I am relaxing, drinking free beer, and snacking on kakimochi and peanuts, black pepper cookies, orange cookies, and candy. I just had a shower with 4 showers sprays hitting me. I love JAL. Steve introduced me to the "regular lounge". This is great. If I had known I could have come here last time, I would have arrived at the airport for my flight 8 hours early. The regular lounge has all free snacks and food. Free drinks from juice to hard alcohol, you serve yourself. Make your own drink. There are TVs, newspapers, showers, massages, massage chairs,and WiFi. This makes travelling that much better. The showers were clean, you have towels, they have amentities, you have 30 minutes in a private little oasis. There are free storage lockers for your carry-ons. The beer is not any old draft beer, it's Asahi Super Dry, the glasses are kept in refrigeration, the beer comes out of a dispenser that tips your glass and pours a near perfect glass of beer. I wonder if there is a JAL lounge in Hawaii...Steve and Jessie are in the First Class lounge, but I don't think I am missing anything. The shower is especially great since you get so filthy travelling to the airport. Ahhh. Home soon, which will be nice, but you can't deny this pleasure...

Thsi morning we tried to catch an early train to Camp Zama, but there was a delay. We spent the next 2 and a half hours on crowded trains. Because of the delays, every train was crowded beyond belief. I was contorted, my arm was smashed, and I was elbowed numerous times in the face and chest. On one train, there were children being nearly crushed. They were crying out. Asking for translation later, we found out they were crying that they could not breathe. It was the most crowded train I have ever been on, and I realized that trying to stay on the edge near the seats is the wrong move. Your body has more give, so they push you over. At one point, my hands were up on the train wall, I was straddling some old man's knees and stepping on his feet. I was using all my strength to stay upright, as my body was being pushed to the left. It was more stressful than rush hour traffic. This was more personal. We found out later that the delay was caused by another train suicide. I also found out that if you commit suicide in front of the train, your family is financially responsible for time lost and damages caused. Talk about a selfish way to go.

Tonight it is storming in Shinjuku. Rain, thunder, lightning. The clear plastic umbrellas are out in force. I rallied for shabu shabu for dinner, but we were unable to find the place the hotel recommended. A restaurant hawker tried to help us find it, but when we still could not, we went to the restaurant he was hawking. They had one type of shabu shabu. Lettuce shabu shabu. It came with what looked like an entire head of lettuce, some enoki mushrooms, pork, leeks and tofu. The liquid was an actual broth. It was interesting to say the least. It turned out fairly well. The lettuce tastes like spinach when cooked in the broth, and the broth was tasty. We also ordered some meat sticks and garlic steak. The meat sticks were too rich for my blood. It was supposed to be some sort of chicken part, but it tasted like pork fat. I had one niblet from one, and was satisfied. We topped it with some king crab pieces. Grilled. It was surprisingly good. they serve it with a vinegar based dipping sauce. The grilled crab made the shell easy to crack, and it was fresh. All in all, quite a satisfying meal. I don't know if I will ever run into lettuce shabu shabu again. When we left the place, it was pouring. The same hawker was there at the exit, and he let me use his umbrella to cross the street to the hotel. Randy took it back, as he and Steve were obligated to meet with a client to drink. Poor guys. We are all so tired, and that client wanted to drink. Luckily I have to leave Shinjuku at 530 am to finish the Camp Zama inspection, so sleeping early is requisite.

I am looking forward to falling asleep to the sound of thunder and the intermittent flashes of lightning. Somehow, the inclement weather makes Tokyo seem that much more real. It is comforting. At least the rain is keeping the weather cool. Honolulu in the nineties??!?! Can I detour home to Alaska?

Return to Shinjuku

I am back in the Tokyo area. After consecutive six days of 10-11 hour days in mostly abandoned buildings, we finished one day ahead of schedule and none the worse for wear. We had a near calamity when on the very last room of the very last building, a tank over flow pipe was bumped and water spewed out. After a few panicky moments, and a small flood on the concrete floor, the water was stopped, and the engineering squadron assured us it should be fine. It was an interesting project. We surveyed a lot of old abandoned industrial buildings, from Boy Scout facilities and a pet hotel, to 144 ft sq sheds and bunkers, we saw a fair amount of Misawa Air Base. My favorite was the old bunker. A tiny house above ground, leading down steep steps to a concrete bunker underground. The majority of the buildings had no electricity, so we worked with headlamps and lanterns, teeth chattering against the cold.

As we left Misawa, I shivered on the train platform, saying out loud that I was savoring the cold, as Tokyo was reading in the mid seventies and Honolulu at 92, and the upper 80's. I am not sure how accurate my weather app is on the iphone, but I swear, it said Honolulu was 92 Fahrenheit at 1030am Monday, Japan, so 330pm Sunday, Hawaii. In any case, I shivered, sniffled, and enjoyed my last few moments of 55 Fahrenheit. It is warmer in Tokyo, though thankfully, cloudy. We start a new inspection tomorrow at Camp Zama. It is a clinic, and seems large. We have two days, so we should be able to get it done. I have never seen Camp Zama yet, so that will be nice. I also can meet our Army Corps contact, with whom I have corresponded, but never met.

I have also found that these tiny pre-fab bathrooms in the hotels work great as saunas when the hot water is turned on. I have been taking daily shvitzes-it is so refreshing either in the morning or at the end of the day.

Sushi Tyme

On Thursday night I had the best sushi. Finally convinced my coworkers to eat out. I wanted sushi, something not too expensive. We ended up at another cheap looking rotary sushi place. The signs outside said something about 105yen. This one was almost completely computerized. The waitlist was through a touchscreen system. The sushi still goes around on the belt for the most part, but if you want to order something, there are touch screens at every table. Hit a few buttons, and a few minutes later, your order comes by on second level track-like a mini train. You take your order off the train, press a button, and it disappears. It reminded me of Mr.Rogers' train to the creepy puppet land.

But this was no ordinary sushi. This sushi happened to have the freshest fish I have tasted outside of my own catch. The negitoro was buttery, the raw scallops were so sweet. The ikura was perfect. The hamachi....everything was absolutely excellent. Lots of aku, clam miso soup. Every single thing I ate was taste perfect. The real jaw-dropper was the price. Yes-as apparently the flags advertised- 105yen for each plate. The clam miso ran 157 yen, desserts about 210 yen, the beer 510yen, but every fish, shellfish, snail, you name it, was 105yen per plate. Forget ambiance, forget ceramic dishes, what is important is good ingredients, and this place-hands down-had the best I have ever had in my life. It is called Kappa, and I take this over the sushi I had 50 yards from Tsukiji fish market. I ate to bursting, regretting the beer I ordered, as it took up precious stomach space. The next night I also saw a tray of scallops still in the shell at the market-seven scallops for 100yen. This is a seafood paradise.

I regret I haven't many pictures. But if anyone thinks I am soo lucky, here are a couple of pictures of where I typically am spending the majority of my time. Large abandoned, boarded up buildings, note the glass on the floor, the spider eggs in all the corners. Nice, huh? Today when I opened one door, 4 large spiders ran to hide.

Misawa

Japan has accepted me back for a second time within a month. I never thought I would be able to leave for international travel at a moments notice, but I guess we always surprise ourselves. I should not even unpack when I go home. I am happy to be in Misawa. The climate is cool, similar to San Francisco. Maybe even the Pacific Northwest. The base here is huge compared to Yokota. Huge and prettier. Everyone kept saying that this was country, that there was nothing here. That is very wrong. It is a city outside the base, perhaps country compared to Tokyo, but most definitely a city. It is quiet, but there is no lack of buildings and amenities. On base there are hills and trees and a lake with a mini beach. I dare say some parts are even beautiful. When we were driving with our POJ, a squirrel ran across the road! A squirrel! I saw no squirrels in Tokyo.

After two nights in Sagamiono, which is where our Japan office is, we took the Shinkansen here. Our new Japanese hire, Kawasaki-san, drove his van up with all tools needed and our baggage, which was supremely helpful. The Shinkansen was awesome. It is like flying on land. My eyes were wide open the whole time. The day was partly cloudy, so visibility was decent. Even though there is little else besides rice paddies, I took it all in. We passed through some fairly large cities, which should not surprise me, but it did. It is hard to think of any city area in Japan outside of Tokyo, but it is, after all, a country with many centers. I think I was smiling the whole time involuntarily, something I realized when he hit a hilly area and we passed through several tunnels. As soon as we hit the tunnel, my view turned black, and I could feel my face relax. Every single time. I had to laugh. There is one word for Japan, though. Prefabrication. Almost every single house looked cut from one of several prefab designs. The same exterior in varying colors, the same layout, the exterior tinted acrylic garages, the same balconies, the same windows. Of course, this is based on the Tokyo area, and clusters close to the train tracks. Perhaps it gets more "real" further away from mass transit. Every hotel I have stayed at-save for the Kanto Lodge on base-has a bathroom that is one tiny unit. All plastic, with a drain on the floor, as if you could close the door and the whole things washes down like a dishwasher. I make a lot of noise in there, constantly banging my elbows on the plastic walls as i try to wash my back. I feel like a clumsy giant in there.

My Japanese ears are getting a lot of workout this time, as Kawasaki-san speaks only Japanese. Like me, he has a few token words in the 2nd language, but we are getting along OK. We are working a lot, so there is really no free time-that is so unfortunate. I would gladly spend 5 weeks here rather than Yokota/Tokyo. Hokkaido is so close, the seafood is so much better, the climate is more agreeable, the country is so close, the ocean is so close.... This place is a little more my speed.

This morning I check out of the Kanto Lodge, turn my base pass in, and go to Shinjuku. I am hoping it will not be a struggle. I have a ride to the Fussa train station, and the hotel is close to the train station in Shinjuku. But the sidewalks are very bumpy, and I have never been to the first hotel I am staying at. I mailed more-way more-than I intended to yesterday. I am glad we got US Post office privileges in the eleventh hour. The pack and ship store proprietor in the BX assured me he could pack wine and sake for mailing, so I trusted him. He and his wife pack things, and they are both Japannese nationals, so I trust them. We will see how it arrives, though. Maybe a soggy box stinking of stale liquor.

I am looking forward to "relaxing" in Shinjuku. No work, no coworkers, no base, no beige painted buildings with the same surfacing materials, no military, no MP's, not camouflage, no bugles. I am not really looking forward to turning my cell phone on at home. There is something nice about being unreachable. You don't worry about too many people trying to call, you don't worry about why no one calls. There are no calls. I will be back in town on Monday morning. I am starting to get anxious to return home. I miss everyone.

We got things done. We finished our inspection yesterday, even had shabu shabu with our POC for lunch. We sill focus on packing the samples up and shipping them off today. Hopefully I will also have time to figure out what I am going to ship out. Luckily we can use the US Post Office on base. I will be staying at two hotels in two nights-I don't know what I was thinking, but I really wanted the late checkout at the Prince hotel, so I will be there Sunday night. I started to assess the things I have acquired and the things I will throw away. It's not looking good. The little items bought really add up-and I am not done yet...

The temperatures dropped again last night. This morning it is crisp and sunny. Probably in the low 60's? You really need to pack everything from a tank top and shorts, to a sweater and raincoat when you are here at this time. Last night we went to eat gyoza. My work partner has been wanting to eat that, she apparently loves gyoza. So we met Randy in Tachikawa and he took us, minus DL, he had another stomachache. There were maybe 6 different types of gyoza. Cheese, garlic, house special, mini. Those are the ones we tried anyways. They give you ponzu, ume paste, curry salt, mixed salt, and of course shoyu and vinegar and chili oil in which to dip. There was a 300yen happy hour-but they make their drinks weak. I have been drinking sawaa-or sours. Shochu and whatever flavor it is you get. I got some sort of citrus-sachiga? sachigu? I don't remember. My coworkers were telling me there was better shabu shabu in Shinjuku, which I may check out this weekend. It was good yesterday. It makes me miss pho even more. The fresh veggies, the simple meat. I think we are going to try to hit that cheap sushi place tonight-as s ort of goodbye thing. I am excited-cheap ikura!

I am disappointed this morning. The hotel I was going to stay at is booked. I have a couple of alternatives, but I will need to have a Japanese speaker make my reservations. We also thought we would be done with our inspections yesterday, but at 1210pm, they asked us to do two more ridiculous things. One was a complete re-inspection of the Commissary, there was one, the report is complete, the store manager was ready to shoot us on site if we tried to come back to inspect. Did our POC try to talk to the manager for us? No. We talked them down from a complete waste of time and effort re-inspection, but they also added a whole new building. A big one with lots of offices, and built in 1946. The older the building, the longer it usually takes because of the potential for layers of building materials. So we had to start that yesterday afternoon. Not only that, but a threat was put out that if we did not do the building, future contracts would be out of the question. We fulfilled the contract 41 buildings, plus 9 extra buildings they tacked on during the course of our stay. But there are some dirty players involved on their side. Ah well, so another day of inspection, and cramming paperwork tonight and tomorrow.

Yesterday I was thrilled to see suzumebachi-the Giant Japanese Hornet. I had heard about this nasty devil, seen an entire NatGeo special on their lethal characteristics, I didn't think I would get to see one, and I was almost frozen scared as I am with most flying insects, particularly flying-stinging-strategy using guys. But I was fascinated. They are as scary as they sound. Giant, like hummingbirds, striped abdomens, moving with purpose, as if they know you're there, and you are lucky they aren't coming for you as you stare. My partner was freaked out. I made her pass me the work camera to snapa picture-at one point I ran into the boiler building we were inspecting, sure it was after me. But I peeked back from behind a blazing hot steam pipe, and saw it back at the tree we were observing it at. I ventured back and snapped a few pictures, then we got out of there. I had forgotten the japanese name for it, so my partner showed one of the Japanese workers the photo-to which he replied: "Ahh! Suzumebachi! DAYNJAH!" Oddly enough that was very thrilling for me, like catching a glimpse of a celebrity. Oh boy. I think I need to re-organize my priorities...

Well-it is final-we finish work on Friday. My coworkers are so anxious to go home, they have decided not to go to Kyoto, and so instead of spending a small fortune going alone, I have opted to spend a couple of nights in Shinjuku at a decent hotel-Tokyo Prince- from Saturday. I think I will be flying out of here on Monday night, depending on availability. I am myself getting a little anxious to go home-mainly to indulge in pho and the ocean-but I do miss everyone as well.

So I “promised” a recount of Sunday’s activities. My two coworkers and I had planned to go to Disneyland, or DisneySea, as it were. While not my first choice in activity, like I said-I was a little tired of venturing on my own. I have actually heard from a few sources that Tokyo Disneyland is worth seeing, although being that the advice came from grown men who went on their own, I am not sure how reliable the information was. But the choice was made to go to DisneySea, as there is none in the states. It is an approximate 2 hour commute to the place, with one transfer at Tokyo station. But they had agreed to stop off at Shinjuku station so I could try the Beard Papa there (you have to get it from the homeland, right?!). But alas, at 10am-it was closed! Oh well, maybe on our way back. So back on he train, change at Tokyo station for a subway line. And we went seemingly into the bowels of the earth to get to the train platform-conveniently enough, there was a big painted red trail that led to it, and that goodness because Tokyo station was a maze. A crowded maze. I will have to go back there before I leave.

Finally, we arrive at the Maihama stop, aka Disneyland. On the train there were already a few others obviously going to the same place. A mother with her toddler in a stroller-the toddler dressed in a red and white polka-dotted dress, the stroller adorned with a Lilo and Stitch bucket with a strap, various Minnie mouse books and charms, and a bottom mesh compartment with even more Disney-themed paraphernalia. The mother herself had a purse with mini dolls of Minnie and Mickey hanging from the zipper. It looked like they were going for the umpteenth time. At one stop before Maihama, the mother busily tucked a Minnie Mouse doll into the arms of the child. Of course, the doll was wearing the same outfit…And this was only a glimpse of the kinds of people in the park itself. When we got in, we found that DisneySea is a various culture-themed park built around a roughly ring-shaped lagoon. There was American Port, Mediterranean, South American, you get the picture. What struck me was the people actually in the park. There were many more adults than there were children. Adults in mouse ears, tiger ears, Stitch ears. Adult men in ears and hats. And that bucket with the strap I saw hanging uselessly and empty on the stroller of Minnie Mouse toddler? Obviously a souvenir popcorn bucket. For 1400yen, you get your flavored popcorn in that bucket-refills for 500yen. Most people sported a bucket around their necks or on their shoulders. I saw chocolate, sea salt, curry, black pepper, and caramel popcorn carts throughout the park. We rode a ride or two. The waits were about 20 minutes in line for rides, much better than we thought it would be. But they have a “Fastpass” option, where you obtain a ticket with an assigned time to return to the ride and get in an express lane, we did it once, but after that the wait times were really only about 10-15 minutes. We ate lunch at the Amazon area, which had Mexican food. They had these soft tacos, which were filled with meat sauce that tasted more Italian. But the soft tortilla shells were pretty good. Turns out they make them there fresh. On our way out, we saw a window in which a lady was feeding dough into a flattener, which spit out tortillas, and sent them through an oven. I was surprised by that. I opted out of the roller coaster that did a 360degree loop, and people watched instead. A lady on the bench next to me started to take the plastic off of three plush dolls she had bought. One Stitch doll in his Elvis gear, one Stitch doll in hula gear, and one Duffy the Bear in some sort of pleather garment. She proceeded to arrange them on the bench while her husband looked on almost admiringly. When they were sitting just right, with Duffy’s arm around Elvis Stitch’s shoulders, and hula Stitch looking sassily forward, she snapped 5 photos of them. Before the last photo, she made Duffy put his arm around hula Stitch’s shoulder instead, leaving Elvis Stitch looking sultry and facing slightly downward. It was quite a spectacle, that did not seem to be a spectacle in this surreal land.

One thing I had heard about Tokyo Disney was the characters-like Cinderella with an Asian face and blonde wig. This was not true at DisneySea. Alladin, Jasmine, Indiana Jones and Cruella DeVille were all played by haoles. At first I though that they might have hired “little people” to wear the full costume characters- then I remembered where I was, and realized that my height was average. Are the characters that short at Disneyland in California? I don’t recall. We pretty much hit everything in the park, including a ride that I never would have agreed to had I known it was a straight drop. It was in an “elevator” in a haunted house, and had we understood Japanese, we may have known the story, as it was, we got into the elevator which lifted us up to a floor of ‘ghosts’, then darkness in which we dropped slowly for a little while, then a window to the actual outside is opened up, showing us how high we were in the tower, the park dwarfed below us. At that point I freaked out. I screamed and tried to push myself out of my seat, a half-hearted attempt to escape the ride at the last minute. Then the window shut, and we dropped. My stomach hit the roof of my mouth and various expletives erupted from my mouth-thank goodness there were only Japanese people on the ride-then we stopped, and I knew we hadn’t fallen all the way. I knew another drop was coming. Sure enough I felt the thing lift a little, then a window opened again. This time I shut my eyes and put a look of terror on my face, not voluntarily. We dropped again, and I think I discovered a new curse. A trio of bad words perhaps never used together, but flowing so effortlessly and clearly from my hoarse throat. The ride finally ended with me none the worse for wear, except for a couple of wobbly knees, proving once again that I do not do well with the anticipation of anything. We saw a mini show at the American port-all in Japanese, but understandable, and watchable in that broad Disney way. It was 6pm when we finally headed out with our obligatory few souvenirs. Amazingly enough, they were game to stop back at Shinjuku to try Beard Papas. Thankfully they were open, even had a few people in line. I got a twisty donut looking puff pastry shell for my filling. I ate it while they got their train tickets. I’m not a sweets person, but it was satisfying. What was good about the shape I got, was that the ratio of filling to pastry was perfect. Usually there is too much filling for the pastry. Luckily we were able to get seats on the train back to Fussa. The day left me exhausted. The walk back to the base seems so long at the end of a long day-a mile becomes four. Sorry this was so lengthy, but rest assured, this blog will end soon.

It looks like my first Japan experience is winding down. We have finished our 43 buildings ahead of schedule, including a few extras. We will spend tomorrow and maybe Wednesday morning making sure we get all the loose ends and then wrap the paperwork up. On the one hand I am sad to not get the full extra week here, on the other, my coworkers are getting antsy and starting to complain incessantly about how they wish they were home, and it would not be a fun last week anyhow. Unfortunately I do not feel that I can tell them that their attitudes will not make the time go faster, nor can I tell them that they can spend the same amount of time being happy instead of miserable and be better off. I thank mom and dad for that bit of wisdom and attitude position. It is by far the healthiest way to see things. And of course, the crown jewel of advice pertaining to work, courtesy of mom and dad: If things are that bad, you have the power to change them, so change them, or don’t complain. But no, I do not know them well enough to dispense such rich tidbits, nor do I think they would respond well to such parental commentary. Not to mention that both have husbands back home, which would make advice from a single girl that much more dismissive. C’est la vie. I will have to see if my company will allow me extra time here or not. I know a few days are ok-but a “few days” have not been defined.

This past weekend I opted to spend some time with my coworkers. I was tired of exploring by myself, trying in vain to get pictures with me in them, but succeeding in getting only my magnified forehead, or magnified and distorted face with maybe a shard of my surroundings. I lost a screw to my tripod, but even with the tripod it is so crowded and bustling, it is almost impossible to set a shot up. Well on Saturday after we worked on paperwork in the morning, we went to Kichijooji, a supposed “quiet” and “laid back” area. An “escape from the bustle of the city”. One step out of the train station said otherwise, A narrow street, crowded with flags and stores, buses honking as they navigate down the street, tons of people, bicyclists, families….It was chaos-but of course the organized chaos of Japan. They ought to trademark that. We grabbed a bite to eat at a ramen shop, and tried to head for the park- the jewel of the area. On the way we poked our heads into a few fusball shops for one of my coworkers, a few hat shops for me, and we finally found the park. As with seemingly every park in Tokyo and surrounding areas, it was packed. Every bench was taken, the bicycle parking area had at least 500 bicycles-none locked, and the amount of people walking around was like Ala Moana Shopping Center on a Saturday. There was a pond with carp, turtles and ducks, an ancient and undated shrine, and boat rentals. While nice in a non-concrete way-it was by no means an escape from the bustle of the city. We stopped in Tachikawa after that to check out a few shops, but my coworkers are of the low stamina type, and soon feet were being complained about, lateness (1900!) was fretted over. Back to the base. I picked up a piece of saba and a musubi trio from the Japanese WalMart for my dinner. I am going to meet Randy for dinner and give him all the supplies I carried for the Japan office, so I will-unfortunately for you poor blog follower-recount Sunday’s activities tomorrow

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY, MOTHERS!

It looks like we might finish the job early. I am a little disappointed, but grateful at the same time. This week my partner keeps mentioning how she wants to be home already. It gets tiresome, but I can understand the sentiment, as everyone here has a spouse at home. My only worry was not being able to go to Kyoto. But it seems maybe we will work next week and that is it, perhaps go to Kyoto then come home. I can only hope, but not too much. I am tired of the base, a little tired of trying to explain myself when I can't speak Japanese back to other Japanese persons, other than that, I have no real reason to want to return home so soon. We may go to Disney Sea this Sunday, not my first choice, but I am tired of exploring by myself, and would like the company of other people, no matter how little I may get along with them or not.

I woke up late yesterday morning-so this post was supposed to be for yesterday. I think the power went out last night, as one of the alarm clocks was blinking, it's a good thing I brought my cock from home which remembers the time, and ordered a wake up call...
It is small wonder that none of us are sick here. The temperatures are all over the place. The first week it was around the 70’s, then it dropped to the low 50’s and rainy, then it got to the 80’s, and now it must be in the 60’s. It rains and chills, the sun comes out and it’s like a mini heat wave. It is rainy now, and cold. I hope it clears up tomorrow, as the rain usually washes the haze out of the atmosphere, perhaps Mt Fuji will be visible.

I am getting several questions about re-connecting with my roots, my homeland, the “motherland”-or is it “fatherland”? I have to say I do not feel particularly connected to the people I have met or encountered so far. I feel like I need to keep on looking-to the country, the seaside, the less populated areas. I do not know if this has to do with my own personality, or if it more instinctual. Are my feelings that the city folk are not my “folks” coming from somewhere in my blood? Can I feel that my ancestors were not well-to-do aristocrats or even “important”? Is it possible that the likely fact my ancestors were all peasants runs through my veins and has affected my current person? I don’t know, but the only things I feel connected to is the fact that their snacks and foods are more focused on the savory side, their polite veneer, and disdain for obnoxiousness in public. I am enjoying Japan, as it does turn out not to feel too foreign or strange. I never feel that lost or alone. I am surprised at that. Considering the sheer size and human density of Tokyo, I thought I would need constant escort and guidance. I thought I would f eel lost and dwarfed. While it does get claustrophobic at times, I feel safe and comfortable. I can blend in for the most part, a true anonymous face. I get occasional second glances as I do not dress like them, nor do I exhibit the small mannerisms that characterize the Japanese woman. Sometimes I suspect it is when I smile and my teeth are straight. I see there is still no national interest in dentistry here.

In any case-I am still searching for the people that can tug at my figurative roots, if at all possible. I came close today to one of the maids here at the lodge. A tiny bird of a Japanese woman who tried to speak to me in Japanese, but then used very limited English to talk to me. Under her work clothes she wore a tall sock, under the tall sock she had on stockings, and under the stockings she had a Satohap patch on her calf. She said it was because she was old and sore. She asked if I had an umbrella for the rain, and where I was from. Idle questions asked by many of the people, but there was something in her eyes that seemed familiar and comfortable. Maybe I could just sense genuineness, maybe I connect with the “common” person better. Whatever it was, I know we will be friendly from now on.

This a bad picture of fugu at the Tsukiji market. They are very strict about not taking pictures in certain places, particularly retail places, so I was nervous about moving the plastic to get a better picture. And sometimes you never know where you can and can't take pictures. I am trying to figure out what "butterfish" is in Japanese-anyone know?

Ueno Zoo-Tanuki. Sumida-gawa River and jet-skiers.














Some pictures. Tsukiji Central Market. The crowd at Ueno Zoo. Cosmo gas station. Tsukiji fish market-after the auction. My sushi meal-minus the chu-toro-I almost forgot to take a picture . Sorry, I don't know how to make it look nice and organized...

I am somewhat refreshed after an almost regular weekend. I missed the memo on not working on Saturday, so I got up early and arrived for the 730am meeting which no one showed up for. Nothing doing, I decided to go to Tsukiji. But I missed the auction, as it ends around 930am or so. There were guys loading trucks with their styrofoam boxes, still a few vendors open in the fish market. I didn't really know where I could and couldn't go, so I tried to stay close to families with babies, as I figured they'd be safe wherever they went in there. It is amazing, you get off the train at Tsukiji station, and you can smell the fish. The market is right behind the station. I was determined to at least eat sushi, and see the market. I worried at first that because the auction was over there would be no one around, but I turned a corner and there were hundreds of people-tourists, visitors, hawkers, everyone. There are small sushi stalls in a small area right next to the hangar docks where the styrofoam was being loaded into trucks. 3 alleys, about 25 or so stalls. Each advertised some sort of specialty set or food. There were two-whose menus I could not see/read-which had lines of at least 100 people each, snaking in a semi-organized way out into the street. I got into a shorter line, and still waited over an hour to get in to eat. There were only about 12 seats. The fish was super fresh. What I am assuming was flounder was even a tad crunchy-thats fresh. I even ate some kind of raw clam that had green oozing out, but I could not ask for a replacement, because I only practiced how to ask for things"without shrimp", and they made big noise when I asked for it without shrimp, and I had to strain to figure out he was asking me what I wanted as a replacement, and I was not sure what kind of clam it was, so i kept my mouth shut. It was good, though. The ikura I was disappointed in. I have had better. Afterwards I perused the Central Wholesale market, which was like a giant Chinatown. It was nice-there was a stand that sold scallops in shell, and they roasted it for you, another had fresh sea urchins-you scoop the uni out yourself, fresh oysters, and everyone had fish, crab, lobsters. There were vendors with only dried foods, some with only knives-beautiful expensive knives, kitchenware...It was also exahausting, but I wanted to see the river, so I wound my way to the Sumida-gawa river. That was nice. People walking their dogs, the sound of the water...I am definitely not a big city person, that has been solidified.
Sunday I got ditched. My coworkers said they were probably going to go to Ueno, they would give me a call. I waited in the morning, then called them, feeling the day wasting. No answer, so I left them a message that I went ahead to Ueno. Ah well, another day solo sightseeing. It was a madhouse. I got off the station at Ueno, and like the fish at Tsukiji station, as soon as the doors open you smell nothing but sugary treats. I stopped to put some money on my train card, and when I turned back around to go out of the turnstiles, there appeared-almost silently-a crowd of about 300 people all pushing their way through the turnstiles. This was to be the majority of my day. There were thousands of people in the area. Thousands at the zoo. For 600yen, I could not resist going to the Ueno Park Zoo. They normally have giant pandas, but not yesterday. But there were still thousands of people in there. I have never been shoved by so many grandparents carrying grandkids. While the Japanese are super polite-they apologize profusely if they bump you in the train while standing-when it comes to moving on and off the trains, getting through turnstiles, or trying to see the Japanese Field Mouse in his cage at the zoo, all bets are off, grandmothers and teenagers alike will shove you, especially if you aren't shoving the people before you. There are so many people here, I can see why they do it. If not you get left in the lurch. You don't get to see the Japanese Field Mouse cleaning himself, you get pushed right along to the dwarf mongoose, whose cage is so big, you can't miss them, and whose faces are apparently not so "kawaii", they get almost scoffed at. Well, I gave up really trying to see the exhibits, and marvelled at the people instead. I only wanted to see the raccoon dog, "tanuki". I did, and was disappointed it only slept and looked like a small raccoon. As usual I felt my pangs of guilt at caging the animals, particularly because their enclosures were so small for the most part. There was a gorilla that was bent forward with a burlap sack covering his head, as the children banged on the glass in unison screaming at the top of their lungs. I would have given the gorilla a pistol, had I one in my posession-he looked that bad. Meeting time. Pictures later.

Not Much, How 'bout You?

I did not write this last night as per usual. I went out to eat ramen, and just wanted to sleep when I got back. I have been increasingly tired-the long days are starting to affect me. My back is uncomfortable every evening. I should be stronger than this. The bags under my eyes should be nonexistent-I have been getting a good 7 hours of sleep a night! But we are coming up on the half way point-half way! Hard to believe. I love Japan, I would love to visit and just be on vacation, with multiple days in a row to see things. But I am getting beat down by this work schedule, and the work involved. I got some Japanese energy drinks, so we will see if that helps me get through the daily grind with gusto.

Another long work day, one more microwaved dinner of baby bok choy and udon. The day was beautiful, clear, sunny, and cold in the morning, but warmer in the afternoon. Spending most of the day indoors inspecting, I get mere glimpses of the outside world. I am getting used to the 1700 Taps bugle thing. When everyone freezes in place-hazard lights on, stopping in midstep to salute or place a hand on the heart-facing a particular direction-a flag somewhere? Washington DC? Yesterday we were outside when it played. Down the street a ways was a family out for a jog-the parents facing wherever they face when it plays. Their daughter was on her training wheel bike behind them, inching away as children will do when parents are not watching. She had no interest in saluting. It seemed like the parents said a few words to stop her, but would immediately turn back around. Well, once the bugle stopped, the daughter was about 20 feet away. The parents immediately resumed jogging, and the girl gleefully sped her bike up, laughing, as it seems like the dad was racing her. But just as they passed us, the dad caught up with her, grabbed the front of her bike, reached in her basket, pulled out what looked like her snack of apple slices and threw it into the road where a car promptly ran it over. The girl was shocked, she stopped, then started crying. The dad never even stopped jogging. The mother, said something to the daughter, but kept running as well. We saw them down the road about 10 minutes later. The parents were jogging a good 50 yards in front of the girl on her bike. She rode slowly and her face was so sad. It was such a fascinating glimpse into someone else’s family. I have to admit, I have never seen a father act so ridiculously childish. I wonder if it happens all the time with them, or is he slowly snapping, poised to ruin his child’s life if she is not strong enough. His antics only now reaching a level of intolerable inanity.

This is what I am reduced to. If I have found anything out being here in this situation, is that I do need people I can really talk to. Or even just one. My coworkers are nice, but it is never going to go beneath the surface. We tried one day, but we hit the topic of de-clawing cats, and I said it was a disgustingly cruel and unnecessary procedure, then she proceeded to tell me she has always done that to her cats. But she also said her husband is on my side. Either way, it stopped the digging beneath the surface conversations for a while. Ah well, I will have to survive off of the few comments left here. This is definitely a one-way mode of communication.

I did not make it up in time to post yesterday. I stayed out a little too late on Monday night. I was only going to look for a tool belt and pick up some bread for DL from the Seiyu store (88yen/8 slices!), but I ended up taking the train to Akishima to meet with Randy as he knew of a watch repair store right near the train station. I have been trying to find somewhere to fix my long unused watch. So I met him, fixed my watch for 1200yen, and we went to a “retro” Japanese restaurant a few doors down. What makes it Japanese retro-I still don’t know. He said something about the lights over the tables having the pieces of cloth for shades, and woodwork. I still would not be able to pick one out of a line. Anyhow, they serve okonomiyaki, and izakaya style foods. We had some nama, got their specialty chicken wings, an okonomiyaki, bean sprouts, and cheese wontons. Ted showed up for a few beers, then one of the Japanese abatement guys showed up as he was sleeping at Randy’s place that night. It was odd, three “hafu” (hapas) and me, and of course, I was the only one who did not speak Japanese. The waiter looked at me like I was dumb when I said “wakarimasen” and shrugged my shoulders as I looked to Randy for answers, and Randy promptly answered in Japanese. Oh well, I am getting used to it. We drank a few more beers, talking, and before we knew it, it was 1100pm. Needless to say, I got up late.

On Sunday, I went back to Shinjuku to meet with Steve and grab a can of spray glue we forgot on Saturday night. I convinced Steve to come with me to the Tokyo Metro building observatory. It was a clear day, and I could see Mt Fuji from the train. The expanse of city is as you would imagine it. Seemingly sprawled to the horizon like a bumpy concrete blanket. I could see the Meiji Temple and the park from there and decided to go to Harajuku and the temple. Before I left, Steve and I went to a little yakitori stall for lunch. It was OK tasting, and a complete ripoff. For two sodas, a stick of green pepper, a stick of mushroom, a stick of chicken balls, two chicken sticks, one chicken wing stick, and one pork stick: 2500yen. Normally, I guess you can get that for 1500yen or so. Good thing Steve paid…

Harajuku was a feast for people watching. I went through the narrow street of shops once, and at one point, there were so many people, I could close my eyes and only move my feet, the crowd carrying me along. It was claustrophobic, and the shops were all either for 12 year olds or people who aren’t me. I sat on the side for a while and watched the people go by. Lots of tourists, young Japanese girls, harajuku girls, and what I think were guys dressed as anime characters-long purple hair, makeup, and strange clothing with metal adornments. Maybe I am getting too old for it, but it seemed that the fashions are all in the category of “WTF Are You Thinking When You Put That Hot Pink Hoop Skirt On” for the girls, and “WTF Are You Thinking When You Put That Leather One-sie With the Klingon Shoulders On” for the guys. It was all very interesting, although I was a little sad that no one was there with me to talk about the people passing by. Japan can keep Harajuku, though, once was enough for me. The temple was little better. It was at least quiet in the park. The gravel trails leading to the temple were well worn by the constant stream of people. Tourists, brides, new babies, school groups. The Meiji temple was built in honor of the current Meiji era and its emperor. It was nice, but not as wondrous as I expected a temple to be. Of course I am more of a fan of the Showa era… There was a nice pond with large grassy areas where people were hunkered down for picnics, naps, or reading. Public drinking is completely legal here, so many were drinking-but in a bourgeois way. Couples with picnic baskets, champagne, and champagne flutes, it even seemed that some were posing. The man laying back on his elbows, dressed to the nines, but with his face tilted to the sky, soaking up the sun, the woman, prim and pretty, sitting up, legs to the side, lightly holding her flute of bubbly upright on the perfect pastel plaid blanket, tilting her head and smiling down at her man. It all got a little too J. Crew catalog-ish. Give me the Oriental Trading Company catalog with a little Cabela’s catalog, and that’s what I call a picnic. There was a “museum” which I did not go in because I read it contained items donated by the Emperor and Empress to show their good will and humanity. Not humility, I assume. I got moderately lost leaving the park, but luckily I noticed a tower before I went into the park, so I walked towards it. All told, on Sunday, I probably walked a good 8 miles.


And here is what Don Quijote sells here-

I was surprised that that chain is in Hawaii. Here it is a raunchy tiny chain of stores that sells some clothes, basic needs, crazy costumes, sex toys, and pillows shaped like boobs.

After a challenging week, DL and I headed to Shinjuku on Saturday, as the boss was in town for the weekend. He wanted to have dinner with us and some other business associates/friends. He invited our co-workers, who backed out at the last minute. Perhaps it was because the weather was so bad-the rain was coming down, and the temperature dropped to the low 50’s-or they don’t like us. Either way, we aimed to have some fun. We ended up at a yakiniku place. Korean style. The beef was exceptional, marbled, thin, tender. The pork was OK, and I tried the tongue, and two things that were intestines and stomach, or intestines and tripe? I am not sure. It was chewy, but surprisingly not bad tasting. We had plenty of nama and then lemon sours (shoju and a tonic water like mix). Cigars were smoked, some karaoke was sung, bad English tips were given out to the Japanese, I got “U-no” written in kanji (Language field?), and I became “Mika-chan” to a couple of guys. One Japanese guy who just joined our company said-through a translator-that his sister’s name is Mika, so he feels like he has to call me Mika-chan. Her name means “beautiful smell”. I’ll take that meaning too as I do enjoy the way I smell. I think “Brake-san” is too difficult for the lazy speaker. I could not think of waiting for the trains to start again at 530am with DL, so I got pointed in the right direction, and left for Yokota by myself on the last train. 1100pm in the streets on Shinjuku is rife with drunken businessmen and women. Staggering, laughing, 3 of them vomiting on the sidewalk. The train from Shinjuku to Tachikawa, the transfer point was the most crowded I have experienced as yet. The train attendants actually pushed people in to fit. I didn’t need to hold on to anything to stay standing. I transferred to the Ome line, and waited for it to depart. It was less crowded, with small groups of tired drunk young people. One small group had one guy who was falling asleep standing up, he would talk, then his eyes would roll back, and he’d nod off as his friends laughed. Literally 45 seconds before the train departed, the sleepy guy let go the contents of his stomach and ran like a cartoon, hunched over and very quickly off the train. His friend feebly tried to feign cleaning up, but he decided he had better run after his friend. Luckily there was person and a good 2 feet between me and the edge of his vomit. About 8 of the people on my half of the car fled like scared mice and presumably hopped into the next car. I moved down, not having any time to flee. I could not smell anything strong at first, and luckily I had not drunk that much, so I had to laugh about it. I stood by the doors so I could get fresh air at every stop. I was next to a guy who fell asleep with is head against the door. He was impressive. Like a marionette. His head lolled, his arms were slack, but he stayed upright for the most part. Every 10 seconds or so, his knees would buckle and he would dip down, then come back up, still asleep. He did this amazing puppetry for about 10 minutes, until he finally slumped all the way down to the floor, his head between his knees, and dangerously close to the opening door. I watched him while getting my whiffs of fresh air at the train stations. By the time I got to the Fussa station, I had been assaulted with more vomit at 3 different station stops-the doors would open, I would push my face out to breathe to cool fresh air, and not 2 feet from the open door was a pool of vomit-THREE DIFFERENT stations! I had also saved the poor sleepy guys’ umbrella twice from the train car door, as it would shift and stick out of the open door. Needless to say, it was a great train experience.

Guess who owns Seiyu, a chain of big department stores here in Japan?

The Japanese are building a new building for their air defense branch-I guess their only military-and it is of course right next the US headquarters building. So there is fenced off construction site there, and from the street, all you can see are the cranes. There is a Japanese workman waving traffic at one entrance, and at the end of the day the construction workers pile out in work jumpers or baggy pants and tabi shoes. I don’t know if they are steel toed tabis, but I have heard that safety regulations in Japan are not quite as stringent as in the US. I suppose that is why asbestos are still being found in recently built buildings, and the regulation and abatement area is a burgeoning industry.

Anyhow, all during the day you can hear a woman’s voice over a loudspeaker, giving some sort of announcement or warning. The voice is always preceded or followed by pleasant chimes. Once in a while you hear music. Chime music. As we have been spending more time near the site, we noticed that the music accompanies the crane’s movements. There are tunes for lifting, lowering, and turning. One tune is definitely Itsy Bitsy Spider. Today we watched as a rebar basket was being lifted and moved, while the most pleasant version of that song played. There is no other way to describe this, but cute. We did work on the roof of the Headquarters building and we could see the entire construction site from above. All I could think about were the Doosers? Doosiers? Doozers? Do-zours? The little industrialists in Fraggle Rock. A recent discussion concluded that these little guys were refining ore into some sort of addictive/nourishing crystal substance. But that’s another topic. The Japanese site was neat, with neat, clean cranes and machinery. The visible workers were all in work jumpers and hard hats, and no one was sitting around. Not one person. The chime music was playing, and that woman’s voice was pleasantly cutting through the light drone of the equipment. It was the cutest construction site I have ever seen.

Along the lines of announcements, every day in the afternoons, a loud chime rings out and a woman makes some sort of announcement. About 9pm I notice another one. Last night I slept at about 10pm and had nightmares punctuated by what I swear was something being broadcast outside. I don’t recall hearing the announcements that late, but this morning when I spoke to one of my coworkers here, she heard it too. We finally asked the Sergeant escorting us around the Headquarters about it. He had been stationed here in Yokota since 2005 or so, a long time, and he said that the Japanese announcements are off-base, and the afternoon one tells kids it’s time to go home. The later evening ones are along the same lines, but more geared towards adults. Get home, or be safe, etc. I wonder if it is because of the military base in their city, or if other cities have similar announcements. It is odd. Cute, though.

Boxed In

Today I really noticed the fence around the base. It is metal, about 10 feet tall, topped with three rows of barbed wire. You can see the buildings outside the fence, hear the cars, even smell the food. You can imagine the Japanese riding their bikes outside, kids in school uniforms, women and men with surgical masks on their faces, bike baskets filled with groceries. The signs are mostly in Japanese, the roads narrow and filled with tiny cars and pastel delivery trucks. Inside the base, while the driving is on the left, the drivers are nearly all US military. The people are mostly uniformed in various shades of camouflage, the bugle call marks 5pm everyday. The buildings are standard military issue cement affairs, all textured and painted beige. When in uniform, the servicemen and women are all business, polite, nodding, holding doors. After hours, and on weekends there’s a good amount of hooting and hollering, drinking, and a decidedly low brow atmosphere. It is a different world. Perhaps it is because at home the military folks have such a bad reputation off-base, and having spent little or no time on base, I have only ever seen them as a threat. I also have reaffirmed my disdain for “protocol” in an organized , mass setting. Stopping in your tracks, even in cars, during the bugle call, leaving cell phones and cameras out of certain areas, signing in, can’t go there, can’t go here, avert your eyes, wait here, stay in my line of sight…The TV in the room also plays almost all military oriented ads. From detecting heat stress and suicide prevention, to buckling up in the back seat and checking yourself for testicular cancer. There are also ads on foreign adoptions and appearance in public and abroad. It is all so overwhelming. Life on base is as insular in a foreign country as you can get.

Hardware

I have started to write these entries at night. I have my beer or plastic cup of wine, Fox and Friends on the TV, the day is behind me, and I have more time to catch up on my google reader in the morning. I think that yes, it is certain, the jet lag has worn off. I struggled to get up this morning. Ah well, all good things must pass. I just need to sleep earlier.

Today was a tiring, but interesting day of work. We started to tackle a secured building-a headquarters building with the General’s office. We are required to have an escort at all times, and before we entered certain rooms, they had to “sanitize” the area, or hide all confidential stuff. Probably nudie mags and manga. We are apparently the first contractors allowed everywhere. Pretty cool. Some people seemed haughty and rude, pointing out that this was sampled, that was sampled, why do we need to sample. Some were entirely amicable and accommodating. Some made the same tired cracks about getting lawyers because they have been breathing hazardous materials for 2 years. The oddest guys were in the super secret- no phone or cameras allowed- basement and vaults. They were really talkative and happy. We go back Thursday to finish up there.

This evening, DL and I were tasked with getting spray glue from the hardware store. He drove and we went off-base. The place was called Joyful Honda. It was crazy-like Home Depot meets WalMart meets Daiei meets Petco meets Homeworld meets a nuclear explosion, AND there was a full supermarket attached. We ogled. Grabbed spray glue-prohibitively expensive here-and went into the market. I jumped right in. I needed veggies. Mizuna, broccoli, baby bok choy, apples, oh my. I can tell you, I am not missing any food from home. I just wish we had stoves so I could cook meat or fish…the pork and beef look amazing, the fish is so plentiful. Ah well, some microwaveable sekihan, tsukemono, and miso soup packets, and all told I got me lunch for a week, veggies for a week, plus juice for my fiber, and only 2600yen. DL bought about two dozen of these tiny containers of Japanese peanut butter. He loves the stuff, but it is mostly sugar. We ate at some soba diner on the way back-higashi upon and 6 pieces gyoza for 500 yen. We only went for one can of spray glue…I will try to take my camera next time we go, but we heard that at another department store in Fussa, they will scold you if try to take pictures inside.

Yes, if only 7-11 in Hawaii was half the store 7-11 is in Japan. I got my dinner from there tonight. We had to use the copy machine there, and I could not resist the myriad of Japanese foods. Bento from Hawaii’s favorite-karaage chicken, to hot oden at the counter. Oddly enough, there were manapua looking things in a familiar steamer on the counter, but I did not see what fillings there were. The cold case had salads-cabbage, soba, somen…oh my. There was a bento with only sausage, one with what looked like fried chicken gizzards. 98yen packets of tsukemono. Musubis galore. I decided on a salad with lettuce, cherry tomatoes and cabbage, plus a veggie cup with 3 sticks of daikon, 3 cukes, 3 carrots, 4 leaves of cabbage, and one leaf of lettuce with a cup on top of dressing. I also could not resist a sekihan musubi as well. Next time, maybe the yakitori stick and oden and a microwaveable pizza toast…I finally got a hold of some much needed psyllium which I forgot to bring with me from home, so all is well in the-er-plumbing department.

This morning I had some trouble getting up, so I am wondering if the jet lag wore off. Too bad-I was thoroughly enjoying being able to sleep at 10pm and getting up with no problem at 430am. Ah well- up to this point, I usually am on the computer at about 530 or 6am Japan time, about 1030-1100am HST until about 715am here-not much, but if anyone wants to g-chat during that time, that’s when. I also have a microphone/headset for g-chat voice-but be warned-I am in desperate need of a good laugh, so if the funny isn’t coming I will go invisible on you. Just kitten.

Laundry is done. I miss all of you.

A couple of pics from last time-the battle on the Fuefuki and my soba meal. I had about 4 of those baskets with the noodles...

Daytripper

We had a half day of work on Saturday, so we took off to meet Randy and see our office in Sagami-ono. I struggled for a while at the machine to add money to my train card, then I saw the “English” button. The Fussa station is fairly easy to navigate as only two lines come through. We got off at Tachikawa, transferred to another train, got off at Hachiooji, and then Randy said Kawasaki-san and he were just going to drive to Hajiooji to pick us up. He instructed us to get off the train, leave the station, and start walking around, they would find us. We did that. Inevitably, when Randy called and we told him we were at Daiei he did not know where it was, and had us walk back to the train station. Eventually we got to the office. It is a tiny apartment. I went into my first 7-11 in Japan. I wish 7-11 in Hawaii had half the prepared foods they have here. It is a drunkards 2am dream come true. Every kind of pre-packaged baked good, bentos, musubis, yakitori…I did not eat anything then, but there is a 7-11 right off base and I plan on having a few meals from there. Instead we ate ramen. The noodle shop was run by a guy seemingly obsessed with America. The pictures on the wall were of 50's drive-ins, Easy Rider, and a HUGE glossy photo of a few motor bikes outside of a Japanese bar. The broth was the richest broth I have ever tasted in my life. The noodles were a really firm type. It was a pork broth. I ate the noodles, but I swear I could feel a goutbreak coming on, so I did not drink much of the broth. I think Randy said the broth was “tonkotsu” or something. My lips were left sticky and the need to eat dissipated for about 5 hours.

The plan was to meet up at a gathering of an abatement company at an izakaya. They had a few new employees and were celebrating. The place was tiny, smoky, and everyone was past drunk by the time we got there. They have 4 hapa employees. Two are brothers who are Okinawan/white grew up in Okinawa, and spoke not one word of English. On the other hand, one of their new employees, hapa also, grew up at Yokosuka, and speaks Japanese like a 2nd grader. Odd mix. It was fun, although it turns out Randy gets horrendously obnoxious when drunk. That is not fun. We made it back to base before the trains stop running. It was easy to see once we were on the train to Fussa, it was filled with military folks.
We had to get up early, as we were invited to go out and see a sort of war re-enactment out in Fuefuki. Not really my idea of a fun time, but it's different, and away from the base. A Japanese contractor drove us, and we went through beautiful valleys and a lot of tunnels. We stopped at a rest stop that happened to be in peach country. Peaches will not be ripe for a while, but a farmer was there having people sign up if they want to be notified when the peaches are ripe. He did look straight out of soko ga shiritai-the kind of farmer who has his faithful dog, and sings to his peach trees. We then met a plumber at a mall and he took us to the areas specialty soba restaurant. This was the best meal I have had so far here. By far. Best soba meal I have EVER had. They of course make buckwheat soba in house. We all had the soba tei-shoku. The noodles were all you can eat. Fresh, chewy, tasty, perfect. The tea they served was some sort of roasted deal that made regular tea taste like contaminated water, the tenpura awesome. Even the rice was special. It tasted sweet, like a mild sekihan. Tsukemono…even the chicken gizzards and beer were tasty (thank god for allopurinol). It is difficult to describe how wonderful it is to eat that kind of food.
We went to the re-enactment festival on the Fuefuki river. It got hot, apparently around 90F. The build up to the battle was slow and I was nodding off, but it was interesting after they finally stopped doing some sort of roll call. A German guy got up and spoke briefly in German, and for a second I had thoughts of a secret Axis meeting. It was easy to see their favorite fair cuisine. There were 3 yakisoba booths, 3 takoyaki booths, 3 chocolate-covered banana booths, a dried pasta booth, and kebab booth among others.

We went through the Japan's "Napa", and stopped at a winery briefly, and then I passed out until we pulled into a rest stop. An incredibly busy rest stop. There were food vendors, a huge crowded shop with omiyage and food, a dog park, people, their dogs, a Pocky the size of a fire log, and a guy selling moss and bonsai. So surreal. We then sat in traffic for about and hour and a half, but finally back at base.

The weekend restored a little of my energy, as the base seems to sap it. I am excited to shop for food off base at the japanese supermarket, I think I will go today after work. I am trying to find some sort of happy medium with myself. I treid in the beginning to be myself, and that just wasn't flying. I got a lot of blank looks and, "I'm sorry, did you say goonies?" To which I have to avert my eyes and mumble something about not minding me. I need some kind of reaction here!!! We will see how it goes today.

Fox Blues

It is still cloudy, but warmer than last night-it must have dropped to 50F. It was nice to be able to use a jacket though. I have no new pictures today. Apparently we are "ahead" of schedule with work, but it is little frustrating that all but one of them seems happy with that. I should clarify-we don't have substantial access to any buildings today because it is Saturday and many building managers are off on Saturdays. So my teammate and I are frustrated because we want to always have sampling to do. We want to go extra strong and hard in the beginning, finish the work, and be able to relax towards the end. Not just accept that we are ahead and relax now. There is too much potential for disaster ahead. But what can we do at this point.

We went to eat sushi last night, and while it was a genki style joint that the haoles call "screaming sushi" here, I was hoping it would be better than genki. It was. They had fresh fresh aku (katsuo). Lots of it. They would bring a fish out, slice it up, and ask if you wanted one before it went on the sneezecatcher conveyer belt. They had fresh flounder, the ikura was good-but the best part was the price. Plates ranged from 100yen to 400yen. The ikura was 250yen! The most extravagant one I had was one piece of fatty yellowtail-330 yen for one piece. Fatty yellowtail-hamachi on steroids? Because the color was this amazing marbled pink. It was like taking a pat of butter and putting it in your mouth. I got three of my dining companions to try one salmon egg apiece. No one could say it was bad. They even had a sushi that had half ikura and half with what looked like scraped salmon flesh. It was beautiful. Along that line, they even had one that had half crab, half crab miso. If I ate the miso, I would have tried it-but I don't. I am glad i stocked up on gout meds, though. This is not the place to be held back by gout. I would have to eat steamed peas and carrots from the Officers club buffet for every meal to avoid goutbreak inducing foods.

Well, time to catch up on my US news online. Fox news is really crawling under my skin, so I stopped watching it for news.