"Dolphins love techno"

Saturday after work I hauled ass to Osaka, and caught an express train to Nagoya, Japan to hang out with Ken and Heather! The train ride was about two and a half hours, and then a 30 minute train to Inuyama, where Ken lives. We went to the Nagoya Port Aquarium.

The weather was rainy and cloudy all weekend. And it was 90 degrees. Muggy and humid. We headed straight to the Antarctica area.

Heather and I posing with a penguin mail box outside the aquarium.

Dolphins!

Kid on a leash. WITH angel wings. Awesome.

I'm not sure if you can tell, but this Beluga Whale had what looked like a tattoo. It must have been scarring, but it was almost too perfect to be an accident. I still have no idea what it was. And one of the whales was pregnant. It. Was. HUGE.

Heather's gangster face at the dolphin show.

Playing catch!

This dolphin not only jumped super high to hit the ball with its nose, it did it again with it's fin!

HH and I with a penguin.

Random little urinal inside the women's restroom. We decided it was for small boys with their mothers.

In the Nagoya TV Tower.

Central Park from the East.

Central Park from the West.

Americans!

I ran into this store, Heather took a quick photo, and then we left. We did get some strange looks.

Heather's gangster face, again.

Me attempting to be artsy-fartsy on the boring train ride home.

Cough Drops & Chest X-Rays

Today I went to the doctor's office at the Kobe Medical Center.

Don't let that fool you, it looked like a regular house in the middle of a neighborhood to me. Inside, it was like stepping into 1979. I was scared.

But, the nurses were nice and knowledgeable, and the doctor was smart, if young. I had a chest x-ray taken, and by the time I walked back into the doctor's room, he had it displayed on his huge computer monitor. He prescribed 6 (yes, SIX) medications for my wheezy lungs. An inhaler, some pills, and a patch to put on my chest "to help you breathe easier". He told my assistant manager (who came along as a translator) that he was nervous to see me. Because I'm American. He was afraid of screwing up. How sweet.

So I do feel better, and I am not as short of breath anymore. I think the grape Hall's I bought have helped a lot too. Tomorrow morning, I'm going to get up early and head to Sannomiya to try to buy a shinkansen ticket to Nagoya to visit Ken and Heather this weekend!

Nishinomia Expedition

Today Jen and I went to Nishinomiya to eat a burger at this awesome place she read about, and also go shopping at Nishinomiya Gardens, a huge mall. The burgers were out of this world, it was a tiny shack on a side street. Amazing. There was a one hour wait for onion rings, though. Bummer. The whole vibe was very SoCal. Jack Johnson was playing. I drank a Longboard beer, from Hawaii. The whole thing reminded me of Joshua Wallace. If Joshua was a building, he could have been this burger joint.

Jen had a Coke.

I had a beer.

Burger arrived after a pretty fair wait.

Jen digs in!

Mmmmmmm......

These things were pretty big, and messy. I dropped a caramelized onion on my freshly washed jeans. Damnit.

Wish this was in focus.

And I'm full. This is the outside of the place. Tiny. Totally unremarkable from the outside. Delicious inside.

Jen thought this wall was straight out of Jurassic Park.

A wall of elevators in Nishinomiya Gardens that were advertisements for Father's Day. This one was Clark Kent / Superman. It was AWESOME! And for some reason, all the mannequins had moustaches? I dunno.

And finally, random cell phone shots from a foreign goods market:
Texas Select? Really? 0.05% alcohol by volume? You've got to be kidding me...

... unless you're Kirin FREE! ALCOHOL FREE! WEEEEE I love the taste of beer but hate it when I am in a better mood!


At least the Sprite is sexier than water.

And finally, 800 yen if you can tell me what's wrong with this picture. I can't quite put my finger on it.....

Silly

I'm relaxing at home, watching DVDs (seasons 2 and 3 of The Office), and I had an epiphany:

My mom should totally Netflix season 4, and mail it to me.

Yea, I know, ridiculous.... it was a good try though...



.... unless you want to do that for me, Mom :)

Achoo

So, I have a cold. It came up all of a sudden, and I'm not dying but it is slightly annoying. Sneezing, runny nose, cough, etc. I know it's a cold. Everyone thinks it's H1N1. I have never been so happy to wear a mask.

My coworkers are so nice, they let me take a nap most of yesterday, and then leave work early. I only have four classes today, so I'm going to tough it out. We tired going to the hospital yesterday, but it was closed when I didn't have class. The hospital over here is like going to the doctor's office, apparently.

Also, I bit my tongue recently, and now it's a huge sore spot. I'm just a walking complaint! I had a couple of plans for the weekend, but now it looks as if I'm going to sit at home, eat soup, and watch all the DVDs that everyone has sent me.

I heart Mary Fater!

Got a package from Mary today! Gatorade, tea, a sweeeeeet card, and Always Sunny!!! YESSSS I will never leave the house again, between all the TV show DVDs I've got! Thanks so much Mary!!!!!

And Aunt Vickie sent me a post card from Myrtle Beach! Excellent!

Great day at work, then went to the pub with Jen, her BF, and Tak, who's leaving to go back to Ireland on Friday. Too bad we couldn't't have hung out more! He was only home for three weeks. He's a Japanese guy who speaks English with an Irish accent, and it's pretty darn adorable to watch :)

I heart Curt!

I got a package today from Curt!!!! He send me Gatorade (duh) yellow AND red!, a sweet card, some Burt's Bees, Popcorn, and THREE SEASONS OF TV SHOWS! Awesome. I am super pumped to start watching The Office. THANK YOU CURT!

Speaking of packages, I got a notice in my mailbox at the apartment that I had a package? I thought everyone had my school address. It will be at the school tomorrow.... hmmm mystery package....

My coworker's girlfriend brought in Mochi Cream, which is mochi (rice dough) with sweet creams inside. They're so damn good. I hope I don't become addicted...

I have started subscribing to podcasts now that I have an iPod again. So today on my commute I listened to NPR's "Wait wait don't tell me" and "Car talk". It's like being at home again :)

I still haven't gotten a cell phone bill yet. I'm concerned.

Sunburns and Peanut Butter

I spent the afternoon at Meiko Beach with Jen, Gordan, and Vince. Great view of the Akashi Bridge. After we got good and crispy, Jen and I went to Amagasaki to buy in bulk at Costco. We wandered around forever, and only bought a jumbo size container of Skippy peanut butter to split, and I bought a nice big block of chedder cheese. Here are some photo highlights.

Akashi Bridge

Akashi Bridge

Akashi Bridge

Check out that cheeeeeese-tastic grin

Handsome coworker. I wouldn't like half the Japanese foods I do if it weren't for Bean-Soup.

And now, a few artsy-fartsy photos.

Tiny crabs all over the rocks.

Bean-Soup got a little hungry...

Please note the hot young thang in the reflection of his sunglasses...

HI MOM AND DAD!

weeeee cartwheels!

Walking around Amagasaki towards Costco. This sign alone makes me want to eat at the restaurant. Sushi, of course.

I have no idea who Mr. Yoshida is, but just so you know, "There really is a Mr. Yoshida".

Jen and I were still in our bathing suits under sundresses, and she got cold. She used my towel as a jacket, but it looked more like a cape to me. She asked "Are you embarased to be seen in public with me?" to which I replied, "No more than ususal". We were walking through Amagasaki back to the train station, laughing hysterically about unicycles and singing circus music. We are crazy. I think we were both in dire need of a nap.


My (very heavy) purse, with a huge tub of Skippy peanut butter, a big block of cheese, and my camera. My shoulder has a dent now. Totally worth it, though :)