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My host family, the Satos
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Date: 07/05/1993
Views: 167
Taken at Matsushima, back L-to-R: Yuki (18 then), me, Okaasan ("Mother"); front, Miki (21 then), Otoosan ("Father").
07/05/1993
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Tanabata Festival, Sendai
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Date: 07/22/1993
Views: 162
The entire city of Sendai, 1.5 hours south of my town, is decorated with these paper "tanabata" in August. They represent the stars and the Milky Way. This festival is based on a beautiful Chinese folk tale about star-crossed love between a goddess and a mortal.
07/22/1993
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Ichinoseki City Summer Festival
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Date: 07/23/1993
Views: 180
Every city, village, and neighborhood in Japan has a festival at the end of summer. It usually involves much partying and lots of cool decorations everywhere the eye can see. If you can stand the heat, August is a great time to visit. That's me on the left, my host sister Yuki, and a neighboring JET, David.
07/23/1993
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Swan Shrine
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Date: 07/25/1993
Views: 160
This was taken at a small Shinto shrine in my town, Hanaizumi, on my first tour of the town.
07/25/1993
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Hanaizumi Town Summer Festival
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Date: 08/08/1993
Views: 156
The second Sunday in August, my town has a big festival. It starts with a parade of city officials wearing traditional clothing. Then, there's a mochi-making competition (sticky rice cakes). In the evening, everyone gathers in town wearing cotton kimimonos called "yukata." Amazingly, everyone dances in a big circle -- in unison! Take a closer look at the two "geisha"...
08/08/1993
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Morioka City Summer Festival
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Date: 08/15/1993
Views: 161
The Morioka Summer Festival is reknown throughout Japan for the drumming and unique dances. Here are some school children. What do you think those big red round things on their heads are...?
08/15/1993
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Nature Walk
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Date: 08/22/1993
Views: 167
Shortly after arriving in Hanaizumi, my host mother talked me into participating in an all-day, 22 km walk around the town. While my knees suffered terribly for it the whole next week, it was great fun.
08/22/1993
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Telling the story of Halloween
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Date: 10/31/1994
Views: 172
One of my favorite holidays is Halloween. To share some of that holiday spirit, I told a very animated tale of the origins of Halloween, with goblins, jack-o-lanterns, etc. The kids were frightened a little, but loved it.
10/31/1994
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Hanaizumi Stream
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Date: 04/22/1995
Views: 157
For Green Day in April 1995, my host mother again invited me on a nature walk around town, this time just 8 km. I'm not much of one for outdoor activities, but my town was so beautiful, I regret now that I didn't go on these walks more often.
04/22/1995
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Teaching "I like..."
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Date: 05/05/1995
Views: 184
Here is one of the only extant pictures of me with a goatee. I was teaching some 6th graders how to say "I like...", and they were doing a great job.
05/05/1995
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Adult English Class Halloween
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Date: 10/31/1995
Views: 155
Every year for Halloween, the dozen or so students in my adult English class dressed in great costumes, including their families, and we had a fantastic party.
10/31/1995
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Sumo Festival
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Date: 04/05/1996
Views: 148
There's a town a few hours to the east of Tokyo that's well known as a training area for sumo wrestlers. I was lucky to visit the site of an old castle on Boy's Day (represented by the carp wind socks). Not only was there a breath-taking view of the valley, but we got to see a fun sumo tournament for boys & girls, and eat lots of great festival junk food.
04/05/1996
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Hanaizumi Town Hall
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Date: 04/05/1996
Views: 157
This is the front view of the town hall. I think it's one of the best-landscaped I've seen with the Japanese garden and pond.
04/05/1996
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Paul and Me at Tanjo-ji Temple
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Date: 05/05/1996
Views: 156
One of my best friends, Paul, lived about 2 hours east of Tokyo. He was also working on the JET Program. One year for Golden Week, I visited him and toured the Boso Peninsula.Here we are at the Tanjo-ji Temple, an important Japanese Buddhist site.
05/05/1996
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Temple Grounds
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Date: 05/05/1996
Views: 164
The view from the top of the hill was gorgeous. Although the temple itself has been rebuilt several times, many of the stone artifacts in the left of the picture are original, dating back hundreds of years.
05/05/1996
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'Ojizo' - Memorials for the Unborn
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Date: 05/05/1996
Views: 151
At another temple in Kamakura, I saw thousands of these little figures. Women who've had miscarriages, abortions, or whose babies die early in infancy, buy these little statues to memorialize their children.
05/05/1996
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Temple Steps
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Date: 05/05/1996
Views: 155
Here are the scenic steps leading up the hill to the olded Buddhist temple in Kamakura, near Tokyo. Look closely to see the worn indentations of thousands of pilgrims' feet.
05/05/1996
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Capsule Hotel
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Date: 07/19/1996
Views: 160
Believe it or not, people pay money to spend the nite in one of these "capsules." Truthfully, it's the cheapest accomodation in Tokyo, so I always stayed at this one. There's a TV, climate controls, and an alarm clock in there! Cost: Approximately $35/night.
07/19/1996
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Emperor's Garden, I
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Date: 07/23/1996
Views: 178
Located near Tokyo Train Station in downtown Tokyo, the gardens outside the Emperor's Palace are open to the public. They're absolutely stunning.
07/23/1996
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Emperor's Garden, II
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Date: 07/23/1996
Views: 153
The gardens are a pleasant place to escape the hustle and bustle of the city. Next time you go to Tokyo, you definitely must stop by.
07/23/1996
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