Lake Kawaguchi 27km Race

Our 27-km (16.77 miles) race was this Sunday at Lake Kawaguchi, near Mt. Fuji. We rented a car, which was Joe's first time driving on the "wrong" side of the road. Unfortunately it was a Toyota Corolla, so Joe could barely fit in the car, but he somehow managed.

We left Friday afternoon to get to our hotel by dark. It ended up taking us a little over 4 hours to get there. We spent the day on Saturday exploring and relaxing, and then Sunday morning was our big run.

Lake Kawaguchi and Mt. Fuji.
This is the lake that we ran around for our race.

Another view of Lake Kawaguchi and Mt. Fuji.
Beautiful scenery all the way around the lake:
gorgeous fall colors, mountains, and of course Mt. Fuji.

Rising with the sun on Sunday morning. Up at 5am, race at 7:30am.
This is the view from our hotel room!

READY TO RUN!!!

We survived the 16.77 miles!!!
It was a beautiful day, completely sunny skies,
light breeze, and incredible views of Mt. Fuji.

Results: 2:37:02.

Hard to believe that just a couple of months
ago we climbed to the top of that mountain!

It was a wonderful trip! Very nice to get out of the city for a couple of days. We didn't have too high of expectations for our hotel, so we were pleasantly surprised when we ended up with a suite. :) The small town we stayed in was very cute, lots of little shops, cafes, and restaurants. Reminded us of a little country lake town you would find in the U.S. It would be really fun to visit in the summer time.

Joe also did a great job driving on the opposite side of the road and getting us there and back safely. It was nice to have a car for a few days, and we made sure to take full advantage of it: grocery shopping, going to restaurants, finding ice cream shops, etc.

Overall it was a great experience! We're happy with our race results, and hope to do it again next year... maybe even the full marathon next time!?!? :)

Michigan VS. Purdue

Since it's the Michigan vs. Purdue football game this weekend, I think it's the perfect time to tell you that Joe got into Grad School!!!

He will be starting the Purdue-Kelley dual degree program to get a Masters in Engineering and MBA starting in January. It's a 4 year program, so it's quite a commitment and he'll be very busy the next few years. Way to go Joe!!

Now the big question.... who will he be rooting for this weekend?
Undergrad or Grad school?!?!?

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LIKE THAT WAS EVEN A QUESTION!!!!
He will always be a Michigan fan. GO BLUE!!!

Botanical Gardens

My friend Mimi and I ventured over to the Botanical Gardens for our own fall color tour. We were hoping to see the trees changing colors - but unfortunately, we were a little early. Everything was still green! But we still had a great time wandering around, walking the trails, and spending time in the beautiful weather. It was a nice little escape from city life. :) There were quite a few flower gardens, so we're hoping to go back in the spring to see the blooms and cherry blossoms.

Here are a few pictures from our day.

Bamboo forest

Cute little rest area :)

LOVE PINK!

School

Here are a few pictures of my school and classroom. The school is located in the suburbs, so I commute about an hour each way to get there.

It's a really old school, but very unique and Japanese-style. The kids and staff all have to wear a special pair of indoor shoes to walk inside the building. It's an English immersion school, so most parents put their children in this school when they are just babies so that they can learn English naturally. It's amazing how quickly young children are able to learn a second language. My students are only 5 years old, and very fluent in English!

Here is my classroom and kiddos! It's a pretty small room, but perfect for only having 7 students. The room was originally used for the older students, so a lot of stuff on the walls/books/toys are not very age-appropriate... it's been a long process of trying to change the decorations and find toys that are more appropriate for them.

I am really enjoying working here! The staff are all friendly, and it's a laid-back and fun working environment. I love having a weekly routine now - it certainly makes the weeks fly by. I'm still only working part-time 3 days a week... which seems to be the perfect amount. :)