A year ago, I lost one of my closest friends, Rodger Swan.
Tonight a number of the Keio University exchange students displayed international solidarity in a chain of virtually 24 hours of Skype sessions. The vast majority of us are dealing with the loss of our friend alone, separated from others who knew and loved him as we did. Tonight, we were able to reconnect and share a few stories. Being able to get back in touch with the people who share the good times that I had in Japan with Rodg was a great comfort in these difficult times. It was a positive experience for all of us who managed to chat and something Rodger would have approved of.
Of course, those of you who know me will already have heard me tell a million stories about Rodg. One year on and he is still very much missed, and certainly not forgotten. Either by those who were lucky enough to know him in person, or his countless youtube fans. As Rodger always did, I’ll leave you on a positive note. This video was filmed with Rodg, myself, Esben and Kris in one of our favourite spots – Minato Mirai in Yokohama. Enjoy, and we’ll see you next time.
First and foremost, I want to say a big ありがとうございます to all of you who’ve been commenting my posts recently. This experience is a rollercoaster at the moment, and having the support of my soon-to-be fellow ALTs is a really big help. I met some of my very dearest friends in Japan, so let’s make it another year (maybe more) of adventures and fantastic memories.
Shinagawa Prince Hotel
So, back on track, I’ve got three days all on my lonesome to get back in touch with my Keio exchange roots. Anyone who wants to solve this *lonesome* issue let me hear you shout “woooooo Japan!”. 3 days just doesn’t seem to be enough to fit in everything and everywhere I want to see again before training. In a pretty vague, disorganised list form, I really want to hit 渋谷, 慶應大学, 原宿, 浅草, みなとみらい
Shibuya, Keio University, Harajuku, Asakusa, and Minato Mirai.
I’m very excited to be staying on a Yamanote line stop, as (those of you who spend enough time with me will know) I have a habit of singing ALL of the stations on the Yamanote line along to Beethoven’s Ode to Joy. I have a habit of getting stuck at Shin-Okubo though >.< Just try it… I guarantee you’ll be hooked or disgusted at the sweetness. I swear to God I just watched this three times in a row!
Things to do include meeting up with any friends who may be in the area, shopping, drinking, karaoke, shrines and SWEET FACTORY. I’ll save the big details for when I actually get out there and take my own photos, though!
For those of you who don’t know Sweet Factory, let me help you out. Having looked at the website, it turns out it’s a sister company of a British one! Thank the Brits for spreading the message of “pick n mix sweets = win” around the world! Me and my dormmate Kris used to spend obscene amounts of yennies here getting our sugar fix inbetween going on the rides and shopping. Their slogan is “Eat Sweets, Be Happy”. This is my life motto!Here’s the website if you want some excitement: http://www.sweetfactoryjapan.com.
In tune with my current video posting, if you’d like to see a fun trip out to Minato Mirai, check out this video. It involves me, Rodg, Kris and Esben all going on a trip. I definitely recommend checking Yokohama out if you get the chance and riding “banishu” – Vanish!
I hope these amazing videos make up for the lack of pictures in the blog 24 days to go…
24 days to go…
