Had things gone different, I might well be counting down my last three months in Japan today. Plans may change, but my desire to travel does not, and so here I am announcing my intentions to visit the United States and Europe this summer. I guess I’ll dress up the old blog a bit, bring [...]

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I’m not entirely sure if anyone still checks this blog, but if I do have a loyal readership (thank you!), you are advised that I am now writing for the UKotaku blog, so get over there and check me out! I have this killer article planned in the near future.
It hardly seems possible. But on [...]

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I’m up to Kyoto. I quite like how this is turning out. When I’m done, maybe I’ll scan it all in and make a nice PDF.

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Pfft, look at me now. A mere month ago I was an Odyssean marvel of a man, splurging 15,000 yen on tickets ten minutes before the train was due to depart, arriving with 20 kg on my back in a city I’d never been to before with no map and no plans and no accomodation [...]

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I’ve been back, for two whole weeks. Christmas has been and gone. I can’t say I’ve missed Japan. Except, yesterday… I was walking back home from the bus stop, when I thought of the little McDonalds near Uguisudani station. How I’d pass it every evening on my way back from wherever. How I always knew [...]

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“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe…”
So here’s my 28 hours in transit.
12:12, Dec 15th: Random Tom Waits quote of the day: “Well I’m at the station, and I can’t get on the train.”
I hate airport security, it gives me the willies every time. There I am, just stepping off the train to Terminal 2, [...]

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And it’s like I never left.
Well, not quite, but I … simply cannot believe that two days ago I was actually in Tokyo. Me. This guy sitting here at this computer. (Incidentally, it’s so weird to have a full PC again. This 17″ monitor feels huge.) It’s … it’s really like I never left, like [...]

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Excited? Yes. Yes I am. Very excited.
So this is the big last post, eh? (click for more.)

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Went to Shiki today, the Japanese restaurant in Norwich. Had some lovely miso soup and sushi… including octopus nigiri. I’ve never had octopus before. It had suckers. I sort of chewed it down, a battle to swallow it before I retched. But I did it: I ate octopus. Nothing stands in my way now!

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So I’d planned to head into town today to the awesome backpacking shop on Westlegate to buy everything for Japan. So I did. Unfortunately, I went with my sister (home from Sheffield for the week), who has been backpacking everywhere and knows everything and goes on about it a lot. I had a shopping list, [...]

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