Iaido - my first steps

When I came to Japan, one of the things that I wanted to experience, was to train in one of the Japanese martial arts. Once we were settled, I started to make some enquiries. One night I was talking to Mel's boss and I mentioned that I was interested in seeing Iaido. The next thing I know, I had an invite to watch a class at a local dojo.

Mel was especially nervous when we went because she had to do the initial introductions. The sensei was very welcoming, but he was surprised that we even knew about Iaido. After the introductions were over, we were given seats to watch the training.

We were both blown away by the grace, power and almost meditative state of the practitioners. After the session, I was asked if I wanted to train. I immediately said yes!

Ultraman in Tokyo

On a visit to Tokyo, Mel took a photo of me standing next to a life-size model of Ultraman. This is the result after adding the nightlife of Shibuya.

She has this on her monitor at work, and she tells people that she is married to Ultraman . I'm not sure which one she is talking about???

Sumo - sport of giants

I am one of those gaijin that thoroughly enjoy the spectacle, sport and religious ceremony that is Sumo. I went to my first tournament in Nagoya last year and unless we are travelling I will be going again this year.

Today was the last day of the January Tournament held in Tokyo. The phenomenal Mongolian Rikishi (Sumo) Asashoryu won his twentieth grand sumo tournament. His opponent for today's match was the popular Kotooshu from Bulgaria. Sumo is definitely not just for the Japanese as a participant or as a spectator.

If you decide to come to Japan for a holiday or to live - check out Sumo. The colour, spectacle and athleticism makes it a truly a great experience

I Love Japan

I have been living here (a gaijin in Japan) for about 10 months now and the time has flown by. I have to say "I love Japan".

Imagine, getting married and two weeks later you are living in another country, and to top it off, you don't speak the language. I was of course, a bit nervous when I arrived but I shouldn't have been. I took to the culture like a duck to water, although the language is slower going. ;-)

The people are wonderful and have been very friendly and welcoming. The food is great, although some of the school lunches I've eaten have been interesting :-) More about that in another post.

Nearly everything here is an experience slightly different to what you would get doing the same thing in your own country. Whether it is driving (people are very polite) or shopping in the supermarket, it's all slightly different.

All in all it's a great place to be.