I live in a remote patch of Japanese countryside called Taka-cho. I’ll forgive you if you’ve never heard of it. Even the BOE has trouble remembering we exist out here, not even bothering to replace my predecessor’s name with mine in the prefectural English Dept. directory after two whole years! The town, to put it…
        The August issue is a great time to address the new arrivals to the JET program. Welcome! You have likely just settled into your apartment, perhaps with inherited items from your predecessor, but likely without much. It’s also likely that you don’t have a lot of money on…
Hyogo AJET Committee 2013-14 Like National AJET, Hyogo AJET is here to help you make the most of your time in Japan as a JET. Hyogo AJET organizes local events and activities to celebrate and share the best of Hyogo within our little community. But it’s not only fun and games; Hyogo AJET is also…
Hello fellow JET members! For newcomers this is the start of your JET experience and you have all been placed in one of the best places in Japan (not just my opinion). First of all, let me introduce who we are. Hyogo AJET is the representative committee for all JETs living in the prefecture. We…
Greetings all! Welcome to the August issue of the Hyogo Times. Of course August means that we must say goodbye to those retiring from the Hyogo JET community. It is a bittersweet time, but isn’t any period of change? Two of my closest friends are returning home this summer, so as a last…
It is August. And once again, it is time to accept your part as that sweaty, melting gaijin, collapsing into the air conditioning on a train, as your fellow, perfectly groomed, Japanese passengers desperately try not to sit next to you. It’s time to acknowledge that feeling of inadequacy as you see an army of…
When I moved to Japan last summer I remember spotting a woman dressed in a kimono on the train and thinking to myself “I’ve spotted my first geisha! But why isn’t she wearing her makeup?†Later I was informed of my rookie mistake. In fact, she was no geisha, but rather an ordinary Japanese woman…
Hello Hyogo-ites! By the time you read this, you will have uttered, “atsui ne†or “mushi atsui ne†at least once to anyone who will hear it. Well, ganbare – summer has only just started! For those of you who are returning home this summer though, you will get to leave the oppressive heat and…
今熊野観音寺 (15) and é©å ‚ (19) This month we have another Kyoto double feature! Temples 15 and 19 of the 33 temple pilgrimage are Imakumano Kannon-ji and Kodo. First up is Imakumano Kannon-ji, which literally means “present-day Kumano Kannon temple†and it has strong connections to temple 1 (Seiganto-ji), located in Wakayama in the area…