Another crazy weekend

Been a while since my last post, I know... I had another crazy weekend of non-stop action that included tango, a hash, fireworks, drinking, and the beach. On Friday night, I went to my neighbors' tango performance.
They are a married couple (she is Japanese and he is from Argentina... they met in NYC and now own a dance studio here in Kumamoto.) They had an amazing performance and my friend and I joined their "after-party."

On Saturday, I joined in what is known as a "hash" (and despite the name, this has absolutely nothing to do with drugs!) A hash is actually kind of a race or a treasure hunt. There is a "hare" that sets the trail using flour marks on the ground. Often these trails go through pretty scenic and challenging places, and there are plenty of wrong trails and dead ends, but it's a good time and a good excuse to get outside and get some exercise. This particular hash took us up through farmlands with scarecrows and over a mountain lined with beautiful buddha statues.
Most people run, but there are quite a few of us who walk the trail... it just takes a bit longer. Hashes generally take about 3-4 hours, so we're pretty sweaty and exhausted by the end. Fortunately, in this part of Japan, there is always an "onsen" nearby (hot springs/public bath). We grabbed a quick onsen and took the train down to the next city, where there was a 3 HOUR fireworks competition... again, only in Japan. (I should clarify that the fireworks weren't non-stop for 3 hours.. more like 10 minutes here, 10 minutes break... ) They were pretty amazing, though, and HUGE (though this picture here doesn't give them credit at all.) I heard they even have fireworks in Japan that come out looking like Hello Kitty's face.

The rest of Saturday night included karaoke (of course) and a crazy drinking game involving numbers on chopsticks that was played until the morning light... that's right... 6AM was when I finally crashed on my friend's futon. Getting way too old for this lifestyle! But hey, who needs sleep...Anyway, I would've much rather have been at Melinda and Virlena's Halloween party!

Sunday I went to the beach... in October! This is a view of the coastline in this part of Japan... pretty amazing. It was a hot day and I actually got a bit of a sunburn. The good news is that since Monday, it's been much cooler and I am happy to say that we're now in this maybe "3 week-long grace period" when we don't need the AC OR heater, since there is really only summer and winter in this part of Japan... regardless of the fact they boast 4 seasons. (Though I still don't know what is "normal" since all of you in Michigan had that freak show of snow two weeks ago! Blech...)