All year long,
we took tiny photos with our cell phones (keitais) whenever
we were out and about and saw something we didn't want
to forget. Unfortunately, our keitais were some of the
oldest on the market when we got here, and the cameras
aren't exactly top-notch. The pictures below are full
size! |
| Chris's Photos |
 |
Madness
on the Bus
Kent and I on the bus from Yamagata to Sendai, along with
a half dozen other ALTs. You need only look at our bright
smiles to know how excited we are at going on a trip to
the prefectural immigration office. (08.12.03) |
 |
Chaos
on the Bridge
Same day as before, this time all of us are on the bridge
outside the Sendai train station for the first time. I
think our mood at this point can be collectively summed
up by a single punctuation mark: "?" (08.12.03) |
 |
Slacking
off at Work
My pen-pal-turned-hetero-lifemate Tomoko is on the left,
next to her good friend Mika. But I hadn't actually met
either of them in person yet, so they sent me this nice,
normal photo of themselves at work after I sent them one
of me making some kind of crazy face. Clever readers will
notice that this photo is slightly larger and clearer
than the others on this page; that's because her keitai
is much newer and better than mine (or yours, for that
matter, especially if you don't live in Japan). (08.22.03) |
 |
A Shining
Beacon of Hope
What started out as a simple bike-a-bout became a grueling
uphill bicycle climb, as I foolishly decided to attempt
to ride my 1-speed "mama-cherry" bike (bell,
basket, mud guards, pedal-powered light) all the way from
Yamagata to Zao Onsen, a nearby mountaintop hot spring
resort town. When I saw this torii gate, I thought I was
getting close, but...oh, the horror...the horror. (10.08.03) |
 |
Fun
in the Dark
My happiest memories of life in Yamagata include jumping
around and bouncing off the walls at karaoke booths. Here's
Angie, Mika and Tomoko smooshed into a tiny room, being
forced to endure my falsetto version of "My Favorite
Things" from The Sound of Music. (10.05.03) |
 |
An
Alarming Turn of Events
When I left home this morning, I was wearing a T-shirt
and shorts. By late afternoon, the flash snowstorm had
piled up six inches of snow all over town. Bear witness
to my disbelief and disapproval. Quick! Get me back to
Florida! (12.20.03) |
 |
But
- I'm Not Cargo, Honest
On the ferry from Sendai to Hokkaido for the big annual
winter snow sculpture festival, my sleeping quarters closely
resembled an oversized coffin. I'm not claustrophobic,
but I wish they'd designed these things just a wee bit
bigger; I had to sleep diagonally and my toes still got
scrunched against the wall. (02.07.04) |
 |
Someone
Had Some Time On Their Hands
Although hard to tell from the photo, this gargantuan
snow sculpture of baseball star Hideki Matsui was actually
quite frightening. No, it wasn't his calm, smiling face
that instilled horror in us innocent passersby; no, it
was the the realization that some team of sculptors took
the time to craft and mold his face to such a degree of
perfection that even his moles and pockmarks were perfectly
reproduced. (02.07.04) |
 |
Time
Out for Angie
My favorite pastime is taking pictures of Angie, of course.
Here she is taking a quick rest in Sapporo, in between
long hikes through the city in search of sweet sightseeing
goodness. (02.10.04) |
 |
Chilled
to the Bone
Brave Tomo-chan and Yukie led us to the top of Mt. Zao
at night to see the "snow monsters"—mountaintop
trees covered completely with densely packed snow—and
although it was the coldest I've ever, ever been, it was
so worth it for the amazing view. (02.22.04) |
 |
My
Face is Frozen Like This
Same night as before, but by this point the freezing winds
and altitude effects have put me in a delerious daze.
I chased other tourists around the mountaintop viewing
area, telling them that I was one of the snow monsters
who broke out of my snow cocoon to come and eat everyone
I could find. (02.22.04) |
 |
Chillin'
With the Colonel
Every KFC restaurant in Japan seems to have a life-sized
statue of Colonel Sanders out front. Obviously this would
never do in the U.S., as the good Kentucky colonel would
doubtless be the target of endless defacement. In this
photo, I heartily thank the colonel for his secret spicy
chicken recipe. (02.28.04) |
 |
Weekly
Donut Fix
Please say hello to my friend Hideo Shimizu. Until he
graduated from college in April and left town in search
of fame and fortune down in Tochigi prefecture, he and
I would try to meet at least once a week over cakes and
tea; he would teach me the finer points of Japanese language
and culture, and I explained how to pick up American girls.
Boy, I sure hope Angie doesn't read these photo captions
thoroughly. (03.07.04) |
 |
Wait,
What's the Name of that Drink Again?
Ah, yes indeed. Nothing could be finer than spending an
afternoon chillin' with my J-homies and kicking back with
a cold can of... Calpis. If you've never tried this popular
Japanese beverage made from milk and soda water, then...
well... then you haven't tried it, and your life can probably
continue just fine without it. (03.08.04) |
 |
My
Future Home
In busy downtown Sendai, beneath a handful of office towers,
some clever (or crazy?) company built a few model houses
to show off to the public. Well, their little ploy worked,
because I loved this house so much that after touring
it and chatting with the real estate agent inside, I made
off with the floorplans and am faxing them to my developer
even as I type this. (03.11.04) |
 |
Where
Does Japan Get Those Wonderful Toys?
Oh wow, did this little gadget look like fun. This tiny
thing can play MP3 songs and full-length movies from memory
cards. And it's like a tiny VCR, you can record directly
to it from any audio or video source. So after I bought
it on clearance sale, I later found it at this shop for
full price (3 times as much as I paid). So I took this
photo and sent it to Angie, basically bragging about my
amazing shopping skills. (03.11.04) |
 |
 Oh,
Deer...
On the island of Miyajima, Amy quickly made a new friend.
Hyperintelligent deer roamed everywhere, apparently having
been groomed by centuries of evolutionary adaptation to
become highly skilled in the art of locating snacks in
tourists' pockets. (03.21.04) |
 |
The
Secret of the Floating Torii
Right, so the secret of the famous bright red "floating"
Miyajima shrine torii is that it (gasp!) isn't
actually floating at all, as this low-tide photo reveals!
Wait until Arthur Frommer hears about this, he will be
aghast. (03.21.04) |
 |
 Hi,
Mom!
My mom happened to call from the U.S. when Amy, Angie
and I were sitting down to noodles at a noisy, bustling
ramen joint in downtown Osaka. I wasn't sure if she believed
me or not, though, so I e-mailed her this photo to prove
it. To the right is a photo e-mailed to me by
a purikura booth machine in Osaka, will wonders never
cease. (03.22.04) |
 |
 First
Bloom of the Season
The cherry blossom trees (sakura) are one of
Japan's most beautiful sights. We happened to be in Osaka
for the very first appearance of this year's blooms; photographers
were everywhere snapping photos of the trees. (03.23.04) |
 |
A Little
Taste of Home
Imagine my astonishment at finding what appeared to be
a genuine branch of my beloved Cafe du Monde from New
Orleans, right here in Osaka near the Aquarium. I explained
to the Japanese girls behind the counter that I was in
fact from New Orleans; they later clapped and
jumped with joy when I informed them that the beignets
tasted identical to those back home. (03.23.04) |
 |
Lost
Among the Torii
At Fushimi-inari in Kyoto, you have no choice but to wander
hopelessly through thousands of orange torii gates in
search of mountain gods and forest spirits. I sent this
photo to Tomoko back in Yamagata and asked her to guess
where I was at the moment. Quite obviously, I received
her correct answer within about three seconds. (03.25.04) |
 |
 I
Built My House of Gold
This is the golden Kinkakuji pavilion in Kyoto. I swam
across the pond with my pocket knife to personally check
if it was real gold; yup, sure enough. I am only glad
that the police didn't confiscate my keitai after I was
arrested. (03.26.04) |
 |
Kyoto
Farewell
Shortly before waving goodbye to Amy at Kyoto station,
we took this photo at our breakfast nook nearby, a happy
little sandwich shop that housed a giant spinning globe.
(03.27.04) |
 |
Meeting
the Fam'
After Amy headed back to Tokyo on her own, we went to
meet Josh's host family from when he studied abroad here
last year: Shouko, Anzu-chan, Angie and Taiko say hi in
front of their train station. (03.28.04) |
 |
Tell
Me a Secret
Cute little Kasei shares his worldly knowledge with me.
Here he is explaining nuclear physics as it relates to
the mushy veggies he ate for breakfast, lunch and dinner
yesterday. (03.28.04) |
 |
 Yamagata:
Entertainment Mecca
Josh and I explored town, hitting such important highlights
as the kaiten-zushi shop (sushi on a conveyor belt) and
the ultra-mysterious Bandai Shoten shop, where you can
buy ancient 1985 video game systems, collectable figurines,
and even fishing lures. (05.17.04) |
 |
Power
Nap
Here is Angie just after her afternoon beauty sleep at
the apartment in Yamagata. She is smiling because she
and I and Josh are about to go out to an evening symphony
orchestra concert. (05.22.04) |
 |
Now
We're Talkin' Turkey
Northwest of Yamagata, out in the rice fields and cherry
trees of nearby Sagae, is a cute little tourist trap called
Cherryland. It is not a place where I expected to find
a great big Byzantine mosque touting itself as "Turkey
House," full of Turkish art, maps and hot tourist
tips. Tomoko and I explored this strange place, and as
you can see, she consequently decided to move to Turkey
herself. (06.18.04) |
 |
 This'll
Just Take Two Minutes
Angie made the mistake of giving the time of day to an
overly friendly kimono shop clerk; her punishment was
being dolled up in fancy kimono and having me snap photos
of her cool outfit. (06.24.04) |
 |
Better
Than the Real Thing
From left to right: Paul, Ringo, George and John, all
of the Beatles cover band The Beans, performing at a local
club. The only difference I could discern between them
and the real Beatles was the absence of thousands of screaming
young women drowning out the performance. (06.25.04) |
 |
Olympic
Hopefuls
Here I am with Misako, who is not only an English-fluent
professor at the local university but also my table tennis
teammate for our upcoming attempt at entering the 2004
Olympics in Athens. As of this writing, we have not yet
made the official cut, but, we're still trying to stay
optimistic. (07.09.04) |
