Aso City Hash, 5/21/05

If you want to see a photo of the participants, I posted it in the files section of the Kumamoto AJET Yahoo! Groups page. Requires login, sorry.

On May 21st, the 31st running of the Kyushu HHH convened in the newly formed Aso City. Brother Sliced Bush promised a day to remember under the watchful eye of a smoking crater. 14 hash veterans joined 3 virgins as we started a labyrinthian course through Aso and Ichinomiya town. We located the first beer near meters away from highway 57, then continued to farms and ground golf facilities in the foothills. As we rounded a corner, we were confronted by a massive Clydesdale horse, who nearly hopped the fence to join the pursuit. From the second beer near, we headed up the side of Aso itself, a terribly exhausting climb, sidestepping cow-pats, outrunning raging bulls, avoiding tourist buses and getting lung fulls of sulphur tinged air. Finally, after reaching Sensuikyo Shrine, we located on home and finished halfway up the side of the ancient fire mountain. Hash Lowdown:

-Sh*tf*ck snuck up on Sliced Bush placing a mark very near the finish. He proceeded to nab him and enforce the no-pants rule during religion.

-Another Hash first: Sliced Bush claims the first "moving on-ons"; chalk spots placed strategically on nearby cows. Well done.

-A beautiful YBF: run up a path, climb a ladder on one of those irrigation/drainage thingies then being greeted by a huge YBF on the opposite wall.

-Chad was immortalized as Golden Girl - a homage to his beginnings in the TV show's oft referenced "back in St. Olaf..." and his fine gold locks.

-Mark Frey, joining his 5th hash in his 3 year Japan career, was immortalized as Drag Queen Racer. We are talking about a man who can wear a kimono 2nd best in all of Japan. We were also treated to a few stories of his unreal driving adventures on and off the roads of his beloved Aso.

-Due to a beer underestimation on the part of Sliced Bush, Chu Hi was used for several down downs. DJ Chu Hi was unavailable for comment.

-Due to a approaching rainstorm, a rousing religion was held under a roof at the entrance of a male Toire.

Thanks to Sliced Bush for a well-executed day and the safety drivers for running the drunk shuttles later on. The next Hash will

Flying Koi and Shochu Dreams

This past weekend, Manami and I hit completely opposite ends of Kumamoto Prefecture on consecutive days. Saturday, we headed for the small hamlet of Tsuetate, north of Mt. Aso on the border of Oita Prefecture. It is here that they have a special festival every year. Over 3,500 Koi flags/wind socks are strung up over the river and flown for a few weeks. Manami and I picked up Jamie and we headed for the town to check out the Koi. This is what we saw:


Sunday, we picked up Joe early and headed for the town of Hitoyoshi, Kumamoto's 3rd or 4th biggest city, near the border of Kagoshima Prefecture. There was a Shochu (Rice-brewed Liquor of Southern Japan) Festival. We walked around and only found two booths providing free samples. Slightly disappointed, we headed for the source: the Shochu brewery. We walked to the nearby Sengetsu (a popular local brand) factory for a short tour. At the end of the tour, we sat down at a table with about 10 different branded bottles sitting on the table and another 10 on shelves on the wall. Over the next 2 hours, Joe and I proceeded to try nearly all 20 brands and ranked them accordingly. Finally, we had our fill and selected the winner. We stumbled out and searched for discount yaki tori, yaki ika and okonomiyaki on a stick as the festival was shutting down. Thanks to Manami, our safety driver, we arrived back in Kumamoto where we gorged on a pot of Somen noodles. It was a delicious Sunday.

Travels in Singapore and Malaysia

To view the pictures from the trip, just click on the linked text below for the corresponding picture. Or to view them all, click here. Enjoy.

A string of consecutive holidays here in Japan allowed me to take a 9-day vacation from April 28th to May 6th. As this was my last extended vacation to take during my time in Japan, I wanted to visit a teacher I used to work with at one of my schools in Kumamoto. He and his family now live in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where he is an English teacher at the school for Japanese. So I decided to combine my visit to Malaysia with a short stop in Singapore to experience more sprawling cities of SE Asia.


SINGAPORE: Japan’s Shame

I arrived in Singapore for the second time in my life only this time I was actually going to leave the airport. I arrived on Thursday afternoon and planned on staying until Saturday night. The first day I spent with an acquaintance, Emily, from nearby Miyazaki. (She had a 15-hour layover in Singapore.) We decided to take a long walk and check out the sights. As we were walking along a main strip of bars and restaurants, we happened upon a pub overflowing with people out onto the sidewalk imbibing the fine brew. The interesting thing about these people was that they were all wearing bright orange shirts or hats. I hadn’t even realized I happened to be wearing the only bright orange shirt I own at the time. I was told by and woman with a beer in her hand and a baby strapped to her that anyone wearing orange would be awarded with free beer. Delighted, I went forward and heard a bell ring, meaning no more beer. Sadly, I left the orange throng and continued to walk. We found several famous landmarks of Singapore including the Mer-Lion, the Durian Opera House, Fullerton Hotel, Raffles Hotel and a memorial to civilians killed by Japan’s WW2 invasion. Finally we headed back to one of the best hostels in Singapore, The Inn Crowd, located right in bustling Little India.

The next day, I was again on my own and on a mission to find out about Singapore’s history. The city itself is only about 200 years old and was founded by this British fellow named Raffles. Since then it has existed as a huge melting pot for many cultures, the majority of the population of whom are Chinese, Indian, Malay and various Westerners. Due to my recent interest in WW2 and more specifically, Japan’s role in it, I knew Singapore had played a large part in the Pacific Theater of the War. In the morning, I headed for a small museum called Battle Box located in an urban park, Fort Canning. The Battle Box was the command center for British and allied forces during Japan’s invasion of Singapore in early 1942. This small bunker has been made into a replica of the command center complete with animatronic officers who performed the parts of the men who were there. It was very interesting to see how the generals and staff had to take into account so many factors regarding the rapidly approaching Japanese forces before realizing they had to surrender. I picked up a few interesting anti-Japanese propaganda post cards. I spent the rest of the day strolling Chinatown and securing a train ticket into Malaysia for the following evening.

That evening, I took a long train ride out of central city and headed for the starting box of The Lion City Hash. This was my second opportunity to join a hash outside of Japan. Along with about 60 other people, we started and followed the trail marked by chalk and biodegradable TP. Most of the people were middle age expats in Singapore for work. We ran through a forest that seemed like it wasn’t there just 40 years ago. There were overgrown buildings and abandoned factories through which the course winded. The highlight of the hash was when the trail went right through a small shelter with about 7 people just sitting and staring at us. There was one man and the rest were pretty good looking young women (one of whom was just emerging toweled from bathing in a little pond). I found out later these were probably Thai prostitutes living and working illegally in Singapore. I am sure they appreciated 60 people running straight through their living quarters—well, I appreciated it. After a funny religion and a down-down for myself as one of 3 guest hashers, we had dinner. I sat near a young Japanese woman and her middle-aged German husband. He was retired and she worked in Singapore. I am intrigued by the German accent and laughed for hours as I talked about Japan and Singapore life with them.

The next morning, I bid farewell to Nadia, Brooke and Chad, three Kumamoto JETs who had been in the same hostel as I. I headed for the small village of Changi near the airport. It was here that the Japanese imprisoned thousands of Singaporeans and allied troops. Today it is a very thorough museum and memorial to the prisoners and the victims of the Japanese atrocities. The conditions of the prison were appalling and the things the Japanese resorted to are just unimaginable. I saw that as many as 50,000 Chinese Singaporeans may have been massacred by troops. One of the prisoners painted massive religious murals at the prison’s hospital and they were restored in the museum. I then went into Changi Village and took a short nap on the beach as the planes came in for landings right over my head. That night I hopped in a sleeper car for the overnight train ride to Kuala Lumpur.

(Be sure to check out some photos of some pretty interesting and bizarre signs in Singapore.)


MALAYSIA: Concrete Jungle, Ancient Rain Forest

I arrived early on Sunday morning and was greeted by Mr. Motomura, my former co-worker in Kumamoto. After a delicious breakfast served on banana leaves at a local Indian restaurant, we hit a morning market to get some exotic fruits. Mr. M pointed out that the butcher was located below the market and away from all the other food stalls due to the religious customs of Islam and Hinduism. These two religions were easily the most prevalent in Malaysia and I was amazed to see huge Hindu temples standing next to elaborate mosques. It was quite a contrast just in architectural style. I was then brought to the Motomura residence located in a huge condominium, up on the 10th floor overlooking a beautiful park and mountainside. I had met his wife and cute 10-year-old twin daughters again after just a brief meeting in Kumamoto. During my time there, I was treated like a king in their house. Not only was my laundry taken care of, I had a room to myself, was cooked delicious meals and served more exotic fruits such as massive Papaya, Mango, Dragon fruit, Star fruit, Rambutan and countless others whose name I don’t know. For the day we went sight seeing around the city. We went up into the Kuala Lumpur Tower, the 4th highest radio tower in the world and got great views of the surrounding city and the magnificent Petronas Towers. I was really amazed at how so many buildings were based on Islamic concepts and designs, from the obvious to subtle. In the afternoon we went to a Malay dance performance and got to pose with the dancers afterward. We ended the evening at a delicious restaurant in the shadow of the Petronas Towers that was cook your own food in a large boiling vat called a steamboat. I at the largest crab claw I have ever seen.

The next day was a vacation day for Mr. Motomura, so after stocking up at a food store for my camping trip the next day, he and I headed for the suburbs. Not too far from the city is a massive cave called Batu Caves that has been turned into a Hindu shrine. There were many colorful statues all around the place and even an audio tour to explain the significance of all of the Hindu gods. After a brief afternoon rainstorm, we headed back home for a relaxing evening.

The next day I boarded a bus at a downtown hotel and took the 4-hour journey to the ferry terminal at tiny Kuala Tembeling. From there it was a 3-hour, 60 km boat ride in a thin but long wooden craft to Malaysia’s largest National Park, Taman Negara. The park boasts one of the oldest rain forests in the world, over 130 million years old. It has gone untouched by ice ages and volcanic activity, which have affected other rainforests in the past. The park is also home to thousands of different species including Malay Tigers, elephants, rhinoceros and my personal favorite the barking deer. The boat ride was a little hot and my posterior was most certainly numb from sitting on hard wood, but I saw quite a few animals. A huge snake swam near the shore and a herd of water buffaloes cooled off nearby. I spotted a few interesting birds fishing. I got to the small town of Kuala Tahan near the park’s HQ and quickly set up camp. Just as I arrived, two 3 feet long monitor lizards scrambled past my feet into the woods. This was gonna be fun. My goal was to avoid the dank hostels in such a beautiful setting so I had brought my handy tent and gear for hiking and camping. The weather worked out great considering in was a rain forest but the biggest problem was the insects. I coated myself in mosquito repellant continuously, but I was still feasted upon for the 2 days I was there. Also, if I ventured near any river, I was immediately swarmed by bees. I didn’t get stung the entire time I was there but it was pretty uncomfortable slapping at the bees buzzing around me. The morning after I arrived at the park, I rose early and broke camp and set off for the riverside campsite of Kuala Trenggan, about 13 km away. I left around 8 a.m. and barely stopped walking until I made it to the camp at about 1:30. I came across amazingly tall trees and very interesting vegetation. When I arrived at Kuala Trenggan, I was out of water and needed a refill if I was to stay the night there. There was one man there working on something and he told me that this camp had been closed. No shower, fine; no facilities, no problem; bees, bring ‘em on; but potable water was a problem. I made the decision to hitch a ride with the man in his boat and head back to my original campsite, only about 10 km down the river. I rewarded myself with a delicious dinner at a local floating restaurant that night before retiring to my tent and the amazing orchestra of a rain forest at night. The next day I went to a special Canopy Walk constructed in the treetops of the nearby forest. A few planks were held up by ropes with nets on the side, but it was still a thrill walking as high as 150 ft above the forest floor. I did a similar treetop walk in Australia, but those were actually built from the ground, whereas these were suspended from the trees themselves. The planks actually swing and sway as you walk along. After that I climbed a nearby hill for great views of the endless forest in the distance. I had some lunch then set out down another path for a cave about 3 km away. As I walked, I came upon a family of Orang Asli, the group of native people that are legally allowed to inhabit and live off the forests of Taman Negara. There were 3 kids, one of whom was buck naked, and a mother with a baby hanging on her in a small wrap. She was topless other than the baby holder, but she was chopping some wood and ignored me as I passed by. I snapped a photo of some of the kids on my way back from the cave. I arrived at the cave with my headlamp and was ready to explore its depths. As I entered however, I saw that wasn’t going to happen. Not only were there many bats hanging from the low ceiling of the cave, a few were awakened by my presence and started flying around. I thought the better of it and decided to not go in. That night I laid down to sleep at about 10 and heard the unwelcome sound of thunder in the distance. I had full confidence my tent could withstand any caliber thunderstorm, but for some reason I felt uncomfortable set up under towering trees during a violent storm. I awoke again at 2 a.m. when the rain started to zip up my tent. I expected to be kept awake by the storm, but again fell asleep until I wake around 7 to a torrent on the walls of my tent. I would have waited it out, but I had to get a boat out of the park in the morning. I quickly packed up in the rain and headed out. The rain had stopped by the time I got on the boat and it was another long pleasant ride down the river. I arrived back in KL in time to join the Motomura daughters for some late afternoon swimming and then joined Mr. M for a night of fine foods and drinking with his co-workers at his school.

The final day I spent on my own going to various sites and shopping areas around the city. I finally got an up-close view of the beautiful Petronas Towers and the scarily massive shopping mall beneath them. I experienced another afternoon downpour, delighted to be in a place with fast changing weather much like St. Louis. At last, I met up with the Motomuras to say a million thanks and good-bye at the train station. I took the KL Int’l Airport Express and hopped on a flight back to good ole Fukuoka X.

The more I think about the trip, the better it gets. I was able to explore Singapore and get to know its interesting history and its unfortunate relationship with Japan. It was my first long trip completely on my own and now I can see how that’s almost preferable unless we are talking about family. I met many interesting people but was able to be independent and pursue my own interests. I met an old friend and was treated royally by him and his family. I experienced two huge cities and was able to retreat to one of the most remote parks in SE Asia for some well-needed quiet and nature injection.

I'm out 行ってきますよ

I'll be travelling in Singapore and Malaysia until around May 8th. Check back in then for the words and photos.

The Rage Comes to Tokyo

I spent the last weekend in the sprawling metropolis of Japan's capital city. The occasion was a supposed scavenger hunt that took place on Saturday. Here's how it went down.

Me, Jamie, Brad and Brooke hopped a plane from Kumamoto to Tokyo on Friday night. After a late dinner of a rare (for Japan) Turkey sandwish, we retired to Jamie's friend Jeff's apartment for some shochu and Lebowski (his lone DVD, nice). Jeff is a works in investments and is in Japan temporarily in an amazing apartment in the heart of Roppongi, one of Tokyo's liveliest and priciest hoods. Everything in his apartment is automated top of the line: The toilet to living room and shower to kitchen intercom (why'd they choose those combinations?) and the heated hardwood floors and toilet flushing control and information system.

The next day we met at a local bar for the much hyped scavenger hunt. Teams for all over Japan met and set off to follow of a list of things to find. We started out in Roppongi and looked for certain things in stores, the prices of selected dishes in restaurants, made a drinking date with Wolfgang Puck in October, played in some fountains, raided a movie theater's ticket box, sexually harassed some fiberglass bears and quite publicly consumed quite a few beverages. We managed to finish the Roppongi section by afternoon. Then it was on to Harajuku for more of the same. However the combination of huge crowds there and the content of spirits in our blood didn't go over so well. We gave up and eventually made our way back well after the finish time.

It was obviously a well-organized, well-thought out and possibly could have been successfully completed had it not been for several issues: (1) The teams had about 7 hours to complete an unknown number of tests in a few different areas of the city. Not exactly enough time to explore multiple districts in a city the size of Tokyo. (2) Beers were given to the teams at several points during the race and teams were given incentives to consume more at bars along the way. Not exactly the way to keep things moving in a smooth, orderly fashion. By 5pm, we were stumbling aimlessly through crowds in Harajuku, only to retire to a bar for more drinks and some well-needed fish and chips.

I really don't know if any teams came close to finishing the hunt, I would be surprised. I was a little disappointed that we barley made it out of Roppongi before we had to return there again. We went back to the comfort of Jeff's apartment for a rest before heading back out to the hopping clubs of Rop...well I wish we did. I fell asleep for the next 12 hours while Jeff Jamie and Brad settled down for a back to back Lebowski viewing. By the time everyone got moving Sunday, we barely had enough time for a Tony Roma's lunch before we sprinted through the airport 1 minute before out flight left for home. It was a pretty fun weekend. I had the insane idea that I would be able to see more of Tokyo, but what do you expect when you are there for a mere 36 tainted hours. I do recommend the bi-annual scavenger hunt in Tokyo. The proceeds were for charity and if you actually apply yourself, I'm sure you could do very well. Maybe next time.

(I didn't include any of the pictures I took because some might be slightly NSFW. Thats notsafeforwork, kiddies) Naturally, feel free to browse at your own risk here (clickit)

馬ちんこ焼き

I am off to Tokyo for the weekend. There is a huge scavenger hunt all over the city on Saturday organized by some Tokyo JETs so it should be fun stuff. In the mean time, please enjoy some pictures of a very special foodstuff. Kumamoto is famous for its uncooked horse meat (馬刺　−　basashi) dipped in soy sauce and ginger or wasabi. However, this is actually horse penis - sliced, skewered and roasted to perfection. Not really, it was really sinewy and tough. Let me know is you want the restaurant's location... (Sorry if it's slightly blurry, it's a picture from my cel phone.)

Toyo Village Hash, 4/16/05

On Saturday, April 16th, the Kumamoto Hash House Harriers headed to a small village named Toyo nestled in the foothills of Kyushu's central mountains. Froilan and Suzanne (aka Nuck-a-nuts and A**hole kool-aid) managed to carve out a stellar path through all manners of terrain. 25 people gathered near a river and a junior high and set out after the hares. After getting totally lost in the Takenoko forests, the group spread out, forded a raging river, and then climbed a hill to find a beer near placed strategically in the middle of a school's baseball practice. Soon after, Brother Dis Nut, in a quest to find cheap piercing in Japan, impaled his foot on a bamboo shoot. He managed to mark the path well with blood for the hashers behind him. After winding through many farms and onlooking obachans, we crossed a swinging rope bridge, found more beer, then sprinted up a buddha-lined mountain path. Winding on down to the river, Brother S.F. was confortably ahead before making a fateful wrong turn. When all was said and done and the smoke finally cleared, a mortal by the name of Allison snatched the lead and finished just ahead of Sliced Bush.

After a quick revision of home, the hash ended next to a gorgeous, yet chilly river. A few decided to swim and Sister Hi and Squeaky decided not to, but then got in anyway. After a rousing religion, folks headed off in all directions to pursue fun in the perfect weekend weekend weather.

Now the nitty gritty, the hash facts:

-25 people came to the hash, a huge turnout.
-There were 3 hash virgins.
-Brother Cock Sprinter's younger brother Chris came all the way from Australia for the hash.
-...plus Chris is only 17, establishing a new youth record for the KHHH.
-Allison Yoder won the hash and was immortalized as Sister "YODA-LADY-ZO".
-...because she is wise like the Jedi master, can yodel like Celine Dion in Karaoke and is a fan of elephants.
-Brother Dis Nut went on to triumphantly finish the hash with a limp and a mighty staff in hand. When told he looked like Moses, he responded, "Oh yeah? Moses never made it to the promised land!"
-3 Miyazakians joined the hash.
-Video footage taken by Brother Sliced Bush during the hash will be used in an upcoming propaganda/recruiting/training video.
-Huge thanks to Froilan and Suzanne, well done. A very successful Hash indeed.

See you at the MAY hash, stay tuned.

Bustin' Out from Kyushu: A Hip Hop Story

This past August, I attended an English Camp for high school students for 3 days. About 50 kids and many volunteers went to a mountain top retreat center for an intensive English experience. We did tons of games and activities and I was really surprised and impressed by such high levels of English of the students.

I worked with the second year students, 16 or 17 year olds. I was the leader of a group of 5 girls and the final activity of the camp was to create a skit and perform it in front of the other groups. As we sat down to think about what kind of skit to do, time started to pass...kept passing...silence...no ideas... So I threw an idea out: hip hop. It is a culture near and dear to many a Japanese teenager. Young people spend tons of money on hip hop brands and music. (Sometimes, as I walk down the street and catch the eye of a young thug pimped out in the latest Sean John and Vokal threads sporting corn rows to make Iverson jealous--I say hello and the dude shyly says hello and laughs as he quickly strolls away. Try that in NYC) As our small group discussion progressed, a story began to emerge:

Hip Hop Girlz -
5 teenage girls innocently try to go to a local hip hop club one fine evening. After a very awkward conversation with the club's bouncer (myself), a strange and embarrassing dance number and their subsequent ejection from said club, the girls make a decision. They must go and learn from the masters at Hip Hop Camp: (That's me, again playing DJ Finger, hip hop guru and camp instructor. The green and yellow symbol on their shirts means 'beginner' for just about anything in Japan.)

After some intensive drills in Shaolin Shadowboxing of the Wu-Tang Style, the crew copped some hot dance flows from the master. The girls were ready to take Detroi...er Japan by storm:

With their newly modified hip hop shirts and a deeper sense of appreciation for all things Biggie and 'Pac, the girls returned to the club. To the beats of Go-ju Sento (In Da Club), the girls proceed to bust their new moves and tear da roof off:

And just like Marshal Mathers lyrically slaying the D-town would-bes, the girlz knew what was next. As the skit came to a close, they spit proudly to the masses, "WE BECAME HIP HOP SUPERSTARS!"


It was a blast helping the girls and wathcing what they came up with. After my initial idea, they took it away and created the dialogue, props and scenes. (I provided the soundtrack with hot beats from 50 Cent and Dre.) I was proud when they got 3rd place in the skit contest and they screamed out in surprise.

An incredible story of 5 girls' rise from the trailer parks (inaka) of 8 Mile (Kumamoto) to become the hottest icons in the world (Japan). "Hip Hop Girlz" - Now playing at theaters worldwide.

Tree Season

The cherry blossoms have just started blooming in Japan, I will surely take a few pictures this week. In the meantime enjoy this bare tree near the Shirakawa that runs near my house. I shot this at sunset recently.

Another City Hash

Click for Mashiki Dan's photos from the hash! Thanks, Dan.

Saturday, May 19th witnessed the 28th running of the Kumamoto Hash House Harriers in Kumamoto City. The weather was gorgeous as 14 dogs (plus 1 Father Time) gathered on the rooftop of Tsuruya overlooking the city and the course they would run. The hares, Disco A** and S**t***k shortly took off down the stairs and out into the city. After a Shimotori/Kamitori mix up, the dogs were after them as the path snaked through the western edge of downtown. The flat course then took a turn for the not so flat, as the dogs discovered some of the finest (and cheapest) love hotels in the city. After checking out a shrine and a massive tori gate, they continued to Mannichi Yama, former property of the Ohm fanatic religious group. After a trek down through the woods and a long straightaway, it was On Home! to Inari No Oka, a nice rock park on a hill overlooking southern Kumamoto and Uto. C**k Sprinter continued his hash dominance by winning his 3rd in a row followed closely by Kathy. As we saw a beautiful sunset, we were reminded that indeed, "Love is like a spring..." Religion was carried out and saw the aforementioned Kathy be immortalized at her 2nd hash and her very first religion. We welcome sister "Hi and Squeaky" to the Kumamoto HHH. Thanks to everyone for coming out, special shouts to brother Lettuce for being Father Time, B**chiro and Emily for coming all the way from Miyazaki, Erica for coming from America and Mashiki Dan for the photos above. ON ON!

Waterfalls of Miyazaki: Weekend Getaway

After Saturday’s successful Hash, (see above post – coming soon) I was pumped to take Sunday and Monday (some national holiday) to explore numerous waterfalls in the neighboring prefecture of Miyazaki. I was intrigued by my friend Adam's post of this web site. When I looked at the map of Miyazaki, I noticed an area of heavy waterfall concentration. The area was in the eastern-most area of Miyazaki Prefecture, Shiiba Village. I knew exactly where I had to go. Although the weather is still a little cold to do any waterfall jumping, I was excited to do a little research for future jumps.

Manami and I set off in her sister’s sweet Toyota Land Cruiser Prado:

I get too nervous maneuvering that beast around narrow city streets, but once we get to the country, I hop behind the wheel. On our way, we come across various interesting things. A road swept away by an autumn typhoon: Manami gets a closer look over the edge:

One of many obstructions we encounter on a thin mountain road:

A mountainside decimated by the chopstick industry:

Sure enough, we begin to find the waterfalls as promised. A tall one cascading over rocks:

A few with a powerful stream source:

And finally, we find what we came for, the jumpers. The first one is hidden fairly well and I have to crawl through some foliage to get to the top of it:

It is a high flow stream that falls about 5 meters into a clear deep pool:

Then we happen upon perhaps the best one I’ve seen in Japan. Ukonoko Falls just across the border in Gokase, Miyazaki:

At first, I am intimidated by its size and the massive cliffs surrounding the lagoon on 3 sides. Upon closer inspection, (that’s me behind the falls)

I see that it may be a jumping possibility. It would require an inquiry to the pool’s depth and some cajones to attempt the 20 meter plunge, no doubt. Come summer, I plan on returning to both of these jumpers for implementation of phase 2. Stay tuned for footage.

Fukuoka Damage, OH YEAH!

Fukuoka Damage, OH YEAH!
Originally uploaded by KumamotoMark.

Just saw this on FARK.com. Hilarious, apparently this damge was not due to the earthquake today...

Kyushu Quake!

10:53 AM, Sunday - was laying in my bed and felt the quake, it was only a 4 on the Japanese scale here in Kumamoto. Fukuoka 2 hours to the north got it the worst. Some pictures fell off my wall and a cup fell off a shelf but other than that, everthing is good. It really lasted a while, I'd say it shook for a good 35-45 seconds. There were several different waves within the shaking.

I am heading to the mountains to look for waterfalls until Monday, national holiday. The City Hash yesterday was excellent, more on that soon.

#25, what have you done?

I haven't been following most of the drama about steroids recently in baseball. Basically, I think my sister Lynn puts it best. Congress should have a lot more to spend precious time and money on than this. But with that said, I couldn't help but feel a wave of despair upon seeing that McGwire chose to plead the 5th all the way down the line. Since 1998, I considered one of the most memorable moments of my life the experience of being at the game when he hit #67 and 68 at Busch Stadium. Jim Caple at ESPN pretty much summed up my feelings on the Congressional hearings yesterday.

If you are in the states then you know, March Madness is here. I paid even less attention to college basketball this year than I normally do. I followed the Billikens' disappointing season, but that was about it. However, I was very surprised and delighted to see the Washington Huskies get a #1 seed. They are of couse led my SLU's former head coach Lorenzo Romar. In his debut season coaching the SLU Billikens in 1999, he was responsible for yet another pantheon moment for me. The Billikens entered the C-USA Tournament that year with a record near .500 and low expectations. Here's what happened (from espn.com):

Twice during the 2000 regular season, Saint Louis got crushed by Cincinnati -- including, about a week before the Conference USA tourney, an 84-41 pasting against the then-No. 1 Bearcats.

But when Saint Louis -- 15-13 in the regular season and 7-9 in the conference -- faced Cincinnati again in the tournament quarterfinals, they won 68-58, a huge upset even when you take into consideration that Cincy's Kenyon Martin went down in the game with a broken leg.

Then the Billikens won two more -- four wins in four days against higher seeds -- to gain the conference title and a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

Of course, I was the Billken Mascot for those 4 frantic games. After Cincy's upset and the win in the C-USA Final against DePaul the band and cheerleaders rushed the court. I was in the middle of it, of course. Proudly, it was the closest I have ever come to hyperventilation/asphyxiation. So good luck to LoRo and the Huskies!

The Professor's Triumphant Return

Yesterday, I returned from the Pearl Line Marathon 20k race feeling exhausted. I checked my e-mail as usual and found out some awesome news. Professor Quintana, aka Joe Debiec is triumphantly returning to Kumamoto City! He was a teacher here from 2002-2004 and was an integral part of the Kumamoto Hash scene and just general enjoyment. He is coming from Vail, CO to take a position teaching English at a local language school. He is coming in early April, just in time for Hanami. Kumamoto welcomes back The Professor.

In Joe’s honor, I want to post a fine picture taken after his own Kyokushi Hash in local pub Sanctuary. The title of the picture is Unbridled Debauchery and I think it’s one of the finest shots ever captured with my camera.

From left to right: Alana, DJ Chu-hi, Muppet, Leslie, Katie Norris and Professor Quintana.