Saitama or Bust

Nikko, Bless You, and Hit the Rock – ecw

April 17, 2008 · 1 Comment

Wow, what a week it:s been since I was last able to post!  I can:t even begin to list everything, especially since it:s getting late, and I have a box of goodies I must pack to ship home.  My luggage is bursting at the seems with gifts we:ve received, and those I:ve bought.  It won:t be cheap, but it:ll be 

better than the rate at the airport when my luggage is way over weight, and I can:t even tell you how sick I am of lugging it all around from house to house!

We did some touring last Thursday, but not until after we stopped in at the 100 yen store - 

yes, the miracle of the dollar store has found its way here. and we loaded up!  then off to 

Sakitama, the location of some ancient burial mounds from the 5th to 7th centuries.  and we got there in a karaoke-equipped van.  ahhhh, yeah.  We hit a few more stops, including a RC  meeting and a technical school, and then i got to see a local courthouse, which is a bit different from ours at home, but very cool - and i finally learned the japanese word for prosecutor (ken sa tsu, btw).  that night, i FINALLY got to go out for some Karaoke with my host family.   Barry joined us, and we impressed them thoroughly with our ability to drink bourbon straight, and our amazing singing ability.  Well, to be fair, Barry can sing.  And I suck - but that didn:t   stop me!

Friday and Saturday were, by far, 2 of our most amazing days thus far.  We left Friday morning for Nikko, which is this amazingly beautiful area that is filled with ancient shrines and temples.  I cannot even begin to explain how beautiful everything was.  The colors were phenomenal, and the architecture amazing. It didn:t hurt that it was the first opportunity for our group to be together  overnight, and it also didn:t hurt that we started out the trip in a swank bus, equipped with    karaoke, and a cooler filled with beer and canned cocktails - at 9+30 in the morning  -     sugoi!

We stayed at a traditional Japanese style inn, which was just too beautiful.  Our rooms had     tatami mats on the floors, and we were invited to relax in the traditional group   (though single sex) baths.  We were hosted lavishly, ate well, and drank even better.  And the night ended   with a private karaoke suite and all of the men still dressed in the traditional robes they donned  post-bath.  It was quite a sight to behold, and a good time was had by all!

The next day we hit Edo Wonderland, which is a theme park -esque place that has been designed to resemble Japan during the Edo period.  It was very cool, and we got to see lots of cool shows, including Ninja:s, Samuri and Geisha, highlighted by Greg:s debut As the vice general in one of the shows.  I think we burned about 100 pics during that mess (glad it wasn:t me!!)

We:ve done lots more, but it:s getting late.  But I will say we went to another mall - nearly 1 million square feet of space, and 200 stores, and we were given 26 minutes to shop after the   tour.  I was lucky to find some socks.  I will say, though, from my previous mall trip, that I learned that there must be no work for plaintiffs; attorneys in Japan, as their food courts are dripping with liability - the least of which is the hot skillets being handed to people so that they can cook their Korean hot pot at their tables.  And it:s fun being the first Westerner a kid has seen in person - some of them practically walked into walls staring!  I just smiled and waved....

We also got to tour another sake factory, got some cool glassware there, and have moved into our 3rd homes.  We saw a traditional Buddhist fire ritual, and were interviewed for cable news   last night - it evidently aired 5 times yesterday... 

OK, i really must go now.  Will try not to wait a week again until next time!Keep the emails   coming, please! I miss you all very much!

 

Oh, I almost forgot the reason for the title - we are leaving a slew of families in our wake who now say *bless you* when someone sneezes, and we:ve taught many of our Rotarian Hosts to *hit the rock* when we do something cool.  So knuckle up, buddies.

Categories: Uncategorized

1 response so far ↓

  • Jeremiah // April 22, 2008 at 3:50 pm | Reply

    See this is why I’ll never get to go on AWESOME trips, because I would make up ‘American’ customs to teach people.

Leave a Comment