Shan in Japan

Escaped from Tokyo on saturday to check out a full moon party in Minakami, Gunma. Just a few hours on the Kanetsu expressway and I was in the mountains of an emerging adventure capital in Japan. There are 11 outdoor companies here doing rafting, bungy jumping, canyoning and a host of other cool stuff. Partly the reason of coming out here was to say gday to some of these guys who support outdoorjapan.com, but the main reason was just to get out party!

Good mate Kazu picked me up on saturday arvo after a late start due to a slightly excessive friday night. Threw the tent and some munchies into the back of the car, cranked some sounds and hit the expressway. When we arrived, I met a fellow kiwi running one of the outdoor companies and also the main event organizer of the full moon party. Big lad with big dreads - got himself a very cool business set up. Got some inside info on where to set up camp and also very importantly, the onsen location. Soaked in the onsen and let the last dregs of friday night escape through the pores, then headed up into the misty hills to find the party location. Nestled in the valley alongside a river, there were two stages set up with all the techno, trippy paraphernalia you would expect at a full moon party. We befriended our neighboring campers and indulged on their fine umeboshi sour plums, which we cooled off with a Bombay Sapphire on the rocks. Around 10pm the big sounds started reverberating up the valley, which prompted us to put on our party faces and roll on down. Even at this early hour there was a good crowd converging. Good mix of foreigners and Japanese. Good dose of long and hairies - the new hippy culture. And no outdoor party goes without the firestarters swinging there poi pois. Everything was in fine balance. Just the right amount of people, not too crowded. Music was great - mix of reggae, lounge and latin down on the lower stage for the more mellower crew. The top stage was where the energy was, with progressive trance and breakbeats keeping people jumping around. I met lots of great people - no drugs, no aggro - this was much more sophisticated than my full moon party experience in Thailand. Speaking of full moon, the clouds were cloaking Mr. Moon, so didn't get the chance to bust out my werewolf tendancies. Fueled on redbull and various liquor I revelled until about 6ish in the morning. The last act kept going through to about 9am I think. I staggered up to find Kazu flaked out in the car and I crashed out in the tent, with the nights images and sounds ringing around my head. Up and outta there at 10am. Enjoyed soba noodles from Kakuya - famous local soba shop. Refreshed in the stream and bathed in the sun a bit to enjoy the much needed greenery of Minakami. Nice and content, Kazu and I were quiet and pensive on the drive back to Tokyo.
Must catch up on the sleep now;-)

New job, new wheels, now I have new apartment! After living under the kind shelter of my Japanese host family for several months, I found a little nook to roost in Ebisu. Very nice having Ebisu as an address:-) The usual reaction is "wow that must be really expensive?!" Being on the inside of the Yamanote loop, one would think so, but after much internet dragnetting I found a little gem. In fact, its the cheapest accommodation I have had in Tokyo so far. Then again, there are so many great restaurants and bars around the place, its probably going to end up being expensive living in this part of town afterall! Only 20mins to work on the 'new bike'. Convenient all round.

For those of you in town and need a place to crash after the last train, look me up!

Got myself a new mountain bike. TREK 6700 with Shimano XT components. Pouring with rain for the last few days, so haven't even used it yet;-( Scored a decent discount on it as the frame is a large size which is hard to sell in Japan. Back to basics this time. Hard tail mountain bike - no fancy dual suspension system like my last bike. More weight conscious this time and managed to get the bike weighing in at just over 12kgs. My last bike was a fatty at 16kg! Should make hill climbing a little more easier.

Planning a little trip to Niijima island for a 3 day outdoor trance festival. The name of the event is 'Anoyo' in Japanese which means 'Afterworld' and apparently every event they have held in the past has been punished by earthquakes or typhoons of some sort. Gods must be displeased. Weather is looking grim for the next week, so leaving the decision to go or not right to the last minute. Furthermore, do I take my surfboard or mountain bike...? Surf is reknowned in Niijima, but very fickle. Last time I went there it was flat the whole time. I have a sparkling new mountain bike just waiting to get bashed and covered in mud!