Snapshots of Japan

This week, I had grubby, little fingers grabbing my hands and dragging me away from an intense game of Tag around the soccer pitch. "Gemma-sensei! Gemma-sensei!" they screamed. My little elementary school kids sat me down on a bench, and pointed straight ahead. There was Adatara-san (Mt. Adatara) in all of her glory, tucked away in Fukushima-ken. I thought it was really sweet that my kids showed such a picturesque view of it.

I've had tons of moments in recent weeks, coming to sudden self-realization that I'm working and living in Japan. And I love it.

For example, a group of us headed over to Tokyo Disneyland and celebrated the Brits' (M.-sensei and H.-sensei's) birthdays last weekend. TOKYO DISNEYLAND! Now, I can say that I've experienced the Disney magic in Anaheim, Orlando AND Tokyo. (Obviously, I am so appreciative that my parents provided me with such opportunities!) So, we kicked off Friday night with a quiet dinner at Elephant Cafe. Tokyo was somewhat peppered with ornate outdoor Christmas trees, lights and those familiar carols blaring from the stores. It was comforting to hear, since Motomiya doesn't show its Christmas cheer! (Well, my local kombini (convenience store) did put up some Christmas lights on a shrub.)



We spent Saturday at Tokyo Disneyland. I think one of funniest parts of the day was trying to get there. We hopped on a limited express train, which bypassed Tokyo Disneyland... we ended up in Chiba City at first. But seriously, sheer happiness and Christmas spirit was oozing from Disneyland.

I liked the Haunted Mansion, which was decorated a la Nightmare Before Christmas. Unfortunately, I missed meeting any characters! I heard that you had to hit up a certain spot in the theme park to meet and greet the characters. No Pooh-san (Mr. Pooh!) for me!! Better luck next time. It was also pretty hilarious going on the Star Wars ride, which was in Japanese. "No brakey!!!! Ehhhh! No brakey!" shouted that robot in broken English. Loves it. I told all of my kids about my Disney trip, and even brought Disney omiyage for all three of my schools. I found out that a lot of them like Stitch ("Stitchy!"), Pooh (Pooh-san), Minnie (Minnie-chan), Mickey (Mickey-san), Goofy and Donaldo (Donald Duck). They liked my Mickey Mouse chopticks, which I showed off during lunch. It's great to feel like a kid again. Seriously, Disneyland was a fun time! We did spend hours in lines waiting for rides, food and even the bathroom... but the good obviously trumped the boring. Lots of leadership-camp games were played, like Thumbs and that question game.

After Tokyo, B. and I headed to some type of party where they awarded chefs or farmers from our town and surrounding areas. I don't even know what was going on. Earlier on that Sunday afternoon, we briefly attended this cultural show at the city hall-ish building. I had another "I'm-in-Japan" moment when the performers flung mochi (Japanese rice cakes) at the audience. I came home with 10 in my purse; they are not oishi (yummy) in my humble opinion.

Konnichiwa, Japan!!

And only two more weeks until the fam arrives in Japan. Ridiculous!!