@Dunkin' Donuts, Ronald Reagan Airport, D.C.

Bostonians queueing for donuts and coffee at the shuttle waiting area.

From London St Pancras to Paris Nord, Aug 8

Viewing Beppu Bay on the road to Yufuin

Kota, Yukimi, Mom, Chinoyo

Staying at Nanakawa (なな川）in Yufuin

Nanakawa (なな川）was our guest house in Yufuin on this trip
Mom needed a hot-bath spa treatment for her weakening feet


Kaiseki-dinner at Nanakawa



We had a duplex with two baths -- inside warm "Uchiburo" and outside hot "Roten-buro"
Roten-buro

Yukimi relaxing at the porch
Mon Yufu cheesecake and a cup of coffee at Tenjoysajiki (天井桟敷) Cafe at
Kamenoi-besso (亀の井別荘）estate where I often visited in the past. . . .
Seki aji and seki saba sashimi otsukuri


Chinoyo at Tenjosajiki Cafe
We bought beautiful articles and natural food items at Kagiya (鍵屋）in
Kamenoi-besso estate

Visiting Seoul for the 44th ASAK Int'l Conference

After the closing ceremony
Fall colors from my room in the Hoam Faculty Guest House, Seoul
National University

Enjoying coffee during the break
Beautiful Seoul National University Campus in fall colors

The 44th ASAK International Conference "The Future of America" was
held at the Seoul National University, Korea, from October 23 to 24.
Americanists gathered from within and without Korea gave excellent
papers in the Conference. I read my paper "Rethinking Puritan Studies in
a Transatlantic Context" in the session "Rethinking American Literature"
and enjoyed exchanging views with other participants. I was struck by
high-quality papers at the conference.

A Day Trip to Concord, Sept 6, 2009

The Colonial Inn dining room. They serve afternoon tea.
Colonial Inn, Concord
Nina ordered lobster rolls -- the best choice!!
My sermon was quite good.

Hudson Hotel, New York -- stylish but. . . .

This stylish hotel in New York was designed by Philip Stark. You can see
beutiful lines everywhere. I saw many European travelers and none
Japanese except me!

Courtyard

This chair looks good but extremely uncomfortable to sit for a long time.
Your body becomes colder and colder . . . .
Stylish but uncomfortable furniture -- I recommend to the believers of
"art for art sake". Good place for young people who want to sleep
overnight after a party in Manhattan. Their lightning is so dim and not
kind for those who have weak eyesight. Unfortunately, I did not find
good quality and professionalism of hotel service in this hotel. I give
1 star for its style.

Omiya (Saitama) in an early morning

I stayed at this hotel near Omiya station.

Exploring the streets of Miyajima

What an amazing colour this tower has. . . .

Specially tended pine tree in a dragon shape


Tea room (Maccha)
A Guardian at the temple gate
Itsukushimi Shrine from the back street
An old and large auditorium floor
Goju-no-to
Rikisha on the street
On the Machiya street
A large spoon on display
My former student Tomomi was reporting from Miyajima with her TV crew. Nice surprise!
Miyajima from the ferry boat. It is a beautiful historic island which has its own flow of time from the ancient days.