That One Time...In Japan

Sometime in the middle of my university years I was accepted to become a swimming lesson instructor at a US military base in Japan for the summer. It was a program a few of my swimming teammates had taken part in and I was looking forward to the opportunity to broaden my horizons while still procuring the same employment I would be likely doing anyway.  So, to best prepare, I enrolled an introductory Japanese language course to fulfil a language credit and round out a schedule that was already chalk full of some pretty intense science classes - organic chem and molecular cell biology, I'm looking at you!

It should be noted that an introductory Japanese language class in a mid-size, university town in quasi-rural Wisconsin is a mixed bag of characters.  Its safe to say you're either a huge fan of anime, dating an Asian girl, or planning to study abroad (usually because of one of the aforementioned reasons.  Regardless, halfway through the semester, the program supporting the job opportunity was cut, as were my motivation to prioritize studying dialogue phrasings for Japanese class.

I ended up taking the class pass fail and walking away with my academic integrity intact.  However, my intrigue in visiting Japan has always remained.

It's nice having friends who have to travel for business. My university friend, roommate, and fellow international superstar, Peter was passing through East Asia and had a weekend to kill in Osaka.  And, really, whats a six hour red eye flight and a personal day between friends?!

Definitely not the same ramen we ate in university...

Fresh from the spa in Arima.

(We can forget about getting lost in the woods getting there...)

The famous Gilco Running Man billboard.
Installed in 1935, this ad for a candy company (right?!) is located 
in the heart of the Dōtonbori canal and shopping area.

View from the top of Osaka Castle.

Above all, I was impressed with how clean Japan was.  A"Fear Factor" stunt of eating off the sidewalk would not have been a challenge. This becomes more impressive when one takes note of the lack of trash cans on the city streets.  Anywhere else, a sidewalk would double as a garbage dump. 

Perhaps they covered this in the pass-fail portion of the semester I studied Japanese in university... I'll definitely need to return to investigate more.