Life Gets Busy....

I had such high goals for myself when I came out here to Japan. I was going to blog incessantly and keep everyone updated. Facebook has had to do over the last couple of months.

I've been going through culture shock and homesickness and the blahs of being sick.

I'm crawling may way back out...but in the meantime...

Gabe started school last month. He rides the bus to and from everyday. He is also in school all day. It's been a bit rough on both of us. I miss my little buddy and he hates having to go 5 days a week but once he gets there he seems to enjoy every bit of it. I get to volunteer in class for an hour, too, each week.

I spend my days doing the normal things like cleaning, grocery shopping, budgeting, bill paying, cooking and planning meals. Plus, two days a week my Japanese tutor Yasuko San comes on over and we spend 4 hours a week that way. I'm taking an online class and plan to take a few more while I'm here. I exercise, walk around and see the sites, grab a cup of Joe, etc. And I get some more reading time in, too.

Archie works crazy hours so we don't see him until the weekends. We try to get out and see new things every weekend.

There's no guarantees how often I'll post but my goal is at least once a week.

Here are some picture highlights from our adventures over the last 6 weeks or so.

Really good pizza place with wine!

Chuo Park right by our apartment. Beautiful.

Hamada Beach.

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He could have buried himself!

Miyajima--too hot that day. Look forward to coming back in the Fall.

I'll throw in more highlights soon. But this should be enough for this post.

Japan was really hot in June and July. August was very rainy and now September has cooled off significantly with some sunny skies.

It's Hot Tonight!

The rainy season is coming to a close and now we are into really hot weather here in Hiroshima. The highest temps of the year were recorded yesterday and many people were taken to the hospital for dehydration and heat exhaustion throughout the country. I do not like high heat and combine that with the humidity, it's pretty unbearable here to be out and about.

So I'll be looking for things to do either at home or places to go that are inside or allow us to just cool off! The family pool is a great way to cool off with water and today we hit the river just 20 minutes away. The river is shallow so Gabe was able to splash around with friends and stay cool.

I did drag Gabe out on Wednesday to buy some art supplies. We didn't get everything I was looking for but we got enough so we can get started on some fun art projects. The store we went to is called Tokyu Hands. Each floor has a different theme. One level is for stationary and art supplies. Another for hobbies and small crafts. One floor even has a tsunami rescue shelter for 4000.00! Just in case, you know.

The paper here is adorable. They have cute post-it notes of every type of cat and dog and cute animal shape you can think of or letters and envelopes and origami paper. It's a scrapbooker's wet dream ;) I got a few items for my own journal. :)

This month we've just been trying to get used to actually living in Japan. Where are the stores, the malls, the restaurants? Where are the fun places to go? How do I get there when my fellow expat friends aren't driving me there? Driving and biking still give me pretty high anxiety. So I'm taking it pretty slow. Biking isn't going to do me a lot of good until it cools off. I can take me and Gabe to some local parks and the local YMCA for his swim lessons, etc. But I probably won't take the bike too far from my house. Bikes aren't allowed on the trains. So my best bets for getting around far are the car and the trains and buses. But it'll come in handy for places within a 10-20 minute walk.

Last weekend we took around some co-workers of Archie's to see some of the local shopping areas. They are here for 2 weeks at a time once or twice a month to get things going for Micron over here.

Before the bomb hit

After the bomb

We first headed over to the Peace Memorial Museum. The first weekend we got here we visited the A-dome but not the museum. It's a very sad and yet hopeful experience. Hiroshima does not pull any punches when it comes to its descriptions of what happened to their people and city when the atomic bomb was dropped. Pictures and stories. It was a very harrowing experience but an important one. Don't forget the past or one is doomed to repeat it. They are very pro-peace in Japan and are always involved in summits to disband all nuclear weapons around the world. Gabe was a bit young for the museum but I'm hoping to take him back before we move back to America when he's 7. I think he'll be able to handle it better and take it in. This is a place I'll probably come back to alone to take it all in.

Last week Gabe and I ventured out by ourselves on the train to the Children's Museum! It's small but fun. And it's free! Can't beat that ;) Gabe got to enjoy a large climbing tube area and the joys of sound and light. The second floor has a big train track that you can play with and lots of little gizmos that run on solar power!

It went all the way up to the 2nd floor!

Sunday I wanted to practice driving---well, not actually but I need to. I've been especially weary since the last time I drove I hit a curb and my hubcap flew off. Archie had to track it down and put it back on. Doh! But I couldn't find my International Driver's license so Archie ended up having to drive but I did find it after I returned home. He thinks I subconsciously misplaced it so I wouldn't be able to drive! I think he may be onto something....We made it up to Gabe's school. It's about 25 minutes away in the car and a pretty straight shot. So I'm happy about that. I'll try it out this weekend. I'm even hoping to make it to Costco soon ;)

Later that day I had a Meetup with some Japanese people. So Archie and Gabe came along so I wouldn't get lost! The meetup is for the Japanese people to practice their English. So I got to speak English and ask a lot of questions about their language and Hiroshima. I look forward to more get-togethers with them! All so nice.

Monday was a national holiday here in Japan. Sea Day. They celebrate the ocean and all the marine life and everyone gets the day off! It's pretty cool. I really like how Japan celebrates nature. We wanted to get to the beach but we were pretty worn out from Saturday and Sunday. So we relaxed at home and then went to dinner with some expat friends.

And this was dessert!

Many places shut down on Mondays, but especially on holidays so it took a bit of time to find a place open but we did! A little Mexican-American place that sells root beer! That is a tough thing to find in Japan. So Gabe had a root beer float and a quesadilla. I went with pollo mole and Archie went with a burrito.

We definitely are having fun finding new places to shop and eat and hang out!

On the rainy days we take our tea outside on the balcony with treats, Tiggers, and a good book :)

It's pretty lonely. We do miss our American holidays and open spaces. The States have a lot of that. We miss our cats and friends and family too. But we are giving Hiroshima our best and are loving our experiences here too!

Japan So Far....

I need to be more consistent! After our visit to the Hiroshima Castle I've been a big slacker. I'm just trying to get used to everything here and find my way so I haven't had as much time to just take it all in and write about it.

Hiroshima Castle

I still need to take time to take some sunny day shots of our apartment. It doesn't get a ton of great natural light but I'll do my best when it gets sunnier. Hopefully this weekend and when the place is a bit cleaner ;) I really like it, though. It'll do for us over the next 2 years!

I am enjoying having so many things really close. Lots of shopping district, restaurants, and the grocery stores are all within walking distance or a short bike ride or hop on the train station, which is literally right outside our apartment door. We have McDonald's across the street too ;) A family pool is two train stops away and it's pretty nice. The Hiroshima Castle and Temple is within walking distance and if I ever decide I want to run, they even have a jogging trail! The YMCA is also very close and it offers lots of stuff for Gabe to do like swimming lessons, dance, sports, etc. I can even sign up for the gym if I desire.... And a really nice liquor store is literally next door! They have a children's museum close by which is free except for the planetarium. The library is right next door to that. And any street car or other train lines are all within another train ride away. Oh, I can't forget the Costco! Lifesaver! It doesn't have everything I'm used to but it still has plenty.

Everyone is also so nice and helpful. Lots of restaurants have English menus and most of the menus come with bright colorful pictures so even if they don't have an English one I can just point and say please! No tipping is expected. I feel bad not doing it but it's how they roll here so I'm enjoying it.

Also everything is small and adorable. I found a little cocktail shaker that holds 4 oz maybe. It's just adorable.



The hard stuff so far. Driving! It's on the left side. All the signs are in Kanji with a bit of English or hiragana/katakana. The roads are smaller. The signal and the windshield wipers on the opposite side. Plus there are people and bicyclists everywhere! We all share the road to some degree and it's quite scary. I fear I'll maim some poor elderly woman or some punk kid on a bike going to fast! Yikes.

Bicycling is also scary. I got one of their big bikes with a basket and a seat for Gabe on the back. They are big and heavy and durable. I've never been much of a biker in the States so trying to figure this out is pretty daunting. They are very very talented bicyclists here. Weaving in and out of traffic and pedestrians is what they do.



Also everything is in kanji. It's frustrating to not be able to read things. My brain hurts after five minutes at the grocery store. It'll take time but it's daunting in the beginning.

I find I'm missing bread. They do have bread here but it's only white bread and it comes in blocks which they slice into 3, 4, 5, or six slices. And they are pretty big slices. I found one that had ten once but I haven't found it again. So we head to the store pretty often to pick up bread. They do have bakeries but they are usually filled with pastries which are good but something I shouldn't have everyday! So flour, sugar, etc are all high-priced commodities. Specialty bake shops carry the things I need but I haven't been to one yet. Also our "ovens" are really microwaves with ovens too. I miss my large oven. But I love their gas stoves and pans! I can't forget the rice cooker! So amazing. We will be bringing one home with us for sure :)

Green Tea Cake! Yum!

So it's harder to figure out what to cook for the family. I usually to crock pots and breads and pasta and all that American stuff...here it's doable but a lot more expensive. I have no idea how to cook Japanese style and it looks like lots of prep. So we do what we can. But curry is everywhere and it's good and quick and easy so we've had that a few nights.

I really want to learn how to make okonomiyaki! I've written about it before but it's heavenly. It's fairly simple ingredients but looks like it'll take some practice before it'll come out all right!

Shabu shabu is also delcious! You boil your meats and veggies in special sauces right at your table. Gabe loves the meats so it's a good one to go to. Ramen is amazing here. Katsu. Curry. I still need to find a good sushi place. I want to eat out every night but we can't afford that but we do make it out at least once on the weekends and try new things.

Shukkein Garden! Beautiful place.

There's more to write but I'll end here....I'm a little lonely missing my kitties and my friends and family and English...ha ha! It's culture shock. I'm in it but trying to deal with it and know it'll last for a bit longer and may even get worse before it gets better. I keep my chin up and know it'll get better as I meet more people and get new friends, figure out how to drive and bike my way around, and get a bit better at Japanese, which all takes time :)

Hiroshima Peace Memorial

The weekend came and went too fast, but we did manage to visit the Atomic Dome/Hiroshima Peace Memorial. I wanted to stay there a lot longer but when you have a 5-year-old with no attention span who's still adjusting to life on the other side of the world...well, you know.

The dome before the bomb circa 1930

It's one of the few buildings still standing from the atomic bomb. It took a few years for Japan to decide they wanted to turn it into a memorial. So many wanted the reminder gone.

It's a jarring sight. One you can't soon forget. To stand there and contemplate that only a few decades ago the destructive force of the atomic bomb ripped this city apart and the people within. Horrifying but one that's stands as a reminder for peace.

I'll definitely find times to come here by myself to truly contemplate what this means.

What the sign said about the dome.

We headed around the rest of the park and found other statues and memorials for peace.








We then found the bell for peace. We each rang it. And Gabe did so very loudly!

Then we found the Jizo statue that still has the atomic shadow created from the blast.












Japan loves origami and they create some pretty amazing art out of it. All of these pictures are of tiny origami cranes made into beautiful works of art, all for peace.

This is just a taste of their amazing vending machines that you can find on every corner! You need water! Boom. Coffee? hot or cold? juice, soda...some even have beer.

Gabe got pretty bored and tired after an hour or so but he was a trooper and kept at it!

The rest of the day we spent at the Aeon Mall. It has a really nice dollar store, Toys R Us, a big grocery store with other department store type things on other floors, and good food. We ventured on the trains. Archie knows a lot of Japanese and is getting better as time goes on. So he can ask for train tickets and order our food. I'm not there yet, but look forward to the day when I can.

Sunday was a relaxing day of bill paying and paper work and puzzles, TV watching, okonomiyaki! and just chilling.

We should be getting into our apartment on Friday. And hopefully our resident visas will come through within the next couple of weeks so we can get cell phones and other things.

The next big daring adventure will be to learn to drive on the left side of the road. Archie tried it from work with his boss who's been driving here for awhile and with Gabe and me from his boss's house to our hotel. It was pretty nerve-racking!

We are all looking forward to our own space and routine again! We've been going a bit crazy living out of suitcases and in hotels.

Flying and Arriving in Japan

It's been a whirlwind of a week. We headed out bright and early on Saturday morning. We flew to Denver to get on the plane that took us to Tokyo. Gabe refused to sleep until it was about 2 hours before landing....that didn't work out so well. He was in his deep sleep by that time and we took him of the plane literally kicking and screaming while he was half awake and half asleep. It was miserable.

Our hotel

Then we got on the last plane flight from Tokyo to Hiroshima. The plane is small so they couldn't fit all of our luggage on the plane so they said they'd send it down the next day to our hotel. Gabe had some underwear and clothes but Archie and I didn't. We were super smelly and sticky...yuck. We crashed at the hotel and didn't have any clothes to get into so we stuck on our smelly items and went and got breakfast at.....

Yup, McDonald's. Gabe really wanted pancakes. They taste the same! Then Archie had to make it up to work on Monday and took the train. The commute is about 3-hours round trip. So it makes for some long days. But once we get settled into our apartment he'll be able to carpool and it'll cut the time in half, hopefully.

We have some friends here already that came from Utah last summer. So Amanda has been showing us around. We even bought baseball tickets for next month. Hiroshima has their own baseball team, The Carps! It'll be really fun.

We took in Costco pizza for lunch and then went back to her house and Gabe played with her girls for a bit till it was time to make it back to the hotel. We had to walk under in the tunnel. But we couldn't find our way for a bit---we got lost and had to ask someone for directions! We found it. Gabe was scared for a bit but OK after we made it to our hotel.

The next day we spent more time in the hotel and ventured out to get an ice cream cone. I really want to figure out the train system this weekend so we can go out and do more things this next week. But for now, we stick close to home so we don't get lost!

I don't have any pics yet since my cell phone doesn't work here and I won't get a phone for a couple of more weeks...so once that's done I'll be posting more pics like crazy!

Everyone is really helpful and nice. Most of their menus have pictures so usually I can just point at it.

Today, in Japan since it's 15 hours ahead of Utah, is my birthday. Pretty uneventful it will be this year at least the actual day. But I'm looking forward to getting settled and celebrating soon, out on the town! Happy birthday to me :)

Home-finding Trip Part Deux

Japan has some pretty awesome things. I've already talked about the food. The first day was ramen. The second day we tried curry. Soooooo good. And the third day we tried okonomiyaki, Hiroshima style! All so very good.

Okonomiyaki Hiroshima Style! Yum

One amazing thing about Japan, at least what I noticed in Hiroshima, was their amazing customer service. Everyone is nice and super polite. You feel like a king no matter what restaurant or store you walk into. There is no tipping in Japan. They wouldn't know what to do with that extra money. They pride themselves on a job well-done. I'm hoping the service industry is paid a bit better than here in the States!

Outside our hotel

Archie spoke Japanese 20 years ago or so; he's a bit rusty but it started coming back to him while we there. It was fun watching his face light up as he started to use it and understand it a bit! I tried to learn their two syllabaries, Hiragana and Katakana, while I was there. I did it once but I haven't picked it back up since. But I'm hoping to gain some basics while there so I can get around and maybe talk with some people and make a new friend or two. Archie's company is providing tutors for both of us and I intend to use them!

Archie's work put us up in the hotel by the Hiroshima airport. It's an hour out of downtown Hiroshima. But that's the place we needed to be everyday. So they dropped the ball on that one. Our escort had to drive out an hour and an hour back just to get us around and back. It was very inconvenient. But we made the best of it. There are a couple of beautiful gardens right next to the hotel. So we took part of a day to explore those. It was tranquil and peaceful. It was a much-needed break.



But we think that Archie picked up his flesh-eating bacteria there in the hotel. He used their pillows; I brought my own. We will never know for sure, though. He got on antibiotics within a day or two of coming home. Though I wouldn't wish this on anyone, Archie did get an extra week here so we have been able to get everything done that we needed to--well, almost.

I spent last week saying goodbye to a lot of people. I played my last softball game, had my goodbye party/last book club, got to drink Death Stars at El Chihuahua with more friends.

This week was spent packing stuff and then hauling it into storage, closing accounts, getting bills paid online, shopping, and making sure all the cleaning, fixing, etc gets done within the next week or two to rent out our place.

It's fast and furious and makes me sad to leave my kitties, friends, and family. But excited for the new adventure.

I have been able to visit my kitties a bit this week and that's helped just seeing them adjusting and getting along. Especially Shadow. She gets to go outside in a fenced backyard and she's loving it. She has even lost weight in the week and 2 days she's been there! Wolfy and Frodo have taken over the living room at my parents'. So I think they're doing OK too. I miss them already but know they are in good hands.

Only a few things to wrap up Friday and off we go!

Shadow lovin' the outdoors!

Bon Voyage, Utah and Home-Finding Trip

I'm pretty sure we're leaving this Saturday, June 7th but we still don't have visas in-hand yet so you never know....but our tickets have been bought!

May 12-15th I headed down to Vegas with two of my besties and we hit the town hard...well, not too hard. I'm getting old ;)

This pic encapsulates our awesome adventure. This one was taken at Coyote Ugly where Brittney got up onstage and danced her patootie off!

After all that fun it was time for Archie and me to head off to Japan for our home-finding trip. It was fast and furious and stressful and fun.

Hiroshima is really an amazing city and I only saw a little bit of it. Jet lag was pretty tough. I woke up at 4 am almost every morning. So it made for some long days. 

Japan is 15 hours ahead of Utah so that made for some interestingly timed phone conversations with my mom, who was watching Gabe for that week! The flight was really long and it never was night. We kept up with the sun the whole time. That was so fascinating. The International Dateline is in the Pacific Ocean and it heads east. So Japan is a lot further ahead than say England even though the flight time is comparable! Just crazy. And we lost a day. So we left Sunday in Utah and arrived Monday night in Japan.

Tuesday was our home-finding trip with Paul, a Japanese-Canadian! He was fantastic work with. He told us everything he could think of on Japanese culture and getting around Hiroshima! We ate Japanese ramen and it was the most delicious ramen ever. I should have taken a pic but I was too jet-lagged to think straight and I know I'll have more opportunities in the future. It also rained all day, so Paul even bought us each an umbrella so we could stay dry.

Wednesday was a trip to Gabe's school to meet the principal and take a tour of the school. We're excited! I think Gabe will really enjoy it. Then it was off to pick our apartment after we had narrowed our search to 2 apartments. We chose the one with two stories. It was the biggest apartment Paul had shown and it's close to Archie's boss and his family that are also from Utah working for Micron out in Japan like us. The subway is two seconds away as well. So it just worked out nicely for us.

Here are a few photos of our new place! We have some lighter furniture to help brighten the darker floors and cabinets. It should be nice. A little cozy but comfy.

Here are a couple of photos of Gabe's school.

The wheel has a bunch of different areas where the kids talk about how they fit in or didn't fit in each day or week. Some are risk-taker, caring, reflective. The older kids help out the younger ones with planting and gardening!

This post is getting a bit long so I'll add another post on the rest of our home-finding trip soon.