Trotter Home Movies

Liam riding a kids rollercoaster......"More!!"



Inspired by the Morganz bowling vid, I threw together a little something of my own

Brothers in Nihon

After a long time waiting, Steve and Roshanna finally arrived in Japan for a two week break and I was definitely excited to show them round. The excitement started about 5 minutes after they arrived as they shared their big news...they got engaged!!! Too bad I beat you to it bro, you'll have to wait til after my wedding! Unfortunately the weather didn't want to cooperate and so they were treated to only one sunny day. Nevertheless, we did our best to show them what Japan has to offer. Their trip was limited to the Kanto area (Yokohama and Tokyo) but there was still plenty to see and do. As for me, I was bloody happy to get a cricket bat and have a little hit in the park (Steve, we have to finish the series....it's 1-1).

Yoyogi Park, Shibuya; Shanz shows off her hashi skills; This is how alcohol affects your vision at 3 in the morning.

Sippin' Speights in Roppongi; The NZ Travel Cafe; Steve washes away his diseases with the magic smoke, Asakusa

Liam checks out dinner before it gets grilled; Half of the Trotter clan in Japan; AT is the Moon Light Strike Champion....but I'm still the Champion; Aki teaches Liam how to fish

All Good & げんき

The above title refers to pretty much everything in my life right now....all good. Let's start with the All Blacks - what a great performance to beat the 'Boks. I don't want to jinx them, but things are looking pretty good for the World Cup. When we win the WC, Henry will look like a genius for his call to rest the team earlier this year. Meanwhile, the same (but late) move by SA will backfire as they lose their continuity which was looking ominous. While I'm talking rugby I better mention the other game last weekend between the Junior ABs and Japan. The mumurs through the crowd mentioned a few late nights by the Kiwis leading up to the game and it showed in the first half, but the second half showed the vast gap between Japan rugby and NZ rugby. By the way, the haka was performed after the game when most of the crowd had gone......maybe the boys were too hungover to remember it at the start?
A few weeks ago I went to the Tokyodome to take in a nice little concert...some group who call themselves the Red Spicy Capsicums or something......oh yeah...the Red Hot Chili Peppers!!! Awesome concert and the venue is amazing. I'll try get some pics off Brad and post them. RHCP won't be the last summer concert though, as I'll meet up with Brad and Stan again for Fuji Rock at the end of July. Fuji Rock is Big Day Out x 5! Something like 100,000 people will attend the 3 day festivities at a huge outdoor area. We'll just be staying one night, but will be entertained by the Beastie Boys and much more!
Our Wedding plans are well under way and we are getting very excited. We'll probably be home for about a week either side of the wedding so it will be a very busy 2 weeks doing the final plans and also showing Aki's family a slice of Aotearoa.
Steve and Roshanna arrive in Japan this Sunday, so we're all pretty excited here. Aki and I will also go to Okinawa for a few days....it will be my first time to swim at a nice beach for over 2 years!!!!....so yeah, you could say I'm looking foward to that! After my holidays I'll be working at a new branch in Tsunashima with weekends off. Can't wait to enjoy real weekends for a change!
Finally, we bought a new digi-camera so we can take some decent pictures. You can expect to see plenty in the next couple of months.
じゃまたね！

A few shots from my neighbourhood....the middle one is Minatomirai

JAB's score another!; Who is that Dark Mysterious Boy?; The post game Haka; Boyz 'n da Crowd

Warm-ups; "God Defend New Zealand" (Nobody wants to hug Ma'a...time he lost the makeup!)

Some of the kids I taught at Omori and Yaguchi no watashi.......after one year I got them to say "Hello Brendan"

The Big News!

I'm sure many of you have now heard "The Big News", but for those who don't read their emails or change them without telling anyone, this announcement goes out for you......Aki and I are engaged!! After being together for almost one and a half years, we have decided to go all the way. I'm sure we'll make a great team - she loves to cook delicious food and I love to eat delicious food. It's a win-win situation! Our wedding date is likely to be March 29...sound familiar? yea, it's my birthday, but it's purely coincidental, that's the best date for Aki's family because it will take place in New Zealand. So, we have a lot of long distance planning to do between then and now. If you are one of my friends that read this blog, it would be great if you could email me your address so I can start sorting out invitations. Well, that's the Big News, so we'll see you all in March!

Summer in the City

Hey people, how ya doin? Summer has well and truely arrived this month and what better way to spend it than a bit of rugby and a festival. Last Saturday I headed to Chichibunomiya, in Tokyo, to take in the Classic All Blacks (featuring the likes of Jonah Lomu, Jeff Wilson, Carlos Spencer and more!) as they played Japan. The first game (last Wednesday in Kobe) saw the CABs scrape home in the last few minutes, so anticipation was high for a good close game. But it wasn't to be as the old fellas poured on a great display of skill and experience to smash Japan by 36-6. Carlos was my MVP with his classy runs, banana kicks and slick passing skills reminiscent of his heyday. The (almost) highlight of the day was a 40 metre gallop by big Jonah, but he got mowed down 5 metres short of the chalk, then took about 20 minutes to recover! It was an awesome day and kind of emotional thinking that I'll never see these legends play again. After the game we wound up in Roppongi for a few drinks then headed home to see the Blues and Crusaders crumble in the semis.
The following day we headed into Tokyo again, this time Shibuya, to check out the Thai Festival. You might remember I went to this last year and it was pretty much the same, except the weather was nicer and the crowd was bigger....but it was worth it for that Thai food!
I'm looking forward to a great summer, so keep an eye out for the Red Hot Chili Peppers concert, Steve and Roshannas trip to the Orient and a vacation in Okinawa.....oh yea, if you havn't heard the big news....well...check my blog in the next couple of days and you will ;-)



The Classic All Blacks dominating; Faces of the XBox...guess who's winning?


Scenes of the Thai Festival



The Haka will always be "Classic"

Thai dancing at Yoyogi Park, Shibuya

April Summer

Summer has come early this year with the mercury reaching 20+ degrees regularly this last week. Along with the warm weather, the cherry blossoms have started blooming so it's time for Hanami once again. This year I'm fortunate enough to have a park across the road with cherry blossoms blooming so this was the place to go. I had a meal with Aki and her friends and then enjoyed playing in the park with Anthony and Liam. Here's a couple of clips from Hanami 2007.......

Weekend at Brads

Hows it ya'll? Aki and I went for a little weekend trip up to Ota in Gunma prefecture (about 2 1/2 hours from Yokohama) to visit Brad and Colleen (who will henceforth be known as Stan). Brad and Stan were quick to find jobs and have settled in to their school-provided accommodation nicely. We arrived in Ota at 8:30 on Sat night and I was stunned by the quietness as soon as we got out of the station. Ota is about the size of Hamilton so it has a real small town feel compared to Yokohama/Tokyo. We arrived at their place to see that Stan had the BBQ fired up, so Brad got to cooking some delicious marinated ribs and chicken kebabs, while Stan prepared an equally delicious salad. After the meal we got into some drinking and a heated game of Yahtzee. At about 2am we were all a goner so we hit the sack......morning came, hangovers came harder, but we still managed to get up and have a bowl (Brad, Stan...you'll have to pick up your games for the rematch), followed by a stroll to the local shopping mall, then a relaxed arvo of Rugby and Friends on the box. All in all, it was a nice quiet weekend away from the big smoke and hopefully we'll give that Weber a few more workouts this coming year.



Yahtzee, beer and peanuts = recipe for a good time!


Got Meat??......That freezer is a thing of beauty


Meanwhile, a big congrats to Glenn and Lisa who are tying the knot this coming weekend. I'd love to be there but I'll be thinking of you guys instead. Hope the day goes well!