As we have already established, Dan loves coffee. So, one sunny weekend at the start of the glorious spring season in Japan, we took to Kokura to have a little coffee tour. We started out taking a 1 hour trek through suburbs, past factories, down back allies, to find coffee shop number one. It sat…
Tag: Yamaguchi
Akiyoshidi Winter Wonderland
To fight those January blues we have been trip planning. It is certain death for the savings, but for the life experience, totally worth it! Before we depart Yamaguchi Prefecture in July, we have decided to check out some of its hot tourist destinations. The first on the list…Akiyoshidi Plateau and Cave. We decided on…
J&J visit the Inaka!
At the end of August we were lucky enough to host our first oversees guests as James and Jade visited us from the U.K. On Thursday we took a day at the beach and relaxed the hell out of that. The sea was like bath water, but alas, it is quite the temptress! After a…
The Leavers Group Outdoor Shower
A wet and windy weekend in June saw the 2017 ALT leavers party commence. The party took us to a small island in Yamaguchi prefecture, where the rain lashed down, but it could not dampen our merriment! It was a chance to say farewell to ALTs heading off into the world and leaving this corner…
Our First Ikebana
As spring broke over our cold old apartment in Japan, we were fortunate enough to be invited to sample Ikebana. A colleague at work had heard through the rumour-mill that Dan and I were interested in taking part in this traditional Japanese activity. She very kindly arranged for us to have an afternoon lesson, enjoying both…
A Guide to a Date Weekend in Shimonoseki
This weekend was date weekend. We decided to spend some quality time together in our local area. It was time to get some of those `local, I’ll do it at some stage I promise’ things ticked off that list. The opener was a trip to the top of Hinomiyama, the local viewing mountain. We walked…
Ikebana
Ikebana is the traditional act of flower arranging in Japan. It is an art form conducted with discipline. Each design is about bringing nature, humanity, and blank space together as a collective piece. A teacher at one of my schools recently gave Dan and I tickets to visit an Ikebana display and experience it for…
Hinamatsuri
Hinamatsuri, or Girl’s Day, is celebrated in Japan on March 3rd each year. The day has origins in the activity of doll floating, where straw made dolls were floated out to sea taking bad spirits and bad luck with them. Doll floating had to be stopped as it ruined fishing for a good few days, and…
Mojiko, Party Boat and Another Sunset
Last weekend Dan and I had no big plans and initially lent towards a weekend under the Kutatsu table. We had been doing a little research into local cafes and things to do, and came across a place called Mojiko, which is just across the water on Kyushu. We pulled ourselves out of our warm…
Our Neighbourhood
A little peak into the beauty we are surrounded by on a daily basis. This is a short bike ride we took to our nearest gym, back past our apartment (you see a flash of me pointing at a Soviet style look alike block) and to the beach, about 100m away from our door. Pretty…