Flake in order to Sense

So I know that I have already climbed up Konpirasan, but little did I know that I had only made it like half way!!! Louise and I decided to go to Konpirasan (mainly so I could buy soveigners for my family, which I didn't get by the way!!! Poop), and we decided to go all the way to the top!! So beyond the intial 5,000 steps, there are like 10,000 more after that!! So, after about dying from lack of oxygen, and collapsing from muscles giving out, we made it to the ever so unimpressive top!!! The middle area is 2 times cooler than the top!! All there is at the top is a little orange shrine, a book to sign saying you made it to the top, and a little better view than the middle area, but really not that well worth it!! There was this cool little tractor thing on the top, connected to track, that looked like it would collapse at any moment, but it did take a little Japanese man down to the bottom!! It was fun to spend the day with Louise and we even went out to eat at Yakiniku afterwards and we got to know each other really well!!! She is way awesome and an amazing person!! It was a good exercise day though and boy did I have sore calf muscles for 2 days straight!!!

Happy Birthday to me! Happy Birthday to me! Happy Birthday dear ME!! Happy Birthday to me!! Okay. Do you think I am a little excited about it being my birthday last Tuesday!!! I am now officially 26 years old! Wow!! I remember when my sisters were 26. It makes me feel soo old!! I did having fun in my classes aksing my students how old I am!! They just got used to saying I was 25. I love teasing them and having them looked confused when I tell them I am now 26!!! It's great!!! My roommate was the cutest!! She decorated the house for me and everything!! Then she talked to Meme (the best person ever to work at GEM School) and they got me some cake that night and invited everyone over!!! It sure made for a lot of fun!!! And of course who could forget the ever famous seiance picture!!! It was a great birthday!!!! (Do you think I could have used any more exclamation points in this blog. If you can count them and tell me how many there are you win a prize. I am not sure what yet, but it will be great!!!)!!!!

Okay, so just bowling for fun!!! Kristen and I ended up stuck in our house for 2 days straight due to schedules that left us with no car. So when we got one back on Saturday night, we were more than ready to get out of the house. We went out for Okonomiyaki again and then hit up the local bowling alley. They have great things there like an auto shoeser, where you put money in a slot and shoes come spitting out the bottom. The shoes are way cuter than in America being pink and purple and velcro. No strings attached. We had fun bowling next to a group of drunk guys that said "YEAH!!" everytime we did something good. I won with 111, but Kristen came in a close second with 67. We really enjoyed the cute pirate dude they had everywhere and what he would tell us when we did bad!! It was way fun and well worth it!!

Here are some more pictures of fun food that I get to eat here in Japan.

Okonomiayaki, my favorite japanese food, before it is cooked. It is a japanese style pancake, but so much better.Our okonomiyaki cooking.
The finished product!! It's oishi, as Callan (the son of another couple in our branch who teach English at another school), would say!!

And of course you can't forget the japanese version of American pizza complete with tuna fish and corn. Yumi!!

So here are the rest of the pictures that my last blog would not let me put on.

Me in the cool seat carriage they used to carry the royals in.
If you think I was turning Japanese before, what do you think of this picture?!
Beautiful Korakuen Garden!!! You can tell why it is one of the 3 most beautiful gardens in Japan!
And we can't forget my animal friend, the crane!!

Since Kristen and I have off both Monday and Saturday this week we decided we would head out to Okayama on the island of Honshu today. It is only a one hour train ride from Kanonji on the express train so it was easy getting there and back. There isn't a ton to see there, but what there is sooo Beautiful. We went to the castle there which is nicknamed the Crow castle because of the black weathering boards they put on the outside. It was very large and beautiful, but our favorite part was being able to dress up in the Kimonos they have there head dress and all. It was cool, but I have officially decided that black hair does not suit me. We even got to climb in the box that they used to carry the royals in . And I know all the boys in my family wish they had a Samurai sword as cool as this one.
The next stop was Korakuen Garden across the street from the castle. It is supposed to be one of the three most beautiful gardens in Japan and I can't disagree. It was very beautiful and quiet and there was actual grass (granted it was crab grass, but it was real grass). We enjoyed walking around and enjoying nature, and to satisfy my animal urge, the cranes. It was a fulfilling day.
And not to leave out one of the funnest parts of the day, but we ran into one of the elders that used to be in our branch a little while ago and who is a really good friend of ours. It was soo good to see him. we took Puri Curas together, but I forgot to take a picture with him. It was fun to talk for a little bit and catch up on news. We definitely miss him here.

This is a taste of things we get to see on a regular basis. This was a note posted outside our elevator for like a month. It had something to do with the 31st of May, but as we couldn't read it, it didn't help us much.

These are little stress balls they had in Shodoshima and which they have all over the place. We think it is funny becuase the words on top that you can't read are "hmmmm....that feels soo good." That's Japan for ya.

I have had the opportunity to find signs with at least 3 of my family members names on them. I can't find anything close to mine, but this drink was called Ambasa which is close enough to Amber-san (which is what some people call me), so I decided to take a photo op.

This isn't a normal occurance, but we did see some cool noodles outside drying at Shodoshima, so had to take the opportunity and take a pictures. Hungry anyone?!

Kristen took few days off to go to Okinawa, so I took the opportunity to hit up the beach. Beaches here are not like they are in the states. They are smaller and actually don't have very many attractions (stores, amusement parks ect.). It think this may be due to the fact that the whole country is an island and I live on one of the smaller ones. Maybe in bigger cities they have have things like that. But nonetheless, it was still enjoyable to spend a day there (or about 3 hours). I even got brave and went into the water, which was really warm. It felt good to be swimming again and the water is pretty clear so you can see the bottom if it is about 4 feet down, no more. The only problem is I forgot to take pictures. And I forgot the sunscreen.

Itai means ouch in Japanese and that is exactly how this feels. This, believe it or not, is 3 days later and looking 2 times better. I keep myself pretty stocked up on ib profen and finally bought some aloe vera. I think for the the 3 time in my life I got sun poisoing, as Monday night I was physically sick and couldn't even walk or move. I am a smart one. But if anyone tries to tell me that I didn't go, here is the proof. So, the moral of the story is, DON'T FORGET THE SUNBLOCK!!!