tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73529328209521719252024-03-05T20:50:57.730-08:00Oita TimesTwo Kiwi JETS living and learning (sometimes the hard way) what life is like in the depths of rural Kyushu, Japan.Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.comBlogger113125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-17021392907025746902010-11-12T19:30:00.000-08:002010-11-12T19:31:50.254-08:00Moving on...Just in case anyone pops in for a look we've started a new blog for our next trip, check it out and follow us around AFRICA!!!<br /><br />http://snapshotafrica.wordpress.com/<br /><br />CheersMegan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-78421172436383433262010-07-22T18:12:00.000-07:002010-07-23T23:46:49.307-07:00A hard days work!<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXhwzMVjRDm4UZd0JlnqUI3PHGIiCQnQipxhwxSegdP2tNNN0eEP33qasDLnhAi_1RuSpxgqENgmj-3ZMdzlmTcBRGy8Y4m7UFbZeKra0uhH_ooWAa92KdzqGCjcaMS_OILPb8hNUPVyc/s1600/distant+mtns.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXhwzMVjRDm4UZd0JlnqUI3PHGIiCQnQipxhwxSegdP2tNNN0eEP33qasDLnhAi_1RuSpxgqENgmj-3ZMdzlmTcBRGy8Y4m7UFbZeKra0uhH_ooWAa92KdzqGCjcaMS_OILPb8hNUPVyc/s320/distant+mtns.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357722927808242" border="0" /></a>The view of the Kuju mountains as you drive towards them<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />Two mountains were left on my 'to climb' list as of last weekend. W</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ith the rainy season over and the long hot sunny days of summer well in control I took advantage of the 3 day weekend and set off to the Aso-Kuju National park. My goal was to climb 2 mountains; Mimatayama and Taisen, both about 1750m.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6mkjw7MkKFG85UoWPYkVhWaah-UgT3i7RxMWW0jKAz7NZpzCi8KeC_Na9F0ZZPchuauXccQ5-ZAr5tw5kGBYX8vDXGbPAwdZ1Nd1IaSbqnqaudObU8XibvIom033yA-bnjCxxSTLukDZw/s1600/valley.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6mkjw7MkKFG85UoWPYkVhWaah-UgT3i7RxMWW0jKAz7NZpzCi8KeC_Na9F0ZZPchuauXccQ5-ZAr5tw5kGBYX8vDXGbPAwdZ1Nd1IaSbqnqaudObU8XibvIom033yA-bnjCxxSTLukDZw/s320/valley.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357722116220866" border="0" /></a></span>The Valley between the two peaks I climbed...green, green and more green!<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNCMrazpQeOLEKDraa-rVivSo3G79RhBj426KhGo2_1EwhjliZS4JyNw_UDG_Uj8iJ20PsO2ytHCR5_U_HudQ1vB0wxMmCkm8pGB0B14dRikdvKe6Jl4v-sP4iVBj6Z7rGQxa-joj0QC69/s1600/self+timer+shot.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNCMrazpQeOLEKDraa-rVivSo3G79RhBj426KhGo2_1EwhjliZS4JyNw_UDG_Uj8iJ20PsO2ytHCR5_U_HudQ1vB0wxMmCkm8pGB0B14dRikdvKe6Jl4v-sP4iVBj6Z7rGQxa-joj0QC69/s320/self+timer+shot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357712083778978" border="0" /></a></span>The solo self timer summit shot (Yufu dake in the background)<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />Up and away by 5.30am I was almost the only car on the road. Thick cloud and the dreadful feeling it would end up raining accompanied me for most of the 1 1/2h</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">r drive inland. Fortunately as I exited the forest onto the Kuju plateau I was greeted by cloudless blue sky and the towering peaks directly ahead! I had bitten off a lot on this trip as most people</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> would take two days to climb both these mountains. Leaving the car at 7am I could tell it was going to be a great day!<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp0fSrFcvx-AZlDdOFptuzIkx3OaJ0gFf66IhueEiAZ-klNl7xpVXgRokrdHTJs-I8R0sj-aISImpLAXnM7if_NG0CTI94WNzR0jwKes1xZZDGgzS2EO_0tY33Fu1pBloeP2-2IgOXH3xZ/s1600/valley+below+with+view+of+Taisen.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp0fSrFcvx-AZlDdOFptuzIkx3OaJ0gFf66IhueEiAZ-klNl7xpVXgRokrdHTJs-I8R0sj-aISImpLAXnM7if_NG0CTI94WNzR0jwKes1xZZDGgzS2EO_0tY33Fu1pBloeP2-2IgOXH3xZ/s320/valley+below+with+view+of+Taisen.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357494791590706" border="0" /></a></span></span>View from the summit of Mimatayama looking down over the valley and Taisenyama in the distance<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />The climb up to Mimatayama was stunning; 360 deg views, low cloud in some of the valleys,no one else around and the steaming vents of an active volcano as a perfect b</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ackdrop. The route off was a little more frustrating as I selected a closed and no longer maintained track. The bruises on my bum and scars on my legs show it was not as much fun as I had hoped. After </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">reaching the valley floor the only way to go was back up the other side as I started the climb for the summit of Taisen.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEKyCvBnT794TuFLGRVgb2LAmwnOZIRhhyphenhyphenNi71DA7cGQCnsqAgIEdiembcliIN03KUQpC4jNB1dHi32aw86ETUSPsUDNCsbLNrSb26v9rN1drMuRf4pT3SqqCcWAkEU1KIxcITwNnhuqSI/s1600/kuju+plateau.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEKyCvBnT794TuFLGRVgb2LAmwnOZIRhhyphenhyphenNi71DA7cGQCnsqAgIEdiembcliIN03KUQpC4jNB1dHi32aw86ETUSPsUDNCsbLNrSb26v9rN1drMuRf4pT3SqqCcWAkEU1KIxcITwNnhuqSI/s320/kuju+plateau.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357484679631458" border="0" /></a></span></span></span>More stunning views....<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />By now I was feeling a little tired as I'd hardly stopped to rest but with another mountain peak only an hour or so away I knew my reward would be a lengthy break at the top. However as I reached the tops some clouds rolled in and the view was gone! By now I'd finished all my water and thirst was setting in. It was 11.30am and I set a</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> goal of 1.30pm at the car and home by 3pm.<br /><br />This didn't leave me anytime to dwell on the task at hand so instead I proceeded to run down the track choosing speed over steady footing. On a number of occasions other Japanese climbers gasped at the young white man who was rocketing passed. After filling up my water bottle in the valley I had yet another climb up and out over a pass before descending back to the car.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinkovhg20ZCGRMNejUXhcvJimYAblCkgt3Ac0hy5-8YfoAYNiBpl6fSp7qCO2a2WVWFUDQp3Yfzc4RvUx61Q-v2CFyz1PBtdwEDUESjcRoCIspF7QwVZ-U1S9b7Jv9fm4F1_4teQN-v4FF/s1600/view.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinkovhg20ZCGRMNejUXhcvJimYAblCkgt3Ac0hy5-8YfoAYNiBpl6fSp7qCO2a2WVWFUDQp3Yfzc4RvUx61Q-v2CFyz1PBtdwEDUESjcRoCIspF7QwVZ-U1S9b7Jv9fm4F1_4teQN-v4FF/s320/view.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357480770487266" border="0" /></a></span></span>The cloud in the distanced is caused by the active volcano on Aso san<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />Amazingly I made it home bang on 3pm. A great day out climbing two mountains with a total of 1310m ascent!<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglw9cCrdP6i_oN9QvkswFxJ4xG4wQbqxzuA-kNlx38dI9Bok4qjNJyO13_Bt9Lh2Dp4tsoxgMddbwtIQsz3l6nV6onW5RGVrZCnHUoVQzBMO2BrK-Dx245oG3IMFXWZ07WUbAUCyMexYEO/s1600/view+of+Mimatayama.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglw9cCrdP6i_oN9QvkswFxJ4xG4wQbqxzuA-kNlx38dI9Bok4qjNJyO13_Bt9Lh2Dp4tsoxgMddbwtIQsz3l6nV6onW5RGVrZCnHUoVQzBMO2BrK-Dx245oG3IMFXWZ07WUbAUCyMexYEO/s320/view+of+Mimatayama.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357470017117394" border="0" /></a></span></span></span></span>Half way up Taisen looking back towards Mimatayama (right)<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span></span></span></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7p34gO7B006llCEJqm6xr1K31VUBwChr6Sm0zeobKxrHwFVbcnBHLhnhLyd2tLlQSvUXmx45369NtfFdaML-bsJKTWzepypW0cH1yMbO6LXvXa935JqdaFf59BToqH9MchWs7cuWWyq5/s1600/catepillar.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7p34gO7B006llCEJqm6xr1K31VUBwChr6Sm0zeobKxrHwFVbcnBHLhnhLyd2tLlQSvUXmx45369NtfFdaML-bsJKTWzepypW0cH1yMbO6LXvXa935JqdaFf59BToqH9MchWs7cuWWyq5/s320/catepillar.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497357462672815090" border="0" /></a></span></span></span></span>A little caterpillar I found, the longest break I took was photographing him!<br /></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-15409060114424173662010-07-16T19:21:00.000-07:002010-07-16T19:32:05.553-07:00You've got mail!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEishIBEpdg2XKRlwMceCH2dK2Q-7BXtBBYTSQBvdC4AfgYgvQZMZjVnF4rKSBkRsrtYPLC6apRN8XGwD9ZnG6q49WkKdHU01mgBC83Zymp8rnmR_xApcsf82PIjuzWE9VAcyZidZgwrulD5/s1600/kyoto+sensei+letter.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEishIBEpdg2XKRlwMceCH2dK2Q-7BXtBBYTSQBvdC4AfgYgvQZMZjVnF4rKSBkRsrtYPLC6apRN8XGwD9ZnG6q49WkKdHU01mgBC83Zymp8rnmR_xApcsf82PIjuzWE9VAcyZidZgwrulD5/s320/kyoto+sensei+letter.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5494696978099642018" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I had a nice surprise in the mail this week when out of the blue I received a letter in the mail from the old vice principal at my school who now teaches elsewhere.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">To Mr Nathan</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">You will be leaving soon.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">With the mere thought of it, I feel very sad.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Now I am full of a sad feeling.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I really regret losing you.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Good-bye is a sad thing to say, but I must.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">What dreams do you have in your heart now? What hopes do you have?</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">A life filled with hope is strong.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Never forget hope is the greatest weapon in the world.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Finally I will give you the message below.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Nothing is irredeemable in youth. Rather, the worst mistake you can make when young is to give up and not challenge yourself for fear of failure.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">There are only two ways to live. One is to end up defeated after complaining and blaming your surroundings. The other is to open the way by yourself with domitable spirit, no matter what circumstances befall you.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I hope you will contribute to the establishment of a humanistic world as a world citizen capable of shoulderly responsibility for the borderless era of the 21st century.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Good luck, and much happiness!!</span>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-29678594434874383572010-07-10T00:15:00.000-07:002010-07-10T00:31:22.988-07:00Swimming in the rain & Samurai sayonara (goodbye)<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">This is a combination of blogs I wrote a few weeks ago... they are a bit out of date now though but oh well. Meg has been keeping you all well updated on her school life so I figure it's my turn to add something.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaNFUucUsgSdAVImqweAwG2l6BwIm3iV1tMNWVLFTEqG4vVEcIrlb3O29fAE1qGiOqihocgXqaUTeunzNBWGYlyFaa-Des5Sow8YeQujAIDEr0SYiu4WNmLeKpPi18oUunuQNI_BaW5LAK/s1600/misty+mountains.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaNFUucUsgSdAVImqweAwG2l6BwIm3iV1tMNWVLFTEqG4vVEcIrlb3O29fAE1qGiOqihocgXqaUTeunzNBWGYlyFaa-Des5Sow8YeQujAIDEr0SYiu4WNmLeKpPi18oUunuQNI_BaW5LAK/s320/misty+mountains.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492176150593216258" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Tramping in the rainy season was always going to be a wet experience so in hindsight it may not have been the best decision. With a forecast of.....rain..... the </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">decision was made to go ahead with plans to climb Mt Okue. This mountain was at the top of my to d</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">o list as it's remote location and unique limestone features make it stand outa little from the standard volcano style mountains around this area. </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It felt more like tramping in NZ than Japan as the rain pelted our heads, the rivers were in full flood and theforest was full of the most amazing green colours. I guess the hot humid feeling was still uniqu</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ely Japanese!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRFaCPnSgDnWtJgdMJUW8EwPMWvD9_IlEhrBlood8fq1nPkZtXpbJYksFIV5zO21UeOm-vp_UMlPMRBftQaa9E7w54kC0S6U9105s2sTplKdl8OJdGisjvGNq-KVv0oDOh105TBE5QQpZ/s1600/no+way+over.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLRFaCPnSgDnWtJgdMJUW8EwPMWvD9_IlEhrBlood8fq1nPkZtXpbJYksFIV5zO21UeOm-vp_UMlPMRBftQaa9E7w54kC0S6U9105s2sTplKdl8OJdGisjvGNq-KVv0oDOh105TBE5QQpZ/s320/no+way+over.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492176147713146498" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">A scouting mission was established on Saturday to check out the river crossings. If these were impassable then our hopes of climbing Okueyama would be over. </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">After walking for an hour we reached the major river crossing and it was obvious to everyone the torrential rain had made it uncrossable! Another hour back to the cars and we returned like soak</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ed river rats. The only thing to do in this situation was to soak our bodies in an onsen.<br /></span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjbDziMHPTHQY1Cw-WXz8pBb5vwfEjFnE__58Oq11SNLb_p9xbJvuJtpif0fSET9fXfVpaOxKLtigUwRbLWV1YsEV8OYpM2Q6vNW2KfL-HrE6jgmuXqJexOHMp9Ne6DhhrhFOPyd0h0B9p/s1600/food+in+the+hut.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjbDziMHPTHQY1Cw-WXz8pBb5vwfEjFnE__58Oq11SNLb_p9xbJvuJtpif0fSET9fXfVpaOxKLtigUwRbLWV1YsEV8OYpM2Q6vNW2KfL-HrE6jgmuXqJexOHMp9Ne6DhhrhFOPyd0h0B9p/s320/food+in+the+hut.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492176135481039170" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">So I can't tick the Okueyama box but nevertheless it was an interesting weekend in the hills. </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /><br />On another note....</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />No one likes saying goodbye and I think it's sometimes harder when you know you'll never see the person again. Unfortunately we will have a lot of that over the next month or so as we slowly but surely move through the leaving process. Some goo</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">dbyes will obviously be harder than others; I'm certainly not looking forward to saying goodbye to my students, or to the Tomooka family and my tramping friends.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7VhIYuAd95PYmHZq5nLcITZeS-J3a4I_4OU9TMof6MMYTz3W5TVaMwRkngxzdMrIOegO634D0tU4Kw53v9M4ddvv4hLkQvYr_qFng5WgNclgrTNTI6WhVTybHGyH6hUrnOevBhVVpRzS/s1600/me.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY7VhIYuAd95PYmHZq5nLcITZeS-J3a4I_4OU9TMof6MMYTz3W5TVaMwRkngxzdMrIOegO634D0tU4Kw53v9M4ddvv4hLkQvYr_qFng5WgNclgrTNTI6WhVTybHGyH6hUrnOevBhVVpRzS/s320/me.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492176131879022866" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I've decided to make the process as simple as possible and not leave them all to the last week so on Monday night I ended my career as a samurai and had my final kendo class. Of course it ended up being the best one yet and made me want to go back next week! </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I was given the honor of fighting all the members and sitting with the sensei (teacher) at the end so I could give a wee speech in terrible Japanese. </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I won 3 of the fights and scored some points against the really good guys so I was pretty pleased with my effort. I hope they weren't going easy on me!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1DfgUNpg-qy50kwkKwY1B9B7h5Y8TL-mJzFVQYRMN1M9dqGSRSE0vwzvetFZSWLhN0Z5DVMgSw1zhKE56bVSsT6mFyV-ViV07xPH13pS9Qz08llvngXQhlxTsPsn4o7WaA7cP1fESv3CB/s1600/kendo+club.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1DfgUNpg-qy50kwkKwY1B9B7h5Y8TL-mJzFVQYRMN1M9dqGSRSE0vwzvetFZSWLhN0Z5DVMgSw1zhKE56bVSsT6mFyV-ViV07xPH13pS9Qz08llvngXQhlxTsPsn4o7WaA7cP1fESv3CB/s320/kendo+club.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5492176124125877186" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-59232454176102429392010-07-07T00:55:00.000-07:002010-07-07T01:01:47.852-07:00Art<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi45fp3z63B91SOlhWzZLIcOxLRmhZPxtkQqhnQO8n6dmw8eeNTAL3C-qNyC8qUfXeeJ3sVr86wYBJ5oHUOQZ1-aw3dfUg6cUylMzu9qnhkx_aF6ZDfjXcHjzATNLESc_uowc0iKANaNAKv/s1600/bamboo+art.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi45fp3z63B91SOlhWzZLIcOxLRmhZPxtkQqhnQO8n6dmw8eeNTAL3C-qNyC8qUfXeeJ3sVr86wYBJ5oHUOQZ1-aw3dfUg6cUylMzu9qnhkx_aF6ZDfjXcHjzATNLESc_uowc0iKANaNAKv/s320/bamboo+art.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491071093609429154" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">I'm always really taken aback at how good Japanese kids are at art!<br /><br />I can remember absolutely hating art class at school because I always felt mine was never as good as the rest but here all the kids just seem to have a natural ability when it comes to drawing or painting!<br /></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Here's a selection of paintings I have seen the prog</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">ress of from start to finish... this is of course the finished product but I could see the potential of how great each one was going to be from the minute they put pencil to paper!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9a36J2Jcprfqxa-JiWw69jZTqoUBbos4qRwjvIsWIzQdo5bgCqPH-8BJpqXnPxuTKYnzxMC2acOH9Ql6GUa70UwB5MXAC_k0H0e8Ky2egyvrYFLaaNvo8dwanMzXGl03HQrhhp8nYGPL/s1600/art+4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9a36J2Jcprfqxa-JiWw69jZTqoUBbos4qRwjvIsWIzQdo5bgCqPH-8BJpqXnPxuTKYnzxMC2acOH9Ql6GUa70UwB5MXAC_k0H0e8Ky2egyvrYFLaaNvo8dwanMzXGl03HQrhhp8nYGPL/s320/art+4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491071014272866370" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6DQUmyFo5DRtUgoTorLbRiXGo-UcZcqq1CEXBLqD9jpf8cyLobjBvlb1SllGy0B-GvtBW7EqpiBczkvPYWw9n1OnkzI5YwmATGVkpB4H-PNu8APNOnXq-bTgj34fFwSb6QCHY5cFM5qGj/s1600/art+5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6DQUmyFo5DRtUgoTorLbRiXGo-UcZcqq1CEXBLqD9jpf8cyLobjBvlb1SllGy0B-GvtBW7EqpiBczkvPYWw9n1OnkzI5YwmATGVkpB4H-PNu8APNOnXq-bTgj34fFwSb6QCHY5cFM5qGj/s320/art+5.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491071016405161010" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU1lM1_R9HeBntpk2rlzRyU1xJUST8LxKpEzNUP_kYwmv3TMtSeIQfCQXO_nDvMi1S3lB6zk8fvArh7fUJcPWEC5-5KJ2KcrOlyet0coQ5_w6i2kSJBRNifVMkvFo25yZlcVU75rcnk506/s1600/art+3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU1lM1_R9HeBntpk2rlzRyU1xJUST8LxKpEzNUP_kYwmv3TMtSeIQfCQXO_nDvMi1S3lB6zk8fvArh7fUJcPWEC5-5KJ2KcrOlyet0coQ5_w6i2kSJBRNifVMkvFo25yZlcVU75rcnk506/s320/art+3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491071003373290338" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvG_mVzzzQ3jvD5-IY38anwWtnY-SQHJxwXu3IL9nKkm99UG3-p8rgL64TDAcPqi7V8MR8E_fUCoYcjoMBmrNXbiW9hEmXNcbU0yWNxN8tRu_5tUHFHZASiBYO-bidENbpEi-9223qDjHT/s1600/art+2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvG_mVzzzQ3jvD5-IY38anwWtnY-SQHJxwXu3IL9nKkm99UG3-p8rgL64TDAcPqi7V8MR8E_fUCoYcjoMBmrNXbiW9hEmXNcbU0yWNxN8tRu_5tUHFHZASiBYO-bidENbpEi-9223qDjHT/s320/art+2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491070995078324338" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHl_V_tYl-f8eU_Dmu9Cns7iMzZop1piWzqtfrC2YBUBBUDt4Qm6c7NWUrZwhyphenhyphenZqn_NuLnrkVjD0owUyG-XJW2ByOArD0AYUqTjCgJYAHuNDJfVtSGHakZmTyV9wTdrqd29HUh6SF7EZo/s1600/art+1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqHl_V_tYl-f8eU_Dmu9Cns7iMzZop1piWzqtfrC2YBUBBUDt4Qm6c7NWUrZwhyphenhyphenZqn_NuLnrkVjD0owUyG-XJW2ByOArD0AYUqTjCgJYAHuNDJfVtSGHakZmTyV9wTdrqd29HUh6SF7EZo/s320/art+1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5491070990218743138" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-19168229237194582272010-07-04T05:07:00.000-07:002010-07-04T05:30:44.570-07:00Fun times with family<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMy04vd8C3JysoGmquQ05I_2IhT4-9qKxxyu7t6sXj0AbRsJ_nLIhD9s0hNpfgLtL1iutf2CaJkZ1fJrcOun9uWUyQSBwI5bxIW4O0VlrcppMCnLXJPZ488dFVOb6wtGH9Ct8HBAsc5Roh/s1600/meg+bowling.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 316px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMy04vd8C3JysoGmquQ05I_2IhT4-9qKxxyu7t6sXj0AbRsJ_nLIhD9s0hNpfgLtL1iutf2CaJkZ1fJrcOun9uWUyQSBwI5bxIW4O0VlrcppMCnLXJPZ488dFVOb6wtGH9Ct8HBAsc5Roh/s320/meg+bowling.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490026656175615234" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">If you thought bowling in New Zealand was cool... you've never been bowling in Japan! I seriously don't know why I was surprised but the shoes came out of a vending machine! I mean how wicked is that! It was double cool becuase we went with my brother Mike and his PARTNER Bec who are visiting as well as Jo, Tom and the kids...<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7fONbxZZMYTpHSVvt3jmIeWBXct5YAiqWyCI7RD0J-PLKqUhzsGxVrcxk-RVf3tNh2ic2xLR11rRub_uz-IsAoPQ_2eeb2IQLTd9s5hyphenhyphenMz3k6T5d_YngL2AxtJGekuycWoMPIlbGo_pse/s1600/nath+bowling.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 258px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7fONbxZZMYTpHSVvt3jmIeWBXct5YAiqWyCI7RD0J-PLKqUhzsGxVrcxk-RVf3tNh2ic2xLR11rRub_uz-IsAoPQ_2eeb2IQLTd9s5hyphenhyphenMz3k6T5d_YngL2AxtJGekuycWoMPIlbGo_pse/s320/nath+bowling.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490026642702601394" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br />Going bowling was actually the last in a long line of things we did with the 'gang' this weekend... we had a delicious meal out together on Saturday night (thanks Mike and Bec) followed by many a laughs as Nathan attempted to cut his own hair on a chair on the back lawn (thanks Bec for fixing it up) and then topped off with with a delicious birthday cake to celebrate Nathan and Tom's birthday (thanks Jo).<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbXOaPE3QNs0gEvgJAwnxSDVGbsZRH8a55CTV_Xlts3eJZI85O44aCbEcqh6KNqnzf_pZfDcZrilG6YUvX-6ZG6OX697mvrXgaIyxP9C0raOXMDoFinEpZqdligtMF89Dimy6S5-W9Ham0/s1600/scissors.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbXOaPE3QNs0gEvgJAwnxSDVGbsZRH8a55CTV_Xlts3eJZI85O44aCbEcqh6KNqnzf_pZfDcZrilG6YUvX-6ZG6OX697mvrXgaIyxP9C0raOXMDoFinEpZqdligtMF89Dimy6S5-W9Ham0/s320/scissors.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490026629291332722" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimR8keo58ov0UozL5vqA5P3mYRcnnNBD3Fvz5x0y6xU0SikK1b0YMaZvRt0FqW9yjNAMpkv_FuDZK6gF4P3_2kFsJjLX35Cy_tKZmx7BMEgDa9aUjHoDiHsNCmguY2YOirhwGMIBhiCV33/s1600/blowing+out+the+cake.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimR8keo58ov0UozL5vqA5P3mYRcnnNBD3Fvz5x0y6xU0SikK1b0YMaZvRt0FqW9yjNAMpkv_FuDZK6gF4P3_2kFsJjLX35Cy_tKZmx7BMEgDa9aUjHoDiHsNCmguY2YOirhwGMIBhiCV33/s320/blowing+out+the+cake.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490026605287613170" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYj6U_q9VeWkK-AaGsPbC85CCAfdIlvYXgcJ_P9bTnnt2ABekXnvW6KhoYp7uTDcpxieL-wTvoXVhLfKbB12N5_eGbGPLWwaGZIzB_qcoQ6EewXXY2_lCHPAbwXnNn9XhFamXnsJO15yTb/s1600/food.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYj6U_q9VeWkK-AaGsPbC85CCAfdIlvYXgcJ_P9bTnnt2ABekXnvW6KhoYp7uTDcpxieL-wTvoXVhLfKbB12N5_eGbGPLWwaGZIzB_qcoQ6EewXXY2_lCHPAbwXnNn9XhFamXnsJO15yTb/s320/food.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490026618597879266" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-54919148932696602842010-06-29T23:36:00.000-07:002010-06-29T23:52:41.905-07:00Let the goodbyes begin...<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">With just a little over two weeks to go before we finish up at school I said goodbye to the first of my nine schools today.</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /><br />With just 13 kids at this school I have had so many more opportunities to interact with this group of kids than I have had at any of my other schools and so saying goodbye was actually pretty hard. </span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">It was mighty strange at the end of each le</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">sson saying "see you" but having to leave off the "next time"... the kids still said it (bless them!)</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlS23eFvg99po0znf3a6r3Xce1jUv5jwPSsgYNumTl2Nr86dCBnxY2AqhaS5leNtCXmg4X4bYcyElVlO_jcGHeadzuJJ9rJYdzj3rqywdNohCmYV0V-pLt9AehqszSDVTSGKdghiUYUxYm/s1600/whole+school.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlS23eFvg99po0znf3a6r3Xce1jUv5jwPSsgYNumTl2Nr86dCBnxY2AqhaS5leNtCXmg4X4bYcyElVlO_jcGHeadzuJJ9rJYdzj3rqywdNohCmYV0V-pLt9AehqszSDVTSGKdghiUYUxYm/s320/whole+school.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488453992338644402" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The final photo with all 13 students at the school</span><br /><br /></div><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">.</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOctUO6N0BeaPIPF-U-RZOkNLRPHQLEFK8NLBypIbM1vB8_nAi8GRxCa43msBwUQoUgFydqgBpoghpcdpcargV_qwBaNRRU0CCSv4daQPF-fPCsAJGZ4m4RonN5VA-0GBgp_1cZPGAvB0_/s1600/1st.+2nd+and+3rd+grade.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOctUO6N0BeaPIPF-U-RZOkNLRPHQLEFK8NLBypIbM1vB8_nAi8GRxCa43msBwUQoUgFydqgBpoghpcdpcargV_qwBaNRRU0CCSv4daQPF-fPCsAJGZ4m4RonN5VA-0GBgp_1cZPGAvB0_/s320/1st.+2nd+and+3rd+grade.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488453999952914882" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders clutching the cards I made them<br /></span></div><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzGW24M_S55A2WOcrdvHUi1-_O3gr7_qNyfsEgD46UHyBs0VWnBcGIufdcqy9bEa_Mby_2MCyihkSCIdg7yVLu20kGP1_RvYTuUF-ex5ULj3WK0AT_FBvqNKCI-eSzqUAMdLR5Ff4S-i1J/s1600/school+lunch.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzGW24M_S55A2WOcrdvHUi1-_O3gr7_qNyfsEgD46UHyBs0VWnBcGIufdcqy9bEa_Mby_2MCyihkSCIdg7yVLu20kGP1_RvYTuUF-ex5ULj3WK0AT_FBvqNKCI-eSzqUAMdLR5Ff4S-i1J/s320/school+lunch.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488453987588020242" border="0" /></a>You have no idea how excited I was to finally be able to eat my entire school lunch... the kids at this school think I am the world's fussiest eater because school lunch was always particularly bad on the days I would visit this school!<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9hgiQHL9bisKU36V3UVW4B_7fRFOuzZqellyAY9cnllDO3zAiIbyW8ZMxF12TiEm47ByYff7fA6UCLJUWXkQVYAIaT_i-Hy1Y-0oYJmQD9-KIOqYsOewSaHfO5oSqGPRQJXVRYosarpPV/s1600/cucumber+girls.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9hgiQHL9bisKU36V3UVW4B_7fRFOuzZqellyAY9cnllDO3zAiIbyW8ZMxF12TiEm47ByYff7fA6UCLJUWXkQVYAIaT_i-Hy1Y-0oYJmQD9-KIOqYsOewSaHfO5oSqGPRQJXVRYosarpPV/s320/cucumber+girls.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488453978162500162" border="0" /></a>The two 2nd graders posing for a photo with their prized cucumbers and one tomato that they had grown as part of their science class.<br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwyWjrpwhAbqE_1WTrvo_-gNXVamRxckMRgKSEi1obEDCRzE6GVZa9cqUmimtsbEaWojr3-9352N8WFGNJbmxwQQMrVPrZvS9idbtYYRaW_2rUtdzCTQtYC8yatVSOborgMk8G0MIn4Ip1/s1600/presents.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwyWjrpwhAbqE_1WTrvo_-gNXVamRxckMRgKSEi1obEDCRzE6GVZa9cqUmimtsbEaWojr3-9352N8WFGNJbmxwQQMrVPrZvS9idbtYYRaW_2rUtdzCTQtYC8yatVSOborgMk8G0MIn4Ip1/s320/presents.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5488453973140612962" border="0" /></a>I felt chuffed but really bad when they gave me their cucumbers as a present... they also made me an origami frog!<br /></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-53088198812326879942010-06-24T02:21:00.000-07:002010-06-24T02:40:40.907-07:00We're back!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwesEeTu_0ns-l3szZzzYKlW4jE9Vkey5uXOS_4EiAtDdOqmgpDta6ic_EJN4l9Xs-bNzfDx65j5GzDyspA2mfyCiZcgyInkAT3kgnU2BwR5r9F_mT5ZTGJmpG-i2lhThvPWhOcScSpgMX/s1600/the+rows.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwesEeTu_0ns-l3szZzzYKlW4jE9Vkey5uXOS_4EiAtDdOqmgpDta6ic_EJN4l9Xs-bNzfDx65j5GzDyspA2mfyCiZcgyInkAT3kgnU2BwR5r9F_mT5ZTGJmpG-i2lhThvPWhOcScSpgMX/s320/the+rows.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486271087312868402" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It seems we have completley neglected our blog over the last month and have only managed a couple of entries!! I could blame it on the soccer world cup as th</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">at has taken up a lot of my non work time but in all honesty there just hasn't been much to write home about! June is the start of summer and it's already 30degrees everyday and as stick</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">y as</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> a marshmallow! The humidity only just lets up over night but by sun up it's back! Things are about to g</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">et much worse too. June is also the rainy season so it rains pretty much everyday, although the last two have been stunning! These things combined with the fact we are in mega save m</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ode has meant no extreme adventures. Time is winding do</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">wn very fast and we only have 4 week</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">s of classes left. Then 2 weeks sitting at our desks over summer holidays and then it's all over! A month of traveling after that and then we arrive back in th</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">e mighty ChCh on Aug 28th! Wow time flies!<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBuZhiZCf0oWrvzXezOVTs6ZvXe2qCevZ-bAWM8okWFawt-CYheirm5H4Lve_zZblXJ9Az9ZIwn6ZtrWVi2ZI8OWwjOs31UaysgrZBxpT71bvEmZukdDzseHwx3QGfdniOQEN49Hb_6Yp/s1600/a+lot+to+do%21.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBuZhiZCf0oWrvzXezOVTs6ZvXe2qCevZ-bAWM8okWFawt-CYheirm5H4Lve_zZblXJ9Az9ZIwn6ZtrWVi2ZI8OWwjOs31UaysgrZBxpT71bvEmZukdDzseHwx3QGfdniOQEN49Hb_6Yp/s320/a+lot+to+do%21.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486271105646070594" border="0" /></a><br />Some of the fields in Yamaga....lots of work!<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm9iQjfThl9bg-qj97B0WtxOBZK09UOierya6JMTzXHk_Kp6xqldhiQ5vfjSdmEk0hWfWqEP_Q2IrQZNywOqlpwLt_ItxJ0RwFsUH-DYTqs78Olbty-ITcfZ5AZRAF4_VKOEASYul6vhde/s1600/the+machine.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm9iQjfThl9bg-qj97B0WtxOBZK09UOierya6JMTzXHk_Kp6xqldhiQ5vfjSdmEk0hWfWqEP_Q2IrQZNywOqlpwLt_ItxJ0RwFsUH-DYTqs78Olbty-ITcfZ5AZRAF4_VKOEASYul6vhde/s320/the+machine.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486271077512067554" border="0" /></a><br />Jichan driving the planter and bachan in the background on her wee get-a-round scooter<br /></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Last weekend was a break from the norm and quite an exciting one at that - rice planting! Slowly but surely ever rice field in Japan will be filling up, most already comp</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">leted. We went to Jo's and checked out how it's all done.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCkRGwzOYGWOaHNmJNndl7J8aTUbd3Rw0dvZs8P5dKM68ZqJtK2ehyphenhyphenTdZIhs18ZfxDUGT4z6tVer824yCzKBySouw7ivgMqD8ZAacsAOAYkfVSdkeKke130JvY0SkGLTuH1KYfjRHX1wxj/s1600/amazing+work.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCkRGwzOYGWOaHNmJNndl7J8aTUbd3Rw0dvZs8P5dKM68ZqJtK2ehyphenhyphenTdZIhs18ZfxDUGT4z6tVer824yCzKBySouw7ivgMqD8ZAacsAOAYkfVSdkeKke130JvY0SkGLTuH1KYfjRHX1wxj/s320/amazing+work.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486270311966691922" border="0" /></a><br />The machine delicately placing a few roots into the mud - incredible.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlmttNGAqZVdX6HOOaBhsIQGZoogVJZSris24gNtM-cajrNc5o8Gb-mL0sWLpw1Amj6bwycL-5Zt7IZDO2bIo_XuIrwLzu3zU8IaYgclU9Qo_2Tj2rE5w7lZ0oAmSCcHRR7iLB-EvbDZT2/s1600/hard+at+work.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlmttNGAqZVdX6HOOaBhsIQGZoogVJZSris24gNtM-cajrNc5o8Gb-mL0sWLpw1Amj6bwycL-5Zt7IZDO2bIo_XuIrwLzu3zU8IaYgclU9Qo_2Tj2rE5w7lZ0oAmSCcHRR7iLB-EvbDZT2/s320/hard+at+work.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486270294288151218" border="0" /></a><br />Driving off into the sunset<br /></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJrcEwzGPz_67zMpgep4xSdAmbuFdpPzO8K2OcY92I7baO_6RIwp-VsdoWPVsSHZS1XPKyeNbkf9iChz9cSMhxUnFncHnsa7hyphenhyphenRvU2pjx3EOePEfyBcaXZDgJavVxBFOStbmDPFPTgrjtf/s1600/doing+burnouts.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJrcEwzGPz_67zMpgep4xSdAmbuFdpPzO8K2OcY92I7baO_6RIwp-VsdoWPVsSHZS1XPKyeNbkf9iChz9cSMhxUnFncHnsa7hyphenhyphenRvU2pjx3EOePEfyBcaXZDgJavVxBFOStbmDPFPTgrjtf/s320/doing+burnouts.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486270284213843938" border="0" /></a><br />Cos he's a guy<br /></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">I'd like to say I played a key role in the process but in all honesty I did virtually nothing and was problem more of a pain in bum than anything else! But when there is a photo opportunity I'm not far behind!</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">After flooding the fields for a few weeks (using an amazing system of diverting water from the creeks) the fields are covered in calf deep mud and prime for planting. A fantastic machine with thin metal wheels chugs through the mud and somehow delicately puts a few rice plants in the ground, all in perfect rows at a perfect distance apart! </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Where the machine can't do humans take over and plug the gaps. Watch out for the snails, frogs and snakes!<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiogKt17VRI5r_aeaWaTyVjU5HFhwHTX-JBfea6oq2tKEiDi2koV68SfjQXYmAby6kQGRmml1Ciaxkgs6K076AaN1nFToMw_OZ2mpHbeuh42brPVdj_43ynaE4sOw7m3yua-DvAZUWB4-7p/s1600/farmer+nath.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiogKt17VRI5r_aeaWaTyVjU5HFhwHTX-JBfea6oq2tKEiDi2koV68SfjQXYmAby6kQGRmml1Ciaxkgs6K076AaN1nFToMw_OZ2mpHbeuh42brPVdj_43ynaE4sOw7m3yua-DvAZUWB4-7p/s320/farmer+nath.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486270277444908066" border="0" /></a>Making more of a mess than anything else....this patch won't end up growing....sorry Tomooka family.<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />Back in the day it used to all be done by hand and apparently the whole community would turn up, plant the field, then move onto the next one, eventually doing everyone's! </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It was really cool to see how it works and another example of how hard the farmers here work.<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7dvfmF0NsgjvTxG_22C7Xq8ssU0A3b7G5um_ZJmRvvXzFgIhSzAEciKZHYdbzGmHd9wq8cRsGeuVRMEicZn3xcVUaZip4ZuAXQllEtDS113FE7mkmTkmt55aaIrhyphenhyphenaB905ZD102FBIhH2/s1600/a+bit+too+early%21.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7dvfmF0NsgjvTxG_22C7Xq8ssU0A3b7G5um_ZJmRvvXzFgIhSzAEciKZHYdbzGmHd9wq8cRsGeuVRMEicZn3xcVUaZip4ZuAXQllEtDS113FE7mkmTkmt55aaIrhyphenhyphenaB905ZD102FBIhH2/s320/a+bit+too+early%21.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486270272155266402" border="0" /></a>I couldn't wait until lunch<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-17829425695003031982010-06-09T03:27:00.000-07:002010-06-09T03:47:15.456-07:00ScHOol<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">School life is super exciting at the moment with my main class, who are easily my favorite group of students and have wonderful English, off to NZ on saturday for a 10 day school trip! Beppu is a sister city with Rotorua and my school is a sister school with Western Heights HS. I've been doing weekly presentations on NZ covering topics like; food, maori culture, sports, school life, Rotorua and Auckland. The students are buzzing with excitment and I can't wait for them to see NZ first hand! I hope they handle the drop in temperature...30deg to snow in a day...hmmmm.</span><br /><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Another thing I do at school is a WORLD ENGLISH BOARD. It's updated every month and features world news, local news, sports news, a country in focus section and a competetion. Each article is bilingual. I don't actually know if anyone ever looks at it but it gives me something to do on quieter days!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidjexBnpRqyytDs65f8S1FtoQXS31TtLr5FbF9Z6TLQP9bL0vK9-SJI-Hy_xTaQcQ-qB_123t6XVD0dIjV0P2txBnNqCY87MlCSfvfu2daHw_BCrvNPOWdkaMHtJmpOZG-eieB1JQ3KU8Q/s1600/world+english+board.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidjexBnpRqyytDs65f8S1FtoQXS31TtLr5FbF9Z6TLQP9bL0vK9-SJI-Hy_xTaQcQ-qB_123t6XVD0dIjV0P2txBnNqCY87MlCSfvfu2daHw_BCrvNPOWdkaMHtJmpOZG-eieB1JQ3KU8Q/s320/world+english+board.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480721113032842034" border="0" /> </a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">With the socccer world cup only days away (oh yea!!!) I've adapted it a little. Now I have a valid excuse to peruse the internet for scores!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIxphyphenhyphenh_jna5wTEkWFwQfrBXsn9HKtdjort4-KxA9IreWF8RR-H3EyIL9egj2OeaFsHrRPkbcywMZJxR14PTByL4aWMK_E7rbsRh42FoLBR9ZMtWvnJDsITnYwHSHLwzFGufR7F96zqr5h/s1600/soccer+board.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIxphyphenhyphenh_jna5wTEkWFwQfrBXsn9HKtdjort4-KxA9IreWF8RR-H3EyIL9egj2OeaFsHrRPkbcywMZJxR14PTByL4aWMK_E7rbsRh42FoLBR9ZMtWvnJDsITnYwHSHLwzFGufR7F96zqr5h/s320/soccer+board.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480721105707153442" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Our ESS club has also been busy making roast chicken! The ovens in the cooking room are a real novelty (can you believe I've only used an oven twice in a year!) Man I miss roast chicken!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mNEo_SsyywNINNKO5Ob25hiGkJ202Nbci_o5uAoz5k-NvOpeLVUpMX_J0Nj1AjCzJgWXQBjtoCmT-0y2auFUFybbhsKNMr05PJRs3Ws2HgRKEZpXitJEuYoUYQzi2VukqMIcrDH3svan/s1600/roast+chicken1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1mNEo_SsyywNINNKO5Ob25hiGkJ202Nbci_o5uAoz5k-NvOpeLVUpMX_J0Nj1AjCzJgWXQBjtoCmT-0y2auFUFybbhsKNMr05PJRs3Ws2HgRKEZpXitJEuYoUYQzi2VukqMIcrDH3svan/s320/roast+chicken1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480721093709477490" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcZ9OjgSuP8FWP8bSZVch2JG-g53pEnxSwC-xfW702xFkH50hYAYhaKAv6lrW4oE881cWg2S3w5xJsdirVPXP2sRPNigHg35P6tyDgOl9nlYOIibfK5jm9X0T1lm5sLEi2gaknLmhOp0Dt/s1600/roast+chicken2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcZ9OjgSuP8FWP8bSZVch2JG-g53pEnxSwC-xfW702xFkH50hYAYhaKAv6lrW4oE881cWg2S3w5xJsdirVPXP2sRPNigHg35P6tyDgOl9nlYOIibfK5jm9X0T1lm5sLEi2gaknLmhOp0Dt/s320/roast+chicken2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480721088423431554" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">No school day would be complete without something 'unusual' happening...Japanese culture always has some interesting twist around the corner. Here 3rd grade students present their "marching" to the whole school. A very interesting display in how group culture rules society. </span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_f1uuLJIZ0ahQE0h-jwfF1eagDNV9EO9c0-sYvWbPiqwTS-nO2VRv22JaohIB74jXSmOYrbqPPPDfEmetH8RirW_Qj-imD5l1XF_tH3Uhiqnq_O-T-2InMzFH0QA6bPNQ8dbp7pUkWiS/s1600/marching.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7_f1uuLJIZ0ahQE0h-jwfF1eagDNV9EO9c0-sYvWbPiqwTS-nO2VRv22JaohIB74jXSmOYrbqPPPDfEmetH8RirW_Qj-imD5l1XF_tH3Uhiqnq_O-T-2InMzFH0QA6bPNQ8dbp7pUkWiS/s320/marching.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480721078332412098" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-16639328091035409552010-06-03T03:13:00.000-07:002010-06-03T03:50:42.407-07:00Bits and pieces...<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Osashi buri! Long time no see!</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It's 7.15pm, all the windows and doors are open, we're wearing as little clothing as possible, it's still about 25deg and the great NZ soundtrack is cran</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">king out of our speakers. This all means one thing!.......SUMMER is here! Oh yea! 1st June offic</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">i</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ally signals the start of summer in Japan and the weather is certainly on cue. Lets hope the rainy season </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">(June) doesn't show up this year??!<br /></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Things have been a bit busy lately and time is whizzi</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ng by, we only have 6 weeks left of school and only 3 months until we are back in Aotearoa! The to do list is growing everyday but over the last few weeks we have ticked a few of those boxes. Here's a look at them:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Baseball! The only pro team anywhere near us is in Fuk</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">uoka so a few weeks back we visited the Yahoo dome to watch the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks play the Saitama Seibu Lions. We lost (badly) but it was heaps of fun! We're still cricket fans though!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Baw7nlh89GAC7MLrDz1eto-TxlhVGJK326EDqOMAXjHh08Rmw9vWzlnNY5W1C22RkaLVV_gvY5qEKSLfnzg5sdxndJ3tCV6IgnqlfghRcsrdH3TQNivghvEkGe-tTQMmKc6p2iFunedy/s1600/game+on%21.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Baw7nlh89GAC7MLrDz1eto-TxlhVGJK326EDqOMAXjHh08Rmw9vWzlnNY5W1C22RkaLVV_gvY5qEKSLfnzg5sdxndJ3tCV6IgnqlfghRcsrdH3TQNivghvEkGe-tTQMmKc6p2iFunedy/s320/game+on%21.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478497839317125362" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIYIBXQbGVV8q24O8lxukeWROaRLb4e_3gO9A3DqNDai9oDtK4gox-cwChtAC6me2p_etpyUD1exi4liVid1rXyFWlsA_-hN_R-K_P9in5FFpEs8eBG4wldmv2OeB7K64plOlNJGiICm2o/s1600/yah!.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIYIBXQbGVV8q24O8lxukeWROaRLb4e_3gO9A3DqNDai9oDtK4gox-cwChtAC6me2p_etpyUD1exi4liVid1rXyFWlsA_-hN_R-K_P9in5FFpEs8eBG4wldmv2OeB7K64plOlNJGiICm2o/s320/yah!.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478497150281107490" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />Summer time camping. Yes Rob we have used the t</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ent! A group of JETS headed into Miyazaki prefecture (area of the foot and mouth outbreak!!) for a weekend of fun in the sun! The water was super warm, the sun didn't stop shinning (megs sunburn to prove it), and many laughs teaching the Americans how to play cricket!<br /><br /></span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_wR7-u-NB-1bUE7s0LMPwR4B7IRNoxmRR1FRAeR_9liTIQORs0BwM39ZcsTjFArTHFhqvgyNGGlz9x23nZBoyHzPqXRMjQTvToWL9IMTF30UNz4dkGMBQtvsgfzYhy7c9nOwKizogqYKs/s1600/camping.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_wR7-u-NB-1bUE7s0LMPwR4B7IRNoxmRR1FRAeR_9liTIQORs0BwM39ZcsTjFArTHFhqvgyNGGlz9x23nZBoyHzPqXRMjQTvToWL9IMTF30UNz4dkGMBQtvsgfzYhy7c9nOwKizogqYKs/s320/camping.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478497142636655234" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhghdwRa7QrYfPuAGF3KavjAfnYkNK5nX8bHipY1NtfxYC5hpSi-jscvN_E6CcjxlihWxK_5JrMINFDzRasMbs8Y3coOItMKVizL0a2efgc_PZQNJQNMfTKmnTZGoh0gJKM3RGU2xkMkqOa/s1600/cricket!.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhghdwRa7QrYfPuAGF3KavjAfnYkNK5nX8bHipY1NtfxYC5hpSi-jscvN_E6CcjxlihWxK_5JrMINFDzRasMbs8Y3coOItMKVizL0a2efgc_PZQNJQNMfTKmnTZGoh0gJKM3RGU2xkMkqOa/s320/cricket!.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478497134576584466" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Mukade! These dangerous centipedes have a habit of finding their way into peoples homes during summer....we are no exception! NOT COOL. But easily killed with my trusty bamboo tramping stick hahahahaha.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQDCmAbuHq_aNvztPmB4V8BI21LMZDyGkLA592eWKouUFBfAXnaod9-P6kDTd2JNQp2yhve3-iWxjK5p1dqYkhIO6i79zoIHLrwZGRKm5jQCZaAXoS95QMJY73x60s89ARRhCaXcUSxYu/s1600/mukade.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguQDCmAbuHq_aNvztPmB4V8BI21LMZDyGkLA592eWKouUFBfAXnaod9-P6kDTd2JNQp2yhve3-iWxjK5p1dqYkhIO6i79zoIHLrwZGRKm5jQCZaAXoS95QMJY73x60s89ARRhCaXcUSxYu/s320/mukade.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478497128460223138" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Fireflies. How the hell they make their bums glow I don't know but man it's cool! Just imagine a lot of little tinkerbells everywhere. This is what a 5min exposure will get you.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ZZBSAud2CQEN00xKTrowQ4Uysv-C1BqAaxQaZb0UD34yqQzSgQF1wTCStYYXO5bb72MpkuBoOvgC5J3vYHpOXees3a4XVPVHon4Uq8W5fIS4AlAq9C6ZYw1_wQsh_9vHuFPD8dQNy6at/s1600/fireflies.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 201px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5ZZBSAud2CQEN00xKTrowQ4Uysv-C1BqAaxQaZb0UD34yqQzSgQF1wTCStYYXO5bb72MpkuBoOvgC5J3vYHpOXees3a4XVPVHon4Uq8W5fIS4AlAq9C6ZYw1_wQsh_9vHuFPD8dQNy6at/s320/fireflies.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5478497121352583058" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-39315535172925445482010-05-27T01:59:00.000-07:002010-05-27T02:12:05.386-07:00A (big) Cave<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEtN2z3otMC8Ydide8ci6aO91_H7O5PsyuqXRdhGd48rDpwcwuSB20sjM4dp4pIv4ClxWB1CkPxyjJJzbnz4YeDqkObCE-Soarg5hjw5Dz-5h8aViRcK-kiMQXzjNT3PUXV9yIlTettvrk/s1600/entrance.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEtN2z3otMC8Ydide8ci6aO91_H7O5PsyuqXRdhGd48rDpwcwuSB20sjM4dp4pIv4ClxWB1CkPxyjJJzbnz4YeDqkObCE-Soarg5hjw5Dz-5h8aViRcK-kiMQXzjNT3PUXV9yIlTettvrk/s320/entrance.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475874780616530578" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">What's a 4 letter word starting with a 'C'?? ...cove....coat.....cups....cats....cone...comb....</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">CAVE</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Good guess everyone! Clap your big hands.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">We went to a cave. </span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">It was big. It was dark. It was surprisingly warm.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It was raining outside. </span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">We couldn't camp so we stayed in a cabin.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It was in Yamaguchi prefecture.</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">It is called Akiyoshido.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It is the biggest cave in Japan. </span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">It was cool.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">The</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">end.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiu8bVRLCWrcxtapG5dT0GAwWegjxw_1KOiwXgAR-95uj8NrGGS4V74CDH__lTujsyEudk8uFjUSo1kmrd5KBV1M6Yg9cajftQGW1VKV9kyWw93f6lOScn9p6Al4qqpj5o7RUzB4tdaQSB/s1600/inside.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiu8bVRLCWrcxtapG5dT0GAwWegjxw_1KOiwXgAR-95uj8NrGGS4V74CDH__lTujsyEudk8uFjUSo1kmrd5KBV1M6Yg9cajftQGW1VKV9kyWw93f6lOScn9p6Al4qqpj5o7RUzB4tdaQSB/s320/inside.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475874770732535490" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIaLfTQdMFWjU4DkzF6Uxov0Mb_Ye2ZnxES2ykrTsExCEZ_VygjY32iiUvxEA31dhSCmQtllzi3oBlRBsgLSdEGZ0AUI4JkEkhHkm_quj9XPkuzz4iiB6_Ig7mKmZ8WcSajxyB5QoyL0dt/s1600/puddles.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIaLfTQdMFWjU4DkzF6Uxov0Mb_Ye2ZnxES2ykrTsExCEZ_VygjY32iiUvxEA31dhSCmQtllzi3oBlRBsgLSdEGZ0AUI4JkEkhHkm_quj9XPkuzz4iiB6_Ig7mKmZ8WcSajxyB5QoyL0dt/s320/puddles.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5475874765247508178" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-47509817860229344262010-05-23T00:51:00.000-07:002010-05-23T01:26:20.981-07:00The last of the sightseeing....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-I87eN_4YrdoCm-rw_nZzAweqZcaCuZwSmUMZq7N8FsN7d4QnS22Eaw5pvlE35zy1ddFim9aNRnDCJNaEk2v8fcLBdBJSzlopoc2VZCAnIrcI73DkLTxdFIp7ZSR21ldQSbQAFWc_F5qS/s1600/a+better+temple+shot.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-I87eN_4YrdoCm-rw_nZzAweqZcaCuZwSmUMZq7N8FsN7d4QnS22Eaw5pvlE35zy1ddFim9aNRnDCJNaEk2v8fcLBdBJSzlopoc2VZCAnIrcI73DkLTxdFIp7ZSR21ldQSbQAFWc_F5qS/s320/a+better+temple+shot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377886048128482" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br />The Temple of Heaven park was the kind of place where people watchers are in heaven (hehehehe). Picture a very large park covered in trees, concrete paths, open terraces and several temples. Now think of 100's people going about their normal daily lives Chinese style.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Sitting on a park bench we could see groups of people dancing, playing diablo, singing, playing music, Chinese hacky sack, Chinese chess, checkers, tai chi, acrobatics and heaps of other games.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh85hZa_3gDhv7wgc5bgkSaY9s5IRHCbssEHMGDecJIXIFDz_4P1lAMbXJHQ1N4gT9pkBQGyhpXu0unXd6raJi9gqC903YFKyZ05uBCY1xdHX_cAedZHvuMHLIz8WiNLWOQInB6bznSo3Ox/s1600/activities.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh85hZa_3gDhv7wgc5bgkSaY9s5IRHCbssEHMGDecJIXIFDz_4P1lAMbXJHQ1N4gT9pkBQGyhpXu0unXd6raJi9gqC903YFKyZ05uBCY1xdHX_cAedZHvuMHLIz8WiNLWOQInB6bznSo3Ox/s320/activities.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377881288939570" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It was a true feast for the eyes and a great insight into how locals relax and unwind.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">The atmosphere was electric and made you want to stick around all day just people watching! The temple itself was incredible and the whole experience easily outdid the Forbidden city and Tianamen square. </span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgKYej52tq-ZeOP6xW9_kzrzt69JSCZoL9_yociaF99-nO4XnnmPEPQ33ldY-6pc-avseBJ8AirLpoKKOg6FzNvXinm1Q37EY8hm1un8GsgMfb4nOPYACb0tTpjlRK2VH1UMlVInjwCJy_/s1600/the+emperess.jpg"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dy0Gx-dF9AFAio9ceNhYaf8iUyNS_WJ9JeO2EAIusUOCb3jLUjgD91iyx2UZ43zRE4TuGpG-8fBgf7DC-SzDQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></a><br /><br />Here's a sample of some of the cool stuff going on<br /><br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">The Summer Palace was also super cool, even on a super hot day. This was the place the emperor used to go to have a 'holiday'. It's actually more of a lake than palace or park as three quarters of it is covered in water. The palace section itself was way better than the Forbidden City and again it just had that atmosphere that adds to an occasion.<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3lj8QlgO9f-iMPy2jAbvH8tu3lXkJtwciJnw4gTKPei04oxRSk7UExge7mznM-x6XbTJodOEWDbr1f-Qr9LrqC2WpWDvbZyVWlHK2Xwh610INtPRElYk5yvyWmRBhlX0au1JcFnu2B0es/s1600/summer+palace.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3lj8QlgO9f-iMPy2jAbvH8tu3lXkJtwciJnw4gTKPei04oxRSk7UExge7mznM-x6XbTJodOEWDbr1f-Qr9LrqC2WpWDvbZyVWlHK2Xwh610INtPRElYk5yvyWmRBhlX0au1JcFnu2B0es/s320/summer+palace.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377875977953266" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnBqhd9yxJ9fb-H_RLAvPmF0WiLiRO2aOsyvSq8GQG4wkJyTAkpmiysT6YKsgxcaC4m5oGCIxEJkfJPv3GjVEMtDFx2VXulIrR7De96gmXLKoq05KAV4EDBXp3U8ujOtNK-CEEIXsG-Zim/s1600/panda+view.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnBqhd9yxJ9fb-H_RLAvPmF0WiLiRO2aOsyvSq8GQG4wkJyTAkpmiysT6YKsgxcaC4m5oGCIxEJkfJPv3GjVEMtDFx2VXulIrR7De96gmXLKoq05KAV4EDBXp3U8ujOtNK-CEEIXsG-Zim/s320/panda+view.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377586018660866" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCF7unDSI71p5m8HGE9zyTmA0FQebIjjotHZM-4veQ_ffN2TaaP0BQsdRW6zYC2t9TIExXwq5Pprm8zXztVlr32hOlSLSH2pqvmViA0oC3xqKKk_bkidUdNO8UTzosGcbH-CBnie6OG5Cl/s1600/panda+and+a+temple.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCF7unDSI71p5m8HGE9zyTmA0FQebIjjotHZM-4veQ_ffN2TaaP0BQsdRW6zYC2t9TIExXwq5Pprm8zXztVlr32hOlSLSH2pqvmViA0oC3xqKKk_bkidUdNO8UTzosGcbH-CBnie6OG5Cl/s320/panda+and+a+temple.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377576527787986" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHCzLsw_qUiTPCtSpLpxJ558in2CIpHDyrxpWPNunhcVuYz5QBsh1p86H5d0wLkHWtS7y5hb94EErET4FGe9UoYGBOIqrBuVUIovHfQUGySyUazF9rAPcBwM83e17vYoN2js2B7Rm3lQ1A/s1600/corridor.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHCzLsw_qUiTPCtSpLpxJ558in2CIpHDyrxpWPNunhcVuYz5QBsh1p86H5d0wLkHWtS7y5hb94EErET4FGe9UoYGBOIqrBuVUIovHfQUGySyUazF9rAPcBwM83e17vYoN2js2B7Rm3lQ1A/s320/corridor.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377571963272338" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35VwuVi-JL5mIa9kVYrSk8n3SKOAYpUYFiFULDRYDI0JRFx48fOKS4457UnHqRYVkIY93mQqFX0yAZ1O29FsPB5X27VSc9Zm3kotuvMebc7_gmPYDKNyImkMb1AIXfrkuw1HxGKjeUXgK/s1600/the+view+of+lake.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh35VwuVi-JL5mIa9kVYrSk8n3SKOAYpUYFiFULDRYDI0JRFx48fOKS4457UnHqRYVkIY93mQqFX0yAZ1O29FsPB5X27VSc9Zm3kotuvMebc7_gmPYDKNyImkMb1AIXfrkuw1HxGKjeUXgK/s320/the+view+of+lake.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377562655028306" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgKYej52tq-ZeOP6xW9_kzrzt69JSCZoL9_yociaF99-nO4XnnmPEPQ33ldY-6pc-avseBJ8AirLpoKKOg6FzNvXinm1Q37EY8hm1un8GsgMfb4nOPYACb0tTpjlRK2VH1UMlVInjwCJy_/s1600/the+emperess.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgKYej52tq-ZeOP6xW9_kzrzt69JSCZoL9_yociaF99-nO4XnnmPEPQ33ldY-6pc-avseBJ8AirLpoKKOg6FzNvXinm1Q37EY8hm1un8GsgMfb4nOPYACb0tTpjlRK2VH1UMlVInjwCJy_/s320/the+emperess.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5474377558269009058" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-5284969909888430622010-05-21T00:29:00.000-07:002010-05-21T01:01:48.432-07:00Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">A trip to Beijing would not be complete without a visit to some of it's world famous temples and parks.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Unfortunately our time in the capital coincided with the 'golden week' holiday period, the 2nd biggest holiday in China behind their New Years. This meant crowds, queuing and the inevitable wait to take a step forward.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Not to be put off by this we embraced our Chinese side and ventured out with the crowds. </span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /><br />Top on our list was the Forbidden City and Tiananmen square. The Forbidden City was the home to China's emperors and their families for thousands of years. It got its name because it was off limits to commoners for over 500years and was literally a city inside a city.</span> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Today it is probab</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">ly one of china's top 3 attractions and EVERYONE on holiday went there at the exact time we did. We thought Hong Kong and Tokyo were crowded but they were nothing compared to this!</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">It was probably a combination of the huge crowds, intense heat, slow moving mobs of people and the gross amount of rubbish that left us feeling a little bit disappointed. Overall it was an impressive place but it certainly didn't live up to our expectations. </span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXV5uHEv0poFUnPTdt7IFFO-iEeqpQ28to0V0XkLb_hvl0WIWDKXLPulQXVNESK9ngdNkLkCwoWirQkU40UIC82-wRwtSUyOuIb6kMC9salUP6if05J022P9C5axmj4T67R2HJjYOtLZdi/s1600/angry+guard.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXV5uHEv0poFUnPTdt7IFFO-iEeqpQ28to0V0XkLb_hvl0WIWDKXLPulQXVNESK9ngdNkLkCwoWirQkU40UIC82-wRwtSUyOuIb6kMC9salUP6if05J022P9C5axmj4T67R2HJjYOtLZdi/s320/angry+guard.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473627360870204274" border="0" /></a>Chairman Mao would be proud of this mean looking security guard. I think it was illegal to take his pic but I was pretty sneaky about it.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaJ8lZlQRLlVLWzr8ofRAFgfI_Z5pdH-QG-G9NOUADp8mUQ2qrN1l9OvfQ_FVfrrlN0yF7u2gA99coUuG2T1Y3dQ7AOxZrGCee5gk1XBk46wI-wZgQ62fTvFILV_zg7ho6RDsEggGVLQaP/s1600/a+palace.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaJ8lZlQRLlVLWzr8ofRAFgfI_Z5pdH-QG-G9NOUADp8mUQ2qrN1l9OvfQ_FVfrrlN0yF7u2gA99coUuG2T1Y3dQ7AOxZrGCee5gk1XBk46wI-wZgQ62fTvFILV_zg7ho6RDsEggGVLQaP/s320/a+palace.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473627355686990114" border="0" /></a>Inside the Forbidden City<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT9XWr5MfQ-_Qehvpolqu-NSj03lCoqnKQIYj0l3-zCMjHAnzmr3fcdnmscOyl41AgU7oNUcNwLdk1QIn9IzDIq8XSYCsDHkNvO3rST4gAVQEOCWHTJWxWoDZKj99DsRumsCZrti3sk85C/s1600/alleyway.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT9XWr5MfQ-_Qehvpolqu-NSj03lCoqnKQIYj0l3-zCMjHAnzmr3fcdnmscOyl41AgU7oNUcNwLdk1QIn9IzDIq8XSYCsDHkNvO3rST4gAVQEOCWHTJWxWoDZKj99DsRumsCZrti3sk85C/s320/alleyway.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473627346212725218" border="0" /></a>We got lost in these alleyway/mazes<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpytHGTmRABMyhfc1PxCXFQERm9-iCRukMf8lSD0kBgQlCAMrIy3cDENS0VoOJ8CW_Sp3Klsgt0iZRCLy_N5ZLuLcAT9Yoi9Fgrbae3aHZJmei7GRtUcUpaEkN6teZDZEOnhidiTBR_Q8C/s1600/golden+artwork.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpytHGTmRABMyhfc1PxCXFQERm9-iCRukMf8lSD0kBgQlCAMrIy3cDENS0VoOJ8CW_Sp3Klsgt0iZRCLy_N5ZLuLcAT9Yoi9Fgrbae3aHZJmei7GRtUcUpaEkN6teZDZEOnhidiTBR_Q8C/s320/golden+artwork.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473627343666836338" border="0" /></a>Take my hat off to the people who designed it and built it..impressive!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCFOH0PEMG-T1S6fsPKUIxkYAkYI0lD92bLH8xcIny95SCgWZr6nvWtfgS0_zBwBznY5tAWeM-YpetwIL__Ju3T1U8Hm84XGeAmUnGQ0DNRw8LLF_4ulwsM-Z2aGajp1SWWFlgm2nG8R7/s1600/inside.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCFOH0PEMG-T1S6fsPKUIxkYAkYI0lD92bLH8xcIny95SCgWZr6nvWtfgS0_zBwBznY5tAWeM-YpetwIL__Ju3T1U8Hm84XGeAmUnGQ0DNRw8LLF_4ulwsM-Z2aGajp1SWWFlgm2nG8R7/s320/inside.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473626923840713202" border="0" /></a>Swim? The whole City actually has a HUGE moat around the outside of it. This is just a stagnant stream.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqRBYY-lIxS9jKZ4OQyB18yybRGk3n4rKbGde2vEFkJkXA9T5xgUyrp8YAYIL_p-nscyaB48zlkV5TfFwLgt4acGSqLPsmwv2C9H5ugs8VXr4WcXOl7aBd2y5jTuwLSdWjwMcsCiW2GQT/s1600/Where+is+Meg.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMqRBYY-lIxS9jKZ4OQyB18yybRGk3n4rKbGde2vEFkJkXA9T5xgUyrp8YAYIL_p-nscyaB48zlkV5TfFwLgt4acGSqLPsmwv2C9H5ugs8VXr4WcXOl7aBd2y5jTuwLSdWjwMcsCiW2GQT/s320/Where+is+Meg.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473626920225375106" border="0" /></a>Where's Megan? (Note; she is not wearing red and white stripes). Japanese people would have 2 neat and respectable lines with people controlling the flow. Chinese just push like a rugby scrum and hope for the best.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1w1ZGQuJ-y-sYoRWOn0_4pj8GN_O_ehGCOgTmxXdN2b5zrkbNK7HRFct3w62f2D_ZpYc6sGfJztAzV1L2mcItwBjbuexAjHrXzNtnX1QO3raPDFzkpucSg1few4RamKf7sbmU6nJ19IEE/s1600/roof+top.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1w1ZGQuJ-y-sYoRWOn0_4pj8GN_O_ehGCOgTmxXdN2b5zrkbNK7HRFct3w62f2D_ZpYc6sGfJztAzV1L2mcItwBjbuexAjHrXzNtnX1QO3raPDFzkpucSg1few4RamKf7sbmU6nJ19IEE/s320/roof+top.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473626909719509122" border="0" /></a>Roof tops. Can you spot the Ninja Assassin?<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusn9J4D1so2oqOMSws4fODJmsrQu2kkBxOMMT_k69vdbOW9BvnfKIwMrjtX8ND4zUBYDtbokG3i0iY7JafHcUKYw9yn0j4hgvRfB94FgglnGN14-mG8brv5xKNat-2uYxcNHde0I2VV_P/s1600/us+and+view.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiusn9J4D1so2oqOMSws4fODJmsrQu2kkBxOMMT_k69vdbOW9BvnfKIwMrjtX8ND4zUBYDtbokG3i0iY7JafHcUKYw9yn0j4hgvRfB94FgglnGN14-mG8brv5xKNat-2uYxcNHde0I2VV_P/s320/us+and+view.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473626905327010434" border="0" /></a>Posing it up. And no we are not wearing matching clothes!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjuMmeBDibxiKqo3GICmIY4wLQ66_B56cnYd4qhxU2c5cpTPZAjTH4HZK8uc2XDVusA57sfem36ApVSPOyMOkQZ61R5fyJYxv7fwMcsr_IzrwqLbE7sqabFZH5YMO8Zs7pqN2z2ph4zdF4/s1600/view+of+city.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjuMmeBDibxiKqo3GICmIY4wLQ66_B56cnYd4qhxU2c5cpTPZAjTH4HZK8uc2XDVusA57sfem36ApVSPOyMOkQZ61R5fyJYxv7fwMcsr_IzrwqLbE7sqabFZH5YMO8Zs7pqN2z2ph4zdF4/s320/view+of+city.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473626896466042818" border="0" /></a>Spectacular view from the top of a hill in the park across the road. Actually the best part of the whole experience. The place is just to big to take it in. This spot does the trick though!<br /></div><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-43654970148553007432010-05-14T04:43:00.000-07:002010-05-14T05:18:59.683-07:00Crazy Beijing...<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">The very first thing that struck us when we arrived in Beijing was the noise! In Japan it is a very rare occurrence to hear someone using their car horn so when confronted with hundreds of cars all using them at once... it was more than a little deafening to the ears!</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">The second thing that stuck us was how crazy the driving was! I have seriously never seen such blatant disregard of the traffic rules! The center line means nothing, pedestrians are free game and red light-green-light-red man-green man = who cares just go, shut your eyes and hope for the best!!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg81s9_5nxteTS3hCOutmLSUJZEngTU__n8MJzzOnIXxUqpB4vnLIGj7IwWLNCNR5TZ7H6mHkWzqQFXIDsnC5xt1eF3rSpDBwTQc6bjXRcfnmY4_rM9egygPrlsNYROIADUU4KiLnTLKicP/s1600/jam.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg81s9_5nxteTS3hCOutmLSUJZEngTU__n8MJzzOnIXxUqpB4vnLIGj7IwWLNCNR5TZ7H6mHkWzqQFXIDsnC5xt1eF3rSpDBwTQc6bjXRcfnmY4_rM9egygPrlsNYROIADUU4KiLnTLKicP/s320/jam.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471095085231201330" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">In Beijing I'm pretty sure there are just as many, if not more, bikes than there are cars. I'm talking everywhere you look there is something whizzing along, ducking and diving in between cars all the while trying to dodge people trying to cross the busy roads. When we weren't preoccupied with being scared for our lives it was great fun seeing just how much one person could carry on only two wheels!</span><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5NktUBe-L8rTMB18kj_hOGqS_Hmka2OV3Vdtbthq2lLE9Kx4j5f17NhjWGknlZVuZFa_zIehhqdQN-XTt1IlDpkAezcQUArYLe_4oDVJ5yRFXA7xXJkuS9ker_KiQvy6OCEdUkNZD9Ciq/s1600/moving+furniture.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5NktUBe-L8rTMB18kj_hOGqS_Hmka2OV3Vdtbthq2lLE9Kx4j5f17NhjWGknlZVuZFa_zIehhqdQN-XTt1IlDpkAezcQUArYLe_4oDVJ5yRFXA7xXJkuS9ker_KiQvy6OCEdUkNZD9Ciq/s320/moving+furniture.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471095080898878338" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4k2lVa-MA7H5OlG0padEK_maFBbbJoREM-QiMynJRHPng3YSmju0N_CHahwfx7Ew3NmNlM2QHqbEW5mLva9oAvPdM8FYeWKP2ddxqCoL4HEFjLDTsGBdjqu1i5EokYPJBuRAqBL34cnA/s1600/IMG_8096.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm4k2lVa-MA7H5OlG0padEK_maFBbbJoREM-QiMynJRHPng3YSmju0N_CHahwfx7Ew3NmNlM2QHqbEW5mLva9oAvPdM8FYeWKP2ddxqCoL4HEFjLDTsGBdjqu1i5EokYPJBuRAqBL34cnA/s320/IMG_8096.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471094933780075090" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-guWwD-upapypAftXoiXMxME6BRt5PZQGLrrlk-sIirXEOSHefZ-BBzyazXXSonMjWZ_IvBcUL0xKUV6E22NueopLeG2aATPl6bDzRK67IWiWhSVasFR1PsEOYudaAbcTcewsVUdVkNvc/s1600/long+planks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-guWwD-upapypAftXoiXMxME6BRt5PZQGLrrlk-sIirXEOSHefZ-BBzyazXXSonMjWZ_IvBcUL0xKUV6E22NueopLeG2aATPl6bDzRK67IWiWhSVasFR1PsEOYudaAbcTcewsVUdVkNvc/s320/long+planks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471094924388268098" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi693ZQoEJnS_WzSMZ3dMjd3VgIFJ2hk7yt_wA5Qcl5yB4kSnhdIUWk8lk2lZRM9gdfi5lwlQcGvsUmgl1nvudIXhp6Yw3AP4ZT6MIDPVn5_03fBs6B6iiUSxvKxSXovCrsjawpxooSRsat/s1600/IMG_7271.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi693ZQoEJnS_WzSMZ3dMjd3VgIFJ2hk7yt_wA5Qcl5yB4kSnhdIUWk8lk2lZRM9gdfi5lwlQcGvsUmgl1nvudIXhp6Yw3AP4ZT6MIDPVn5_03fBs6B6iiUSxvKxSXovCrsjawpxooSRsat/s320/IMG_7271.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471094917628692370" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGCMaKT2EhvlIRspKWMvBGpT4OTuRzTQ_sF6eb7fhUcCbuIzgWXc2FTcAGwl988cB6nhm0AG04mW6KcRThTR5LRYOn9jcipwyFTlboZtYs8jfetDMv-g1Hs85gH6WUjQxKsmj_tHV8_XH/s1600/tuk-tuk.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRGCMaKT2EhvlIRspKWMvBGpT4OTuRzTQ_sF6eb7fhUcCbuIzgWXc2FTcAGwl988cB6nhm0AG04mW6KcRThTR5LRYOn9jcipwyFTlboZtYs8jfetDMv-g1Hs85gH6WUjQxKsmj_tHV8_XH/s320/tuk-tuk.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471094909695762546" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmder3XytrWiaom6pfJIiLXaYPljUUSbOC8wdeUPCvjqp7XRg7ud8JWESLr_HmkIJpK4m66tEiUJ5yHmD_Kgcl2lS9rKEakf7jXbMadOGRrVy8WC1o9pl4Frs0Li4IS0_ENELQ1fOZMMGY/s1600/ice+cream+bike.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmder3XytrWiaom6pfJIiLXaYPljUUSbOC8wdeUPCvjqp7XRg7ud8JWESLr_HmkIJpK4m66tEiUJ5yHmD_Kgcl2lS9rKEakf7jXbMadOGRrVy8WC1o9pl4Frs0Li4IS0_ENELQ1fOZMMGY/s320/ice+cream+bike.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5471094903016067506" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-48949996085961978532010-05-13T23:21:00.000-07:002010-05-13T01:28:59.988-07:00They really will eat anything!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBPeZehQBdC6Dyv8MYX4jm6tiNWL0YGUIXQIrhBYj08VuflKI5yY2b3-bta3atZtuMr7bYDDAf4Cy26G0f1jktjhnpRXeiUhQsJvHFW5zTNdMwdOR_FZc3OBI1CPj47vBEM-hFK0FDNN_k/s1600/us+with+scorpin.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBPeZehQBdC6Dyv8MYX4jm6tiNWL0YGUIXQIrhBYj08VuflKI5yY2b3-bta3atZtuMr7bYDDAf4Cy26G0f1jktjhnpRXeiUhQsJvHFW5zTNdMwdOR_FZc3OBI1CPj47vBEM-hFK0FDNN_k/s320/us+with+scorpin.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470665574189476514" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 153);">I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little bit excited about all the Chinese food we were going to eat on our trip. If I had to rank the foods we've missed while living in Japan, Chinese would be somewhere on that list. The guide book certainly talked a lot about how amazing it is and I was more than excited to try out some real 'street food'.<br /><br />One of the best things about traveling in China was how cheap it was, even in a major city like Beijing most things were ridiculously cheap and coming from Japan (possibly the most expensive place in the world to live/travel) it was a real luxury. Here is a example of what things cost:<br /><br />600ml Chinese beer or 600ml sprite for 3-5RMB = 40-60 Yen / NZ$1<br /><br />Ice block for 1RMB = 13 yen / like NZ10c<br /><br />1RMB bus fare or 2RMB subway anywhere in the city = 13-26 yen / NZ10-20c<br /><br />And the list just keeps going.....<br /><br />Onto the food, no one really wants to read about everything we ate (or didn't)....pictures are much more fun!</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnUQoYorFF1HRbjUP76ToS_iXYCZRX9LjUoiiCx2tJAGY0VfBYHG_kpJm0ShrXCiYEUxmcjni-NV4rn_x5q3UuU1J0R5EOVYsqBNUQaVFCYjT_QG0bNmDuH3m05O1Q5Oe0TwwpWNOP1PHW/s1600/the+stalls.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnUQoYorFF1HRbjUP76ToS_iXYCZRX9LjUoiiCx2tJAGY0VfBYHG_kpJm0ShrXCiYEUxmcjni-NV4rn_x5q3UuU1J0R5EOVYsqBNUQaVFCYjT_QG0bNmDuH3m05O1Q5Oe0TwwpWNOP1PHW/s320/the+stalls.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470665588296890434" border="0" /></a>This market had everything and anything you could imagine including hundreds of people (not for sale though)<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwvTkQnzPDu51kA5NuW_PMNE3dCIX9E_cNHiWI2Ee6-mo8OY_gT9beM09ISegdeCBpRv_INY-1Aso0-mSw9M8Y7MP0UTCSVg6lpJ1xZuQtjvIX7xijw9g2RSfUd3Df9MQoExQTFPCOxKx/s1600/dumplings.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUwvTkQnzPDu51kA5NuW_PMNE3dCIX9E_cNHiWI2Ee6-mo8OY_gT9beM09ISegdeCBpRv_INY-1Aso0-mSw9M8Y7MP0UTCSVg6lpJ1xZuQtjvIX7xijw9g2RSfUd3Df9MQoExQTFPCOxKx/s320/dumplings.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470666290609665890" border="0" /></a>These dumplings truly were morsels of love<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjlVWuTRDkYwAl8G0GEo8CgaU41NgQTdnc_eKKfXg8GJajSJvKlz_M6enXBQVW2UKpIvvJl1osRx4hNksb3ushTkz0oRlbQS-Kvt9bKXJQMT51D8odlDaWiPqK8borGal7AP2o8j6Zij4/s1600/gecko.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqjlVWuTRDkYwAl8G0GEo8CgaU41NgQTdnc_eKKfXg8GJajSJvKlz_M6enXBQVW2UKpIvvJl1osRx4hNksb3ushTkz0oRlbQS-Kvt9bKXJQMT51D8odlDaWiPqK8borGal7AP2o8j6Zij4/s320/gecko.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470666155800529970" border="0" /></a>Apparently this is gecko but we think it's rat!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjkW_bSgsjd1TyCKHUI5Xop2qjoFf4RRUxQsrDl0Tmgr-FI9KGzTM32LpUV_D2QzZbkVLbFbIN84MVJezP8CvnFwI6FjE6HEsctXWltDISm_KyeYPTm74x4Heva1IaGv1eoQZui_k3YM3Y/s1600/octopus.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjkW_bSgsjd1TyCKHUI5Xop2qjoFf4RRUxQsrDl0Tmgr-FI9KGzTM32LpUV_D2QzZbkVLbFbIN84MVJezP8CvnFwI6FjE6HEsctXWltDISm_KyeYPTm74x4Heva1IaGv1eoQZui_k3YM3Y/s320/octopus.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470666149919979746" border="0" /></a>You could pick any raw seafood and have it cooked...or not<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2I0C3esS_GcHzo9f3uZ5TLBLlpW3ixfvdBR7VovpWPQHxicngX_c8nLMvd12xjKaKbUo2ZNHi5c6m9FyAkB_p_APL6e9emw2E_VhZ2MoFG1_wctKS7WaLPkiQKHp4tl4H7doiZlFUPBMb/s1600/scorpins.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2I0C3esS_GcHzo9f3uZ5TLBLlpW3ixfvdBR7VovpWPQHxicngX_c8nLMvd12xjKaKbUo2ZNHi5c6m9FyAkB_p_APL6e9emw2E_VhZ2MoFG1_wctKS7WaLPkiQKHp4tl4H7doiZlFUPBMb/s320/scorpins.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470666145211893666" border="0" /></a>These guys were still wriggling on the stick...but yummy! Trust me I know<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEfA5kDtvO4c-HdsQVryRqw-v1eaFRumgX0UH1A0VZo2TeKOw2ikBPWpKRJCQta1B-DRan0zcv1joRtLCeIFfI7pOTyMEFwWiOi0nt5np-_Yan6tGPa0TesDHfGl_wGhN7pqrDJ8kZLz5Q/s1600/seahorses.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEfA5kDtvO4c-HdsQVryRqw-v1eaFRumgX0UH1A0VZo2TeKOw2ikBPWpKRJCQta1B-DRan0zcv1joRtLCeIFfI7pOTyMEFwWiOi0nt5np-_Yan6tGPa0TesDHfGl_wGhN7pqrDJ8kZLz5Q/s320/seahorses.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470666140942627042" border="0" /></a>Seahorse anyone?<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO89_lyxiW_cM92OfG4S2Ok2qOIZNMsLdHIUBTvQMiUiA3eTmfCuFZHNDFBkIZy-jEC8td0dAbHfFrl87xneNENvdFLI0ToLsH2YRI-5GnlaHc59ePRrxX3u1z-a7soXld_vnCeNVewL1M/s1600/starfish+and+urchins.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO89_lyxiW_cM92OfG4S2Ok2qOIZNMsLdHIUBTvQMiUiA3eTmfCuFZHNDFBkIZy-jEC8td0dAbHfFrl87xneNENvdFLI0ToLsH2YRI-5GnlaHc59ePRrxX3u1z-a7soXld_vnCeNVewL1M/s320/starfish+and+urchins.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470666130013272370" border="0" /></a>How you eat these without taking out an eye is anyone's guess!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2LodgP99c-Pf0IsbTKPkwRu5Pm5ZupaPEQV_JKcYale_QSYP07qkzkNVxO_kZZeeImBp8a5sjL6QrnMwgeP50H2KeVXRDuvD767_uNBM-g1Y8WuR-6XNO6H4MVTTRRqwl45I014rX7xFB/s1600/stuff+on+sticks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2LodgP99c-Pf0IsbTKPkwRu5Pm5ZupaPEQV_JKcYale_QSYP07qkzkNVxO_kZZeeImBp8a5sjL6QrnMwgeP50H2KeVXRDuvD767_uNBM-g1Y8WuR-6XNO6H4MVTTRRqwl45I014rX7xFB/s320/stuff+on+sticks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470665604250664946" border="0" /></a>You name it, they eat it<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBz00LEBl0jEBFNEsSxJu65h8XHumvI9Kvp2omShufIh4zQtZCvqO85obN59cH1fHxENuWXGPzaQIoaD31gGDQL_RKhlgxHn9ewyr_s3lGk3G7CwwX0otlJOV0QzosCtC60BpI4wBqbp-P/s1600/toffee+fruit.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBz00LEBl0jEBFNEsSxJu65h8XHumvI9Kvp2omShufIh4zQtZCvqO85obN59cH1fHxENuWXGPzaQIoaD31gGDQL_RKhlgxHn9ewyr_s3lGk3G7CwwX0otlJOV0QzosCtC60BpI4wBqbp-P/s320/toffee+fruit.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470665586570035970" border="0" /></a>Toffee fruit...my god...normal food!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif7t9bChtdKNrfMhvQHXG7axJRJO2I5oX0CSyJmdri58poxP3VsHo3RXynYignPhTuGuLLpSXVr2HUgneo2jrG5TZkHNt__jyeFbu8S468hrRiibMjZsBqIXNo5cNoZf2V8lR__CD34YPQ/s1600/wee+bird.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif7t9bChtdKNrfMhvQHXG7axJRJO2I5oX0CSyJmdri58poxP3VsHo3RXynYignPhTuGuLLpSXVr2HUgneo2jrG5TZkHNt__jyeFbu8S468hrRiibMjZsBqIXNo5cNoZf2V8lR__CD34YPQ/s320/wee+bird.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5470665575752561922" border="0" /></a>Baby birds...enough said (look at the eyes, CREEPY!!!)<br /></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 153);"></span><img src="file:///C:/Photos/China/IMG_1890.JPG" alt="" />Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-62996794324156754752010-05-11T02:39:00.000-07:002010-05-11T02:59:23.119-07:00The Olympics Beijing style...<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">If we'd gone off the advice given in the Lonely Planet Guide we would have totally bypassed the Beijing Olympic stadiums in fear of being knocked over by tumbleweed - luckily for us we tend not to use those guides as Bibles!<br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqnTU8p47fVzS9VZ8JaBZGeBfd7N77Kd8WxiOGjHRDgLiaamIWrgpmoAk3ZlN_pNmHkFi4IuxDVU6dN0bol9FnRaBtInD1AZhBcaC9hMqVXaVEdIEs4zS3YhUf0ahc4Bkey0NXD3j9oWXb/s1600/nath+sign.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqnTU8p47fVzS9VZ8JaBZGeBfd7N77Kd8WxiOGjHRDgLiaamIWrgpmoAk3ZlN_pNmHkFi4IuxDVU6dN0bol9FnRaBtInD1AZhBcaC9hMqVXaVEdIEs4zS3YhUf0ahc4Bkey0NXD3j9oWXb/s320/nath+sign.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469948341822544530" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">We stood for like 5mins waiting for a gap in the crowd...bingo!</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX5nftPVR47fzNg6GdylP7BPnFHapXzMmXDqp3obUMxycdIAp5hxK9E9FH_KJfq2FkXPspjVvLMyz3LGvrbDLWv9qaT9reefRjA_1Q9LIk7OdInhktN499Da6WiKRJVJSngcg6IEYIvyfx/s1600/nath+swimming.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX5nftPVR47fzNg6GdylP7BPnFHapXzMmXDqp3obUMxycdIAp5hxK9E9FH_KJfq2FkXPspjVvLMyz3LGvrbDLWv9qaT9reefRjA_1Q9LIk7OdInhktN499Da6WiKRJVJSngcg6IEYIvyfx/s320/nath+swimming.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469948335680345986" border="0" /></a>Watch out Michael Phelps (you can't see all the people that were staring at us and taking pics...hilarious)<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhorXLEeOwl4WjPBWKXCWwPtr9asHg5_NPbEeZO0ZD31YDcCxYs2FAJcr3OLdpU0HfC5czocVK21iTqlFbdk8Xqau2H-c9ZjEq9NGuddm4uGKHG3miNUfr4n8z8ArVyljWs3d-Tl7QJtX7y/s1600/birds+nest.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhorXLEeOwl4WjPBWKXCWwPtr9asHg5_NPbEeZO0ZD31YDcCxYs2FAJcr3OLdpU0HfC5czocVK21iTqlFbdk8Xqau2H-c9ZjEq9NGuddm4uGKHG3miNUfr4n8z8ArVyljWs3d-Tl7QJtX7y/s320/birds+nest.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469948332411404466" border="0" /></a>Usain Bolt would only manage a silver against this speedster!<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkgnWo3IY-FCE7Jub_79ZepFacjSZKpJoiHB3qGVDWxt-dYLx1_x9LIXQO_h75Z4zaMGeg4KnqnTyA7ywaANPNrn6jNipIRERa80xCO2P3u11qyCWA_Zx2uAQshNCtmleeeE4ShyphenhyphenhtY5ZN/s1600/meg+with+mascots.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkgnWo3IY-FCE7Jub_79ZepFacjSZKpJoiHB3qGVDWxt-dYLx1_x9LIXQO_h75Z4zaMGeg4KnqnTyA7ywaANPNrn6jNipIRERa80xCO2P3u11qyCWA_Zx2uAQshNCtmleeeE4ShyphenhyphenhtY5ZN/s320/meg+with+mascots.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469948327307245714" border="0" /></a>Another queue for a pic, but who can resist these adorable fellas!<br /></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-1429479307694874982010-05-09T03:28:00.000-07:002010-05-09T03:50:55.688-07:00The Great Wall of China...<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">We have the perfect excuse for the lack of blog entries late</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">ly... we've been in China - Beijing to be exact!</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">I don't think either of us expected to love Beijing as much</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"> as we did... it far exceeded all expectations and left us wanting to explore more! We decided to spend all 10 days in the one spot rather than braving the overnight trains to places far and wide - a decision we didn't regret for a second given the sheer enormity of what Beijing has to offe</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">r.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">We took over 1000 photos, went to some incredible places, me</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">t some amazing people, came home with some bargains and have many stories to share!<br /></span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Like always we'll break our trip down into several different blog entries - the first one being the Great Wall of China! Click on any of the photos to make them larger!!<br /><br /></span> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVg2TjW3WvSOR5FFjTpEr4Y3XI2rolWucRjrkxlHli9qJCChluWs1VAArCPayGsd52noQqUqV2DQdlKz4SmQYNAw6RaiHr9tgzEf_EM_ZPmj9BVP4JYiXzpJpizW4VAoaCRxBAgj19-ZZ/s1600/meg+and+nath.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVg2TjW3WvSOR5FFjTpEr4Y3XI2rolWucRjrkxlHli9qJCChluWs1VAArCPayGsd52noQqUqV2DQdlKz4SmQYNAw6RaiHr9tgzEf_EM_ZPmj9BVP4JYiXzpJpizW4VAoaCRxBAgj19-ZZ/s320/meg+and+nath.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469218236798175138" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMdetd0BATPYI95uD_4jpu7InKc7amlaoTqA6B9XnkZ6sVtXw3JLpCeI7GAS8fMBTGKwOo4Y2WAGXQoU0n1LIH54jf4wVnmW_t10oPs2K-FQFC55nkECOJSf7-8nemDXUxiqmLuF3Jek-z/s1600/IMG_7449.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMdetd0BATPYI95uD_4jpu7InKc7amlaoTqA6B9XnkZ6sVtXw3JLpCeI7GAS8fMBTGKwOo4Y2WAGXQoU0n1LIH54jf4wVnmW_t10oPs2K-FQFC55nkECOJSf7-8nemDXUxiqmLuF3Jek-z/s320/IMG_7449.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469218213917743778" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Rather than opt for one of the many touristy sports along the Wall we decided instead to don or walking shoes and do a 12 km trek from Jinshanling to Simatai.</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">When put in perspective 12kms of the 9,000km total is barely even a drop in the bucket but boy did we have to work hard for every one of the steps it took us (did I mention we only had 4 hours to do it in???).</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtOKyrSgZZK-MqZrch0kDHcWfmPzshm6lFOM_HOU75iNGMDqGGXKJVQufrAtRD19ouyXAYXS93gW7y9mElnDrh5HEx_BHLuOTEFdRk5jlHMUIhtzvnnzRjCpqGxtXbeDDuJOHeqjVh9Sp_/s1600/IMG_7452.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtOKyrSgZZK-MqZrch0kDHcWfmPzshm6lFOM_HOU75iNGMDqGGXKJVQufrAtRD19ouyXAYXS93gW7y9mElnDrh5HEx_BHLuOTEFdRk5jlHMUIhtzvnnzRjCpqGxtXbeDDuJOHeqjVh9Sp_/s320/IMG_7452.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469218218501591682" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Along the way we passed through 30 different watch towers<br /></span></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglCOxV2D3xUaZcoJtPS6_LwYJBBpY5BnZMR65ox0yIt4VxH0LUzKrKGsvPUVL6xEq02pldwwHDAEPEYvwfsjXT9tPHhvTdscZBYwnhFKHNMDgByRKb2WtMBknKF0Kov0hx8eWbcdUrf5yV/s1600/IMG_7486.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglCOxV2D3xUaZcoJtPS6_LwYJBBpY5BnZMR65ox0yIt4VxH0LUzKrKGsvPUVL6xEq02pldwwHDAEPEYvwfsjXT9tPHhvTdscZBYwnhFKHNMDgByRKb2WtMBknKF0Kov0hx8eWbcdUrf5yV/s320/IMG_7486.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469217818697195778" border="0" /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"></span></a><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"></span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSsMamgup_P3vnCaapiy-hWMJFJfCYhjYLA9nTfAStss4ZAqJYZWExCtoxnw3ZlwGexBzl4p2elCW8glmtmPFusAMrNr9TFeGQ6oCUeQoRLiaU_-85t8FaDlhHM2vddu38RTX6AkUSGHC8/s1600/wall+on+ridge.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSsMamgup_P3vnCaapiy-hWMJFJfCYhjYLA9nTfAStss4ZAqJYZWExCtoxnw3ZlwGexBzl4p2elCW8glmtmPFusAMrNr9TFeGQ6oCUeQoRLiaU_-85t8FaDlhHM2vddu38RTX6AkUSGHC8/s320/wall+on+ridge.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469217803169128674" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">It's incredible to think they built the Wall along the ridge line<br /></span></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Nevertheless it was by far the most amazing experience eit</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">her one of us has ever had! To say it was incredible doesn't even begin to describe how truly mind blowing it was!</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">The walk itself was far more challenging than I was expecting... think steps built </span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">for giants, 70 degree uphill climbs and unstable footing. Not to mention the 30 degree plus temperature with no wind and no shade!</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUZTQW4zqeTIS-71m5ljDEvk1DIlYrXtR0rJoIzB1ur2DRik5i7F5THUTRUyWxUnCokoqb2LLC0Uageog_sqXrEmcTRTZYcUj4GuoW8JtbV8gWN43u8wcyUff_ppXqE5el4kd1OIL15p1w/s1600/steep.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUZTQW4zqeTIS-71m5ljDEvk1DIlYrXtR0rJoIzB1ur2DRik5i7F5THUTRUyWxUnCokoqb2LLC0Uageog_sqXrEmcTRTZYcUj4GuoW8JtbV8gWN43u8wcyUff_ppXqE5el4kd1OIL15p1w/s320/steep.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469217812644294866" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">The unrelenting climb!<br /></span></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYy76S_bhYP4kvB8Zf4mIpxamS4_w685QBWenNtNdmTSv54Z6rp34DjnC3iWGouyCCQZk260HbqG9aYBCsWgCm8Jkb4WJ-ckNQNjlXNt39Rl0LivgV6nBzDjaXma0Pi8YKPvf2xSEWaOE1/s1600/IMG_7552.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYy76S_bhYP4kvB8Zf4mIpxamS4_w685QBWenNtNdmTSv54Z6rp34DjnC3iWGouyCCQZk260HbqG9aYBCsWgCm8Jkb4WJ-ckNQNjlXNt39Rl0LivgV6nBzDjaXma0Pi8YKPvf2xSEWaOE1/s320/IMG_7552.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469218231779817586" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">But what goes up must come down... then up... then down... then up...<br /></span></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">However, despite the thumping heart rate, shaking legs and suffocating heat i'm pretty sure we both walked the entire way with smiles plastered on our faces!</span> <span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><br /><br /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXKMsvGqcPE_k_yaqhIOu4BvwXtJAX6CJLzc4DS_gnqL4SksCqih8Vy87sN7spM5k7xJgJ0S-nEBNOiWg2W_tV6Kcb3S6w9Mj763jOsPQoQislfg6_LRxPv6zXhGjut5Vc0hma0hTkEXMz/s1600/guides.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXKMsvGqcPE_k_yaqhIOu4BvwXtJAX6CJLzc4DS_gnqL4SksCqih8Vy87sN7spM5k7xJgJ0S-nEBNOiWg2W_tV6Kcb3S6w9Mj763jOsPQoQislfg6_LRxPv6zXhGjut5Vc0hma0hTkEXMz/s320/guides.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469217796663239314" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Us with our tag-along guides who walk the entire way with you in the hope you'll buy something off them at the end (we bought a book about the Wall)<br /></span></div><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">We were lucky enough to meet an awesome couple from Australia on the 3 hour van ride to the wall who we ended up spending several days with... it was neat to share the experience with other people who were just as excited about actually being o</span><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">n the Great Wall as we were!<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPlYeCsEUYu1e5SNyoG11Z25pTdCpGVKjKCOAsvzps6NkOQHy4AViUxehUBXewMdGj7LPn9EUTCxXCjBnaFv_tr5tJ7FW3T9lUqxbAgsaEWck8XGPdEalhiCuzhxh2Zkgo8ul95QazpxF/s1600/kung+fu+panda2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPPlYeCsEUYu1e5SNyoG11Z25pTdCpGVKjKCOAsvzps6NkOQHy4AViUxehUBXewMdGj7LPn9EUTCxXCjBnaFv_tr5tJ7FW3T9lUqxbAgsaEWck8XGPdEalhiCuzhxh2Zkgo8ul95QazpxF/s320/kung+fu+panda2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5469217780064794546" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">Practicing our Kung Fu panda pose with Nathan and Sofia</span><br /></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-64865144100566564282010-04-27T05:33:00.000-07:002010-04-27T05:51:44.983-07:00Paradise mountains<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">Another weekend down and another successful tramping trip. This time we headed south for 2hrs to a range of mountains that divide the prefectures of Oita and Miyazaki. As we drove the narrow and windy road higher and higher into the hills the more I felt like I was in paradise! There were no small towns, houses, rice fields or signs of human existence. It truely was the most remote location you could get on our island. Here are some pics....<br /><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8peaaW8HGwIJ2j8eYycM5Lciz8T9oUXJVCNjhOcE5Dr53AISZjz9CLBjfz8fsKFv-adDl5cU0TP4C-wLQPkXP7c9cDa3ywpJujchDEneuexEjdywBp4Yui_OvqCw5kXicnewp0k8UYYU/s1600/me+at+the+top.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii8peaaW8HGwIJ2j8eYycM5Lciz8T9oUXJVCNjhOcE5Dr53AISZjz9CLBjfz8fsKFv-adDl5cU0TP4C-wLQPkXP7c9cDa3ywpJujchDEneuexEjdywBp4Yui_OvqCw5kXicnewp0k8UYYU/s320/me+at+the+top.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798305474138594" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfbjuIHzDOgcmC1yvfNLr-Y5wJmwU0bZYNgVrc0_FmpCfqfU5aCNcpQsqiEp6WqITAOaucSDLXUvnBpT0rM1VO2olyrG5eA69UbnVi9bi5QsChS_qWEAdaVa76U79V-LiooiehOx8-msp/s1600/dead+trees.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTfbjuIHzDOgcmC1yvfNLr-Y5wJmwU0bZYNgVrc0_FmpCfqfU5aCNcpQsqiEp6WqITAOaucSDLXUvnBpT0rM1VO2olyrG5eA69UbnVi9bi5QsChS_qWEAdaVa76U79V-LiooiehOx8-msp/s320/dead+trees.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798746822297010" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpWrPar-4XId6re-hvD4rlXSOQpfsDNoGARvKM8RSul_GD2sv2qj0iWdghvKCy0xtJYdUV7s_4pyi5MRvf01Z0mLaGRP-KmMhR0p6rl9iOneASk_blL8Dd1hguk5b3Q0mZTyZ2jVmhHWhZ/s1600/blossoms.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpWrPar-4XId6re-hvD4rlXSOQpfsDNoGARvKM8RSul_GD2sv2qj0iWdghvKCy0xtJYdUV7s_4pyi5MRvf01Z0mLaGRP-KmMhR0p6rl9iOneASk_blL8Dd1hguk5b3Q0mZTyZ2jVmhHWhZ/s320/blossoms.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798740702700770" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzu1-fWQN1CK9vIHZi7IkyEqt6c_CAiqvWld638tN7hlkf2h5ZK-gzz6ZCKL0hhXOsv9YGz99JK094Zbob-_XkrzR1Z-eDwAOJmEOUvNUSROTuwRY-TMoaIyEPxJddRXuCa23yIQUu73dJ/s1600/past+the+shrine.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzu1-fWQN1CK9vIHZi7IkyEqt6c_CAiqvWld638tN7hlkf2h5ZK-gzz6ZCKL0hhXOsv9YGz99JK094Zbob-_XkrzR1Z-eDwAOJmEOUvNUSROTuwRY-TMoaIyEPxJddRXuCa23yIQUu73dJ/s320/past+the+shrine.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798733143846674" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ1x-LF8GANZcRHVhu3NeIH8Ws84g97NUyeL2wfw8Y-uUMopY-mZz9qP1c6A6rqiy26iCytHwwxOvtGAXeeEXTrzf-jP2o6HbYuNwJJ3wM2ESh1I9LuJp5QD6K66AFqs_VeD6-Tj6XkgGJ/s1600/nap+in+the+sun.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ1x-LF8GANZcRHVhu3NeIH8Ws84g97NUyeL2wfw8Y-uUMopY-mZz9qP1c6A6rqiy26iCytHwwxOvtGAXeeEXTrzf-jP2o6HbYuNwJJ3wM2ESh1I9LuJp5QD6K66AFqs_VeD6-Tj6XkgGJ/s320/nap+in+the+sun.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798731093257874" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQpBKIwqhz0ezNCf4llo7HSsaaNqbgEA-hZy6KCCe9KwpVBvJN3QD7hwGYxaCm8M6WeR7r_xxiDEkCKgy7XNElNHZTzsXC1AiCCSZnlU9kDUGWkxNxs1cw1KaTTK4qq6dVkYAR7OVy1qgW/s1600/tree+art.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQpBKIwqhz0ezNCf4llo7HSsaaNqbgEA-hZy6KCCe9KwpVBvJN3QD7hwGYxaCm8M6WeR7r_xxiDEkCKgy7XNElNHZTzsXC1AiCCSZnlU9kDUGWkxNxs1cw1KaTTK4qq6dVkYAR7OVy1qgW/s320/tree+art.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798329961696690" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRhRJuG-0WkCTju1MnqXz7dnvfiAUIUtA6BREuvJqRQ3X_0XQcrRwwoBHBrZbbXk68hHtrotzXaxv2Lym4KFup6d_1M83v6lpDUcjKOhDUXE-I6aT2k262odIQbhQKCw2hW0g9HYModQVG/s1600/which+way.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRhRJuG-0WkCTju1MnqXz7dnvfiAUIUtA6BREuvJqRQ3X_0XQcrRwwoBHBrZbbXk68hHtrotzXaxv2Lym4KFup6d_1M83v6lpDUcjKOhDUXE-I6aT2k262odIQbhQKCw2hW0g9HYModQVG/s320/which+way.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798318795832210" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVDI_YMHzviLZv-4ZS74w9z5mh6lOwj1wKCw5tOhCR9PP9AhuEDZ0t7ZWDCFWz5COiyqRiZ7cUs3qlb4Z0RlRKI-4YbRzbJtoDyUF9IO2WRu7c8LT5YAMcKTPSP1T832pFVOsfrs5AFxde/s1600/the+landscape.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVDI_YMHzviLZv-4ZS74w9z5mh6lOwj1wKCw5tOhCR9PP9AhuEDZ0t7ZWDCFWz5COiyqRiZ7cUs3qlb4Z0RlRKI-4YbRzbJtoDyUF9IO2WRu7c8LT5YAMcKTPSP1T832pFVOsfrs5AFxde/s320/the+landscape.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798315467749746" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNDcVhR4d56PRPUirjTluTWfcs_SoGuGHxUfvEFu0AX4LkLer2aJgmFaignCsmgwTT811nUKGlKPNnYzldIIOQUCvQnGE7WRGcQg88o8nzdYu2OVizaVsBWw3uO5MD1nZWwF4EQ59g_KGn/s1600/more+dead+trees.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNDcVhR4d56PRPUirjTluTWfcs_SoGuGHxUfvEFu0AX4LkLer2aJgmFaignCsmgwTT811nUKGlKPNnYzldIIOQUCvQnGE7WRGcQg88o8nzdYu2OVizaVsBWw3uO5MD1nZWwF4EQ59g_KGn/s320/more+dead+trees.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464798308811743746" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"><br /></span>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-4900748775987362482010-04-25T23:38:00.000-07:002010-04-25T23:49:35.967-07:00Mum and Dad's visit....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNG1QSZhxB6RF18clsHdswWJTyiMxNIBn3JfoHXpBfwqUcqGWwEfw8cnWN1Gk4xjazwyUj-XkRxaAIpu7aCqeAitbG_N0UCWEACaI-5XQt-unJh1Q6F8FESByZN5nHFzE3K0HNBJFUSwhL/s1600/group.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNG1QSZhxB6RF18clsHdswWJTyiMxNIBn3JfoHXpBfwqUcqGWwEfw8cnWN1Gk4xjazwyUj-XkRxaAIpu7aCqeAitbG_N0UCWEACaI-5XQt-unJh1Q6F8FESByZN5nHFzE3K0HNBJFUSwhL/s320/group.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464332937242233682" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Well they have long since been and gone but it's never too late to make a blog entry about it!</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">It was great having mum and dad come and visit us and being able to share a little slice of our time here in Japan with them.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Turns out I hardly took any photos while they were here but here are just a few....</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNxNZErRkR3h9CjT1cQvQDgba1kghGB0D_ES59ihTAa2OdZp2_MB1eiXVqq0HX0NuXxzS1q-Fdsi2BUu0dYPfV5Czw_oEB5xcg6uSDJo6ZbzPBgaSMVxQTaoG9krXFzuZ4CTU6uJTUMSv6/s1600/meg+and+rob.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNxNZErRkR3h9CjT1cQvQDgba1kghGB0D_ES59ihTAa2OdZp2_MB1eiXVqq0HX0NuXxzS1q-Fdsi2BUu0dYPfV5Czw_oEB5xcg6uSDJo6ZbzPBgaSMVxQTaoG9krXFzuZ4CTU6uJTUMSv6/s320/meg+and+rob.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464332930976337666" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqhmEX7lO-XGelMlmNpjMGnMnhkCvb8g8FB80LEuI9AkMHKb4LDGvm6hhZmVcfZyuni3rIfCC1DAX7wkcAYdyGNkUWV_-zuG-TYo1ybzvT-0qVvKUux1xEE9GnJzUnls12yd-ObwZN4KEN/s1600/mum+kimono.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqhmEX7lO-XGelMlmNpjMGnMnhkCvb8g8FB80LEuI9AkMHKb4LDGvm6hhZmVcfZyuni3rIfCC1DAX7wkcAYdyGNkUWV_-zuG-TYo1ybzvT-0qVvKUux1xEE9GnJzUnls12yd-ObwZN4KEN/s320/mum+kimono.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464334332465451666" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLSOSrDSMiWhHBRXg5L2GQbgkNEaj4UKi57AQhhAurzCjCZi1gnS5V823l2bx6sNPnEzSg84wzgybX2WCBOCnyyHTeCWZ2hQG35IQFiqawMkxXL0OfTm5U2WuIztV5daJKTU4HnrQZBjgB/s1600/mum+castle.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLSOSrDSMiWhHBRXg5L2GQbgkNEaj4UKi57AQhhAurzCjCZi1gnS5V823l2bx6sNPnEzSg84wzgybX2WCBOCnyyHTeCWZ2hQG35IQFiqawMkxXL0OfTm5U2WuIztV5daJKTU4HnrQZBjgB/s320/mum+castle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464334339624591682" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg775UKz3s9DPO-elESi2lYbCLNptKkrgrSRLerqpp_732X4CgwKNpoCJhYnXEmSg_2SRgVgG3uvbSb6VV8lmSlEQz3Lhm35UVPRzvYEaeDeqpftvU6PYiWzGL5jAZJO063kdKyPH4FDCYD/s1600/rakanji+view.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg775UKz3s9DPO-elESi2lYbCLNptKkrgrSRLerqpp_732X4CgwKNpoCJhYnXEmSg_2SRgVgG3uvbSb6VV8lmSlEQz3Lhm35UVPRzvYEaeDeqpftvU6PYiWzGL5jAZJO063kdKyPH4FDCYD/s320/rakanji+view.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5464332923867155058" border="0" /></a>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-2156599964246498692010-04-20T02:59:00.000-07:002010-04-22T05:54:24.374-07:00A day in the hills without rain!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9WlgQYtXYN12UQTqUk98oZAD-nz2bLoJFJWBg1qZim_yX-dsI200upXP4hoVfJB3jNeQkW5y9SIOgB3du4dvsZwiYHRkZ4j7fW_ZTiJomKP0quKsqXU21V5JB_OA2p9q5iZsaEJvcj1mG/s1600/the+team.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; 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ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">It had to happen some time, a fine days tramping!! On Saturday I organized a JET tramping trip to Kyushu’s highest mountain Kujusan. This was the first mountain I climbed back in about September last year.
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<br /></span></p> <p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">It was a beautiful day with blue skies and slowing rising temperature. We have been very unlucky lately as the spring weather has been nothing short of crap. Rain, rain, rain and more rain.</span></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXj5sVQ64RrA8Oj6t6InQdJeZ7jFf3k045Kr-yrFShGCeYHiHhghL7Pf5REmd9MoNLDXcXMrl1DftNvo5cJpLlqeBUFRtnS5iWMaQ9sMtpN_EsG3-GUFC6Sv5gugd98LfQscbT-pD-aOwS/s1600/the+landscape.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXj5sVQ64RrA8Oj6t6InQdJeZ7jFf3k045Kr-yrFShGCeYHiHhghL7Pf5REmd9MoNLDXcXMrl1DftNvo5cJpLlqeBUFRtnS5iWMaQ9sMtpN_EsG3-GUFC6Sv5gugd98LfQscbT-pD-aOwS/s320/the+landscape.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5462944056226883938" border="0" /></a></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">
<br /></span></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEice_sMaeeG3QIPq86_vHxU6Vuqo1ys9qIArRysj2xqMuEAoMrVVTayRwAD44OKskoq-Y9yLb_F8qoujk951SVxB4TgZp19bZu38Q-yUTFTbRv02cS-k9n04Bv2oQBdmjMb4eRQghxo46Ij/s1600/moving+on+up.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEice_sMaeeG3QIPq86_vHxU6Vuqo1ys9qIArRysj2xqMuEAoMrVVTayRwAD44OKskoq-Y9yLb_F8qoujk951SVxB4TgZp19bZu38Q-yUTFTbRv02cS-k9n04Bv2oQBdmjMb4eRQghxo46Ij/s320/moving+on+up.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5462944044462177154" border="0" /></a></p> <p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US"><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Being such a beautiful day it was quite busy and humans dotted the landscape like little ants. After climbing Mt Kuju we traversed around a few other peaks and a beautiful mountain lake before making our way back down. The mountain was still wearing its ‘winter’ clothes as the crappy spring has meant low temps and a late blooming of flowers; no snow but stark naked trees and only the slightest hint of things starting to green up.</span></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi96hwn6ACp5rLjc1-hJ2fap9uU4qYVr5OIED80si_LmFuNiXU4kH4RnVmaWSkEoloBV0biZkSi2QSP5dderojjh-0PPdmvQYFkxUx5ZE9Cn-5D1qX0bKaWyjCiX3xX_XD0k03_MCgYX70j/s1600/smoky+volcano.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi96hwn6ACp5rLjc1-hJ2fap9uU4qYVr5OIED80si_LmFuNiXU4kH4RnVmaWSkEoloBV0biZkSi2QSP5dderojjh-0PPdmvQYFkxUx5ZE9Cn-5D1qX0bKaWyjCiX3xX_XD0k03_MCgYX70j/s320/smoky+volcano.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5462944036639266994" border="0" /></a></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">
<br /></span></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-US">Thankfully the active volcanic vents were in fine form throwing up a cloud of steam, not quite as high as Iceland’s volcano though!</span></p> Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-54525894643090045672010-04-13T01:28:00.000-07:002010-04-13T02:06:39.588-07:00Planes, Trains and Automobiles<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCBsnZKdFWL9K6raQxPypTxhB46m5SgDQUBoSpZRRRvm0HWOdHhrQzg876WpVH7GzP8SqNzsx-XIHr1XefrlzQwTTWqAGLK1-wIWXir4fBcCmJ32NX0nxKN_9Q7KsQP64vFNWXlJ_U341v/s1600/dont+get+stuck!.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459544018660935602" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCBsnZKdFWL9K6raQxPypTxhB46m5SgDQUBoSpZRRRvm0HWOdHhrQzg876WpVH7GzP8SqNzsx-XIHr1XefrlzQwTTWqAGLK1-wIWXir4fBcCmJ32NX0nxKN_9Q7KsQP64vFNWXlJ_U341v/s320/dont+get+stuck!.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><span style="color:#000099;">Sorry if you are a fan of planes and automobiles but this blog is only about trains, the title was much nicer with them included. </span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">It is common knowledge Japan has one of the worlds leading train systems. There is almost nowhere that tracks haven't been laid. Three classes of train race around the country side everyday carrying millions of commuters and a far smaller number of travelers. You haven't experienced real congestion until you've been on a rush hour train in Tokyo. Firstly there is the Shinkansen or bullet train which reaches almost the entire length of the country (apart from a section on our island!!!), it speeds along at close to 300km/h and turns a multi day drive into the fastest trip of your life. They have their own special tracks so no stray dogs or drunk idiots end up on the windscreen.</span><br /><span style="color:#000099;"></span><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459544002129353090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5g0TM9fsIZ_RYEpModJT9iUoAWvePUPDaIxZlgJN63TEvyc_RR8CrAOcaJoEUZYr2c881pZPVwbb6kcNQDB7_-W8KgFU8HdQu56BfgnvnJJdj9WWk6F1wumKv5JC1xJlezBnqJCQ0lKIh/s320/sonic+train.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div align="center"><span style="color:#000000;">The Sonic</span></div><div align="center"> </div><div align="left"><span style="color:#000099;">Next are the sonic trains which travel on all the normal lines and only stop at select stations which are warranted busy enough. They seem to move at about 150km/h.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">Finally we have the local trains which stop at every station regardless of size. The smallest stop I have seen has no conductor, building or ticket machines, it is but a rusty, lonely and spider infested shelter. </span></div><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459544000013379346" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz-mYmO2x4KcXtsZgNDet0ARm1D5nwGh7upUPMvtxuXv3UQPG-vzOmoEpwubp1H18aYLpLLPueE2AlG5P0lRWqFEqKJdZJ4tjBeHLJ5J4WCieTS3wVSX8s9rKstrDRlICzAvAJl_W14LdL/s320/local+train.jpg" border="0" /></p><p align="center"><span style="color:#000000;">A Local train</span></p><span style="color:#000099;">Life on the trains takes on a whole new meaning and for the first 4ish months we were here I was a slave to their shackles. (cue dramatic music). Over this period I devised a set of rules which I believe every train user should follow.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">-Don't be more than 2sec late to the platform or you will miss it. If it says 3:23pm it will depart at 3:23pm.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">-Don't try and con the system by paying for a shorter journey and thinking you'll get away with it because it is 11:30pm and it is the last train AND there is never a ticket man at that time. When you do this it will be the only time in history the ticket man is still there and they WILL stop the train until you pay more.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">-Try not to run to the train in the middle of summer, jump through the doors and then put your arm up to hold on. Others will hate you.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">-Once on the train don't pay any attention to the seats marked for "Elderly, Pregnant or Disabled", no one else does and they are the best seats on the train.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">-You have three options to entertain yourself, 1-sleeping; close your eyes, let your head fall to the side and bump into the person next to you repeatedly, 2-use your cellphone, 3-more sleeping with some snoring. </span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">-Don't make your way to the door early and politely ask people to move. Wait until the last minute then run as fast as you can with your arms out aiming to knock people over. It's more fun and the old grannies set pretty high scores. Once out of the train you can be slow and polite like normal. </span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">-If the carriage looks full push harder. Because we live in the rural wilds the next train is a 3omin wait, so push. Someone will pop out the other door and make room for you eventually.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459543996343176258" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ8KZ_ifehbfZNNNCRG-XbxaCz1FdFqaW5uMWrLO6VCSzpfDqlUHz2fHx3rrKaTwJ2us-akNA55tBRU67hzue9QFenDfHom83HxwZAt80quvgg6Xs0UjDgGwpwUWg70_g9YUb2FKPE5ofV/s320/inside+train.jpg" border="0" /> <p align="center"></span><span style="color:#000000;">A not so busy local train carriage</span></p>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-21925686739924096092010-04-08T05:19:00.000-07:002010-04-08T05:46:08.763-07:00Spring time<div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSybmrN28zYJ8bmv4giIApUnRGTvTF1UtEAyneCf9qc5PGaSqUihyb6PQfIOrnbZqGD4FTWZ8XjBsuluiCfcNf7AIgzJqncB094y3rDjhe_dPtFynR44dIMGMnGnU-_3cYB9MfwwLy2SvK/s1600/hanami+2.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457746417519253250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSybmrN28zYJ8bmv4giIApUnRGTvTF1UtEAyneCf9qc5PGaSqUihyb6PQfIOrnbZqGD4FTWZ8XjBsuluiCfcNf7AIgzJqncB094y3rDjhe_dPtFynR44dIMGMnGnU-_3cYB9MfwwLy2SvK/s320/hanami+2.JPG" border="0" /></a>Hanami in Beppu Park </div><div align="left"><br /></div><div align="left"><div><span style="color:#000099;">It seems that spring is finally gracing us with it's presence....about time! It kind of feels like we have been in a holding pattern weather wise for the last month. With winter pretending to finish around and end of Feb, March looked as though it might bring the warmer weather...instead we had wind and rain. Luckily for us though that appears to be all in the past and we have been enjoying quite an important part of the Japanese year.</span></div><br /><div><span style="color:#000099;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#000099;">Spring means a number of things in Japan. Firstly it is the new financial year, businesses report profits and loss, and this year things aren't look to good for the Japanese economy. Japan Airlines, Asia's biggest airline, is losing 1 billion yen a day (NZ$15 million), has filled for bankruptcy (surprise) and is axing 16,000 staff immediately! Toyota continues to look bad as there cars speed off while the handbrake is on and the general vibe is the economy is rubbish.</span></div><div><span style="color:#000099;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="color:#000099;">Secondly, it is the start of the new school year. Something I have found very strange. Unlike NZ the Japanese school system runs from April - March with only a small break in between the school year and a big break over the summer (July/August) holidays. This means teachers only have a max of 10 days to prepare for the year ahead. What makes things even stranger is that most teachers change school during this time. Teachers are not employed by the schools directly, instead they answer to the board of education in each city/town. This means teachers/secretaries/principals are often switched around each year, especially if you do not have your 'teaching license'. For example, my school has about 45 teachers and 26 of them are new thins year! What makes things even stranger is they only have about 4 days warning before they are required to move! Crazy.</span></div><div><span style="color:#000099;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="color:#000099;">So over the last week it feels like my job has changed a lot. I have a new desk, with new teachers, new students and a whole bunch of new classes.</span></div><div><span style="color:#000099;"></span> </div><div><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457746409662017122" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNNJxyS3ukq4uHp9VBguTnZ_WvcqrJ4XCssHoxKITHjh5bpRLllj0hmyZNb3aBrpVcLJD5MBhOYFoEaKqpl8vQOlAZcd6tx7dCZV9P9HZ8yxGJoKO1991asRZaUlKH9SN1kmXrTjUa2FLM/s320/hanami.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><br /><div><span style="color:#000099;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#000099;">Lastly it's cherry blossom season. If you had to use one thing as a symbol for Japan it would be a tight race between Mt Fuji and cherry blossoms (sakura). The Japanese go crazy over them. As they only bloom for about 2-3 weeks it is a short lived period that everyone makes the most of. The traditional event is 'hanami', basically a picnic under the trees with family and friends. Not wanting to miss out on the fun we have had a few of our own hanamis and a bonfire on the beach!</span></div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457746399266219362" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrWJvTz4DSnqjDs6L53Jv_3_BjDhZBXLJ90kO6__jC7HxeFHcbzKrA93OW0HCfGv7a_LcvSgdyxdZFm4JjiCAUJal2uW27aMiwNm7tpzqsJ83PLM7jMd9V2iWVQUC9JUsVppRqbkWm4817/s320/bonfire.JPG" border="0" /><br /></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-33410310894395597982010-04-07T01:31:00.000-07:002010-04-07T02:09:59.806-07:00The Rugby 7's<div align="justify"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457318256823886418" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv76-yee_48AbY-q7iCpZcKf6n3MrzT8g1-QOj0H4ekQUURPw6MVxdVjZOOtWQ7UBcupIoxUUrxd9zX4S9OniznClTQjhQZopv9GedXcH6hCFnVP19_rTtV8ZYI_9z4W7C7XpTMLFFT57N/s320/the+stadium.JPG" border="0" /> The stadium at night<br /><div align="justify"><br /></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000099;">There really is no other way of describing the Hong Kong Sevens without including the word ‘party’. Having already spent 2 months in HK I knew exactly what I was in for in terms of Hong Kong itself but with Asia's biggest sporting event in town it added a whole other dimension to things.<br /><br />There is probably no other place in Asia which is as westernised or English friendly as HK, remembering it was British up until a few years ago. This means a few things; firstly it’s easy choosing what to eat, secondly the food and especially the supermarkets are a real mixture of western and Chinese, thirdly everything is in dual languages and if not then it’s the Chinese which is missing,finally, every British person who left when HK was handed back to the Chinese comes back for a visit while the sevens are on. I guess it’s a good excuse!<br /><br />The stadium has to be one of the most amazing stadiums in the world; I challenge anyone to find one that beats it. On one side you have jungle, thick, green and uninviting. I know from experience it takes hours to make any progress ‘walking’ through it. On the other you have the world’s best skyline, 100’s of buildings reaching upwards and as night falls you have the worlds best night skyline with award winning light show. Even though you are there to watch rugby it’s hard not to spend half the time looking around. </span></div><div align="justify"><span style="color:#000099;"> </div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457318551093933938" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQtKOAG41hA2_kAeb6EVURtRdfWfVgBfc9SAtfQq0LIZUmliRZqLxRAS2p_BVBpU9oVGybJ9gBg6o1A5KSJhqXAXLQ_zYkxjQKboE9XfEwAO9TJeNqb_qutHWh6z3FpSd7WmOr9Ew77sSS/s320/meg+and+the+crowd.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><span style="color:#000099;"><p align="justify">The south stand is party central. With a max capacity of 6,000ppl, for safety reasons, it’s the place to be if you are more interested in beer than rugby. Everyone is dressed up and costumes range from where’s Wally, Steve Irwin, Arab princess, Ginger bread men, police men and flight attendants right through to things not even the person wearing it knows what it is. </p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457318264478635986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaKFszdG48V4VtcrlNq0-6jo1tYH56nVNjbMr2jDlAox6ptHR6kGosp4HW9UfXBxdz2D5qjlov1FxJ_hztV8HStygVs6gc-XlXo7SkknHKUdfsYrvGv666dYhGMsgsA-QCqxK0DagHZp7z/s320/the+south+stand.JPG" border="0" /></span> <div align="center"><span style="color:#000099;"><span style="color:#000000;">South stand antics</span></div><p>The rugby itself was incredible and I can see why 7's it has been included in the Olympics. It is easily better than the normal '15' a side version as each game is fast, fun and action packed. Every team has a chance of winning and the crowd is always happy, even when their team doesn't do too well. Hong Kong was a crowd favorite with seemingly every one of the 40,000 people cheering for them. England was next in line as the ‘home team’ with sides like NZ, Australia and South Africa only being supported by true fans like us. Needles to say we weren't well liked. Thankfully though France was the least favorite team, booed every time they touched the ball!</p><p align="center"></span><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457318262452537378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBsrrzF02LqoyJVoM4JXXEbtEqLiFjR-1Khq6rwnOKafhWYQ3lhQNC7dE7YkDG18n4F0brohyqr9goyKP69cW1hDtrf4kTihJRUvOh6Cwj5toljyFg7NaUtDgJOdCw5oBNwNjKdzF8T_RB/s320/the+battle+begins.JPG" border="0" />The battle begins</p><span style="color:#000099;">I was almost jumping on my chair after the first few minutes of the final, with a 14-0 lead I didn't think Samoa would come back to beat us...maybe it was the crowd support that got them there in the end.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;"></span><br /><span style="color:#000099;"><span style="color:#000000;">Highlights:</span> Watching a streaker run the length of the field, climb up onto the goal post and jump up and down on the crossbar before jumping off, evading the security guards and playing with the ball at halfway, pretending to give up and then racing off again before being tackled trying to get off the field.</span><br /><span style="color:#000099;"></span><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457318269049748818" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9RTc7R50OebsmowqfdUS8sGanuu-afVxLBkpawitW84ofZijt-3QA3kHooi_feOG8BGhbhZspZEEM5w4Bz4G9FCD3o3cxsHznmhSDeKv2yMK9eIO2lOe6NfOKTd4SCMKX0dirlD7662V8/s320/streaker.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div align="center"><span style="color:#000099;"></span> </div><span style="color:#000099;">Having two old poms behind us analyze each move and talkig as though they could do better. "Oh if only he'd passed it he had a man on his outside and he could have got a try...by jeez this really is amazing isn't it....I mean look at them what are they doing....Oh this really is great isn't it.....I got upgraded because I wasn't happy with my hotel....</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;">Eating a mince pie.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;"></span><br /><span style="color:#000099;">Asking the old lady infront of us where she bought her sausage roll and after I told her I hadn't had one in 8 months she gave me half of it.</span><br /><br /><span style="color:#000099;"></span><br /><span style="color:#000099;">Overall it was a fantastic time and I highly recommend making a trip to HK.</span><br /><span style="color:#000099;"></span><br /><span style="color:#000099;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457318250820177282" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmofQMPQYEKUn5s64xl-zPumRfp-ej8OxegE2zzUw5Z03EDO7lAXJn0unX8s-TNjKF0kRi2OWDcFpXxp0GJdy9vuL01-ZMrEUmuvyMw0fn7gNK3gby3LeMLXoXzbxtLkfCBiAn_hpnQ6r-/s320/fireworks+finale.JPG" border="0" /></span>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-1012151429091696402010-04-01T22:01:00.000-07:002010-04-01T22:16:47.195-07:00Hong Kong by day...<span style="color:#ff0000;">Hong Kong is one of those cities that make you go wow! From the enormous skyscrapers to the millions of double-decker buses, the mix between the old and the new, wild jungle and spectacular views it really is a feast for the senses! </span><br /><div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;">Not knowing really what to expect I was totally blown away by the sheer enormity of some of the buildings! I’m pretty sure I’ve come home with a permanent crick in my neck from constantly looking up!</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color:#000000;">Highlights:</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#000000;">The Peak Tram</span> – an old school cable car that whizzes you up about as high as you can go in Hong Kong to reveal the most spectacular views across the city! It was the perfect place to get a different perspective of the island and to see just how much of it is still covered in wild jungle! It’s not for the faint hearted though as getting to top is harrowing enough but getting down is even worse given you have to come down seated backwards! The gradient is so steep that if you were sitting forward you would fly right off your seat... it’s also goes surprisingly fast so it felt a little too much like a rollercoaster for my liking!</span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span> </div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455401573588966866" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjizcJCojGmWxNC-vrHqLDphKmQCuALPVHLj5zYqQR9HCtRX5JiyqcfvxNOVyfSmXRoAeky9Lyadsl5MKvz18OY4kgIkQUTGVHOVLmpDw_FFzjCfoFJUUz7qngsXawfBwN6tQz9QYCIX3F2/s320/the+peak+view.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#000000;">The Rugby 7’s</span> – Nathan is going to do a separate blog on this but it was totally worth coming to Hong Kong for! It was awesome being in a crowd of 40,000 all cheering for different teams but all there to have a good time! Fun times all round!</span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span> </div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455402109090227442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjARa83tP5GAttOP8CP3_iCYyhHwX0QCfbku5r6jgiQb7pucOqxZl6I-eTgTb7B1KFUxdu_Zpv9Idqjrsj8Pb5b5t5KED9rePzJmOrs-A-vLEcHiKbKHPmwtP_X_IqdUlSsY3N3Lpqal1X6/s320/rugby.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><br /><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#000000;">Stanley Bay</span> – This is definitely where you would want to live in Hong Kong if you had the money! It’s hard to believe you’re even still in Hong Kong when you’re standing around the other side of the island to the city on beautiful white sand beaches, where the pace is a million times slower and there is open space for miles! The market over there was also pretty awesome – as were the cafes on every corner and the amazing supermarket we spent ages wandering in! </span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span> </div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></div></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455401552372867298" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpvS-kpfYYi9cTJ0ckHkfJ9G0RqQuO1y6YGyUkUTl2TGJY8atNwRPCZ3bGVEMxquVHYYDFl-BuRQAsbVt5Rbm2g8Ar2YkN9RlFnGOIpMgytM4-x2C58ywZFkQMkyj7XXjC0AcS9whqEsrX/s320/boats.JPG" border="0" /></span> <div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#000000;"></span></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#000000;"></span></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#000000;"></span></span> </div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><span style="color:#000000;">Giant Bronze Buddha</span> – Giant doesn’t even begin to describe how enormous this thing was! It was bigger than gigantic! On a regular day there is an amazing 6km gondola that takes you out to it, complete with glass bottoms and unbeatable views (so we’re told) - however we were unlucky enough to encounter the windiest day in the history of Hong Kong (ok maybe not but it was pretty damn windy!) so the gondola wasn’t running. Instead we had to catch a bus with a million other tourists in town for the rugby over the most twisty-turny roads I have ever been on! But... despite the ridiculously windy day and the thousands of steps to get up close to it, the Buddha was incredible! I have no idea how high is stands but it sure was huge! There was also a really interesting monastery there which we enjoyed spending time looking around and comparing to the temples and shrines we have seen here in Japan. We loved all the bright colours and intricate artwork that it was shrouded in floor to ceiling. </span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455401562884569138" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh895AjRjslWaP0cux1xogFPvEalGcrv2nX66AY9PVWKoZ2dwxdRvuAPZgf4-8N62BDsYHXjpuL6v1LQddXb-Q7rN_naaFHhRRd-B5Qp172M3aku7rFvwIMfKxhDZ77hJfsS0AKrXPiv7Bs/s320/stairs+to+buddha.JPG" border="0" /></span></div><div></div><div></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455401555677390610" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglIy_X738a0Woa51_qgj7XeD4EqD_9QGCTyCPpHHlbPFvWaEgwZoiYyZQz1FHS8UCs1RdKZ3Nk1erzDrVr_AVXeE4T6FQEztMSdPw1nBVOs1kd5CqHdPbuCDs_wZAWn-GNCmDTo7R-NOaZ/s320/wind.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455401579233699058" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_zlN3LkmqwspUF2-7W_5rjpZZ2bVXlwk2bcoQtvSvs2G987ZfmTSNI_alJ8J-UvW9igbetUWfLmz2gmtUZfHD9zGiO6CTlqqFqUIKlx5co-VkgGWWNka8lcGm7bLwwibGJnSUTD9cguN4/s320/monestry.JPG" border="0" /></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span></div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;"></span> </div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;">We did so many other amazing things too and like usual took hundreds of photos but seriously loved every minute of it! </span></div></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7352932820952171925.post-34182681071619906722010-04-01T21:33:00.000-07:002010-04-01T21:50:06.377-07:00Hong Kong by night...<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455395793985406034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGA-76TmW6kEApbltDsI6McVVfRCByEDOqltxS7slFIV_d6JEo2BBxjLPC2iHMUkUxEyWPhb6kMQC9E1tjdqp5zW6FDGIhpdx3xDSvvn4C-cuShW-Qz72VpqXBdEXaa5cACR2hnGooShPH/s320/people+at+night.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><div><div><span style="color:#ff0000;">After dark is when Hong Kong really comes alive... but I can assure you the city is anything but dark! I would love to know just how many skyscrapers there are in Hong Kong but based on the number of lights that shine our across the city at night it must be a staggering number! </span><span style="color:#ff0000;"><br /><div><br /><div><div>A major highlight for us was the spectacular Symphony of Lights show that plays every night. Basically it’s a 10 minute light extravaganza synchronized with music in which many of the city skyscrapers are lit up in a variety of colours using spotlights and laser beams etc. It’s no surprise that the night cityscape is considered one of the best in the world, if not the best in the world – the lights themselves are amazing but coupled with the way they reflect and twinkle in the water makes them that much more spectacular. </div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455395819027463202" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzD87TnjuPtGFchBRBpSEpHXBMtcnIDLYVMLanXydjcz_on2AG8GH_XJpS5f7qUjQmxcLaQuW7K30dRIZD4Ryr9lP_RWTRRZ1xEJcWAuouppX95D7zizpV5eDlwGzUWyr1ANYCb96QuJg_/s320/meg+and+nath+water.JPG" border="0" /></div><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455395806309730050" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia7oWLynPKxqmFubk_cTNOWq3faWRdIVZoOFtp7rZEIKezOye0IRnFEx-j79z3SZKNPa4qEAjQGR0ISe6jmhf-jH4KnNWej0fAG-dU-T8-bSyrrYRQMlvZfUG1S87tKlihuSGjGCJ8x6-X/s320/light+show.JPG" border="0" /></div><br /><div>Hong Kong also has a number of really wicked night markets that are a hive of activity until the early hours of the morning. If you can stand the jostling that inevitably goes on when you have hundreds of people all trying to walk down the narrow alleyways lined with stalls then not only do you deserve a medal but also a bargain or two along the way! It was really interesting seeing the different selling styles of the stall holders – The majority were ultra pushy and would practically accost you on your way past all the while yelling in your face “you want copy bag, copy watch, I give very good price”. Then there were the ones who sat there half asleep, barely lifting an eyelid as you tried to ask how much something was. We soon learnt that unless you were seriously interested in buying something it was far better not to touch or even look out the corner of your eye at anything because as soon as you did you were more often than not swooped on! </div><div> </div><div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455396857725383522" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLZvChD79H-iqcdcBvVZ3QWU319MmJ0Z9TNrEt5hI2PDfqw9aEKuzn2Z48oYgBJRi2u6BeKPSctsJ_8IBhXdFwtwn4NXmaUvbzhlTIw9Tk7w0ZDK15wpc0IebwBZ4HIl7n1S6pkXNHk2JT/s320/market.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div></div><div>As well as all the little nick-knacks in the markets there was also a variety of tasty-goodness food stalls. It’s true that as you walked past some of them it smelt more like you had walked through someone’s fart rather than a food stall but on the whole they all looked and smelt pretty appealing! We were quite taken with the steaming bamboo baskets of Dim Sum as well as all the ducks hanging by their necks waiting to be cut up and served. </div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455395791742591922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyCEKuEUMXfR8s5MxrTVXyog7Jku0SDurUZ-0SMyMBegyYW-6aRfUyGCLjh4ovu1BcwmQWGK8QjbN6rbtWxNs4AqtvAwzvorDLDKhFWEQ06nEx9A9_qsPUDafMCeScpXPbI76HN3OYA-_0/s320/duck.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455395786772741042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnP5N5PvTJqz8xAzt6_vXQk8oMatCpq99MZ6kq8qmJ6TGvmavJpUQHVfRX4IQfpTJShV5xGBFCUmeW8Ipm0Le63MVegmSTmRGpcP9V2vhwdBKW53ghXquY5YCv26gMoTNFJTwm_GOZ5ZaD/s320/dim+sum.JPG" border="0" /><br />The Lonely Planet Guide was dead right that if you’re in bed before 11pm you’re missing out the real Hong Kong!</span></div></div></div></div></div></div>Megan and Nathanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13527574245976216883noreply@blogger.com0