Finally a New Blog!

Sorry it’s been a couple of weeks since I’ve updated the blog. It’s been difficult for me to find a block of time to write.

Monday, February 11, was a Japanese national holiday. Every Japanese holiday, Darren gets the day off. Since the kids still have school those days, Darren and I get to have a “day date." It’s very nice. Well, on this holiday we decided to go exploring around Ebisu. Before I tell you about our adventure, let me tell you a little about the holiday. The holiday is called National Foundation Day. It celebrates the founding of the Japanese nation by its mythical Emperor Jimmu. This is a day of both celebration, and as Darren and I found out, protests. While we were walking along we noticed that we were seeing a lot of police officers. When we walked by a park, there were about 200 people in hard hats and a woman was speaking into a megaphone. We thought that it might be construction workers on strike. As we walked on, we saw more police officers and many had shields. After a few minutes, the people we had just seen in the park were walking behind the woman, who was now in a van driving down the street. She was yelling into a speaker and the police were walking next to them as they marched. A few moments later there were vans coming from the other direction yelling back at the protesters (click the picture to enlarge). It was very loud and strange to see this coming from our “quiet” Japanese people. I asked a man next to me if he spoke English and believe it or not he did. He told me that the people marching were with the right winged party in Japan and were protesting the Emperor and that the other people “countering” back were pledging their allegiance to Japan and being patriotic. I have tried to find information about these protests in the Japan Times and have even Googled it, but have not found any information...which I find interesting.

Last week Darren and I met to eat lunch in Meguro near his office. On my way home I saw two girls walking and one had dropped several things out of her purse. After she had picked up her things and walked away, I noticed that her wallet was still lying on the ground. So now I’m 30,000 yen richer…no, just kidding! I said, “excuse me” a couple of times but then realized she didn’t understand me. So then I said, “sumemasen” which means “excuse me” in Japanese and she turned around. I know it sounds silly, but it was a really neat moment. Being able to communicate in a different language - while being in that country - is thrilling. I'm excited about my Japanese lessons which begin at the end of March. Plus, I can't wait to understand what my kids are saying to each other (more about that in the next blog)!

As promised, here is that picture of Nathan and Maddie with their cell phones! Nathan has become quite the master of his…taking peoples pictures and transforming them into cartoon characters (real funny, ha, ha).

Two weekends ago we went to the movie theatre for the first time in Rippongi Hills. The total cost for the entire family to see a 2:00 p.m. showing was 5,800 yen (about $56.00). The popcorn and two drinks cost about 1,800 yen (about $17.00). Theatres in Tokyo have assigned seating. So we chose our seats, purchased our tickets, went and ate some sushi and then showed up after the previews were done. It was nice knowing that we all had seats together since the theatre was full. By the way, we saw the movie Earth (in English with Japanese sub-titles). Excellent!

The kids also had a brief winter holiday last Thursday (Feb 21) and Friday (Feb 22). On Thursday afternoon we went out with our friends (Ms. Gina, Parker and Duncan) and saw the Water Horse (at a different movie theatre in Shinagawa). We chose our seats (3,800 yen for the three of us – around $37.00) and then went to play in an arcade in a bowling alley before the movie started. (This bowling alley had 80 lanes - 40 on the first floor and 40 on the second floor - and it was packed!) Unlike the other movie theatre, this theatre had very plush seats and a lot of legroom (you could stretch your legs out without touching the seats in front of you). Darren had the camera or I would have taken a picture. Next time…

On Friday we went to a Lego Exhibit with our friends who live downstairs (Ms. Jennifer, Travis and Justin). It was held at a department store in Shibuya. Here was one of our favorites of the Taj Mahal.

Speaking of Darren having the camera…He can see Mt. Fuji from his office window and was able to take some photos during sunset. They are beautiful. He took these photos right after the USA blew up that space satellite. We think that the spiral cloud is some pieces of the satellite burning in the atmosphere. We are calling the photo to the right his award winning photo. It's a framer!

The day we took the kids to see the movie Earth we also went to Tokyo Tower. Tokyo Tower is "the" sightseeing landmark in Tokyo. We are very fortunate because we can see the Tower from our apartment. Here is the view of Tokyo Tower from our terrace at night. The view from inside the tower is amazing. Tokyo is one big piece of concrete land! For as far as the eye can see there is building after building (with a few green parks here and there). The middle picture is a view of Tokyo Bay and the Rainbow Bridge. The one to the right is a view of Mori Tower (which you can also see from our apartment) and a view of our apartment "area." Mori Tower is the biggest building to the right. You will see a brown building next to that then another brown building to the way left of that. This building is called the "Mushroom Building." Of course our apartment is too tiny to see but it's in the area to the left of the Mushroom Building.

Upon request, here's a picture of me and Darren. We took it at Arasugawa Park (the park right across from our apartment). A lot of men fish in the pond at the park. One man had binoculars on a pole that he looked through while he was fishing. I don't know if he was bird watching or scouting for fish. We've never actually seen anyone catch any fish. I heard there are crayfish for the kids to catch in the summer.

This past weekend we went to an awesome area called Odaiba. The train we took runs on the Yurikamome line (this train has rubber tires) and it goes to 16 different areas along it's route. Each area is filled with museums, entertainment, shopping and of course restaurants. There was too much to do in just a day so we are excited about going back. We actually went there to go on the worlds 2nd largest Ferris Wheel (it was the largest until just a few weeks ago). However, it was too windy and the Ferris Wheel wasn't running. The kids are looking forward to going back and riding it...I can't say the same for Darren...:).

While there, we went to the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation. It was another interactive museum. We were able to see the demonstration of Asimo, the Honda robot (I can't seem to get the video to upload so I'll try again next time).

After the museum we hopped on the train to another area where there was "Toyota Leisure Land." Basically it is an (indoor) Toyota car dealership that has a lot of fun things for people to do. It had a Econ Car track, a go-kart track, virtual car movie and car simulator video games...all for free. The best marketing I've ever seen! The kids rode these electric go-karts around a track (you can also build them-though we didn't do that this time). It was the highlight of our trip for them.

We rode the train to another area where there was a lot of shopping and restaurants. They have a mini Statute of Liberty here. You can see the view of Rainbow Bridge behind the Statue of Liberty.

These are Pizza Hut delivery vehicles. All the delivery people use this type of transportation. Some vehicles that deliver soup have a special apparatus on the back of their scooters that sway. I'll try to get a photo of them and post.

This is the funny photo of the week. While we were in Omodo Sando we came across this store that caters to the dog lover. The photos speak for themselves. Xalina, just think of the business!!!

Here's the funny sign of the week. I actually found it on the sidewalk. It's for the fire department.

We love and miss you all! I'll blog sooner next time...I promise Monica!

Madeline's a Nihon Buyo Dancer!

I can't believe that we have already been in Tokyo for over a month! We have learned so much about life here in Tokyo in such a short time. We are forever changed in our view of things here and back at home in the USA.

The kids were home this past weekend with bad colds and fevers so we weren't able to go on any weekend adventures. They were both home from school on Friday. Unfortunately, Nathan missed his classroom play called "Rumpus in the Rainforest" that they were putting on for the parents. He was sad...but not too sad...because staying home is always so much more fun...no matter how sick you are!

First, we are excited because Maddie made it into the Japanese dance class called "Nihon Buyo" (which literally means Japanese Dance). It's a form of traditional Japanese Geisha style dance that is slow and uses a prop, such as a fan, umbrella, sword, etc. Madeline's class is using a fan. The fan is a beautiful silk material and Maddie just loves it. This past Tuesday was her first class. It is after school so she takes the late bus home (it gets home around 6:15 - it makes for a LONG day). I decided that I'd go to school with the kids every Tuesday (I ride the bus out with them and then come home with them too). That way we ALL have a long day! (Nathan and I stay at the library while Maddie's at dance). I am actually helping Mrs. Lavendar (Maddie's teacher) organize and level her classroom library (sound familiar Kelli?!?) Anyway, I digress. Back to the dance class. When we got there, the teachers were dressed in kimonos. They were so beautiful. I was going to ask if I could take a picture of them but figured I'd get one before the class is over (she has seven classes). It was really neat because they actually dress all the kids (all girls and one boy - not sure how many are in the class) in kimonos for practice. I couldn't resist and took a video of Maddie getting dressed in hers.

This past week, on February 3rd, the Japanese celebrated a holiday called Setsubun ("sets boon"). It literally means division of seasons and this day marks the end of winter according to the lunar calendar (the calendar Japan used before they used the one we all use today). On the evening of this day, people throw roasted soybeans inside and outside their house while saying "Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!" which means devils out and good luck in. As the beans are thrown, it is believed that good luck in invited in and bad luck is driven out. Also, you are supposed to eat as many roasted beans as your age. It's a kind of charm again bad luck. Yes, we did the ritual (although we threw the beans at each other with our oni (devil) masks on since that's what Nathan said we were to do...I think he just wanted to throw beans at us!). We all did eat the number of beans according to our age - well, okay, almost! Some of us had A LOT of beans to eat! The roasted soy beans are actually very yummy. They kind of taste like husked sun flower seeds.

It snowed this week on Sunday and then again on Wednesday (our third snowfall this year). Again, it snowed all day Sunday but nothing stuck on the roads (it just made them slushy). We did get out for a few minutes to play in it (although we didn't stay out too long since Nathan and Maddie were sick. They actually missed a birthday party this day and were really bummed about that). We took a picture of a snowman that somebody else made! Below is a picture of a bridge/waterfall in Arisugawa park across the street.

Yesterday was early release from school (the kids got out at 2:00 instead of 3:00). Maddie and Nathan took the bus home with a friend of Nathan's named Kenny (a very nice boy in his class). I took the city bus (first time) to Sendagaya to meet Debbie (Kenny's mom) and then after we got the kids off the school bus we took them ice skating. By the end of the three hours, all the kids were skating very well. They are eager to go back. We were surprised at how many girls (at least two dozen) could skate with twirls, double toe loops and triple axles (what ever they look like!). They had designated the center of the rink for these girls. Impressive to watch.

Shane wanted to see the Shinkansen in action so I'm going to upload the video we took of it leaving the station. It's not going very fast since it's leaving but it's neat to watch.

Here's some of our everyday photos from life in Tokyo. This is Nathan putting more money on his subway card called Pasmo. He and Madeline wear these cards in a holder around their necks. We pass them over the sensor scanner when we enter the station and then again when we leave. We are charged when we leave the station. The amount debited depends on how far we've traveled. It caculates the amount for you which is very nice. (When we first got here we were buying tickets and we had to figure out how much we owed based on the map on the wall...which is tricky when it's all in Japanese!). Here is a picture of their Pasmo cards. If you look closely (or click on the picture to make it bigger) you can see their names printed in Katakana.

A couple of weeks ago Darren and I were walking to our favorite breakfast joint - called Johnathan's - and it dawned on me that I hadn't seen any gas stations. I noticed this station while we were walking past a car wash (which I'll post someday soon - very neat). He said that that's where they got their gas too. Where? You have to look up. I guess there is no self-serve. (I'm not sure how they pull down the hoses from the ceiling!) It's funny because you don't see these service stations very often...unlike the USA where there is one on all four corners! Very different.

There are SO many cell phone stores in Tokyo (this picture is literally a "snap shot" of how many phones there are). In the heavy shopping districts they have people outside talking in megaphones trying to get you to come in and buy a phone. It's very interesting. In a bit of irony, there are so many mobile phone styles and mobile phone stores here, and just about everyone owns one (including kids), yet you don't really see people talking on them. Actually, text messaging and email via mobile phone is very popular here. You will see a lot of emailing on the subway. What's really neat is that some phones have a chip that you can load with yen to buy food from a vending machine or 7-Eleven or use it to ride the trains and subways (just like our Pasmo cards). If you want to buy a deluxe model (which many people do) you can get a phone that utilizes biometrics (ie. fingerprint reader) for security or a phone with a display that rotates sideways and becomes a mini-flat screen TV (you can actually watch broadcast TV on it!) They also don't have blue tooth so you never see anybody walking around "talking to themselves" (think ear pieces - you all know what I'm talking about!). It's surprising to see that they still have telephone booths. They all pretty much look like the one above to the right.

At the National Azabu Market (down the hill from our apartment) you are able to find a lot of comfort products from the USA. Of course this comes with a price! I snapped a couple of pictures of some cleaning products and their prices in yen. The Glade is about $5.00 and the Febreeze is $13.00!!!! Now Zandy and Yvonne know why I asked for some things from the USA to be shipped over! It's CRAZY! That's why I will never again complain about the prices for those kinds of things in the USA! Really, things are SO much cheaper. Some things in Japan are comprably priced, like meats at Hanamasa (a Japanese market store) and sometimes you'll pay more for something but it tastes so much better (like the strawberries - about 800 yen or roughly $8.00 for 3 pints or so but SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO sweet and delicious!). I am so much more comfortable shopping at the Japanese markets (as opposed to "International" markets that carry over-priced American brands) now so I don't pay such an outrageous price for things (even though most things are still more expensive then the USA). We are finding some favorite treats here which I'm sure we'll miss when we go back to the states.

The dogs over here crack us up. Like I said before we see more dogs than children. Plus, most of the dogs are dressed up...either in just a sweater or full-blown outfit. They even have dog stores solely with clothing for your dog! Here's a hilarious picture we took while bike riding in Roppongi Hills.

Okay, the funny sign for the week. Notice the dog's teeth! (You may need to click on the photo to make it larger).

Next week I'll show pictures of our restaurant experience from Johnathan's.

Have a GREAT week!

Let's take the Shinkansen to IKEA?!

I'm a little behind in posting the blog so it may be a little longer than normal. So much to show and tell.

Thanks for all the kind comments about the blog. It's fun for me to do. Darren said he'll add to it soon so you can hear HIS perspective of things in Tokyo (something about all the exotic sports cars we've been seeing). Thanks for adding comments too - we really enjoy reading them.

Just wanted to make sure that everyone knows that the You Tube video I put on the last time is just a JOKE! There isn't any truth to it...that's why Darren was laughing at me for believing it (and me at myself...and now me at some of you :). People DO NOT go around and put their fingers in the salt dishes or do any of the other crazy stuff in that video. The sushi chef doesn't use the napkin for wiping off his own sweat and then the knife. People do not wear the sushi boards home as geta shoes on their feet and their feet (at least I think - haven't smelled any lately) don't smell like vinegar. It was just something I thought was funny since I (only half way - I remind you) believed it. :) Darren showed a Japanese friend at work and he said he was laughing at it and that the salt does mean to keep away bad things.

Our television came last Saturday and the kids were so excited! We get a few free Japanese cable stations - one of which I think is a full-time Sumo Wrestling channel. Since we don't have "American" television yet (thank you Van for setting up the Sling Box and TiVo!) the kids have mostly played on the Wii or Guitar Hero. Last Saturday night we all enjoyed our first family popcorn movie night together. It was fun :).

Last Sunday we took ANOTHER trip to IKEA (hopefully our last for a VERY long time). We had to order our last piece of furniture. Instead of going to the Funabashi store we went to the Yokohama store. I wasn't quite prepared for the experience there. Since it's pretty far away from our apartment we decided to take the Shinkansen or as we call it in the USA - the Bullet Train (see photo). The kids were so excited (and to admit it, Darren and I were too). It really was neat. It does go pretty fast - we were estimating maybe around 120 mph or more. The ride was SO smooth, especially compared to the subway rides. Once we got our tickets (about $40.00 US for the entire family - one way). The ride itself took about 20 minutes - even though it felt like half that time.








The kids wanted to see how fast they could run compared to the regular subway train so we took this video to see if they could beat it. (Really, it's just them running in place). I don't know why Maddie started running backward. Funny.

When we got off the Shinkansen at the Shin Yokohama Station we saw a sign for an IKEA shuttle bus. At first we thought that was odd - a shuttle bus - just for IKEA. Well, yes...a shuttle bus...just for IKEA! It was crowded too - going there and coming back. The ride on the IKEA bus took about 30 minutes. When we got to the IKEA store we were shocked at how crowded it was. The Funabashi store was crazy crowded but this store was twice as crowded. It was the craziest thing we've ever seen! I think the people here like IKEA so much because the prices are so affordable (compared to everywhere else in Tokyo) and the furniture caters to people with smaller places (traditional Japanese homes are very small). Let's just say it's something you'd never see in the USA unless there was a HUGE sale at IKEA and it was the day before Christmas.

One of the things that we've had to get used to here is that there is no clean indoor air act (that is one thing we miss about home). January 8th they just outlawed smoking in cabs so we're hoping that restaurants aren't too far behind. In most restaurants there are still smoking and non-smoking sections. The thing is, since the restaurants are so tiny and the seating is so limited, three tables will be smoking and three will be non-smoking...so pretty much the whole place is smoking. On the Shinkansen (Bullet Train) they have designated smoking cars. We walked through one to get to our car and it's pretty much just one big cloud of smoke (of course this is no offense to any of our smoking friends - you know we love you :).

Last weekend we went to Shibuya to go to a place called Tokyu Hands (no, I didn't misspell that). The only thing that I can match this store in the USA is Target - but not :). I miss Target!!!! This store was 6 floors and had EVERYTHING you could possibly imagine (except clothing). This is where I bought my mop and broom. Shibuya is also home to the busiest intersection in the world. I took a video of the people crossing.

Darren said that it's even busier at night. I don't think the video does justice to all the people there.


On some fun news, we heard that Atlanta had gotten some snow. Nate and Maddie were so bummed that they missed it. Then, a few days later, it snows here! They were so excited. However, we didn't get a snow day for school :(. It snowed pretty much all day but just left the roads all slushie - but drivable. I took some pictures of the snow outside our apartment from our terrace (see left and click to enlarge) and at Arisugawa Park right across from our apartment (see right). The kids were able to play in the snow at school so they were happy about that. We're hoping for a snow day that shuts school down though :).

In Harajuku there is a street called Takeshita Dori. It's a street of stores where a lot of the teens hang out and has a lot of wild clothing and accessories. This is where my other favorite store, Daiso is. It's another dollar type store but has things that cost more than 100 yen too. They have some GREAT things there. There's actually a Claire's jewelry store on this street too where I bought Maddie some earrings. Here's a photo of some neat crepes that they sell.

Most have ice cream on them and other's have lunch type foods on them (i.e. tuna). We didn't try one this time.

The next street over is Omotesando which is VERY high end shopping. It has the most beautiful Ralph Lauren store we've ever been to. They also have a toy store called Kiddy Land and a great store called Oriental Bazaar where you can purchase a lot of neat Japanese paraphernalia.

We actually had to buy our first birthday present at Kiddy Land this week. Nathan went to his first birthday party here on Saturday. It was at a Karaoke "bar" called Smash Hits. (Don't worry it was during the day and it was a children's party). He said he had a lot of fun. Of course they had all the High School Musical songs and now that's where Maddie wants her birthday party (even though she was only there about 2 minutes while we were dropping Nathan off).

We finally took our bikes out for the first time this past weekend. We rode them to Rippongi which is about 15 minutes from our apartment. We went to this park called Robot Park (because of the robot statues). There's a really neat slide that has rolling pins on it...think conveyor belt. Here's some video of it because it's so different.



Here are some neat things we saw while we were out and about. This first is of a ticket machine that you use to order lunch. You put your money in, decide what you'd like to eat and then the machine gives you a ticket. Then you bring the ticket to the restaurant window to order your food. These are scattered here and there about the city.

Here's something you won't see in the USA. This is a Japanese style toilet in the women's bathroom. At first I thought it was for women who took their sons in with them :). Don't worry girls, they have normal toilets too...you don't see these very often actually.

Here's a photo of some precious Japanese girls going to school (walking by themselves across a main street - that's how safe it is here - really!) I'll try to get some photos of the boys because they are even more precious. The hats are different colors based on the school they're in. Notice the hard backpacks which all Japanese kids use (called randoseru in Japanese).




Here's the funny sign picture of the week. It is in the park across the street from our apartment. I've no idea what it says...I'll have to ask Darren's mom.





Have a GREAT week!