Cherry blossoms in Shinjuku

April is always associated with Cherry Blossoms in Japan. This year I wasn't able to enjoy it as much as I expected because I ended up getting sick during the blossom's peak time. I was fortunate to enjoy a bit of them during my commute to the office in Shinjuku. Here are some pics:

Izu trip 2012

I managed to get a couple of days off of work and took a relaxing trip to Izu, which is located in Shizuoka prefecture down on its peninsula. It was great. I was able to do a variety of activities which included going to a zoo and picking strawberries. I also stayed over night at a pension, which is like a B&B but in addition to breakfast, they also offer a multi course dinner which was delicious. This particular pension also had a nice private outdoor hot spa. That hot spa was probably the highlight of the short trip. Nothing beats relaxing in hot volcanic water on a chilly night while gazing at the sky full of shiny stars. The trip also brought back some nostalgic memories. The last time I was in Izu, I was hanging out with my old Yonago ALT friend who has since moved back to the states. Man, it is crazy how time flies. Well here are some pics from the trip -

Cold winter

February is almost over and I can't wait for spring and it's warm air to come. This winter has been pretty cold. I have seen my electric bill sky rocket the past two months because of the heavy use of my AC units acting as heaters. It has not snowed that much , probably like less than 5cm so far this winter but the cold air is killer. The worst part is during basketball practice. I play at a school gym and even though it is technically an indoor court, the temperature is exactly the same inside as it is outside. So far I have probably gotten sick like 3 times coming home after practice this winter. It is pretty ridiculous. I miss the heated courts in the states. I miss driving from place to place and only experiencing the brutal cold air when going to your car. Winter is not all bad though. I love winter food in Japan. Clementines, strawberries and crabs are all in season now and they are delicious!! Here is a pic of one of those yummy strawberries:

Start of 2012

Another year passes through and a new one sets in. Recently time for me has been a non factor. As I mentioned previously, days to me are like hours and weekends come and go faster than I can remember. So recently, new years have little meaning to me other then I have to remember to change the number at the end of my dates. This year however is going to be different. I anticipate significant changes. I don't know if it will be all positive but I am looking forward to them. Well, the first half of January has passed and that usually means lots of eating and drinking. Here some pics below -

Holiday lights

This is the season where night is sometimes brighter than the day time. I love it.

Rest between turmoil

It has been horrible at work, probably one of the worst times since I have been with the company. Luckily, I requested some time off prior to the troubled period and was able to recover a bit. I have been reluctantly checking my work emails via my blackberry throughout my time off and issues have yet to be stabilized. At this point I am not sure what the outcome will be but what I do know is that I have to move forward, whether it be with my current employer or not. Most likely the latter. I anticipate a rough few months ahead and really need to prepare myself to be put in a better situation.

Anyways, here are some random pictures from my recent time off.

Rainy days in Sydney

As expected with my "rain man" reputation, it rained about 75% of the time and was unusually cold. Luckily, I saw more of Sydney than my previous trip, but I couldn't do what I wanted which was chilling at a beach wearing nothing but my beach trunks and sipping on an ice cold cocktail. Oh well, I may still have a chance to fulfill that dream as I may be asked to go back there in the near future.

Now here are some random pics of the trip: