Just when I feel far away I'm reminded how small the world really is.

Written by Bessie about Japan. Feelin' normal

Kyle and I spent the last week in Japan. We toured 4 cities, but one of the most interesting things happened when we were waiting for a train.

On the Train to Asahikawa, Hokkaido, Japan

riding the train from Sapporo to Asahikawa, Japan

We had about an hour to pass between trains so we locked our bags at the train station and meandered around Asahikawa. Overall, it's a pretty unnoteworthy, typical mid-sized city, but it does hold the record as being the snowiest and coldest city in Japan. The remarkable thing that we discovered was a plaque.

View Entire Post >>

3 comments

The Beer of Japan

Written by Kyle about Japan. Feelin' excited

It's no secret that I like beer. Don't worry, it's not the bad kind of "like" where I end up passed out in a gutter, I actually enjoy the taste of beer. Well, good beer that is. And sadly, the Korean beer tastes terrible. It's cheap, but sometimes you get what you pay for. So, I was glad to get to go to Japan to experience beer that doesn't suck. I'm not going to say that Japanese beer is awesome, but it is palatable and it is sure better than the beer-water they serve in Korea.

Luckily, while we were in Japan, we were able to go to two breweries and spend a night eating and drinking our way through a beer festival. For a few moments, I could finally relax and enjoy one of the gifts that makes this world great: beer.

View Entire Post >>

7 comments

Otaru in Pictures

Written by Kyle about Japan. Feelin' happy

Before we came to Korea to teach, we bought a fancy new DSLR Nikon camera to document our experiences with something better than a point-and-shoot camera held together by one screw. While we have gotten some decent shots out of the camera, mostly our subject matter (Seoul, Korea) hasn't been all that great to shoot. Maybe its the boxy architecture or the constant haze that hangs in the background thereby ruining all the good light. So, we were delighted when we arrived in Otaru to find a city worth a thousand pictures. Particularly enjoyable was taking the pictures of the canal during the day and at night.

A restaurant advertising its food

View Entire Post >>

7 comments

Heaven is flower fields in Furano, Japan

Written by Bessie about Japan. Feelin' happy

One of the things I was most excited for on our trip to Hokkaido, Japan was the fields of flowers. Furano is known for its lavender fields, and loads of them. While the lavender was just out of full bloom, the array of flowers that filled Farm Tomito left me ecstatic.

delicious lavender ice cream also enhanced the euphoria.

View Entire Post >>

7 comments

Weather, Schmeather, We Came To Hike Asahidake and We're Going to Hike Asahidake!

Written by Kyle about Japan. Feelin' amused

One of the main reasons we went to Hokkaido was to get away from the city a bit and do some outdoor activities. It's an excellent plan when the weather is nice and the skies are blue. It's a not so excellent plan when it is constantly foggy, cloudy, and rainy. Unfortunately, we got the latter.