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Here are some pictures of Japan I took with a cell phone.
So email me:
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The cellphone used to take these pictures.
| Tōdai-ji & Nara-kōen - Nara 06.13.04 | ||||
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Tōdai-ji, a Buddhist temple, is the largest wooden building in the world. It also contains the largest bronze statue of Buddha in the world. Tōdai-ji is located in Nara Park (Narakōen), famous for its super-friendly deer.
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 Nara-kōen. |
 Mighty Tōdai-ji. |
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 One of the two Bodhisattva flanking Buddha. Finished in 1709. |
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 A huge, fearsome wooden statue guarding Tōdai-ji at the Nandaimon ("great southern gate"). |
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 Anyone who fits through this hole will achieve enlightenment. Kids like to play in it. |
 More kids playing. Of course I did it; all the Japanese people applauded when I came out, and I bowed in return. |
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 Charms to ward off a big Japanese fear: traffic accidents. |
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| Golden Week - Okayama and Ushimado 05.04 | ||||
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Golden Week is a week-long holiday in early May. Fern, Ronan, Sarah and I went to the small city of Okayama for one night, then to a small coastal town called Ushimado for two nights, staying in a little, rustic "international villa" on a hillside overlooking the water a few miles outside of town.
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 Mr. International Hipster, Esq. |
 Aboard the shinkansen (bullet train). |
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 In Korakōen garden, Okayama. |
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 I got my wish: more karaoke! Sarah, Ronan and Fern sing the Dandy Warhols. Hello Kitty watches passively. |
 View from our villa in Ushimado. |
 Yukataman surveys his kingdom! |
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 A peaceful, rainy shrine in Ushimado. |
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 Phony-baloney copies of Roman ruins in Japan. |
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| Cherry Blossoms at Ōsaka-jo - Ōsaka 04.02.04 | ||||
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There is about a 2-week window every spring when the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. Fern and I lucked out on one of our days off; at Ōsaka Castle ("jo") they were on full display.
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 Fern and I. |
 Ōsaka-jo across the moat. |
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 Gaijin and sunny pond. |
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| Miscellaneous Daily Life | ||||
 Composite view of my room looking out into the living room. |
 The door leading up to my apartment. |
 Fern from. |
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 Cinnamon Toast Crunch from Amie. |
 At Ōsaka Aquarium. |
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 Hiphop dancing in the karaoke lobby, 5am. |
 Adam waxes Stiglitzian as Sarah looks on. |
 Fern and I enjoy the sunshine. |
 My street. |
 Ronan from Ireland eyes my liter of beer and fish and chips. |
 Colorful flags in front of Ōsaka's sumo stadium. |
 Daniel from England celebrates his birthday. |
 Toby from Australia. |
 Giving Sarah a hard time. |
 Ronan and I take the train from Kyoto back to Ōsaka. It's 6:10 am; we're karaoked out. |
Back to my neighborhood at about 7am. |
 Two Japanese guys wandered into our karaoke booth one night. They sang so we let them stay. |
 Yellow Submarine meets garbage disposal. |
 Meet Gakuto, Cutest Kid in the World. |
 Gakuto's competition Takato. |
 After a kids' lesson. |
 Construction sites can be ugly, so they put walls in front of them with flowers. |
 Regan, Sarah and Ronan take pictures with their cell phones. |
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 Bothering Takato. |
 The cool round highway I biked up. |
 After getting rained on. |
 The shortest haircut I've ever had. |
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 Subway car. |
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 Abandoned bike on pedestrian walkway. |
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 Spot the gaijin! It says "America" under my picture. |
 Keepin' it real. |
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| Signs, Products and Other Weirdnesses | ||||
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This stuff never gets old to me! For much more, see www.engrish.com.
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 Sign in Nagai Park. Look closely at the numbering (all 1's). |
 Together at last. |
 Very typical sign. Often I have no idea what they mean. |
 This was in a bathroom of a restaurant. |
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 What am I gonna do with all this dust? |
 "Aged for a long time." |
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 T-shirt. "This fatigue, I can not wash it away." |
 T-shirt worn by some kid. |
 One of my shirts. |
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 "Chicken is hella yummy. Chicken da bomb. But I like Mickey D's". |
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Care Packages
I can always use any of the following:
What do you get out of it?
So, Professor, where do you send the booty?
But anyway, care package or not, at least email me and say hi!
[email protected] (web)
Jeremy
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