FINAL CHAPTER

Well things are just about to come to a close here in Japan. There's so much to say and tell, but I feel I would communicate it all so poorly here in text. Therefore I will give you a glimpse of my thoughts and experiences through my favorite mediums: music and art. I thought the song particularly appropriate and any of the photos I'm not in means I am standing behind the camera.

Before I go I want to say THANK YOU to everyone for your love and support while I have been away. Your emails, texts, blog responses, and video chats have kept me from feeling completely disconnected. I have always been a very independent person unafraid to explore and try new things and this is probably the pinnacle experience of those characteristics. However, it would have been so much more difficult for me to accomplish such things with out the encouragement of all of you, but especially my parents. They were not here to witness any of this, but I thought about them everyday, and I have come to realize how much of them I see reflected in myself.

That about wraps it up. Enjoy.

EMPTY

I have to say, I love this image! There is no better feeling than an empty e-mail box. Tasks have been accomplished, people have their answers, and I will sleep soundly.

MAD GAB

So I have been here for almost 11 weeks now and I still have trouble deciphering english with a Japanese accent. It is a lot like the game Mad Gab - Aunt Lisa would rule.

AIMACHI IN CHICAGO

Just a quick note to let you know that Aimachi will be in Chicago for two days of rehearsal on the 12th and 13th of April at:

Rosemont Convention center
5555 N. River Rd.
Des Plains, IL 60018


Monday rehearsal is from 2 pm until 7 pm

Tuesday is from 10 am until 2 pm.

If you are unable to travel to Dayton for the performance (and I know this is the case for most people) but would still like to see what I have been up to for the last 2 months in live action, this is the next best thing. The practices should be open to the public and would not cost you anything. I can't promise I will have a great deal of time to talk, but maybe you'll like what you see. It would mean a great deal to me if you came, but I know schedules are hectic.

COUNTDOWN

OK. This is my last full week in Japan land. Please check back just a few more times for the last posts leading up to my departure.

I will see you soon.

ME AND CHRIS

This picture has nothing to do with anything.

TOKYO 2

Night shots of the Shinjuku District in Tokyo. I can't even explain how awesome it was. Hopefully these pictures say the words for me.

DRIVE BY SUSHI

When I was in Tokyo I ate at a restaurant that serves sushi on a conveyor belt. I don't know why I think that is so awesome, but I do. Then they charge you by how many dishes you have at the end. SUGOY.

BRICKLIKE INTERNATIONAL

I went to college to study art and music and that is how I have made a living for the last few years. I have now traveled halfway around the world for the same reasons and yet, concrete work has still found me. There were some other things I could have worked on today but I figured, this is probably the thing I know the most about while asking the least amount of questions. I know the process and order of events and so I really can't mess it up. You'd be proud Dad. Today was phase II - "Concret-o" as the Japanese say.

OK. The wall is set. Time to pour.



Japanese version of Uncle Ed running the conveyor, or in this case concrete pump.





Here I am on top of the wall.



Here's the crew after a job well done. By the way all - all of these men are musicians. So after the work day, and dinner, and church, they will all be marching and playing instruments at rehearsal tonight. Right next to me.

TOKYO

If you read this between 4 pm Sunday afternoon and 2 am Tuesday morning, I'm in Tokyo.

TOMADACHI

Tomadachi means "friends." These are my Aimachi Tomadachi.

JAYWALK

It seems like Jaywalking is not only allowed, it's encouraged! They paint the lines right across the middle. This is efficiency at it's best.

SHABU SHABU

Our first performance today followed by a dinner I will never forget. The marching band director took the Americans out for dinner to an authentic Japanese restaurant. I can only try to explain the evening in the following paragraph and pictures. . .

Private rooms to eat in - shoes off at the door please. Sitting on pillows on the floor at a table that is 12 inches of the ground. Served by Japanese waitresses in authentic kimonos that kneel to serve you everything from a hot towl, to saki, to appetizers, tea and bring the main dishes which was called "Shabu shabu". We took raw meat and vegetables and cooked them ourselves in boiling water (at our table) and then enjoyed. Extremely delicious when dipped in these sauces...









and for dessert: Cherry Blossom Ice Cream. NICE.

SPANKY

I saw this yesterday while shopping in downtown Nagoya. This is my brother's nickname, and so I instantly thought of him.

TGIK

Thank got it's Keenyobi (Friday). Today was good. I did some general handy work around the church, and then rode a bike into town. Spent about 2 or 3 hours cycling around. Had to buy a shirt for my uniform (we have a community performance this weekend), then a quick stop at Mister Donut for an afternoon snack. After that just cruised around and tried to take everything in. The colors, architecture, nature, design, smells, sights, and sounds... many things are the same as in the U.S. but with so much uniqueness to it.

SIX FLAGS

Whew. Awesome day yesterday. Oksama (which means "wife", and we call her that because she is the wife of the man the runs the church) took myself, the other American Mandy, and our friend Sotaro to the Japanese version of six flags. Now there are several cultural phenomena that I do not get particularly excited about: sports, shopping malls, theme parks - but this was really cool. We where only there for a short time, but I took a tone of pictures and did all the rides I could. Here are some shots...

"White Cyclone" was the first on the list. It is the standard rickety old wooden roller coaster, which is a must at all parks. As we approached something caught my eye: Interestingly enough their are two flags right before the first drop - yep the red, white, and blue baby. They must have knew I was coming. On another intersting note, if you look close you'll notice that it says, "DO NOT STAND UP" . . .
in English . . .
in Japan. . .
What's that tell you?
Yep. We're idiots.



Here is the same roller coaster from above (waaaaay above) while I am on the ferris wheel. I could make a pretty good argument that the ferris wheel was actually the scariest ride there. Very HIGH, very SLOW, very WINDY. Did I mention the park was built on the shore? The shore of the PACIFIC!



Here is said Ferris Wheel.



This was as we where walking out of the park. While I did not even think about jumping on this particular ride, I did enjoy all the screams that were coming from it. As well as their legs flailing about.

WII

This is for all you gamers out there (Brettster). I stopped in to my friends room the other day while he was playing Wii. He asked if I wanted to play bowling and even though I am not particularly coordinated at video games, I do enjoy knocking down some pins from time to time. However, this was not ordinary bowling. This was some Japanese version of Wii bowling with 100 pins on the lane!!! I couldn't believe it. No matter how hard a threw the ball right into the center pin, I could NOT knock them all down. It was pretty hilarious. And of course, leave it to me to come up with the dreaded 70 - 100 pin split. Oh well...

24 Hr. MCDONALDS

Just got back from a late night McDonalds run. Actually, it was a ride along for me (I stopped eating McDonalds years ago). Kyotaka (snare player) made a trip out in the crummy rainy weather to buy everyone some late night treats, so I asked if I could come with. He ordered for what seemed like a really long time, but I figured, hey it's in another language - I don't really know what is going on, it may just be that way... who knows. Well, when we came around the corner there was an electronic sign that said ¥5210. YIKES! That is about $60.00! We sat in the drive through so long that he shut the car off. Ha. Then they gave us two HUGE bags of food. I said, "Kyo, I thought you were getting a snack for three people?" Nope. Turns out they were gifts for a Japanese "Hallmark Holiday" called White Day where the boys give girls presents. He just happened to buy them for the whole church. Awesome. I love learning about things like this. I think it made my day - which is coming to an end - which means yours is just beginning. I hope that you have a great start to your week.

UP

Dad told me to remember to look up. Here is what I have seen...

RAIN

Well it's raining again - probably will for about a week. Just dreary and miserable out. It is amazing how much the weather affects our mood and sense of motivation. Like the motivation to type...