From: Saturday, November 19th: I think I had mentioned before that I had accidentally deleted the backup footage from my trip. I gave it the old college try and even looked for the footage on various hard drives. Please accept this slideshow as a proper substitute and just pretend the objects and people in the photos are moving.

This post contains sights from around Ginza and Shimbashi on our last night in Tokyo and will also be the very last video edition of this particular trip. If you missed any of the prior espisodes, you can still catch them here. I will start to post more current videos next week. (^.^) またね！

 Japan Trip - Day 8 and 9 [1:38m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

(click above for photos)

Ok, I apologize. I’m going to take the easy way out this week and forward everyone to my photos of Japan taken from last year. This week at the school has been a busy but rewarding one for all of us. During this week, we have had a mid-term exam, two papers, and a quiz. This Friday night cannot come soon enough.

I promise I will be back this weekend with the very last installment of the Japan trip podcast and will then start documenting the future instead of dwelling on the past. I’ve also got some Japan related news, marketing research, and excellent blogs to share. Stay tuned…

From Friday, November 18th: A bit different this week. Posting an audio podcast episode instead of a video one like the last few.

Immerse yourself in the sounds of Japan, well at least just the first 10 minutes of train sounds, and just cruise around on the JR line with us, getting lost in Osaka on our way to visit Terrance in Kobe. Works best with headphones. ^_^

Listen Now:

 Japan Trip - Day 7 [9:51m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From Thursday, November 17th: Day six of my Japan trip was spent wandering around the underground malls of Osaka. When we finally popped our heads up for air, we realized we were fairly close the Osaka Aquarium. Let’s head on over.

I present to you, “Today’s Zen Moment” with a dozen or so photos of the critters inside the aquarium, and not always just the fish. More photos here.

 Japan Trip - Day 6 [1:02m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From Wednesday, November 16th, 2005: This is day 5 of my November trip to Japan. This morning, we were awoken by a ringing of a bell at 5:30am. We shuffled off to the services area and sat quietly while the monks performed their morning prayers. It was cold, peaceful, and humbling.

The remainder of the day was spent walking through the stone paths of Koyasan and checking out the old buildings. We ended the day by traveling back to Osaka, which I will post pictures of later.

 Japan Trip - Day 5: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From Tuesday, November 15th, 2005: The Ryokan room, and the Yukatta Battle between Fred and Chris. Do not miss this episode. I had to break the arrival at Shojoshin-in into a separate video feed. We basically got into the room and spent the whole day just chilling out. We were both pretty beat after the day of traveling and battling Kung-fu style!

 Japan Trip - Day 4b: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From Tuesday, November 15th, 2005: On our way to Koyasan to visit some monks and keep in a traditional Japanese Ryokan. The entire day was spent traveling to Koyasan. First, JR Loop line from Shinjuku to Tokyo Station. Bullet train to Shin-Osaka. Loop line to Shin-Imamiya. Nankai Koya Line to Gokurakubashi. Cable car to Koyasan. Bus to Ryokan. Fun!

 Japan Trip - Day 4: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From Monday, November 14th, 2005: Welcome to Day 3 of the Japan Trip. Our first real big day of formal sight-seeing. I was finally feeling back to normal after recovering from the jet lag and the nice cold I caught. We managed to figure out the trains well enough to make it to the Imperial Palace, the Meiji Shrine, and meet up with our friend Saya-san in Shimbashi in the evening. Unfortunately, I didn’t take too much video except on the trains themselves. There’s a quick bit about navigating the trains and what you see inside of them but that’s about all. The rest is pictures that you can also see in Flickr.

Anyway, here it is. Enjoy!

 Japan Trip - Day 3: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From Sunday, November 13th, 2005: Lots to see and lots to do in grand ol’ Tokyo. This day, we started it off right by visiting the Shinjuku Center, Sumitomo, and NS buildings for some high flying sight seeing. It was pretty amazing to be able to see metro spread for so far. We walked from downtown Shinjuku through Yoyogi, discovering vending machines, weird looking buildings, video games and pachinko parlors, and finally found the Sapporo beer museum in Ebisu.

We finished off the night by sitting in downtown Shinjuku totally wiped out and still not over our jetlag. It was somewhat surreal towards the end of the night and hence the weird music. I think it really captures the theme even though I totally ripped it off from “Lost in Translation”. Enjoy!

 Japan Trip - Day 2: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

From Saturday, November 12th, 2005: We arrived in Tokyo on Saturday November 12th, completely exhausted and tired from the 2 hour connecting flights, the 14 hour flight to Narita, the 1 hour long train ride to Shinjuku from Narita Airport, and the 1 hour jaunt to find our hotel. Needless to say, getting to Shinjuku is a multi-stage journey.

Upon arrival, it was a bit overwhelming, but really exciting. After the final leg of the journey, I was feeling a bit punchy. My only regret … I wish I took more video footage so this first installment is a little thin. Hope you enjoy!

 Japan Trip - Day 1: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download