Greetings from Japan! I am still alive...

[Danoz]

I haven't posted in some time, but I've been good and busy . Life in rural Japan is very different from anything I'm used to, but I've been getting along well here in the mountains (and still turn on Treks with some regularity ). Teaching English is a blast. I wanted to share some fun pictures I've taken so far!

Streets of Tokyo, one of the first nights in Japan last month for orientation before shipping out to the village.

Taken about 5 minutes from my cottage. This is a major river that runs through Wakayama prefecture.

Shot taken at one of the many temples I've visited in the last month. There's a lot of history in this area of Japan.

Local summer festival at a famous Temple. Very fun-- lots of dancing and singing and good food!

View of Wakayama Castle from the highest point.

I've seen more fireworks in one month than I have in all of my adult 4th of July's combined.

White stone palace... beautiful view from here.

Again, all is well! I'm enjoying this new stage of my life and happy to have moved on from Washington, D.C. (All photos taken with my new Nikon D90, if anybody asks).

How is everybody?

 

[Rincewiend]

Nice...

 

[iguana_tonante]

Happy you are doing fine, Danoz. The pictures are beautiful!

I've been interested in Japanese culture since I was a kid, and I've been wanting to visit Japan for a long time, but I've never found the time (and the money) to actually do that. Your pictures really reignite my interest!

My intention would be to visit Kyoto (for obvious reasons) and Nishinomiya in the Hyogo Prefecture, where the honbu dojo of my school is located. Shouldn't be not far from Wakayama, on the other side of the bay...

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Wow, congrats on getting to Japan. Have fun. Interestingly enough, my brother just landed in Japan this morning as well (he's studying in Hachioji). Keep us updated about how things are in Japan and how teaching is going

 

[Deranged Nasat]

Beautiful pictures. I'm glad you're enjoying yourself. It's always a pleasure to get yourself immersed in another country.

That water is so blue...

 

[Australis]

You should arrange a meet-up with Goji.

 

[Holdfast]

Looks like you're having a great time. Bit envious of you; I'd love to go back to Japan at some point. The culture is so interesting and different, and the scenery is gorgeous.

View of Wakayama Castle from the highest point.

For such a deep and fascinating culture, the Japanese do occasionally indulge in some serious Disneyfication of their past. This rebuild in what is so obviously concrete is a prime example. I mean, on one hand it's great they reconstruct some of their older (presumably destroyed at some stage) buildings so we can walk through them; on the other, it's so clearly a modern reconstruction that you wonder why they bothered.

 

[the 4th hanson bro]

This rebuild in what is so obviously concrete is a prime example. I mean, on one hand it's great they reconstruct some of their older (presumably destroyed at some stage) buildings so we can walk through them; on the other, it's so clearly a modern reconstruction that you wonder why they bothered.

I'm guessing it was destroyed during WWII and rebuilt sometime after.

Neat shots. Look forward to seeing more.

 

[Brent]

Those pics are beautiful, I really want to visit Japan some day, heck, spend some time there, like a year or something, one place I'm very interested in.

 

[RJDiogenes]

It's nice to hear everything is going so well for you, Danoz. You've got some beautiful pictures there. Keep 'em coming.

 

[An Officer]

THAT'S the view from your cottage? Whoa!

 

[Holdfast]

This rebuild in what is so obviously concrete is a prime example. I mean, on one hand it's great they reconstruct some of their older (presumably destroyed at some stage) buildings so we can walk through them; on the other, it's so clearly a modern reconstruction that you wonder why they bothered.

I'm guessing it was destroyed during WWII and rebuilt sometime after.

Sure, probably, but it still kind of feels wrong/pointless anyway. The magic of the place, the genius loci if you will, was in the original building, not the reconstruction. I can't emotionally connect with a reproduction in the same way as I might have been able to do with the original.

It's still striking, but it's now an artificial beauty with an air of glamour rather than authenticity. That's what I meant by Disney.

Anyway, this is all probably stuff for a different thread, and certainly doesn't take away from my envy at Danoz being able to enjoy Japan.

 

[Danoz]

This rebuild in what is so obviously concrete is a prime example. I mean, on one hand it's great they reconstruct some of their older (presumably destroyed at some stage) buildings so we can walk through them; on the other, it's so clearly a modern reconstruction that you wonder why they bothered.

I'm guessing it was destroyed during WWII and rebuilt sometime after.

Sure, probably, but it still kind of feels wrong/pointless anyway. The magic of the place, the genius loci if you will, was in the original building, not the reconstruction. I can't emotionally connect with a reproduction in the same way as I might have been able to do with the original.

It's still striking, but it's now an artificial beauty with an air of glamour rather than authenticity. That's what I meant by Disney.

Anyway, this is all probably stuff for a different thread, and certainly doesn't take away from my envy at Danoz being able to enjoy Japan.

Wakayama prefecture is filled with so many ancient temples that having this one be a largely reconstructed castle doesn't bother me as much as it may have when I was a kid. Today, the entire structure serves as an indoor museum and observation deck-- and it was remodeled out of concrete. Of course it doesn't have the same feeling, but considering it was blasted away in WWII I'm glad it remains a part of the landscape as a reproduction if only to let people remember it was there.

I dare say I'd want us to do the same thing if the Washington Monument or Statue of Liberty were somehow lost.

I think more to the point, Wakayama Castle is a good symbol and tourist attraction for the city. I think, more than anything, the recreation was just as much an economic decision as it was a cultural/historical one (I could be wrong).

 

[propita]

Please continue posting your experiences as you're there, or let us know if you have a blog. Your photos are amazing and it would be great to read about what you're doing while there. Even what you'd consider "boring" details. Especially what you'd consider the "boring" details, because they'd really show what your life is like there.