Tis the season

In Japan, starting in March and usually ending sometime in April, there is a very popular event known as "hanami" ("hana" = flower, "mi" = to see or view). Although the kanji for hanami (花身) literally means "flower viewing", it typically refers to the cherry blossom trees that bloom for a short time during the March/April springtime. Although at any given place hanami only lasts for a week or two, the cherry blossom tree buds bloom at different times throughout Japan, so consequently the season of hanami, if one were to follow the cherry blossoms' blooming throughout the country, usually lasts until around the end of April. For a shutterbug like me, this was a wonderful excuse to bust out the D40, not to mention enjoy the INCREDIBLE weather we've had the past couple of days! Things are starting to warm up around Japan, which (for now) is a welcome change. It's so beautiful today that it's a shame that I've been fighting off a scratchy throat/runny nose. Although my six or fewer hours of sleep/night lately certainly hasn't helped much, my money is on the 100 or so little germ-factories that I now have the pleasure of teaching each week >.< soap =" proof">I don't really mind it all that much, though if it IS what's making me sick, there's got to be a better way to do this (or else it's going to be a LOOOONG year X-P)

In other news, tonight was the first night that Drew and I have visited Ai-chan & Chris's apartment in Itami. About the size of a studio apartment in the U.S., it was a quaint and comfortable (and not really too crowded) experience. Ai & Iku-chan cooked for us, and afterwards we enjoyed a large array of snacks & sweets. Throw in some good conversation, and a little bit of 10th Avenue North playing, and you have a winning combination of a night! A huge thanks to Chris & Ai for their wonderful hospitality!! Ok, it's time to get my sick body into bed.

Peace.