• Inside America’s Most Haunted Prison

    “Lesson 4,” a voice blasted from the MP3 player of the man sitting across from me. It was the only noise on an otherwise quiet bus, the bumble of which…

  • Two Days in Chicago, Part 2

    After sleeping off a deep-dish dinner from Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria, we met up with Kyle again and walked to Old Town. The clear skies were gone, replaced with clouds and…

  • Two Days in Chicago, Part 1

    If you’re a fan of the TV show Shameless, then you know that scene in the last episode of Season 4 where Carl wheels Frank, who has just left hospital…

  • Christmas Lights in Miyazaki

    For a country that doesn’t really celebrate Christmas, Japan sure knows how to do Christmas lights. They are the romantic backdrop for Christmas Eve – a night celebrated like Valentines Day,…

  • Nyutabaru Air Festival

    I’ve barely left my apartment these past two weekends—a last-ditch effort to tighten the purse strings before my big trip to New York later this month (12 days and counting!).…

  • Exploring Aya Town

    On the fourth day of Matthew’s visit—and the last day we would be able to sightsee together—we decided to visit Aya. An hour or so west of Takanabe, the town is…

  • Garden of Statues in Heiwadai Park

    One of my colleauges sent me on a little treasure hunt one typhoon day. The students weren’t at school and I was sitting at my desk wondering why the teachers bothered to…

  • Yabusame Festival Gone Wrong

    Waking up to a spectacular view of the countryside from an apartment window in Kanoya, Kagoshima, I never thought the day would end in blood and tears.

  • Takanabe Lantern Festival

    On any given weekend in Japan, there is at least one festival on somewhere to be enjoyed. Of all the ones I have been to, Takanabe‘s Lantern Festival is one of my…

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