First Road Trip - Mount Fuji

Yesterday, we took our first road trip. We used what I like to refer to as Google Drive (we also use Google Train, Google Walk, and eventually we will use Google Bus). Of course, everyone else knows it as Google Map. Anyway, Mount Fuji is a pretty easy to get to - less than two hours using the tollways.
We actually went to check out a ski resort at the base of Mount Fuji called Fujiten - Zachary wants to go soon because he thinks his boat could be deployed at anytime and he doesn't know how long they will be gone.
As for Mount Fuji, it is amazing.

Very cute girls. That is Mount Fuji in
the background.

The girls thought it was
hilarious that they made
me use the little snowman.

Mount Fuji 

This is probably the best
picture of capturing just how
stunning Mount Fuji is.

First trip to Tokyo Disneyland

At some level, Christmas is
celebrated in Japan.

Mona, Andrea, Macie and Zach.

Mona, Andrea, Macie and Zach. Later
in the evening this tree was the focus
of a lot of Japanese families' pictures.

Cinderella's Castle as you enter
Tokyo Disneyland.

View of Cinderella's castle as we waited
in line for Space Mountain.

Zach finally finds his hat.

Zach and Macie showing off
their new hats.

It was extremely crowded -
especially for the parades.

Andrea found a hat, too.

Andrea and Macie in front of
Cinderella's castle under lights

First car trip off Yokosuka Naval Base

You wouldn't think finding a place to park would be so difficult. Something as simple as parking becomes an adventure when you can't read any of the signs.

First Trip to Tokyo and the Shibuya Crossing

We took our first trip to Tokyo yesterday. It takes a little over an hour by train from Yokosuka. It was definitely an adventure - I think everyone had sensory overload by the end of the day. One of the more amazing sights on the trip was the Shibuya (Sha Boo Ya) Crossing - it is feels kind of like the beginning of a dodgeball game where everyone runs to the middle to try to get a ball. Except, of course, here you keep going to reach the other side. And it was even busier later in the evening than what is on the video.

Riding on the train on the way
to Tokyo.

Riding on the way back to
Yokosuka from Tokyo.

The Land of Umbrellas. This
scene was so surreal - now I
know where they got the idea
for the Blue Umbrella video.

At times, it was so busy that
you couldn't move across the
flow of humanity to get to a
store.

                                            The Shibuya Crossing

The "sea eagles" of Yokosuka

This video taken by Andrea shows what many in Yokosuka call sea eagles. I believe that they are actually black kites (at least that is what I have read). The reason the birds are congregating and swooping down is that some of the kids on a field trip put out food for the birds. It didn't take long for the birds to take notice. This isn't my first exposure to these birds. On one of our first mornings here in Yokosuka, we were walking to Mona and Macie's school. Macie and I were a couple of steps behind Mona when one of these birds swooped down between us to try to get a doughnut out of my hand. He missed but I quickly threw the doughnut on the hill - I had learned my lesson. What lesson? We had heard stories of people who had encounters with the birds and warnings not to carry food while you were walking near the ocean. The lesson - no more doughnuts while walking to school. As Homer Simpson would say - Doh!

Andruh arrives in Japan

Our daughter, Andrea, arrived this week in Japan. When we found out about the possibility of moving to Japan, she was the one who was most excited and ready to move. Unfortunately, when we left for Japan, she had to stay behind to finish her semester at college.

Macie and Andrea after we pick
Andrea up at Zachary's apartment.

On our way back to the base, we stopped
at More's City mall to eat. Andrea with
Macie and Zachary.

Everyone is celebrating Andrea
being in Japan.

This is the view from the top of More's City.

Two very happy girls.

Zachary's Apartment

When we visited Zachary's apartment, it was our first look at Japanese style living arrangements. It was very small, yet very functional - lots of things packed into a very small area.

Zachary and Macie looking at
the Japanese characters for
the elevator.

Me getting onto the elevator - no
room for anyone else.

One of two bedrooms - room for
an air mattress but not much else.
Andrea still has jet lag.

Macie and I sitting on his "couch".
Notice we aren't wearing shoes
in his apartment.

Zachary showing us his
laundry room.

Lastly, this is the remote control
for Zachary's bidet. Not sure how
it works, not sure I want to know
how it works.

Over the hills and through the tunnels to Zachary's house we go

One of the most amazing things about our move to Japan is that our son, Zachary, is also stationed at Yokosuka. He received orders to Yokosuka a few months ago and moved here in late October. Zach was on leave for about a month before he actually had to report to Yokosuka. He spent that month at our house. While he was there, Mona was contacted about a job overseas working as an autism consultant. Everyone was amazed (and we still are) when we found out that the job was also located in Yokosuka. Talk about God working in mysterious ways - the odds of Mona being offered a job in the same exact place that Zachary was being sent would be astronomical to say the least.
Our daughter, Andrea, arrived late last night and took the taxi to Zachary's apartment. After he got off work, we met up with Zachary so he could take us to see Andrea at his apartment.
And since Zachary lives off base,  we would be able to walk through a part of Yokosuka that we hadn't seen yet - few, if any, tourists would be found here.

We walked out the main gate of Yokosuka and traveled down to the end of a road to find this hill waiting for us. It actually ended up being a series of hills.

After we topped the first hill, this is
what awaited us. If you enlarge this
picture, you will get an idea of how
steep the hill is.

This is a picture of the first hill,
we are already close to the top
and already breathing hard.

This is halfway up the third hill.

This was the view when we
finally stopped climbing. There
was another hill but I think
Mona began focusing on
making it to the top instead
of focusing her camera.

We were amazed at the
places the Japanese used
to park their cars.

Another view from the top. Tokyo
Bay is in the distance.

At the bottom of the hill,
we go through a tunnel.

It is starting to get dark.

Macie, like the rest of us, is
wondering how much further.

Another street to turn onto -
notice how narrow it is. Pretty
common for the side streets.

Finally! We are at Zachary's
apartment building.
There is an easier way than this
to get to Zachary's place but this
is the trek he takes everyday to
avoid the traffic and masses.

Pictures of Kamakura

I have made a couple of posts already about the trip to Kamakura - the train ride, visiting the shrine and eating out. Here are a few more pictures that I wanted to post.

Macie in front of the map of
Kamakura. A little intimidating
when the map has no English.

Macie and I before we head into
the shopping district.

It was very surreal walking down
the streets for the first time. So
much to see that you could spend
an hour and only go 50 feet.

When the guide asked if we knew
who this cat was, I said Garfield.
Not Garfield. But a cat that is seen
in front of many shops throughout
Japan. A raised left paw means
welcome people. A raised right paw
means welcome money.

This was a cat seen in front of
noodle making shop. The cats
are found everywhere and come
in all shapes, sizes and colors.

Signs like this are a very common
sight in front of many restaurants.

These lions are often seen in front
of the Shinto gates. Seen throughout
Asia - these are slightly different.
Typically the mouths are closed.
The Japanese lions will have
one mouth open and one closed.
This is symbolic of the Japanese
alphabet whose first sound is
 made with an open mouth and the
last sound made with a closed mouth.

Mona was fascinated by this picture
because of the difference in height
between the guide and myself.

Indiana Jones and the Resutorans of Kamakura

On our trip to Kamakura, we were told to go find a restaurant and enjoy the local cuisine. Eating out for the first time in Japan - sounds easy enough but nothing is simple in Japan. This are so for many reasons for this. One reason is that the language is so different that you cannot use context clues to decipher what is on the menu - so you will often see poster boards and menus with pictures next to each item. Second, the food is so different and the choices are so varied, that it is truly hit or miss when ordering. Third, many of the restaurants have small storefronts that will lead upstairs, downstairs or down a hallway to the actual restaurant. Because of all this and more, as we looked for a place to eat, we felt like Indiana Jones in search of something mysterious and exotic.

The lady in front of the placard
wearing the mask was like a
circus barker trying to lure in
customers. After we told we were
interested, she led us down a
small passageway that led to
the restaurant. 

The restaurant (resutoran) was so
small that Mona said it reminded
her of a dollhouse.

We were lucky that we picked
this restaurant. They listed their
menu items in seven different
languages.

Mona is demonstrating the proper way to
eat Japanese food. You hold the rice bowl
in the left hand while you sample the main
dish using your right hand (not with a fork
like Mona but with chopsticks). She is such
a typical gaijin.

Our first bill in Japanese kanji and
the amount we owed in Yen.