The Kind of Japan You don’t often See or Hear About

Hello people! Hope you’re all enjoying your summer (or winter, depending on where you are) because I sure am! 8) Too bad it’s almost over…

This month I went on a trip to Kamikouchi, which is an inland area of Japan surrounded by beautiful mountains.
Now, when most foreigners think of Japan, I’m sure that the things that come to their minds first are stuff like the glittering cityscape, advanced technology, anime, … and of course our high quality cars (right?). Not many would think of mountains and valleys covered in lush forests or of rivers that flow through them. Which is why I’d like to share with you today some of the photos I took in Kamikouchi.

A little info about this place: it is a piece of land about 1500m above sea level, surrounded by a mountain range. One has to travel many miles through winding mountain roads and narrow tunnels to reach it. What makes the trip even harder is the fact that regular cars are not allowed into the destination; you have to park at a certain point, and take a bus or taxicab the rest of the way. I don’t really recommend taking the bus (which I did) because the rough ride will make you carsick.
But let me say this: it is definitely worth the trouble! The scenery is so utterlessly gorgeous that you forget all about the bumps and discomforts of the journey on the bus… that is, until it’s time to go home, and you are forced to endure the ride all over again.
But, enough about this.. I will shut up now and post the photos. Enjoy!

River among trees.

River again…

Stumps of trees destroyed by a volcano eruption protrude from a pond.

I suppose you’ve got it by now that there’s a LOT of water in this area. 🙂

…and that’s it for now folks! Hope you liked the pics.
Mahalo for reading!

Maki

My Little Buddy….. “i-dog”

This is Jamie. What’s up everybody?
Today, I want to introduce my little buddy, a spider man “i dog”.
This is actually my second doggy dog, and my first buddy was just a plain and white version. (see pictures)

As you know, “i dog” is just an iPod player which you can carry anywhere you want.
The sound quality is not as good as other real speakers, but isn’t it just cute???

I’ve been using this white body for about 3 years, and I must say that HE IS NOT WHITE ANYMORE.
He was getting dirty and dirty as time goes, which is totally okay, but……

Anyway, what do you think about the spiderman version??

It’s been in my junk box for a while, but I just made him debut a few days ago on my little book shelf.
Welcome, Buddy!!

Amazing Nissan Patrol Hill Climb!

Today I’m just gonna keep it short and share with you a great video I found the other day on Youtube featuring a souped up Nissan Patrol (aka Nissan Safari). Check this out:

Too bad the car failed to get to the top, but the driver’s slip-second action near the end is absolutely amazing… it saved his car and most likely his neck too!
All I know is that this is some kind of crazy hill climb race event somewhere in Saudi Arabia… correct me if I’m wrong. There are several other vids of this insane event floating around on the internet, but this one is by far the most epic!

Mahalo(thank you) for reading. Have a nice rest-of-the-week!

Maki