Conquer Mt. Fuji! Thailand Pt. 2: Ayutthaya, Tigers, and Temples! Thailand Pt. 1 So I Went to Tokyo Disney Last Weekend Pt. 2: Disney Sea So I Went To Disney Last Weekend So I Went to Korea Last Weekend Coming Soon: Hokkaido Hijinks Pt. I: Sapporo, The Michigan of Japan! Coming Soon: Hokkaido Hijinks Pt. II: Niseko, The Frozen Australia of Japan! Treasure of Osaka! The Greatest Shirt Ever!?! The Ghostly Gaijin! Enter Kaatis-sensei! Toba and Nara! That dude knows what's up. Remember who you are.

Author Archives: Curtis

I like big butts and I cannot lie. I am the modern man (secret secret, I've got a secret) who hides behind a mask (secret secret, I've got a secret) so no one else can see (secret secret, I've got a secret) my true identity. I cry sometimes when I'm lying in bed just to get it all out, what's in my head. And I, I'm feeling a little peculiar. And so I wake in the morning and I step outside and I take a deep breath and get real high, and I scream at the top of my lungs, "What's going on?" And I say: Heeeeyyyyyy yeeeahhhh yeeeeahhhh, I said hey! What's going on?

Kahrtis Goes to School

This week marked my first visits to a few of my schools. And by this week, I mean the week of August 24th, not the much later date I got around to posting it (oops (…I did it again (that video has like a 38 second unnecessary intro, which I know because it’s now stuck […]

The True Love is Like a Blindness Ghost

Now we’ve come to the grand finale of my week of Obon, and what a grand finale it is (I think this stuff was more interesting. I mean I had fun the other days, but aquariums and festivals are just more fun than me going to school or whatever else I did). This one even […]

Haado Geino

This week in Japan was Obon. It’s one of the busiest weeks of the year because almost everyone gets off that week. During Obon, Japanese families make vessels out of eggplant (or aubergine if you’re one of them funny-talkin’ people) to help the spirits of their ancestors return to visit them. This was a little […]

Kancho: A Thousand Years of Death

Wednesday was my one week anniversary here in Tsu. I’ve been told over and over by previous JETs how the first week or so is a rush and they can barely remember it. I now understand why. Other than the fact that I still haven’t unpacked a lot of my clothes, it seems like I’ve […]

It’s-a Mie, Mario!

Ok, first of all, that title only works if you pronounced it right. It’s Mee-ay, it doesn’t rhyme with pie. Come on, I did a whole pronunciation guide for a reason. Work with me here. Anyway, yes. After a long two days (that makes it sound sarcastic, but it wasn’t) of Tokyo orientation, I finally […]

Come on and Slam, and Welcome to Japan

If you didn’t get the title reference, go and listen to Space Jam right now (or even better, any mashup. Actually, while you’re at it, listen to that whole soundtrack because it’ll get you pumped for anything (however I can’t recommend watching the movie. Keep it preserved in your mind for what it was). I […]

Maibara – Old McDonald Had Too Many Damn Animals

This post is part of The Lost Chronicles, a series of entries exploring my previous journeys to the land of the rising sun. A few days after my graduation, I went with a few volunteers to put on 3-4 short classes to teach English to kids of various ages. We had met a few times […]

Final Weekend – Hikone: Will Heather Find a Job That Won’t Interfere With a Tan?

Welcome to The Lost Chronicles, a series of posts I forgot to update previously thought to be lost forever. Here we explore my previous journeys through the land of the rising sun. The first entry was written after my graduation from JCMU, but was never posted because of no Wi-Fi ninjas. Hajimemashou. For my final […]

I’m Baaaaaack AKA JET Set

Hello. How are you? Have you been alright on all those lonely, lonely nights? That’s what I’d say, I’d tell you everything if you picked up that telephone. But who needs a telephone when I can tell you everything right here? No physical interactions required! That’s right, I’m back by popular demand (and boredom), and […]

Wk 8 – Kyoto Pt. 2: Me Love You Long Time

I’m back! Miss me? Of course you did (unless I’ve seen you in the past few days). Well, let’s get started! Fun Fact: The world’s highest dive was from 177ft. high. What does that have to do with Japan? Nothing, but I can’t think of anything, and it’s on this box of Cocoa Puffs. First […]

Mini Update 4: Still Alive

Don’t you hate it when your favorite show stops running new episodes for a while even though the season’s not over? So do I, that why I’d like to apologize for the lack of updates lately. It’s only been two weeks, but with all I’ve done, it feels much longer than that. I wanted to […]

Mini Update 3: New Feature and Fireworks!

ZOMBIE BILLY MAYS HERE! Are you too young, too old, or too uncool to get some of Curtis’ references? Do you find yourself thinking, “What the is he talking about?” Do you feel the need to Google things, but are too lazy to do so? Then check out the brand new Mouseover! By just hovering […]

Wk 7 – Nagoya Pt. 2: Licking Doorknobs is Illegal on Other Planets

Fun fact: Long ago, sumo was an important ritual at the imperial court. Representatives of each province were ordered to attend the contest at the court and fight. They were required to pay for their travels themselves. The contest was known as sumai no sechie, or “sumai party.” This week I’d like to apologize to […]

Wk 6 – Kanazawa: Keep in Touchy

Fun fact: Umi no Hi (Marine/Ocean/Sea Day) is a Japanese holiday where people give thanks to the sea and everything it has provided them. It’s a lot like Labor Day in that everybody gets of work/school, but nobody really gives a crap about it otherwise. I’ve realized that since I’m in Japan, and it’s near […]

Mini-post: Photo update

I finally received some pictures from my trip to the elementary school, so I uploaded them. You can view them in the normal Pictures tab or under “Elementary School“. I also realized that I had not created a separate tab for the Gifu pictures, so that has been added as well. The pictures were there […]