nothing to prove

oze = minnesota?

This weekend I went hiking with some of the teachers from one of my middle schools, sanchu. It was pretty much a low key drive out with quite a few pit stops. One stop for a morning break, visiting a small town for reasons that weren't explained to me, lunch, and then a wood shop where if you wanted a 4' x 6' thick piece of wood for a table top this is where you would browse them. Shortly after arriving to our inn we went to an onsen, also known as a natural hot spring, for some much needed relaxation. Onsen's, by the way, are one of my favorite things about Japan because of how soothing they can be after a long day. I would have taken some pictures but, for some strange reason, I don't think that the old Japanese men wouldn't have appreciated naked pictures of them on the internet.


Look, it's Minnesota or Oze National Park in Fukushima-ken. Some of you will remember Mark, Johnny, and I went camping in the boundary waters for 5 days after graduation. Most of the hike reminded me of that trip and how peaceful it is to be surrounded by nature. It was the kind of place I would want to go with my roommates, friends, and Gavin. Furthermore I was allowed to kind of be on my own because no one was really speaking English to me and let's just say my Japanese isn't really at a point of having a ten minute conversation, let alone six hours worth. For the most part I have no regrets about not being incredibly social on the hike itself because over here I really need time to recharge in order to fully absorb the Japanese language and culture.


Eventually they cracked. By the end of the trip most of them were at least attempting to speak English to me and I even busted out a little Japanese to, in my own way, show that I was definitely appreciating their efforts. As you can see they were a fairly older group and I was flattered that they invited me to go with. The picture below is right after our very Japanese dinner the first night which included, but not limited to: deer, bear, and fish on a stick. On our way back to Sanjo we traveled through the mountains but were constantly being detoured. Finally I glanced past one of the barriers and realized that the road that once bridged the gaps between valleys had given way in the previous few earthquakes. Let's just say I was happy we were taking the scenic route.

posted by Aaron @ 5:20 AM