So, apart from a few rough times in Tokyo and Narita Hotels, and some defying death on Mt. Fuji, Japan was a blast. ...Ok, maybe Fuji was fun too.

It was definitely awesome to visit 4 of the 5 biggest cities in Japan, visit my Japanese teacher in Sapporo, make tons of Japanese friends and learn a ton of the language.

One thing I wanted to share is this video Amy Kawabata (RIT), Chris Trott (UIUC) and Daniel Soledad (RHIT) made for our culture class in Kanazawa.  It's stop motion with a DSLR camera, and Chris made the music for it.  Enjoy:

(IJST Summer 2008 on Vimeo.

Here's some of the highlights from the trip:

Arriving in Japan

From Toyko to Kanazawa

Opening Ceremonies

Nishikawa Heights

Hyakumangoku Matsuri (festival)

Karaoke Night

Anamizu Field Trip

Wajima and Sojiji

Good Times and Bad Times in Kyoto

Osaka

Homestay Part 1 and Part 2

Japanese Craft Shop

4th of July in Japan

Ishikawa Prefecture History Museum

Last Karaoke

Farewell Party

Rube Goldberg Contest

Closing Ceremony

Nano Mugen Festival

Yokohama and Akihabara

Around Sapporo

Otaru and Mt. Moiwa

Shibuya

Tokyo Tower