Tsurumi Ryokuchi Park and kids' outdoor games in Japan

Yesterday a friend invited me to a BBQ held by her friends at 鶴見緑地公園 Tsurumi Ryokuchi Park. You can reach it via the Osaka City Subway on the Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi line (lime green) and getting off at Tsurumi-ryokuchi Station, but I took the Imazatosuji line (orange) to Shimmori-Furuiichi station. The Imazatosuji line is also the latest installment to the Osaka City Subway line family, and the trains are much newer, sleeker, and clean. (Next time I'll have to nab a photo.)

When I entered the park, I noticed some decorations on the path on the way to the park that said something like, "Expo '90" and thought that perhaps the park was made for the World Expo in Osaka, but then remembered that that was in 1970. I did some research today and the park was actually the location for Expo '90, or the Flower Expo. Other cool things about this park is that it was built on old garbage dumps and abandoned factories.

Unfortunately I didn't have time to explore the entirety of the park, but for those who are looking for a get away from the urban jungles of Osaka while still in Osaka City, then this place should definitely be on your must-visit list. If you've lived in Osaka for awhile, you would never think a place like this park would ever exist in a city so covered in concrete and buildings.

The BBQ consisted of my friend's Japanese friends and their neighbors, many of whom had children under the age of 10. Food was mostly yakiniku, or grilled meat - strips of beef, and corn, cabbage, bell peppers, salmon with lemons, onions, and my favorite: shiitake mushrooms. It was such a fun atmosphere and the food was great, including some lovely prepared onigiri by the kind hosts, and of course merry drinking.

After the adults were getting into conversations, as you do, the children were starting to show the typical symptoms of adolescent boredom. I decided to excuse myself from the adults and make acquaintance with the children, which consisted of a game of "What's my name?" and them switching themselves around to confuse my friend and I.

It didn't matter that there was a language barrier between us either, as they quickly accepted us into their ring of playmates! We sang an English song per request of the parents (Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes) quite a few times, some fast-forward, and requesting to go even faster. "Simon Says" was the classic game to follow, although we switched the rules around a bit and said that you need to respond to "Touch your nose/eyes/mouth/ears/toes" and whatever (since "Simon Says" is confusing sometimes).

Afterward, we continued to encourage English usage in the games, and played a game called "Iro, iro, nan iro?" (Color, color, what color? or it could be.. There are many colors, what color [will you pick]?) The person who was "it" had to call out a color in English, while everyone would scramble around trying to find that color and touch it before being tagged, and the next one would be it.

We also played Red Light, Green Light, a classic game that again we encouraged the kids to use English in, and worked quite well with the kids. Although I would imagine in the states kids would run rather than sneaking up quietly to the streetlight.

It then started to rain, so we had to take shelter underneath a gazebo. The kids were looking pretty bored again, and wanted to keep on playing, so we played a hand clapping rhythm game I was taught in elementary school:

Bo-bo ski watten totten,
Ah-ah-ah ah-ah, boom boom boom
Itty bitty wotten totten
Bo bo ski watten tatten
Bo bo ski wotten tatten
One, two, three, for, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten!

The game turned out to be an instant hit, and the kids wanted to play over and over again. Even though it was gibberish, and there wasn't really a point to the whole game, the kids loved the thrill of counting to ten quickly - actually, the game does test reflex, but explaining how to play is a bit difficult here.

Once the rain stopped, I was surprised that the kids wanted to play even more games; the final playground game of the day was cops and robbers, which, by then, had completely tired my friend and I out, as we watched them play, truly curious where kids get all this genki energy from.

Kids in Japan are always so active, full of life, and seriously energetic! How do they manage?!

"Auld Lang Syne" in Japan

The song "Auld Lang Syne" that, in America, is commonly heard or sung merrily during New Years celebrations (I don't know too much about how it's used in British culture, although I do know the song is Scottish) can be heard quite frequently in Japan. In fact, if you're a shopper who prefers shopping at night when things quiet down, you'll hear it frequently.

Many grocery stores, electronics stores, shopping centers and most especially department stores, especially the big names in Kansai such as Hankyu and Hanshin play "Auld Lang Syne" a few minutes before the store is scheduled to close. (As I've witnessed when I had to buy a quick thing at Jusco, a department store similar to Target, K-mart, or Walmart and didn't know they closed at 10:00pm!)

I started to wonder why they used this theme, and so far all I could find was this on Wikipedia:

In Japan, the Japanese students' song Hotaru no hikari ("Glow of a Firefly") uses the "Auld Lang Syne" tune. The words are a series of images of hardships that the industrious student endures in his relentless quest for knowledge, starting with the firefly’s light, which the student uses to keep studying when he has no other light sources. It is commonly heard in graduation ceremonies and at the end of the school day. Many stores and restaurants play it to usher customers out at the end of a business day.

You know, I completely forgot about that. It's true, I've heard it in every graduation ceremony I've attended, but wondered what students were singing about and what they called the tune.

I guess the reason they use it in department stores and other shops is to wish everyone shopping and working there a good old-fashioned "Otsukaresama-deshita!" or "Thanks for all your hard work!" or perhaps a kind of "Thanks for your patronage even though you came all the way to our business and we're closing in five minutes! But thanks so much!"

Then again, I guess I can see why you'd associate a theme that you sing celebrating a new year after an old year of all the work you had to go through to get to that new year and putting it on the same level as customers who went through their entire day and made the time to stick around a store until closing (despite being there quite late.)

It's interesting about how lots of things in Japan need a theme. Below is a YouTube video of 蛍の光 Hotaru no Hikari or "Glow of the Firefly."

Student-written speeches as mid-term exam

Since midterm exams were canceled last week, some were moved to this week, and the second-year students at my English-intensive senior high school had to present their memorized speech as their midterm. I forgot to explain that at this school, classes are much smaller (consisting of ten students) and one ALT and JTE per ten students - so students receive more attention and communication is the emphasis of these classes. (Err, forgot to mention the class is called "English Communication" or "ecomm" for short.)

Students were allowed to write their speech on any given topic, and of course many chose ones that interested them or were a bit broad, like their family, music, or memories from studying abroad in Australia, America, etc.

A few students wrote on some topics I'd never expect: one male student wrote about how Japan should never have to experience another atomic bomb, or even nuclear bomb ever again, such as how it happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. For questions, one asked the speaker for his opinion about the current situation regarding North Korea and nuclear testing. His response of course was that it was terrible, and when asked by another student for his opinion on what if Japan were to ever possess nuclear weapons, his prompt reply was, "I don't think Japan should make (I think he meant "have") the same mistake twice!"

On a quick side note, the peace clock in Hiroshima was also reset today after the news from North Korea, and is the 12th reset since 2001.

One female student wrote on the harvest of shiitake mushrooms (which I learned apparently takes two years, if I understood her right), another student from another classroom wrote about how Japan is losing their cultural identity by "dyeing our hair blonde and eating foreign foods like McDonald's and KFC" while another referred to the "doggie bag" (a common term used for leftover food to take home from a restaurant) as an excellent idea that needs to be adopted to help the environment and reduce food waste.

Although I understand a big cultural difference here is that maintenance of eye contact with your listener(s) doesn't seem to be that big of a deal, I couldn't help but notice that fidgeting, lots of head-tilting, and frantic hand waving are parts of the norm when presenting speeches. The ceiling was a popular choice as the audience for students, however.

Lunch at my special needs SHS

Since I first came on the JET Programme, I've taught at five different special needs schools at senior and junior high levels in Osaka City - and I must say, teaching English to and spending time with these kids is such an amazing experience.

The teacher to student ratio is quite different than the normal Japanese classroom, where many junior high classes have about 40 students, with one JTE and one ALT. But special needs classes tend to be smaller, with three or four teachers for ten students. The teachers also know their students very well, too, and write a journal entry every day about each student so their parents can keep up with what's happening. Because of this relationship, the students are generally very kind and sweet, and from my entire time teaching them, they're always great and genki students!

I have to say, one of my favorite times to spend with students besides teaching is during lunch.

Today I was invited to eat lunch with my JTE's class, and noticed lunch was the same, in the sense that how it's done the same way at special needs schools.

Lunches are delivered to the school, and usually the students and teachers, while donning aprons and hair nets and gloves, go off to retrieve the lunch: most of the time being rice, a side dish, some yogurt or bread, and a glass of milk. Each student has a role to get something, even the silverware. It's a team effort, and the students keep tabs on each other making sure everyone does their part: setting up the lunch mats, putting down the silverware, making sure tables are clean, and so on. And contrary to thought that the lunch may not be that great if it's like cafeteria-style food from an American elementary or high school - it's actually quite tasty. (I'd have to say my favorite is curry rice.)

Portions are served by the students as well, and sometimes if there's extra food or glass of milk, janken is played and the winner gets the extra food prize. At every school I've been, whenever bread was served, there was always a popular request to have it toasted. I really wish I could do that at school at home, to be honest!

Students are called up in a certain order (that I still have no idea how that's done) to get their lunch tray, and no one is expected to eat until every student has their lunch and is seated. Then, a student who is chosen can commence the meal by requesting (in either Japanese, or English if an ALT is in the classroom) everyone to put their hands together, and say, Itadakimasu! Let's eat!

Generally during this time, I try to eat as quickly as possible, since it's also Q&A time for students to ALTs, as many special needs students have never had the opportunity to speak with ALTs before or people from other countries, at all. The conversations are very laid back and relaxed, and the teachers are quite friendly, curious, and anxious to join in the conversation, too. Even if you don't speak Japanese, students are more than happy to help teach you some. It's also a chance for those who were in your class to review what they learned that day.

Once you, your students and teachers finished dining, there's also the strict system of organizing the trays, silverware, trash, and recycling of glass bottles used to drink the milk, and if even one mistake is made, the students call each other out on it. (Makes me wish students who clean their schools would do that too, but that's an entry for another day..) At this point, the students are pretty ecstatic, mainly because of what happens after lunch: recess and free time!

Osaka Trivia Proficiency Test

Think you know everything about the city of Osaka?

Well, I just received an e-mail from Global E-net Osaka, done by CLAIR in Osaka (and also a nifty newsletter if you want to receive information about stuff to see and do in Osaka City and learn a few things or two about Osaka in English) about a brand new test, all about Osaka called the なにわなんでも大阪検定 or "Naniwa Nandemo Osaka Kentei." (Unfortunately the deadline for registration has already passed, but if you're interested in attempting this test for next year.. read on, dear reader. Read on.)

Yes, that's right. The test is being done for the first time starting this year, and currently there are levels 2 and 3 being offered (level 1 is of course the highest, but won't be given out this year). If you manage to pass with your extreme Osaka knowledge, you'll be offered to take the level 1 test for next year.

What's the aim? To get people to know a bit more about Osaka's history and culture than just okonomiyaki (a food that Osaka is famous for, basically a cabbage pancake/omelet with Worcestershire sauce, very tasty) and manzai (a popular form of comedy originating from Osaka, basically two guys talking jokes really quickly at each other) I'm guessing. It's surprising, too, that I coincidentally began to notice textbooks appearing at major bookstores such as Kinokuniya and Junkudo with books focusing on studying Osaka-ben (Osaka's dialect)! Yes, actual textbooks! I was wondering why they had more books on Osaka-ben out..

This test is very real though, and seems to be backed up by the Osaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in joint sponsorship with Osaka prefecture, Osaka City, Sakai City, and other organization.

If you'd like to start studying, there's also an official textbook you can check out for 1,995 yen. The test will be administered on June 21st and is a written exam.

大阪弁めっちゃ好きやねん！

Half-priced karaoke

Last night I went with some good company to a cafe for dinner, and it was such a nice meal that we wanted to end off the evening with some good old-fashioned karaoke fun.

Amemura, or "American Village" is an interesting area in Osaka, where it seems all the fashionable and stylin' teens gather to see or be seen. We headed for a Super Jankara (a popular karaoke chain) that required walking our way through Amemura. And believe me: I think you see the most interesting characters there when it starts towards midnight.

There were blonde-haired guys with spiked hair, standing with their motorcycles lined up in a row. People skating and sitting in the small concrete island known as Triangle Park. And lots of low riding cars, some so low, that they'd be scratching into the pavement. (And I wondered: If you wanted your low-riding car to be seen, does that mean you'd have to drive around Amemura oh so many times? And the park it there?)

Anyway, after seeing the interesting sights of Amemura, we got to Super Jankara to be greeted by tons upon tons of flyers advertising that an hour would be at half-price, about 355 yen. (That's $3.55!) What a steal! We couldn't pass up singing for two hours.

Of course, since the swine flu hit, and with schools closing and all, lots of students flocked to karaoke clubs to fight boredom. As a precaution, the karaoke club actually sprays your hands with sanitizing spray before you can sing on your merry way.

By the way, I found out that the most sung karaoke song of either 2008 (or was it 2009?), at least from when we were singing it is Coldplay's "Viva la Vida." I'll need to make good use of this awesomely-priced limited time karaoke offer!

My favorite place in Japan

I'm a first-time entrant to the Japan Blog Matsuri, with this month's theme being "My Favorite Place in Japan" hosted by the Nihon Sun.

I love Kansai as much as the next person: like Japan's national kitchen city of Osaka, the shop 'til you drop cultural capital Kyoto, and free-roaming deer containing historical capital Nara, and the port city of Kobe, you would think that these cities itself would be a reason to be enough to make the entire region of Kansai a favorite.

However, after doing extensive travel in Kansai, I would have to say one place stood out both literally, majestically, and proudly over these cities. That place is Mount Koya, or Koya-san (高野山) in Wakayama Prefecture. A place where you can find everything you probably ever thought of to be Japan, melded together in the small town of Koya.

(Photo at left taken by Flickr user st3f4n.)

The small town of Koya toward dusk, in winter time. Photo taken by myself.

The area was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004, with part of the reason being that you can see a fusion of both Shinto and Buddhist sites. You can witness this when you see a Shinto shrine standing quietly right in the area that's known as the headquarters of the Shingon sect of Buddhism!

Koya-san also retains its beauty throughout the seasons, but most especially in the spring cherry blossom season and the fall. Trees are no rarity here (there is forest in just about every direction) and many trees look as though they're waiting to prepare to show off their colors for fall or blossoms in spring. But no matter when you decide to go, you'll more than likely have the chance to meet some interesting and friendly people: the pilgrims who make their way through Mount Koya. Seeing, meeting, and talking with them can often give you a feeling of admiration, and maybe even motivation or inspiration to do such a feat. (Perhaps try the 22km trails yourself.. ?)

Walking through Oku-no-in, where you may also be able to spot some pilgrims.
Image credited to Flickr user st3f4n.

But let's not forget to mention Okunoin (奥の院), found a short walk east of Koya, and perhaps considered to the one of the largest (and it truly is massive) graveyards in Japan. Upon entering, you can find hear another rarity that's absent among the urban jungles of Kansai: silence. Tons of moss-covered stone monuments, giant, tall cedar trees and mysterious statues and lanterns are scattered among this forested mausoleum. You'll probably find a lot of interesting-looking gravestones..

Take this rocket ship, for example. Image credited to Flickr user st3f4n.

Don't worry, you'll also find your fill of Jizo statues.
Image credited to Flickr user st3f4n.

Koya-san is about a two-hour commute from Osaka or Kyoto via the Nankai line, but the journey there itself is also breathtaking, as the train line has some spectacular views along the mountain range. But because of the long commute, it's recommended to stay for a night: what better way than to do so through a temple stay, or shukubou? Many temples in Koya offer pilgrims and other guests lodging, and allow guests to participate in Buddhist morning prayer services (oinori) and join in chants. If you're lucky, you'll find that your temple has the view of an incredibly beautiful garden.

Food-wise, many temples serve vegetarian dishes (shojin-ryori) that are surprisingly delicious and a select few cafes and restaurants also serve majority vegetarian cuisine. (But you'll come to find a few shops and restaurants will also have bento boxes, if you're looking for some cheap eats.)

If you manage to explore the depths of Okunoin, you can also take a look at Garan (伽藍) or the Sacred Precinct found west of Koya, that has the Konpon Dai-tou (根本大塔), a large pagoda and said to be the center of an eight-petal lotus formed by the mountains that surround Koya-san that. How cool is that?

Konpon Dai-tou. Image credited to Flickr user st3f4n.

Japanese festivals also take place in Koya, including the Rosoku Matsuri, or "Candle Festival" on August 13th where thousands of candles are lit in Okunoin. Definitely worth a see. If you thought the area looked amazing in the day, just imagine what it must look like while lit by candlelight!

Koya-san Rosoku Matsuri. Image credited to Flickr user kunishi.

So, if you're looking for a place that covers a lot of things you have in mind as Japan, including temples, shrines, nature, history, mystery, interesting sights, atmosphere, being picturesque, cultural enrichment (that can be done through a temple stay or just walking around Koya and its many, many temples), or even just a short day trip away from the usual Kansai spots with peace, quiet, and relaxation and fantastic views, take a look at Mount Koya, and you may just find your own new image, or even favorite place, too, of Japan.

This is my favorite place, because Koya-san was the first place I could experience and enjoy a new and mysterious Japan with all of the above with tranquility and serenity, and most especially while surrounded by nature; a rare thing to come by as a city dweller.

Daimon, the main gate and entrance to Koya-san, found west of town.
Image credited to Flickr user fotopakismo.

IMAGE CREDITS:
many from image set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/st3f4n/sets/72157606647312595/
for "Candle Festival": http://www.flickr.com/photos/kunishi/370972856/
for "Daimon": http://www.flickr.com/photos/fotopakismo/570002049/
Used under Creative Commons license.

Cell phone picture post parade 1

Sometimes I tend to take some pics on my cell phone without really doing anything with them, so from time to time, I'll have some "cell phone pic post parades" to go over some random things that catch my eye in Japan.

In spite of the increased case numbers of swine flu (the number is at around 279 infected now), Osaka has still not regained its crowds that once roamed the areas of Hep 5, Umeda, Shinsaibashi, and Namba. To escape, no wait, enjoy the temporary desertion of such areas, I popped on over to Kinokuniya in Hankyu Osaka Station to check out some books.

Then, this title caught my eye in the "Elementary School Children's English Books" section:

On the title in the blue squares, it says, Barack Obama Notebook. But what exactly is in a Barack Obama Notebook, you may wonder? Unfortunately I didn't have a chance to snap a shot of what's inside, but its contents had some excerpts from a few of Obama's speeches translated into Japanese, then some vocabulary for ELEMENTARY SCHOOL KIDS translated into Japanese.

That wasn't all. After the speech were some lines for elementary school students to copy and write the speech in. Some of the speeches were a paragraph long!

Now, don't get me wrong, I know Obama's pretty cool and all, but I'm not exactly sure how I'd get one of my elementary kids to copy down his speech, nor what exactly.. for.

If you'd like YOUR kids to be Obama-fied English speech writers, you can nab this book bargain for a mere 500 yen. (What I really love is the caricature with "I [heart] OBAMA")

Next up:

Just what do you think this is? No, seriously, what do you think the prize of this UFO catcher is? Take a close look at the posters in the back.

That's right. Fish. You can get a real, live, pet fish from this UFO catcher machine. At first you think it's cool, because it's something you've never seen before. "Hey! Check it out! There are REAL FISH inside those containers inside this UFO catcher machine!" Until you realize that once you grab the tiny little candy colored canisters with your claw, it drops the poor defenseless creature right smack into the bottom of the machine.

Despite how cool this idea might be, I think they need to have a shorter drop than a regular UFO catcher machine.. this was from an arcade somewhere in Namba.

The last just reminds me of home, and made me think about how I never knew Minnesota was known as the state of bread and butter?

Ahh, Minnesota, how I miss thee. Never did I expect to find your name emblazened on t-shirt dresses in a cheap Target-like store such as Jusco.

Oh, Japan.

Hyogo and Osaka school closures

As of this post, around 176 cases of swine flu have been reported and I'm more than sure that number is steadily climbing, even after actions taken by the Hyogo and Osaka Board of Education's decisions to shut down schools for a week. Teachers are still required to go to work, while students have been taking the news (especially during midterm season) rather well, flocking to karaoke clubs instead of staying home as advised. Others are flocking to Universal Studios Japan, which is also in Osaka.

I had to go through Umeda/JR Osaka Station, the main and major train station in Osaka, just to get home today and it was like walking through a ghost town. Usually the place is filled with life to the brim, crowded, dense, and noisy; where walking through crowds of people in a straight line is impossible without having the navigational systems of a buzzing bee, weaving in and out to avoid bumping into someone. That most certainly was not the case today. Hankyu Station, especially in front of Big Man (a giant TV screen) was practically empty.

Osaka's reaction included train staff and many restaurant, cafe, and health workers to don masks. Announcements could be heard while riding the train and subway stations. In front of a few movie theaters, (if they were still open today, but I'm not sure since talks were made considering closing down movie theaters for the week as well) you could find hand sanitizer or alcohol spray, asking patrons to sanitize their hands before entering the theater. Flu masks are sold out everywhere, and at times I felt awkward being on the train or subway not wearing a mask.

We'll just have to see how things play out over here.

Swine flu in Osaka and Hyogo

The a cappella group that I'm in had a welcoming/farewell party for some members, and while riding the subway on my way to Shinsaibashi, it felt like it was just going to be an exciting, normal, and fun afternoon. Just a regular and quiet ride with regular and quiet passengers on the subway.

But while riding it on the way back home, instead of regular and quiet passengers, it was more like regular and quiet-practically-70%-of-the-passengers-inside-the-car-was-wearing-a-flu-mask ride back.

One of the girls in the a cappella group who is a JET for Hyogo-ken had informed me that many schools in Kobe were closing down for a week or so to prevent further spread of the swine flu, and I had also read elsewhere that Kobe Matsuri, which was originally supposed to take place today, had also been cancelled. She went on further to explain that two wards in Kobe had completely sold out of flu masks.

Upon returning home, I popped online to check the news and found out over 1,000 schools and kindergartens all over Osaka and Hyogo will suspend classes for awhile due to the flu and that JR West workers will all be required to wear flu masks, that is, after making sure that they always smile at customers at 70% capacity, of course. (And yes, perhaps underneath their masks.)

Just a Little ちょっと (Chotto) Welcome Post

Welcome!

If you'd like to skip to the short run-down of this intro post, just scroll on down to where it says "in summary" .. haha, hope that saves you some time!

Although past posts have been made to this blog that are dated prior to this post - this blog actually was a project that I've neglected to do.. sadly, since I arrived in Japan. So, many of the posts on this blog will be from its predecessors.

This blog is in its fourth reincarnation (the third still exists, but instead of a regular blog, has become more of a photoblog only), and this time I'm going to try and force myself to make updates, mainly to help friends and family see what I've been up to without me having to e-mail them countless times with updates, a record for myself, and to serve as a perhaps possible reference to future applicants of the JET Programme or those wanting to teach in Japan in general, and of course any audience who's willing to read and listen! Seriously, welcome.

Updates will not come daily, and will be rather sporadic, as there is much to catch up on and that I'd like to write about. The topics will be varied, but I will more than likely hone in on things that catch my interest and try to stick to something as to keep consistency with posts. ^_^

In summary, as of this post, I'm a second-year ALT working for Osaka City teaching English here through the JET Programme. I applied through the Consulate-General of Japan in Chicago, Illinois, USA and was accepted in April 2007. This blog will hope to cover the following:

- life as a city JET
- the Japanese school year in overview, and what happens in each month
- recommended sights in Osaka, that aren't super touristy but are worth a visit
- special needs education at JHS and SHS level in Osaka
- teaching English to hospitalized students
- typical day at an English-intensive senior high school
- typical day at a commercial senior high school
- typical day at a special needs school
- typical day at a junior high school
- typical day at an elementary school
- typical day teaching at a hospital
- transportation culture shock on subways, trains, ropeways, monorails, and trams (there will probably be a culture shock series of some sort)
- Osaka's role as Japan's kitchen
- interesting desserts in Osaka
- tourism in Kyoto
- crowded-ness and dense population
- "shortened Japanese" and the usage of Osaka-ben (Osaka dialect)
- being a Filipino-American JET
- being a Midwestern JET
- using games and role play for teaching English
- going to your workplace on your first day
- Japanese school ceremonies: Sports Day, bunkasai, opening and closing ceremonies, graduation, etc.
- school speech contests
- English Speaking Society (ESS) and other English clubs
- geeky cultural stuff I like, such as: shodo (Japanese calligraphy), the koto, and kyudo (Japanese archery)

You can also expect random, quirky, odds and ends posts such as on:

- UFO catcher machines
- drinks (as in, weird drinks.. .. example: Purin (Custard Pudding) Soda)
- cell phone picture post parades of random photos
- occasional YouTube video in Kansai
- ... any interesting Japan stuff!

Well, these are a few topics I'd like to cover that I can remember so far.. but I hope to complete a bunch of entries, maybe essays even, on these. I look forward to your readership, and to getting into the kick of writing about adventures and learning experiences again.

Thanks for reading!

P.S. I'd like to note, that some posts may be past-marked.. mainly because I like to have things in order as they happened. I'm not quite sure if blog posts are posted in chronological order or as they're written.. so if you see even more posts prior to this one, don't be afraid to have a read or feel that it's outdated: it was probably written a lot more recently than you think. Thanks a bunch!