Hmmm....feeling bad that people have started to read our blog and its just the teensiest bit not updated...sorry Sam! OK, here's a bit of an update of what we've been up to. Thank you to all our die hard fans! I will deliver. OK, so the past month or so has been getting hotter and hotter and hotter and not in a cool sexy brand new TV show 'this is hot, hot, hot kinda way'...more in a 'Oh good lord, it is so hot today, let's argue over how expensive our air conditioning bill is gonna be then get cranky as makeup literally drips off my face - I think its time to invest in a strange Japanese invention such as ice pillows - how can these people live in this heat with no deodorant for sale but crazy inventions like adhesive sweat patch thingies (yes, they do work) - how can this city be so hot - why do my students keep saying how much they hate the heat then insist on telling me it's not yet August and it will get worse' kinda way. June was hot and wet. Well, we thought it was hot. But huh! I scoff at myself, fool that I was back in June...I had no idea of the humidity and heat at the time. Fool. July is hot. August is sure to make me cry. The good thing about summer in Japan is that HEAPS of stuff has been happening. For one, Stef came to visit us on a bargain flight from Australia. We had tons of fun taking her sightseeing and showing her special places and laughing as she tried new foods. We had a lot of fun showing her round, please, anyone keen to, come and visit us, we'll show you a good time! We promise! We went to Kyoto for sightseeing with Stef, took a morning trip to Osaka castle, shopped and shopped and ate fabulous food and had a mad night of Karaoke and bike riding along the river with our lovely neighbours, Nat and Stefan. Summer is a time of much excitement here. Its far too hot too stay in our apartments so lots of people have been heading down to the river for fireworks and drinks and chats. Its so peaceful...until Cath, a friend from Sydney, lets loose with the fireworks. She is quite the fan of fireworks and is becoming a bit of a pro at setting them off....choreographing exciting shows and so on. Its heaps of fun! For those not in the know, fireworks are VERY popular here and along the riverfront near our apartment has been lit most nights for the past few weeks or so. You can buy them EVERYWHERE here; convenience stores, supermarkets, etc. They're amazing. On August 9th, a HUGE fireworks display happens on the river next to our apartment. Whenever I tell people where I live, they initialli cringe (Juso is known for the red light district...) then say 'How convenient (also known as being a very central transport hub for northern Kansai) then say: 'OH! The fireworks!' The one day redeeming feature of Juso for the Japanese (who don't know or care to understand the beauty that is 'The Juse') is the once a year fireworks display on Yodogawa. People come from all over and the crowd is insane. Lots of market stalls, etc and amazing fireworks for an hour or so with accompanying music on local radios that you can tune in to. Livvy, you'd love it! :) We'll take lots of photos. Our apartment block has a flat, accessible rooftop so we'll be able to have a prime viewing position for the evening...very excited. We've been planning our Summer vacation recently! How exciting. We tossed and turned over what to do and eventually decided to head to Tokyo, Kamakura and Nikko. Kamakura and Nikko anre closish to Tokyo area and are incredible well known for amazing temples, shrines and natural beauty (ocean, mountains, etc) We're really looking forward to staying in am0ngst the madness of Tokyo city, travelling on the shinkansen (bullet train) and spending time in natural beauty too. I think we've made a great decision. Planning the trip was super hard but now Im really excited! We hve summer break from 7th to 19th august so its coming up fast! We'll head to a baseall game (should be pure madness judging on the crowds I battle with every Thursday night as I head home from work) with friends, then the fireworks are the 9th then we'll head to Tokyo early on the 11th, a monday morning. Summer here is incredible. There are tons of summer festivals so Japanese girls and guys are dressed to the nines in their summer kimono (yukata)everyday. They look great, and we were lucky enough to give it a go ourselves this week. This week has been yukata week and Ross and i both bought one to wear to our schools, our parties and hopefully to a few festivals too. We love them! At the moment, Gion Matsuri (0ne of two major festivals each year in Japan) is being held in Kyoto, where i work. The big day was today, where massive floats are paraded down the streets of kyoto. Lots of drinking, heat, yukatas and excitement for all. I work on Shijo dori, one of the most famous of Kyoto's streets and very central to this madness but Im becoming such a local...all i can think of is whether Ill get a seat on the train home from work! :) We headed to Arshiyama in Kyoto a couple of weeks ago to see the cormorant fishing. Its a famous practice in Arashiyama that they've been doing for hundreds of years, where men chant and wave fire and use ropes to weave cormorant birds into the water so they can collect fish. Hard to describe but amazing to watch. It takes place just in Summer here and it was a terrific night, being rowed along the river, surrounded by mountains, watching an incredible traditional display in action. Quite thrilling.........especially the but where we sat in the peace and quiet for a few moments, let in sink in...then were rudely interrupted by a boat chugging up to us selling popcorn, fried octupus and beer! Last weekend we headed to Wakayama (southern Kansai) to run a kids summer party for ECC Jnr. They pay really well and while it was hot as hell, the kids were great and the party was lots of fun. We have one more this weekend. The money is great but what a relief itll be to have both of our days off back again. Its too hot to do extra work! Ross' birthday yesterday - lots of fun. I gave him a gorgeous tie by a Japanese designer. I loved going to Hankyu Mens, a major department store here in Umeda (just over the river) and being given the star treatment. A really luxurious shopping experience. I also gave him new fragrance, Australian natural muesli, a tricky puzzle, a little stuffed toy, and some whisky. I think he loved the gifts and had a really nice day. I cooked a special birthday and we went our for a beautiful dinner too at one of our favourite restaurants. We'll be having another celebration on Monday with a Japanese friend of ours who also has her birthday this week. We're heading ino Umeda to the Hankyu rooftop beer garden for drinks and a meal with lots of our friends we've made here. It's really going to be a fun night I think...so nice that we all get Monday off for a public holiday and everyone is keen to catch up and hang out together. Should be fun! OK, Ill chuck some photos up too and hopefully will get back on soon for another update. Love to all of you treasures! xoxoxoxoxoxoxo