Sept.
16, 2022 - Sunrise over the Edo River in Tokyo, Japan
Friday, Sept. 16, 2022, 5:48 am
Sept. 14,
2022 - Engineering Student Leadership Service Award
In 1970 the Student Engineering Council of the University of Texas at
Austin established the Student Leadership Award in Engineering. Each
year 6 awards are presented and each recipient receives a framed
certificate and a $200 check, which is presented at a luncheon ceremony
during Engineering Week.
Their names are recorded on a permanent plaque displayed in the
Engineering Student Services office in the Engineering Education and
Research Center on the UT Austin campus.
Aug. 11,
2022 - Peak season for Obanazawa Suika watermelons in Yamagata
In this photo, watermelons in the Japan Agricultural Cooperatives
facility in Obanazawa, Yamagata Prefecture, are being inspected for
quality before being shipped out across the country. This is the
busiest time of the year when up to 40,000
Obanazawa Suika watermelons are being shipped every day. WOW!! This
city is one of the largest watermelon growing regions in Japan.
July 31,
2022 - Big Bear's
new CD released July 10th!
Congrats to my musician friend Mr. Hidekazu Okuma (大熊秀和), whom we
affectionately refer to as Big Bear (the English translation of his
family name Okuma), on the release of his band's latest CD on July
10th.
I’ve been following and supporting Big Bear's music for the past 15
years and his "Big Bears" group is without question one of the hottest
rock bands in Katsushika, Tokyo.
He is the lead singer and guitarist of his band and wrote 5 of the 7
songs on their new CD. He also sings 4 of the CD's songs in English,
including an excellent rendition of “Crossroads," the classic hit from
the 60s by Eric Clapton and his band Cream.
Way to go, Big Bear! I hope you sell lots of CDs…
"The Freedom" CD by
Big Bears, released July 10, 2022
(If player above is not visible, you can view Big
Bear's entire YouTube playlist here.)
0:00 I Love Southbay
5:41 We're The Child of God
9:16 Freedom
12:57 Working Man
19:05 Crossroads
23:30 Everyday I Have The Blues
28:01 I Love Southbay (Bossa Nova)
July 17,
2022 - Ruy Ueda sets new world record for running up and down Mt.
Fuji’s 4 trails in less than 10 hours
"28-year-old Japanese athlete Ruy Ueda has set a new Fastest Known
Time (FKT)
for running all of Mount Fuji’s four trails non-stop, a total distance
of 57.06km with 6,772m of ascent. He completed the feat in nine hours,
55 minutes and 41 seconds, a world record when ratified....
....He finished third in the 2021 Skyrunning World Championships. That
same year he became the first Asian Skyrunning World Champion after
winning the Men’s Vertical Kilometer in Lleida, Spain. To prepare his
body for this challenge, Ueda travelled to the Alps and trained with
ultrarunner Florian Neuschwander, competing in Austria’s Hochkönigman,
where he won the downhill race, and France’s Mont Blanc marathon, where
he came in third."
Ruy Ueda sets new world record for running up and down Mt. Fuji’s 4
trails in less than 10 hours
(photo credit: Suguru
Saito/Red Bull Content Pool)
July 9,
2022 - Rest in peace, former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (安倍晋三首相)
As we come to grips with yesterday's appalling tragedy here in Japan
and reflect back on former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's many
accolades, including becoming the youngest post-war Prime Minister and
being the longest serving Japanese Prime Minister in history, I was
reminded of his tireless efforts thru the years to promote and
solidify the special friendship between Japan and the U.S., including
his address 7 years ago to a joint meeting of the U.S. Congress in
nearly flawless English. R.I.P, Abe-san…
Prime Minister
Abe's Address to the U.S. Congress in May 2015
(If player above is not visible, you can view video
at YouTube here.)
July
2, 2022 - Mt. Fuji's 2022 climbing season opens on July 1!
SHOW TIME! The Yoshida trail on the Yamanashi Prefecture side of Mount
Fuji opened yesterday on July 1, a day known as Yamabiraki (山開き),
marking the beginning of the summer Mt. Fuji mountain climbing season
that will continue through Sept. 10.
Mt. Fuji climbers enjoyed sunrise from its summit on July 1, 2022.
(photo credit: The Mainichi
Newspaper)
Hi Gary, I love your site as it is so informative. On August 1st, 3 of us will be attempting to climb Mount Fuji. My husband and I are comparatively fit
Hi, I have some questions about reserving a hut on Mt. Fuji. I'll be in Tokyo a few days before climbing season and am attempting to climb on July 1st.
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