We're off to our old stomping grounds for a family vacation in the Osaka/Kyoto area. Persephone and I met and got married there in the early 90s - we were both teaching English in the same school. (her the Australian variety, me the yankee doodle type).

I usually would spend the hour lesson playing games - wherein the kids competed against each other for points up on the whiteboard. We did have fun- but I'm not sure how much English was learned.

Anyway, we've got 4 rail passes and we're going to tour around and meet up with some old '90s friends- eating okonomiyaki and soaking it all in at some hotsprings.

Tickets were incredibly cheap. We're getting the 4 of us from the Gold Coast (just south of Brisbane) to Osaka and back for less than $1,800 US. Thanks JetStar.

We'll be gone for 2 weeks in total - and my presence here will be light. I debated trying to go without a laptop - but that's just crazy, so laptop and iPhone are both coming- though my connection will be dependent on the whims of WiFi.