Hey gang. Sorry it's been a few days since I last posted. I was going to post on Friday night, but time got away from me, and we had to be up early on Saturday morning, so I chose sleep instead. Here's what's been going on:
First, I wanted to say that Ian's a pretty cool house husband to have. He hasn't gone crazy yet from being at home all day. He's really good about researching things. For example, he researched and bought me a new computer, and anytime we talk about travel plans, he can look things up while I'm at school. I definitely recommend to any JETs out there reading this to bring along an Ian-like-person, lol. He or she will come in very handy! :) One thing that he could do that someone mentioned to us this weekend is to find an organization to volunteer for. I think it's an excellent idea! At Kumamoto orientation, they gave us some information about one volunteer organization called Smile Kids Japan, in which you visit orphanages and basically play w/the kids. I think it would be an awesome thing for him (and me!) to do.
This weekend was extremely fun for us! The only bad thing is that we're so freaking tired now. Saturday morning, we woke up at 5:30AM so that our friend, Krista, could pick us up at 6:15 to go to Mt. Aso. Mt. Aso is in the northeast area of our prefecture. It's a beautiful volcano, and I think it has the largest caldera in the world. We met up with other ALTs in Kumamoto City, carpooled to Aso City, and met other ALTs there before driving up the mountain. It was really fun to hang out with other people and get to know our fellow ALTs in the area. There were about 20ish people that went. We stopped at a lookout point on our way up the mountain. I thought the view was beautiful there, but the higher we went up the mountain, the more beautiful it became! We parked in a lot and hiked the rest of the way up.
I've never been to a volcano before, but I was expecting to look down into the caldera and see liquid hot orange lava. Instead, it was blue water. Not exactly the type of water you want to swim in, mind you. If it wasn't so hot that it would peel your skin off, then the sulfur would definitely instantly kill you. Oh the sulfur! It was funny. We were getting ready to take a group shot, and all of the sudden, we all started coughing. It felt like my throat suddenly got very dry. Alarms went off warning people to get away from the caldera. The wind had changed directions, and the sulfur was too much to breathe in, so we had to backtrack a bit and wait for the air quality to get better. Another thing that was funny/scary was these huge round concrete bunker looking things all around. When we asked what they were for, one of the other experienced ALTs told us they are there.....in case. Apparently, 70ish years ago the volcano erupted when a lot of people were viewing it, and they died. The bunker things are there to have a safe place to go to.......in case.
We then hiked around the volcano. The was BEAUTIFUL! I wish I could convey the beauty of this place!! (I will post pictures as soon as I can. We're waiting for a part b/c Ian's computer won't read my memory card. Sorry!) We first crossed this wasteland of black ash and sand. It was pretty, but in a very nothing-grows-here-because-this-land-inhospitable way. The trail up the mountain was a complete and utter mountain goat pass, lol. We just kept going up and up and up. We definitely got our cardio workout!! The views from the top was so dang amazing. Totally worth it. We were actually so high up that we were in a cloud. It felt really wet and misty. It was funny b/c we met a German guy up there. He said that him and a friend were on vacation in Japan. He was very nice.
After completing the mountain goat pass back down, we relaxed at an onsen, which is a Japanese hot spring. Oh me, oh my. It's a really wonderful place to go, BUT here's how the Japanese do it: most onsens are segregated. The boys have one side, and the girls have the other. The reason for that is because everyone is naked. No, you didn't misread that. You strip down to your birthday suit and dip into the hot springs. I told my friend earlier in the week that I was very nervous about getting completely naked in front of everyone, and could I wear my bathing suit, or would that be a Japanese no-no? She told me that it would be a no-no. I know it sounds weird by American standards, but it's completely normal in Japan to do that! It was really difficult for me to take off everything. I seriously had to chant to myself...it's no big deal....it's no big deal....it's no big deal, lol. And here's the thing.....it really ISN'T a big deal. Is it awkward? Yes. However, everyone else is naked, and it's not like you go there to size up everyone or something. After a long day of hiking, sitting in a hot spring was a wonderful, wonderful way to end a day. :)
Today, we had a picnic with some other ALTs from the gun. (It sounds like "goon." It's basically like a county by American standards.) Krista again drove us to Hitoyoshi, where we met everyone else. There were about ten people. We started off the day by driving to a waterfall. That was beautiful. If any of you come to visit us, we will take you there. It's only about an hour away, and it's magnificent! It's probably about 10 stories high. We were able to get close enough to feel the cool mist blow on us. We weren't completely wet by the time we left but definitely damp. It felt pretty good, though, on our way back up the hillside. Interesting fact. We asked people today if we had southern accents. They said yes. We were like "really???" They said yes....that they weren't bad, but they could definitely tell that we were from the south. I asked who had a worse accent, me or Ian. They said Ian!!!!! BUUWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I thought that was hilarious b/c I'm more from the county, and Ian's from the city. Someone was like, "Well, usually it depends on your parents and who you hung out with when you were younger." This also doesn't make sense. My parents have much more of an accent than Ian's, and I went to the little private county school of St. John, while Ian went to St. Mary in the city. Interesting.......
After the small hike around the waterfall (nothing compared to yesterday!), we headed back to Hitoyoshi for a bbq in the park. We were on this island park in the middle of a river. It was a great location for a Sunday afternoon picnic! It was so cute b/c there was a big group of Japanese kids having a picnic w/their parents, and slowly but surely they tentatively made their way to the big group of foreigners. At first they wanted to know names, ages, etc. They asked me if I had a boyfriend (a very common question for everyone to get asked here). I said no, a husband. They didn't really understand, so I called Ian over and pointed at my ring. They still really didn't understand, so one of my friend's translated. Once they realized that Ian was my husband, they giggled and were like "ooooooooooooooo!!!" lol. Those kids loved to play. They wanted us to chase them, which was okay at first. However, when you play tag in this country, you tend to be "it" A LOT. At one time, I was playing tag with six or seven girls. Instead of calling it tag, we should have renamed it to "chase and be chased by the foreigner." :) Their parents brought us over rice balls and beer....I guess as a thanks for babysitting the kids, lol. It was tiring but fun! Whenever the parents called the kids back over b/c it was time to leave, they made the universal sound of disappointment that all kids make when it's time to leave. They were seriously the cutest. Once the kids left, it was time to eat. Ian was really good about being the barbequeer. (For those of you that get that joke, haha.) There's something about grilling that makes him so happy. I think it's a guy thing. :) Regardless, he was the bbq expert of the group. They grilled beef, pork, chicken, and veggies. Granted, there weren't HUGE pieces of meat like we would cook in the States, but it was more than plenty to feed the 10 of us. We sat around and talked for a good long while before going down by the river. I was informed that that river was the third swiftest river in Japan. Another girl and I decided to cross it. It's very shallow....at the deepest part, it barely reached the tip of my khaki shorts. However, the current was something fierce. We couldn't even make it to the other side! I almost slipped and fell several times, which probably would have sent me down the river a bit. (Mommy, don't freak out. I wasn't swept away.) The water was pretty cold, but on a hot day like today, it felt great. We sat by the river for a while chatting, but then someone suggested we go for ice cream. Best idea ever. Baskin Robbins is a pretty big chain over here. While I cannot speak Japanese, I can order by looking and pointing, lol. I had chocolate mount blanc and cream soda ice cream, and Ian had rum raisin and pop rock ice cream. It was sooooooooooo good! It was a perfect way to end a really good weekend!
Alas, tomorrow is another work day. What's up with this full time working stuff? I love my job and the pay, but I don't enjoy the hours. The best part of the day is consumed by me sitting at a desk. Dislike! :) While this weekend was very fun, we have another one to look forward to. Next weekend we're going to the beach w/other ALTs in our prefecture. One of the best benefits of living on an island is that the beach is never too far away! All of you at home, be jealous. Be very jealous. :)
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