wow, what a wonderful day!!! i’m so happy. to tired to talk about it so will tomorrow…. have a great night!!!

the first thing i do when i come to japan is eat, eat, and eat. last night, i looked at the menu with tempura, sashimi, shabu shabu, sukiyaki, and all other things. but what made my stomach growl is the maguro kama. it was sooooo good!!! especially the big eye ball….

i spoke of keoni watson on a recent blog. i didn’t know what to call him. a waterman? a big wave rider? it had me thinking. then when i was on the airplane reading the makai magazine, i saw his face on the back cover. and underneath read “Ocean Ambassador.” that’s the words i was looking for…. hey keoni, thanks for the email. those paddle boards really cost over $3,000? gosh, that’s expensive! maybe i’ll take up your offer of letting me try one. i’ll give you a call when i get back to hawaii. and i don’t want to practice, i want to just jump in with you big boys at sandy beach on a big rough day, and paddle down to waikiki. and you don’t have to wait for me. shit, i can’t wait!!! shoots… by the way, nice shot on the back cover. you look kind of scary? i wouldn’t want to race with you. haha…

the roxy jam is coming soon and i can’t wait! i’ll keep you posted on how to watch it live…
The 16 top surfers of the Roxy Jam Biarritz series
Jennifer Smith (USA)
Coline Menard (FRA)
Chelsea Williams (AUS)
Justine Dupont (FRA)
Julie Cox (USA)
Kassia Meador (USA)
Kelia Moniz (HAW)
Geodee Clark (HAW)
Leah Dawson (USA)
Isabelle Braly (AUS)
Miku Uemura (HAW)
Kelly Nicely (USA)
Yoko Furuichi (JPN)
Yuko Shimajiri (JPN)
Summer Romero (USA)
Rachel Barry (USA)

SWEAT AND TRAINS…
TODAY ATSUI!!!

good morning, or should i say good early morning. jet lagged is the reason why i’m up so early. yesterday was a long day..

so there i am sitting in my delta airplane at honolulu airport. we leave the gate and head for the take off strip. as soon as the pilot was about to take off, OFF!!! the electricity and airplane engines went off. eeh? we’re there in the dark with no lights, and no air condition. our airplane broke! so we had to get towed back to the gate and i thought oh gosh, maybe not today… after sweating in a hot airplane with hundreds of restless people, we finally get word that the plane will take off, which was 1.5 hours later. i couldn’t complain because i was already sleeping. haha…
**i was really fortunate to get a buddy pass from a friend. a buddy pass means i can wake up on any given day, book a flight, and fly to any place in the world the same day at a fraction of the price. that’s what i did, and the country i chose was japan. why? 2 reasons. first, japan is my second home. and second, i’m on a mission to find my roots. no there’s no typhoon and i could care less about the waves. all i care about is getting answers to a family i didn’t know even existed. cousins? uncles? aunties? i can’t wait to find out….

going on a buddy pass means i get a first class or business class seat if available. unfortunately, there were none open. so there i was sitting in coach class where normal people like myself sit. then a flight attendant comes out of the front of the plane and walks straight up to me. he says “mr. fukunaga, i’m sorry that there is no seats available in business class or i would have put you up there. is there anything i can do or get for you? ice cream? fruits?” eeh? i was puzzled.. who is this? come to find out, he is a surfer that recognized me from surfing about bowls. he was really nice and kind. i was stoked to see the aloha on board delta airlines. he brought me a tray of fresh fruits. on the way out, i thanked him but forgot to ask his name. i took a fast glance and i think his badge read “Trip.” hey Trip, if i ever see you in the water, the next wave is on me. thanks for the fruits and kindness dude…
well, going to take a nap, then head out to tokyo to visit family that i can’t wait to see. wish me luck!!!