Category Archives: SSE Fukushima Corner

Local Promotion: Hagaki Koukan ( 葉書交換 ) Postcard Exchange In Your Local Area

Smith’s School of English Franchisees – Y’all have to read this!!  This will be of interest to any of you conducting or planning to start a local promotion campaign in your area.
A few weeks ago I was approached by two staff members of a large sports complex, actually the largest of it’s kind in Fukushima, to [...]

A Special Thank You to Students at Smith’s School Kotoen ( スミス英会話 甲東園校 )

I consider myself very fortunate to have a Smith’s School of English Franchise in Kotoen, Nishinomiya.  This very famous and well-established upper-class neighborhood is full of educated and cultured people who have achieved a certain degree of success and peace in their lives.   It is a pleasure to work and do business there and I’m [...]

Driving In Japan : Guess Where This Is … :)

Hello Dedicated Readers!!
In this seventh driving installment, I’m putting out a challenge to anyone to try and guess where these beautiful buildings and gardens are located.  I’ll give you some hints:  It is in Kansai; you have to drive there; it is part of a site with several National Treasures in it; it is not in [...]

Driving In Japan : Momiji-gari Kansai ( 紅葉狩り )

I know it’s already well into December and people are starting to live without the beautiful colored leaves of autumn.  My wife Yoko and I went on a total of five trips into the country this fall with the primary purpose of seeing maples, poplars, birches, cherriers and other deciduous tree species change color.  This year has [...]

Driving Shimane-ken ( 島根県 ) : Izumo Taisha ( 出雲大社 )

Hello Everyone.
This is the fifth installment to my Driving in Japan series!  A very pleasant and relaxing drive can be had hugging the Sea of Japan coastline straight west throught Hyogo, Tottori and Shimane Prefectures.  If you have a lot more time, the Yamaguchi coast is incredibly interesting but it stretches a very long way and [...]

Canadian Ice Wine (Eis Wein :)) Update November 2008

Hi Everyone! A lot of people keep asking me for more information about Ice Wine, more technically spelled Eis Wein due to its origins from Riesling and Gewurtztraminer varieties in Germany. I wish I could give you more news about Okanagan wines from Penticton, British Columbia, but unfortunately the mega-successful vintners there are sticking to [...]

Smith’s School of English Fukushima as a Satellite of Umeda!! スミス英会話 福島校 梅田

I am very fortunate to have a Smith’s School of English Franchise in Osaka Fukushima ( 福島校 ). One of the major reasons I chose to open a school in this area was because the area was so close to Umeda ( 梅田 ) yet retained a distinct neighborhood character, both of which are major [...]

Astronomy Trips to Kyoto and Lessons at Smith’s School of English Kotoen スミス 英会話 甲東園 校

Hey everyone!  Most of you readers probably know by now that my idea of a big telescope is a lot different than most!   I have been interested in astronomy all my life and have made a serious hobby out of testing and writing about state-of-the-art astronomy equipment in Japan.  Anyone interested in buying astronomy equipment at [...]

Driving in Kyoto 京都 - Ohara 大原 and Mt. Hieizan 比叡山

Hello readers!  This is another must-read installment for my ‘Driving in Japan’ series and is highly recommended for those interested in driving country roads in Kyoto! In the north of Kyoto, there are three main routes which absolutely must be driven. In the West there is Route 162 which goes straight north through Takao and [...]

Driving The Fukui Prefecture Echizen Coast !

As you probably know by now, my wife Yoko and I are great fans of driving around Japan and my wheels have traveled across 30 prefectures.  We love going to our favorite places over and over again but just as rewarding is searching out new ones, fabulous places that are sometimes missed on people’s itineraries.  There [...]

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