Had a long road trip down to Oita this weekend. Oita is, basically, the bottom of Japan. The bus ride was about 10 hours, including time to stop and eat. Bus rides don't bother me too much. I bring a couple books (Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell and The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins), my new portable DVD player (Thanks Nic!) and my Rubik's cube. The cube had been a constant source of frustration for me for the last five weeks. But I finally figured out the last algorithm at breakfast on Sunday. I was so excited I slammed the cube down on the table and strutted around the hotel restaurant. I drew quite a few incredulous stares from the more....reserved...Japanese patrons. But eff it, I just finished a Rubik's Cube without cheating!
We went 1-1 this weekend, losing Saturday and winning Sunday. The Saturday loss was tough, we lost in overtime. Sunday was a good win. We were down five at halftime and had, to that point, not been playing inspired basketball. But we came out strong in the 3rd quarter, and were able to pull away and win by 15 or so.
My non-basketball and non-Rubik's cube highlight of the trip was driving past Hiroshima on the way home. Although it was dark, the city is nestled in between some beautiful mountains. Staring out the window, I was filled with unbelievable sadness thinking about what had happened here over 60 years ago.
Now we have practices the next two days, and then a four day break! I don't have any big plans, there isn't much to do really. Japan pretty much shuts down January 1-3. Most stores are closed because, from what I've gathered, it's a significant traditional Japanese holiday.
The pictures are from our drive down to Oita. The above picture is a Torii, a Japanese gate. You see these at Shinto Shrines and some Buddhist Temples. The gate marks where you step from the normal world into the sacred, and vice-versa.
The other picture is the bridge that connects Honshu Island and Kyushu Island.
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