My Life in Beppu ...

Howdy! I thought I'd post a little bit about my town, Beppu. If you looked at this picture, you might just think that Beppu was a fun, exciting place with an active nightlife; the Paris of Japan, perhaps.



Well, you could be forgiven for thinking that; but you'd be a bit off the mark. Beppu enjoyed a lot of tourism (because of its numerous and famous hot springs) up until a few decades ago, but recently it seems that Beppu is a bit depressed. In any case, there's not a whole lot to do here. Nice picture, though.

Beppu has some interesting weather. Located in Beppu Bay (for a map, you can click here
) it seems that the prevailing winds have a tendency to blow clouds and mist in off the ocean, and up the hill. My school is located near the top of said hill, and so occasionally, we can see cloudbanks rolling in ... it's quite stunning.



Which looks like this on campus...



As for my everyday routine, breakfast in the cafeteria is cheap and delicious. You have to get used to the idea of Japanese breakfast (rice, miso soup, fish, spinach salad with small fry, etc.) but I like that stuff, so I go nuts for it. For a buck fifty, how can you go wrong?

Can't talk ... eating ...

In other news...

I have recently started calligraphy again. My teacher in Beppu is a very nice lady named Asoh Sensei. (No "Ah-so!" jokes, please.) She's really cool and very generous with her time. And she's very talented too, winning lots of awards and commissions from companies to do calligraphy for offices, buildings, lobbies, etc. Here she is with a big piece in her home.

Just don't ask me what it says.