Eli Sooker, Author at Astray

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Eli Sooker

3 articles published

Story

A Day in the Life of a Bear Conservationist

While we’re all familiar with the hype around shark attacks in Australia, how many of us have ever heard about bear attacks in Japan? Conflict with these animals has been increasing over the last 10 years, with a whopping total of 156 attacks recorded in 2020. Crop damage has also cost 426.7 million yen ($5…

ByEli SookerFebruary 28, 2022

Japan Story

When Japanese Plasters Don’t Stick to Kiwi Feet

I’m 10 minutes into my hike to Abukuma Caves when I realise I have a slight problem. The last few days of marching on a sightseeing mission around rural Fukushima, Japan, is finally starting to take its toll. Blisters. A hiker’s worst enemy. I slip off my sneakers, trading the painful rubbing for the unrelenting…

ByEli SookerJune 10, 2019

Yarns

“What Goes Around Comes Around”: On Accepting Kindness From Strangers

Right now, I should be in absolute shock and wonderment. I'm sitting comfortably in the rental home of three elderly Japanese people, who have just treated me to a magnificent meal of sashimi, okonomiyaki and the usual unusual assortment of Japanese vegetables exotic to the foreign tongue. Where I had presented nothing but the hitchhiker's…

ByEli SookerSeptember 21, 2018