3 day weekends!

JESUS! I had a fun packed 3-day weekend. I spent it with some Brit JETS. They kept making fun of my American accent. Funny that. They were really good at imitating American accents...but I can't do a British accent worth shit.

So Friday, we spent our day at Safeway, not a convenient store...a bar. They had some DJs there and I got to get some clubbing in. It felt so good to get my groove on again. They played everything Japanese: rock, pop, hip hop. There was also one set of American rock. Mostly everything was dance-able.

The next day, we went to Shibetsu for the Salmon Festival. There was a lot of salmon! Salmon hearts, salmon on a stick, fried salmon, ikura (salmon eggs)...you name it. Me and the mates went to the bridge to see the salmon in the river. It was very sombering...because I learned after the salmon lay their eggs...they begin to die. They travel all the way from CA to die in Japan, just to make sure the foundation of the next generation of salmon is settled.

OH! There was also something called the Salmon Dash. It looks like a lot of fun, but a bit barbaric. So, the unlike salmon that didn't get to lay their eggs, they get snatched up and put into a man made wading pool. Then when the race begins, the racers run to the pull grab one of the salmon then run back to the start of the race then placed in a bag where they suffocate to death. Sometimes they are dropped or dragged on the ground in the process. But apart from that...it does look like fun.

Later that day, we went to Betsukai to watch a Japanese rock concert. Nobody famous...but a fun time was had by all and we got to see some cool Japanese fashion.

The next day, me and the ladies went to the Betsukai "zoo." They had every farm animal imaginable and some monkeys. It was very entertaining. I really enjoyed the bunnies.

Afterwards, we went back to Nakashibetsu and ate at Monkichi for some okonomiyaki and monjayaki. Mmmm! Then we went to go bowling. I loved it! Nobody was good, so we were at the same level. And unlike in America, we kept cheering for each other. Usually, me and the mates at home would try to get into each other's head and psyche each other out. Every time somebody was up we were like, "Go Andy! Come on Zov...you can do it! Show us how's it done girl! WHOO!" It was so positive and uplifting. Usually, I leave a bowling game feeling like crap...but I came in 3 out of 4...and everybody felt like a winner! We then went upstairs and played video games in the arcade. And today...I'm knackered.