the buzz
Damn, I really need to cut caffeine and sugar out of my diet. I�ve had so much lately that the very thought of it repulses me and yet I keep imbibing more. Every social interaction during break times revolves around some form of sweet stimulant. My heart is racing, I�m retaining water, my skin has broken out terribly. And chocolate makes me ill. CHOCOLATE MAKES ME ILL!!!!!!!111 This is a terrible thing! Yet I�ve been kind of foregoing lunch and so even with all the snacking, I haven�t been packing. A steady 63(ish) kilos for me. Whoop de doo.

�Course it could just be that I�m losing muscle mass, being as I haven�t lifted weights (or ran, or done anything other than copious amounts of leisurely walking) over break. Then again, these lazy times are the best I�ve had yet. Tomorrow (yay!) Chris, Colin, Reinier, Leila and I are going to Mt. Mitake to hike all day and stay all night in a lovely mountain inn. If you�ll believe it, one night, meals included in this place is only Y4500. That�s about $40US. Getting there takes 3 hours by train, bus and cable car. No wonder they want to draw customers.

I�m looking forward to quiet, contemplation, conversation and a bit of energizing exercise. Did I mention QUIET?

Really, what I�m most anticipating is hiking. The few times I�ve been outside of the city here were spent in cars or busses, ogling the wilderness through tinted glass. Friggin sightseeing. I want to get out and USE my body to do something other than commute or sit in a desk all day. I wasn�t built for the modern workplace!

I much prefer walking around and hiking to going to the gym and spending hours of monotony lifting heavy objects in a room full of airheads and idiots. Lord knows I won�t be going to the gym during the seven-week spring break either. First off, the Waseda gym is a 45 minute commute from my house. It�s just time consuming. Secondly, I�m spending five weeks in the company of travel companions. About two weeks of that time I�ll be in Tokyo mucking about in a relaxed fashion but another three I�ll be out and abroad in Japan.

Justin and I are going to Hokkaido for seven days via overnight train with an all-inclusive train pass for the North Country. First, we�re hitting Sapporo for the last two days of the Yuki Matsuri. Then, we�re spending one night at a nice hostel in Otaru and perhaps skiing a bit. After that, we have two nights (Friday the 13th and Valentines Day!) down in Toya-ko National park near the volcanoes and lakes there at a really awesome, cheap onsen inn. Finally, one night in Hakone before returning to Tokyo again by overnight train. After a few days in the city, we�re flying to Okinawa where we�ve got a few nights in the city and a few nights on the north end of the island at a resort hotel (off season price!). Probably do some diving and hiking there too. Definitely do some swimming and sunbathing. I�m just glad to have a date for Tokyo Disney, Kabuki and watching Return of the King (stupid late release date). *wink*

After another 4(ish) days in Tokyo, Justin leaves for home. At the end of that next week, Alex is coming from the states and we�re also gonna do the Tokyo thing tacked onto the ends of a 7(ish) day trip to the Kansai region to tour Kyoto, Nara, Osaka and Kobe. Big plans with him to stay in a temple for one night and also to visit the Studio Ghibli museum.

On one hand, I�m kissing goodbye three grand that I COULD be using to pay off my college debt but on the other hand� that�s a really stupid thing to even worry about. I�m here to travel and I KNOW it�s an expensive place to do it but I�m going to do it anyway. Justin is already being generous enough to provide a huge portion of the price tag on our trip. Let�s not talk about how much it�s gonna cost. That�s why it�s nice to have a job. I�m just happy I can live off teaching English and leave my bank account alone for travel purposes.

If I�ve learned anything this break, it�s how nice it is to actually GET OUT THERE and see the country. Something tells me that those five weeks will be the best out of all the time I spend here, both for the company and for the experience.