Update from Japan

It's been a long time since I have posted. We are on a three week hiatus to Japan right now and since I have the time, I figure it might be a good time to blog a little bit. It is a wee-bit easier than personal emails to different people who may or may not care about our adventures here. So, I'll leave it open for those who want to read it.

Greetings from Japan!

We arrived safely, but not without a little drama before we left the States. On the way to Chicago we had difficulty in starting our van on several occasions. The key wouldn't turn in the lock--wouldn't budge at all. It eventually turned with about 5 minutes of praying and jiggling (and a little cursing)--we're hoping to be able to start it upon our return to Chicago.

Then on Monday morning, we went to the airport, and...Jori had the wrong passport. Why we still keep her old expired passports is beyond me, but...it turns out they really don't let you fly without a valid passport. Fortunately, the ladies at United took pity upon us (truly) and changed our ticket to the following day without charge (probably should have cost ~$2000 to change, which would have been the end of our trip right there). So, we had our friend back in SC go to our place and rummage around until she found Jori's correct passport. She Fed-Exed it overnight and we were ready to go on Tuesday. We received three benefits in the delay. 1. We were able to meet up with another of Jori's cousins on Monday in Chicago. 2. The only available flight on Tuesday for us was a direct flight from Chicago to Tokyo, instead of the ORD-->Seattle-->TKO. 3. The only available seats were in economy plus (5 more precious, precious inches of leg room for free). Then on the plane the stewardess was kind enough to move the gentleman next to us to the exit row meaning Isaiah had a seat all to himself.

He was a trooper on the airplane. He didn't sleep too much (he actually was sleeping for takeoff and landing but not in between), and was a good sport in having to sit relatively still for 12 hours. The flight was as smooth as can be (love big airplanes). Jori and I were even able to watch a couple of movies on the plane.

In Japan, the benefit of being either pregnant, or with a young child, grants you expedition through customs with the diplomats. We were very thankful of this as we originally went to the back of the line which looked like it would have taken us at least 2 hours to go through, but instead they sent us to the front and we were out within 15 minutes.

Another lovely service they have in Japan is that you can ship your luggage from the airport to your destination for about $20. This was a welcome service for us. We sent our luggage off to Sendai and then left the airport on the train for our friends in Gunma without 50 pounds of excess baggage.

The trains leave and arrive exactly on time here. If your ticket says 8:17pm, that is when it leaves. No earlier, and no later (unless there is an earthquake--ie an act of God). I love the efficiency and ease with which one can travel here. It is unfortunate we are so sprawled out in the States, which probably makes such a system impractical. Well, here's hoping for high gas prices. Yes, I just said that, and meant it!

OK, we have a babysitter right now (Jori's mom is back from school) so we are going for a walk. I'll have to update with more later.