The Weekend Review - Onsens, Birthday & Lunch with the Girls

I am a bit tired today due to the fact that I was up late last night dealing with taxes (last year's, of all things) and bank stuff at home. I recently discovered that I was supposed to have gotten the American economic stimulus check last year, but didn't, so I was on hold with the IRS for a while trying to work out why and then also had to contact my bank because my online banking wasn't working. Be glad you don't have a 14-hour time difference when you need to deal with these things...

The IRS

So first of all, I have to say I was surprised by how helpful the IRS was. Granted, they did put me on hold for a long time and the first woman I spoke to gave me the wrong answer before transferring me to someone who could better assist with my issue, but in the end, the person I spoke with was really knowledgeable and gave me the detailed information and resources I needed. It sounds like I might get a rebate for the money I should have gotten last year, which will be nice, too.

Banking Problems due to... China?

I also eventually figured out the issue with the bank's website, but I have to say I found the root cause of my issues a bit funny. It seems that some countries have internet protocol address bans on them and it can sometimes affect the surrounding regional countries as well.
Recently, the block in China has been affecting other regions in the Asia Pacific including parts of Japan and Australia. Oh, China. I remember my main news sites being blocked when I was last in China, teaching English in Xianyang in '04, but for it to affect normal internet activity in Australia and Japan? Not good.

Belated Birthday Presents from my Japanese Twin

I had a really exciting surprise when I got to school today and found a little surprise waiting for me on my desk. In Japan, it's common for graduating high school students to take a trip when they finish classes, so last week Ms. Nozaki (my "twin") went to Guam with some of the handball girls she used to coach this weekend. She even went skydiving (she said she felt like she could do it if I did it... cute) and to the water park with the girls, but the omiyage/birthday present she brought back was more than generous... a backpack from Planet Hollywood!!

When I saw the bag, I didn't want to take it because I know licensed gear can be really expensive, but Nozaki insists she got a good deal (she bought them for me and her kids) and I really need a new backpack, so it's perfect. I absolutely love the backpack I have, but I've had it since high school and it's on it's last leg so I guess it was just lucky timing (and how cool is it to have a bag with Guam written on it?). Wow, huge Thank You to Nozaki!! Yatta.

The Weekend

It's hard to believe it's already Tuesday afternoon, but the now quickly-passing weekend was also a really nice, notably because it was filled with multiple visits to the local hotsprings, time with fun people and a great birthday party at Dave's house on Saturday night.

So, Friday was the last day with my Takasago Minami High School 3rd years (including my International Studies class). These are the kids I started with and have come to know well, so I stayed at school talking to some of them in the afternoon. Once I got home, however, I realized I wasn't going to make it to class until after our break so I called to say I'd be absent and went straight to Amagasaki to meet Dave and watch Slumdog Millionaire. When I got there, we ended up talking for most of the night and didn't get to the movie part, but it was a generally relaxing evening and I thankfully got to bed at a semi-decent hour.

part 1 - the hike
On Saturday morning, we all met at Ashiyagawa Station, near Kobe on the Hankyu line, around 9am to go on the hike Chris organized for his 28th birthday. I've written about doing this trail several times now, but Chris has probably done the path at least 15 times and I can safely say it's one of everyone's favorites - and was a great idea for a birthday celebration.

In the morning, I was a little hesitant about going because the weather forecast predicted rain, but the mildly chilly weather turned out to be pretty perfect for hiking, with a little rain hitting us only at the very end of the hike. By that point (a few hours in & on the other side of Rokko), we were pretty much going downhill anyways, though, so we lightly jogged the last hour or so, finishing - as always - with a soak in the Arima hotsprings. Had fun taking shortcuts this time around (the mud made running down hills feel adeventurous) and it was nice to chat with my friend Maki in the baths.

Before I forget.... I FINALLY saw a wild boar on Mt. Rokko!! Here's Goran with our new little friend. I was so excited:

The inoshishi (boars) are pretty tame, but can get aggressive if there are babies present or if they smell food.

This guy actually came really close to me before I realized he was probably smelling the lunch I was carrying (and I ran away...). Still fun to see him:

One of the best parts of the Rokko hike is the views it affords you of sprawling Osaka and Kobe.

We usually stop to rest and eat lunch when we reach the summit during this hike, but the wind really started to pick up at this point, so we ate inside a hut this time instead.

It was probably for the better - check out the normally gorgeous views of Osaka on Saturday. We were literally just lost in the fog, wind and clouds!:

Part 2 - the party

After the hike, we all went back to Dave's house for the second part of the birthday event - le Party!

Chris and Dave had biked to Costco before I came over on Friday and picked up six giant pizzas, cut them up and stuffed them into the fridge. In Japan, most houses do not have conventional ovens, but smaller, electric ones or microwave/oven combinations are popular and thankfully Dave had a microwave that worked well for zapping the pizzas a day later... which saved us the $30/pizza that most places charge and made for awesome party food!

There ended up being about 30 people all together at the party, with Chris's friends, coworkers and a few of his coworkers kids present. People brought their own things to drink and we basically just sat around talking and enjoying the night.

After most people had left the party, Dave and I stayed up dancing with Bob and Katie for a few hours. By the time we were finished, Bob was just too tired to walk home and Katie didn't want to let him stay over alone. Even with small heaters in the house, there is no insulation and Dave didn't have enough blanket for all of us... so we all piled into the same bed!

Saturday night was probably one of the warmest nights I've had for a while (sandwiched between two people, hotwater bottle at my feet and 10 blankets on top), but it was kind of fun waking up and chatting ... felt like a big slumber party!





Spa Day in Sannomiya

It took me a while to get up the next morning, but I made breakfast, helped clean up and went on a little run, before heading into Sannomiya with Katie and Emi for girl's day at the spa.

It was great! We met some other girls and had lunch before checking out the Kobe Spa & Sauna, a posh hotspring sauna in central Kobe. My friend Amy had raved about the spa and I've always been curious about checking it out, so it was fun to go (to both the baths and hotstone rooms) with a group of girls.
After the spa, we went to a cute, trendy izakaya Deyi knew about to share some cake and chat before heading our seperate ways. I'm looking forward to doing it again.

Here are some shots from dinner at Pizza Kitchen (PK), just off Flower Road in Sannomiya. I think they had the best pizza and salad I've had in Japan:
This started as just an informal comment about girl's day (Kate) and then about going to the spa (Emi), but I am pretty glad it turned into a full-fledged group girl's day. We need more of these! Here is the group that made it out (and Kate, who seems to be her own little island here... think it's an Awaji thing... haha):