good morning. 5:30am putting things back in my suitcase. got things spread all around in my room and starting to look like i live here. i know i have to make my next move. what is it? i don’t know. but the surf is changing and the train is waiting. i’m super sunburnt and don’t know if i could spend another day at the beach. sometimes feel like fainting. body feels week. taking deep breaths in this humid weather. it has to be the hottest summer since i’ve been coming here. it’s almost september and it’s not supposed to be like this. i’ve never sweat like this in my lifetime. i miss the cool tradewinds and i’d pay money for it to blow for us today. anyway, get ready for another hot day!

each trip i come to japan, i learn and learn. this time, i learned more about surf culture and localism. i’ve mentioned before that japan has some of the heaviest localized surf spots in the world. even thought i’ve been coming here for year after year, i’m still the outsider. i’m still the foreigner. i’m still at the bottom of the pecking order. i paddle out, i see old friends, make new ones. i’m always in full respect mode and stay clear. i’ve learned by traveling that if you respect others, others will respect you. i’ve seen good situations, i’ve seen bad ones. but this past trip opened my eyes even more about localism. localism use to be a negative word to me, not anymore. to see the bond between surfers of all ages at every spot i go to, it makes me feel like i’m living in old hawaii. these guys have a special thing going on. they watch out for each other, they respect each other, and they are just super stoked on surfing. the day we took this photo happened to be the best surf session i’ve ever witnessed in japan. the local knowledge these guys have is amazing. i can hear them yelling from the beach. it’s like kids in the most amazing playground in the world. they know their spot so well. they give me tips, they help me, they encourage me into waves, and i couldn’t be a happier foreigner surfer. sometime i’m in japan, i feel like i’m pure japanese, sometimes i’m in japan, i feel like i’m a pure foreigner. this trip, i was a foreigner. i learned more on the deep roots of localism. i like it and hope it never goes away. and for me to be able to share experiences with these amazing surfers is like a dream. after we all rode waves of our lives, it was beer time. happy locals with happy memories. welcome to japan!
i’ve taken lots of photos and if you’re wondering why you don’t see more, it’s because i don’t want to overdo it. there is no way i want to expose surf spots in japan. i just want to use a few here and there to show you the beauty of japan. show you what i love to do. and show you why i’m the happy guy i am. if you could live the life of one day in my shoes, you will know why. but until then, come back and forth to japan hundreds of times for 20 years and you might finally figure it out just like how i just did. keep on surfing.
and to all the local surfers throughout japan, thank you again and again for sharing waves and memories with me. you guys rip!!!!

A circle of friends!

how hot was it again? gosh, i surf for only an hour and i’m tired. from all the humidity, sweat, and moving around, this heat wave is taking away all my energy. i’m usually an outdoor guy but not now. i don’t want to leave my room. can somebody turn off the heater?

been scoring again and again. just when everybody thinks the waves are getting smaller, it gets bigger. today was the biggest day i’ve seen down here in west japan. i was eating lunch in front of a spot and seen a solid 10′ set. this typhoon is the biggest one ever recorded and if you looked at the ocean, you would think so too. i’m just driving around japan looking for surf and finding it everywhere. most spots are super secret and only for locals and i like to keep it that way. i got an email from someday last night asking me where that spot i surfed yesterday was. i simply replied “i’m very sorry but i love my life and if i tell you, i won’t be loving my life anymore. i hope you understand.”

and i was on skype with a friend from okinawa last night. she was locked up in the house and everybody was ordered to stay indoors. they lost electricity and things were flying around the place. today things are starting to look better. thank goodness.

there is only 2 contests in the world i watch. one is the pipeline masters, and one is the tahiti pro. i’m not watching to cheer surfers on, i’m watching how to ride barrels backside. i’m watching everybody’s style and how they approach the wave. from the take off till the end. then next time i surf a big barreling left, i’ll copy it. pretty simple huh? not.

i learned how to frontside barrel by this man kelly slater. there was an article in a surfing magazine about 20 years ago on kelly teaching his secrets on how to barrel ride. i read it, i went on a trip to indonesia, and i couldn’t believe how good his advise worked. my barrel ride succession rate instantly went from 40% to 80%. the 20% i still don’t make, i blame kelly. haha.

this french kid jeremy flores got the wave of the day yesterday in tahiti. a perfect 10. tomorrow is the finals so don’t miss it.

and once again, chinese sun bathers. what is the point?