I (heart) OBAMA

Who doesn't??? But just to be clear - I'm talking Obama City on Tachibana Bay in Nagasaki Prefecture, of course! As I've often mentioned in previous posts, Kyushu (the region in which I live in Japan) is well-known for its abundant onsens, or hot springs. Last Friday night some of the other ALTs and I went down to Obama city (about a half hour drive from Isahaya) for a hot bath at a rooftop onsen. And, in the winter, in the RAIN, that was a crazy idea.

Well, actually, once I was bathed and IN the hot tub, on the roof, looking out over the city and shore, it was worth it.

And, as shy you think Japanese people are, they certainly are not shy about jumping on the Obama bandwagon and using our political happenings to try to drum up business.

Although I'm happy that US-Japan relations seem - at least for the moment - more positive than not, I must admit, that as I walked around town seeing all those I (heart) OBAMA banners triumphantly waving in the wind, it was a comical sight to see our new president smiling and waving at everyone from a bathtub.

The Wall

Did I mention this before?
I've taken up climbing. Well, I've only been able to 'take it up' about half way on this wall, but I'm giving it a go. It's much more difficult than I expected. I kind of feel like there's no way to practice or train, I just have to DO IT. I'd really like a vertical wall for warm up, but, I guess I just have to grit my teeth and just push myself on this one. The guy at the bottom there on belay keeps egging me on - telling me that it's so easy to make excuses to not come and climb, but he's doing a good job of ticking me off enough to make sure I keep coming back and challenging the wall :)

One of the great things about being here in Japan is that I never quite know what to expect. That can certainly work for or against me. But this time I lucked out. I ended up finding this wall when I was at our sports festival at the gym here in Nagasaki city. I was curious, so I wandered over to see what this was all about. I think I still prefer rapelling, but this will do for now.

YMC Yea!

Hmmm...can't seem to upload photos at the moment. But I hope you enjoy this very short clip from one of the most amusing performances at our culture festival! This teacher must be the KING at karaoke!

Yea! It works again...Here's a shot of the teacher, now donning a red bow, joined by a few energetic cheerleaders.

HTB by Night

I ended up going to the 5 o'clock Circo Luci show, so I was in Huis Ten Bosch after sunset. To be honest, I expected more from the show, but I might very well be unfairly comparing it to the Cirque du Soleil! There was one amazing performer (I don't think I've ever seen such an enormous and man who was so "cut" before!) who did some really cool things with and in both a giant ring and later an open metal cube. At one point, he had the cube (which was as tall as he was) tipped up on one of its corners and was spinning it on his forehead! It didn't even look real. The costumes of the "extras" were quite bizarre, but were entertaining.
Afterwards I wandered around a little more, grabbed a hot chai tea latte from the man selling them in the VW bus (again - random, but cute!), and enjoyed the town as it began to wink on at twilight.

Huis Ten Bosch by Day

So on my random, middle of the week holiday yesterday, I wandered around Huis Ten Bosch with the express purpose of communing with the blooming tulips. At the moment, I'll admit to preferring the company of flowers to most people (except the students - they're always like happy, bright flowers!) here. (I do hope that changes soon - I'm just in a bit of a funk since some people think that everything is a fun adventure for me here, and most of the time it's as difficult as a long climb in spinning class. I know I'll be stronger, etc in the end, but sometimes I'd like to just have a friendly face around - one that understands me without my even having to open my mouth. Just someone - just ONE - that could simply "be there" - but I suppose this is all teaching me some kind of lesson. So I'll try be a good student, eh? Any prayers to that extent are gladly accepted :) )
(OK - ranting done now - )
I did, however meet and chat with a delightful young Japanese lady in the the gelato - "gerato" - line; she just moved back from Texas last year. She had her hands full with two gelatos and a two year old, so the conversation wasn't too long :)
The tulips with the quiet whirring of the windmills behind were so peaceful. I liked their almost defiant attitude towards the dull earth - these bright bits just shot boldly up towards the sun, following it as it rode across the sky.
(did you notice the "vanGogh tulip"? the yellow tulip with one red petal...)