Daiso Madness!

Today Mom and I went to the dollar store and odd lots on steroids!! First stop was the daiso store where everything is 100 yen (about $1), but it's 3 floors of this stuff! Quite fun and we got some household stuff like a basket to throw all my crap in so it's not sitting out in the living room driving mom nuts. The second stop was Don Quixote's which is a little more expensive but just packed with stuff so I could get a few things like razors and snack food, good combo I know. I wish I could get a photo of the inside of this place, but I only got the outside, ahh well. We dined at Papa Joe's where we had a quesadilla and flatbread pizza which was fairly small. I think it's a bit funny that I haven't actually eaten Japanese food yet, but we may get a little something in Chinatown this evening for dinner.
We've been seeing some of the 'wildlife' of Yokohama, which includes crows that don't sound quite like crows in the US (although mom doesn't agree with my opinion), lots of tiny dogs dressed in absurd outfits, and wild kitties. Yesterday I got to pet a pretty calico cat that seemed a bit pompous in its' attitude. We both laugh at the idea of the cats and dogs understanding Japanese. I know it sounds strange, but the idea of them understanding Japanese when we don't is a bit confusing, if not a little insulting to our levels of intelligence (as easily entertained as we may be at times). Oh well...Happy Halloween everyone!!

Amazon Woman

Wow, what a day of walking! Mom and I went to the Motomachi which is an area of very nice shops but we took the long way getting there in order to see this big park near our apartment. We wandered for hours and ended up eating at an Americanized restaurant called the L.A.S.T. California Restaurant where I had the Classic American Burger which was pretty good.
Last night we went out to eat at a nice restaurant called La Boheme (which gave me the urge to jump up on the tables and sing) and I had a steamed chicken and japanese style pasta dish which was quite tasty. Everyone bows all the time when you go to eat somewhere and it is soooo weird!!! I dressed up in popular Japanese style fashion, embarassing dad thoroughly. I wore my new skirt/shorts and layers on top plus knee socks and heels which every girl wears (although many of them wear boots as well). Mwahaha!! All these girls are so skinny and small with little singsong voices and they make me feel giant and bumbling. I felt kind of like I was trying to be in disguise in my Japanese outfit (like a giant grizzly bear clothed in jeans and a tank top going down the sidewalk in New York or something). Ahh well, I better get used to it, right?
Dad's off to Korea this morning so Mom and I have a week to get adjusted to the new lifestyle. We celebrated Mom's birthday last night and she enjoyed all the gifts I carted over from the US. For dessert, we had Asti Spumonte and slices of roll cakes we bought from a small specialty shop in China town. This morning mom actually ironed the tissue paper I used to wrap her gifts so she could reuse it. She says she's gotten too used to doing busy work to take up time on her own, and I can see this is definitely true. Let's hope we can find better ways to occupy our time, teehee!!

Me

Ok, I wanted a pic on my profile and this is the only way I could figure out how to do it, so that's why this random photo of me is here!

Windy in Yokohama

I survived the 10 and a half hour flight from Seattle to Tokyo and just about lost my mind riding the 90 minutes to Yokohama with mom and dad. It's great seeing them again but my confusion and sleepiness are trying to get the better of me. Right now it's 3:45 in the morning in Ohio but about 5pm here so my body is trying to figure out when to eat and sleep. A constant low grade nausea settled in on the flight over and I'm hoping it will vanish soon. My curiosity makes it a little easier to ignore. Mom and I got up and wandered along the waterfront to the 2 malls that mom shops at regularly. Trying to order a decaf mocha frappuccino here at a starbucks is one of the most convoluted and confusing experiences ever!!! That and I really wish I had measured my waist in centimeters before I got here because that's how everything is sized. I found a new skirt though which I never expected. Pricing here is also a bit above me at the moment, stupid yen!! Fashion here is so odd. The girls are really into kneesocks, boots, and really really short shorts, needless to say I don't fit in. But even if I wore that, I am still a buxom, blonde haired, blue eyed American in a crowd of short Asians. I think theh way I'm feeling right now, simply put is "everything is backyards!" from the steering wheels in the cars, to walking on sidewalks, etc. It all just feels like it isn't quite right. We live in Chinatown which is nice actually because the food looks surprisingly good in all the windows, so I'm excited for my stomach to settle. The cars here all kind of look like toys, all so small and plastic looking. I dunno, my brain is just a jumble right now. The photos I put up are near the malls and show this random amusement park in the heart of the city that has rides about right for me, teehee....except the ferris wheel which takes an hour to go all the way around. I think I'd get to the top and completely flip out, haha!

Wet Woman in Washington

Haha, I couldn't resist that title. I got into Seattle safe and sound but relied heavily on the kindness of strangers to assist me with all my baggage (the literal kind, not emotional lol) in order to get onto the ferry and back off again to Bainbridge Island. I was put right to work pressing the last of the grapes, shoving 400 pound containers into the press, which was entertaining. I've been splitting garlic cloves for planting and gutting and carving pumpkins for the pumpkin walk this week. I've seen lots of people from last summer and met some new faces. A few of the interns, Dana and Amie, who seem really cool, quite a different pair from the guys last summer. We've spent our nights sitting by the fire pit and playing music (me and my silly irish tunes) and carving pumpkins and eating soup. I'll be sad to leave it on Saturday, but I'm still excited to get my first glimpse of Japan and to see my parents again!