JAPAN IN TWO DAYS!

Hello my friends, colleagues, and loved ones!

I have been meaning to starting writing in this blog for a long time. But until now I haven't really found a great idea to start with so it's just been sitting here waiting... I could have started my blog with some boring religious/philosophical ranting but I just really couldn't get in the mood to publish my ideas about the religion I'm leaving (more of this later). A friend of mine started his own blog about his wanderings in Europe and suggested that I start one too (so he could read it). So if I get in trouble or offends anyone by the content of this blog, it's all his fault. As coincidence has it, I'M LEAVING FOR JAPAN IN TWO DAYS!

Here's a link to his blog: http://tspingthrougheurope.blogspot.com/

There's no better way to start a blog. I've always enjoyed travel writing, and took a swing at it myself on facebook a couple years ago when I went to China. So here it goes.

THE PLAN:

My girlfriend is Japanese and we've been waiting for this trip for over a year. Japan is one of my top three countries I have to visit before I die so this is a really significant trip for me. I have a decent foundation in Japanese so I'm looking forward to soaking up some vibes, getting my language in order, and... looking like A silly foreigner from time to time. But don't worry, my chopstick skills are the envy of every anime-watching-geek in the western world!

Two words not to mix up in Japanese. I've done this before, so let's hope I don't do this in front of my gf's family:

Oishii = yummy. As in, "The food tastes good." Oshiri = bum, ass. As in, "wow, he/she has a cute bum".

We are going for three weeks. The idea is to spend Christmas and New Years in Japan. The best time to be there. My gf's (Mao) family lives in Himeji, so we plan to hit up at least Osaka, Kobe, and Kyoto while we are here. We are planning on having a leisurely trip, with ample time to spend with family and friends.

We have planned to stay at an Onsen (Japanese hotsprings) around Kobe. We are looking forward to trying the infamous Kobe beef there. Then we'll probably come back for Christmas.

We are staying at an apartment a couple blocks from Mao's parents house, making the whole visit that much more convenient. It is apartment that is rented out weekly and monthly.

One of our favorite past-times is eating. We love to eat, everything. So if there's anything that will be on this blog it will food. Lots of food, and lots of drink.

Can't wait to document BEER VENDING MACHINE (for Soroosh).

We have a friend to visit around Kyoto, then we'll hit up Osaka, come back and spend New Years in Himeji.

SEE YOU THERE!