Uneven Pavement

"Believe in yourself and nothing can stop you" - Sailor Moon This weekend was one for the books. Friday we had a work Enkai (work party) to celebrate the completion and success of our recent HR visit/ events and long after hours of planning. International Relation jobs are no joke when it comes to planning big events. All in all it was so great and so worth celebrating Friday with delicious food! Saturday Anna and I were invited as special guests to an elementary school talent show, this is the third one I attend this month. I was crying a lot! and I did not even know these kids, they were just sooo cute! ( I can't even begin to imagine what kind of mother I will be) They had a wizard of Oz play, lots of great singing, playing of the Pianica ( it's an instrument all elementary kids learn to play, a piano/harmonica it's pretty cool) and other great performances.  Saturday night we headed to Hirosaki City to dance the night away at Lavish. Anna and...

"Before it's your favorite place, it's a place you've never been " It is Koyo ( the changing color of the leaves, autumn) season! I have always loved the fact that Oregon gets 4 seasons. Japan gets four seasons as well! The bright oranges and reds are just incredible here. I have been revisiting some of my favorite spots around my new town to see how they change with the seasons. Here are some pictures at Jogakura Bridge. 

Aoike pond " My favorite thing to do is to go where I've never been"- Diane Arbus This Weekend was yet another great adventure with my now officially named R.A.Y Hiking group (initials of our names, lol). We drove along the coast for some miles until we reached Juniko. First we did the most popular short hike to Aoike (blue pond) it reminded me a lot of Oregon and Tamolich Pool. Because Koyo (fall, the color changing of leaves) is in full swing it was busy and the pond had its fair share of leaves floating around. Serene. After admiring Aoike, we hiked up the mountain for what seemed a whole day and then some. The hike was steeper than I imagined, it was a great workout and beautiful trail! We only bumped into 6 people along the way. It was peaceful. It was magical. The Komorebi (sunlight filtering through trees) was stunning and the view at the top was worth all the sweat and the couple of moans and tears some of us let out on our way up.  Vie...

"If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion, and avoid the people, you might as well stay home"-James Michiner I really love this quote, it speaks volumes of what I believe in as a traveler. I believe that it is very important to always learn about the people and talk to locals when I travel. This weekend my buddy Ryan and I went to a locals event. Every year Inakadate makes amazing rice paddy art using different varieties of rice colored plants ( purple, green, brown...) a committee gathers and they agree on what massive elaborate picture they will create. In the past some works of art have been , Marilyn Monroe, Gone with the Wind, Star Wars. After the committee agrees on the picture they invite locals to help plant the rice, they display the art for some time and this is when tourist come and pay a fee to see the art from the top of buildings. After that is over the community comes together to harvest the rice, Ryan and I were literally the only ...

"Like all great travelers I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen"- Benjamin Disraeli And just like this quote reads, I have seen so much, and continue to see new things every single day. one of my coworkers was so sweet! She gave me a ticket to ride the cable up to Hakkodate mountain, so I brought a couple friends and we ventured out. Below are pictures of our wonderful day. Koyo (colorful leaves, fall)  season is near us Hiking around the mountain Got a little rain. The views are just phenomenal! Can you see Mount Iwaki (my hometown mountain) off in the distance? Ended our day at Dessert House in Hirosaki! My berry crepe was amazing!