Surfing with G

So now we are back in California, I really want to teach the girls to surf. Gwyn really wants to and Miriam is not so sure. Actually, although I guess the summer was not that great, it has been a pretty awesome September. Not awesome by Hawaii standards, but awesome for here (and Japan). We've had pretty fun, head high, if a little inconsistent waves most days ever since I've been here. Unfortunately, I've been pretty busy so I can only make it out a few times a week. Here is G and I on a little wave at campus point in Santa Barbara. Miriam didn't want to go, until after Gwyn had, then she wimped out before we got into the water. This is on the tiny kids longboard, so there's not really enough room for both of us.

Boulder, Colorado

So, last weekend I went to the Western Conference of the Association of Asian Studies in Boulder, Colorado. The conference was fun, but it was much more fun to hang out with everyone there, like Bekah's dad Merv, who lives in Denver, and Lance Crisler, and Joe and Leslie Marler. I stayed with Merv and rented a car to go drive to and from Boulder. Merv runs the International Institute for Indigenous Resource Management and so he know a lot about sustainable development, indigenous responses to modernity, climate change, and so it was a lot of fun to discuss all of this with him. Lance is studying Chinese literature at University of Colorado at Boulder, so it was really fun to have a friend who I could also talk about East Asian literature with. He knows a lot about the various professors and where they are and what they are doing, so it was good to get updated on that, since I am pretty oblivious to that aspect of the job. Finally, the Marlers are good friends with very cute kids. It was very fun to see so many old friends. Boulder is a cool little town and very beautiful in the summer. We drove into the mountains behind the town on Sunday and it was gorgeous, although I couldn't help but wonder what it looked like in the winter.

Nikko

So here's some picts and a synopsis from my final trip before I left Japan. It was nice to be reminded how beautiful Japan can be.
Day one. Took the train out. Hiked to Kirifuri Falls, which everyone sees, and about four more down in the valley, which no ones sees. Then hiked up to the top of the mountain and stealth camped in a clearing on a ridge. No danger of being discovered as there was a light rain all day and I only met one other hiker in the lower section.
Day two. Traversed the long ridge over four or five peaks. Started at six and hiked till five or so, although the last hour and a bit was on roads. Despite expensive rain gear, I was totally soaked a few hours in and stayed cold and wet all day. Since it was cloudy, there were no real views, but the ridge itself was reminiscent of the Koolau summit, except there was a trail and the mud was usually only 2-4 inches or so, instead of the summit 8-12. And there were pine trees. After all those hours my knees were killing me. The bad one because its weak, and the good one because it had to do twice as much work. Plus they don't believe in grading trails, so for a 800 meter vertical descent, the trail is maybe 900 meters long. Ouch. Luckily the day ended in Yumoto, which is full of natural hotsprings.
Day three. Hiked down through the main valley, around several lakes and along a stream, and through a wetlands, and past some waterfalls, ending at Kegon falls with lots of tourists again. Caught the train home again.