9/8/04: News from Japan
Hello all!
I only got Internet access yesterday, so am catching up on my email. It's so good to finally feel connected. We are all well and hope that you are too.
We're straddling the two worlds of resident and tourist. By week I'm fumbling through the grocery stores trying to decipher what I'm about to purchase and by weekends we're camera-wielding, pavement-pounding adventurers. I have to admit playing tourist is a lot more fun than hanging my laundry on the balcony (yes, that's what they do here).
The kids are loving Japanese school! Whew. Their classmates treat them like celebrities and are very, very nice and helpful to them. Bridget is convinced that the newness is going to wear off and she will be abandoned at some point, but I think she is enjoying the attention while she has it. Eric's favorite class is caligraphy ... with paintbrush and ink he is learning to master kanji. Twice a week, the PE class is swimming while the weather is still warm. We've had to buy special slippers for the kids to wear in the school building and a cleaning cloth because the kids are in charge of cleaning the school! Hmmm. Let's see how I can work these new skills to my advantage.
All is well for Dave at Sony. We didn't see a whole lot of him last week -- with all the drinking and special evenings out -- but this week he seems to be back in the same old dull routine of hanging out with us... the typhoon may have had something to do with it, but we'll see.
Isahaya is a small city and does not have a subway or tram system. The buses don't make any sense to me, so I am taking my life (and everyone else's) in my hands and driving on the left side of the road and pretending I understand the Japanese traffic signs. Our city seems to be a series of strip malls, which is disappointing, but on the bright side, we are able to find most things that we need.
I'm working on posting some notes and photos to a web page, so will send out an update alert soon.
Barbara
I only got Internet access yesterday, so am catching up on my email. It's so good to finally feel connected. We are all well and hope that you are too.
We're straddling the two worlds of resident and tourist. By week I'm fumbling through the grocery stores trying to decipher what I'm about to purchase and by weekends we're camera-wielding, pavement-pounding adventurers. I have to admit playing tourist is a lot more fun than hanging my laundry on the balcony (yes, that's what they do here).
The kids are loving Japanese school! Whew. Their classmates treat them like celebrities and are very, very nice and helpful to them. Bridget is convinced that the newness is going to wear off and she will be abandoned at some point, but I think she is enjoying the attention while she has it. Eric's favorite class is caligraphy ... with paintbrush and ink he is learning to master kanji. Twice a week, the PE class is swimming while the weather is still warm. We've had to buy special slippers for the kids to wear in the school building and a cleaning cloth because the kids are in charge of cleaning the school! Hmmm. Let's see how I can work these new skills to my advantage.
All is well for Dave at Sony. We didn't see a whole lot of him last week -- with all the drinking and special evenings out -- but this week he seems to be back in the same old dull routine of hanging out with us... the typhoon may have had something to do with it, but we'll see.
Isahaya is a small city and does not have a subway or tram system. The buses don't make any sense to me, so I am taking my life (and everyone else's) in my hands and driving on the left side of the road and pretending I understand the Japanese traffic signs. Our city seems to be a series of strip malls, which is disappointing, but on the bright side, we are able to find most things that we need.
I'm working on posting some notes and photos to a web page, so will send out an update alert soon.
Barbara
posted by Barbara Meehan Iverson at 3:41 AM
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