Hajememashite, Tachikoma desu!

tatikoma2_image.jpg

1. Oh My God! A real-life walking talking model of the four-legged tanks from the Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex series? I want one soooo bad! Unfortunately, it’s not for sale; so the video will be the closest thing or now.

Fuji-san, Part 1

Fuji-san 21/8/06 Fuji-san 21/8/06 Fuji-san 21/8/06

1. This is the first set of photos I took whilst on Mt Fuji. The related post about climbing the mountain is here.

(more…)

Climbing Fuji-san: Part 1, The Ascent

Shinjuku, Tokyo Fuji-san 21/8/06 Fuji-san 21/8/06

(Read Part 2, and check out the photos: Part 1 and Part 2)

1. The product of weeks of planning, research, dead ends, and false hopes; gee it was hard work getting this organised. But it was more than worthwhile, and we finally understood why an awful lot of Japanese have not and probably will not ever climb Fuji-san. As one of my student remarked: “We Japanese admire Mt Fuji — from afar”.

(more…)

Hiroshima Carp vs Yomiuri Giants, 13th August

Hiroshima Carp vs Yomiuri Giants, 13/08 Hiroshima Carp vs Yomiuri Giants, 13/08 Hiroshima Carp vs Yomiuri Giants, 13/08

1. I’m not the world’s biggest baseball fan, or indeed a fan at all, but Hiroshima Carp home games are legendary for the enthusiasm displayed by the crowd during the games. I went to see the Carp (Carpu Carpu Carpu Hiroshima!) play the Yomiuri Giants on August 13th, and the crowd didn’t disappoint!

(The team… not as much.)

(more…)

Hiroshima A-Bomb 61st Anniversary

Hiroshima A-Bomb Anniversary Lantern Festival Hiroshima A-Bomb Anniversary Lantern Festival Hiroshima A-Bomb Anniversary Lantern Festival

1. Every year on the anniversary of the Atomic Bomb attack on Hiroshima on August 6th 1945 people flock to the Hiroshima Peace Park to pay their respects to the victims of the bomb, as well as spread messages of peace at the Lantern Festival held on the banks of Motoyasu-gawa, the river that runs between the Peace Park and the A-Bomb Dome, one of few surviving structures from the attack. The A-Bomb dome, originally the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, has since become an iconic reminder of the destructive power of nuclear weapons.

(more…)

U.S. Republican Condemns Separation of Church and State

1. Originally found on the Washington Post website:

ORLANDO, Aug. 25 — Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) said this week that God did not intend for the United States to be a “nation of secular laws” and that the separation of church and state is a “lie we have been told” to keep religious people out of politics.

2. BWAHAHAHAHA! Only in America.

Busy Busy Month

1. I am often reminded as to how time consuming it can be to run a blog. But nothing pushes home that point quite like the amount of backlogged material I have here in front of me. August was a pretty busy month for me, and I have plenty to say; just no time to get it all out. So, expect a few big entries in the coming days.

2. Here’s a pic to whet the appetite — a look at Japan from 3700m:

mtfuji_trip_2006.08.20_043.jpg
Resting climbers admiring the view: the final stretch of the Kawaguchi-ko trail leading up to the summit of Mt Fuji, roughly 3600m above sea level.

The Near Future: Survivor, Survivor: Fuji, Survivor: Tour Guide and Survivor: Tsunami and Alcohol Poisoning

1. There’s a lot of stuff happening between now and the end of the year, and it’s got me awful excited!

2. Firstly I’ll be playing my own version of Survivor this Wednesday, getting on a boat with a bunch of locals and having a barbecue on a deserted island followed by watching a fireworks display on the aforementioned boat. We already have a clique going — The Ones Who Speak English. Or, more aptly — The Ones Who Can’t Speak Japanese. Well, The Girlfriend will be there, as well as a Japanese teacher from work, so it’s 50/50. Let’s call it the clique-within-the-clique. Cliquity-clique.

(more…)

WWDC ‘06

1. I don’t write much about Apple anymore, but with an event like WWDC and the new toys Apple has released, how could I resist?

(more…)

Congratulations!

0608_pearlsleep_s.jpg

1. Well done guys!