Travelogue: May 2000 - June 2001

Tuesday May 16, 2000

...I'm in Japan! What am I thinking???

:)

Actually, it's pretty cool. My flight was pretty good, we got 4 movies to watch, and I tried to sleep, but it's pretty weird when you have noonday sun for 14 hours, and then it's 2:30pm when you arrive! I met up with Robert, who is a fellow teacher, and we went on a bus, then on a bullet train (Shinkansen), and then drove to Fujieda, which is where my apartment is. (Incidentally, Fujieda means "fields of wisteria") It's a small apartment, and I spent all last night cleaning... and then I slept pretty well. I'm amazed that the jet lag hasn't set in yet! I also went grocery shopping last night, which was interesting, since I couldn't read labels... so I only bought stuff with pictures on it. :D
Right now, I'm sitting in the teacher's lounge in the Haibara school, typing away. When we got here, Robert had to remove a spider from the wall for the teacher... it was about the size of a softball... *shudder*
Anyhow, the teachers here are great, and I'm going to be observing a class in a few minutes, so I really should get going... I'll write more when I can! I miss you all!!!

Monday, May 22, 2000

Wed. May 24, 2000

Did you know...

...that gambling is illegal in Japan, but that betting on sports events is not considered gambling!

...in Kyoto, there is a temple covered entirely in gold!

...that you can often tell what grade a high school girl is in by how short her skirt is!

...that there are shopping malls in Japan, but people rarely go to them!

...the Japanese government had to make legislation to say that employers had to give their employees at least one day off a week...

...the legal age to drink is 20, the legal age to drive a car is 18, and the legal age to drive a scooter is 16.

...it is not rude to discuss religion or politics in Japan! :)

...that mail is delivered every day except Saturdays, and packages are delivered even on Sundays!

...it is now mosquito season... ouch!

Anyhow, more fun trivia as I discover it...

June 26, 2000

My life is complete. I have a phone. :)
My number is... 090-7851-4004
The country code for Japan is 82
You get to figure out the rest...! (since not everyone on this mailing list is in Canada...)
So call me, already!
In other news... I went to a barbecue yesterday with a bunch of people that I only met on friday. THey all work together at Nissin, the place that makes cup noodles. It was lots of fun... I haven't seen alcohol consumption like that since frosh week! And LOTS of food... I didn't know you could cook snails on a barbecue... *shrug*
But... I have to keep this short, so more later!

Thursday July 6, 2000

Hey, everyone!

Just a quick note...

If ya tried to call and couldn't get through, chances are it's because I screwed up. :P

The country code is 81, and you don't need to dial the first 0. So...

81-90-7851-4004

And for those who want to do things the old-fashioned way, you can send me a letter at:

Robyn Olm
Apt. 202 KOPO
17-9 2-Chome
Osu, Fujieda City
Shizuoka-Ken
Japan

If ya wanna send a care package, e-mail me and I'll give you an address... if I'm not at home when a package arrives, it goes to the post office, and my Japanese isn't good enough yet for me to manage that, yet. :) Although, John sent me a box of Kraft Dinner (bless his heart), and that fit in my mailbox fine. And if you know anyone who would want either my number or my address, pass it along...
All's well here (besides the heat), classes are groovy, and my newest challenge is being contracted at Nikkiso, an engineering firm that makes medical equipment and airplane parts. So all my students are overeducated, and I have fun trying to translate their job titles. :D
Disneyland has been postponed until September 3rd, so I'll let you all know how it goes! I went to a fab little restaurant for Canada Day... nothing like celebrating C-Day amongst surfers. :D The food was great, though, and the decor is fun. If anyone wishes to visit me, I'll take ya there. It's called Kul Kul (Pronounced "Cool Cool", more or less).
So, that's about it for now, just a short one this time... talk to you all soon!

August 3, 2000

Hi, everyone! Konnichiwa!!! I hope all is well with you, and that you are having as much fun as I am!

Japanese lesson:

Genki desu ka? = How are you?
Genki desu. = I'm fine.

:)

At least I'm finally learning! I'm starting to remember stuff, like "muzukashi" (difficult), "biiru" (beer), "shoju" (evil vodka-like rice liquor), and so on. ;)
I've been insanely busy the past few weeks... one of the teachers is out of town, so I've had to cover a few of her classes. Mike came to visit me from Sunday to today (Thursday), and that was great. We went out to funky restaurants, got stickers made, and visited my karaoke bar. Mental note: never let Mike sing in public again. (Hi, Mike! *wave*) It was nice to have someone I could make jokes to, that would understand them!!!
And... Sunday! I went to the summer festival in Omaezaki, about 1 hour from Fujieda. It's right on the ocean, and it's the location of the international wind surfing championship (or something like that) every year. BEAUTIFUL beach! Popular place with professional surfers to. But... yeah, in the afternoon, after shopping for a while, Norio (my student) and I went to his house, where his mother dressed me in a yukata. I felt like a Barbie doll! :D
Now, for those who don't know, a yukata is a summer kimono, usually made of light, colourful fabric. It's REALLY long, 'cuz it's supposed to be puffed up in all the right places. That was no problem, it's like a huge bathrobe. The fun part was the obi, the red sash. (you'll see it in the pic.) First, she took 2 cords, and tied them rather tightly around me, to hold the yukata in place. I could barely breathe. THEN, she puts a thing that looks like a mini skateboard in the front, to keep the obi from squishing up when I move. Then she wrapped the obi even more tightly around my waist, then tied it up in a bow in the back. I then put my hair up (not easy when you can't move), put on my funky new sandals, and away we went.
My first obstacle was getting into the car without squishing the bow. SUV's are not designed for sitting side-saddle. Then, when we got to the beach, I discovered why Japanese women always walk with such tiny steps in kimonos- it isn't to look dainty. It's because you can't walk. Big clunky sandals and a girdle-tight obi make for difficult walking! When we eventually made it across the parking lot (about 5 minutes), we walked around a bit. There were funky food vendors selling anything from grilled corn to octopus balls. (stop snickering, they're good.) We played 2 games... the first was a game where you have a shallow tub full of goldfish (kingyo), and you have a piece of rice paper, and you scoop them into a bowl. Sounds easy, until you realize that the rice paper melts really quickly. I didn't manage to get any, but Norio got 2, and gave them to me. Now I have pets...! The second game involved taking a fishing hook, tied to (surprise) rice paper, and you try to scoop a water balloon out of a tub. I managed to get one, and it's now hanging in my apartment. :) There were dancers in yukata as well, dancing to traditional music- they practice for months before the festival. And there were people with those giant drums (the name escapes me now), going along with the music. Once it was dark, the fireworks started... they were fantastic! There were some that looked like butterflies, I don't know how they did it. After they were over, Mike called, and we picked him up from the train station. On Tuesday, Mike and I spent the day at the beach, and it was great until I realized just how horribly burnt I was... Ouch!!! Oh well, it happens every summer, I guess.
Next week, I'll be going to Kyoto for a few days, to check out some temples and stuff. I won't be checking my e-mail for a few days, so if I don't answer right away, don't be surprised! I'll take tons of pictures, and I'll tell all about it when I can!
Talk to ya all soon!

August 26, 2000

Hey, everybody!
How are you all? I'm doing better, now that the temperature is finally starting to drop... it's a cool 33 degrees today. :D
I've been busy, as usual... two of my students are in Canada, which is great... it will be nice to hear their impressions of my home country. Last night I went to a great bar called A-SH. (Mike: we must go there when you visit, you'd love it) The music was great- techno stuff, trance stuff, and all very energetic. I had a great time, and so did Ranie (another teacher, that I went with). Yuki, our part-time grammar teacher, was the DJ for part of the night. I was a bit out of place, as I was the only female dancing! The girls usually just stand at the sides and try to be noticed by the guys dancing. Boring!!! But by the end of the night, the guys were trying to dance like me... heh, Japan will never be the same after I'm done here!
I saw another giant spider a few days ago... at the Haibara school. It was about 10 cm across... EWWWWW!!! Pretty disgusting. And they move fast! It ran away before anyone could kill it, so it's still at large around here.
*shudder*
And I'm also very excited, for 2 reasons... for one, 3 of my friends are coming to Japan to teach, as well! (Cyn: get off yer butt, and you'll be #4!) And... on the 4th of September, I'm off to Disneyland!!! Whee!!!
I can't wait!
Anyhow, that's it for now... talk to you all soon, I hope!

Wednesday September 6, 2000

Hey, everyone!
How are ya? I've been busy... and I've been sick. For the past week, I've had this stupid cough that just won't go away, probably because of the fluctuating temperatures. But that didn't stop me from going to Disneyland on Sunday!!! :)
So... at 4:00 am, my student/friend Norio came by and picked me up, and we were off! We had to leave so early to beat traffic... you have to cut through Tokyo to get to Disneyland, which is in Chiba prefecture. (Even though it's called Tokyo Disneyland, it's not really in Tokyo)
We arrived at 7:00 am, and dozed for 2 hours until the place opened. First thing: breakfast. Man, is food there ever expensive!!! Then we started on the rides! We went on most of them (I was too big for the flying Dumbos), with the exception of the newest ride: Pooh's Hunny Hunt. It was so busy, that we missed out. :P But I did get my picture taken with Eeyore, so that kinda made up for it a bit. There was a brief problem with the Haunted Mansion, so for about 10 minutes we sat in the dark watching books move around on the bookcase, until Norio fell asleep, that is! :D
After lunch, Norio went to have a nap in the car (he worked the previous night until 11:30), and I went to the new shopping mall adjacent to the park. Great place... they had an import grocery store, so I loaded up on KD and Campbell's soup! He met up with me at the mall, we had dinner there (much cheaper!) and went back to the park just in time to catch the electric light parade! They had a special exhibition on, too... all the Disney villains (including the dragon from "Sleeping Beauty"- way cool!!!), and then all the heroes. Then we visited the gift shops... very crazy, I spent way too much money on souvenirs. I got a stuffed Eeyore, postcards, and Norio bought me a great poster of the Winnie the Pooh characters playing pooh-sticks. For those who don't know... pooh-sticks is played by dropping a stick/pinecone/whatever off a bridge, then running across to see whose comes out first. Anyhow, the drive home was much slower, 'cuz it was really busy!!! I got to see Tokyo all done up in neon... it was very cool. So, yeah, that's it in a nutshell. :) I took pictures, which will be scanned eventually. I have a very unfinished web page up...

http://www.geocities.com/visual_echo

This is where the pictures will (eventually) be posted.
Talk to you all later!!! Send mail!

Monday October 23, 2000

How are you? I'm now typing on a Japanese keyboard, which is actually quite annoying. The punctuation marks are all in the wrong places, and occasionally if I hit the wrong button, I start typing in Japanese letters. Weird...
So, yeah, it's been a while!! In the past month, I've been quite busy. John (My friend from Ottawa) is settled in at a town called Fukuroi, which is half an hour from me. Which means we actually occasionally see each other, and I can kick his butt at pool in a great gaijin bar called The Skin Flute. :)
I now have a bicycle and rollerblades, which means I'm much more mobile now than I was. I can cruise down to the Fujieda Station in less than 15 minutes, and go shopping or hit a bar or two. But then, I still occasionally go to Pure, the karaoke bar downstairs from me. ;)
Let me see... what interesting things have I done... two weeks ago, one of my students took me to a beautiful temple in a small town called Hamaoka, an hour from Fujieda. The temple is called Sakura Ga Ike.
It is very famous in the area for cherry blossoms in the spring. And, of course, there's a gorgeous pond that you can walk around. But this pond is special... a dragon lives at the bottom. Every year, there is a festival where a couple of men go out on the pond in a boat with huge dishes of rice to feed the dragon. Very cool!
Last Sunday, I went to Shizuoka City with Norio to go see "X-Men"... Japan is horribly behind on movie releases, because they subtitle ALL foreign movies. Better than dubbing them, which means I couldn't understand them!!! And afterwards, we went to Omaezake for the Autumn Festival. Every town has an autumn festival to celebrate the harvest of the year. Each town has an enormous cart, like a parade float, that they decorate with flowers, paper stuff, and usually a statue of a famous historical person or a fictional animal. Then, about 100 drunk people take turns dragging this enormous cart through the streets, drinking copious quantities of sake on the way. :) On the cart, there are taiko drummers, people playing bamboo flutes, and guys shouting "Yala yala yala" cheering on the pullers. If two carts from neighbouring towns meet, they shout at each other as they pass, mocking a battle. It was a lot of fun!!!
And last night, I went to a big party at Kul Kul, the best surfer restaurant in the world. There was a Japanese woman singing reggae music... quite interesting! The music was good, the food was fabulous (this place has been on TV and in Magazines and stuff). And, of course, I was the only white person there. :) It was fine, though, because everyone was really friendly, and they thought it was cool that I was the owner's English teacher.
And now, today, is miserable, cold, and rainy. It's around 16 or so degrees, which is okay, though it sucks at night, because I don't have a heater for my apartment- there's no such thing as central heating here. I'll get a kerosene heater next month, probably. Just like camping every night!!!
Anyhow, that's it for this instalment of my mass e-mail. I should find a title for this, make it a newsletter. Any suggestions? I was thinking "The Occidental Tourist." ;)
Catch ya later, and mail me and say Hi!

Tuesday November 14, 2000

Hey, everybody!
Just a quick "hello"...
I've been quite busy for the past little while. Claudia, the teacher who worked here previous to my arrival, came to visit, so we hung out and many fun things. Norio, my boss, Ranie, Claudia, her boyfriend and I went to an ONSEN, which is a hotspring, in Hamamatsu. It was fun, we had a HUGE lunch, sat in the baths for a while (yes, mom, they're not co-ed), and then went for a walk afterwards to a local temple. Then we went to the Haibara school to relax, and hang out, and then we went for dinner and then went bar-hopping in Shizuoka city. It was all good! Beyond that, not much else new has been happening. Sorry, this note is short and rather boring, it can't be helped.
I now have a heater in my apartment! Yay! But it runs on kerosene and stinks. Boo! OH well... I'll learn to like it, I guess. It's better than freezing. Thank god I don't live on Hokkaido!!!
And that's about it... I'll talk to you more soon, and I'm sure I'll have another update before my trip to South Korea at Christmas. :)

November 27, 2000

Hey, everyone!
Sorry it's been a while, I've been busy doing mostly uninteresting things. Until last week, that is!
Last Wednesday, John (an Ottawan friend who's teaching in Fukuoka) and I went to Hiratsuka, in the Kanegawa prefecture, to visit Kate and Carolyn, more Ottawan friends teaching in Japan. :)
After hobbling around Hiratsuka for a while (I didn't wear good shoes), we went to their apartments and hung out for the evening. Then, on Thursday, John and Kate and I went to Kamakura to do some sightseeing. We went to see the Daibutsu, an enormous bronze statue of Buddha. It weighs 121 metric tonnes, to give you an idea of its size. Pictures will be posted once the film is processed! That was a blast, we were able to go inside the statue, and then we bought gifty things and souvenirs at the souvenir stand.
After this we went to Hase-Dera, also known as Hase-Kannon temple. The name comes from a large, carved wood statue of Kannon, which is the largest wooden statue in Japan. The temple is dedicated to Kannon and Gizu. The temple is also dedicated to "lost" children- those stillborn, miscarried or aborted. There are hundreds of stone statues, all wearing peaceful looks on their faces. Local women often make clothes for the statues, and you will see in the forthcoming pictures. Sometimes they have small toys, as well. We walked around the grounds, turned the rotating scriptorium (so now we are all wise in religious philosophy), and got to see a fabulous view of Kamakura harbour. The temple, at sunset, was quite moving. It was a fabulous experience.
Afterwards, we went back to Hiratsuka, had dinner, and then I had to go home. Not much else beyond that, just working, trying to learn Japanese, spending time with Norio (and now I know he can cook. :> ). That's all for now...
Have a great day, and write when you can!

January 6, 2001

Hi, everybody!
Well, I'm back in Japan again, and back to work. I had such a great time over the holidays. Mike was a wonderful host. :)
My school's Christmas party was on the 23rd, and it was a lot of fun. We drank, sang songs, drank, mingled, drank... a good time was had by all. Then, at a horribly early time in the morning on the 24th, Rob and I headed to the Nagoya airport- he was headed to Calgary for the holidays, and me to South Korea. Mike met me in Pusan, and we spent the day hanging around in Pohang. Christmas Day we went to dinner, where we had groovy, spicy South Korean food, soju, and an evil hot pepper. (Mike- I'll get you for that!!!) Then we went to a house party, then to a bar called Giant Step. I only vaguely remember the bar... Oh well.
The next day, after a very rough morning, we went to change my yen to won, and went to Kumi to visit Neal. Again, we had a great time, and it was fun to travel around, especially since travel in Korea is WAY cheaper than in Japan!!! Wednesday, we went to an amusement park called WooBong Land (sp???), in Daegu, and we went on a strange ride where you sit around the outside of a round platform (like the gravitron), and it spins slowly, and the ride operator tries to bump you off. It was fun, but not the kind of ride you'd find in a place that has safety standards!!! The park also had a tower that we went to the top of, and I got some great pictures from it. (I'll post my pictures as soon as I can) Thursday, Mike had to work for a short time, so I wandered around downtown Pohang, and checked out the market there. It was great- I've never seen so much dried fish in my life!!! It had a great atmosphere, and it was nice to walk around in. Friday we went to Kyong Ju, to another amusement park, where I met Mike's friend Mr. Go, along with several of his students. After the amusement park, we went to a temple (oops... I forget the name. Mike???). It was almost sunset when we arrived, and it was very beautiful. Saturday, Neal came to Pohang, we went out, and the boys came and waited with me at the airport on Sunday morning.
Once I was back in Japan, I didn't have time to rest!!! I went back to my apartment, bought groceries (stores here are closed 2 or 3 days for the new year), and headed off to a small town called Senzu, where Norio has been working for the past week. He's a host at a Ryokan, which is a traditional Japanese hotel. I stayed there for the night, we celebrated New Year's, and I got to try out a natural hot spring. Unfortunately, it was too hot! Oh well. The next day I went hiking through the mountains around Senzu, and was shaken (not stirred) on a suspension bridge in high winds. All in all, it was great!
Now, I'm relaxing before my first class. Only a few months until my next holiday...!
I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas and New Years, and I will you all the best.
Omedetou!

Monday, March 26, 2001

Hi, everybody!!!
Sorry it's taken me so long to send out mails... I've been busy, sick, and lazy (not necessarily in that order). So...
I have new pics up on my website, finally all the ones from South Korea are posted, as are New Year's and shortly after. (Yeah, I'm quite behind). Rob and I went to Nihon-Daira in February, which is a rather large mountain near the city of Shimizu. I finally have pictures up from that trip, too. :) Fuji is amazing.
Also in February, Norio and I went to Nagano to go snowboarding. He's great, he has been snowboarding for a few years now. This was my first time, and as could be expected, I sucked. He tried to teach me, but I guess I just wasn't learning. I did have fun though, and the scenery was beautiful, and we went to a hot spring afterwards which was quite nice... the tubs were outdoors, so you run, freezing, from the cabana to the tubs... it's fun to soak in the 40 degree water and watch the snow. :)
The following week, Neal came to visit me. That was great too. We went to Kakegawa castle, went drinking at the Skin Flute, got many Purikura (little photo stickers), and caught up on everything. (For those who don't know, Neal is a friend of mine from Ottawa who is teaching English in South Korea) I'll post pictures as soon as I get the film developed.
Lately... Hmm. Things have been quite interesting. I was sick in bed for a few days last week, which was quite annoying. Especially since one of those days was a holiday!!! In Japan, the first days of spring and fall are national holidays. Nifty!
I booked my ticket on Saturday to go to... Nepal!!! I'm SO EXCITED!!!!!!! I can't wait. I'll be there for 2 weeks in June, just relaxing, hiking, and letting my mind rot. I'm going by myself, too, which should be nice. Then I can do what I want!!! I will have a 5 hour layover in Bangkok going there, and 7 hours on the return, so I get to see a touch of Thailand, too, in the process. Yeah...
And, today, the funniest thing happened. I signed up for a contest in January with my phone company, and I won!!! I am now the proud owner of an SD player... it's about the size of a 9-volt battery, and it holds 64 Meg of memory, with which to play music. It's GREAT!!! Now, I'm just waiting for a 9-ton anvil to drop on my head or some other catastrophe like that. Speaking of catastrophes, no, I didn't feel the quake in Hiroshima, though that may change my plans for Golden Week (first week of May- I wanted to go to the Peace Memorial and Museum, and to Himeji-jo castle). We shall see.
Anyhow, that's all for now. All my love, and feel free to send birthday presents. ;)

Tuesday, April 17, 2001

Hi, everyone!
Well, as always, there's too much to tell. ;)
Three saturdays ago, there was a freaky earthquake here. In Fujieda, it ranked a 5 on the Japanese scale. (Could someone translate that for me into Richter?) Things shook, some stuff fell over, and it took me a long time to fall asleep after that! Nothing broke, thankfully, even though my vase took a nosedive into the sink.
Hmmm... what else... my planning for my trip to Nepal has been hit with a snag- Maoist terrorists have started bombing police posts in the west end of the country. I think I'll be going somewhere else, though I haven't decided where, yet. Suggestions? I've been thinking about Malaysia, though a week on a beach in Bali is starting to sound nice, too. ;) Decisions, decisions...
The weather is quite nice here now, too. I don't need a jacket anymore, though the wind can be a bit annoying at times. I've already started sending boxes back to my parents! The sweaters are mostly gone, and I've discovered that Beanie Babies make excellent packing material! :)
My birthday was pretty low key. Thanks to those of you who sent birthday wishes!!! I went to The Skin Flute (a bar), stuck around for a short time, then went to my local "izakaya" ("drinking place")- Pure. I drank, sang, and then went upstairs to sleep! Convenient, that!
And Norio finally has his visa, so he'll be coming to Canada in early June! Today he went to the Canadian Embassy, to ask a few questions. I'll probably be returning shortly after my trip- I'll keep you all posted on my return dates.
And in a few weeks, I'm planning to go to Tokyo for a few days on my Golden Week holiday. Whee!!!
Yeah, that's about it. Just an update...
More later!!!

May 10, 2001

Hey, everybody!
Well, I've been busy!!! I'm more or less ready for my long-awaited vacation... it will be so nice to relax!!! I've been reading over a few guide books, so I'll be well-informed on sights and so on. Last week was Golden Week, so I had a nice, week-long break. I went to Tokyo... what a great place! I was a bit intimidated by the size of the place- 30 million people, the same number of people in all of Canada!!! Tuesday, Norio and I went to the Canadian Embassy in Akasaka, so both of us could ask a few questions. Then we went to Akihabara, "Electric Town" with Carolyn. I could barely keep myself from drooling... there were so many computers, digital cameras, and so on, that it was all I could do to keep from maxxing my credit card...! Next we went to Asakusa, to see Senso-ji temple. I bought a pair of silk fans on the tourist-shop-lined road leading to the temple, and we each tried a freshly-made "sembe", like a rice cracker, only tasty! Afterwards, we went to Chinatown in Yokohama, walked around a bit, had an amazing dinner, and visited a Chinese temple. I also bought a great Chinese-style dress there...
Wednesday, Norio and I went up Lankmark Tower, a 69-storey building in Yokohama, and had a great view of the entire city. Unfortunately, it was quite cloudy, so we couldn't see Mt. Fuji from there. After, Norio headed back home for work (haha), and I continued on to Harajuku, where I visited Meiji-jingu shrine. This is where the spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife reside. There was a concert at the time, with a woman playing a shamisen (a traditional Japanese stringed instrument) and singing. There was also a wedding procession, which I snapped a picture of. (Yes, pictures MAY be posted before I head off to Malaysia) I also toured the gardens surrounding the temple. After, I shopped around Harajuku, and then spent an hour in the rain trying to find my hotel...
Thursday I went to Ueno, and visited the Tokyo National Museum. It's enormous!!! It took about 2 hours to see just the main building, with the special exhibits and archaeology exhibit, and over an hour to see the Japanese Arts building. After, I wearily made my way to Central Tokyo, and met Kate and her roommate, Rachel. We went to Kabuki-Za, and saw a kabuki performance! It was especially cool since one of the dances was performed by an actor who has been deemed a Living National Treasure. :)
And after the Kabuki, I rushed for the Shinkansen, and just caught the last local train home.
I don't have anything special planned for the next little while, other than trying to send stuff home... But keep in touch, and I'll talk to you all soon!

Monday June 4, 2001

I'm in Malaysia...
...And you're not. Hahaha! I must say, Kuala Lumpur is a cool city, and Malaysia (that I've seen so far) is gorgeous! I can't wait to go shopping tomorrow! Even the internet places here are cheap, though a bit slow. To recap my past few days... yesterday, I went to Narita airport (with a serious hangover, thanks Rob). I hung out there ALL day, window shopping and searching for a cheap restaurant that was not McDonalds. (no luck) Then, I slept on a bench in the waiting lounge... it was an odd feeling, since I have ALL my stuff with me, 'cuz I no longer live in Japan. So... I was a homeless gal, crashing on a bench, getting hassled a few times by security who wanted to make sure that I had a ticket and passport, so I could stay. It was about as comfortable as a bench could be, and in the morning I had a nice chat with the woman who was sleeping on the other side of the bench. She was from Singapore. Anyhow, I came here today, it took 7 hours, and Malaysia is one hour behind Japan. So... yah. That's it, and I'll write more later!

Tuesday, June 5, 2001

It's official...

I'm in love with Malaysia! This is such a beautiful, interesting, wonderful place! I'm having and amazing time. Today I went on a walking tour which took me to the Islamic Arts Museum (great place). Next, I went to the largest mosque in SE Asia, where they let me in wearing a borrowed robe and kerchief to cover my hair. Amazing! Then I hiked along a street for a while, checking out buildings like the KL Train Station, which was built in 1909, the courthouses, which are built in an Islamic style, and so on... I went to the Museum of History, and past (probably) the ugliest fountain in the world- it's a treehouse covered in enormous plastic pitcher plants! *shudder* Then I went walking through Central Market, and had fresh-made naan bread. They make it in an oven shaped like a huge earthenware barrel. Then I bought a "Gucci" watch, some "Oakley" sunglasses, and a copy of Diablo 2.. for a grand total of about $26 Canadian. ;) Did I mention that I love Malaysia?
Anyhow, now it's pouring rain and lightning is illuminating the sky, so I'd best be going... I'll write more adventures later!

Wednesday, June 6, 2001

Wow, I think I'm corresponding more than when I was in Japan! Anyhow, today was kinda busy... I went to a crafts market, shopped for a while, had a groovy curry/rice/stuff-I-Can't-identify meal for $2, and then took a class on how to do batik painting! Eventually some of you may get to see the results of my efforts. ;) But for now, I just have blue fingers. After that, I wandered over to this expensive restaurant, and had a huge buffet and watched a tacky tourist floor show- the dancing was kinda cool, but I'm pretty sure it wasn't authentic. Is there any funk involved in traditional Chinese songs?
And now I'm off to watch a bit of TV, which is SUCH a novelty for me! And then sleep. Yah. Sleep... zzzzzzzzzz...

Monday, June 11, 2001

So, I've been busy... I went back to pick up my batik, and decided to do another. :) I've been to the bird park, orchid/hibiscus garden, and to several shopping malls. My meals have been quite international- Malay, Chinese, Indian, Thai... yum! I had my palm read last night, and she said that I'm adventurous, brave, and I like to eat. Hmmm...
She also discovered my "three lives"- in my last life, I was a man- a teacher. And in my next life I'll be a man again, but really rich. Interesting, but weird...
And today I went cruising around Chinatown. I went to a Taoist temple, a Hindu temple, and a mosque. Fascinating. I even took a few pictures, too. (Of course, I asked first!) And tomorrow I'll go on a tour that will end up at the Batu Caves- huge caves with a Hindu temple inside. I'll keep ya posted!
Anyhow, I'm REALLY tired now, so that's it for this time. Have fun, and all that!

Wednesday, June 13, 2001

Hi!!!

How are you all? Now I'm in Bali, and it feels even hotter than Malaysia!!! I have now officially crossed the equator. However, 37 degrees certainly doesn't feel like winter. I just took a walk along the beach, and you'd think that after a while they'd realize that I don't want a manicure or a massage or cheap jewellery!!!!! Oh well. I guess that sort of thing is typical of tourist places like here. My hotel is close to Kuta beach, which is where a lot of surfers go. :)
Makes for some nice scenery.
Anyhow, this place charges by the minute, so I'd best be going. Plus, bugs are starting to attack...!

Saturday, June 16, 2001

Hi, everyone!!!
Well, I'm a few days into my trip here in Bali, and I'm having an amazing time. Wednesday night, I went to a dinner/dance show at my hotel. It was lots of fun, and I met two New Zealanders, who are loads of fun. Karen and I are doing lots of shopping together, and then we pick up her friend Stephen after and go out for dinner. Works out well, don't you think? Oh, and Wednesday night I also won a limbo contest(???), and so I'm going on my complimentary cruise tomorrow. Life is tough!!!
The weather is quite balmy, and the beach is wonderful. Lots of tanned beach folk, surfers, and so on. The shopping is quite cheap, too. I picked up a beautiful amethyst necklace for about $40 Canadian. And a cute purple dress for about $4. :) So far, so good... The food is quite nice, too. Karen and I have decided to try all the desserts at this place called Aromas Cafe. So far they've been heavenly!
Anyhow, I'm going to take it easy today... just checking my mail, and a little shopping. Gotta save my energy for tomorrow...!

Sunday June 17, 2001

Hello, everyone!
Well, I'm back from my free cruise. It's nice to say that having bought dinner, developed photos, and purchased a bottle of water, I've only spend $15CDN today. I love Bali.
The cruise was good, but the boat ride out to the island was terrible- very rough. I'm fairly good on boats, but a lot of people on board were not!!! And even I was feeling a bit green around the gills towards the end. Afterwards I went snorkelling, swimming in the ocean, had a barbecue lunch, and went on a banana-boat ride, and then a glass-bottom boat ride. Whee!!! The ride home was somewhat calmer. Now I just had dinner, and I'm mailing you. :) And I developed a roll of film tonight... the only annoying part about this whole trip, is that the pictures suck. I need a new camera. Grr...
Anyhow, see you all later!!!

Tuesday July 3, 2001

That's all there is...
...There ain't no more. Until I go somewhere once more!

I'm officially back in Ottawa, and mostly unpacked. My room looks as if a tornado hit, so I guess that means everything is the same it ever was! ;)
I had a wonderful time on my vacation. The pictures turned out fairly well, so once I see you IRL I can show all of them off! "All" being the important word in that sentence...!
So now it's just me, trying to find work in Canada. I've fired off a tonne of resumes tonight, thanks to my trusty fax machine. We shall see, now, what the response will be.
As for my website, over the next little while I'll be changing it again, and adding new stuff that I didn't have time to add previously. I hope to get my last Japan pictures and my vacation pictures up soon, and I'll be adding a few new things.
This trip has been a wonderful experience, and I've had a ton of fun. I'd recommend it to anyone. There's something just so different about living in another country, different than just being a tourist. You get to know people, see a lot more, and it changes the experience completely. I hope my e-mails have been interesting, and not just me blathering on. :)

Have fun, and I hope to see you all soon!!!

Love,

Me