Jungle music, please. . .

Ok, just a few quick and amusing comments about details I discovered AFTER returning from Chuzenjiko. After talking to a few of my Japanese students, I discovered that the sign says that one MUST have a bell to hike in the area, because of the bears. Hmmmm, so THAT's why everyone that hiked past me jingled ;) Also, I'd been highly amused in the town of Chuzenji when I saw a sign that said, "Don't Feed the Monkeys." I assumed it was some strange joke, and gave the requisite chuckle while thinking, "Wow, that's funny, "Don't Feed the Monkeys," someone has a strange sense of humor." Well, about the third sign I saw, I started skeptically scanning the treetops (while glancing over my shoulder to see if anyone was laughing at the dumb gaijin looking for monkeys), but no monkeys materialized. Well, on the drive home, I noticed frequent monkey-crossing signs along the mountain highway. I thought that either someone took the joke way too far, or there really were monkeys in the mountains (jungle music, please). Later, after asking a few of my Japanese students, I was informed that the monkeys are actually a big problem in that area-- that they will attack people for food, and that they actually swagger into tourist shops and steal things! Then one of my friends told me that once when her car was parked at a scenic overlook, a monkey jumped into the car, snatched a bag of home-made chocolate chip cookies, and took off with the loot.

Chuzenjiko-- the logical choice ;)

Because of the national holiday on Monday, I decided to celebrate by camping in the mountains on Sunday night. Chuzenjiko was the logical choice-- on the map, it looked like someone used a crimping iron on the road to this mountain lake, and I thought "Hairpin turns? 1,200 meter drops? I think I want to see the place. . ." Unfortunately, it seemed everyone else in this area of Japan had the same sentiment. Although Chuzenjiko is only about 50km from my apartment, it took me over 2 hours to get there. Of course, with the glorious views and good Japanese music, I wasn't about to complain about the stop-and-go traffic. I watched the elevation signs for a while, but after "1,300 Meters Above the Sea," I stopped keeping track. When I finally reached the town of Chuzenji I was fully rewarded for the trek by a mountain sunset AND a mysteriously out-of-place lamp-post (Narnia, anyone?)

Waterfalls and a serious lack of bears. . .

There are so many waterfalls around Chuzenjiko; I visited a few of the falls, and went hiking on Senjogahara Moor (and although the sign said "Scenic Trail Across the Open Moor", the hike was entirely wooded. But not that I'm complaining. Hey, the sign also said "Bear Aware" and gave warnings, but I didn't even get to see one bear! False advertising, all of it ;)

Camping in Japan??? Of course!!!

It was after dark when I pitched my tent at Shobugahama Campground-- I was right on Lake Chuzenjiko, and I hoped to wake to beautiful scenery (ahem, hence the photo of me in the tent grinning in anticipation-- hey, I have to account for that imbecilic grin somehow ;) I wasn't disappointed, there was a brilliant view right outside my tent door! It's still surprising to think that this mountain lake is within 50km of my apartment.

More Photos. . .

Hi again,

I'm sure you're shocked, but more photos. . .
Me and my friend Yumi at my apaato, sitting on my prized possession: a goza mat. I wanted true "tatami" flooring in my apartment, but since I have hardwood floors, I had to settle for buying a "goza" mat, which looks (and smells) like tatami but is very thin. Also more photos from the mountain park (such beauty within 30 minutes of my home!) and a photo of the main room in my apartment (I have one room with an attached hallway/kitchen and toire and ofuro. Speaking of toire, I must have a mad fascination with the technology here, but I just HAD to include a photo of the control panel on my toilet. Yeah, that's right, a control panel on the toilet--I'm livin' the high life now. . . :)

Cheers! Eby

Back in Business

Hey everyone,

Armed with a new USB cable, card reader, and high-speed wireless access, I'm back on the net!

This post will be mostly photos, since that's what I've been promising all along. There are photos from my day trip to a mountain lake (only about 30 minutes from my apt.) and this weekend's camping trip with Ryan & Angie, Tom, and Kazushi-- as the photos demonstrate, we discovered the considerable joy of mixing flashlights with night-vision cameras. (I highly recommend the activity ;) Also a photo of Japanese yen and my "honko," the small stamp with "Eby" in Katakana, used for stamping official documents. Which makes me feel like a very powerful person :)

I'll write more later!

Eby