From the Heart of Tokyo 東京の中心から

Roadtrip Rewind

遠征のリワインド

 
"How was your summer trip?" friends ask.  And whether the answer is in English or Japanese, it's difficult to explain.  It was just so overwhelming.  So I generally say, "Good!  Really good."  But there's so much more to it.  In summary:   

• +4500 miles in the rental van (Pamela, Monica & Jonah)
• 8 weeks in USA (kids)    4 1/2 weeks (us parents)
• 10 different hotels + 2 stays with family
• 14 Airline Flights taken between the four of us  (8 of those were Martin)
• Zero accidents / tickets / flat tires (YEAH!)
• 1 MLB game
• 1 Zoo Visit
• 1 Museum (with my Mom)
• 1 High School Reunion (me)
• Lots of Music
• 2 movies (Avatar and Inception)
• +12 college visits (some official tours, some just on our own)
• 160 miles on a motorcycle (Martin)

And so much more.

Cost: still in the process of being calculated (ouch!) 
Value: priceless

Now that school has started, and life is starting to get back to normal, Martin has already gone and returned from two international business trips.  I want to share some of what we encountered during that road trip around the middle of America during the hot, hot summer.  Here is just the story of the first few days...  more to come.

ーーー　下に日本語でかきました、もう少し下に写真にリンクがあります。これは最初の一週間だけです。  Below is this story in Japanese, and further down are links to a few photos from the first few days of the trip.  Please take a look.  ーーー　　

夏の旅行はどうでしたか？という友達たちは聞いています。そして、英語で日本語でも、答えて、説明しにくいです。あれは本当に圧倒した。それから、大体よかったと言っているが、控えめな言葉です。これはいくつな事実です。

• +7200 キロめートルはレンタルバンの中にいる　（パメラ、モニカ、ジョナ）
• 8 週間にアメリカに泊まる（子供二人）４週間半に泊まる（大人二人）
• 10 別のホテル＋二回家族と泊まりました。
• 14 航空会社飛行だ。マーティンは8回目飛行をしたので、皆以外二つだけ。
• ゼロ事故･スピード違反・パンクシタタイヤ・忘れ物　(よかっただ!)
• 1 メジャーリーグの野球試合
• 1 動物園に行くこと
• 1 博物館　(私の母と)
• 1 高校同窓会 （私）
• たくさん音楽
• 2 映画　(アバターとインセプション)
• +12 大学に見に行くこと (いくつは公式なので、いくつは自分でした）
• +250 キロメートルはバイクで　(マーティン)

など。

全体の値段はまだ計算する終らないが、全体の価値は値踏みのできない。

二週間以上前に、子供の学年は始まったので、マーティンは二つの出張に行ってきました。たぶん今から、夏のアメリカの回ったの旅行は経験について教えてみます。これは最初の六日だけです。。。

I drove four hours from Minneapolis to the camp to pick up Monica and Jonah after their month there.  Watched closing ceremonies. Drove them back to Minneapolis and the internet which they missed so much. ミネアポリスからカンプまでに４時間かかったので、運転をしました。モニカとジョナは一ヶ月にカンプに泊まったので、終わり日の会議を見ました。後に、ミニアポレスに戻したので、子供たちは久しぶりにインターネットを使っていっぱいなりました。　CAMP　

COLLEGE VISIT:  Western Michigan University 　HERE　Monica liked this college quite a bit, she plans to apply here.  モニカはこの大学が大好きだから、申し込みするつもりです。

COLLEGE VISIT:  Kalamazoo College 　HERE　This is a beautiful college, but the tuition is too expensive. この大学はとてもいいだけど、すごく高いです。　　

This portion on the road, the first 1000 miles. I took a few photos and wrote captions.  この部分は運転をしているときに、見ることです。いくつ写真を撮ったので、説明を書きました。　HERE

 

Mori no Ike

森の池

 
Mori no ike is the name of the lakeside village in Minnesota where Monica and Jonah stayed at the Japanese language camp they attended for a month earlier this summer.  Since I picked them up there in late July, we've been constantly on the move, and haven't had a chance to write about any of it here. 

 
The goal was for them to "level up" their Japanese, and though it's not yet certain whether or not that occurred, it is clear that the month they stayed at Mori no ike was an unforgettable experience.  In keeping with the concept of immersion, the campers learn about the country's culture, eat the food and speak and listen to Japanese every day.  For Monica and Jonah, it was also an opportunity to meet some American kids with whom they share an interest in learning Japanese, and actually let them experience a sort of reverse culture shock.  Each made some good friends at camp and we hope that some will come visit us in Tokyo before we move next summer.

At Mori no ike, all the campers and counselors chose a Japanese name, Monica became Yui and Jonah became Dai for the entire month.  When they get back to Tokyo, our Japanese friends are welcome to call them by their Japanese camp names, Yui and Dai.  Since camp ended, Yui and Dai have been able to stay in touch with some of their friends from camp via facebook and phone text. Some of their friends are Hiroto, Hokuto, Cupcake, Saki, Reijirou and Yuzuki. They also made friends with several wonderful councelors who are really not much older than themselves, but have very good Japanese.

Soon after they arrived at Mori no ike, the campers (known as gakusae) were given an assessment by the councelors (known as sensei).  Yui and Dai were put together in the highest group.  Every day, they spent several hours studying Japanese grammar and vocabulary, practicing kanji, and writing in their journals in Japanese.  Towards the end of the month, Yui and Dai created a final project together which they presented to the other gakusai and sensei.  Their project is a book, which compares a day in the life of a high school student with a gakusai at Mori no ike.  They drew the pictures and wrote the Japanese themselves.  It looks to be accurate, and is really quite a treasure.

But it wasn't all studying, there were lots of fun activities going on every day.  Just like any other summer camp with a lake, there was swimming and boating and all sorts of group activities.  They lived in cabins, slept in bunkbeds, ate their Japanese food galley style, and had to follow a rigid shower schedule.  Living with strangers in a group setting was a new experience for Yui and Dai, but they got used to it.

They attended International Day, where campers from all the language camps came together at one location, and half way through the month they all went to Fargo, to do their laundry and visit a mall.  The rest of the time, they were "deprived" of their usual electronic communication devices, such as computer, cell phone and ipod, so they could concentrate on advancing their Japanese without that distraction.  To this end, Yui and Dai each had an electronic Japanese dictionary which they used quite a bit, especially for new vocabulary. 

In a few days, we will return to Tokyo, and hopefully Yui and Dai will be able to communicate like never before with our Japanese friends.  Please give them as much practice as possible during this, their last year in Japan.

森の池はモニカとジョナは参加したのカンプの名前です。カンプは一ヶ月だので、３週間前に終わったときに、私は行って、会って、連れて来ました。あそこから、いつも動いてから、ここに書けなかったです。

ミネソタ州の日本語のカンプの目的はレベルアップです。たぶん、 経験はそれですが、もっともっと面白かったです。　　毎日に日本語を話した、日本語を聞いた、日本料理を食べたので、日本文化も勉強しました。　実は、モニカとジョナのために、カンプにたくさんアメリカ人の知らない人に会ったから、逆カルチャーショックの経験を体験しました。それから、いい友達たちが好ききたので、よく連絡をしました。

カンプにいるときに、皆は日本語の名前を選んだので、モニカはゆいなったので、ジョナはだいなりました。ともだちたちの名前はひろと、りじりょう、ほくと、カップケイキ、さき、ゆすきとか。日本に帰るときに、日本人の友達はゆいとだいも呼んだら、日本語をできるだけ話したいです。

カンプの間に、最初に、日本語の評価は起こりました。カンプの参加する人の中に、ゆいとだいのレベルは一番高いです。そして、一緒に勉強しました。毎日にたくさん文法と言葉も勉強して、電気辞書を作りました。漢字を書いて練習して、特別プロジェクトもやりました。 ゆいとだいは一緒に最後のプロジェクトをして、カンプの皆と見せました。もちろん、毎日に、一日中、日本語を話して、聞いて、練習をしました。

でも、全部は勉強することじゃないので、たくさん楽しいこともしました。池があるから、泳いで、カター、キャンプファイヤーのすることもしました。カンプの 間中に、ファーゴーに行って、洗濯をして、マールーに買い物に行きました。夜に皆はカービンに寝てので、ちょっと難しかったです。ゆいとだいはだれも知らないから、込んでいると思いました。カービンは１２人ぐらいで寝てので、慣れていてがんばりました。

カンプの間に、ゆいとだいは電子ことをしないから、恵まれない感じがありました。携帯とか、ペソコンとか、Ipodも持ってない。ゴールは日本語だけから、電気辞書を作れました。望みはゆいとだいはゆいとだいはたくさん新しい言葉を学びました。今年はマレー家族の日本に住んでいる最後の年から、私の理想は、ゆいとだいは日本語を上手になってので、友達たちは少しずつおしゃべり練習の手伝いことを感謝します。

 
  

Going By So Fast

早くにすぎて過ぎる。

What is going by so quickly?  Well, in this photo, taken by Martin at Kamiyacho station, it's the train that we just got off.  But really, it's TIME.  The weekend.  Our summer.  Our children's childhood.  Life.  I don't mean this to sound depressing, just practical.  If time is speeding by on you, it's better if you notice.  And for me, time is whipping by faster than that train.

The last time I blogged here, summer vacation from school had not yet started for the kids.  As I write this, I sit in a Minneapolis hotel room, during my one day recovery from the trip to America, and tomorrow I will drive nearly to Fargo to pick them up at the end of their one month immersion style Japanese language camp.  (By the way, this time, I'll put the Japanese together with the English).

何が早くすぎて過ごしますか？じゃ、このマーティンは撮ったの写真で、神谷町駅に、降りたばかりだ電車です。　でも、本当に、時間は過ごしています。週末です。夏です。子供たちの幼時です。生活です。うっとうしいじゃなくて、実用だと思います。時間は早くすぎて過ごしたら、気がついったら、いいですね。

ここの最後の書きことに、モニカとジョナはまだ夏の休み着いたので、長い時間前ですね。今、私はアメリカのミネソタ州のホテルにいるので、時差ぼけが病気だけど、明日４時間の運転で、一ヶ月の日本語のカンプから、ゲットをします。（ところで、今度、英語と日本語を書きます。）

After school ended, Monica and Jonah had about two weeks before they left for camp.  So they enjoyed lots of times with friends, some who were moving away from Tokyo.  (It's a fact of life for ex-pat kids that friends are always moving away.)  Also City Run skating, family dinners out, watching World Cup games and plenty of downtime.  And of course, the had to pack for camp.  学校年は終わった後に、モニカとジョナは２週間ぐらい前にカンプに行きます。そして、ひまのときに、友達たちと時間を過ごしました。じつは、あの場合は外国から友達たちはいつも引っ越します。残念です。それと、シティランと参加した、家族とレストラン料理を食べた、ワールドカップを見た、たくさんひまの時間をたのしました。それもカンプのために準備をしなければなりませんでした。

So, they left.  Immediately, I started mailing them letters, because I knew they would be homesick at first.  Also, it seemed that Martin suddenly had no business trips, so he was always around.  It was a good time for us to take Toby on long walks, and find dog friendly restaurants with outdoor seating.  There are several in our Roppongi neighborhood.  And we didn't keep to just our immediate neighborhood.  Martin loves to take Toby on the train and walk around Ginza at night, and Toby loves to get into the doggy carry bag to ride the train. But not when we go for sushi.  Toby stays home when we go there.  One unexpected couple thing we found, is that Martin and I liked watching Desperate Housewives together.  Who would have thought?  それから、モニカとジョナは出ました。直ちに、手紙を書いて始まりました。最初のカンプのときに、ホームシックになると思うので、手紙を貰ったらうれしいと思います。そして、その間に、マーティンは出張がないので、いつも一緒にいます。泣。 たくさんカプルタイムがあるので、トビと長い散歩をしながら、犬が好きなレストランを探しました。近所にたくさんがあります。でも、寿司屋は違うので、毎週寿司を食べて行くときに、トビは家にいます。そして、マーティンは電車で銀座にトビを連れて行く楽します。トビも大好きです。トビは犬の持つのバッグに早く入って、電車を飲んで、銀座のころに散歩をして欲しいです。予期しないことはマーティンと私はデスパレトハウスワイヴスを見て楽しました。それはすごいです。

Once in awhile we would get a letter from one of the kids, and we knew things were going fine at camp.  But Martin's work is very busy, and I had so much to do with preparing for my trip.  Still, we found time to participate in a few skating events.  Besides City Run, we went with Yagami-san to Harajuku to a fun lunch place, and most recently, there was an exciting Saturday Night Skate with Papa-san, ending at a yummy Korean restaurant in Nakameguro.  I took photos, which you can SEE HERE.  (mostly at the restaurant, because too dangerous for me to photog while skating.)  And Noro-san actually made a movie.  If you watch it, about half way through, he passes me going down a very long steep hill.  I'm going slow, because Kinopi is keeping me safe by pulling on my backpack.  To see the movie, click on the link toNORO's SKATE SITE  and then click on the link on the top right.  Looks like this picture.  ときどき、 子供たちから、手紙を貰ったので、安心と思います。マーティンの仕事はとても忙しいので、私の旅行の準備も忙しかったです。 それが、時間が取った、スケートをしました。もちろんシティランだので、やがみさんと原宿に滑って、面白いランチを楽しました。最近も、パパさんの夜のスケートを参加しました。とても楽しかったので、それ終わり時に、韓国料理を食べました。私は写真を撮ったが、危ないから、あまりスケートしながら、取りません。それで、たくさんレストランで写真はあります。のろさんは映画を作りました。見たかったら、リンクを使ってください。その映画を見たら、中間ぐらいにのろさんは長く険しい小山で私を追い越しました。私はゆっくりを滑ります。どして？きのぴさんは私のバックパックを起きておいた、安心しました。ありがとう

Friends are so very important.  Even when we are really busy, it's important to take the time.  I hadn't done a Zoom UP in a long time, but then, I figured that if I tried to fit just one in before I left, when I came back, friends would be more likely to join my fun little English class.  So I put together a class about soccer, right after the world cup ended.  We had seven participants and it was a good class.  I have a new friend, who just moved to Tokyo, Christine.  She's such a lovely girl, and she'll have a great experience here.  One sunny day, I met her and her children, and we walked around looking at nursery schools and potential neighborhoods.  Another very good friend offered to watch Toby while we are gone, and we decided that he would stay at our house and bring his family.  So I had a lot of preparation to do for that, but I am so relieved that I don't have to worry about my sweet little Toby.  Plus running around, trying to find last minute omiyage to take to friends in the US.  Oh, friends are wonderful to make and to keep.  友達たちはとても大切ですね。すごく忙しいですが、時間を取ったら、大切です。長い間にZoomUPを起こらなかったので、たぶんしたら、帰るときに、友達たちはもっと参加すると思いました。そして、ワールドカップの後に、サーカーのテームのクラスをして、７人は参加した、よかったと思います。新しい友達はクリスティンです。最近東京に引っ越したので、とてもいい女人です。最近は蒸し暑い日に一日中クリスティンと二人子供と近所を歩いて、家を探しました。大変ですが、手伝いました。そして、とてもいい友達はトビのお世話をします。私のうちに泊まったので、彼の家族も泊まるので、たくさん家の準備をしてが、私はとても安心しました。トビは大丈夫だと知っていることが大切です。それで、友達たちはとてもすばらしいです。

And not to mention Seoul!  Wow, crazy to try to fit in a trip to Korea just now, but with the kids gone, and Martin had a short business trip there, and I'd never been, and you never know... we could end up moving there some day, I suppose... so we went for a couple days, and it was really fun.  ソウルだ！大変だから、とても忙しかったが、韓国に３泊をしました。私は初めてので、マーティンは出張をしてから、いいチャンスです。もちろん分からないけど、来年あそこに引っ越したら、可能です。急がしだけど、とても面白かったです。

Plus, plus, this whole time, I've been researching and planning and contacting kind and helpful people about our college visit roadtrip.  Learning about colleges, trying to figure out which day we'll be in which town so that we could make a hotel reservation and a college visit appointment.  Seeing several different types and sizes of colleges should help Monica, and later, Jonah, make decisions about where to apply.  Assumptions can be made later about colleges that we didn't see, based on demographics of those we did.  もっともっと、それながら、大学校の探すことの旅行を計画をしてみています。研究をして、連絡をして、いろいろ親切な人と話して、努力をしました。大学校を見つけなかったら、大丈夫です。今から一ヶ月までに、もっともっとを分かると思います。

We Love PIC Saipan

サイパンのPICが大好きです。

  

PIC is the Pacific Island Club, and I'd like to hereby recommend this Saipan resort to folks who live in Japan and want to take the family to a nearby tropical island for a few days.   日本語の書き事は下にあります。Several years ago, we decided to "get away from it all" for a few days, and on the advice of a neighbor, we took the 3 and a half hour flight from Tokyo's Narita airport to Saipan and stayed at PIC for the first time.  Since then, as "Welcome Back Members", we've come back several times, about once a year.  For the last four years, we've timed our four day/three night stays to coincide with the Marianas Cup Beach Volleyball Tournament, which has only added value to what is already a great time at PIC.  Here's FAMILY FUN PIX from this year's trip.

One of the issues, is that Martin often travels for work, but even when he is home, he is always working.  So sometimes he needs to relax and have quality family time, and it seems that a short family trip to Saipan is just right.  Martin always loves an adventure, but PIC has become more of a comfortable and welcome respite from the unknown.  Leave the adventures for the longer trips, once in awhile it's just great to go to Saipan to relax.  Accumulating frequent flyer miles is good, but, as anyone who travels for business knows, it is very difficult to actually use those miles with all the program rules, restrictions and black out dates.  By planning ahead carefully, we've sometimes been able to use miles for the family to travel to Saipan, but even if we can't use miles, the cost is comparable to most travel destinations within reach, and the time it takes to travel is less (such as Thailand, China, Bali, etc).  Much time and expense accumulates when you factor in the cost of the travel between our home and the airport, taking the car with the gas and the tolls and the parking, or taking the train or the bus, but that's always an unavoidable reality when traveling out of Tokyo. 

We've also stayed at the Guam PIC a couple of times, which is very nice, a different flavor resort, bigger and more elaborate, as Guam is as an island compared to Saipan.  Guam PIC sits on a wider beach with more exposed waves, so it is great for windsurfing and fine for snorkeling, whereas the Saipan PIC is in a calm lagoon with a lovely sunset.  The food at Saipan is very good, I am totally satisfied with the three restaurants at the resort, but the food at Guam is even more everything.  The facilities and staff of both PIC's are really great, but being bigger, Guam's PIC also has more activities to offer, (such as a great dinner show) so it really just depends on what you want.  Another reason to choose Guam over Saipan, would be if you wanted to shop, as Guam has KMart and lots of other stores, that is, if you choose to leave the resort... which we don't.

Our family especially enjoys going to Saipan to watch beach volleyball during the Marianas Cup Tournament, which is directed and emcee'd by Jon Cramer who currently runs the Guam PIC, and we see the same faces every year, people who live on Saipan or Guam and are involved as players, sponsors and spectators.  During the tournament, Martin can do his "Action Photography" thing, Monica gets to know the players, including some very cool pros, like Jen Snyder and Paul Baxter, Jonah enjoys being "ball boy", and I like watching the games, and following the drama of who gets to partner with a pro, and how that plays out.  This is a unique tournament, because many teams of two enter to play, then before the tournament starts, teams are chosen to partner with pros.  So this year, two male pros and two female pros from the US were involved, so ultimately, there were four teams which had a pro plus a good player in the mix.  These "mixed" teams are always fun to watch, but definately have competition from the semi-pro teams who are used to playing with each other.  It's also really fun to watch the exhibition games on Friday night.  This year, there were only four pros, all from the US, so they split up, Paul and Jen, against Andrew and Claire.  Jon was hilarious as he emcee'd the games, declaring that seasoned veterans Paul and Jen were competing against the youngsters.  With every point, Jon's myriad of ways to describe age vs. youth became more and more intense, and while the game itself was exciting the watch, it was just as fun to listen to Jon's play-by-play commentary.  

There are some things we do almost every day when we are at PIC, such as play in the Lazy River, play frisbee, ping-pong, and listen to the great live music at night.  There's lots of other fun activities, including Point Break, which Jonah really likes, as well as the very fun water slides.  We always play in the pool at night, right there next to the live music of the Buoy Bar, we shoot down the water slides a few times in the dark, then we play water basketball and water soccer.  It's crazy fun.  Over the years, we've also enjoyed archery, in-line skating, golf, tennis, scuba lesson, snorkeling, windsurfing and wall climbing.  But also simple walks on the beach, swimming, sunning, and just relaxing with a good book in the pleasant climate.  When the kids were younger, we'd often put them in "Kids Club" which they very much enjoyed, because of the Clubmates.  PIC has some great evening entertainment for the whole family, something different every night provided by the creative and personable PIC Clubmates.  You really don't have to leave the resort the entire time you're there in Saipan, though recently, Monica went into town with Jen and the girls, and she had a great time and said that the village marketplace was very interesting.

The three restaurants at Saipan PIC are the Magellon, the Seaside Grill and the Galley.  I recommend that you get the Gold Card, which lets you eat three great meals a day during your entire stay.  The Magellon has wonderful buffets, with vast and varied selections for breakfast, lunch and dinner.  The especially nice thing about the Magellon, different from some other buffets, is how much care the chefs and servers take in presentation and quality.  With buffets, sometimes the other guests make a mess, but at the Magellon the staff handles that right away.  Remember, this place is truly kid friendly.  We always make a reservation for one special night to dine at the Seaside Grill.  This is like a fancy French restaurant, with great fish selections as well as steaks, and we always dine on the patio.  Once or twice each stay, we also eat at the Galley, because they have special yummy selections, like pizzas, Japanese bento, and some other cultural specialties.  I've noticed that now they are serving Russian and Chinese specialties, as well as Japanese and Korean daily specials, perhaps to reflect the nature of the evolving guest clientele.  Also, the Galley is open 24 hours, and does take out.

Over the years, we've gotten to know some of the staff at the PIC Saipan, and when we come back, we are immediately reaquainted.  Everyone says "Welcome Back" with a genuine smile of recognition and it really adds to the feeling that we are going on a nice little long weekend to a very familiar place.  Recently, our Welcome Back status seemed to increase, and we got all kinds of perks.  We had our room upgraded to an ocean view, (which was totally wonderful), we got free wireless internet, (YES!!) and they gave us these welcome back bucks which we could use for drinks during our stay.  We also get a good discount at the giftshop, which is a great place to stock up on good quality swim suits and other name brand clothes at American prices and sizes.  So, if you decide to go to PIC Saipan, please tell them that the Tokyo Murrays sent you.  And, "We'll be back!" (We hope!) 

Here are Martin's 2010 MARIANAS CUP BEACH VOLLEYBALL pictures from our trip in February.  These and more reside on his Action Photography website, Pixbymartin.com.

今度の物語はサイパンのリゾートホテル。８年間ぐらい前に、初めてサイパンに行ったので、何回もPICに泊まったので、私たちはとても推薦します。４年間前から、毎年サイパンにの旅行はボレーボールの勝ち抜き試合に同じときに行きます。今年のマーティンは撮ったのボレーボールの写真のリンクはここであります。 　マーティンは家族とか色々写真を撮ったので、それはここにあります。時間があったら、見てください。

すみませんですが、時々に日本語の書き事は少ないので、今度はそれです。次のブログの物語はいつものように、たくさん日本語で書くつもりです。約束。

 

Pretty Food

きれい料理

Too busy living life to write about it.  日本語は下に書きます。Last month, we went skiing with our skater friends, on our 4th annual skater's ski tour.  But that was followed immediately by a trip to Saipan for the 2010 Marianas Cup Beach Volleyball Event, where Martin took some nice pictures, but had to leave early and go straight to India for business.  School, work, soccer season, tax forms finished, etc. etc.  First, here's a link to some photos of Monica taking a spill on her snowboard. and ending with a smile.

Thought I might post about the ski trip to Yuzawa and show a few pictures of the beautiful food served at just one meal.  Looking at these photos, I can readily recall the texture of these bamboo shoots above, and the various interesting tastes and pleasures.  This was a wonderful meal.  Thanks so very much to Sasaki-san and Chieko-san for organizing everything once again, including the arangements for the shinkansen and and our stay at the elegant Inamoto Hotel in Yuzawa.  Here's a link to a few of Martin's photos from the ski trip.  Unlike me, he doesn't take pictures of food, but does action photography.

We actually traveled to the ski area of Yuzawa a day early to take advantage of a Friday off school to get some extra skiing and snowboarding in.  That day, we skied at Kandatsu, and since it was Jonah's friend, Ellis's second time to ski, he had a lesson that afternoon, which was really helpful.  We five stayed at a local family hotel (minsyuku) the first night, which was less expensive, but with good hearty food, friendly host and hostess, and a good deal on the equipment rental.  Thanks so much to the Lodge Suehiro.

When our skater friends arrived on Saturday morning, there were 18 of us in all, and we transferred over to theInamoto Hotel which is very near the train station.  Then we set off for the slopes.  That day, we skied at Iwappara, and ended the day with a very fun snowball fight while waiting for the ski bus.  You can see this snowball contest in the You-tube at the bottom of this page.  Shige-san used some of Martin's photos, his videos which he took on the slope, and coordinated it with music.  It's really a worthwhile watch.  Be sure to turn on the the volume and set it to full screen.

It was that night that we enjoyed the offerings you see pictured here.  This kind of Japanese meal reminds me of ikebana, in that it is selected seasonally and beautifully arranged.  You can enjoy it in an asthetic sense, the serving dish is chosen to best present the selected food,  the scent, the colors, and of course the taste is all considered.  Sometimes the serving temperature of the food is also considered, but much of it is served at room temperature with no apparent detriment to the full enjoyment of the meal. 

Later, we enjoyed onsen and also played bingo and yoyo, with much laughing.  The next morning, we all gathered in the banquet room and savored a delicious breakfast.  This is when I found out about the eyeball food.  Ha ha.  This is what they call the egg which is cooked on the slow burner in butter at the table.  We laughed alot about this.  I always enjoy learning Kanji from my Japanese friends.  That day, we all skied and boarded at Kandatsu.  There was a lot more snow on Sunday than on Friday, so it was like a different place.  After we returned to the hotel and enjoyed the onsen again, we headed for the train station and went over to the sake tasting place.  For five hundred yen (about $6), you get a sake cup and five coins to try five different sakes of your choice from around Japan.  For 100 yen, you can also get a cucumber, which you can dip in various salts from around the country.  Whenever I go to Yuzawa, I alway visit this place before getting on the shinkansen (bullet train) to return to Tokyo.  Be sure to watch Shige's video below.

最近生活はしてから、忙しいくて、書きません。先月に、湯沢にスケータともだちたちと、 ４回目の毎年のスケータスキーツアーに行きました。でも、それ後に、サイパンに行って、今年のマリアナスカップのビーチボレボールイベンを見ました。マーティンはたくさんいい写真を撮った、次のポーストで教えます。でも、マーティンはサイパンに、早く出たので、直接にインドに行きました。私は仕事とか、子供の学校とか、サーカーとか、所得税があるので、忙しかったです。最初に、写真はモニカはスノーボードしながら、転んだが、微笑。

湯沢は楽しかったです、マーティンと私も写真を撮りました。それはここにあります。このポーストは、きれい日本料理の写真を使うと思います。上の写真を見たら、いい歯ごたえを思い出します。とてもすばらしい食事でした。ささきさん、とちえこさんも又にすべての計画を作ったので、新幹線とか優雅ないなもとのホテルも打ち合わせを作りました。とても感謝しています。

実は、金曜日は学校の休みから、一日間に早くに 湯沢に行きました。家族の４人やジョナの友達というエリスは金曜日に神立にスキーに行って、エリスは２回目の経験だから、レッスンをしたので、とても役に立ちました。湯沢の民宿に泊まりました。ロージスエヒロに何回も泊まったので、快適なので、良かったです。スエヒロのホストはおいしい料理を作ったので、スキーレンタルもできました。感謝しました。

土曜日に皆スケータ友達以外は着きました。そして、一緒にいなもとホテルに会いました。それから、スキー場に行って、いわっぱらにバスで行きました。よかったので、終わりときに、遅いバスに待ってときに、皆はスノーボールファイトをしました。私は見ただけですが、よく楽しかったです。このポーストの下に、しげしげさんのビデオを載せました。スノーブールファイットは含みました。しげさんはしげのスロープで取ったのビデオとマーティンの写真も使いました。音楽は上手につけました。見てください。音も聞いて、フールスクリーノモードを使ってもいいです。

このような日本料理の食事は生け花のような類似だと思います。両方は特定の季節で 選んだことです。美味しな配置しました。審美的な楽しめます。皿が念入りな選んだ、匂いとか、色とか、もちろん味も考えられました。そして、私には、生け花のようだと思います。上の写真を見ながら、竹の子の歯ごたえが思い出します。

あの夜も、温泉を楽しました。そして、皆はビンゴとヨヨも遊びました。次の朝に、皆はおいしい朝ごはんを食べて、そのときに、なおみさんは目玉について教えました。卵はテブルでバーターの中に焼いたので、おいしかったです。名前の漢字を学ぶことはいつも面白いです。よく笑いました。前の夜に、蕨の餅を食べたので、皆はワラビーを話したので、よく笑いました。

あの日曜日に神立に行って、金曜日よりもっと雪があるから、とても違うところだと思います。ホテルに戻したので、温泉に入れて、帰り準備をした後に、駅に行きました。湯沢駅は面白いお酒店があるので、５００円で小さいカップを貰うので、５個のコインも貰う、色々日本からのお酒を少量をできます。１００円も胡瓜を買うので、いろいろ日本の塩も少量もできます。しげしげさんのビデオを見て覚えてくださいね。

 

 

High Altitude

高い高度

 
We live at sea level here in Tokyo, so when we took our first wintertime trip to  Colorado over the Christmas and New Year's Break, I was immediately impacted by the high altitude.  ちなみに、下に日本語で書きます。Martin's siblings and their families as well as our adult son, Steve, all traveled to his parents' home in the mountains near Pike's Peak for an extended visit and to help celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary.  The altitude at their home is more than 8300 feet (2500 meters), and some (myself) more than others spent some days adjusting to the decrease in available oxygen.  Happily, by the time we went to Breckenridge to ski, I could deal with the even higher elevation on the ski slopes of 11,000 feet (more than 3000 meters).

It was an amazing two weeks spent with 15 people who I love and enjoy hanging out with.  It's been more than a year since we visited with some of them, though Chris and Willy both made trips to Tokyo in 2009 and Martin had a chance for a short visit to Colorado last spring.  Seeing Steve again was awesome!  Monica and Jonah especially enjoyed the time with their brother, which was a surprise for me arranged by Steve and Martin.  The Mountain Murrays are totally wonderful hosts, and I'm sure Steve had a great time like the rest of us.  We didn't have a chance to see Jay, our other adult son, so we look forward to having that opportunity next summer, as well as visiting with our Michigan Family.

Yes, living abroad has brought many wonderful experiences into our lives, but living so far away from family is a big disadvantage.  This two week visit, which understandably took quite a toll on us and our wallet, turned out to be an experience that I would never trade back.  With all the pictures taken by Martin and myself, the memories will be that much easier to call up and treasure forever. 

We returned to Tokyo two weeks ago, and were reunited with Toby, who had been cared for by Hiroko-san and her family.  We very much appreciate this kindness.  A couple of days later, Martin was off on a business trip to China, while I  continued to deal with my jet-lag and two weeks worth of laundry in a more comfortable environment.  He returned home for the weekend, and then was off again, this time to Korea.  Tomorrow he will go to the USA , will return for a day and then go to India.  If he is ever home, I know he looks forward to going through his many, many photos of the family visit and choosing the better ones to share.  In the meantime, here are just a few to give you some idea of our multi-faceted visit to Colorado.

ここに東京で平均海面に住んでいます。それによって、クリスマスや新年の時に、最初の冬のコロラド州へ家族の旅行をしたので、直ちに高山病になりました。マーティンの兄弟と家族と大人息子というスティーブは両親の コロラド州のパイクスピークの近くの山中家に 旅行しました。皆は遊び に行ったの で、両親の５０年間の結婚記念日も祝いました。あの家は２５００ミトル以上の高度ですので、私は家族より現象したの利用できるの酸素が慣れていることに長い時間かかりました。運よくに、スキー場所というBreckenridgeに行ったまでに、もっと高い度高があるので、慣れていました。普通な使ったのBreckenridgeのスキーの上山は１１００フィットだので、３０００ミト ル以上高度です。

２週間の中に愛情を抱くの１５人と時間を過ごしました。最初の週にMの姉と家族はテキサス州から来たので、彼たちは帰った前に、兄と弟も来ました。弟の妻はいい人ので、初めて赤ちゃんに会いました。それから、息子スティーブも来ました。一年間以上から殆ど皆に会いました。除外は去年兄と甥も東京に来ま した。そして去年出張をしながら、週末でMは両親の家に行っ て、短い時間に会いました。スティーブと会うことはよかったで す。モニカとジョナもとても楽しかったです。その会うことはマーティンとスティーブは私にびっくりさせたので、とてもいいクリスマスプレセントです。マーティンの両親はいいホストだから、たぶん スティーブはも一回会いたいです。残念だから、長男に会うことができなかったので、夏でできると思います。今度、私の両親も会いに楽しみにしています。

そですね。国外に住んでいることはたくさんすごい経験 の機会があるけど、愛情の家族と遠い住むことは大きい不利です。この二週間の会うことは高くて、難しいだけど、経験は生活の大切なイベントになりましょた。マーティンと私はたくさん写真を撮ったので、思い出すこと は永久に秘蔵しやすいと思います。

二週間前に、東京に帰ったので、ひろこさんと家族はト ビのお世話をしてくれたから、とても感謝しました。二 日後にマーティンは中国に出張に行きながら、私は家に時差ぼけをかかったから、それより安楽で過ごしました。二週間の洗濯ことをしなければならなかったけれど、平均海面に帰ったから、よくなりました。彼は中国から帰った後に、韓国に行きました。明日、アメリカに行って、再来週にインドに行くつもりです。マーティンはあまり時間がないから、努力してが、ここまでにコロラド州 の写真を選ぶことができません。そして、私は少ないのを選んだので、いろいろ面  白い旅行について見せてみます。

Here's a link to a small collection of these photos.  More to come.  このリンクは少ない写真がありますので、もちょっと後にもっとのを載せるつもりです。　   　

   ★☆☆☆★LinkToPIX★☆☆☆★

Jetlag Blues and Festive Kimono

時差ボケのブルースと快活着物

下に日本語で書きます。 This is a post about jet lag, which everyone in this family has recently suffered through.  First, you might ask, What does jet lag have to do with all these  pictures of girls (and guys) in summer kimono?  Not a lot, except that I had just returned from the states when Martin and I took Toby and attended the annual Azabu Juban Festival.  We walked all the way there and back, as exercise is good for jet lag, and I told him to take lots of pictures of the yukata clad girls (and guys) to which he readily agreed.  It was nice weather that night, unlike last year which had an entirely different ambiance with the downpour and all the umbrellas, so he got lots of good pictures.  The other reason I'm glad to show these kimono pictures is that, as Jonah says, "jet lag sucks" so let's try to balance that with some attractive people who are clearly having a good time.

All ex-pat's and international business folk routinely deal with jet lag, but even though experience may help a traveler cope, everyone still has to somehow get through the process.  There's plenty of information out there about the condition, most of which focuses on the phenomenon of time zone adjustment, generally noting that it takes one entire day to adjust to each hour of time zone difference, which is 13 days for us.  It is also noted that going West to East is harder than going East to West because you are losing time.  In my experience, the worst is to go West to East and then turn around and go East to West just a few days later. 

In July, M&J went to Michigan for three weeks and reported these symptoms both ways:  fatigue, insomnia and confusion, but they are young and they got through it okay while traveling, and dug in and slept as much as they needed to when they returned home.  When I went there in August, there was a problem with the connecting flight so I stayed part of the night in a Detroit hotel after arriving from Tokyo and wasting several hours waiting in the airport, so it actually took about 40 hours door to door, and I ended up with a migraine for the first two days of my visit with my parents and siblings.  Coming back a week later, there was no migraine, no pressure or issues, but it still took at least two weeks before I didn't feel tired all the time.

The one who really has it bad is Martin, who, after traveling all the way to the other side of the globe, has to "hit the ground running"  and go straight to work, and do the same on his return.  I just could not do that.  Maybe being an international businessman sounds glamorous, but it takes huge effort.

On the other hand, when friends and family come to visit us here in Tokyo, the excitement and uniqueness of the trip somehow compensates for the jet lag, and they seem to do pretty well.  So, please, don't let the fear of jet lag keep you grounded.

この物語は時差ボケについてです。最近家族は時差ボケを何とか忍びました。でも、まず、どしてこのトッピクと一緒に夏の着物の写真を載せたと聞きますか？そうそう、どしてね。時差ボケはとても悪い感情ので、このきれい写真はいい釣り合いと思います。私はアメリカから帰ったときにトビとマーティンも麻布十番の祭りに行きました。全部の写真はここにあります。その夜の天気はよかったので、去年よりとてもよかったです。去年は強い雨が降ったので、その写真はたくさん傘の写真でした。祭りへ歩いて行って来ました。時差ボケのために運動はいいです。

全部のエクスパットや国際のビジネスマンは時差ボケを処理しなければなりません。経験は役に立つけれど、皆はそれを一所懸命です。インタネットで、たくさん情報であるので、ときに時間帯の調整する方です。毎時間帯に旅行してので、一日をかかるすべきだろうと言います。私たちには、それは１３時間だので、１３日間がかかると思います。そして、西から東までは東から西までより難しいです。私の経験は西から東までに行くことと一週間後にずっと戻すことはとても難しいです。　 　

７月にモニカとジョナはミシガン州に行って、三週間で泊まりました。二人は疲労や不眠症や困惑も訴えたけど、若いだので、旅行するながら、大丈夫に過ごしました。帰った時間で、家でのんびりして、たくさん寝たから、ゆっくり普通な生活に戻しました。でも、私は８月に同じ所に行ったときに、最初の二日はひどい偏頭痛があったので、両親と兄弟の会うことは容易でわない。一週間後に、帰ったの時差ボケは頭が痛いじゃなくて、問題がないけど、まだ２週間でとても疲れました。

でも、マーティンは一番難しいことがあるので、いつも旅行して、仕事からので、目的地に着いてずっとに仕事にしなければなりません。そして、帰るときも同じ状態です。私は時差ボケがあるときに、考えられません。そして、それをできませんよ。インタナシナルのビシネスマンの生活は魅力的のような仕事そうだけど、たくさん努力を要ります。

他方に友達たちと家族たちも私たちに会いに日本に来る時に、それでもなんとか面白くて特別な旅行は償うと思います。そすると、時差ボケの恐れを忘れてください。旅行をしましょう！

2009 Marianas Cup Beach Volleyball

２００９年のマリアナスカップのビーチボレボール

 

日本語の要約は下に書きます。Who are those hunky guys Jonah is hanging with?  They're the Japanese beach volleyball players in the Marianas Cup in Saipan earlier this month.  Jonah's Japanese has improved enough that he can carry on a decent conversation with these pro players, and he and Monica were glad to see Fujimatsu-san and his partner, Matsumoto-san, who have participated in the tournament all three years that we've attended.  Here, Jonah is waiting in line with the pros to do POINT BREAK.  Apparently this was their first time, and they watched for awhile and took some pointers from Jonah and the clubmates before giving it a try.  It was pretty fun to watch these superb athletes trying out a new sport.  Martin happened to be roaming around with his camera and caught some good pix of their early attempts. 

We've traveled to Saipan several times over the years during holidays from school, but ever since we happened to be at the Pacific Island Club during the Marianas Cup, we've targeted that particular weekend for our trip to Saipan.  We always stay at PIC, which has so much to offer, there's been something for everyone as the family has grown older, beginning way back when the kids were young enough to enjoy "Kids Club" and make friends with the Clubmates, to now when they are free to roam the entire club independently, enjoying the snorkeling, lazy river, archery, etc as well as Point Break, Jonah's favorite.  PIC employees are all kind, with attention to safety and guest comfort, the food is really good, (Gold Card is the way to go), the flight from Tokyo is just over three hours.  We think its a relatively affordable family trip that yields in quality family time, life experience and good memories.  A big part of keeping memories is with pictures.

Here I introduce Martin's new website where he will put his best pictures, www.pixbymartin.com.  Last year's Volleyball pictures were very well received, and since then he's made progress with his equipment and his skill, so I made him a new website with a domain all his own with the idea that he could sell downloads of the pictures for a very modest price.   [a set-back was that I didn't have some setting quite right, and downloads were inadvertently free for the first week.  Oh, well, Grand Opening Special, I guess.] It was like a working vacation, but he really enjoyed taking pictures of the photogenic athletes, while Monica and Jonah and I thoroughly enjoyed watching exciting matches on the beach and from our ocean front hotel room balcony. 

M&J had their favorites, they would watch Fujimatsu-san's games, they would find Jen Snyder, and various other players.  Last year, Monica met Jen and her partner Janelle, who are the American Women's Pros, and Monica and Jen really hit it off.  This year there was a wonderful smiling reunion, and Monica hung with Jen most of the time.  Martin's got lots of great pictures of Jen and Janelle, who, as the offical pros, played the exhibition games on Friday night, and then were split up via a lottery and played with amateur players for the tournament games.

The US Men's Pros again this year, were Olympic Gold medal winner, Phil Dalhausser, and Paul Baxter.  The women's games are fun to watch, the athletes are skillful, lovely and graceful, but the men's games are hyperactive.  The jumping is so high, the ball gets smashed again and again, it's really an amazing spectator sport.  Please enjoy Martin's Pictures of BEACH VOLLEYBALL.  There are five galleries:  Please take your time and enjoy these pictures in slideshow mode on your pc.

　　　　　　　　　　　Friday's PRO Exhibition金曜日のプローの展覧会     　　　

Women's Saturday土曜日の女性　     　Men's Saturday土曜日の男性    

Women's Sunday日曜日の女性     　　　Men's Sunday日曜日の男性

ジョナとりっぱな体格の人々ですか？答えは日本人のビーチボレボールのプローです。 マリアナスカップに参加する人です。ジョナの日本語は上手じゃないけど、話せます。それで、この写真はポインとブレイクが待っています。二年前に、モニカとジョナは藤松さんと松本さんも会いました。いつも彼たちの試合を見て、楽しかったです。ボレボールプレーアはすばらしいスポーツマンだので、新しいスポートをしてみたら、面白いです。そして、ジョナは ポイントブレーキのポインターを教えました。笑。

八年間の中に、学校の休みの中に、何回もサイパンに行きました。三年前に、偶然に、ビーチボレボルのタノメントの間に、サイパンに行ったから、毎年、マリアナスカープの間に、サイパンに行きたいです。とても楽しいです。いつもパシフィクアイランドのクラブで、止まります。小さい子供ころから、モニカとジョナはPICを楽しました。いろいろことをできます。 例えば、アーチェリーとか、シュノーケルとか、水泳などをできます。私たちには、サイパンのPICはいい家族の時間を過ごせます。PICの従業員はとてもいいです。いろりろ言語を話せて、逆様は大切な感情と思います。料理もおいしいです。いつもゴールドカードを買います。それはいい方法と思います。家族のため、サイパンの旅行はいい生活の経験だし、いい家族の過ごすことだし、いい思い出すことをなれます。彼の忙しい仕事から、それは大切です。マーティンはたくさん写真を撮りました。

ここに、マーティンの新しい写真のウエブサイトを紹介をします。www.pixbymartin.com　 去年のボレボールの写真はいい熱烈な歓迎を貰ったので、今年に、私は新しいサイトを作って手伝いました。新しいレンスとか、今年の写真もいいと思います。努力だったけど、彼は楽しましたと思います。私と子供二人は試合をみてながら、マーティンはいつもビーチで、バルコニからも、写真を撮りました。

藤松さん間、モニカはジェンというアメリカ人の女のプローが好きです。去年会いました。モニカは一週末中ジェンと一緒に時間を過ごしました。いい役割モデルだと思います。マーティンのサイトで、ジェンとジャネルのビキニのボレボールの写真はHEREここにあります。それは金曜日の夜に、プローとプローの試合です。アメリカの女性は日本人の女性の試合と、アメリカ人の男性と日本人の男性の試合を見ました。すごい！

ところで、アメリカ人のフィルダルハワサーはペキンでオリンピックのゴルドメデルを勝ちました。ポールバクスターもとても目がいいです。女の試合はきていだので、面白いです。男の試合はよく活動的な試合です。来年もマリアナスカップに行きたいです。写真をリンクは上にある。スライドショーのモードを使って、見てください。ゆっくりどうぞ。

  

Fun Photos; Invago, The Arch

楽しい写真、インバゴやアーチ

   

日本語の要約を下に書きました。The above picture is Monica serving the Riverboat Special near the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, from this summer's visit with family.   Elsewhere on this page are pictures of the very fun time we and friends had recently here in Tokyo, at an Invago concert at What the Dickens in Ebisu.  What does Invago and the Arch have in common?  Well, let's think.  Both are famous.  Maybe the Arch is still a little more famous than Invago, but not for long.  We discovered this Tokyo based Alternative Rock band three years ago in Roppongi.  Since then, we've seen them perform several times at various venues, listen to their CD constantly, introduced lots of friends to their music, and even made friends with the guys in the band.  This was their last concert before they left on a working tour of several European cities.  Now they're safely back in Tokyo finishing their second CD, and hopefully planning another concert soon.

Since he got his Canon D40, Martin's photography hobby has really ramped up.  He takes way more pictures, they are higher quality and more artistic.  Toting the camera bag and lens around is a bit of a commitment, as it's heavy, and you wouldn't want to forget and leave it somewhere, but there's always something interesting going on, and having those pictures later is part of the fun.  Only trouble is, it does take time to process all those photos.   Thus, here we are in December and I'm showing you pictures from July and November.  But that brings up another commonality between Invago and the St. Louis Arch.  Both are very photogenic.  Invago certainly is.  At this most recent Invago Concert, Martin took lots of pictures, but we only put up the best ones.  Seems that Alexis (the French guitar player called "The Count" ) is in almost every picture.  So fine.  But Italian/English Luca, Japanese Koyu, Italian Stefano and Japanese/Italian Sasha aren't hard on the eyes either.  Together, making music, there's chance for lots of good pix.  To see Martin's pictures from their Emergenza Finals, link from the sidebar picture on this blog.   With regard to the arch, there are many different ways to view this massive structure, though it looks rather thin in these pictures.  It is always graceful and smooth.  An ideal shape, the arch was constructed from blueprints reflecting the geometric form of a complicated mathematical equation.  I don't understand it, but I think it's cool.

Even with all that space inside, the Gateway Arch is considered the largest US National Monument due to its height and base width.  Since being completed in 1965, it's a national treasure and besides Budweiser Beer and the Cardinals baseball team, it's the symbol of the great city of St. Louis, Gateway to the West, located as it is on the Mississippi River, a formidable landmark to the westward expansion in America's history.  Two or three times in the past I've actually gone up inside the arch.  It's very interesting, but this time, with us four plus my Mom, Uncle Chris (not my uncle, Monica and Jonah's), Matt and Robin, we didn't want to stand in line for a long time and then ride the claustrophobic tram cars to the observation deck at the top.  So instead, we had all kinds of fun using the arch as a prop in Martin's photos.  Below is Chris propping up the arch with both hands.  See Martin's other Arch Pictures.

So, there's another thing that Invago and the Arch have in common: FUN.   Going to their concerts is really fun.  The song lyrics are lovely, often very heartfelt and clever, so when I'm home listening to the CD, (over and over) I can imagine  Luca writing these meaningful words.  But when we get to watch them LIVE, the way the five guys interact to perform the music, the way the fans respond, the energy is heightened and we just have to dance.  And you know, its a great joyful feeling when you just have to dance.  My friend Luis, an excellent dancer, showed up at What the Dickens that night with a painful looking limp.  He'd overdone it with training and didn't think he could dance.  But he was wrong.  When the Count  struck the first few chords of "Freedom" on the acoustic guitar, and I gave Luis the sign, he hobbled right over, because their music is just so fun.  Here's Koyu on base.

Oh, I just thought of another thing that Invago and the Arch have in common.  When folks come from out of town, as we did to St. Louis, it's fun to take them to the arch.  And when folks come to Tokyo, as Dermot happened to do when Invago was playing in Ebisu, it was fun for us to take him to see the band play.  You know your guest will have a good time, Invago never ever let's us down.  Here's their website:  INVAGO 

この日本語は要約だけです。上の大きい写真はモニカは川船のスペシェルを出します。 それは夏の旅行でセントルイスのアーチの近くです。このポストで他の話題の写真は私の気に入るの音楽のバンドに友達たちと見に、行きました。それはＩｎｖａｇｏです。What the Dickensと言う恵比寿のバーである。そして、アーチとインバゴは共通してもっているものであは何ですか？じゃ、考える。あった！両方は有名です。たぶん、今まで、アーチはインバゴより、有名だけど、もう次ぐにインバゴはもっと有名になると思います。見たコンセト後にバンドはヨーロッパに行って、ツアーをしました。

マーティンはカノンのＤ４０を買ったから、写真術の趣味はよくなりました。たくさん写真を撮って、芸術的な質は前よりよくなると思います。いつもカメラを持って行きます。たくさん写真 を撮って、経過事は長い時間かかります。そして、今は12月ので、写真は7月から、11月も撮りました。インバゴとアーチについて、もうひとつ共通性は両方は写真に適するなです。特にフランス人のＡｌｅｘｉｓがたくさんいい写真があります。そして、イギリス・イタリア人のＬｕｃａ，と日本人のこや、とイタリア人のＳｔｅｆａｎｏと日本・イタリア人のサーシャもきれいです。もっとＩｎｖａｇｏの写真は前のＥｍｅｒｇｅｎｚａのはこのブログのサイドバーでリンクに行ってみてください。もちろんアーチは写真に適するなです。アーチはとてもきれいくて、優美的なです。それは完璧な形です。数学の方程式から作りました。私は分からないけど、それは面白いと思います。

ゲイトウェイアーチは一番大きいのアメリカの国定史跡です。1965年に終わったから、 国民の宝物です。セイントルイスの有名な象徴です。ミシシッピー川の岸で建ったので、西への膨張ことの象徴です。二回三回前に私はアーチの上の中に行ってけど、今度私たちはアーチの下に遊びました。そのときに私の母とマーティンの二人兄弟と弟の奥さんと楽しました。

そして、もうひとつ共通性は両方は楽しいです。Ｉｎｖａｇｏのコンセトはとても楽しいです。いつも友達と家族と行って、音楽を聞いて、バンドを見て、ダンスをします。そのときに、ルイスとダンスをしました。

まあ、最後の共通性は両方はいつも友達は来て、一緒に行きます。セントルイスに行って、一緒にアーチに行って、母の初めてみました。東京にＤｅｒｍｏｔと言うマーティンの友達は来て、Ｉｎｖａｇｏに見に行きました。Ｉｎｖａｇｏのコンセトははいつもいい間過ごすことです。

すみません、この日本語は要約だけです。たくさん間違いと思ってので、英語を読む事ができれば、それも読んでください。

 

Turning 13

13歳になっている。

 Please look below the Japanese for English.  こんにちは皆さん。そうですよね、 日本に帰りました。今度 最初に日本語で書いて、できると思います。泣。アメリカへの旅行はとて も忙しくて、よかったです。たくさん色々所に行って、たくさん色々友達と家族に会って、たくさん色々面白いすることをしました。後で、時間がある時に、写真を体系付けてみて、物語も言いたいです。たとえば、バイクを乗るの経験について。

今、ジョナの誕生日について話したい。昨日、息子はティーンエイジャーになりました。とても大切な日と思っているので、時差ぼけがあるけど、家族は気に入るナレストランで祝いました。そして、昨晩、六本木のＣｈａｒｌｅｓｔｏｎ＆Ｓｏｎに、食べに行きました。家族の流儀は誕生日に食べ物を選ぶことができるので、ジョナはカボナラを食べたかった。レストランの友達に教えてので、びっくる誕生日のデザートが貰いました。もう、レストランのライットは暗くなったので、皆は歌いました。ジョナは恥ずかしくなったが、嬉しいと思います。今日彼の考えは初めて回転寿司を食べてみたので、二人は一緒に行きました。多分からは大人の味がなりました。

いつも最近の誕生日で、 アメリカの旅行の最後の日か飛行機であるので、彼は日本に着いた後の日はいいですと言いました。この写真は日本に入れる時です。とても疲れたけど、ジョナはトビがすごく寂しいだので、家に着いた直に車で友達の家に行って、トビを会いました。私は運転をできるけど、いつも道に迷う。そして、ナービを使って、日本語であるので、難しいだけど、できました！着きました。トビは元気です。友達二人は完璧な代用親です。インディは兄のようですから、トビは両方家が好きと思います。

前にセントルイスでマーティンの家族と私の 母とジョナの誕生日を早く祝いました。その時に、チーズバーガの形のケーキがあて、楽しました。その時も、野球の切符も貰いました。ジョナの気に入るチームはＳｔ．ＬｏｕｉｓのＣａｒｄｉｎａｌｓですね。それで、一緒に野球の試合に見に行きました。下に少ないマーティンの野球の写真を載せました。ところで、その試合は面白かったので、勝ちました。あれは二番の野球の試合がこの夏で見ました。今週火曜日に日本へ帰る前の日にミネアポリスでツインスとウワットサツを見ました。思い出して、６月で日本で西武ライオンスとＧｉａｎｔｓを見て、後で、デトロイトも野球の試合に行きました。多分ジョナは十分の野球の夏だと思います。

Hi Everyone.  Yes, we're back in Japan.  I started this post writing in Japanese this time, just to be sure that I could still do it.  Yikes.  The trip to America was good, but sooo busy.  We went many and various places, met with many and various friends and family, and did many and various things.  Later, as soon as I get a chance, I'll organize pictures and tell stories.  For example, the experience of riding motorcycles in Tennessee.  But now I want to mention that Jonah became a teenager yesterday.

Turning 13 is such an important event, that even though everyone was jet-lagged, we wanted to go out to eat to celebrate.  So we went to one of our favorite Roppongi restaurants, Charlston and Son, because he was very hungry for carbonara, and the tradition is that you choose the dinner on your birthday.  At the restaurant, I told my friend who works there, that it was Jonah's birthday, and they surprised him with a special dessert.  They dimmed the lights and sang a birthday song twice, and everyone in the restaurant joined in.  Jonah was pretty embarrassed, but it was all fun.  Today, Jonah had the idea that he wanted to try Kaiten Sushi for the first time, so he and I went there together.  I guess he's getting grown-up tastes. 

Usually, Jonah's birthday occurs on the last days of our trip to America, or even while we are in the plane flying home, so it was nice this time for him to actually be "home" when he had his birthday.  Even with full-blown jet-lag, that was better than while on the move.  Above is a picture I took from the air just as we entered Japan.  Jonah had been missing Toby so much, often asking when could we go get him from our friends' house where he had been staying all summer.  As soon as we landed, I communicated with Kusacchi and he agreed that we could come, so even though everyone was really exhausted, we moved the suitcases into the apartment, then got in the car and made our way to their home.  I'm fine with driving, but I'm always lost, so it's quite a challenge.  I can just barely use the Japanese navi system, but it worked this time, and we made it.  Above is a picture of the navi system in the car.  As you can see, it's not simple.  We had a wonderful reunion with our little Toby dog.  Our friends took really good care of him, better than we do, I'm sure.  They are wonderful surrogate parents for him, and Indy is just like a brother.

Jonah had another birthday celebration earlier, while we were in St. Louis with Martin's family, while my mother was also there.  At that time, his wonderful Aunt Robin and Uncle Matt gave him a cake in the form of a cheeseburger.  It was so cool.  And, among other nice presents, Jonah got tickets (from his Uncle Chris) for a St. Louis Cardinals baseball game.  Remember, Jonah's favorite team is the Cardinals, and his favorite player is Albert Pujols.  So, we all went to Busch Stadium and enjoyed a fabulous game.  Very exciting, especially because the Cardinals won.  Thanks Uncle Chris!  Here, I'm putting just a few pictures of the game taken by Martin.  In June, we saw a game while still here in Tokyo between his favorites the Seibu Lions, and the Tokyo Giants at Tokyo Dome, and then while in Detroit, we watched the Tigers beat the Cardinals (oops), and then, just on the last day before we left the US, while in Minneapolis visiting Uncle Brett and Aunt Jackie, we saw the Twins beat the White Sox.  Jonah may have gotten his fill of baseball this summer.