中國, otherwise known as China ...

So tomorrow I'm leaving for China. I think this is the most nervous I've ever been before a big trip. I have NO idea what to expect. I've heard this, I've heard that, I've heard the people are amazing, I've heard they're terrible, I've heard everything is dirty - don't drink the water, and I've heard this is the most amazing trip I'll ever take. I really don't know what I'm getting myself into.

What I do know is this ... I have an amazing travel partner that I have already conquered three countries with (& we have no plans of stopping at four), we have a flexible plan that both of us are really excited about, and we are going to drink beer on top of the Great Wall.

much love
-tara-
xx

Crazy Korea ...

I spent April 1, 2, and 3 with Naoko in Seoul, Korea. I had mentioned wanting to visit Seoul before returning to the states and miraculously, at the absolute busiest time of the school year, Naoko had three days to spare. Any other principal in the prefecture was working harder than ever but someway, somehow, Naoko managed to clear a few days to "take a bonding trip" (her words), with me. She loves me and I know it and I love her equally in return.♥

Our trip was short, but sweet. We arrived on a Wednesday afternoon and my initial reactions upon landing were:

- Everyone is speaking Japanese. That's weird.

- I can't really tell the difference between Korean and Japanese people.

- This country smells weird.

- The drive from Incheon Airport to downtown Seoul was incredibly boring.

Initially unimpressed and for the first half hour of being in Korea I was convinced that I was in an ugly, old version of Japan. But once we got to our hotel (even though everyone there spoke Japanese, too), I started feeling like we definitely weren't in Kansai anymore. ;)

First things first, exchange your money. I love the currency exchange counter at the airport. I think it's so interesting to watch the exchange rates fluctuate and to see the worth of the dollar in comparison to other currency from around the world. It's intriguing to watch people exchange their money from this to that and for a split second I can't help but think about their story. Where they're coming from ... where they're going. What are they going to buy with all their money, or lack thereof? When you think about it, money is really nothing more than a medium of exchange with socialized value. In Japan, back in the day, they used rice as currency for goodness sake. As long as masses of people are hip to recognizing something as valuable, it can be called money. I know, I'm probably the only person in the line who's thinking all of this stuff about currency is exciting. What can I say, I'm fascinated by the small stuff. :)

Korean currency exchange was no different, but the money is strange, which is what I always say about currency I've never had in my wallet before. The most interesting thing about the Korean Won is that the highest bill they have is equivalent to about $10.00. Imaging having no $20, $50, or $100 bills. Just $1, $5 and $10s. That pretty much stacked my wallet and made me feel incredibly rich.

This was about half of my money:

Naoko had this general response to anything I thought was outrageous. "That is Korean people's style. So strange." And she wasn't lying. The first 'so strange' thing I encountered was this trilingual sign posted on the bathroom door:
Don't throw garbage in the toilet. I get it. It's not like I was planning on flushing banana peels and plastic conbini sacks. Who does that anyway? Oh wait, what they meant by 'tissue or any waste' was toilet paper. That's right ... don't throw ANY toilet paper in the toilet. 'Huh? I don't get it' was my reaction to which Naoko responded, "That is Korean people's style." Where do you put your used toilet paper you might be wondering ... in the garbage can, of course. This is crazier than that one time we had to pay for toilet paper in Mexico. I'm not sure if I'm hip to the 'Korean style'.

We had this super cute Korean tour guide for the entire time we were there and she was kind of like our beck and call girl. Whatever we wanted to do, she would make it happen, wherever we wanted to go, she knew how to get there, whenever we needed a recommendation, she knew who to call. She was a nice comfort to have when time was a luxury we were lacking. So we got right down to business ... We needed a good Korean spa. The people that I know that have previously been to Korea said this was the hot thing to do in Seoul. Bring it on.

The first thing I realized about the kankoku este was that they definitely cater to the tourists. They spoke Japanese, English and Chinese (I think) and had multilingual menus and brochures, along with accepting all sorts of various currency. They were quite the sales people, too. I'm not used to the very direct, persuasive, 'very American' (as many Japanese people say) way of making sales. In Japan everyone is so sweet and extremely helpful, yet never annoyingly pushy. In Korean this woman was all sorts of in your face trying to sell you package A and B with the options E-H.

The entire experience lasted about 4 hours and consisted of 3 different saunas (one reaching over 200 degrees), steam rooms, hot baths, akasuri (which literally translates as 'aggressive dirt' and was a dirt/salt massage that hurt real bad), a 'fully body wash', a cupping massage, and finally a full body soft massage. Despite the pain, everything was pretty fantastic and we left feeling stellar ... and we had some serious marks to prove it.

The aftermath of a cupping massage:

Korean writing is called Hangul and is impossible to understand. Japanese is like a cakewalk compared to this stuff. The circles, the dashes, the lines ... I don't get it. Seriously ... 규율못 읽안해 ... what is that?
The spoken language was worse. Korean is a really harsh language that is loud and fast and accentuated weird and I think everyone speaking it sounds angry. I think maybe my mom spoke Korean when I was growing up. :)

We got tickets to this martial arts comedic show called JUMP and it was hilarious. I heard through the grapevine that they have an international tour going on.

The markets were one of the most fascinating things about Seoul. They were kind of like the Mexican markets, only not quite. Everything was crazy cheap, crazy busy, and just plain crazy.

Naoko and I were all about the market food ... even when we didn't know what it was:

You could do a little vegetable shopping ...

Or pick up some bird ... That's gross.And everyone was eating these silkworms, but I couldn't do it. The smell made me want to vomit and there was no way I was putting that in my mouth. Even Naoko turned this one down.

The food in Korea was actually really good. I was a little nervous at first and figured if worst came to worst it was only three days. I could fast for that long. But, surprisingly enough, the food was tasty. Spicy and made my mouth burn, but good.

We spent the second day of our trip doing cultural stuff around Seoul. We visited the Hwaseong Fortress and it was pretty amazing. There was this whole 'mini Great Wall' that Naoko kept telling me was great practice for the real deal that's coming up this week!!

Mother & daughter:

The temples in Korea are so colorful and so unlike Japanese temples. They are typically hand painted and the details in the paintings are unreal. This area of the fortress was called Dongbukgangnu (seriously) and, although they all kind of looked the same, I thought this one was the most beautiful.

We watched this battle reenactment that was pretty intense. They were some pretty intense get up too.

We made another cultural stop at this place called Jongmyo. It is the oldest royal Confucian shrine in ultra king-like shrine and the place was huge. It is actually the longest traditional building in Korea, but it's also kind of boring. The one interesting thing about it was that during the Seven Year War the Japanese burned down the original shrine and it had to be reconstructed in the 1600's.

The trip was short, sweet, and to the point. I was a little upset that I was unable to go to the DMZ (the demilitarized zone) but apparently it wasn't the safest time (considering that North Korea was set to launch a 'missile' over Japan the following day) and it really wasn't feasible with the time constraints. I'll have to catch the next time around.

I put all of my pictures up on facebook ...

Sightseeing in Seoul

Shopping in Seoul

Korean down, back to Japan, and onto America before I know it ...

much love

-tara-

xx

The End of March ...

I'm going to try oh-so-very hard to get all caught up on these blogs so that I'm not still trying to blog about things that happened in Japan in February once I'm home in America in June. I don't know that my life is all that entertaining anymore and I'm not even sure people still read this stuff, but I'll put in a solid effort nonetheless.

I had a week off at the end of March (what can I say, my bosses love me) and I spent two days in Osaka with my friend Tina and three days in Korea with Naoko with one day of sleeping in between. It was kind of the perfect week off.

Tina and I spent a day in Osaka checking out some temples, visiting a Japanese cemetery (which was kind of cool and kind of not ... although less creepy than American cemeteries because everyone is cremated & I knew there weren't any bodies down there), seeing 3D dinosaur movies, checking out a ninja house, playing air hockey, and riding a deathly ferris wheel. All activities that we thoroughly enjoyed. I take that back. I wouldn't say I 'thoroughly' enjoyed the ferris wheel.

The temple/cemetery:

I don't know exactly how the plots work but I think maybe I'm intrigued enough to ask. I'll have to keep you posted on that one.

We spent the next day at Universal Studios Japan. I can't get enough of this place. There's something about amusement parks ... standing in line for the rides, eating junk food, feeling like you could puke after going on some sort of spinning attraction, leaving without a voice because you left it on the roller coaster the second time around ... that make you feel like a big, awesome kid. You would have to be a serious fun hater to not spend the day at USJ smiling.

Tina & I

So I realize that not everyone has facebook (a social networking website for those who live under a rock ... jk, jk) :) but it's so much easier to post albums of pictures there as opposed to this blog. Fortunately for the facebook challenged, I can post the link and you too can view all of the pictures.

Click here to see all the pictures from Osaka

and

Click here to see all the pictures from USJ

much love

-tara-

xx

Daniel's Family ...

Daniel's parents came to visit last month and I was lucky enough to get to spend two of their seven day trip with them. I really love parents. I love meeting them and hanging out with them, listening to their stories, where they're from, what they do, what their kids were like growing up :), etc. Daniel's parents were so exceptionally sweet. I enjoyed every minute that I spent with them and it was fun gaining a little insight into Daniel's world. I was a little sad to see them leave, but they invited me to Alabama and I think I just might have to take them up on that one.

We took them to sightseeing around Okayama (not that there's a whole lot to see), did some shopping, ate some taiyaki (my favorite), went to temple, and had a yakiniku party with our Japanese family. They seemed to really enjoy their time here, which is what it was all about.

Okayama Castle ... I've lived here for 2 years and this is the closest I've been:

Korakuen Garden is considered one of the three most beautiful gardens in all of Japan.

And it is just that: It was just a little too early for the cherry blossoms (sakura)

But the plum trees were pretty:

My Japanese parents ... Naoko & Matsumi:

and their children:

HAHA ... there is a story behind this picture that only those of us involved will ever fully appreciate. These people were getting married at the Garden (that's the traditional wedding get-up) and somehow we all ended up in a photo together.

Tara, Daniel, groom, bride, mom & dad. :) We drank a little tea (jk, I don't drink that green stuff) but the parents were brave enough to try it and were just talking and hanging out at the Garden. Everything was great and it was the perfect March weather. I was just minding my own business eating ice cream (it was a Sunday) and this really friendly, kind of adorable old woman (obaachan in Japanese) came around to refill tea and smile at everyone. I thought she was really sweet and we chatted for a second and I remembered why I love old Japanese women. Then, as a random act of kindness, she started putting kinako mochi in on ice cream while smiling at me as if she was doing me some sort of favor. She was so cute I couldn't be mad at her, but seriously ... kinako mochi is gross. Damn obaachan.

Green tea and kinako mochi (the crap she put on my ice cream):

And then, of course, as we do when all foreigners come to visit - we had a yakiniku party!! Yakiniku is Japanese for 'grilled meat' (yaki- grill, niku- meat) and is commonly known as Korean BBQ. It's pretty stellar and there isn't anyone I know that doesn't enjoy a little yakiniku.

Daniel & his dad, Tom, with the aprons on & ready to grill.

Kazuyo, Signa (Daniel's mother) & a serious plate of niku.

HAHA ... Naoko & Yumi, aprons & all.

Although the time with Daniel's family was short, it was oh so sweet. I know I'll see them again though, so no worries. <3

much love

-tara-

xx

Baseball ...

Hanshin Tigers vs Hiroshima Crap (I mean Carp):

A few weeks ago the gang & I packed it up, packed it in & headed to Momotaro Stadium in Kurashiki to watch the Tigers destroy the Carp. At least that's what I thought was going to happen. I've been wrong about games in the past ... HAHA.

Jonathan and I sitting in the outfield ... the best (& craziest) seats in the house:

The Tigers are known in Japan for having the craziest fans, so of course we fit right in. These people are hardcore, too. They know every cheer (yes, they have rehearsed cheers that we got a print out of when we walked in), they know all the stats, they got all the gear, and they are super excited about beer and baseball. Obviously I'm a Tigers fan.

A Fujimoto fan ... they decorate themselves up with a whole bunch of kanji and wear pretty ridiculous 'player pants'. Oh, she has hot pink tiger ears on too.

Daniel & I enjoying a little baseball fun in the sun ... with my super huge visor that Yoko's husband insisted I wear to the game. :)

And this crazy man was also pretty insistent ... only he insisted that we sit next to him and drink all of his beer and sake and eat all of his snacks. And we had no problem doing just that. He was a riot, and a serious Tigers fan.

A little game action ... and yes, there is in fact no grass. The sad thing is I didn't even notice until Kurt pointed it out. I'm so used to living without grass that I didn't think twice about an all dirt field. Sad, I know.

And these were our 'cheer leaders', seriously. I'm going to estimate that we were engaged in some sort of cheer for at least 80% of the game. Every batter had their own cheer that a band and drum corps would start playing when they came up to bat, the whistle blowers would instruct you on when to clap, the trumpets would let you know when to yell, and anyone who did anything outside of what you were supposed to be doing at any given time would get a very strange look from almost the entire section of crazed Tigers fans. That's real Japanese style. I kind of liked it at first ... & then after about the fourth, I started to hate it.

Kevin Mench is an outfielder for the Tigers who played for the Rangers from 2002-2006. He signed for a year with the carp back in December and when he was up to bat EVERYONE in the stands looked at us (the group of foreigners) as though we were supposed to be cheering extra loud. So since we didn't want to disappoint, we did. :)
Although we didn't have an American flag to wave like these people did:

Who doesn't love a little 7th inning action? Stand up, do a little stretching. Catch a t-shirt if you're at a Bucks game. :) Warm up your vocal cords. You know, singing 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game' is as baseball as beer & bad calls. It's not something you question because you are guaranteed that it will happen. You don't think 'hmm, I wonder if we will sing 'Take Me Out ot the Ball Game' today?' in the same way you don't think 'hmm, I wonder if they will be serving beer & dome dogs'. It's an essential part of the game.  You can't NOT sing it. The idea is ludicrous. But obviously in Japan they don't get it.

Everything in the 7th inning was so wrong. First of all, the Tigers were down by 2. That wasn't right. Secondly, no one was standing up for the stretch. Hmm.... Instead, the were reaching down in their pockets for balloons. Yes, balloons. As they started blowing them up I seriously thought someone was going to start making balloon animals like that weird guy does at iHOP on Sunday mornings. But nope, they blew them up (did NOT tie them) & then just sat there.

Like this ... Daniel & I had no idea what was going on:

And then they started singing while fist pumping their strange shaped balloons in the air. It definitely wasn't and rendition of 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game' I'm familiar with. All I could do was shake my head. This is the worst 7th inning I've ever been a part of. Even worse than that one night at the Bucks game. :)

Oh yea, and when the song was over, everyone let go of their balloons and they made the strangest hissing, whizzing, annoying noise ever. Yea, I don't get it either.

The Tigers ended up losing by one, but the whole day was one big winner. The boys and I had SO much fun. From the crazy old man with the free booze, to the professional cheer leaders with the serious chants, to the trumpet players that would pop up out of the middle of nowhere Love Actually style ... everything was perfect. I love baseball season.

much love

-tara-

xx