Just a quick note for any interested readers that my new mountain
climbing eBook is now available in 9 different formats from Smashwords,
the world's largest distributor of indie eBooks.
Smashwords distributes books to most of the major retailers, including
the Apple iBookstore, Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo, and the Diesel
eBook Store & offers a catalog of over 100,000 vetted,
well-formatted eBooks from over 45,000 authors and publishers.
The eBooks on Smashwords can be read online using their online readers,
or they can be downloaded to other reading devices such as the iPhone,
iPad, iPod Touch, Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, or Barnes & Noble
Nook, or to other e-reading devices.
Smashwords also offers generous sampling options so readers can try
before they buy. Read more...
Hot off the press. I've been toying w/ the idea for at least 9 yrs.,
but a couple weeks ago I finally got a (round tuit).
Amazon Kindle eBook
description:
Being a lifelong climber, the attraction for Japan’s breathtaking
mountains was immediate for Gary J. Wolff, and so within only 4 short
months of arriving in Japan over 21 years ago, he was standing atop
Fuji-san, the nation’s highest peak. After becoming firmly hooked on
the exhilarating 360-degree panoramas afforded by Japan’s alpine
country, over the course of the next 2 decades Gary managed to climb
all of the 29 highest mountains in Japan and 38 of the tallest 50. Read more...
(If like me, you do not own a
Kindle, you can download here the free Kindle reading app for your
smartphone, PC, or tablet. You can also "Look inside" or
download (sample) the 1st chapter for free at the eBook links above.)
Pics,
video, maps, and trail description of my Aug. 21-22, 2012 climb of Mt.
Fuji's Fujinomiya Trail (富士宮登山道), the shortest route up to the highest
point in Japan (日本最高峰), are here.
Enjoy !!
Fuji-san
sunrise (goraiko, 御来光) @ 5:03 am on Aug. 22, 2012
Aug.
26, 2012 - Video of Mt. Fuji's Fujinomiya Climbing Route (富士山富士宮登山道),
August 21-22, 2012
0:00 Fujinomiya 5th Station (富士宮五合目)
1:13 Fujinomiya trailhead (登山入り口)
1:53 Fujinomiya 6th Station (六合目)
3:31 Fujinomiya New 7th Station
(新七合目)
4:50 Fujinomiya Old 7th Station (元祖七合目)
5:11 Fujinomiya 8th Station (八合目)
6:49 Fujinomiya 9th Station (九合目)
7:13 Oxygen can inhalation demo (酸素缶の吸入デモ)
7:23 Mannenyuki (10,000 yr.) snow field (万年雪)
8:37 Fujinomiya 9.5th Station (九号五勺)
9:34 Fujikan summit mountain hut (頂上富士館)
10:00 Inside Mt. Fuji's crater (山頂噴火口)
11:40 Sunset from Kengamine, Japan's high point
(剣ヶ峰(日本最高峰)から日の入り)
12:39 Nighttime climbers w/ headlamps (ヘッドランプをもっている夜間登山者)
13:45 Sunrise from Mt. Fuji's summit (富士山頂上から日の出)
16:03 The hike down from the summit (頂上から下りにハイキング)
16:22 Returning to Tokyo by shinkansen bullet train (新幹線で帰京)
Since ancient times, the Fujinomiya Route (富士宮ルート) has been referred to
as the "front entrance (表口)" to Mt. Fuji due in part to the way it has
been depicted historically in countless poems & literature, as well
as artwork such as Katsushika Hokusai's (葛飾 北斎) woodblock print series
"Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (富嶽三十六景)".
Aug.
24, 2012 - Pics of my August 21-22, 2012 climb of Mt. Fuji (富士山) along
the
Fujinomiya Climbing Route (富士宮登山道)
Aug. 16,
2012 - Mt.
Yatsu-ga-take (八ヶ岳, 8 Peaks), elev. 2899m, the 33rd Highest
Mountain in Japan
Mt. Aka-dake (赤岳) summit, elev. 2899m
(the highest of Mt. Yatsu-ga-take’s 8 peaks)
This
group of inactive volcanic peaks is listed among the 100 famous
mountains in Japan (Nihon Hyakumeizan, 日本百名山). After 21 years of
climbing the highest mountains in Japan (日本の高い山), this Aug. 2000 trip
is the only time I can ever recall staying in a mountain hut up on a
hiking trail that actually had a hot spring bath in it. Made from
Japanese cypress, no less.
Besides Mt. Fuji, among the highest mountains in Japan, Mt.
Yatsu-ga-take (八ヶ 岳, elev. 2899m) is probably the most accessible Japan
highpoint from Tokyo, as it is possible to reach the trailhead in less
than 3 hours from Shinjuku. If you have any interest, pls. check out my
12-yr-old story, back when I still had dark hair. Read more here...
Although more than two years have now passed since the introduction of
Apple’s iPad tablet computer, this versatile mobile device continues to
revolutionize the education landscape. Nevertheless, an exploding
number of applications often brings confusion to teachers of English as
a Foreign Language (EFL) in how best to utilize the iPad as a teaching
tool in their classrooms, especially those language educators not so
technologically inclined. The purpose of this article is to identify a
few of the most useful iPad applications for EFL teachers, and to
describe how teachers are actually using the device in and out of the
classroom for tasks including the presentation of class content;
face-to-face interaction with students; as an instantaneous, in-class
reference tool; and for the teachers’ own professional development. By
learning how EFL teachers are using iPads to their fullest potential,
the reader will gain insight into how to maximize use of this versatile
device and in the process will be able to provide a more enriching
learning environment for students. (Continued... Useful
iPad Tools for the EFL Teacher)
Sample question and answer in Evernote Peek
Aug. 7,
2012 - 2012 Edogawa
Fireworks Display (第37回江戸川区花火大会)
The 37th Annual 2012 Edogawa Hanabi Taikai (fireworks display) was held
Sat. Aug. 4, 2012 on the banks of the Edogawa River, Edogawa-ku, Tokyo,
from 7:15 to 8:30 pm, and included 14,000 fireworks. Last year this
festival was canceled because of the Tohoku Earthquake & Tsunami.
Unlike most fireworks shows, this one is composed of eight distinct
themes, each with music to match the beautiful fireworks that light the
sky. This year the 7th section "Ginsou" was themed around the Tohoku
Earthquake to pray for the victims. Launched by electrical remote
control, the fireworks performance is choreographed in great detail to
delight onlookers.
Don't miss the amazing 2-min. grand finale, even with applause from the
audience!!
Whoa, where did all that DARK
HAIR come from?! Ah yes, the days of my youth. Living in Japan opens up a lot of
opportunities that foreigners would normally never have in their own
home country.
How else would one explain how a former engineering company vice
president can land Japanese television roles as President Richard
Nixon, a famous heart surgeon, a police officer, the New Zealand
ambassador to Japan, an American executive on a business trip in Japan,
an Italian bank teller, and even the butler for Sir Thomas Glover, the
Scottish merchant who was a key figure in the 19th century
industrialization of Japan?
July
16, 2012 - 2011
Katsushika Fireworks Display, Tokyo, Japan
This year's show (第46回葛飾納涼花火大会, in Japanese) is Tues. 7/24, 7:20-8:20
p.m. (about 10,800
fireworks), postponed to the 25th in case of rain or strong wind.
The video above was last year's 45th annual Katsushika Noryo Hanabi
Taikai (第45回葛飾納涼花火大会)
held on the banks of the Edo River in Tokyo. The 40-minute show
was on Tues. July 26, 2011. Boom Factor -- ~7,000 works. Nearest
station: Shibamata Sta., on the Keisei Kanamachi Line, very near the
famous Yagiri-no-Watashi boat crossing. The best-kept secret about this
fireworks display is that although most people arrive by train from the
west side of the river which is the main viewing area (and thus is
CRAZY crowded), they open up the golf course on the east side, allowing
folks to spread out their plastic sheets on the fresh cool, green
grass. I didn't have anyone within 30 ft. of me while filming this !
Don't miss the finale!
July 10,
2012 - It's Mt. Fuji
Climbing Season!!
The 2-month Mt. Fuji climbing season officially began on July 1st. If
you're
planning to climb Mt. Fuji, you definitely need to check out my
recently updated Climbing Mt. Fuji FAQ
page. Over the past several weeks, this page has become the most
visited on my entire site. Hoo wah!!
Mt. Fuji at sunrise, taken from Kitadake-sanso, Aug. 14, 2011
"If you come to Japan and
don't climb Mt. Fuji, you're a fool; but if
you climb it more than once, you're an even BIGGER fool."
--old Japanese proverb--
July 9,
2012 - THIRSTY?!
Fun art from LA...
July 6,
2012 - TODAY'S
LESSON: A Lesson in Irony
The Food Stamp Program, administered by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, is proud to be now distributing the greatest amount of
free meals and food stamps ever to over 46 million people, 1 out of
every 7 Americans, and a remarkable 45% jump since Jan. 2009.
Meanwhile, the National Park Service, administered by the U.S.
Department of the Interior, asks us "Please Do Not Feed the Animals."
Their stated reason for the policy is because the animals will grow
dependent on handouts and will not learn to take care of themselves.
This ends today's lesson.
July 5, 2012
- University of
Texas Ranked No. 30 Among World Universities
The Center for World University Rankings has ranked The University of
Texas at Austin No. 30 in its inaugural list of the world’s top 100
universities. The ranking combines seven factors — educational quality,
faculty quality, alumni employment, patents, publishing, faculty
research citations, and influence. (http://ow.ly/c2otg)
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(round tuit). 
