Mmmm Takoyaki daisuki

Hi Everyone,

Sorry for the long break between entries, but I've been busy and a little run down these days. I'm much better now though (^_^).

These pictures are from my friend Satoshi's house. He invited me and our friend Toshio (pink shirt) to his place to have takoyaki with his family last week. This was the second time he invited me to his place and I was very happy to go. It's not very common to get an invitation to a Japanese person's house, so I was honoured at the invite.

So most of you are probably wondering what takoyaki is. Well "Tako" is octopus and "yaki" means fried. Takoyaki are little balls of batter, octopus and minced cabbage which are cooked on a large burner. Once cooked, the takoyaki balls are covered with a sweet sauce, mayonnaise, fish flakes and a green seasoning (I forget the name of it). It's very delicious and is popular to eat at festivals. And having a beer or two with the takoyaki makes it even better (^_^).

Satoshi and Toshio were my students when I arrived in Sendai a year and half ago, but (as all good students do) they improved their English ability and moved to the next class level with another teacher. We've kept in touch over the past year through the frequent Saturday night dinner parties that we have at our school, so sometimes I still feel like I'm their teacher. And Satoshi suggested that we go camping in early May, and I hope we can do that; I haven't camped since high school and I really miss it.

It's nice to have friends of this calibre when you're thousands of kilometres from home and when things aren't as good as they used to be(^_^). Thanks guys!!!

Now I'm Free From What You Are

Good evening all. It's been a while since I posted anything, but that's because I haven't done a lot of fun things recently. I'm really into my Japanese studying though; I've been learning between 10 and 20 Chinese writing characters a week recently (I'm up to 85 that I know now) and I now have 2 Japanese lessons a week, with a potential 3rd to begin soon. The price: free. The price is right Bob.
Some bad news though. I broke up with Ryoko on Feb. 1st. We hadn't seen much of each other in January (or in November and December) and she had plans of her own for February and I wasn't prepared to continue waiting. We lived in the same city, but often I felt like she was living in another country. There were some other things too but I won't go into detail. I'll miss her and the good times we had in the summer, but I wish her the best (more or less).
I woke up on February 2nd to Sendai's first proper snowfall. Most people in Japan hate snow and complain about it, but as a Canadian I saw it as a great day and a great sign of new beginnings and a return to a normal life and normal weather. Hey, I'm 25 and so far I've had a lot of support from my friends. You really notice your true friends during moments like this. So onwards and upwards, eh? And judging by the clouds in these early morning pictures, the Japanese groundhog (if one exists) has predicted an early Spring.
Sweet.
Things just keep getting better (^_^).