pictures, observations

when i learned i was coming to japan, i was excited about the change in air quality. i thought, the government doesn't pay to seed deadly toxins in the air in the form of chemtrails in japan like they do in the united states, industry is less rampant where i am going to be in the countryside, etc. but the noticable difference is that, since japanese sewage and irrigation is mostly out in the open, next to elevated roads and sidewalks, i get a much more vibrant, varied sampling of the different odors that the world has to offer here. one that you don't get very often in the states is just pure sulfur, which is comforting. japan smells like the way the world is supposed to smell, i think.
also, i have not seen any road kill since i have been here. i have seen government subsidized signs on the highway that show cartoons of of raccoon dogs (tanuki) and other animals with the advisory notice "watch out for animals!", something i couldn't imagine in the states. it isn't like there aren't any animals here, there are.
here is a photograph of the side of the mountain elementary school i went to yesterday. there are only like 31 kids in the entire school, and the grades are so small and disproportionate that the 1st and 2nd, 3rd and 4th, and 5th and 6th classes are together. this is good because i only have to go in the afternoon, but would you want to be one of only 2 second graders in your school? the photo is meant to illustrate the fact that this is the mountain school. i drive throug a tunnel and up a thin windy road for a few minutes before i get to it.

its all about that mountain in the far background. this next one is on the other side of the school, kids doing warmup excersizes. again, the school is right up against a mountain, and in this one you can see the high elevation housing that people have around here.

again, big dirt field that serves as a playground. and here we have little statue on the right. i dont know who or what it is but since it doesnt look like its wearing a bib or a ribbon, its probably not a deity.
i should try to get some pictures of those monkeys soon. they are very big.
i think im supposed to go to a class or go outside and watch kids sing or play sports or something soon? its not very clear. im wearing my $40 track pants and my $10 russell athletic shirt. but i wore the thick socks instead of the thin, short ones, so im paying for that. learn by experience, learn the hard way. trial and error. so far, i have totally been on the "just one year please" side of the equation. i don't miss america, i just miss medium sized cheeseburgers, hot dogs and pizza. mostly this is based on the regret i have for not ordering the 18-wheeler burger at the roadhouse during my last real meal in america.
but really, internationalization?