Swimming, Golfing, and Sochu...

It's been another few hot and humid days here in Toyama but I think that our bodies are finally starting to adjust. The first three or four days were really tough. There has also been a break in the weather and it has cooled down a bit. It's a lot more bearable now. We've been watching the weather in Regina and it appears to be really cooling down: 4C overnight lows. It is going to be tough to adjust to that upon our return home.

Toyama has an incredible public leisure centre / complex that includes two swimming pools, a huge workout and yoga centre, a relaxation and meditation centre (this place was absolutely phenomenal), and a couple of eateries. This complex was far beyond any other public facility that I have ever seen; it was much more like a private spa than something that would be open to everyone. Having access to this complex alone would be reason enough to want to live here. We've spent two days at this place and it has been well worth it. On top of the excellent facilities, the centre's change rooms, showers, etc... are extremely clean. People in Japan have an incredible level of consideration for public property, far beyond what we experience in North America. I'd love to just once go into a public facility in North America where some S.O.B. has NOT carved their smart-ass thoughts into the walls of the washrooms and lockers.

We also played another round of golf at the Yatsuo Country Club. We played this same course last November but it was nice to see it during the summer. It was certainly a lot more green and lush at this time of year. Unfortunately, I played the absolute worst game of golf that I have ever played in my entire life. I shot 151 on 18 holes! Needless to say, I was extremely disappointed with this performance. But, what can one expect when one has only played two proper games of golf (ie. not Texas Scramble) in the last ten years? At least the scenery was nice. Hana played a great game. Look out for the upcoming IIA golf tournament in September, Hana has her game on!!!

To round out the day, we spent some time at a local pub with some of Hana's friends from way back. This was quite the group. I really wasn't sure if I wanted to go out because I don't speak Japanese but I was glad that I went. What a fun group of girls (I should have know better than thinking that I shouldn't go. Hanging out with a group of Japanese girls is always fun!). It turned out to be a bit of a rough evening though -- too much shochu! Nothing that a little Gravol couldn't fix though. It was very interesting for me to contrast our life and interests in Canada with what Hana's friends experience here. Main lesson for me: I'd probably rather raise kids here in Japan than in North America. It's a complicated topic but to sum it up: this is a high-trust, safe society with high standards of behaviour. Very attractive....