route, it is your fault for doing such stupidly dangerous things.
Also, the chains that were on the route have been removed, making the dangerous route even more dangerous.

Stupid Foreigner

hey all,

So a few weeks ago, I booked a trip for me and Michi, but it seems the travel company had us down for today instead of the 27th. We're trying to see if we can get them to reschedule us, but their confirmation e-mails did mention the 16th twice, so it is my bad for not catching them.

Normally, Michi takes care of these things, which goes to show how out of practice I am at it.

At work, we've started the second week of classes. Morning lessons are going OK, but some of the students seem to need a lot more work others. We've also had some complaints about one of the teacher's lackadaisical style.

I finally finished the last book of the Wheel of Time. There is a chapter in it that is 200 pages long, I kid you not. Several quasi-main characters are killed off, some of them deserving it, some it seems like they just got unlucky. Since the last book depicted the Last Battle between Good and Evil, the death of the characters shows their commitment to the struggle, and I guess lets the readers know the author wasn't pulling any punches. Still, unlike GRRM, Jordan wasn't known for killing off characters before.

Cheers,

New School Year

hey all,

Tomorrow is the first day of the new school year. I will be sharing the duties of teaching the youngest students we have in the morning group lessons: 2-3 years old.

My morning class will be one hour with one set of students, then I switch with another teacher and teach another set of students for one hour. That gives myself and the other teacher about 1.5 hours of extra prep time, which we will need since the young students need lots of flashcards and lots of activities.

To be honest, I was afraid I would get the students who I taught this last year again. I really tried my best with them, but I'm not happy with where their English or their behavior is after a year of effort.

Outside of work, things are OK. I've gotten to use my kendo armor twice in class now. I still need some pointers on knots and wearing some of the gear. But since I have the armor, I get to scream at the top of my lungs and try to whack other students now. Which is a lot more fun then getting asked "And what do you call this part of the sword?" every class like the little, little kids.

We had last week off from work, and I mostly played video games and caught up on anime a little bit. The new season of HBO's Game of Thrones has started up, and it looks to be another awesome season. For some reason, South Park will be starting up in September instead of now, so no new South Park for a few months.

I also finished my re-read of Wheel of Time, and the new book comes out in two days, and I've been forced to avoid all the wiki's and guides because spoiler information for the last book has started showing up there.

Cheers,

Absence

hey all,

Here are my excuses:

• I've been re-reading The Wheel of Time series.
• One of our teachers was absent for two weeks due to a stomach virus, and I've been exhausted from teaching extra lessons.
• I've been worrying about classes next year.

But really what it comes down to is that I feel my life is boring now. When I first came to Japan, I wrote this blog almost a couple times a week. I took pictures of all the strange and interesting things I was seeing and eating.

Well, I've been in Japan for four years now, and have just started the 5th. I've been dating Michi for a little more than three, and we've been living together for almost two years. My job, although it can be emotionally, mentally, and physically trying, is mostly fulfilling. Michi is probably the best thing that has happened to me and I don't regret coming to Japan.

But what exciting adventures have we been having recently? Not really any. At school, the other teachers and myself worry about organizing classes, and motivating students, about preparing materials and getting results. At home, Michi and I cook, clean, argue, make up, and watch movies. Yes, I have my kendo classes on Sundays, but I decided that one of my goals for 2013 would be to climb a 5.11c. However, we have gone rock climbing one time so far and 2013 is already one quarter finished.

I wanted to ask the principal for a raise, as I have a certificate for curriculum design now, but the Yen is very strong right now, which is always bad for the Japanese economy, and the government has decided to increase the sales tax (which is necessary, but will force the middle class to cut luxuries, or things perceived as luxuries, such as expensive English lessons), and the number of our students will be decreasing pretty dramatically next year. The principal has actually been debating firing a teacher, though who or whether she actually will is unknown. So, I haven't asked because I don't think I have any chance of receiving it.

Today is a national holiday, and we had planned on going on a short hike, but cancelled because the weather didn't look ideal. We went to see Cloud Atlas instead, which was an amazing movie, but I feel like in the past we would have taken the chance and gone hiking anyway.

Hopefully, 2013 can be salvaged.

Cheers,