Bandai-san: 磐梯山

As my friend Daniel so eloquently put it, "If the earth had breasts, they would be Bandai-san." Bandai-san is a voluptuous volcano in Fukushima Prefecture in northern Japan. Back in the day it erupted, rather, exploded. The northern side of its caldera burst out, like that one time I drank an entire bottle of prune juice even though I was already regular. The debris and liquid hot magma (that is probably my favorite phrase to say...liquid hot magma) clogged the rivers and streams, forming lakes and ponds copiously.

Some of the ponds are tinted cyan, saffron, or brick red from the minerals in the water. The colors were so bright at times that I felt I was walking through different divisions at the Crayola warehouse. In fact, I even pondered if chemicals were being added to heighten the effect. Honestly, you have no idea how much tourist revenue a couple colored ponds brings a community in Japan.

Well, anyway, we continued our hiking pilgrimage by making a weekend of Bandai-san. We camped near a lake along with the mosquito population equivalent of China. Enid played the role of martyr by wearing shorts.

With magnificent views surrounding us, Daniel and I bonded near the summit. You may remember Daniel from such hikes as Asama-yama Part 1, Cloud-grabber Mountain: A Survivor Story, and the lesser known Aka-dake: This Would be Really Gorgeous If There Weren't So Many Clouds. Sadly, Bandai-san was our last hike together. Right after this photo was taken, he fell 300 meters to his death. Well, in actuality, he didn't die. He is staying in Japan and I am leaving. So, save me a hike for when we see each other again Daniel, and some stories.

Greatest Job in the World

They pay me to do this!

Aren't they cute? The first time I did this with them I almost laughed, cried, and crapped my pants at the same time. System overload! I especially like watching the little boy on the left, the girls in the front (one of them never bends over), and the random boys that are too cool to partake but still storm right through the middle every now and then.

Finding Peace on an Active Volcano

There were moments in my life when I thought I was most definitely an extrovert. I would feel so alive and recharged when I was active with others. Then, I slowly but surely realized the importance of alone time. The flip-flopping began. Extroversion inverted to introversion. The prefix jury is still out on what 'version' I am. However, I have my own theory.

I am eco-verted. Nature is my sanctuary. Nothing makes me feel more alive. I don't know what it is. Chemicals are balanced. Perceptions are positive. Deadlines are forgotten. Celebrations are remembered. Whatever it is, it clicks.

Enid, Justin, and I hiked Mount Asama (click here for previous story about this mountain) last weekend. It was the best hike of my life. The rainy season took the weekend off and allowed blue skies the chance to wash blues away. We could see the snow-capped peaks of all the major mountain ranges in Japan, roughly 30,000 rice paddies, and were even able to take some photos without having powerlines in the background.

Life is good when you are on the edge of a volcano, you can see how far you've come, and you're in your environment, even with the occasional hallucinogenic huff and puff of volcanic exhaust.

America's Pastime...in Japan

Baseball is considered America's game, but per capita, Japan takes the cake in terms of baseball fanatics. A baseball game in Japan has the usual stuff you would see at a game in the states, except here you can also find organized cheering, an unusual seventh inning stretch routine, grown men openly crying over a regular season game, 800-yen beers, cheerleaders circa 1981, the sissiest looking mascots ever, and a lot of quasi-English baseball words: Fighto! Nice Pitchy! Curbu Baru! Ret's Go! Just watch this video illustrating the evolution of the seventh inning stretch routine. There is no "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" sung over on this side of the Pacific.

24 Beers and 1 Trophy

The 25th Annual Ueno Village Volleyball Tournament was held on Sunday. In all the different nooks and crannies of this tiny mountain village, there are about a half dozen neighborhoods filled with volleyball enthusiasts ranging in age from twenty-somethings to sexagenearians. Each neighborhood puts together their best team members to represent them on the court. I live in the neighborhood of Nippa (新羽) which loosely translated means 'new feather' and was a shoe-in for being on the team. Nippa cruised to two easy victories to make it to the champioship game versus the crowd favorite Katsuyama team. The first set went to Nippa quite handedly, then the second to Katsuyama. It all came down to the final set. Try to imagine an environment mixed with moments of deafening silence and then deafening roars. The scoreboard seesawed its way toward match point. Who would get yearlong bragging rights? Who would hoist the Ueno Cup? More importantly, who would be hoisting glasses full of complimentary beer at the champion's party?

The answer: Nippa

Down 19-20, we fended off match point. Then, I served out the match by winning the next three points. We felt like rock stars. The local TV station interviewed me, a humbling experience. I mumbled through my limited Japanese, "Last set...eh...very fun...eh...we worked hard...umm....this game was good. Arigatou."