Shimosuwa (Shim-oh Sewer)

I was riding my bike home last night from Okaya and decided to ride by Suwa Lake.  After only a few minutes of pedaling, I had to stop and stare.  The water's rippling surface catching the full moon's reflection, along with the lights on the opposite bank, made quite the sight contrasting with the sheer black of the hills standing in the distance.  It set a mood that perfectly captured the area where I live: the beautiful calm of nature and civilisation in harmony.

Suwa Lake is the centerpiece for this coexistence.  Three towns sit on its 16km perimeter: Okaya, Suwa, and Shimosuwa.  I live in Shimosuwa, about 300m from the lake.  The wider area is surrounded with hills - and depending where you are, you can see the tops of the Nagano Alps behind them.

Southern Alps

Okaya

Shimosuwa

There is very little in the way of nightlife here, but Suwa Lake makes up for that a lot.  I've already ridden my bike around the lake five times in full, and many more times in part.  I love taking in the views from different locations and often find myself stopping by the bank to read a book or meditate.  On clear days, Mt Fuji can be seen in a convenient gap between the hills to the south.

View from the English classroom at my school

One of my big goals for this year is to be able to run around Suwa Lake in its entirety.  To this end, I have signed up for the annual Suwa Half Marathon with a bunch of other teachers from my school.  I've never attempted a challenge like this one before (22km), but I'm determined to give it a go.  It takes place at the end of October, so I have some time to get myself ready.

There's a nice track around the lake

After multiple weekends of buying things for my apartment, I finally feel comfortable and set up.  In fact, of all the apartments I've had, this one probably takes the cake.  It has three decent-sized rooms - a bedroom, a living room, and a kitchen - plus the usual toilet and bathroom/laundry combo.  It's new and feels spacious, which is important to me.

My old friends Phil and Yukiko live next-door, and there are a host of other people in the building - Japanese and foreign - who make up my main social circle right now.  It's so convenient that even not having a phone hasn't hindered my social activities.

All in all, I'm living in a beautiful area and leading a lifestyle that I'm really enjoying.  As for work... I'll cover that in my next post!

Nice place to live