Saru mo Ki kara Ochiru (Even Monkeys Fall From Trees)

We left Tokyo, hopped on the Shinkansen bound for Nagoya, which by the way is the coolest way to travel and we should totally adopt it in America...But, that is another issue. After eating some corndog-sized fried shrimp in Nagoya, We hopped on the bus and rode for about 2 hours far into the mountains of Gifu, a small town of about 15,000 people, it is called Gujyo Hachiman. We arrived at the train stop, it was raining, waiting to meet our next host...we waited...A car pulls up on this desolate stretch of Japanese Highway, it has got to be for us.
I was expecting Richard, the Canadian guy who runs the farm to meet me, instead it is a young hippie Japanese guy, with a few drunk girls. We hop in. After some strange broken Japan-glish in the car, we arrive at a house where I hear guitars and Djimbe drums...definitely Hippies. We go in to find maybe 20 Japanese people sitting on tatami around two tables with heaps of food and copious amounts of alcohol, beer, Sake, Scotch....WOW! What is this place some sort of Oneida Community?
Turns out they were having a community party that was once planned as a barbecue, but it rained so they moved inside. This group of people are part of a web community called Masubu, and I think this was the first time that many of them had met. They promote a self-sustainable type of living, a self-dependence and a quiet impact on the earth. It is actually really really cool, and totally possible to do. I think I am going to like this place.
Today Nick and I drove, yes we drove the Japanese van, up the mountain to collect composting leaves for the garden...and maybe a little sightseeing along the way. It is so beautiful and quiet here. The house is all open and at one with the landscape. Today we stopped at an overlook to see the view. I hear some rustling in the trees, look up to see the some grey-bodied creature climbing in the trees. Japanese Monkeys in the wild! I stopped and looked and the red-faced little guy looked right back at me directly in the eyes. What a place.

The Last Train

Good Morning Tokyo....What a crazy week. This place has got to be the most intense city ever. During the day, it is the most beautifully bustling city, and at night when the last train stops do not catch yourself in the red light district. Strange place, different than anything I thought. But, I am not a great writer, so I will use media to make it better. Here are a few videos while I was in Tokyo.