Hamamatsu Station Hotel

... high-tailed' it outta there, leaving his hapless victim (not his dinner, mind you...they're herbivores right?) on her own.

So, having disturbed this lovely display of primal roots, I burst out laughing, feeling awful for having taken part in playing the breakin-father. But heh, if I'm not allowed to have fun, neither are the bloody bunny-rabbits!

Kinball rocks!

... is sometimes blue, but most of the time an almost aqua green, which is where it got its name from, Midori-ko (Green lake). Soon, there will be a race I'm taking part in called the Midori-ko 'Marathon' (but this is just what they call the sport/hobby of running; someone messed up on the translation, I'm sure).
Now, in this lake, as far as I can remember there's always been two large tankers floating around in there, collecting dirt, debris, or something from the lake. See, this ...

... the Japanese Education system. Think about how much money we spend on paying people to sweep, vacuum, mop, and clean up the messes that Western students haphazardly leave after themselves after eating, emptying out their lockers, or crafting a state-of-the-art spitball machine complete with an endless supply of ammunition. We're messy kids, and we don't even realize it.
In Japan, right from the start, they teach these kids the responsibility of cleaning up after themselves ...

... br>A funny thing happened that night, in which the video explains everything. I repeat the caption: Beware "Linda Linda" when playing in Japan. Jesus....
Was a little tired the next day for what was to be my first successful experience with Hikkake, Japan's traditional river-fishing. This time, I met my vice-principal outside his house and we got changed at his place into wet suits. A few other things ...

So this is going back a few days from the festival, but after staying about a week in Toyone, I felt like I had to explore more of it, rain or shine, farther than the nearest convenient store.
So grabbing my trusty wendy-basket mickey-mouse-locked Jidensha (Bicycle), I took off on what was a downhill journey one way...and a terrible return trip up the steep road that leads to my mountain apartment. In Japanese, they say Iki yoi yoi, Kaeri koway (The way there is good ...

... The climbing rice paddies that a particular view affords (you'll know which one I'm talking about...) were apparently all traditionally planted and maintained--by hand. No machinery used there, and I doubt you'd be able to given the width of the roads that separate the fields up that winding path.
On our way through some various towns, Derek took me to Hirajima (forgive spelling), a nearby mountain and temple. Promising ourselves that we'll take the hike someday, we ...

... and showerhead are set up separately so that you can wash yourself before entering the bathtub, because families (and in this case Derek and myself) share the same baths. We weren't up for the simultaneous bathing, but we did speed things up by showering and bathing at the same time. Awkward, because it was confusing, but you learn to accept these sort of oddities in this country.
The next confusion arose after the delicious meal we had. There was sake-flavoured cucumber (not my ...

Nor the last...
So for my first Sunday off, I decided (while the memory was fresh) to attempt a solo-road trip to the best place for shopping close to me: Shinshiro city. The drive took about an hour one-way, which is average if you don't get lost. I did my best to scope out the station I would be meeting my supervisor at the following Friday for the Nagoya Orientation (that's another story my friends!).
The driving was terrible, as my new Mira K-car (about the ...

... we managed to do was get wet since it absolutely chucked it down! I had an umbrella so I faired a little better, though I nearly crashed the bike on a few occasions due to my one-handed steering, but poor Yusuke got soaked and ended up looking like a drowned rat! We eventually decided to return home for the car, and then find a nice restaurant for dinner... I`ve been a fan of okonomiyaki ever since Rie made me it in Nelson, so I was happy to follow Yusuke to a place ...

... been several foreigner checkpoints in Tokyo where all foreigners are either to have their passport with valid tourist/work visa stamp or Alien Registration Card. Without this, you go to jail. Literal Jail. They're capable of legally holding you for 23 days without legal consultation and contact with your family, that's if they arrest you. They can bring you in to the station and you're free to leave anytime, however, if you get up to leave, they arrest you on the ...