October 8

Even though I enjoyed visiting the shrines in Tokyo so much, I find that I don't take the time out to visit the shrines right here in Asahikawa. Today after visiting the Asahikawa School for the Deaf, I decided that since it was such a beautiful day that I would visit the Gokoku Shrine. If I'm translating it correctly, the name of the shrine has something to do with "protecting the country" or "safeguarding the country" or something like that. Anyway, it was great. I was almost like being in one of the big shrines in Tokyo, but without the crowds. In fact, I was just about the only one there, so I could really just stroll and enjoy the autumn atmosphere.
Just before the entrance to the shrine	A little closer...
Standing in the shadow of the torii	The autumn colors were beautiful
A stream in the shrine	I was impressed that this picture turned out
This is a statue in the shrine	It is of a mother and children
Close up	A place to purifiy your hands before entering the main part of the shrine
You use these cups to scoop out the water
On the way back the sky was really clear, so I decided to snap a shot of the mountains. Asahikawa is surrounded by mountains, but sometimes its hard to see them from the city. Going just a little bit outside of the city usually gives one a great view. There's been snow on the tops of the mountains for some time now.
A zoomed in view

October 12

Julianna had given me a half of a box of potatoes and onions. The potatoes were easy for me to use, but I'm having trouble using up so many onions. I wanted to make onion rings with them, but I didn't have the batter to make them. However, I did have tempura batter (a Japanese style deep fry batter), so I tried it instead. They actually turned out rather well.

October 17

I've been in the mood to go to an izakaya (Japanese style pub) for some time recently, so a bunch of us got together and went out to one.
A group of us in the izakaya	Dale and Mark at the Den afterwards

October 24

Every year, Asahikawa High Schools get together to have an International Understanding Day. It's a day for the students to get together to discuss international affairs. This year, a volunteer from UNICEF Japan came and talked to the students about the current condition of the world's children. It's also a chance for the students to practice their English with the ALTs, as we usually lead the afternoon discussion groups. At lunch time, we made mochi (Japanese rice cakes) and had that as part of our lunch.
Asahikawa Agricultural School, the host, was a beautiful school	Lunchtime mochi
Bob, um....busy?	Three of the Agricultural School's students
Three of my students (Asahikawa Commercial High School)

October 25

It's time again for Asahikawa's Halloween Party. This year's party was great! The kid's costumes were adorable, there were a fair number of foreigners there to help out, too. I had trouble figuring out a costume for myself, but after a suggestion from John, I managed to pull together a nice looking Zeus costume. The International Committee did so much decoration, it was amazing.
Setting Up	A ghost, D'Artagnan, and an orange
Bob and Natsuko, before and after the mask	Koyama-sensei and son
Lavendar ninjas?	A Kazakhstani outfit and a...banana lizard?
Two of the girls in my group	A nun, the Queen of Hearts, and a Clown
Moo!	The Musketeer and a Maid
He made this hat out of Papier-Mache	Mad Scientist
Sarah and Me	Chaos ensues...
Boo	Lavonda, as the Gypsy
Kids with knives, now that's what makes Halloween scary!	All the volunteers