"Conichiwa" from Japan, the land of the Rising Sun

A flawless travel day, in which I made all necessary connections with zero delays.Up at 6:30am in Los Angeles at Kevin and Emilio's apartment atPark LaBrea. Out of the house by 7:30am. Thanks to Kevin's choice of non-highway routes, the minimal L.A. traffic assisted in our timely arrival of 8:30am to the opening of JalPak Inc., a Japanese travel agency near the LAX airport. There I purchased a Japan Rail Pass voucher for $560 good for 21 days of "universal travel" throughout all of Japan's major island of Honshu. This will save you hundreds of dollars if you are planning to travel beyond the Tokyo region, and/or plan on having multiple travel days. I juggled several variables and researched my options, considering such things as length of stay and desired destinations. Please note: being that rail is THE method of efficient transport, and purchasing tickets on a "per use in country basis" is EXPENSIVE, a pre-purchased voucher is the only way to go! You may not purchase these made for tourist vouchers once in Japan, they are only available to foreigners with a passport stamped as tourist. Going online to http://www.jalpak.com/ will help you find a distributing agent to purchase a multi-day pass that works for you, among other travel needs, suggestions and tips for those considering Japan.By 9:30am I am at the LAX United terminal, clearing security and ticketing agents and at my gate by 10:30, in time for a couple last minute calls to friends and family. I board and leave the ground on time at 11:15am, arriving via a non-stop flight to Narita Airport in Tokyo some ten hours later at 3:15pm "far eastern time!" We were nearly an hour early... yet a day later. That is to say, the flight was shorter than expected for one, and that when you fly with the sun although it never sets Japan is already into the next day. So I flew out on the morning of the fourteenth, landing ten hours later on the fifteenth for Japan's dateline. I cleared customs and baggage claim areas by 4pm, easily locating the ticket office at which I needed to exchange my voucher for a rail pass. They conveniently booked me on the 16:43 train to Yokohama, which would "undoubtedly leave at that precise time and arrive without question at 18:16 on the dot at the Yokohama platform",... as Michael would tell me with his irish-born trill when I called him at work from an airport payphone. He was practically whispering on the other end, "Kristin will meet you at the front of the train on the platform. Don't go anywhere else. It's a maze and you'll otherwise get lost." I would later learn that personal calls are just not done in corporate offices where others are within earshot.
A gentle and peaceful train swept me through Tokyo and on to Yokomaha. I chatted away with a businessman returning from the US. He works for a subsidiary of Toyota, which I learned mean "rich rice farm." He is helping to design military based radar technology in conjunction with Japanese software that will help computers installed in cars to avoid accidents. Very cutting edge! He taught me several words and explanations for written Japanese; such as, congi characters which I understand are based on Chinese characters, plus a couple of phonetic alphabets that assist in helping the Japanese identify and properly pronounce foreign words. Blink, we had arrived.

And there she was, my dearest friend from middle and high schools, now mother of nearly one year old Sean Patrick. His twinkling blue eyes are an absolute magnet for the Japanese crowd who are nuts about babies, and even more enthusiastic over this Amer-Euro prince. I, too, was being constantly eyed and smiled at by the sea of seamless commuters moving like graceful robots on and off trains, rippling around me, up and down wide stairs -- simply packed with short dark haired people in dark winter coats and dark handbags. I am astonished by the degree of quietude. Given all these people, and for being in one of the most densely populated metropolitan areas in the world, this is a relatively peaceful place! Like a Hallmark moment deserves, Kristin and I enjoyed one of those exaggerated and joyful hugs, the type of squeeze that says "I missed you sooo-o-o-o much and have been excited for this day to come!" I last saw this international family over the summer at baby Sean Patrick's christening at Saint Mary's in Wells. All the family was present, even Michael's clan from Ireland. They were married nearly three years ago at Saint Mary's, followed by a second reception in Tralee, Ireland, at which both occasions I was blessed to be asked to sing.
After a couple connections we were suddenly in an urban neighborhood, turning a bend and walking a steep incline. Halfway up, we entered a two story four unit. Shoes off and a mini-tour of their concentrated apartment, and we were soon seated on the futon with a cup of green tea, sharing stories of work, travel, family and friends... until way past our bedtime. Michael worked late at his new consulting job, so I didn't see him 'til morning. I felt surprisingly fine considering the travel day. I may have to give credit to a product I'd like you all to try, called No Jet Lag by Global Source. Michael had recommended it to me in an email and I have to say, this homeopathic herbal blend in a convenient chewable tablet delivered the desired results! Trust me, a trip to Japan is a worthy test for a product professing jet-lag cure.
I awoke at at about half past four this morning, eyes wide open and profoundly awake... which is unlike me. Within minutes the whole world around me was like jello. I sat up in bed. It shook the place like a train was pulling in to station, only with practically no sound, just vibrations. The earthquake lasted some 30 seconds. I checked my watch, "4:47am". I felt very exciting actually. Soon Kristin was at my door, "You okay? NO need for WORRIES, honestly. IT is completely a normal part of living on this grand island on the edge of tectonic plates." Fortunately most structures here are designed to absorb the general impact of such tremors.
Well, I've been awake since! Started my morning around the breakfast table with Kristin, Michael and the feeding of baby Sean Patrick. Much more spacious apartment than I'd imagined. They have a living-dining area with kitchenette, then two bedrooms plus a home office. One room even has the stereotypical sliding door... but not made of rice paper. The bathroom configuration is probably the most interesting with three sections: the sink and laundry as you step in off the hall, then either a left into the water closet or straight thru into the bathing annex, which is like a spacious showering room, half of which contains a short tub that is next to you while you shower. The glass door which closes behind you is made by Hitachi! And I thought they were purely electronics. Who knew?
Today I will, of all things, find my way into Chinatown, Yokomahama. It is near to where Kristin teaches. I have a date this afternoon for a floor hockey match at her school. Faculty versus students. Thus, it seemed appropriate to check out this interesting sub-culture of the city. Ironically, we are in the middle of the two weeks celebrated Chinese New Year, and I was just in Los Angeles on Saturday at a parade in that Chinatown. Quite a spectacal of colors and sounds, with long dragons winding down the street and acrobatic, martial arts dancers. Will let you know what I discover.
In closing:In my absense, since the return for Christmas from Central America and Mexico City, I have been reading voraciously, going through pictures, and creating online assessments for French and Spanish classes. I saw several of you in and around the winter holidays, including one afternoon visit to Falmouth High School. Since then, I spent the entire last month, from mid-Jan to mid-Fed, in the company of marvelous friends in highly hispanic concentrated Southern California, during which time they took me for a bonus visit to Baja California, Mexico. I have since made the acquaintance of a fascinating man from Colombia who is in political exile in the U.S. after dodging life threatening situations as a journalist in Bogota. There is a possibility of a Spring visit to Maine at which time I will encourage a gues speaker engagement for Falmouth Students.In addition to all this excitement, I have been hiking and biking along the California Coast in order to condition my legs for the pilgrimage hike across the Pyrenees, a trek to Santiago de Compostela planned for this Spring. I will depart after a tour of the Bordeaux region with my niece, Sabrina, who is a senior French 4 Honors student at Windham High School. As we will be gathering college admissions information and visiting a handful of campuses, I encourage any of you in the Falmouth Schools community to use me as a conduit for requesting educational materials or for providing other research on your behalf.

Mon Dieu. I am quite litterally sitting thru another earthquake as I type to you! I am going to post this entry and GET OUT OF THIS APARTMENT! Wish I were joking. At least it only lasted five seconds. Sionara!!!