Just had to include this pic from the Nagashima Spaland website (see info below). Ps - tans aren't in. 

hell yeah! this is where i'm going on monday with akiko and kit and akiko's friend. i obviously won't be able to take any pictures there, so I found this on the Nagashima Spaland website. They have a hot springs section for relaxing, then this waterpark, then a full amusement park. We're just going to the waterpark. 

wonderful cakes - berry and blueberry - with two lattes - at cafe comme ca. 

view from the 52nd floor of the twin towers in nagoya 

i'm beginning to think typhoons don't exist

so, another "typhoon" was apparently coming my way, but I guess it missed us because I saw and heard nothing last night during my peaceful slumber. anyway, haven't updated in a while. things have been going smoothly. i found a japanese tutor in nagoya. we met last sunday at the starbuck's in kanayama station for about 2 hours. he is very nice and has been teaching japanese for about 10 years, so i think i will learn a lot from him. after my tutoring session, i met one of the guys from my training group (phil) and one of his students on the 52nd floor of the "twin towners" in nagoya. it was really, really nice. i was very underdressed and felt like some hobo off the street when i walked in to this marble and gold room. it reminded me of the bar in lost and translation, just nicer. it's part of the marriot associa. anyway, his rather wealthy student ended up paying for our 20 dollar drinks and appetizers. an aside - phil has started boxing with what we believe is one of the head yakuza (japanese gangsters) in nagoya. he has some crazy stories!

anyway, to back up a bit, on saturday night i went out with my times class - the most advanced class i teach. first we ate at "on" - one of my favorite chinese restaurants in okazaki. i find that i eat more chinese and indian food than japanese food. the chinese food here is just too good, and usually cheaper. anyway, my classmates (3 older married men and one 27 year old girl) and I went to eat, then to the foreigner bar, then they introduced me to a new bar (i can't remember the name), that has live music on the weekends and resembles a texas saloon- oh, and everyone calls the owner "uncle". it's really cute. we stayed there until about 2:30. i can't keep up with these people - staying out until 5 in the morning and drinking 20-30 drinks throughout the night. no way. but, i was invited by one of my students and his wife to his house for dinner - to meet his family. so, that should be fun.

well, i should get going to work. talk to y'all later.

here starts my trip to fukui - i went to visit stephanie this weekend. we had a good time in her town (as you will see below), then we both headed back to okazaki so she could see my town. we are heading to nagoya today to do some sightseeing. 

road to fukui from nagoya 

on the road to fukui 

here start all of the fukui pics with steph. during my o-bon vacation week (aug 10-16), i went to visit here in fukui - about a 2.5 hour bus ride. we went to this beach fireworks party in mikuna with a bunch of her jet mates. 

getting some sun on mikuna beach 

we met a pirate on the mikuna beach in fukui prefecture - about an hour drive from steph's place. 

mom, dad - i'd like you to meet your new son-in-law. hiroshi had me at "konnichiwa." we eloped and had our honeymoon at the fukui beach. check out his friends in the back. stephanie ended up marrying one of them. 

the fireworks were coming right out of the water - it was really amazing. we were sitting about 20 feet from the water on a big tarp. there were about 40 people from the fukui international association with us. 

we did a bit of shopping in the main mall, then hit this cute little coffee shop and had latte's. life is tough. 

yokokon mansion and gardens in downtown fukui 

the sign we were sitting on said "off limits" 

a que perty 

more yokokon mansion and gardens 

 

 

nice backyard 

peek a boo 

after fukui, stephanie came back with me to okazaki. we went out saturday (last night) to the local foreigner bar - izakaya ja nai - then sang karaoke (those drunken photos are below) 

sayaka and kit in traditional japanese picture-taking stance 

me, steph, sayaka, and kit - the owner of the bar, craig, is jumping in behind kit. 

here's to japan