Let's Go Away For Awhile

Our most recent adventure in Japan was by far the most memorable to date. We rode 45 miles on bikes from Shikoku to Hiroshima across a series of beautiful islands and large expansion bridges. And all we took with us was a change of clothes, a tent, and woobie.

Here are Peter and Chris. They may be smiling in the picture, but thanks to some really uncomfortable bikes everyone's butt fell off soon after mile 5.

Luckily we were able to find our butts at this nice rest stop.

Even though our booties were really sore (and we mean really sore), the bike ride was actually really fun. Peter and I were able to stay in high spirits the entire time. Honestly we were on the road for 12 hours. By the time it was all over, we were zonked.

Hoboin' ain't easy.

Peter is now an adventurer.

I never believed he could go so many days without a shower and prepared meals. So, everyone needs to send all future mail to Adv. Peter Dangerfield.

This is the photo shoot location of Chris and Peter's up coming comic book. Details coming soon!

You know how sometimes they say you look just like you feel.

Here is one of the many famous pagodas in Japan.

In Miyajima, the second stop on our trip, deer roamed the town like pigeons in New York. Paper was only one of the many odd things that we saw the deer eating. Chicken, plastic, wooden sticks, clothing and butts (seriously) to name a few.

One of the most visited sights in Japan is the Itsukushima Jinja Shrine, also known as the "Floating Torii".

At low tide you can actually walk out to the torii. Because we spent the whole day there we were able to see the torii at high tide, low tide and at night.

All we are saying, is give it a chance.

Even though it was raining on us while we were looking at the paper crane display, it was still inspiring.

A-Bomb Dome. Hiroshima.

The only building left after the dropping of the atomic bomb.

We were blown away by seeing pictures and models of what the bomb actually did to the city. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum was eye opening.

Peter was bugged by how many times I rang the peace bell. There was a line, but I wanted this picture and I really love peace.

Eating at Subway may seem like nothing, but finding a good sandwich in Japan is next to impossible.

In all honesty, this trip felt cursed in some way. Nothing seemed to go right. Needless to say, we weren't too surprised when it started raining while we were at the Peace Park. Thank heavens for the 100 yen store and its cheap ponchos.

Due to the rain, we had to cancel the bike ride home and hopped on a Shinkansen Bullet Train home.

Sure, a lot of things went wrong...

Bad Bikes

Sore Butts

Expensive Water

Missed Ferries

Japanese Food

No Blanket and Only One Pillow

Everything Shutting Down at 5:30

Bad Walking Shoes

No Banks

Rain, Rain and More Rain

Not Speaking Japanese

Being Socially and Racially Profiled By Most People

Lying Hotel Managers

Indecisiveness

But trips are always more memorable when things go wrong.

It was great.

Our Quest to Kompirasan

While we have shown you pictures of this place before, our second ascent up the 1,400 steps of the Kompirasan shrine in Kotohira, Japan was nothing short of epic. For on this day a deep-rooted rivalry finally came to a head in a fantastic display of martial arts (in a fighting style similar to that of Street Fighter 2), minds were melted by the infamous Kompirasan "Mirror of Confusion" (similar to any mirror found in a fun house), and two young lovers were united in a passionate, yet refined, kiss atop this holy mountain as the Japanese sun slowly sank into the western sky.

On any other day Peter "Ryu" Dangerfield and Chris "Ken" Thompson would appear to be, at the least, civil co-workers. Some might even goes as far as calling them friends. However, on this hot day in Kotohira, a tenacious battle was fought for alpha male supremacy at the Kompirasan shrine. This photo is just a small taste of the incredible event, but if you look close enough you can see the word "Hoduken!" coming out of Peter's mouth.

In all honesty, the panoramic view from the largest lookout point is incredible. As for the expression on Peter's face in this photo, I believe the word "pining" comes to mind. As for Lacy, she simply can't help herself from being fun and innovative with her posing.

These stone blocks may look really cool, but the truth is that they are nothing more than potential billboards. No, seriously, it's true. They can be purchased by anyone who is willing to fork over a ridiculous amount of donation money to the shrine. Neither of the Dangerfords actually speak (or read) Japanese, but we have been told that some of these cool looking stones will have company names on them. Kind of like when people donate money and get there names engraved on a brick in America, but on a much larger scale. We don't know about you, but we find it a little bizarre.

Is your mind melted yet, or are you just shocked by how much this mirror emphasizes Peter's receding hairline? It was strange, mirrors like this are somewhat a dime a dozen, but on this particular day all of us couldn't get enough of the way this mirror was distorting our bodies. Maybe we were all just in the mood for a laugh, but this mirror was absolutely mesmerizing. Kind of like Peter's thinning hair.

Love is free, free is love.

Love is living, living love.

Love is needing to be loved.