i was pretty stoked to fly myself to japan. it’s always been a dream! my copilot scolded me because i forgot my uniform. haha.

as soon as i got in the airplane, i ate dessert, watched a movie, and took a very long 5 hour nap. i guess i was tired. surfed in the morning with some cool people from osaka. was so stoked to see them riding such long perfect waves. then right after we came in, it rained and the strong onshore winds came. perfect timing again!

back to osaka airport for the 3rd time in 2 months. wow, i must really love this place.

want to thank Kimura-san for picking me up from the airport and taking me to a nice dinner at one of my favorite places in japan. it’s called En.

it’s aji season now so the master grabbed a big aji out of the tank and cut it up. it was still moving as we were eating it. so fresh!

and awesome sushi too.

and for you whale lovers, skip this part. i’m a traveler. i experience anything and everything. what is right to some people may be wrong to others. vice versa. traveling around the world to over 30 countries taught me to have an open mind. whale meat has been a delicacy in japan for hundreds of years. it’s part of the culture. for me to eat it doesn’t make me a bad person. in some peoples eyes, maybe. but in mine, not at all. people judging other people are bad people to me. i enjoy this beautiful culture and will continue to enjoy everything japan has to offer. that’s what traveling is all about.

Cheers!

look how perfect diamond head has been everyday! as good at it gets! oh my, i’m really going to miss hawaii this time. i’ve only been back for a few weeks and i’m leaving again. when i get back in october, i don’t think i want to travel for a while. my life is just going too fast and i’m losing track of time. perfect surf everyday this month and another typhoon swell heading to japan right now. should have waves this weekend from the south. then 2 big swells heading to indonesia next week. i feel like a wave magnet. haha.

went to my favorite sushi restaurant the other night again. bluefin ahi from hokkaido came out and my mouth started to water like a hungry dog.

OMG! fatty tuna melting in my mouth.

and yes, another box of uni fresh from ishinomaki, japan. another box, another smile.

eating uni from ishinomaki feels like a dream. when it goes in my mouth, i get chicken skin.
i’ve been eating really good food ever since i started going to japan 24 years ago. and the cool thing is it’s getting better and better all the time. live a healthy and happy life!