The Izu Life: My Last Day at School

Today is my last day of school. My apartment has been inspected, accounts closed, and tearful goodbyes bid. It's time for this proverbial (and perhaps literal as it is my middle name) "Alice" to come back up out of the rabbithole and return to the place where everything makes sense (even if they walk up-side-down there). 

Emails have been exchanged with my successor. She is at the beginning of her journey now, and I am at the closing of mine. So-and-so@blueyonder.co.uk will soon be the one living in a place that makes little sense, and (supposing that our positions are to be reversed metaphorically), that means I am the one headed back to the "blue yonder."

It's weird how things have come full circle like that. I found some leftover omiyage from Australia which I had brought as a gift for my colleagues on my very first day of school. Now, on my last day, I will give them away to the people who have helped me most in these past few hectic weeks. Weird. 

On Monday, I gave my farewell speech at the closing ceremony in full yukata. Whilst choking back tears, I implored my students to consider living in a foreign country. I know from first hand experience that doing so is one of the most challenging and rewarding things you can do with your life. 

Me in a yukata which the school actually bought for me as a leaving present!

Over the next couple of weeks, I will be travelling around Japan with my mum. Then, its home to Australia. And then what? A job? More travel? I'm still not sure. I guess I just gotta get back out there. Out into the great blue yonder...

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Thank you to everyone who read, commented and hopefully found some useful information on this blog! I'll still be posted bits here and there over the next few weeks and months...

Travel Log: Fox Wedding in Numazu

Last weekend, I had the pleasure of attending and participating in a fox-themed wedding in Numazu. The wedding was being held at the fox shrine by the Kano River. Volunteers were asked to come along and have their faces painted like foxes then participate in a "fox parade." The bride and groom also had their faces painted like foxes. This was a real ligit wedding; a rare experience for foreigners like me to attend. This is largely because (if a foreigner is lucky enough to be invited) wedding guests in Japan are expected to pay the new couple between $100 to $300 as a kind of start-up money instead of giving them a traditional gift. This means attending a wedding tends to be limited to immediate family in Japan because it is just so damn expensive for us underpaid English teachers. But anyway, I was lucky enough to snag an almost front row seat so I could capture some amazing photos of the fox wedding for your enjoyment. Continue reading for some of my favourite snaps below!

T.G.I.F.: Nagoshi no Harae, Kyoto

Tomorrow various shrines around Kyoto will be participating in the Nagoshi no Harae ceremony, a Summer purification ritual in which visitors are invited to pass through a large ring woven of miscanthus reed to cast off defilement (kegare). Participating shrines in Kyoto include Kitano Tenmangu, Kamigamo Shrine, Fujinomori Shrine, Heian Shrine, Nonomiya Shrine, Fushimi Inari Shrine, Yoshida Shrine, Kuramazaki Shrine and more.

Click the image below for more details...

T.G.I.F.: Shuzenji Free Foot Onsen Day

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Shuzenji Onsen Ceremony

(Image source)

Just briefly: this event is happening tommorow (April 21st) just a few townships away from me in beautiful Shuzenji, known for its hot springs. The event celebrates the legend that a great monk on his travels, hundreds upon hundreds of years ago, spied a boy washing his blind father in the river in Shuzenji. The monk struck the ground near the river with his staff and there sprung forth a fountain of water with healing powers which healed the father's blindness. The villages built a free foot onsen in the place where the monk stuck the ground (though the exact location of the ground-striking is questionable as the free foot onsen has been moved repeatedly to accommodate urbanization). Check it out! Just google "湯汲み式" to see some great pics of the event!

To get to Shuzenji Town, take the Izuhakone Line from Mishima all the way to Shuzenji Station. When you get to Shuzenji Station, you can take the bus from terminal number 1 to the famous Shuzenji Onsen (Hot Spring) area (get off the bus at the stop outside of a Yamazaki convenience store, your ticket should cost 190yen, the bus has to do a massive u-turn to get to this bus stop so it should be obvious that you are at the right place when that happens). Walk a little further south (or follow the tourists) to the centre of Shuzenji Onsen town.

What are you doing this weekend?