Ice caps

Whooping Swan juveniles
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

These grey fellows were likely hatched this past year. Their color allows you to see the little patches of ice that freeze on top of their heads every time they dip their heads under water.

Waiting for the cranes and snow geese

Whooping Swan adult
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

So I've been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the legendary Japanese Red Crowned cranes and the Snow geese. On my way back from class one day I passed over the Obihiro River which winds it's way thru the city and within about a 10 minute walk from our apartment. I spotted some large white birds on the river and rushed home to get the camera. I was very excited to capture these Snow geese on film. I returned to the river and they were gone so I made my way further down and spotted about 6 of them resting on the water. I parked, got bundled up and quietly made my way to the water's edge. I took photo's every step of the way as I was sure I would scare them away. 45 minutes later I had crawled thru the half frozen mud and had found a choice spot amongst the trees an arm's length away from the water. This particular bird swam over to me, regarded my position for about 20 seconds stretched out his very long neck, let out a hhhhhhoooonnnnkkkk swam back to the others and then the whole group tucked their necks close to their bodies and had a nap. Well, I'm glad I wasn't a disturbance or regarded as a threat! I'm also glad I chose to wear my Primaloft jacket instead of my down filled jacket! These birds are really big and obviously not scared of the likes of me at all! By the way, they ended up being swans and not geese. So I'm still waiting for the cranes and geese.

The morning after the first big dump of snow

Snow bank in front of our building
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

Nutty stuff. Huge snow banks. Our car was buried. The whole city was experiencing a snow removal craze. Overnight every manner of snow removing machinery was unleashed. I've never seen such a range of tractors, front end loaders, dump trucks, plows and graders. On occasion a pink or purple one is thrown into the mix just to keep it interesting.

Our first big dump of snow in Obihiro

Snow on tree in front of our building
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

We've had snow for about 2 weeks now. The first real dump of snow occured two weeks ago while Sean, Raquel and I were planning our trip to Thailand (with the curtains closed). It ended up snowing for about 36 hours and we were left to dig our car out of about 60 cm of snow!

My drive to work

View from Arashiyama lookout - Fall 04
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

I live at least a half hour drive from my closest school which is in the next town. This photo was taken between Memuro and Kamibisei from a lookout tower on top of a small ski hill. Everyone should have this sort of scenery on their way to work.

What the hell are we doing here?

Diggin' in butter
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

Well I haven't reached the point yet when I've become so bittered by cultural differences, banking frustrations or homesickness that I am asking myself this question with a negative tinge. The answer to the question remains the same either way though...

We're here because we have a great opportunity to see this part of the world and teach English at the same time. We've dreamed about coming here since our first date back in November 1997 and it feels really great to be living out this part of our travelling dream. Sean teaches high school full time and I teach elementary part time. We definatley have had our lion's share of challenges arriving at this point but standing on the edge of this side of the Pacific Ocean and having a class full of kids scream out "Nancy san" as they race towards you thru the halls of the school sure makes it all worth it!

Our "pad"

Living Room & Kitchen
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

So now we live in Japan. After that first night Sean was with me in Obihiro for one more night and then he was off to a conference in Sapporo for 10 days. YIKES! Before he left he armed with a couple of crucial skill sets...how to withdraw cash from the bank, where to buy groceries and what to say word for word when in both of these situations. I felt pretty confident for about a day and then I got a raving flu. Needless to say I became very familiar with the interior of our apartment and it's wants and needs. In the last day or two before Sean came home it felt more like our "home" as I made several trips to the "100 Yen store" to buy the necessities. There really is nothing better than moving into a place that has pretty much nothing! It's kinda nice to start from scratch. It may be a little on the small side but it's very comfortable and a five minute walk from downtown. And for those of you that know me you can imagine how thrilled and relieved I was to learn that it's too cold here for cockroaches!!!

First night in Japan

First night in Japan
Originally uploaded by kuckibaboo.

My first week felt about this blurry. Maybe even more. The beauty of this place was worth it though.
Obihiro, Japan

A sparrow fart in the giant universe that is the net.

Well, here I am. On the net. In a very small way. Not entirely sure where this will lead, here's hoping it's at least a wee bit fun!