Cop A Gander At These Rippers Too...

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    Big Red Bike Tour Stage 13: Last Leg On Last Legs

    At long last, the Big Red Bike Tour is over. What a wonderful time it was! Originally, I’d planned to take some time off work and cycle across the Japan Alps and Nakasendo highway. But Dino falling ill put paid to that plan. I needed to stay close to home, but could also leave our rosy faced lovebird alone for long enough to take the short rides that comprised the tour. Even so, over the 13 stages of the tour conducted over the past 10 days (two days, including today had two stages), I racked up 595.29 kilometers ridden, which is about the distance of the original Alps trip. And…

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    Is Niseko Still Australia’s Ski Town?

    ニセコは今も「オーストラリア人のスキーの町」なのか？ Walk through Niseko today and you’ll hear conversations in Japanese, English, Mandarin, Korean and many other languages. The resort that Australians helped introduce to the world has become one of Asia’s most international winter destinations. Visitors now arrive from across the globe, while investment comes from many countries. So, after more than three decades, is Niseko still Australia’s ski town? 現在のニセコを歩くと、日本語だけでなく英語、中国語、韓国語など、さまざまな言語が聞こえてきます。 かつてオーストラリア人が世界に紹介したスキーリゾートは、今ではアジアを代表する国際的なウィンターリゾートへと成長しました。 では、30年以上が経った今でも、ニセコは「オーストラリア人のスキーの町」と言えるのでしょうか。 The Pioneer Years There was a time when Australians dominated Niseko’s international tourism scene. From the mid-1990s through the early 2000s, Australian visitors arrived in growing numbers, opening cafés, ski schools, accommodation businesses and tour companies. Their enthusiasm encouraged more travellers to discover Hokkaido’s famous powder…

  • Bloody Beauty! Back on the Bike!

    After months of near inactivity, Kangaeroo was finally able to indulge regularly in the pursuit that brings probably the greatest pleasure in life: cycling! So far, 2022 has been a series of calamities in terms of cycling, starting with poor weather then moving on to poor equipment, poor health and poor luck! But things slowly slotted back into place and have finally allowed for a week on the bike that is as good as it gets now! And some of the results were stupendous, as can be seen in the gallery. What sheer delight!

  • いよいよ日豪対決！Bragging Rights at Stake as Samurai Blue Tackle Socceroos in World Cup Qualifier

    Fierce but friendly rivals Japan and Australia meet in an Asian Football Confederation Round Four World Cup qualifying match at Saitama Stadium 2002 near Tokyo on June 4. アジアサッカー連盟（AFC)ライバル国日本とオーストラリアがサッカー2014年ワールドカップ最終予選を今夜、6月4日、埼玉スタジアム2002で行なう。 Japan, currently top of Group B, need only to take a point from this match to qualify for Brazil 2014. 現在Bグループ首位である日本代表が引き分けでも来年ブラジルで行なうワールドカップ出場が決定となる。 Australia, in third place a point behind Jordan but with a game in hand, will be looking to take home at least one point, but will have its hands full against a team that has realistic hopes of reaching the latter rounds in South America next year. 一方、2位ヨルダンの1点差でありながら試合数が一つ少ないオーストラリア代表は、恐らく引き分けを狙うが日本代表に対してなかなか強さを見せることができないだろう。 Also at stake in this match will be bragging rights between two…

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    Boomerang Shrine And Shooting The Rapids

    Mrs. Kangaeroo and I got another wonderful experience shooting down the rapids in the delightful Saitama Prefecture town of Nagatoro, which is also home to a shrine hoping to draw people back with something of an Aussie touch. Boomerang Kaeru Shrine, just outside Nagatoro Station, is dedicated to the worship of frogs, but is actually a play on words. The Japanese for frog is kaeru (蛙), but also a homonym for returning home (帰る), hence the boomerang, which (allegedly) returns to the thrower upon being hurled. (This is a story for another day). Also got to find some Engrish that appealed to my eternal schoolboy side.