Sayonara, Nippon

Here we are at the end of our Japan adventure.

It is been an incredible ride, which of course is what we had hoped for.

When we made the decision to come to Japan, we were looking for many things - adventure, new friends, exposure to a new culture, and experience overseas, so we could get other work with NGOs, the UN, or international agencies.

Well, we've gotten everything we were looking for and more.

We have made some life-long friends, which in the end, is the most important part. Ancient shrines and strange food are exciting, but it's the people in your life that really matter.

We swam in the sea and hiked in the jungle on Okinawa's Ishigaki and Iriomote islands.

We sat in steaming natural hot baths (onsen) in Oita prefecture, and climbed the lovely Mt. Yufu (Yuku-dake) with dear friends from both Japan and California.

We ate strange foods like horse meat, squid, and seaweed, although my (Serenity's) school lunches likely topped them all.

We've explored the jungle of Tokyo and hiked the ancient stone steps of mountains, cheered at a SoftBank Hawks baseball game, explored ancient Buddha carvings in the forests of Utsuke, sat eye-to-eye with monkeys in Beppu, peered into ancient volcanic craters in Kirishima, rowed a canoe in the deep gorges of Takachiho, strolled the streets and experienced the remains of the atomic bombing in Nagasaki, and endured countless hours of struggling to use the Japanese language, or helping others to use ours.

Through it all, we have come away with even more love than we started with, and a courage and hope that has been cultivated in smiles and successes. Not that the last 16 months haven't been without misunderstandings, frustrations, anger, sadness and fear. But these things have helped us to stand where we do today - at the edge of adventure, peering through the eyes of growing understanding of the Earth on which we live.

For all of this I thank first and foremost our families for giving us the support we needed to take the first steps into the world both in our own lives, and together. Also, I thank everyone in Japan who has given us smiles and cheers when we needed them, listened to our gripes, and shared their own experiences with us.

That said, it's time to move on, and we can now bring the spirit of "ganbate!!" with us.

Sayonara, Nippon!

SoftBank Hawks game

Thanks to our friends Keiko and Katsume, we got to go to a Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks baseball game!

Here's the Yahoo Dome in Fukuoka City

Here's Will with friends at the game!

There's more photos! Click on this link to Flickr to see them!

Go Hawks!

Japan Eats on Flickr

There's now a collection of photos on Flickr of the various food encounters we've had here - just click here to see it!

Yufu-dake, monkeys & drunken samurai-wanna-bees

The last weekend that my cousin Derek & my buddy Jerry were here, we all went with some friends to hike up Yufu-dake in nearby Oita-ken, which borders the Pacific Ocean on the other side of Kyushu.

Here's the group (minus Katsume, who took the photo).
Back row: (L to R) Jerry, Derek & Me
Front Row: (L to R) Keiko, Ryisuko, Misako & the giggly one is Serenity.

The trail was beautiful, first going through green forests & ferns.

Near the very top, the trees were gone and the trail wound through pink azaleas. You can see the crater (it's an old volcano) to the left, and there were two peaks to climb. The clouds/steam made a wall of white so it was hard to see into the crater.

Derek & me up on the rock, Katsume below at the summit of the easier of the two peaks.

The other peak was steeper and more challenging.

Katsume scaling up the steep walls.

Serenity had no problems.

And Derek was just showing off.


At the top, the clouds moved in.

Katsume at the edge of the world.

Serenity & I at the summit.

Derek doing his best Rocky Balboa impression at the top.


That night we all rented a big house in the town of Yufuin which sat at the bottom of the mountain.

Everyone enjoying BBQ & beer after a long hike.

Misako tending the BBQ - Japanese style. Small, thin pieces of meat and vegetables are cooked and everyone kind of picks them off and eats as they are cooked.

I think Katsume's making fun of my traditional Japanese style housecoat.


Remember what I wrote earlier about Jerry spitting up while in Japan?

Pretty sure this was taken right before he did...on the tatami mat. And his Japanese housecoat. And his bathrobe. No more sake for Jerry.


The next morning, slightly hungover, we headed out.

No, wait...that's not us. But we felt similar. Especially Jerry.


We visited a nearby mountain where wild monkeys still inhabit part of Japan.

Well, I say wild, but they are fed now by keepers. There was a problem with monkeys attacking people for food, so they've kind of cordoned off the area. But there are no cages, and these guys just run wild between your legs.

And being in Japan, of course you are subjected to second-hand smoke...even if you are a monkey.

Derek & Jerry on the opposite side of the Pacific Ocean from where they normally reside. This is about the same latitude as San Diego.


Last we visited a natural hot spring, where the extremely hot mineral water has turned the pool red. This is not for bathing - just looking.

Serenity & me in front of "Blood red Hell," as it was called.

How romantic.

The three stooges in Kyushu

Thought I'd throw up some more photos of Derek & Jerry's visit. After coming back from Tokyo, I had some time off, so we toured around Kyushu. Unfortunately, Serenity had to work, so she's not in any of these photos.

Our first day back at our house the three of us headed to Homan-san, the mountain in the nearby town of Dazaifu. Dazaifu is famous for its temple, and this mountain has 300+ year old stone steps that go to the top.

We started our journey on a path many monks took hundreds of years ago.

Derek meditating on top of Homan-san next to the Shinto Shrine, looking out over the valley.

Back down at the town of Dazaifu, on the grounds of Ten-man-gu Temple (the temple is not pictured here, but off behind the trees. The spring flowers were out and because it was a weekday it was empty - so beautiful.

The next day I had to work, so I sent Derek & Jerry off to visit Nagasaki. They had a great time, but I have no pictures.

So on Thursday and Friday, we toured around Fukuoka and Kurume.

Here's Derek (left) and Jerry climbing the old Fukuoka Castle walls.


It wasn't too hot (they had excellent weather the whole trip), but after walking around Tokyo for three days, hiking up Homan-san, and walking around Nagasaki, the legs were getting tired.

We rested on the bridge over the moat to Fukuoka Castle. The moat has filled with lilly pads.

Later one night we went to a traditional Japanese izakaya, where we enjoyed some basashi, or raw horse meat.

We went to find the Sea of Japan, which even I hadn't seen yet, and found this bay surrounded by a ferris wheel, so we took a ride.

Looking out from the ferris wheel.

A beautiful view of the bay and the many islands out on the Sea of Japan.

It was so romantic, Jerry couldn't contain himself.

One of our party got swallowed up by the "Jumbo Godzilla."

Another nice meal at the Yatai stalls along the river in Fukuoka. The Ramen is famous here, but Derek also enjoyed some octopi.

After the meal we had the chef take our picture...and immediately after this picture he dropped and broke Jerry's camera. Jerry wasn't smiling after that.

The following weekend we went with some other friends to climb a mountain Yufu-dake with some friends, and stayed over night at a traditional Japanese house. But more pictures from the weekend in the next post.

Anyway, the last Monday before they left for Kyoto and eventually home Derek, Jerry & I visited Nokonoshima, one of the islands off of Fukuoka.

Derek on the ferry boat over to the island.

We just relaxed and walked along the beach. The water is extremely warm - probably in the upper 70s.

Jerry showing off his shells from the beach, with Fukuoka in the background.

The biggest city in the world

The first weekend in June Serenity & I flew to Tokyo for the weekend to meet up with my friend Jerry and my cousin Derek, who were coming in for a two-week visit.

The first morning we headed out to see the Imperial Palace, home of the Emperor. Here is Jerry & Derek posing in front of the moat.

We walked around the gardens inside the palace grounds, filled with azalea and iris around the Koi ponds.


But you can't visit Tokyo without seeing the Yasukuni-jinja, the controversial shrine dedicated to the many Japanese people who have died in wars of the past.

Derek, me & Jerry in front of a Kamikaze plane.

That night we went out on the town for some good food. Derek, Serenity & Jerry looking a little lost. No worries.

The next morning we visited the Asakusa Temple near our hotel, a famous temple in Japan.

That's Derek with the sunglasses on, cleansing his hands with the fountain water. You're supposed to clean your hands and sip a little of the water to cleanse your inner soul before entering the temple.

If you click this one to enlarge, you can see Jerry spitting back into the fountain. It turns out it wasn't the only thing he spit up while visiting. More on that in another post.


After visiting the temple, we looked for something to eat.

Here's Jerry, debating whether to feast on some endangered whale.


We eventually decided on this sushi place.

Derek wondering what he just ate.

Here's what Derek just ate...any guesses?

We ventured off through the city for some more sightseeing.

We came across this traditional ceremony, a bunch of people dressed up and playing music while hauling this shrine down the street.

Some of them really got into the ceremony, traditional dress and all. (buttcheeks were optional)

Visiting a garden by the Meji-jinja later that day, making sure to photograph the wildlife.


Serenity & I in Shibuya...yet another crowded intersection.


After dinner, we enjoyed some drunken Karaoke. In Japan, Karaoke is sung in private rooms...thank God.


The next day, nursing hangovers (was it from the beer or Serenity's singing?) we headed to Tsukiji Fish Market, where the sushi comes in fresh from the polluted waters of Tokyo Bay.

Us enjoying a bit of fried squid and fishcakes on the sidewalk.

Inside Tsukiji market...where they don't sell just fish.

Anyone for a stuffed endangered Panda? A nice stuffed osprey? Polar Bear? Sea Turtle? Lynx? Tiger? (Not all pictured here)

We visited another garden next to Tokyo Bay later that day.

Good thing Jerry was there to hold up this Tori...


After a three-day weekend in Tokyo, the guys were ready to visit good ol' Tachiarai...

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers...Unite!

More photos from the rest of their visit later...