Showing posts with label fireworks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fireworks. Show all posts

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Nagano makes me happy!

Yesterday I went to Lake Suwa to see a fireworks competition that was being held there. Absolutely amazing use of fireworks! I took pics but they of course don’t come out anything like you saw them. Right after they finished, it poured. And I mean it poured!!! The trains were backed up because of all the people and I was standing under my umbrella in a pool of water almost up to my knees, trying desperately to keep my bag dry which contained my only other clean clothes, not to mention my camera. It was one of those surreal moments where at first you are like “Is this really happening? This sucks,” and then it just becomes “Holy crap, this is awesome. *splash, splash*.” Needless to say I didn’t bring a second pair of shoes so soggy feet became the theme for that evening and the next day. The next day, however, was great. Erika drove us back to the Saku area but along the way she decided to take a detour and we ended up randomly going up into the mountains nearby. Crazy, windy roads and hairpin turns kept us wondering if we would make it down alive. Yet, the view from up above was amazing and we chanced upon a cosmos farm. Cosmos are these crazy flowers that grow almost everywhere around here and are really pretty. They come in several shades of pink and purple and white, which makes for an interesting display when you see them along the side of the road or in this case by the thousands in a field. Unfortunately it was raining the whole day but still saw many interesting things. No monkeys yet. Although, we did stop at a nice little vegetable stand where we bought crazy amounts of vegetables for practically nothing. Nothing like a day riding through the cosmos to make you wish that you could do that all day everyday.










Friday, August 15, 2008

Don't Go Chasin' Waterfalls...Um, Why Not?!

Today we all trekked to this amazing waterfall located about 20 minutes from my house by car. There were about 10 or so of us from the area and it turned out to be a nice day for a swim. Stopped for lunch at the grocery store and found out that Japanese potato salad is much better than the American style. The water was cold as ice but felt really nice once you dove in. The current around the falls was crazy strong but fun to swim in. The area reminded me of the waterfalls that I have seen in videos of Hawaii, which kind of makes sense considering Japan is a series of volcanic islands.

That evening we came back to Nakagomi a part of Saku along the Chikuma River where there was an amazing display of fireworks literally above everyone who sat at the river. They were to celebrate the return and sending off of everyone’s ancestors. A little different from our fireworks is that here they announce each set and there were about 100 sets of fireworks, some small, some huge displays. Each one has a sponsor and a message that is said before they go off. After a while, I stopped trying to listen and just looked up when I heard どうぞ (Douzo) which means “Here they are.” Ate some food that they had there, yakisoba (fried soba noodles) and a melon flavored shaved ice. I love how they have melon flavored everything because it is so おいしい (oishii) [tasty]. I saw one of the students from my school at the event. He was sitting nearby where we were sitting and was excited to see me there. I, likewise, was happy to see him too.

After the fireworks, which seemed to last forever and dazzled everyone, we walked to a local karaoke place and had several hours of sing out heart out action. Embarrassment was only the beginning. As people drank and got past the “I look like a complete fool” stage, the fun really began. Personally, I love the whole concept of karaoke and jump right up from the start and really get into it. Come to Japan and we shall do it together sometime!!! Promise, it is great fun!

This spot is a 20 minute drive from my house :)

P.S. - The water is really freakin' cold.

Self-explanatory...I hope.


Taking a break from looking at the pretty lights in the sky.
Joey & I rocking out to something amazing, I'm sure.
After about 15 songs and 3 drinks, the table looked really nice.