The ninth annual Domatsuri (officially, Nippon Domannaka Matsuri, or にっぽんど真ん中祭り in Japanese) was held on the 25th and 26th of August. Luckily, as with the last Domatsuri I went to, the weather was beautiful. The sun was a little harsh for taking pictures, but it was a clear day with a few beautiful clouds scattered here and there. The only problem was that it was hot. Like really, really hot. So hot it will give you a heat stroke just looking at it from your air conditioned car. Not to mention that I had just returned from Alaska the day before, where it was more like 60F or less there. Nonetheless, I was determined to get some good shots, and with the extra help from Japanzine, from whom I was able to get a press pass, I missed out on being blocked by big heads and the millions of old guys with huge, $5,000+ lenses. The press pass gave me access to anywhere I wanted to go, with the exception of a few time periods in which they were filming for T.V. or whatnot.

The first day I was still recovering from jet lag, so I slept late and arrived in Sakae where the parade was being held around 1:30 p.m. Luckily, I managed to miss most of the more intense midday heat, but I was still sweating like a pig. I made my way to the press trailer thing and got my press packet and press vest, after-which I went over to the street where the parade was going on. Even having the press pass, I was a little hesitant to just jump in and start shooting, and I wasn’t really sure where the off-limits areas were. After a few minutes though, I noticed a group of photographers shooting away in the middle of the road so I leapt over the fence to join them. It’s amazing what a feeling of power you get having that pass and gloating at the thousands of people lining the road who have to watch from behind a guarded line. That was pretty much it for the first day.

The second day I got there around 10:00 a.m., not realizing that the parade, the only thing I really cared about seeing, did not start until around 12:00. It was even hotter than the day before, and I was soaked the minute I got out of the station. I moseyed on over to the stage where they were introducing the groups, but it wasn’t that interesting, and the sun was right on that location. I was just glad I wasn’t dancing. Another thing that kind of turned me off of the stage performances, was that me and a few other press photographers were shooting away, and a staff member told us that we couldn’t stand up, even though nobody was saying anything to the other photographers on the other side of the stage. One of the other official Domatsuri photographers waved me over and saved me a place in the front where we could sit down. One of the other guys he was with came over, and the photographer who i had been next to told him about what had happened. He said 「嘘！厳しいなあ！」 which means, “No way! That’s strict, huh!” After getting sick of shooting in a corner and having to crouch, I decided to walk around while waiting for the parade to start. When the parade started, I went back where the other photographers had been shooting the day before and was pleased to find that I was the only one there. Unfortunately, the lighting was quite harsh (I’m assuming that’s why none of the other photographers were out shooting yet), so I decided to take a lunch break and treated myself to some bean burritos from Jerry’s Uno. After digesting my food and resting a bit, I made my way back, and by that time the light was starting to work in my favor a little bit more. Or, at least it wasn’t blasting everyone until they looked nuclear in my photos. When I tried jumping over the gate, a guard standing about 20 feet away stopped me and said, “No! No!” and crossed his fingers. I pointed to my bright yellow PRESS vest, that was startlingly obvious against my dark green t-shirt, and still he kept making an “X” with his fingers. I pointed again, thinking “Duh!!!” and finally he looked at the vest with shock and said, “Oh, OK.” I guess he just never would have expected for a foreigner to have a press pass. It should have been funny. These types of things usually are for me. It wasn’t a big deal, and I probably would have done the same thing if I had been in his place, but I found that it kind of ground on my nerves a bit for some reason. I have to admit that by the end, I was relieved that it was finally over. I thought about staying for the evening final dance competition, but it was way too hot. I’m glad I left when I did, because I was still recovering from heat exhaustion for a few days after that. And that’s how Domatsuri was.

Here are my five favorites. The rest are on Flickr if you want to see them. Just follow the link at the bottom of the page.

Technorati Tags: Domatsuri, Domannaka Matsuri, Nagoya, Sakae, Photography, Matsuri, Festival

After my week in Florida, I headed up to Alaska to visit my parents. The trip was just as long (I believe it was longer, actually) than my trip from Nagoya to Florida. Part of that was due to a long layover in Denver. When I used to come to Japan, I used to stop in Korea and have an eleven hour layover. I chalked it down to it being an international flight. It seems that domestic travel now has the same problems, and I ended waiting ten hours or so in Denver. I’ve never actually flown through Denver before, so I’m assuming that the reason for the routing and the limited number of flights was because of recent gas prices. I had never really thought about it before, but I have a feeling that this is a taste of things to come and I have many hours of pain and anguish ahead of me in my trips to and from home. As much as I dislike flying, I would almost rather be up in the air for that period of time rather than sitting and waiting for hours on end, knowing the whole time that you will be on a plane soon waiting for hours on end after that.

After getting to Alaska I was relieved to feel cool air. None of that thick, oppressing humidity baking off of the asphalt as is prevalent in Nagoya. I was pretty beat when I got there, but my bed in Alaska is a lot more comfortable than the futon I have been sleeping on in Japan (sorry, futon) and I was really looking forward to it. We spent most of the vacation taking it easy and eating most of the stuff that I can’t get in Japan. The only thing that I forgot to eat was Arby’s potato cakes and curly fries. Too bad, but there’s always next time. Taco Bell is never as good as I remember, especially this time because it was slightly ruined by the Dr. Pepper I received without the Dr. Pepper; it was mostly just carbonated water. Don Jose’s, a Mexican-Italian restaurant, ended up being the best of the bunch out of default. I miss Mexican food the most, and Alaska has a real shortage of it. Don Jose’s is not the greatest in the world, but it does the job when you’re in a fix. And it’s unquestionably more authentic than Taco Bell.

Even though my mom offered places to visit and whatnot, I didn’t really come with the intention to visit anywhere. Mostly, I just wanted to see them, relax, and enjoy the time. There were a few note-worthy events however, including but not limited to head-spinning goats, trashy rural Alaskan Cajun music concert goers, and a rafting trip that left us stranded on the side of a lake with whitecaps barreling down on the side of the raft, no thanks to me. I thought about taking a few photos but I ended up foregoing that in favor of enjoying the moment. I did end up taking a few photos when I was testing out some new lighting equipment or when I happened to have my camera with me and wanted to take pictures in a not-so-serious manner.

I was in Alaska for just under three weeks but it went by way too fast and I wished that I could have stayed longer. However, duty called, and I had to head back to Japan to shoot Domatsuri and start work again. But I’ll be back soon, although next time I’ll probably have to take more photos to compensate for my slacking this time.

Technorati Tags: Alaska, Kenai, Photography, Goats

I just got back last Friday from Florida to visit my grandparents and then up to Alaska to visit my parents. I think the last time I went down to Florida was about two years ago. It was a breath of fresh air to get out of the crowdedness that is Japan. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a city slicker to the core, and I love Japan, especially Nagoya, but even for me it was nice to see more than one or two trees and a vast area. My grandparents live in Fernandina Beach, which is only about 45 minutes out from Jacksonville. Not too much has changed, but they’ve started developing more recently, and they’re filling every nook and cranny with these ugly, prefabricated houses that all look the same and don’t mesh with their surroundings. It’s quite sad and disappointing what people will do to make money. Despite that, it was still gorgeous, and I was able to relax and enjoy family life and watching lots of animal life in the backyard. I decided before I left Japan that I would try to enjoy this trip without taking too many photos. Just spend time with my family and get my battery recharged. There were a few times where I wished that I had had my camera, but I didn’t feel like I missed out on too much. Alaska part coming soon…

A few photos from the trip:

Technorati Tags: Florida, Photography, Jacksonville

I’ve been neglecting an update, mostly because I get overwhelmed with all that happens and it feels like too much of a feat for me to blog it all. Really, if I just kept it short, and focused on a few things, maybe set some goals, too, I might be better at this blogging thing. But I’ll keep soldiering on, one step at a time, anyway… I was inspired to pick up the pace again by my step-brother Sean, who has now started his own blog sharing his experiences in Italy studying the culinary arts for a year. Check it out: AK Traveler

Super cool use of light painting and stop motion animation. It must have taken forever to make.