What a weird dream I just had. I dreamed I went to a strange place far from everyone and everything I’ve ever known. Everyone was speaking a strange languag...

In one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen, I had a breakdown. Miyazaki is beautiful this time of year. The tropical prefecture is stunning no matter...

A week ago, I downloaded Tinder. A week later, I'm ready to delete it. As I’ve mentioned in a previous blog post, the last time I was single, Tinder didn’t e...

I’ll never forget the first thing I did when I got to my tiny inaka apartment. When I woke up in Tokyo on the first day of orientation, I felt a scratchy fee...

Not to toot my own horn, but I was the best artist in my first grade class. For every student’s birthday, our teacher, Mrs. Wurstefer, would have the other s...

I had an established Valentine’s Day tradition with my ex. First, a stop at The Steeping Room, our favorite tea and scones place in Austin, for a light dinne...

I’ve seen how the students address Japanese teachers in the halls. They stop, straighten up and stand with arms locked to their sides, bow to a near-perfect ...

Northeast Kyushu is cold this time of year. Winter in Texas is in a constant state of flux. One cloudy, cold day in the 40s will often be followed by a warm ...

To be honest, I wasn’t sure where to begin with a "Christmas in Japan" blog. Other people have written about Christmas in Japan extensively, and with more ex
 I’ve tried to break down my holiday season in Japan experience into 25 key points, facts, and observations that will hopefully go down a lot easier than basashi. 1. They don’t have the usual holiday staples. This depends on your holiday staple foods, and the extent to which you’re willing to get them. Some are easier to

“I like your Halloween costume, Rachel-sensei! Very colorful, ne?” A well-meaning teacher says to me, upon seeing my outfit. Yes, today I’m teaching a lesson...

There’s a ravine between everyone and me, and it’s called the Japanese language. As much as I tried to study back in the states, it’s simply not enough. I kn...

Like a lot of people on the internet, I like to call myself a writer. Still, I’ve never been the “blogging” type: structuring my thoughts into well-organized...