We had a nice Thanksgiving. Then I went deal hunting on Friday, all while getting ready for the N1 on Sunday. I’m leaving for DC on Saturday.
Food
Celebrating Pocky Day in Manhattan
I spent Pocky Day at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, then went to Kinokuniya. Dinner was with friends in Greenwich Village. Tomorrow I go back home. It’s supposed to snow.
Career Forum Day Two, etc. etc.
I was done with the Career Forum by early afternoon, so I went to the USS Constitution, took some photos, then went to Shiki again.
Raleigh Greek Festival
We went to the Raleigh Greek festival last night, and loaded up on some great home-made Greek food. It’s a bit of a drive, but worth it.
Wrightsville Beach
Another busy week as the entire extended family gathered for our annual trip to Wrightsville Beach, NC. It was good seeing everyone, but I’ll need to cut back on the food intake for a while.
AB!
Alton Brown came to the DPAC in Durham, NC. I’m a long-time “Good Eats” fan, so I enjoyed the heck out of it.
Career Forum, Constitution, Shiki
I took one last trip to the Boston Convention Center for the Career Forum, then did some touring around the USS Constitution and Bunker Hill, and I finished the day in Brookline for dinner. Tomorrow I head to New York City.
Harajuku, Akihabara, and a View I Won’t Forget
Regardless of my sore throat, I pushed on today. I shipped out some boxes, went to Harajuku and had fish pizza at Shakey’s, bought more souvenirs for people, then went to Akihabara and looked at video games, manga, and electronics. After that, I stopped by Marunouchi and Maruzen, and then had dinner at Sou Hon Kei in Shinjuku again. The view was incredible. Tomorrow I go home. (Sad Face.)
Toughing it out
I started the day late because I wasn’t feeling well. I went to Shinjuku to do some more shopping for people back home, then went to the post office to get boxes to send stuff home in. Dinner was in Roppongi again, followed by more Christmas/souvenir shopping.
Great Luck, Good Food, Plastic Food
I went to Senso-ji, then Kappabashi (where they make the plastic food), had an interesting encounter with a toilet, then went to Jinbocho and finally had dinner in Shinjuku. It was a mix of plastic food and great food!
A Master of Saying Nothing
Getting ready for the big test tomorrow; mastering how to say nothing; one last trip to Nagoya to pick up supplies and souvenirs. I’m going to really miss living in Okazaki!
Jackson Pollock and The Tallest Toilet in Nagoya
Today I went to see the Jackson Pollock exhibit at the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art, then went to the Midland Square Building to see some great views of Nagoya. More book shopping after that, then expensive crepes for dinner, and a train ride back to Okazaki. I managed to take some really good photos with my cheap little IXY, too!
Postcards From the JBPP Edge, How to Read Japanese Food Labels
Final exam for N1 grammar, tests on Wednesday, and we’re learning how to mail letters in JBPP.
First Night in Kyoto
I made it to Kyoto; discovered a few things about buying shinkansen tickets, ate some delicious food in Kyoto, and some not-so-delicious food.
Dumb Things in the Rain
It’s Sunday, and I didn’t do much today. I mostly rested. But in the evening, I started to go stir crazy. So I decided to go on a search for a store that doesn’t exist!
Orientation and Okonomiyaki in Okazaki
Orientation at Yamasa started today. We learned lots of things that don’t apply to me, because I’m on a short-term visa, and will be gone in 3 months. It’s kind of a bummer, but there you go. But there was a lot of really useful information, too, like what to do with my trash. I’ve … Continue reading
It’s Saturday, So It Must Be Nagoya.
It’s Saturday. No classes, and it’s beautiful outside. So I went to Nagoya to do some shopping for some much-needed necessities. No photos on this trip, because I didn’t take my SLR with me. It was too heavy to carry around while I went shopping. I needed to buy sheets, a wireless router, and after … Continue reading
Getting Used to Apartment Life
More classes today. I have a lot of gaps to fill in in my Japanese. Today I have my private lessons, then I’ll probably go to Nagoya to do some shopping. I need to get a wireless router and some kitchen supplies, as well as some sheets ASAP. Those are all top priorities. I’m getting … Continue reading
Eye Yai Yai
I had the hotel’s breakfast again, then went straight to the front desk to take care of two things: my eyes, which now hurt like hell and finding someone who can do something about the stink in the bathroom. Seriously, what is that? It’s not me. It was like that when I got there. A … Continue reading
Tonkatsu, Point Cards, and Burning Eyes
This was my first full day in Tokyo. I started with the hotel buffet for breakfast. 1,200 yen for all you can eat, either Western or Japanese style. Some of the Western stuff is a little odd, but it’s good enough for me. Plenty of yogurt, and a decent strawberry sauce. Other stuff was available, … Continue reading
Good Line Karma
Well, I’m finally back home. Long day today. I got up at 5:15 a.m. after a 2 hour nap, got the last bits of packing done, had breakfast, and got out the door at 7 a.m. Base2Stay was a lovely hotel, and I thoroughly recommend it. Check-out was a breeze. Off to Earl’s Court, then … Continue reading
You Don’t Know Where That Stick Has Been
Today I managed to fit in Westminster Abbey, a visit to Grosvenor Square, a trip to Foyle’s, and dinner at Nando’s one last time. My throat was still sort of sore. I think it’s all the air conditioning when I really don’t need it. Who needs air conditioning when it’s 70F? The other major annoying … Continue reading
Greenwich Down Time
I woke up today feeling like the bottom of someone’s shoe. My throat was sore (probably from a combination of snoring and the A/C in the room), I had a raging headache, and my right ankle was sore, too. So Greenwich was out. As I get older, I realize more and more that I have … Continue reading
Towering Over London
Today was a really busy day. I saw the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, then went to Piccadilly Circus yet again to pick up some tea at Fortnum and Mason. After that, I had some noodles and karaage, and picked up some Japanese confections at Minamoto Kitchoan. On the way I came across the … Continue reading
Shooting Through the Gallery
I had an ambitious plan today, and got whooped by the National Gallery. That’s one tough museum to get through, even on roller skates. I started out early enough, but made my first error when I headed out the door and down the street, having forgotten to brush my teeth. I hate it when I … Continue reading
London Loves the BL.
It’s Thursday, and I had to move out of my double room today. Before I did that, I started to check over my camera from my trip to Westminster yesterday, and what do I find, but the UV filter on my 80-200mm lens is smashed to bits, and it’s bent into place. I forced out … Continue reading
Pounded
It’s Wednesday, and I’ve crested the hill of my trip to London. Today I had to move out of room 114, a nice little room, so I spent some time throwing everything into bags. I had also decided to send two boxes full of unneeded books home. Using the mail turned out to be a … Continue reading
Wandering Around Piccadilly Circus
My first stop today was Piccadilly Circus, where there’s a neat used Japanese book store called Adanami. It’s in an old dry cleaner’s, and when I got there, I could still see the old dry cleaner’s sign. I got there just a little too early, because they were still closed. They open at noon, and … Continue reading
OMG Muffins @_@
I finally discovered Gregg’s, which has awesome sandwiches, and these evil chocolate chip muffins, filled with PUDDING. Or maybe it’s some sort of chocolate pastry creme? Either way, good God y’all, if you sold these in America, my fellow countrymen would start randomly exploding. The sandwiches at Gregg’s remind me a bit of some of … Continue reading
Crossed Up at King’s Cross
I met up with Michele (pronounced the men’s way, not the women’s way) from Italy today. He’s someone who also posts on the RTK forums, and is really good at Japanese. He’s in town to take the JLPT N1. We had a bit of a mess at first trying to meet up. We agreed to … Continue reading
Asian Markets in the Triangle
I forgot to post this yesterday, so it’s backdated accordingly. I went on an excursion today to check out some of the Asian markets in the Raleigh-Durham area today, because I had a sudden and unexpected free afternoon pop up. I had been meaning to check them out for a while now, because there are … Continue reading
Oh, Osaka! Castles and Towers and Okonomiyaki!
Today I left fun fun Fukuoka for Osaka. The shinkansen ride took about 2:45, and I got there right at 1:45 p.m. The way the shinkansen works is that it runs on special tracks designed for high-speed rail. This means that not every station is equipped to handle these trains. So Instead of going to … Continue reading
Random Musings from Hiroshima
I managed to snatch dinner before they could snatch it back out of my hands. Department stores just up and close at the drop of a hat. And they have confusing hours. For example, the food stores in the basement close at 8 p.m. The main stores close at 8 p.m. The book store closes … Continue reading
The Bells, the Bells! (Because “The Chimes!” Sounds Lame)
Okazaki Castle happens to be too far away for me to get to today. But at least I have a way to show you where I am on an interactive map. (It’s in Japanese, but a map is a map.) http://tinyurl.com/3d6cgv There’s a zoom-scale-slider-thing at the bottom of the map, to change it from 500m … Continue reading
The Trash Heap Has Spoken!
Yesterday was interesting. I got up at 8 a.m. I was freezing, and my throat was killing me. The window had been leaking cold air into my room, and it was right above where my head is on the bed. (Or was– I moved the other way on the bed so my head and feet … Continue reading
Noodling Around Okazaki on a Sunday
Today was nice. I woke up at 8, was freezing to death, cranked up the heat (once I figured out how), then went back to sleep until 10 a.m. (Which is exceedingly late for me.) I goofed around for most of the day, played on the computer a bit, did laundry, and then I went … Continue reading