Unemployment

Not having a job has been pretty nice. Maybe a little too nice. I just got back from Costa Rica for a two-week vacation (from what?) and have resumed my not-working status in Utah. I guess I really have to figure out what I'm going to do soon, but so far, I have no leads.
So here are some pictures of my last month or so...
Bryce Canyon

My Halloween costume

Possibly the brightest rainbow I have ever seen

And, Costa Rica:

Waterfall in La Fortuna

Hanging bridges in the rainforest

Volcan Arenal

Building in San Jose

White-faced monkey that really wanted food from us in Cahuita National Park

Playa Blanca in Cahuita National Park

The nearly perfect beach in front of our 'cabinas' in Punta Uva

What we woke up to every day at our place in Punta Uva

Utah

I am still in Southern Utah, where the internet is a little spotty. This is the only picture I can put up right now. Due to a huge storm, we had to cancel a trip to the Zion Narrows, but I've been able to do a lot of other hiking here. I also visited my possible future college town and renewed my interest in it. It's looking like I will end up in Cedar City sometime in the near future to get my teaching certificate.
Anyway, I hope to get more pictures up soon...

Work

I actually worked a couple of days in Jackson, helping some friends with banquets at the Jackson Lake Lodge. I had photographic evidence, but somehow I deleted the pictures off my camera. I really wanted to document Kris and I in the uniform. Let's just say it was formal-western-server wear. It was great. It also snowed while we were up there.

Other than that, I'm still not doing much of any significance, but I have the cutest nephews in the world.

OH! And then there is this. I went to the library to check out some information on Costa Rica, where I will most likely be heading for a couple of weeks in November, and I found this picture in a guidebook:
This is a moth caterpillar that uses mimicry to protect itself from predators. If I don't see a sloth in Costa Rica, I want to at least see this!

'Home' Sweet Home

Well, I haven't worked a bit since returning to the states, but I'm not too upset about it. This is what I've been up to for the last couple of weeks:The Utah desert!!
I had a lot of fun playing in the mud.

After the desert,I headed up north to visit Kris in Wyoming.
This is a lake east of Jackson Hole that was created by a landslide. I don't remember when it happened, but you can still see the trees that were covered.

A few miles past the lake I got confused and forgot where I was. It was a nice surprise to see red again! I had no idea this even existed around Jackson.

There are one or two Japanese habits I need to get rid of.

I was planning on doing a good hike in Yellowstone today, but the weather turned cold and rainy. So instead of hiking, I did the tourist thing and saw some of the sights I haven't seen in a few years.
Including the essential 10-minute "Bison Jam".
It was more out of habit than anything that I stopped at Old Faithful, but I got there just in time to see it go.
And that's been my life for the last 2 weeks. I will probably be here for another week or so, then I have no idea.

Home?

I have been back in Utah for about a week now. It has definitely taken some getting used to. I already made a trip down to the desert, and next will be headed up to Jackson, WY to play for a while. After that, I have no idea. Besides a trip to Costa Rica in November, I will just be trying to find random jobs in random places. Then, the plan (for now) is to go to school in January to get my teaching certificate. If I stick with that, in less than 2 years, I will be a high school Biology teacher. We will see...

This is it

I have packed up all of my things and am ready to fly out tomorrow. I really can't believe I have been here for a year. That's more than 1/10 of my adult life! It was a really good experience and it hasn't quite set in that it's over. But I guess the excitement of getting back home is outweighing it a little bit. I will get to see family and friends, eat Mexican food, watch movies, go camping, understand everything people are saying to me- it definitely has an appeal. See you all soon!

Things I will miss about Japan

Conveyor belt sushi. The fashion. Sakura. Crazy festivals. Vending machines. The fish selection at the supermarket. Riding my bike or the train everywhere. Getting to know people from all over the world- shoved together in one foreign place. Dodgeball. Conbinis. Rock Scissors Paper. Engrish. Temples and shrines. My students. The chime of City Hall at noon. Karaoke booths. Ramen shops. Fast-food udon. K-cars. Watching train conductors go through their routine. Mugi-cha. Good chocolate. Bakeries. Feeling so safe all the time. Watching women walk in their high heels. Supermarket sushi. Electronics stores. The close-door button on the elevator actually working. Sports day at school. Maples in the fall. Umbrellas. The good Italian and Indian restaurants in Kakamigahara. The sweet potato vendor's music. 30+ choices of tofu. The taiko game. Eiji's magic. Izakayas. Restaurant service.

Too tired to write

I have had some form of going away party or dinner every night this last week- 3 yesterday alone! Anyway, I am too tired to write anything, so here are just some pictures.

The following are from a really nice Botanical Garden in Sapporo.

Hokkaido, pt. 2

*small disclaimer: I obviously still haven't figured out how to format this blog because the template is weird, so the picures may not line up with the captions. Sorry.
I only have 2 1/2 weeks left here in Japan and I am going crazy. I never thought there would be this much to do! But I will take a little time out to post more about Hokkaido.
So after getting to Daisetsu-zan Natl. Park, we had time to relax, so I went to my first onsen (hot spring bath). It was on the 7th floor of a fancy hotel, and it had an outdoor bath that overlooked the surrounding mountains. It was a little awkward at first, because I had no idea what to do, but after some other women came in, I could just follow them. And was it worth it. No pictures, though.
The next day, we went hiking up a peak named Kuro-dake. It was a nice hike, albeit a little steep, with flowers and greenery the whole way up.
These pictures are from the hike.












This is the sign at the peak with the elevation in kanji (1984m). I realized I need to stop doing the peace sign for pictures. It's become habit in Japan.











This was (disappointingly) the view from the top, but only when the extremely cold wind picked up enough to move some of the clouds away.






The hike was really nice, even if my knees were about to give out at the end. It was a really pretty area, and I want to go back to do some more hiking in the future.
The next day, we rode bikes around to see some waterfalls before we had to catch our next train.

And then it was off to Sapporo.