tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25002244981948887402012-02-03T00:05:01.436-08:00Life in Himeji...and beyond!Life in Himeji, and beyond...http://www.blogger.com/profile/01016690218985645367noreply@blogger.comBlogger361100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2500224498194888740.post-7150454072877485962008-07-13T06:59:00.001-07:002008-07-13T07:36:12.788-07:00

Visitors, visitors, visitors!! After 9 months of none at all, the past two months Joe and I have been busy hosting visitors galore. This month Sister Suzy and Gabrielle have come. We have jam-packed as much Japanese culture and experience into 10 days, including:Udon, print viewing, shopping downtown, Hiroshima, Miyajima, Kyoto, Sushi Row, Kobe, Himeji night-life, the Himeji Museum, Shopping at

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Here are a few pictures of what life is like pregnant in Japan. The food is delicious here, but doesn't help the cravings much... We sure are lucky to be experiencing a healthy pregnancy during our year long adventure!In Kobe with Sister Suzy and Kyoto with Joe Waiting for the bus in Himeji

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On Sunday, June 15th, we went to a beach in Himeji with some friends, Shin and his wife Yumi, Kengo and his wife Yumi, and all theiradorable children. The weather was warm and a little overcast, which was perfect! When we got there we each grabbed shovels and buckets and walked out into the low tide to go clamming! After we spent about an hour digging for clams, we went up into a lounge area to

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Our Japanese adventure just got a little more memorable, and exciting! Just as we were preparing to take a vacation to Thailand, we found out that Katie was 6 weeks pregnant! Although we had to cancel our trip, we couldn't be more thrilled!! The addition to our family is due in November, about three months after we return from Japan!The Jellybelly.Joe and the Jellybean.

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Ociel and Jeff, two of Joe's close buddies from Loyola Marymount, happened to be the first official visitors for us. We all hit it pretty hard, given we only had about 72 hours before they had to head back to China. For them it was as much a chance to forget about work and relax as it was to see a foreign country, so we did the sightseeing in Kobe, Kyoto and Himeji during the day and left the

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In April, we went to the town, Nada, to join a mochi-throwing festival with Joe's old host family, the Kousaka's. Basically, men climb a temporary structure that is positioned next to the local shrine and throw mochi (a Japanese tradition sweet). If you catch one, you are granted a year of luck! Well, since Joe was the tallest person in the crowd, we are going to have a verrrrry lucky year!

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Spring in Himeji, Japan is definitely cooler than Phoenix, but it is gorgeous! The cherry blossoms only lasted about two weeks, but they were breathtaking. At the beginning of April we joined our Japanese friends in North Himeji for a Hanami picnic. Hanami is the celebration of spring and cherry blossoms in Japan. People from all of the world come to view it, as it is beautiful and doesn't last

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At the end of March, Joe and I took a day trip to Nara...which is Japan's original capital.The weather was beautiful! The cherry blossoms were in full bloom, and the deer were really friendly. We fed them crackers sold in the Nara ...Joe even mouth fed one. YUCK!We saw so many historic and beautiful sights, including the world's largest wooden structure and the world's biggest Buddha. It was

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On Friday, March 8th the san-nensei (3rd grade) JHS students had their graduation. The school and grade system is a bit different here in Himeji than in the U.S. Junior High is very difficult and there are three grades, instead of two. The third grade (equivalent to a high school freshman) students must take a very difficult test at the end of their 3rd term to see what high school they are

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Well, it's been a while since our last blog! Things get pretty busy here in Japan, and before we know it we are way behind on our blogging. The most recent and interesting adventure that we have experienced is Sumo Wrestling. WOWEE, is that a trip. Joe and I got on a train to Osaka with our friends Sara, Taube, and Julian and bought bento boxes (Japanese sushi lunch boxes), beer, and chuhi

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Our friend, Mayumi, was nice enough to act as our travel agent and found us a great deal on a trip to Mount Fuji. So, at 7:00am on February 9th, Joe and I, along with our friends Rob and Lyn, hopped on a tour guide bus and headed out on a yet another adventure. We were the only 4 English speaking folks on the bus, which was rather interesting. We have learned quite a bit of Nihongo (Japanese),

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Do you think this man knows what his jacket says?"freezing point" haha.Japan is such a great country. Sometimes it just makes us laugh. When the Japanese think something is ineresting, or are a bit shocked, they ome pictures that made us say the same thing."Beauty Saron""Sparkring Soda"

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On Friday, February 1st, all of the ALT's attended a formal cocktail hour and dinner with our "Kocho-sensei's" (aka: principals). We all drank a ton, ate fantastic Japenese cuisine, and enjoyed a performance by the Aussie's. When the event was over, we carried the party on to Not Blue, a classy bar, and then on to fantastic karaoke!The after dinner bar..."Karaoke"...

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On February 2nd we had our friends Taube, Julian, Lynn and Rob over for dinner. It just happened to be a festival day, "Setsubun". The tradition of "Setsubun" is to eat as many dried soy beans as your age +1 and then throw them outside to drive out the devil. Also, you are supposed to eat a long role of sushi with your eyes closed while wishing for what you want the year to follow. Let's hope

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SNOW! On Saturday, February 2nd, our friends Mayumi and Naomi took us on a roadtrip to see beautiful snow! We drove two hours northwest of Himeji, near the Japanese sea, where we played in the knee-deep snow, had snowball fights, built a snowman, and had a fantastic lunch with a wonderful view. What a fun day!

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We are so lucky because we have met so many wonderful people in Japan (Americans, Australians, and Japenese). This weekend was really busy, filled going out with work friends, wonderful meals, Japanese tutoring, and a fantastic market in Himeji that was held at an old Sake Factory. Despite the cold, somewhat snowy weather, we enjoyed organic/homegrown Japanese food (Joe ate a ginormous snail),

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On December 29th and 30th we went to Hiroshima, which is about a 1 1/2 hour Shinkansen (bullet train) ride away from Himeji. We were sad to find out upon our arrival that most everything was closed down due to the approaching New Year, but decided to explore the city all the same. We were not let down, as we seldom are in Japan. We wondered through the Peace Park, saw many memorials, saw the

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On December 23rd, we had a fantastic Christmas party with all of the other residents of Shirasagi and our Japanese friends from the surrounding community! The party consisted of a concert given by Joe, Katie, Eiko, and Marie and Adam Newman! We sang our favorite songs for the party, and then we all went out into the neighborhood for Christmas Caroling. This was a first for most of our Japanese

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Christmas 2007 was exciting for the new Casey's! Although we missed our family and friends like crazy, we created several memories we will cherish forever. We started with carrying on a Casey family tradition of Italian food for Xmas Eve dinner and opening one gift. Katie made a quiche (a Rex family tradition) from scratch! Joe and Katie also made ambrosia for breakfast, and prepared an

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Katie has been teaching dance classes voluntarily for the tenants of Shirasagi Residence and a few other friends for over two months. This is a video of Katie dancing with two sisters from Australia, Tina Nesbitt and Marie Nerris, who had never danced before the beginning of these classes. Their progress has been extraordinary. Sadly, they leave Japan and return home in a matter of days, and

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Over Thanksgiving weekend, we decided to take a day trip to Kyoto, which is under two hours north of Himeji. What a wonderful city! We wandered around several temples, including Kinkakuji and Kyomizudera. We walked through the cobblestoned streets of Gion and saw all of the women dressed as Geishas. We ate "Cup of Noodles from a vending machine, and received handmade cards from adorable

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This weekend Joe and Katie planned and organized the 1st Annual White Trash College Bash, as a means of sending the soon-to-leave Australian neighbors off in style.Event: Back to college nightBring: BeerAttire: Anything trashyExpect: Beer bongs, beer pong, flippie cup, and moreWhy: Why not?It went off without a hitch. Nearly everyone from our residence came, and also many friends from all around

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Over the weekend we enjoyed a wonderful Japanese style bbq in the mountains, about one hour north west of Himeji. True to Japanese style, our friends Eiko, Toshi, Naiomi, and Mayumi cooked fantastic food until we couldn't eat another bite. When the meal was finished, we were all wondering how the Japanese people eat the way they do and stay so thin! Then, we taught our friends how to play, "

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On Saturday, November 10th, we went on a day trip to Kobe with our Australian friends, Jodi and Johnno. We started with a great meal of Okanomiake and some shopping. We then, ventured to the Kobe soccer stadium to see the game, and were are about to get in line to buy our tickets when a man with a British accent stopped us. "Do you all have tickets?" Of course we were skeptical at first, but

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Halloween at Shirasagi Residence. We hosted a traditional Halloween bash for the community and their children, which included pumpkin carving, costume contests, and of course, trick or treating! It was so fun explaining a completely foreign holiday to these people, when in the states we sometimes took this awesome holiday for granted. If you're wondering what Japanese Elementary School

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On Thursday night, Katie met with her friend, Jodi, to have a lesson in Ikebana (Japanese flower arranging). Their friend, and teacher, Eiko, led them through a step-by step process of how to properly arrange flowers the Japanese way. There is a definite science to this cultural tradition. For her first time with Ikebana, Katie did a pretty good job. Her "sensei" even said that she was a

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On Sunday, October 21st we met with our new friends, the Ide-sans and drove to an apple orchard about 1 1/2 hours northwest of Himeji! We ate unlimited fresh, delicious apples! We met their daughter, son-in-law, and their two adorable granddaugthers, Asahai (age 4) and Aoi (age 3). After Joe carted them around on his shoulders and we played the "1,2,3 weeee" game, they became our best friends.

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One of the most famous and historic festivals in all of Japan is called the Fighting of the Shrines. Historically, over 1000 years ago, the current emperor of Japan observed as two portable shrines collided as they were headed opposite directions across a bridge near the community of Nada. Every year since, they have held a festival, in which the portable shrines of the different areas within

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Nearly every community in Japan has their own festival in the month of October, celebrating the coming of Autumn. Some festivals are Nationally renown, with an elaborate history, others are more quaint. On this particular weekend, the community of Shinzaike held their festival, and welcomed the English teachers living in the area to help celebrate. It begins at 9AM on a Sunday morning, with

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Last weekend, we rode our bikes to a nearby park (Tagere park) with our friends, Jodi and Jonno. It rained a bit, but we had an awesome time exploring! The park was on a bluff, and had really cool buildings that looked like castles! The park had beautiful flower gardens, a gorgeous view of the city, and so much more. We feel so lucky to be here in Himeji, and we are having such a blast going on

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Joe and I have been in Himeji for one month, and we have really made our apartment feel like home. When we arrived we had the furniture, linens, kitchen items, and all the micellaneous stuff we needed. However, it felt very brown and dull (not to mention the curtains were a pepto bismo pink). So, we took down the curtains, went to the 100 yen store, and gave our apartment color and style!!Here

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Today, Joe and I went on a tour of the Himeji Castle. We had about 4 Japanese tour guides, and learned so much about the castle's history and structure! The castle was built with defense in mind. There are so many tactics that the men who designed and constructed the castle used to ward off the "bad guys" that just amazed us! For instance, from the outside, the castle looks like it contains 5

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On Saturday, September 22nd, Katie went with some friends to an island called Ieshima, about a 45 minute ferry ride away from Himeji, for a Japanese -style BBQ, swimming, and canoing!When we went swimming, the water was the perfect temperature and you could see your feet and little fish swimming at the bottom. The canoing was fun, but not very "exciting". We tried to leave the little bay area,

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After being in Japan for less than two weeks, we went to a Beer Garden on top of the Egret Center in Downtown Himeji. The food and beer were great, and the view of the Himeji Castle was even better!After the beer gardens, we all biked over to a Karaoke place and rented a room for two hours!!! Katie was in heaven!! We hadn't been in the room for five minutes, and already there was a 20 minute wait

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Today, Joe and I went with some friends to a Grape Vineyard about 1.5 hours away from Himeji! Our new Japanese friend, Maya, drove me, Joe, Taube, and Valerie to this beautiful site, where we ate endless grapes for only 9 yen a person (about $8.00 each). These grapes are huge, and are the sweetest tasting grape we have ever eaten! They were amazing. Also, they are about 30,000 yen per batch in

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In early September our new friends, Eiko and Mayumi, came over to our apartment and taught us to make Okanomiaki (Japanese-style pizza). We had such a fun time, and Katie even ate octopus in hers (although she preferred the shrimp).

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