Naked Man Festival
When I returned to Japan after Christmas break, I found it only a couple of degrees warmer than I left it. Averaging a high of 13°C a day (about 55°F),…
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Staten Island’s Alice Austen House
Staten Island is a dump—literally and figuratively. It used to house the world’s largest landfill before it closed in 2001, and although it is the third-largest borough of New York…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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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,…
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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!).…
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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…
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Cape Toi: Wild Horses and an Abandoned Hotel
The third of November was a perfect autumn day. The sun was a warm blanket in the car and the crisp, sea air blowing through the window was cool enough…
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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…
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Cosmos, Fire, Dance and Drums: Saitobaru Kofun Festival
My former roommate and longtime bro, Matthew, decided to come to Miyazaki for a week during his month-long visit to Japan. Since Culture Day fell on Monday the 3rd, and I had a day off…
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