Hey so its been a long time...

so many things......so many sudden things just happened...and its just INCREDIBLE!

Let me tell you....its just something that you would never expect in this life.....

Greetings, its been a while....i would say 8 months?

So ive decided to stay a 4th year in Japan.  Damn thats long....but i had to make some life challenging decisions that ultimately lead me to a 4th year in Japan.  Wow 4 years, when i first arrived in 2004 i thought i was ONLY going to stay 1, but hell things happen and you meet people that affect your life greatly, life people that should be invited to weddings, share beers with, and this and that.  BUt here is a run down of things that has been happening in the past 8 months.....

- 2/22/2007 Finally received Official documentation from the Guiness book of world records recognizing our World record of 60 hours of non-stop basketball.

- 1/15/2007 Mom visited with my sisters Tokyo and kyoto.

-  3/18/2007 Friends wedding in Japan.

-  numerous trips across Japan, Mie, Kyoto, Osaka, Okayama, Hyogo, Kobe, Yamaguchi, Tochigi, Shimane etc.etc.etc

- Join the National AJET board again, as the Translator and Interpreter, REsume Building...i guess..

- Just came back from a two week semi-vacation from Tokyo and Kyoto.  Saw the new Jets arrive for the 3rd time. 

- Job interviews, i might be a fully certified teacher in Japan! with out taking any tests! My board of education is working on that now! Lecturers at Universites, etc. etc.

- finally, my final vacation in September to Mongolia and Russia and China, via the trans-siberian railway.  freaking cant wait! and its only costing me like nothing since im so close!!

i dunno i guess i have other things in mind, but i think ive sorted those out, mainly marriage and starting a family.  I think its getting pretty close. 

until next time.....wonder whats happening on the other side of the world?

 Wow so everyone (teachers) are away to their homelands and I sit here pulling my hair out wishing i would of gone home.  But not this year.  This can possibly be my last year here so i gotta enjoy Japan as much as i can.  What to do what to do. 

In Japan, they do not celebrate Christmas.  Christmas is another day to them, there is work, everything is open, its just a normal day.  Strange eh? i worked on monday.  I worked this entire week.  Yeah.....but the Japanese people semi-celebrate the 24th, Christmas eve, with thier loved ones.  Its a "couples day" and only events geared towards couples sprang left and right around the area.  Kinda cool but yeah man....its kinda disappointing.  BUt any who my weekend was spent going to Oita, 4 hour drive, and visiting Japan's longest suspension bridge.  This bridge was completed 2 months ago, and when i first heard the news I thought wow another bridge.  BUt after hearing stories from friends who went, damn i had to go!

THE BRIDGE!!! its hella long....almost half a kilomter.

The bridge is 390 ms long, and is 173 meters from the ground.  Estimated cost was 1920000000 yen. ( roughly 19.2 million dollars) 1.5 meters wide (walkway) and its 777 meters tall from the ground.   

Hey its even taller then Godzilla....as it indicated in the center of the bridge. 

ANd at the end of the bridge, there was a sign that said, DANGER SNAKES!!!! wow man thanks for letting us know.  like thats gonna prevent them from coming to us.

Well after the bridge experience, headed towards YUFUIN OITA, where i took my parents last year.  ITs a beautiful place full of hot springs and a cozy street to walk where you can find many small shops and ineresting stuff.  Like there was a soysauce specialty store.  Had different flavors of soy sauce from spicy to sweet and all that.  Here is YUFUIN.

Nice plance isnt it?? This is the street.  And BTW it was a beautiful day. 

After that drove off to Beppu city, BEst known city all over Japan for the HOT SPRINGS.  you can smell it all over the place, ugh sulfer and stuff in the air.  On christmas eve we watched the EVE CHRISTMAS majic where fireworks were launched into the air cooresponding with music! it was awesome....damn it was great!! cold but great....i think around 0-2 C.

Alright, have a good one. NExt year my mom is and sisters are visiting Tokyo, gonna meet up with them.  Having a small adventure along the way, interviewing at 4 universities and having the wildest time by taking 2 weeks off of work.  My small journey at the beginning of the year!