Japan - Day 10

Today we packed and then went to an area near the base where some of their friends live.  They weren’t home but we parked in their driveway. 

It is located in a lot less densely populated area and is really quite nice.  It’s on a river with a park up the street. 

We walked down by the river and saw the structure for a large kite that will be flown in a couple of weeks. 

 

 

Then we walked around the neighborhood and saw some beautiful homes with lovely gardens.  Some of them had little shrines in their yards. 

We then drove back and went to Subway for lunch.  Yummy American food!  Then we left at noon for the airport.  Steve had rented a van that included all the tolls that you would pay as you travel to the airport.  This was the first time he had driven to the airport, but it went perfectly well. 

They dropped me off first since I was at another terminal. While there, I stored my luggage and looked around at the shops since I was there 6 hours early.  Eventually I checked in and all went smoothly on the flight home.  It felt a lot quicker, but it actually was a few hours shorter and I slept for quite a bit of the time.

Japan - Day 9 (Kamakura...again)

Well today was our last full day.  Sheila and I ventured out on our own.  We had gone to Kamakura a week ago and wanted to go back again. (Hence we didn't really take pictures again). We told Steve and Lydia that we thought we could navigate the trains on our own.  It's takes 1-1/2 hours to get there by train.  We actually took 3 different trains and managed to get there without errors.  So we were pretty proud of ourselves.  The weather has been really nice for most of the days, but today it was cold and rainy. Really, really rainy. 

When we arrived we went down the row of shops and the one store we came to go back to was part of a block that was closed off by the fire department.  We never figured out if there was a fire or if they were handling a flooding issue.  They had a bunch of hoses going through manhole covers.  Anyway, after about 2-3 hours they finally got done and we were able to go to this one store.

All the shops are pretty tiny and open in the front, so there was little relief from the rain.  The   streets had lots of puddles and our feet were soaked and cold.  Everyone had an umbrella.  So even maneuvering around these narrow streets filled with those with umbrellas was challenging as well.

We ate at a McDonalds but the hamburgers didn't look or taste the same.  The fries were great though.  As has been the pattern of service from the people, when we were done and stood to take our trays to the garbage, a young woman ran up and bowed and took them from us.  Of course with a big smile on her face.

We had left at 9:30 in the morning and were back to our original train station at 3:30.  Steve had driven us to and from the train station and given us a cell phone that they have for the girls so we could call if we were lost and so he could pick us up so we didn't have to walk.  So that was great.  We only needed the phone to call when we got back.

Kyle went back to Tokyo for the day.  He went to a fish market and ate sushi to his little heart's content.  Lydia went to school for most of the day to get ready for school to restart on Monday.

Tonight we went out to dinner to a place that gave us a ton of food, but Sheila and I ordered chicken, so it was good, just way too much.  That was surprising because they don't typically serve huge meals. Lydia and Kyle got the fish, of course. Then we came home and started packing.

By the end of the trip we actually got pretty good at using the few words that we learned and bowing. We felt comfortable navigating the trains even though most people don't speak any English.  We also are starting to get used to driving on the left side of the road.  The turns are still a little confusing but a lot better.

Some different ways of doing things in Japan

Seeing all the things that were done differently in Japan fascinated me.  Here are a few of them ...

Being in a car with someone driving with the steering wheel on the right took some getting used to.  It also was odd to see the passenger on the left. I kept thinking they needed to be paying attention to the road.

Walking on the left was also an adjustment.

Red torii gates were everywhere.  Including on base by the

Apache helicopter hangers.  They represent good luck.

It was fun seeing all the different kinds of signs.

The stop sign looked like a yield sign. (It only

said "stop" in English on base).

This is a great example of the Japanese

culture and how gracious they are.

This is a construction sign.

Who knows what this says. 

It's good we weren't driving!

I thought this could have been a sign saying this road is part

of a parade route. Look at the picture.  Who knows!

I had a real fascination for manhole covers and how

they were so decorative.  However, sometimes

I forgot there were cars when I was taking pictures

in the middle of the street!

Space was limited for parking.  Most homes had

cars parked in spots that I had no idea how they

got them in and out!  There were also these lifts

that had several layersof cars on top of each other.

This was an electric car charging station.

Here's a license plate. 

I loved these!  They were grooves in the middle

of the sidewalks so blind people could put their

canes in them and it would guide them straight

to the streets (in this picture, from left to right). 

When they reached the circles, they

knew they were at an intersection.  What

a great way to help them be more independent!

Finally...  we had to be careful which stalls

we got in the public restrooms.  You could get

an "American toilet" or a "Japanese toilet"....

...yes, you sit and squat.  Need I say more!

Japan - Day 8 (Tokyo area Senso-ji)

First off, I guess there were some earthquakes while we were in Tokyo.  Sheila felt one, but I didn't.  Obviously not too big - good thing!

Today we went to Senso-Ji Temple which is apparently Tokyo's most sacred and spectacular temple.  It survived 1923 earthquake, but not WWII. Once again it had been bombed during the war and rebuilt with cement.  It was beautiful and impressive.

This area had tons of little shops.  They are all open in the front with no doors.  They sold all sorts of things.

There were also beautiful gardens there.

We stayed there most of the morning and then got the car from the hotel and drove back home.  Tonight Steve and Lydia went to their Friday night bathing and dinner.  Sheila and I went to the PX and had pizza – yum!  Kyle went into town and had sushi – yuk!  Tomorrow Sheila and I are going out on our own back to Kamakura and Kyle is going on his own back to Tokyo.

Japan - Day 7 (Tokyo Disneyland)

Disney Day!!!!

                        

I should back up.  We are staying at a really nice hotel called the New Sanno Hotel. 

It is owned and run by the armed services and falls under the navy.  So they operate with US currency and they have restaurants with American food.  It's such a nice break to have familiar food and have the menus in English so we know what we are getting.  The first thing we had were hamburgers.

So, on to our Disney day.  We took the subway and then the train.  They call the train the "JR" which stands for Japan Railroad.  Most often they run info about the train stops in Japanese, but they follow in English - thank goodness.  If not, we would have to count stops.  We boarded the subway at about 8:30 and let me say, it reminded me of seeing how many people you could get in a Volkswagen. We were as squished as we could possibly be on this subway, then another 15 people would shove and push their way through the doors.  This happened stop after stop.  We were on it for 8 stops.  You didn't need to really hold on because you couldn't move, so I thought.  Then the brakes went on and everyone shuffled and smashed even more so into others. Then of course we got the giggles because it was all so surreal. It was a rush hour I don't care to repeat.

Then we transferred to the JR and took that right to Disneyland. 

I took this picture because it's the day my

mother was born, November 18, 1928.  The same

date as Mickey Mouse.

This is their version of main street.

The day was perfect weather.  It was about 70 with a little breeze once in a while.  It wasn't too crowded. 

The Japanese schools just went back in session last week.  There were a bunch of school kids who were probably in middle school.  All kids wear uniforms.  They are all black or navy blue.  The boys have suits and ties and the girls have mostly pleated skirts, white blouses, jackets and some sort of bow or tie around their necks.  So they came there in uniform.  They were divided into groups of 3 or 4 kids of the same gender.  I guess they each have an assignment.  One is in charge of the schedule, one is I charge of the money, one is in charge of the memories (taking pictures and documenting memories is very important to their culture) and I can't remember what else they are in charge of.

We went on the usual rides, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, then Splash Mountain, Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain, Small World,etc.  Everything was in Japanese and the Jungle Cruise was pretty funny to listen to in Japanese. 

Of course there was the castle...

...and Mickey and Minnie looking like Easter eggs.

We stayed about 6 hours.  We never had to wait over 15 minutes, if that.  All the ride operators and other workers were again so happy to be there.

Kyle didn't go with us; he toured on his own and went to the Tokyo dome for a baseball game.
Every day we pass little kids walking down the street to school.  I'm talking 1st and 2nd grade kids walking by themselves getting on buses and subways.  The little boys have short shorts on and the little girls wear skirts to their knees.  They all have white shirts and of course coats.  They are very clean and tidy. These little kids have "Madeline" type hats and are so cute.

All the men wear black suits and the women do too.  So it's a sea of dark, formal clothing on the trains and subways.