One part of the culture I really wanted to learn more about during my time as a JET was Japan’s rich theater history. I had studied traditional theater forms like Kabuki, Noh and Bunraku Puppet Theater in my college years, and when I was placed in Kyoto I was thrilled to be able to see…
When I decided to get my Japanese license I did some investigating and found out that the closest location for Himeji people is in Akashi. Although you can get there by taking a train to Akashi and a bus that drops off directly in front of the driving center, my wife drove me there for my first attempt…
So you’re going to take the driving test…
Depending on how many people you’ve talked to or how much of the internet you’ve read, you now fall somewhere between totally sanguine and scared shitless on the Akashi anxiety scale. We can help.
A car isn’t just an engine, some doors, and a windshield; that’s what a car needs. Not what a car is. What a car really is, is freedom, as a wise pirate once pointed out. In our lives and time, it’s the freedom to calculate the cost of gas and tolls against the fares levied by public transportation, the freedom to get lost in the winding nonsensical backroads; it’s the freedom to go where and when we choose, not bound by the bus route or train schedule. Such freedom is important to many a member of the JET community.
I’m not big on Valentine’s Day. Even if I’m in a relationship, it’s not my thing. I’m not big on people walking really slow while holding hands and not letting anyone pass on the sidewalk, and I’m not big on people complaining to everyone and their mother about a) their significant others not getting them…
Imagine yourself in one of Japan’s great baseball domes, but you’re not here for a game. There are no bases, no diamond – instead the house lights are off and you’re surrounded by 30,000 twinkling blue lights. Shrieks and yells of excitement fill the air, anticipation rising by the second. Then, the stage turns red…
This story is about a small town girl—from Sumoto-shi on Awaji Island—who had a big dream of winning a speech contest and going to Tokyo with her ALT. After arriving to Japan in August, my JTE at Suhama Junior High School asked for my assistance to prepare a student for a speech contest. During our…
If you are anything like me, you have already thought about where you want to go for your next vacation, and the vacation after that, and the vacation after that. The next time you are planning a trip, don’t forget about the land down under and a small beach town in the city of Melbourne….
2012. A new year begins, and for me, an American in Japan, it looks like it’s going to be quite a ride. The yen is up, the dollar down. The Tohoku region is still picking up what the earthquake/tsunami left behind. The world scrambles against global warming and an uncertain economy. The ancient Mayans predicted…