New Zealand - Part I

Just back from a lovely three-week stay in New Zealand, one of the most amazing experiences ever. We flew into Auckland, picked up our campervan, and headed down to Clevedon to start our trip with tea and coconut loaf at the home of Ian's friends Pete and Katherine (with that amazing beach right in front). Courtesy of Kiwi hospitality we stayed for lunch and took a walk on the beach, then headed to Hamilton for two nights. We actually stayed in the village of Cambridge, but our first game was in Hamilton: Wales vs. Samoa. The Samoans did their pre-game haka:

The Welsh did their equivalent:

And then the Welsh proceeded to win 17 to 10. There was even a rainbow after the game.

The next day we headed North to explore. We went to Bay of Islands, and spent a lovely morning in Russell where we had breakfast (including flat whites, the most glorious coffee ever created and apparently only available in New Zealand and Australia, sigh). Then it was on to Goat Island, which is not only a gorgeous marine reserve, but also the subject of a case study from the Ecology unit in the Biology text my team just published! We arrived in time for a bit of lunch in the campervan and a wander around the beach and the tide pools. Ian even found me a stingray in one of the deeper pools:

We stayed until dusk. It really is a magical spot.

Next on the list was Taupo, Craters of the Moon, and Rotorua. There's a lot of thermal activity, including mud pools, hot springs, and especially in Rotorua a lot of sulfur. Despite the incredible, amazing, fabulously yummy sweet potato chips (fries) we found in Rotorua, the Craters of the Moon was my favorite of the three.

Saburo is Amused

Saburo is Amused, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

Lest anyone think that I don't get any grief for taking photos of food all the time...I just received this from one of my Japan hosts. They laughed every time I got my camera out at the table, and you can see that Saburo-san thought it was pretty entertaining that I was so enamored with all the scrumptious food.

Sushi Night

Final Sushi Results, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

Spent a wonderful evening trying out some of the goodies I brought back from Japan in a sushi-making session with friends. The shiso furikake was a big hit. Throw in miso soup, good beer & sake, and an assortment of Japanese desserts and you have a very tasty feast.

The only disappointment for the evening was that the fish my brother shipped from Hawaii didn't make it. UPS has some explaining to do, and come Tuesday I'm guessing there's going to be a very smelly package on my porch...

Tokyo Gardens

Pine Tea House in Hama Rikyu Garden, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

We visited two gardens our last two days in Tokyo, Hama Rikyu and Shinjuku. I have a hard time picking a favorite of the two, but this was my favorite of the five different tea houses we saw. This is the pine tea house in Hama Rikyu Goen (garden), rebuilt from the original. It's a very simple tea house, without any ornamentation, no fancy roof, just a simple, beautiful pine building. We also went to the Imperial Hotel, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, and had tea at a very English style tea house in yet another garden across the way from the Hotel. A quick trip to the Tokyo National Museum rounded out Tuesday, and Wednesday after the Shinjuku garden and a quick, final shopping stop on our way to pick up our luggage, we were off to the airport. A lovely trip, absolutely jam packed with adventures and sights and stories and, of course, food. Perhaps next time I'll be able to be a bit more leisurely about it all.

Tsukiji Fish Market

Tuna for Auction at Tsukiji, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

Early, very early, Tuesday morning we headed to Tsukiji fish market to wait in line for a chance to see the fish auction. It was quite an experience. The floor is teeming with men checking all the frozen tuna that are laid out for them. They shine flashlights where the tails have been cut off, and hit the same spot with large hooks, I assume to test the freshness and quality of the fish. Then auctioneers come out to each lot, stand up on a crate and ring bell to signal the beginning of the auction. Everyone bows, and the auction begins. Takes under two minutes and is done. On to the next batch. It was quite fascinating to watch, but difficult to capture since everyone is moving so quickly.

Tokyo Day 1

Prayer Tablets at Meiji, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

We visited the Meiji Jingu, a Shinto shrine in the midst of Tokyo. There are over 170,000 trees planted in 1920 in honor of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. After that we headed to Shibuya for some shopping and general wandering (museums et al are closed on Mondays). Not a lot of pictures, but lots of fun.

Pottery, Sake, and a Train Ride

Three Grades of Sake, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

Sunday was our last day with our hosts, and started with a visit to the rooftop, open air onsen with a view of the misty hills of the Nikko area. After breakfast we headed to the Tochiji area for a pottery making lesson and lunch. Last event was, of course, a tour of a sake factory with tasting. Then a quick goodbye and we left our hosts and headed back to Tokyo for our last few days.

Nikko

Masao-san, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

Today we toured Nikko, home of the Rinnoji Temple, Toshugu shrine, Yakushi-do, and Taiyuin Temple. On the sacred stable (where the sacred horse does his two hours of service a day, i.e. hanging out in his stable where people visiting the shrine can see him) there are multiple carvings of monkeys, including the "hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil" monkeys derived from the three major principles of the Tendai sect (the Rinnoji Temple is a religous center of the Tendai sect). As a result, you can see these monkeys everywhere, including outside a restaurant near where our bus had pulled over for a stop. Masao-san, one of our primary hosts, was kind enough to pose for me whilst taking his smoke break.

We also went to Kegon Falls, 97m high and quite beautiful. That night we went to the onsen (baths) and then had a wonderful formal banquet in traditional Japanese style, including all of us wearing yakuta (robes) that we had donned after the onsen.

Teaching in Japan

Teaching in Japan, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

We've spent the last two days at the Gunma Kokusai Academy in Ohta, at a teaching conference. This morning I taught a two-hour lesson to 6-8th grade students on acids, bases, and serial dilution. The students are all volunteers who came on their summer vacation to learn more science. They were quiet, but wonderful to teach. All of them were more than willing to give "American style" lessons a try, and they gave very sweet feedback about how much fun they had and how much they learned. Tomorrow we're off to Nikko for sightseeing and cooler weather (and hopefully no more earthquakes!).

Japan Day 2

Making Rice Crackers, a photo by zostra on Flickr.

Several of our hosts took us around the Asakusa region of Tokyo today, before heading to Ota where we will spend several days. The first place they took us was the "cookware street" where all of the restaurant and cooking supply shops are. Heaven! I only wish I could transport the entire street back home. The street is called Kappabashi, after a mythical creature called a Kappa who used to swim in the river there (I guess until the river got paved over). He/she has a turtle's shell and a human head, although there are many different depictions of it that look wildly different. After that we went to the Senso-ji temple and surrounding buildings, then had soba for lunch. With the help of our hosts I was able to order cold soba with yam and wasabi leaf, which was somewhat bland, but tasty. We then headed to a small craft museum, went and picked up our luggage, and on the way to the train instead of the "American-style coffee break" that was originally planned they took us to the Kamiya bar, the oldest bar in Tokyo, where they ordered me a very tasty whiskey sour. The train ride to Ota took about an hour and a half. Ota seems to be a very typical town, but very, very hot and humid. Even more so than Tokyo. We had an amazing dinner, and the catered to my crazy dietary restrictions by plying me with three kinds of tofu with different sauces, various vegetables, rice soup with pickled ume (plums), great Japanese beer, and another sour (this one grapefruit). I slept well. Today's my first presentation to the teachers, fingers are crossed.