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lights from the city reflecting in my eyes and headlights echoing off the walls
There’s something so graceful about the night: the mystery that shrouds a city when the sun dips below the horizon is a wonderful thing. At night I often sit at my window and stare at the lights below and before me, wondering who is out there and why. Tonight as we zipped across the expressway my heart filled with love for this little town called Tokyo.
This is George (as in Curious George), the cat who adopted Steph and me the first night we were here. She hangs around the apartment building a lot and I often hear her pitiful meows. She’s been a guest in the apartment a few times but only because once I open the door she dashes inside. I’m always afraid that someone will see and report to the head honcho that there is someone who is housing a pet against the rules. Tonight when I heard her outside my plan was to get a picture of her while she was outside, but true to her nature she ran into the apartment before I could so much as touch a button. Her meows echoed off the walls in the entryway and I tried pacifying her by rubbing her head while also attempting to take a picture. The picture above is the 33rd picture I took and by far the best. That Darn Cat.
Last night we had a magnificent storm that lasted for at least five hours. The rain came down in buckets, lightening flashed across the sky and thunder shook the ground. At midnight I leaned out of the window and felt the rain wash over my face and arms. Everything in me felt alive. I wanted it to never end. The next day the sky was clear and the sun shone so brightly, as if the storm had never happened. But I will not forget it and I hope someday to see another like it.
Storm (:29)
At 12:16 am (obviously since it’s dark it’s hard to tell but it was raining really hard and the sky was completely overcast…I couldn’t get a picture of the storm during the day):
At 3:06 pm:
After parting ways I went to school to drop some things off and then to Citibank to finally set up a bank account. The man who helped me was Japanese but he understood most of what I was saying. The whole process of setting up the account took about 45 minutes and I was told that my ATM card would take about a week to arrive at the apartment.
On Saturday the church was having a Christmas program. I arrived at 6 and found to my surprise that the main sanctuary was filled up. They showed me to the overflow room where speakers and a monitor were set up. I sat next to Kaiju (I’m probably spelling his name wrong) a really nice, older Japanese man who I’ve talked to just about every Sunday and Wednesday night. The whole program was in Japanese except for a few Christmas carols that they sang in English. Kaiju tried to translate as much as he could which I really appreciated. After the program everyone headed downstairs to the kitchen/dining room area. In the middle of the room were a few tables that had been pushed together and covered with plates of food, they even had a chocolate fountain (which of course was immensely popular). The room is pretty tiny so with all the people it was really chaotic. But I had fun socializing with all the people I’d met before.
On Sunday I left at about 1 to go back to the Fukuoka’s. I arrived at about 3:10 and before I even made it to the house I saw Yui and Ayumi. From a distance I couldn’t tell it was them but Yui started running towards me and I knew then it was her. The two of us walked back to the house and out in front Mai and Masayuki were playing badminton. When Mai saw me she started yelling my name and running towards me. We hugged and then went inside. Yui and Mai excitedly pulled me around the living room showing me all the decorations they had put up since I was there. It was so wonderful being there.
It is the Japanese tradition to have KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) for Christmas dinner because apparently they believe it has a "Christmas taste". When Masayuki went to pick up dinner he found he would have had to wait two hours before getting anything at KFC. So he went instead to the LIFE grocery store and got chicken from there. The food was so delicious and we enjoyed each other’s company. After dinner Mai and I played a bunch of random games. She’s really imaginative and we’re always playing games she makes up on the spot. When we grew tired of that I showed her the Paint program on my computer and she stared drawing pictures on it. Yui saw what we were doing and wanted to try too. The two of them played around with the program for a while and I even taught Mai how to type her name out. She ended up furiously typing away for about 10 minutes. So cute! They finally headed off to bed at about 10 because Ayumi let them stay up late since I was there.
The next morning, Christmas day, I went downstairs to find that Santa had left Mai and Yui just what they had asked for. Mai had wanted a fake cell phone and Yui wanted a Gameboy DS and a Mario video game. Both were quite expensive but those were the only gifts that came from Ayumi and Masayuki. All the other gifts left under the tree were from Ayumi’s friends and parents. She told me that they weren’t patient enough to wait until the 25th to open the gifts so most were already unwrapped. They did wait to open my gifts though. Mai and Yui got their scarves and immediately wrapped them around themselves (not just their necks but around their waists too). When Ayumi opened her gift and looked through the pages we both almost started crying. She told me since I’m not her age she was never sure if I enjoyed the things we did together but after looking through the album, she realized that I really did have a wonderful time with her family. That was the best gift she could have given me. But I also received a pair of very nice socks from them and Ayumi made me a card and necklace. She told me that she knew one of my favorite colors was blue and that I liked simple jewelry. So even when someone told her that she should make the necklace fancier, she kept it simple.
At noon we headed to her friend’s house where the kids wrapped sushi and I got to meet the first homestay student of the area. She now lives here in Japan and is participating in the JET program (Japan Exchange and Teaching program) for a year. She was really sweet and after we played with the kids the two of us answered a bunch of questions one of the women had about the difference between Japanese culture and American culture. Nikki was able to answer the questions in Japanese and Ayumi translated the questions so that I could answer too. It was so much fun being with those women and comparing out cultures. We finally left at 5 and when we got back to the house Ayumi invited me to stay another night. Of course I accepted.
The next morning Masayuki stayed home from work and since it rained all day we stayed inside and enjoyed playing with one of their Christmas presents, a really nice game set. It’s two different boxes that together make up more than 10 games including bowling, basketball, billiards and a bunch of board games. After lunch Ayumi and I talked for a while and I found out is that her new homestay student is coming on the 4th. She’s 20 and has studied Japanese for 6 years but beyond that Ayumi doesn’t know anything about her. I know it’ll probably be odd meeting some who is basically replacing me but I’m also looking forward to meeting her. At 4:30 they drove me to the station and we said goodbye. It was sad but not too much since I will definitely see them again. In January there is a flea market for recycled kimonos. If I can I’m going to meet Ayumi and her friend there and in February Ayumi is having a party that she’s invited me to. I also asked her to let me know about any of Yui or Mai’s school events I could attend.
When I arrived at Machida station it was still raining really hard. Ayumi had given me an old umbrella of hers and I used that when I had to. Unfortunately I had a rolling backpack and while I was walking it got completely soaked. Nothing inside got wet fortunately (especially since my laptop was inside). I pulled everything out as soon as I got back to the apartment and put the backpack in the drier/shower and by the time I went to sleep it was almost all dry. The storm outside was absolutely breathtaking. Through my window I could see the lighting as it flashed and both hear and feel the thunder. It was amazing and I was able to capture a small video of the lighting and thunder. At one point the thunder sounded like a magnified gunshot.
Last night (Wednesday) I went to Jeremiah and Geigy’s house for taco soup and the Bible study. It was wonderful just being able to talk with everyone. I ended up being the last one to leave. Jeremiah took a few people to the station and I stayed and talked with Geigy. When Jeremiah came back the three of us talked and I didn’t leave until after midnight. Enjoy your New Year!
It’s been brought to my attention that when I say "futon" people are probably imagining something different than what I actually mean. When I say "futon" I mean the Japanese futon, not the Americanized one. "Futon" in the States is a couch/bed, depending on what time of the day it is or how tired you really are. They can fold (hopefully) easily into a couch or slide down to make a bed. They look like this:
The Japanese idea of "futon" is quite different. The traditional futon is made of three main parts: the shikibuton (mattress) is usually stuffed with cotton batting and wrapped in a sheet; the kakebuton (comforter) is different depending on the season, lighter in the summer and heavier in the winter and it always wrapped in a kakebuton cover; the third part is the makura (pillow) and is stuffed with red beans or buckwheat chaff.* The futons are traditionally laid on tatami mats (woven straw) and because of the moisture that collects inside of them, they need to be aired out at least once a week. On sunny days they are hung outside for a few hours, beaten and then brought back inside. The traditional Japanese futon looks like this:
As you can see, the differences between the two are vast. For my futon I use all of the parts except for the pillow (I prefer my own). Since Steph and I sleep in a loft, we don’t have to fold them but they are normally folded and put inside a closet during the day to clear up the floor. And since our floors aren’t tatami we don’t have to air them out as much but it’s still a necessity.
*Information taken from here
…stinks sometimes.
I’ve always known this, but it’s been hitting me over and over again the last few days. The friends I thought I’d have forever are drifting away (my fault as much as theirs) and changing into people I don’t recognize any more. I know that as we grow into "adults" it’s unrealistic to expect every childhood friend to stick with you but that doesn’t make it any less painful. My dream still remains that when I’m married and have children I’ll still be connected to the friends of my younger years. But until then I’ll hang on to moments such as this:
God has been overwhelming me with blessings. Lately I’ve been really low on cash and worried about it since I don’t have a job or a good way of getting more money at this point. God’s been telling me in different ways that He’s here for me and that I don’t need to worry, only trust in Him. Being the neurotic person that I am, that’s really hard to remember and fully let myself lean on. But He’s patient.
Today I spent the day with Shigeko, going to the ward office (city hall) to get my alien registration card and health insurance updated. She translated for me and helped me get everything sorted out. After the ward office we met with her 17 year-old daughter (Junko) at an outlet mall (a *Japanese* outlet mall which means only slightly less expensive than normal). Before we left she bought Junko and me gelato. Then she brought me back to her house and fed me a delicious dinner of curry and rice (my favorite) and a bunch of other dishes. We talked about her family and she told me how her husband is working in the Philippines and she’d be there too if the educational system was better.
She just randomly asked me if I wanted an extra knife and pot she had. I was so surprised by the offer but accepted. Those were two things that had been on my list of things for the apartment and here she was offering them to me for free! Before we left for the Wednesday night Bible study she gave me a huge apple and a bunch of bananas that she had just bought today. Now my breakfast is taken care of.
After the Bible study she dropped me off at home and I found she had snuck a little "Crunch" candy bar into the bag. I found that my parent’s package had arrived but since I was not home they couldn’t leave it. The slip of paper was all in Japanese so I obviously had no idea what it said. When I e-mail Shigeko asking her what I should do, she wrote back saying she would come by in the morning and help me sort it out.
These are just a few of the ways God has been not-so-gently reminding me of His love. Thank God He’s so persistent.
NOTE: Previously these posts were copies of mass e-mails I’ve been sending out to the people back in the States (and elsewhere) to let them know of my life here in Japan. I’ve decided to write posts in addition to the e-mail posts.
Today I’d like to talk about garbage. Here in Japan they take the idea of recycling to a whole new level. I’m sure some of you have heard stories about how fanatic the Japanese are about their trash. When I was living in Saitama I was only aware of the main trash days, which were Monday and Thursday mornings. I would simply take my plastic bag out of the trashcan the night before and put it where Ayumi would see it the next morning. For PET bottles I had to remove the labels, wash out the bottle, throw the cap away and then put the bottle in a bag for Ayumi to take to the local grocery store. She would also wash styrofoam and take it to the grocery store.
Here in Machida it’s a whole other ballpark. You can’t throw your garbage away in any ol’ plastic bag (which was the case in Saitama), you have to buy special bags. Fortunately the bags are available almost anywhere. Unfortunately they aren’t free and they are color-coded. Yellow is for combustibles which are picked up every Monday and Thursday. Green days are for non-combustibles and pick up is every other Saturday. Blue bags (which come in only one size and are about $25) are for non-spray cans, light bulbs and lighters and are picked up the 4th Friday of every month. Purple has no special bag and is newspaper, clothes books and cardboard; pickup is every Wednesday. Gray days are PET bottles, which are to be washed out, flattened and picked up every other Saturday when non-combustible is not picked up. Orange days are aluminum cans, non-spray cans, etc picked up the first, third and fifth (if applicable) Friday. And Pink days are every kind of can including spray and batteries, picked up the second Friday of every month. It is against the law to put your trash out prior to the assigned days, which makes sense because otherwise things would pile up and become an eyesore, but still…
Though it seems ridiculous, I do appreciate their thoroughness. Still, for those of you that only have to worry about which week is normal trash and which is recycle week, count your blessings.
With the exception of "Dance" these were taken by the 4-year-old Justus; his hand is very unsteady and he even turns the camera in some instances. Consider yourselves warned…
On Wednesday morning Shigeko and I went to the ward office (city hall) to update my address on my alien registration card and my health insurance. After getting that taken care of, she invited me to go with her to meet her daughter at an outlet mall. Since I had nothing planned I accepted her offer and got to meet Junko, her 17-year-old daughter who is very sweet but also very shy (at least when it comes to speaking English). Shigeko invited me to have dinner with them before we went to the Wednesday night Bible study at church. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and after the Bible study she drove me home.
When I arrived home I found that a package from my parents had been brought to the apartment, but since I wasn’t home they couldn’t leave it. The slip they left was in Japanese and obviously I couldn’t read it. I e-mailed Shigeko asking her what I should do and she told me she’d come to my house the next morning. She came and we drove to the main post office. It turns out the delivery man still had the package in his truck so I picked a time frame for him to come back to deliver it. At 3:30 he returned and I was finally able to use my hanko (a seal with my name written in kanji). My parents, wonderful people that they are, sent me candy and a book I had wanted to read for a while. And one of my favorite families, the Campbell’s, sent me two pairs of warm, fuzzy socks.
Friday night was the Ladies Elegant Christmas dinner. I walked the 10 minutes to church wearing my dress, knee high socks and tennis shoes. It was really cold and there was no way I was going to climb the stairs wearing my heeled shoes. I must have looked pretty funny to people but I didn’t care because I was warm and comfortable. When I arrived at church, Larry was collecting our jackets and hanging them up, then he directed us to the elevator and told us to enjoy our night. Earlier that day I had gone to the church to help prepare the food. The transformation that took place over the few hours that I had been gone was amazing. The only light sources were the candles on each of the six tables and the Christmas lights strung along the walls and on the tree (as well as some light that came from the kitchen). The women were playing interactive Bingo. Each person had to find someone who had "been in a car accident" or "owns a pet" or "liked the same t.v. show as you" etc. Eventually 5 women won and we sat down for dinner. Shigeko and Junko were there and during the meal (which was delicious by the way) Jeremiah, who was our photographer for the night, took a picture of the three of us in front of the tree. At the end of the night he printed them out and distributed them as we left.
After another game and dessert we went upstairs to the sanctuary. We enjoyed a beautiful piano piece performed by one of the women who had attended Juilliard School of Music, a few songs sung by another woman, and sang some carols after hearing a talk by a woman who lead a Bible study at one of the military bases. All in the all the night was a success. I’m very glad I was able to attend and meet more people from the church.
The Japanese have a tradition where they do major clean up before the New Year. So on Sunday I helped the church do their clean up. Before arriving I had assumed that Jeremiah and Geigy would be there but quickly found that only the members of the Japanese service were there. I eventually ended up in the kitchen/dining room area. At first I cleaned the inside and outside of the windows. While I was doing that one of the women introduced herself to me, telling me in English that her name was Nagomi. After I finished cleaning the windows I asked her what I should do and she had me help to guys put the light fixtures back in the ceiling. When all the cleaning was done, they started preparing lunch. While we waited, Nagomi talked to me and tried finding other people who could speak English better then her. Eventually she found someone and we stood in a circle of about 6 trying to communicate with each other. A woman that I had met before (but forgot that I had) reintroduced herself to me in almost perfect English. After we got our lunch we sat together and talked. I was so glad that I had decided to help them, getting to connect with even more people. I hope that eventually I’ll be able to attend the Japanese service and actually understand the message; the people are so loving and friendly.
At 3 I attended the English service and afterward Eileen, a really nice 20-something girl from Georgia, invited me to join her and a group for dinner. They eventually decided where they wanted to go and we walked to the restaurant. It was really great laughing and talking with all of them. Afterward a few of us walked back to the church to pick up bikes (or in my case, just walk home since the church was on the way) and they invited me to go with them somewhere for the countdown New Years Eve. Apparently where we’re going is romantic and a place where couples go but we’re just going as a group of friends. Should be fun, I’m really looking forward to that.
Yesterday (Monday) I spent all day at the Boek’s. At 10 I arrived to watch Justus (who is four and very cute) so Jeremiah and Geigy could go on a date. After they left Justus and I headed to a "park" nearby and played with a football for a while. He was my first official guest at the apartment because I wanted to upload some videos he had taken to clear up space on my camera. He enjoyed climbing up to the loft and after about 20 minutes we headed back to his house for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich lunch. After eating we went upstairs and watched The Polar Express. I had never seen it and was really impressed by the animation and the story. I recommend it to everyone who hasn’t already seen it.
Cali (9) and Jazz (5) eventually came home from school and after Jeremiah and Geigy returned the kids and I went outside to help Jeremiah set up Christmas lights. It took a while setting it all up and was a bit difficult because the houses here don’t have an outlet on the outside. We eventually finished and then shared a delicious dinner together. I finally got back home around 9.
The church has a school where they teach children English. Tomorrow I’m going to help so today I met the kids. I headed over to the church at 12, met the kids and talked with Jeremiah to figure out exactly what I am doing tomorrow. That should be fun and I’m glad I can get involved in the school somewhat (after this week they are on their holiday break).
So again, this week has been relatively relaxing which I’m abundantly grateful for. Next semester is going to be hectic with me taking 16 units and going to school everyday. But I’m very thankful that Steph and I will be rooming together and that we were able to find this apartment. The church has been a real blessing too.
Thanks for reading.
It’s a Small World pt. 1 (1:01)
It’s a Small World pt. 2 (:15)
Carrousel (:29)
If you listen hard you can hear the Japanese spoken by some of the characters:
Dreamlights pt. 1 (really long - 5:45)
Dreamlights pt. 2 (2:00)
Dreamlights pt. 3 (:52)
Dreamlights pt. 4 (:20)
Dreamlights pt. 5 (:36)
Dreamlights pt. 6 (end) (:06)
Monday the 4th was my final final. I feel very good about that one as well. The next day I met with Steph and Matt at their station. We took our stuff to Steph’s church so that on the 7th, when our apartment was available we wouldn’t have to go very far with all of our stuff. Afterward we went to the world’s busiest Starbucks (again) and sat and talked for a good while.
The next morning the three of us headed to the happiest place on earth. It was a bit chilly but not too bad when the sun came out. I’m really glad we went during the Christmas holiday because the decorations were beautiful. Unfortunately Space Mountain was closed but we rode everything else we wanted to. Since it was the middle of the week and most people were either at school or work, most of the lines were really short and the whole park wasn’t too crowded. It was a lot of fun and I’m so glad the three of us could enjoy more time together.
On the 7th Matt’s plane was leaving at 5 pm and Steph and I had to pick up our keys to the apartment. We said goodbye to Matt and headed back to Machida. We picked up our key with Shigeko’s help and she drove us to the apartment. We went inside, checked it out and then Shigeko dropped us off at the 100 yen shop (equivalent to the dollar store). We picked up some essentials and headed to the church to pick up our stuff. We also picked out free cups, bowls, plates and utensils that people were getting rid of. Jeremiah drove us and our stuff back to the apartment and we settled in. (While we were in the apartment, we heard a cat outside our door. Even though we’re not supposed to have pets inside the apartment, neither of us could resist letting her inside. We decided to name her George because of her curious nature. So a cat has officially adopted us.) After settling in we picked up some dinner and brought it back to the apartment. Steph walked with me to the station and we said goodbye because her plane was leaving the next day at 5 pm.
On my last day Mai’s school was having a show and tell. Her class did a short play and a song. She played the Queen of Spades and performed her part wonderfully. I sat with all the other parents on the floor and watched as the children strutted across the stage, performing their often complicated dance moves with amazing talent. Most of the children remembered their parts and I noticed that no adult stood in front to directed them.
I was very sad that it was my last night at the Fukuoka’s house. Ayumi made spaghetti at my request and I stayed up really late finishing their Christmas present, a photo album. The next morning Mai’s English school was also having a show and tell. She was the Scarecrow from The Wizard of Oz and sang "We’re Off to See the Wizard" with three other girls. I was so proud. And Ayumi invited me to their house for Christmas which means I only have to wait two weeks until I see them again.
Then we drove to my apartment which took a good two hours with all the traffic we encountered. They liked the apartment and Ayumi said it’s a lot easier to say goodbye knowing that I’ll still be in Japan. We also decided on the dates for my visit, I’m going the 24th and 25th. On the 24th we’re going to have a traditional Japanese Christmas dinner at KFC. Apparently they think KFC has a "Christmas taste". I’m really looking forward to being with them again. The first night was a little lonely once they left. I headed out to get a few more things for the apartment and some food. I also discovered that I couldn’t access the internet (one reason these updates took so long).
Sunday morning I went to Jeremiah and Geigy’s house hoping that someone would be home. Geigy and the kids were and I hitched a ride with them to church. I sat through the Japanese service, had lunch at the church and explored the area until the English service began at 3. It was the perfect message, just what I needed to hear. After the service I went downstairs where they served coffee and snacks. I talked to a few people and it was really nice to get connected to more people here. On Friday night I’m going to a Christmas dinner for the women of the church. It’s called "Ladies Elegant Christmas" and the men of the church will be serving us and taking care of any children there. I’m looking forward to Friday night.
Last night (Monday) I went with Geigy and two Japanese women to an Italian restaurant for a Bible study. It was a good time of encouragement. I’m very thankful that I’ve been able to get involved with the church, and that it is so close by.
I’ve enjoyed the apartment and being able to have a place but I also miss Steph and Matt a lot. I’m hoping to be able to get a commuter pass for the train and a bike from the church so that I can explore the area more.
We’re Off to See the Wizard (:50)
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (:04)
Japanese Tongue Twister (:11)
Rest Stop (:22)
Moon-Viewing Wing (:59)
Matsumoto City (:22)
Suwa Lake (:26)
Sunday the 12th Ayumi’s tea ceremony class was having a festival. So Masayuki, the girls and I went and were the guest of the ceremony (people could pay to experience the ceremony so we weren’t the only ones). It was shortened, only about 20 minutes when real ceremonies last for about 3 hours. It was fun but by the end I couldn’t feel my feet because I had to sit Japanese style with my legs folded directly under me. Ayumi tells me that the Japanese say sitting like that builds patience.
Thanksgiving day was interesting. It happened to be the same day as Japanese Labor Day. In the afternoon I met up with Steph’s Manga class (Paul, my Art H teacher taught this too) at the Tokyo Anime Center. Steph and three other students did voiceovers for a clip from an anime show (Pokemon if you’ve heard of it). After that we had lunch at a maid café, a resturant where all the waitresses dress up as maids. The food was really good and we even saw a guy get slapped for $15. He lost a drinking contest with one of the waitresses and she slapped him (he was laughing and smiling afterward so I guess it was okay).
After stopping by school, I met with Steph and Matt at Sunshine City, a really big underground mall. We were going to buy food at the international food market for a Thanksgiving dinner. But since it was Japanese Labor Day, it was closed. So we ended up eating at KFC. It was a little sad but I’m really glad we were able to spend it together. After KFC we stopped by the world’s busiest Starbucks and sat around (when a table finally opened up) for 45 minutes just talking.
On the 26th Ayumi put on a tea ceremony for me and all the homestay students in the area. It was really nice to be able to see them again. Ayumi was nervous but I thought she did an amazing job. At the end she let us make our own tea. We had it at the Japanese garden and the view was gorgeous. Unfortunately we were unable to walk through the garden, but I enjoyed our time nonetheless.
The 27th was my last official day of school until finals. The next day Ayumi, the girls and I went to Ayumi’s friend’s house. I made another berry pie and attempted cinnamon rolls. Her friend made quiche and chicken. The pie ended up being runny and the dough for the rolls wasn’t given enough time to rise but everything was delicious regardless. Ayumi called it our early Christmas party for three.
On the 1st I had my first final for Gender in History. I feel pretty good about the essay I had to write. After that I had my Photography final which was basically a four hour critique (originally it was going to be three hours).
The 2nd and 3rd the Fukuoka’s and I went on a trip to a prefecture about 3 hours away. It was a beautiful city but very cold. When we arrived it was about 44 degrees Fahrenheit. We visited a castle which Ayumi told me is one of the only castles that still has its original architecture. The steps were massive, some as high has a foot. Everyone was required to remove their shoes and I was wearing slippers. They were entirely too large for my feet and kept slipping off as I climbed the stairs. But it was really neat being able to see a traditional Japanese castle.
We walked around after leaving the castle and then headed to our hotel. It was outside of the city a bit but was very well kept. We settled our stuff and Ayumi told me she and the girls were going to visit the onsen (Japanese hot spring) and then we would be served dinner. She asked if I wanted to join them. I was very surprised because I had not expected the hotel to have an onsen. I decided to take up her offer; it was really awkward at first but also very relaxing.
Our dinner was served to us by one of the hotel staff. She brought us each our dishes…there were a lot. I couldn’t finish it all but tried everything. After dinner we watched the ice skating competitions and then went to bed. Ayumi, the girls and I shared one room and Masayuki had his own. I ended up on a futon between Mai and Yui. I couldn’t fall asleep and so witnessed Yui as she shoved one of her legs under my futon and stretched the other foot into my face. It was very funny and took all I had not to laugh aloud.
The next morning we were brought to another room and were served a very large breakfast. Again I was unable to eat everything they served. We left the hotel and went to Narakawa, an old traditional Japanese town. It was just one long street with old buildings on both sides. The temperature was anywhere from 39 to 35 degrees Fahrenheit. Needless to say we were pretty cold but still spent a good amount of time exploring the shops and one of the museums. After Narakawa we went to Suwa lake and enjoyed the ashiyu, a hot spring for feet. The ashiyu was outside and while we dipped our feet we could look out and see the lake. When we got out I felt as though I was walking on a cushion of warm air.
We then headed to a beautiful outlet mall. The stores were outside and sat at the foot of the volcano Mt. Asama overlooking snowcapped mountains and the valley below. It was again really cold and the prices were outrageous. No what I was expecting from an outlet mall but I should have guessed.
All in all the trip was very enjoyable. I’m very glad I was able to spend that time with my family.
Brace yourselves, this is going to be quite long since it’s been just about 5 weeks since I’ve written an update. I’m going to write this update in sections to hopefully make it not so overwhelming.
The apartment is fully furnished with a sink and hotplate, a washing machine (the dryer being the shower room, we put our clothes inside, close the door and turn the heater on), microwave, refrigerator, t.v., a tiny closet for each of us, a table and two chairs, a really nice window and futons for the loft. We’re on the second floor, less than 5 minute walk away from Jeremiah and Geigy’s (Steph’s pastor and his wife), really close to the church and station, not in the middle of Tokyo but not in the middle of nowhere either and we’ve paid for four months from December 7 to April 5 so we don’t have to worry about monthly payments (it included utilities as well). So nice to not have to worry about that anymore…
On the 10th after my morning class I and 4 other Photography students went with Shinya to Sapporo. We took the monorail to the airport and it was an amazing ride. We enjoyed the view of a wide river on one side and the city on the other. The plane ride was only about an hour and from the air we were able to see Mt. Fuji in the distance. After we landed we took another train into Sapporo, about 30 minutes. Another enjoyable ride with a lot of open land and very beautiful greenery.
For lunch we went to a rotating sushi bar (they put the plates on a conveyor belt and when you see something you want, you just grab it and they give you the bill after counting your plates). The guys ate a lot while Rozan and I watched in stunned amazement. In the end they had about 60 plates along with drinks and soup and even though the plates are quite small, that’s still a lot of food.
We took a cab to the hotel and were surprised by how cold it was after coming from Tokyo. The hotel we stayed at was a very nice, westernized place called "The Sapporo Prince Hotel" (actually it’s owned by the company that Masayuki works for). It was amazing because with the deal Shinya got us we were each able to have our own rooms. Two beds each with a spectacular view of the city out of each big window. We were on the 19th floor and the building was a huge cylinder so that everyone’s view was slightly different. Of course I took pictures from everyone’s window (except for Shinya’s).
The first thing we noticed when looking outside the windows was the ferris wheel. We all decided without Shinya’s knowledge that if nothing else we’d ride the wheel. Shinya took us to a gallery and afterward we told him of our plan and he agreed to go find it with us. We stopped at the first train station we came to and got the directions. We made it to the station closest to the wheel and looked around the shops in the station and after the guys bought some food (cheese, crackers, wine) we headed back outside. After wandering around for a while and not finding it we asked for directions again and found where it was supposed to be. We could see the reflection of lights on the buildings but the wheel was nowhere to be found. Turns out it was on top of the building! So we went to the 8th floor and bought our tickets for the wheel. The entire ride took about 10 minutes and it was a really good opportunity for me to take videos and pictures of the city. It was Shinya’s first ferris wheel ride and he told us it was "okay".
After the wheel he took us to the "Think Garden", a really cool bookstore/artist hangout. The door was really hidden and if I had blinked I would have missed it. We spent an hour there, had a nice dinner served to us by the woman working there. From there Shinya, Rozan and I decided to go back to the hotel and the guys went to do karaoke and clubbing until about 6 in the morning.
I had seen an advertisement for a lounge on the 28th floor (the top) where I could see even more of the city. I told Shinya I wanted to check it out so the three of us went and found out that a table would be about $5 plus whatever drink we bought. Rozan went back to her room and Shinya and I took a table. It was totally worth it! The lights went on in every direction as far as the eye could see. Shinya paid and thanked me for the suggestion because he never would have gone if I hadn’t wanted to.
Sapporo is like Tokyo because there are a lot of business buildings everywhere but it’s a lot less crowded on the sidewalks and streets. The ride to the hotel was beautiful because the sidewalks were lined with vibrantly colored trees of red, yellow and orange.
On the 11th Shinya, Rozan and I enjoyed a free breakfast on the first floor. We tried waking the guys after we came back upstairs to pick up our stuff and check out. They were still sleeping so the three of us headed to the station and Rozan and I put our bags in a locker. Shinya saw us off there because he had to judge a film festival later that day. Rozan and I went to another gallery and then met with Shinya’s friend and colleague. By this time the guys were awake and ready to go. We stopped by the hotel to pick them up and then drove 30 minutes to a really cool architectural park. I can’t even really describe it, you’ll just have to see the pictures I took in the Sapporo album. Even though it rained the whole day and was a bit chilly, I had a lot of fun.
After we got back into Sapporo Shinya’s friend took us to his studio and we decided what to do next. Alex, Rozan and I were leaving that day to come back to Tokyo so we didn’t have a whole lot of time. We thought about walking around but since it was getting darker and still raining we decided against that. We ended up walking across the street to a really nice mall to find something for a late lunch. The mall had a lot of options but after walking through it we decided to walk through the courtyard to the old beer factory to see what was there. The restaurant was really nice and we enjoyed eating and talking for a good hour and a half. Shinya’s friend then took Alex, Rozan and I to the station and after getting our bags and warming up with hot chocolate, we took the train back to the airport.
The plane ride back was a little longer that time and the three of us talked for most of the ride. We had a really interesting discussion about Christianity and Islam (Rozan is Islamic) and I can honestly say we all enjoyed it.
All in all the trip was really fun and I’m glad I decided to go.