Waki and I are off to South Korea this Friday. We’re taking a short vacation and will be back on Monday.

No, it’s not our honeymoon.

Looks like the wait is over, Softbank has signed on with Apple to bring the iPhone to Japan:

http://www.softbankmobile.co.jp/en/news/press/2008/20080604_01/

Last weekend Waki, Vitaly and I went on a trip to Caryn & Andy’s house by the Izu peninsula. We rode a train there and they picked us up at the station in their minivan. From there we drove along a windy road up the side of a mountain until we reached their driveway. Their house was stunning, a giant traditional old Japanese house. The entrance was breathtaking in itself. Walking inside through the gates we are greeted by numerous antiques and sliding paper doors and windows. Inside the rooms are filled with warmth and a welcoming atmosphere.

They’ve spent so much time renovating the house, in it’s current state I can’t even imagine what it was like before. They insist it was falling apart with the roof caving in and windows broken. Now it’s a scene from a storybook fairytale. Every room seems to have it’s own story to tell and every antique that is placed about was carefully chosen. In so many ways it brought back memories of my grandparents house in upstate New York. The creaky floors, the warm flickering lights, the night sky in the backyard, a pure black untouched by city lights. Even at night, the sound of frogs chirping from the pond in the backyard. I haven’t felt so relaxed in years.

The following morning we made pancakes together and ate in their teahouse behind their house. Their house even has a teahouse. I couldn’t believe how fantastic it was. I’m not even sure if my words do it justice, the entire experience was simply unforgettable. Waki and Vitaly had a great time too. It was really nice to be together with friends and cook dinner together in that incredible house.

I made a little photo gallery, please have a look. I shot these photos with my macro lens, so there are some fairly exotic shots in there. I wanted to capture that storybook feeling with some fantasy closeups of the nature behind their house.

Click here to view the gallery

This thing was about a quarter of the size of a shelled peanut. This macro lens produces some creepy photos.

I’m going to write a longer post with a slideshow of photos from our weekend soon. Waki and I spent the weekend with Vitaly at Caryn and Andy’s beautiful house on a mountainside in Izu. It was absolutely beautiful, a huge antique Japanese house complete with a tea room and onsen(Japanese bath house). I chose my macro lens for the trip and took some pretty wild photos. Just wait for the slideshow, I’ll build it soon…

It’s 2AM on a Saturday morning here in Tokyo. The weather is hot and slightly humid. I just got home and my brain is wiped out. I spent the majority of the day illustrating pirates. Had lunch with my friend Lizzie, we had chicken rice at a Singaporean restaurant in Azabu Juban that is simply fantastic. Tonight we met Waki’s friends who took us out for dinner to celebrate our wedding, a sort of late afterparty. We had dinner at this really posh restaurant called NOS which had an interior covered in paintings that looked very much like the ones Ryan use to make of cartoon characters. They had a disco ball the size of a small car. It was an amazing place, we got kicked out after three hours though since our table reservation expired. We moved to another restaurant upstairs and ordered more drinks and a plate of raw horse and some sushi. Loads of fun and here I am, back in my apartment again. All a blur and yet another week passes by. Just trying to save money now and plan for the honeymoon and the reception party back in Boston. Skyrocketing oil prices may strike down our plans and we may wind up swimming back to Boston. We’ll see. Besides all of this, I’m generally in good health, eating well and getting enough sleep. Tomorrow we’re taking a train to Izu to stay in our friends house on a mountainside. I’m excited to finally have some time away from a computer. On our way home, Waki and I stopped by a little cafe not far from our apartment in hopes of getting a cup of tea and sharing some cake before sleep. It was a tiny cafe with little cakes in the window. We asked how much it would be for a piece of cake and a cup of tea per person. $20(my assumed conversion from yen to dollars). Ya, $20 per person for a tiny little piece of cake and a cup of tea. We said thank you and walked back to our bikes. The waiter looked disappointed but screw him and screw that place. How dare anyone in such a crappy location charge $20 for cake and tea! Anyhow, that didn’t bother us one bit. It’s definitely time for bed, I’m typing boring stuff now and the alcohol isn’t helping…

Obediently kneeling before the big boss.