Hello friends. So yesterday I went to another one of our school festivals. It was a grand ol time. Again there were a ton of dancers there, including my friend Mari. The cool thing though is that there was a bunch of breakers that performed. After they got off stage I introduced myself to them and ended up doing a couple flips to explain tricking. It went well, so today, in about 5 hours I’m going to go practice with them in the nearby school. I’m definitely not in top shape to be tricking, and I can’t really breakdance with my wrist, but this could be a breakthrough opportunity for me. A chance to meet a lot of Japanese people on a regular basis as well as a bunch of dedicated athletes. GANBARu!

Luke and I accidentally walked into the Japanese premiere of the Bourne Ultimatum last night. We turned a corner in Roppongi Hills and suddenly Matt Damon was standing in front of us. MADNESS!

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Yesterday was a bit troublesome for me because I spent almost the entire day communicating and thinking in English. By the end of the day I was doubting my Japanese abilities. Luckily, I spent today doing the exact opposite and ended up learning a ton. I’m always suprised at how far a little concentration goes. Watching TV in Japanese is great practice. I’m also trying to network myself a bit more now by spending less time in the dorm and spending more time actively trying to meet people. It seems to be working.

I went to a festival the other day with Luke and my Japanese friend Rei. There I saw a dance team that absolutely blew me away with their talent. I was literally in shock of a particular female member of one of the later performances. Her presence was, in every sense of the word, intense. The energy she radiated while dancing coupled with her beauty gave me some crazy butterflies. Sadly, no pics.

“Have you ever heard the phrase: you never really know what you got until it’s gone? This has got to be one of the wittiest quotes ever.

Last night I went to Shibuya with a bunch of ryuugakusei (exchange students) from my dorm. I’ve been in love with Minato Mirai for a long time, but it wasn’t until I went to the crowded streets of Tokyo last night that I realized how much I prefer a calm place to the bustling city. Shibuya has got to be the craziest place on earth. You walk out of the station and the first thing you see if a flood of people. None of them are normal. There are usually about 3 types in Shibuya 1: Foreigners. More so than anywhere else in Japan, Shibuya is always packed with foreigners. It’s the only place I can go and feel like people aren’t looking at me, for better or for worse. 2 Gyaru. Gyaru is a trend among Japanese teens in which they dye their hair blonde and tan their skin extremely dark. Somehow they defy the laws of physics with the mounds of makeup that hangs from their face. Here’s an example for you.

Scary right? Some people like it a lot though…right. ANyway. 3 is pimps. There are these ridiculously good looking well dressed Japanese men all over Shibuya. You feel poor just standing next to them.

In summary: Shibuya is loud, and full of all things non Japanese.

No thank you!”

In Japan trains are the primary mode of transportation. Towards the late night, the trains are gradually shut down, starting with the minor lines at 12:00 and ending with the major lines a bit later. So tonight I was hanging out with friends until about 11:00. I was under the impression if I left by 12:00 i would be fine. BUT just to be safe I left at 11:00, because I live on a minor line. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to the station in time.

It was pretty funny though. I almost made it, and EVERYONE at the station was literally sprinting towards the train. I’m talking everyone: kids, old men, businessmen, models, dogs, etc. It was hysterical lol. Anyhow the train was already full by the time I got there, so I had to take a different line (one of the major ones) that went relatively close to my town and then take a taxi from there.

here’s the nasty part: there was about 500 people in my same position, and there was only 1 train still running. So, I was crammed in the last train with all of them. This was easily the most crowded trian I have rode on so far. Not only were we being pushed in, but everyone was holding their bags above their heads such that more people could squeeze in. Unfortunately that meant massive BO all through out the train. To make things worse, the last train on a friday night is always full of the businessmen that have gone out drinking. So the air smells a bit like..well shit. I rode that train for about an hour, got off, and had JUST enough money on me to catch the taxi back to my regular station.

It was a rough experience to say the least. But somehow, it was also enjoyable. I came to Japan for a reason. That reason was because I thought I would like Japan, not matter what. I was convinced that Japan was the place for me. And you know what? I was right. Even on a train so crowded that I couldn’t reach into my pocket, a small smile crept across my face. Regardless of the smell, I’m still in Japan, working hard. And THAT is my dream.

1:21 AM – homework time. DOH

PEACE

“Hello friends. I got some time on my hands and I don’t have school tomorrow, so I think it’s time for blizzle.

The update: I can feel my Japanese improving. Each day I am speaking less English and learning tons of new grammar. All of my teachers are absolutely amazing. My homeroom teach sat with me today for 45 minutes after class and explained the amazing complexity of the Japanese “”n”" and intonation variations. Captivating. Kaeru can be said about 6 different ways in standard Tokyo dialect. That is awesome/a pain in the butt.

Girls. I’ve been single for about 4 months now and I feel like I am finally back to the point where a relationship could work. My last relationship ended rather poorly/complicated, so I definitely needed some time to cool off. I’m not saying I’m gonna be gung ho or anything, but if an interesting girl comes around, we’ll see what happens. My wrist is healing slowly but surely. I haven’t been able to do handstands for about a month now and it’s killing me. Hopefully in a week or two I’ll be back to full potential. I tricked today 3 separate times on campus, 1 sideflip and 3 gainerflashes. hella fun lol. dream on, trick on ”

“Today is a Yasumi. Roughly “”Yah-soo-mee”" which means holiday or day off in Japanese. Sports day!

Speaking of Sports, my training habits have really changed a lot since I came to Japan. I don’t have a gym membership, so I don’t have access to anything heavy to safely lift. This isn’t a problem per-se, but I was making a lot of progress in my lifts just before I left, so it’s slightly discouraging. On the other hand, I seem to have a slight wrist injury in my left arm, so lifting might be a bit dangerous. Hopefully a bit of icing will get rid of this little injury.

Also, I have been doing a ton of walking here. I’m pretty concerned about this. I can already feel my muslces degenerating. Although I think if I keep my diet clean I should be alright.

In other news, I went to a Ramen store last night and was nearly assaulted be a horde of drunk Japanese men. It was funny/scary.”

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Hey sir. It wasn’t a btwist, but I count a gainerflash as tricking at school, so it’s crossed off of the request list. Next time I’ll try and get it on tape for you!