Apparently I'll be in KL during the Mega Sale Carnival. I'm picturing a festive atmosphere, with clowns on streetcorners handing out Prada instead of balloons. I suspect I'm doomed to disappointment.

Well, I may not get to see the Fukuroi fireworks, but at least I made it to the Abekawa show. It was nice, but it feels like there was something missing, something I can't quite put my finger on...oh, wait, what was missing is about 10 000 fireworks. (Abekawa uses 20 000, then the following weekend Fukuroi one-ups them by setting off 30 000) Still, it was good. Shiny things that go boom in the sky! What's not to love? So, to spread the love, here are some pictures and even a video. Grab an alcoholic beverage and some sort of unhealthy snackfood, sit back, and pretend like you were there.

So. Many. People.



If you look closely at the guy sandwiched between the two heads over in the right, you'll see that he is wearing a lovely Hello Kitty jimbei. One can only speculate as to whether or not he chose this for himself, or if it was a present from his girlfriend.



Fireworks!






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I got a fantastic present today...a theft-proof bag for my travels! It looks much like a regular black shoulder bag, but it has special features, like steel wire running through the strap (hah, potential thieves! Try and surreptitiously cut THAT!) and a swivel clip so I can lock all the zippers together (again, I say hah! to all the pickpockets out there!) It's a great giftie. Thanks, April!

However, included in the box was a gift not quite so practical...fake hair. Perhaps I'm not using it right, but it just doesn't seem to be working out for me. (If you click on the picture, it'll take you to my dropshots account where you can see other pictures...that are almost identical. What? It's HARD taking a picture of the back of your own head.)




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create your own visited countries map
or vertaling Duits Nederlands


I just found this new toy. The red shows where I've been. It covers a distressingly small area. That's it, from now on, I'm not bothering with these tiny little countries that barely show up on the map. From now on, it's all about size, baby. One trip each to Russia and China and this will look way more impressive!

This is gonna be a bad year for cockroaches. Is it winter yet?

Last weekend was hot. Hot hot hot. 35 degrees + hot. Then, on Monday, it started raining. At first I was grateful for the cooler weather, but by Friday I was feeling distinctly soggy. I even wore my water shoes to work...you know, sort of sneakers but for wearing in the water? Like if you go out to the ocean and don't want your poor little feet to get ripped to shreds on the rocky bottom, but sandals will just wash right off? Yeah. I wore those. I think they'll be getting a lot of use this week, as the forecast is for more rain! Whee!

At first I was excited when I found this site, but then I realized it's not about building actual arks. Pooey.

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Oh, and this morning I received an unexpected present. One of my students went to Italy two weeks ago, and she bought me this!



Usually they just bring back tea or snacks for the whole class. I didn't open it until I got home, so I'll have wait a week to shower her with effusive gratitude.

Ah, the weekend is over. I could use another day or so to just rest, but at least it wasn't dull! And now it is raining and the temperature has dropped to a mere 22 degrees, which is seriously nice.

So, the wedding. The wedding was lovely. In Japan, all you need to do to get married is sign some papers, so the ceremony is only for show. All they did was exchange vows and rings and smooch and that was it, on to the party! (Oh, and they also scared the bejeezus out of poor little Liam with an organ rendition of "Here Comes The Bride")

The food was fantastic...French, I think. So of course the portions were small, but there were about 6 courses (including lobster, yum) and three desserts, and the wedding beer flowed freely.



Maho didn't toss the bouquet, for which I am very grateful, because it meant I didn't have to dive for cover to avoid the damn thing.

She and her sister did a belly dance routine, though.



Me and my date (please note, all baby pictures are shown with permission of baby owners)



I feel so tall next to all the tiny Japanese women



I didn't go out after that....by 1 am my personal motto was "stick a fork in me, I'm done", so I just went home.

In Japan, it costs me 2500 yen for a 10-15 minute ride from the downtown area. In Cambodia, I can hire a taxi for the entire day for 20 USD.

And now for Monday...I hung out with my friend John (former Fukuroi dweller and, briefly, a Peppy co-worker) as he and his wife are back in the country showing off their baby.



She's pretty cute.



(Hee. I just spell-checked this sucker and it offered "buckaroo" as a replacement for "Fukuroi")

Oy. Longest. Weekend. Ever. Fortunately for me, today is the last day of the long weekend and my only plans are meeting friends for lunch. I suspect I will make it home before midnight tonight, hurrah!

Went to a Kabuki show on Saturday. Not a full-day extravaganza...it was like Kabuki-lite. The play only lasted one hour, although there was a sort of skit with audience participation at the beginning. The story, as far as I understand it, goes as follows.

There was a warlord who had lost a battle and was fleeing north. (Already I'm confused, as I thought all warlords who lost battles immediately committed seppuku out of shame. But ok.) On the way, they had to pass through different prefectures (states or provinces) which, at the time, had a sort of immigration policy wherein you had to answer some questions before you were allowed in. (Presumably there were no metal detectors, and I'm guessing no one batted an eye if you tried to smuggle nail clippers through.) Naturally, the defeated warlord didn't want anyone else to know where he was going, so he got his main captain guy to, I think, lie for him. The entire play was basically the captain and the guy who manned the gate talking, or rather, chanting in a monotone. Action-packed it was not, until right at the end when the captain got stinking drunk off of sake and did a little dance. The end.

They use archaic Japanese, so I'm pretty sure I wasn't the only one who had no clue as to what was going on. It was fascinating to watch anyway. Thanks to my opera glasses, I was able to zoom in on the detailing of the costumes and set and watch all the little nuances of the actors. The little skit at the beginning featured a female character (there are no women allowed in Kabuki, so all the female characters are played by men) and it was very interesting to watch. The actor's movements were very feminine...more so than most women I know. But then he spoke...it was a comedy, so I'm not sure if this was done intentionally, but it was just a man speaking in a high, squeaky voice. I hope they do a better job in the dramas, as it would probably ruin the tension of the audience burst into giggles everytime the female character spoke.

Next up...wedding pictures!

I'm not sure if I should be at work right now. We're going to cancel the 8 o'clock class and meld it with the 7 o'clock, and two of the three 8 o'clock students came to the first class. The third one didn't show up at all. So now I'm not sure if Andrew officially cancelled this last class, or if it's technically still open. Just to be safe, I'll stay put for a bit longer.

I decided to hire the guide. It'll end up costing me $200, but I have that much in my travel fund, and I'd rather get everything I can out of this trip instead of my usual casual rambling around.

I changed my hotel, too. This one is bungalow style, and how cute is that? Still comes with a swimming pool and AC, but it's only $30 a night. And did I mention the bungalows? The website pictures are very pretty.

I feel so accomplished. I have vacuumed the entire school, washed the dishes and the tables, and even tidied up a bit. And now it's 8:50, so I think it's safe to assume no one is coming to this class. I'm off on a quest to find dinner!

Ah. Tickets, check. Hotels, check. (Slight case of buyer's remorse about hotel cost, check. But I'm sure it'll be lovely.)

Now I'm just trying to decide if I should hire a guide to show me around. I'd need to hire a driver at any rate...the temples are too far apart to just walk. The going rate for an air-conditioned taxi seems to be $20 US (which considering the 15 minute ride from the station to my place costs anywhere from $20-$26 is pretty damn impressive.)

I found a guide via a Cambodian forum...he comes highly recommended. He only charges $20 a day, but then there's the cost of the taxi on top of that. If I was traveling with someone I wouldn't hesitate to go this route, but all by myself, $40 a day could add up.

Satoe said when she and Midori went, they just hired a driver and figured out their own itinerary. I, on the other hand, am not the most organized person on the planet. Hmmmm. Dilemma.

Any thoughts?

This is the guy I'm thinking of.

Trekked all the way out to Fujieda for an appointment with the Pedicure Lady. Mmm. Foot massages. The end result is perhaps a little fussier than I had envisioned, but still pretty. Until the end of August, she's having a sale on pedicures...only ¥5000, which is totally worth it. I'm thinking I may have to go back after I get back from Cambodia and pamper my poor little worn-out feet.

Ok, let's try this linky business one more time.

This sounds amazingly fun (well, maybe not so much the bit about the giant spiders). linkety!

I don't think that'll be happening for me anytime soon, though, unless my parents hurry up and win the lottery.

My hotels are all set up! I love the combination of internet + credit card. Looking back on my backpacking days, it's amazing to me that I managed to find a place to sleep every night without the aid of either one of these babies. Now I'm suffering a bit of buyer's remorse and wondering if I should have shopped around some more for a cheaper hotel. But I don't really want to do the backpacker/hostel thing...air con and a swimming pool sound just about right to me.

Now I just need to start studying my guide book so as to get a feel for the place. It's hard, though, because I keep getting distracted by the pictures.

Every year on the first weekend of August, Fukuroi puts on this massive firework display. It's one of the top shows in the entire country, and I look forward to it every summer. Haven't missed a show in five years. This year, however, I won't be going. I'm a little sad about that, but not a whole lot...I'll be in Kuala Lumpur! (Malaysia trumps Fukuroi everytime.)

My long-suffering travel agent spent a good hour with me, looking over different prices to various countries...I went in with the vague notion of going to Thailand, toyed briefly with a tour in China (pretty good deal, I'd like to go sometime), and then went back to the Thailand idea, only to interrupt him in the middle of booking a flight with "Hey, how much for Cambodia?" And now I have an itinerary and have parted with rather a large wad of cash!

I will fly into Malaysia and spend two nights in KL, and then go onto Cambodia for just under a week. I'll probably spend the entire time at Angkor Wat, so be prepared for lots of photos when I get back!

Who says chivalry is dead?

Last Saturday Cat and I were on our way home from a garden party. (People have gardens. In Tokyo. Who knew??) There we were, happily chatting on the train, when Cat noticed a slug. A SLUG ON HER BAG. Instead of doing the sensible thing (screaming and flinging the bag as far away from her as possible), she put it down hastily and proceeded to look at it all askance.

Slugs belonging firmly to that category called Things You Never, Ever, Ever Want To Touch, and not having any salt on us, we weren't quite sure what to do. Then a saviour appeared. The man sitting across from us had been watching the proceedings and he now leaned over and asked if we had a tissue or something. Cat tore off a piece of cardboard from a box she was carrying, handed it to him, and we watched in gratitude as he swooped the slug up.

Although, I'm sure to anyone who got on the train after that, he would have come across more as Weird Slug Holding Man than Knight In Shining Armour, as he spent the next three train stops staring at the slug oozing along on its little bit of cardboard with all the intensity of a man who has forgotten to bring a book for a long train journey.

And speaking of bugs, know what's not a tasty snack? Baby bees fried in honey. Trust me on this.