Farewell, My Wonderful Japan Bash

So long, and farewell.

The last post was over three years ago. The last post that I actually put some thought into was even further back in time, in 2016. It's quite obvious that this blog is no longer something I think about. And though I will keep the domain name registered for shits and giggles, I have a feeling the site is about to implode.

You see, I hosted all the photos on a website called Flickr. In the past, it was around $10 a year for a pro account. Then they sold the company. The new owners raised the price. While I redesigned www.ramenadventures.com into a new, non-Flicker-using portal for all things ramen, Japan Bash remains tied to this service.

I canceled it in February 2021. There is a large possibility that the 21,000 photos stored on their servers will disappear. 

I started Gaijin Bash (the original name) in 2006 when I moved from San Francisco, California, USA to Japan. I guess you could e-stalk me by starting at that first post.

So thank you for the views. In total 243,000 people viewed this site from the first post in 2006. I made around $500 in adsense revenue, though I think that is also including money from Ramen Adventures, which is kind of depressing considering that the site has many millions of views. Looking back, I think I did the blog thing incorrectly. I had friends who claimed their blogs were making real money. Blogs about things much less SEO friendly than ramen.

The most popular post was my Teaching in Japan writeup. I hope this post was genuinely useful to people. It was meant to be.

Keep in touch. I'm on every social media platform I can think of @ramenadventures. Look me up. YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, FaceBook, Twitch, Discord, Clubhouse. Sorry, no Mixi.

I'm Brian, and this was Japan Bash.

November, December, January 2017 - 2018

明けましておめでとう。



Happy New Years. Japan Bash will be back in the swing of things someday in the future.

October, 2017

This Year, Halloween Fell on a Weekday



Buy my new book if you want!

bit.ly/Ramen_At_Home



Halloween in Shibuya is nuts.



A mince mix of usual and unusual.





I don't head over to Shibuya much these days.







Headed to Bali for a week.







My only advice is to download the app GO-JEK. It's Uber for Indonesia, and it takes out the factor of rip-off taxis everywhere.



That, or just rent a scooter for a couple bucks a day.









The volcano is supposed to blow any day, though, so you might not be heading there any time soon.



Back in Tokyo . . .





I'm not supposed to post the below photo, but no one reads this site anyways.



R.I.P. Hugh Hefner. I was lucky to work at the Playboy mansion back some 20 years ago when I live in Los Angeles. And I was lucky to work for the Japanese publication, Weekly Playboy, out here.





Kind of a liquid-heavy month.

September, 2017

The Ninth Month



A recap of the month.



That's Oshima, just south of Tokyo, on the way to Nishima.



Nishima was, according to legend, a weekend getaway for everyone in the 80s. A ferry ride from Shimoda or a plane from Chofu, thousands flocked here on the weekends. Now it is dead, and you'll have the whole beach to yourself.



Kind of a trek, so you'd best have your friend fly you in a private plane for the day.



What an adventure, though I don't fit in the front seat of this Cessna without my knees blocking the controls.



Didn't make it to Detroit, just the next best thing.



Made it to Kyushu for some food, though.



If you follow my Instagram you can see all the stuff I ate:

https://www.instagram.com/ramenadventures/



There was a lot of ramen.







O hai!



Rode this amazing train!



Finally. Actually, there is no hype around it anymore, and you should have no problem getting a seat.



O hai!



Thank you Niigata!



What's Niigata, you ask?



Don't know, but it's a fun spot to visit.



The new computer. I asked a friend who works in tech if he had any spare video cards lying around that he could give me. Talk about a hookup! Nerds, I am fully aware that my power supply isn't ideal for a GeForce Titan GTX.



Cork dork?

Ramen dork?

August, 2017

8-17



If you are in Japan, try out the September limited bowl at Ramen Kagetsu Arashi. There are 250 shops around the country. Be sure to post on social media. This shop does a monthly special, and each one is promoted by some TV celeb, ramen shop, or local ramen nerd. The dream is to have this be a regular thing.

This one will be around until late November.



Gold-plated kakigori is definitely not a regular thing.



So many ramen shirts that I don't wear.



Emoji menu from Gaggan x Den. Fun.





As always, August is spent out of Tokyo with the youth of Japan.



Not those youth.



But there is plenty to celebrate about these days.



Like some bomb eggs.



Or just whatever.