The weather has finally managed to cool down a bit and that makes my skin, blood, and sweat glands happy. No longer is my blood running hot and thick beneath my damp, sticky skin as the sweat glands work vainly in overtime. No longer do I turn over in bed only to wake to the sheets sticking to my skin. The fan has breathed a sigh of relief...and so have I.

It's fall. It's September. It's back to school. In Canada (and in the States) all the kids have arrived at school clad in brand-spanking new clothing, fresh and ready for another year of academia,deliquency, and agonizing new friendships. It's the season of falling leaves and construction paper turkeys made out of the shape of your hand. It's the season of plastic pencil boxes, sharp Laurentian pencil crayons, and a brand new knapsack. It's the start of another school year.

But not in Japan.

The kids have started another semester. School begins in April over here, because with the blooming of cherry blossoms signals a new beginning. So while the kids in North America associate the crimson-golden leaves falling from trees with the beginning of another school year, the kids in Japan think of the fluffy pink and white blossoms of plum and cherry trees. Which is more romantic, I can't decide. I'm just more accustomed to the crunch of leaves under my feet with the start of school...

But regardless, September always means that summer is over.
And what a summer it was for me.

Sonnia came to visit me at the end of July. This is my best friend, a gal who will always be a part of my life, no matter where I am. Her visit proved to me that we will never grow apart, that we can re-hash as many corny jokes as we can without ever growing sick of them, that we can have sensible talks as well, besides the never-ending quotations from movies, that we can always pick up from where we left off last, no matter how long of a time has elapsed.

We toured Japan together for two weeks, with some of the places a first for me despite having lived here for a year: Nara, Osaka, Kyoto, Tokyo, Hiroshima, and Miyajima. We were in Hiroshima for the 60th anniversary of the atomic bombing. Throngs of people attended the early morning ceremony--we couldn't see very much. There was an emotional moment of silence at 8:15 AM. We left the museum and ceremony in a meditative state.

Touring Japan with Sonn made me realize all over again how fortunate I am to be here. I saw so much beauty and regained a sense of purpose as to why I came in the first place, and in doing so, I am determined more than ever to take full advantage of my last year here...

*Just for Sonnia: "Now high-five me"
"NO!"

Thank you Sonn, for coming here. Your visit means so much to me.

And then she left. I made her cry at the airport. Sucka! :)

And then I left the next day for a tour of Europe with my sister and brother-in-law.

We met up in London and from there we went to Scotland, Sweden, Belgium, Amsterdam, and eventually back to Spain, where I spent 6 days in my sister's city, Zaragoza.

I won't get into a long description of all that I saw, only to say that I fell in love with Scotland, although I must admit that the weather seemed daunting at times. Despite that, I loved Glasgow and Edinburgh both, but we were most ecstatic about being able to catch the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Sweden is beautiful, but also ultra-expensive. Brussels is charming, and I think we were most awed by Grand Place. Amsterdam is...well, Amsterdam. Ahem...

And then Spain. I love it there.

This trip pretty much seals the deal for me about moving to Europe after JET ends. I think I will be moving to live with my sister for a bit before moving onto somewhere else. Where? Perhaps Scotland, but I don't know at this point. All I know is that Europe beckons me.

To view pictures of my summer, please go to: http://www.imagestation.com/member/signin.html

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I returned to Japan and was plunged into work the next day.

It's been a harrowing few weeks ever since, what with going to my new schools and the new ALTs in my city moving in.

Needless to say, I've been falling asleep at my desk during work. This makes for a nice first impression at my new schools...

Anyways, I'm falling asleep at the moment so I will hie me to bed now.

Goodnight.