Finally!

Okay, you can sit back in your chair now!  Yes, I am blogging!  This one is dedicated to Monica and Joy, my faithful blog readers.

September 12-15, 2008 Darren surprised the kids and me with a trip to Hong Kong to celebrate our 17th wedding anniversary (yes, we went with the kids, how could we not bring them to Hong Kong?).  It is about a four and a half hour flight from Tokyo to Hong Kong.  We couldn't get over the prices of things - so inexpensive - even more so than the USA.  We were in heaven!  The dollars used in Hong Kong are called Hong Kong Dollars and the exchange rate was about eight Hong Kong dollars for every one American dollar.  Here are some photos from the trip.

The views of the harbor were amazing, especially at night.  We were a little surprised by the amount of air pollution and smog though.

There were so many double decker busses.  Nathan loved them.  We counted (no exaggeration) over 125 just on our way from the airport to the hotel (about a 45 minute drive).  They don't have double decker buses in Tokyo.

We had a blast shopping at the Ladies Market.  It was hot but fun.  We had to be careful of pick pockets since they work the market.  They seemed to sell everything here and the dealers were ready to sell - trying to lure you into their lair!  Fun for us bargain shoppers!  

There is a famous shopping street in Hong Kong called Nathan Road.  Here is Nathan on "his" road.  We bought him a sign that says Nathan Road for his bedroom.

We took a double decker bus up to the Stanley Market.  The drive up the mountain side was very scenic.  The bus ride itself was interesting - curvy and narrow and the bus driver driving like a crazy man!  I did manage to snap this shot.  Despite the smog, it is beautiful.

This is Stanley Market.  It was even better than the Ladies Market.  We had our names written in Chinese here and had it framed.

You'll have to click on this photo to read the words.  Never heard of that before!  Another sign said that wax burning is an offense so don't get burned. 

 

We went to Toys R Us while in Hong Kong.  It was so great to see so many toys at an affordable price!  The kids seem to have Christmas every time we go to another country.  They love it of course.  At first look, this is the most expensive Little Pet Shop toy I've ever seen!  It's actually about 25 US dollars (still a little pricey).  

We took the train a few times while we were there.  The subway consists of two tracks basically - night and day from the spaghetti tracks of the Tokyo subway system.   There is very limited seating as well, with most everybody standing.  If this was Tokyo, most every person would be wearing their dress clothes, heels, etc.  It was refreshing to see people wearing casual clothing.  Although, I have to admit, it was nice coming back and seeing people dressed really nice again.  Oh no, I think I'm turning Japanese!!!!   

We met our friends the Walkey's while there.  They moved to Hong Kong from the USA shortly before we came to visit.  Johnathan was in my Kindergarten class a few years ago.  We went to the Mid-Autumn Festival together (also known as the Moon Festival or Lantern Festival).  During the festival, people celebrate by carrying lit lanterns around and admiring the full moon.  I bought the kids fish lanterns but we forgot them at the hotel.  Maddie uses hers as a night light in her room now.

Before we left for the festival, we went to the Walkey's apartment for moon cakes.  Not like the moon cakes we grew up with in the USA.  These are sweet cakes made from ground lotus and sesame seed paste and egg-yolk.  They were, well, interesting.  

We had a fun stay in Hong Kong and it was great catching up with friends.  The night before we left we went to the grocery store and stocked up on cereal that they sell in the USA.  That is probably the one thing I miss the most is cereal choices.  Since the Japanese aren't big cereal eaters, there isn't a lot of cereal here.  Plus, the prices for a box of Kashi here is about $8.00 US.  

I'll update "soon" about our trip to Thailand (Bangkok and Phuket).  We're off to Beijing, China this coming week for the kids' short winter break.  

  

  

  

"We'll take five black eggs, onegaishimasu!"

A new entry!!! Can you believe it? Yes, after a restful summer break in the USA we are back in Tokyo and have hit the ground (rather, trains, subways, buses, taxis…) running with a new school year at a brand new school. More on that later…

Our wonderful friend Paige (and the kids’ second grade teacher from the USA) came to Tokyo for two weeks in June. We adore her and we all had such a great time. It was fun to see Tokyo through fresh(er) eyes and remember how we felt when we first saw this amazing city. Shoot, we’re still amazed everyday! This picture is from our visit to "Andy's" izakaya. Izakaya are a Tokyo tradition so we went one day after Paige's arrival. Even though she's completely jet-lagged, she still looks great!

Here are some photos from our adventures. Remember to click on them if you want to see a larger photo. We took the Odakyu "Romancecar" (so named for the scenic views as well as the standard seating which turn into love seats when you lift the middle arm rest!) to Hakone about an hour outside of Tokyo. It is a beautiful area in the mountains but still very close to Tokyo. The area all around Hakone is actually a collapsed volcano. We went to the Hakone Open Air Museum which had "playable" art for the kids to play on.

We stayed in a traditional Japanese Inn called a Ryokan. Instead of sleeping on beds, we slept on futons (matresses) on the tatami mats. We're glad we did it but we can't say we'll be doing it anytime again soon.

One of the best parts of the trip was eating a black egg. Since Hakone is built on a collapsed volcano, there are hot springs all around. There is a place where they trolly chicken eggs by cable up the mountain to be boiled in the hot springs. The springs are very hot so eggs are easily boiled in the water. The hot springs have a very high sulphur content which turns the outside of the eggs completely black (the inside stays white...and yellow). It is said that if you eat one black egg it will add seven years to your life. So, we're all going to live to 140! We actually only ate one egg although Nathan wanted more. We're going back there this fall to get photos of Mt. Fuji. Unfortunately, it was too misty to see it while we were there.

After a great start to the summer and not one earthquake to be felt, we all flew back on the same flight to the USA for our summer adventure there. The kids truly had the summer of their lives. Swimming at the pool everyday, playing in the cul-de-sac, sleep overs, going to new release movies, shopping at Target, eating at Chick-fil-a, buying DVD’s and Wii games for our region (Japan’s DVD’s and video games won’t run on our systems…not to mention they’re in Japanese!) and of course seeing family and friends. Darren joined us a few weeks later and was able to hang out with his buddies, play tennis, golf, etc. We already miss all of you.

Even though we spent too much money while in the US (bringing our comfort foods back Tokyo with us) we realized that even with the rising prices in the USA, they still have a ways to go to catch up to Tokyo (where prices are also rising)! I spent four hours in Target one day and then four hours in Wal-Mart the next marveling at the affordability of everything! Zandy decided she’s never going shopping with me again at Publix! Movies in the US are a huge bargain at $6.00 for a matinee ($18.00 here, all ages, all times) and milk at only $4.00 a gallon ($8.00 here – and they don’t even sell it by the gallon). I won’t keep going on, you get the idea.

Darren and I celebrate our 17th wedding anniversary September 14th and he has surprised the kids and me with a trip to Hong Kong. I’ll blog about that next week. Also, September 14th marks the two-year celebration of my mom’s new life in heaven.

The kids got off to a great start at Tokyo International School (TIS). On a scale of one to ten they rated the bus ride a two million! They only have a 10 minute ride one way compared to the 50 minute ride one way last year. I love having them home everyday by 3:20 instead of 4:15. They have jumped right into making new friends and getting involved in afterschool programs. Nathan is taking Woodchippers (making things out of wood) and Tennis and Maddie is taking Cheerleading and Drama. There are 16 kids in each of their classes. The student body at TIS is incredibly diverse. In Madeline's class, 12 countries are represented and she is the only American. English is the common language and amazingly many of the children are tri-lingual (their home country, English and Japanese). So far we are extremely happy with our move to TIS...and so far they haven't complained about their uniforms (actually I think they kind of like them!). Nathan and Madeline continue to impress us with their positive outlook and even excitement toward these new experiences.

In an effort to help my dear friend Monica and her husband Andy expand their family through the adoption of a baby, I am including their website in this blog. If you know of anyone that can help them in this endeavor, they have set up a website all about themselves: http://www.andyandmonicaadopt.com/. They are an amazing couple and will be loving parents to any child with which God chooses to bless them.


Funny Photo of the Week:

This was in a vending machine in Hakone. How about some dried fish?

Words we should all live by. "Do not touch doubtful things."

Sanja Fesitval, Maddie's 8th Birthday, Tokyo Giants

Once late spring arrives in Japan the annuals festivals (matsuri) start up and it seems there is a different one every other weekend. On May 17th we went to the Sanja Matsuri in Asakusa which occurs on the third weekend of each May. The Sanja Matsuri is one of three great Shinto festivals in Tokyo and this one is considered one of the wildest. Throughout Asakusa you hear continuous flutes, drums, and other musical instruments along with chanting, singing, etc. There is food, picnics, and people having a good time everywhere. Over two million people attend over three days. One of the rituals for each of the neighborhoods to build and carry over 100 portable shrines (mikoshi) through the streets of Asakusa. Each portable shrine "contains" a kami, or deity which are carried around the streets by Ujiko (people from neighboring communities). The shrines are big and heavy so a lot of men and women in the costume of their neighborhood carry them. The shrines are thought to bring good luck and fortune to the homes and businesses in the neighborhoods.



As you can tell by the video, the people are very passionate about this festival. Some people carrying the mikoshi looked like they were having a blast while others didn't appear to be having as much fun (they were getting squished!) but still participated. You can see in the video that the people will switch out with others when they get tired. It was fascinating to watch.















Madeline had an "Enchanted" 8th birthday slumber party on May 23. There were six girls there including Maddie. These are Maddlie's closest friends and all are in her cartwheel "club." The girls watched the movie Enchanted and had a fun fashion show with Maddie's wardrobe (among many other things!). The next morning Darren took them to Arisugawa Park (across the street from our apartment) and they all ate ice cream at McDonald's.

I made a three tiered "enchanted" cake for the party. The cake mix was $7.50 a box (it took two boxes) from National Azabu Market (this is the non-Japanese market that is more expensive than local markets). The strangest thing though, is that they don't sell packaged frosting in Tokyo. So I had to make the frosting with powdered sugar. THAT was an experience since it soaked into the cake and gave it a funky...or should I say...enchanted look. But...sugar is sugar when you get down to it and it was a yummy cake!

The kids' new favorite outdoor activity is to go fishing for crawfish in the pond at Arisugawa Park (we catch and release). Darren and Nathan have made several traps out of plastic water bottles. So far we have caught small crawfish (see in the net below) and minnows. Apparently crawfish-trapping is a universally-loved activity for children (and parents) as we have met kids from many countries here sharing their latest "catch" and trapping techniques. So far the record goes to a Japanese boy who caught a deep-red crawfish longer than your average cell phone. Sorry I didn't have our camera that day!

Below is Darren and Maddie netting some crawfish by the rocks.

Nathan is still waiting to catch that "mack" daddy crawfish!
































On Friday, June 6, we went to our first baseball game at the Tokyo Dome. We watched the Tokyo Giants play the Chiba Lotte Marines (no not US Marines, just the name of the other Japanese team). As you can see from the video, the fans go crazy (in a VERY organized way of course!). They knew every word to every chant and every song. It was much closer to a European or Latin American soccer match than a US baseball game. Nathan and Madeline really got into it which was fun to see. Of course we were excited when the Giants won in the 10th (overtime) inning with a "walkoff" home run with two outs to win the game! Final score 4-3.




Here are some of the goodies we got at that game. The ketchup/mustard packet was cool. You just squeeze them together and they both come out on your hotdog withour having to get your hands messy. Too neat.














There are girls that walk up and down the bleechers the entire time selling various things. The beer they sell comes in kegs that that girls wear on their backs! We were joking that at least the girls weren't wearing high heels!





The kids finish school this Thursday, June 12th! Our wonderful friend (and the kids' teacher from the USA) Paige is coming over to visit us for 2 weeks. She arrives this Thursday too! We are so excited!!!! The kids and I will actually be flying back with her to the USA for our summer vacation. We will be in the US from June 12th-August 13th. We are excited to see all our friends and family!

Language Lesson of the Week: Months of the Year

January - ichi-gatsu
February - ni-gatsu
March - san-gatsu
April - shi-gatsu
May - go-gatsu
June - roku-gatsu
July - shichi-gatsu
August - hachi-gatsu
September - ku-gatsu
October - ju-gatsu
November - juichi-gatsu
December - juni-gatsu


Funny Photo of the Week:



This is a picture of a roller coaster right outside of Tokyo Dome. As you can see, it goes on top of and through a building! I guess when space is tight...

Rice Planting

For all of you Survivor show fans, we won the Survivor Challenge Reward…at least that’s what it felt like. On May 10, we took the Shinkansen about an hour outside of Tokyo (150 km) to Nasu Kogen in the Tochigi Prefecture to plant rice at a local farm. It was one of the best cultural experiences we have had so far. We plan on going back in September to harvest the same rice we planted. Here are the photos from our trip.

Here is Nathan and Maddie stirring fermented beans (gross!). They smelled awful and Darren said they tasted just like they smelled. We helped prepare the lunch feast before we left to plant the rice (although our Japanese hosts did most of the work).

We couldn't find boots here that would fit the kids, or if we did, they weren't tall enough. So, we made some makeshift boots using garbage bags. I actually think their "boots" worked better than ours.

This is what the rice looks like before it is planted. You rip off about three or four seedlings to plant in the mud.

Nathan and Maddie get down to planting...or at least Maddie. The mud is very mushy and Nathan got stuck. Mud, a kid's paradise!

Here is the professional. He planted in 5 minutes what it took us 30 minutes to plant!

This is the little section we planted for 45 minutes and we didn't even finish (there were five different families there planting).

Nasu is up in the mountains so it was about 10 degrees cooler than Tokyo. Here we are headed back to the house to eat lunch.

We had to walk through a bamboo forest to get back to the house. This is where the farmers grow their Shiitake mushrooms.

Our hosts caught fish from a local fishing pond. The fish are then salted and put on a stick and placed along the outside of a hot fire. They are covered with newspaper while they cook.

Maddie is pretending to eat the fish whereas Nathan did eat it. The way you eat these fish is by eating the ENTIRE thing...including the head (which still has eyeballs) and the tail. Darren and I both ate one. I ate the head (ewww!) but didn't eat the tail (there was some unchewable "things" from the head so I decided to forgo the tail. (Actually, the head was a little crunchy with a little squishsiness...wonder what that was?!)

Here is one of our hosts cooking steamed rice over an open fire. This rice was used to make mochi. Mochi is a Japanese confection which can be eaten with condiments such as kinako (roastedsoy bean flour), manju (sweet red bean paste), soy sauce dip, and seaweed. Traditionally, mochi is made by pounding steamed glutinous rice in a large wooden mortar, called the usu, with a wooden mallet called the kine.

The sticky dense mounds of rice are made from mochigome, a sweeter stickier type of rice, different from the steamed rice eaten every day. Mochi was originally made as offereings to kami (gods) at shrines. This offering was then cut into small pieces and given to people for good health and fortune. (No, I didn't know that...I had to look all that information up.)

Now it's time to make the mochi! We all take turns.

Now that the rice is a "dough" it is time to roll it out.

Here's the amazing feast we ate!

Maddie's relaxing with the "guys" around the indoor fire

Language Lesson of the Week: Days of the Week

Monday - getsu-yobi

Tuesday - ka-yobi
Wednesday - sui-yobi

Thursday - moku-yobi

Friday - kin-yobi

Saturday - do-yobi

Sunday -nichi-yobi

(Say of the letter o's with the long o sound).

Funny Photo of the Week:

Here is another whacky "lost in translation" moment. This is on a travel bag.

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