Kairakuen park and Senba lake in Mito

Plum blossoms at Kairakuen

Shogun house

Kairakuen

One of the meeting rooms on the upper level

Spring is definitely here! There are perfectly gorgeous days sprinkled in amongst days and days of rain. The humidity is high, and the flowers are blooming. We are lucky enough to have a fantastic friend who took us to see the plum blossoms in Mito on a mild day last month (thank you, Fumie Emory!). Along with the plum blossoms, there is also a shogun house that you can walk through for a small fee. The stairs to the upper floors are amazingly steep, narrow, and the treads are shallow. Small wonder that the structure boasted a dumb waiter to move things more efficiently!

It was wonderful to see the interior and the architectural details. The building has a wonderful flow to it. The bottom level is skirted by a walkway, and the interior is divided into rooms with paper walls that are painted in different themes. The upstairs has amazing views, and a separate building on the lower level contained a spacious hall with tall ceilings and more beautiful views.

View from the shogun house

Senba lake

Near Kairakuen park is Senba lake, which is ringed with cherry trees. They weren't in bloom when we visited, but the lake was still an interesting spot. There are boats in the shape of swans and cars that can be rented, and it was fun to watch joggers run their laps around the lake. It's a very popular spot for marathon training.

Our kids definitely enjoyed their time at the lake. Our son discovered an amazing playground hidden at the top of a hill behind the lake. There was a zip line, rope structures, an amazingly long slide, and play structures that were connected to make one long obstacle course. I would wager that we enjoyed the playground more than Disneyland! No waiting, no fee, no crowds, and "yes, you can climb on that," is a wonderful phrase for kids to hear :-) We ended the day feeling very tired, but really happy.

A super-long slide with rollers

Slides, balance structures, climbing structures, webbing structures, and more!

Free time!

First day is over!

Initially I hoped to post at least twice a month on this blog. Hopefully I can start to do that, because our daughter started preschool! She leaves at 8:00 in the morning and comes back around 1:00 in the afternoon. Every time she comes home she practically bounces off the bus (which has the cutest child-sized seats, by the way). She can't wait to show me the projects that she brought home, and her teachers told me that she spends most of her time there smiling. It's such a relief to hear that, let me tell you! She can be so shy at times, and then flick a switch and act like a social butterfly.

I don't know much about her day, thanks to the language barrier. I do know that she doesn't wear outdoor shoes inside the classroom, of course. She wears a little yellow smock every day, and must always bring a little towel, a cup, and her bento (lunch) on bento days. Everything fits inside her little backpack, given to us by a neighbor who didn't need it any more. For the first week the parents are the ones who provide lunches. We have a lot of cute bento ideas, but she's been so happy with the first lunch that we made that we just left it alone. So, every day she has two little rice balls, a cut-up little hot dog, a big handful of edemame, and a packet containing sesame seeds and nori flakes to put on top of the rice. After this week we had the choice of making her lunch two or three times a week, but we opted to have her eat school food every day. We're so lucky that she adores Japanese food!

Preschool swag

I am really excited for her to be immersed in the Japanese language and culture, especially in a place that makes her so happy. She's at that lucky age where she can focus on speaking and understanding. It's much more difficult for our son, since he has to learn to speak, read and write, all at the same time. With any luck, our daughter will soon be a language resource for him, and one for me, too!

I still struggle a lot with Japanese. We've been here for about 3/4 of a year, and there is still so much to learn! Three mothers in our neighborhood speak English very well, and are working together to make sure that I keep up with what's going on at my children's school. It's quite a time investment from their end, so I have motivation to learn enough that they won't have to help me every day.

So what exactly do they have in Costcos in Japan?

My friend Emori-san took me to Costco today. Costco is one of the inevitable answers I always hear when I ask my friends or neighbors, "Where can I find X or Y?" The other answer is "Joyful Honda." Both stores are located close to each other, but about 10 km away from me, and impractical to visit by bicycle. Can you imagine me trying to peddle 100 rolls of toilet paper home on my little bike? I'd look like the old Charmin commercials the US used to have, with kids stuffing them into their pants so they don't get hurt when they fall down ice skating.

At first glance it would seem impractical for Japan to have Costcos. After all, we've all heard horror stories of tiny living spaces and small cars. And there are no basements to tidily hoard things in, unlike so many places in the US. But the Japanese have figured something out that few in America have: get the neighborhood in on it.

It's genius, right? Three or four people from the same neighborhood will go to Costco, buy what they need, and then come home and divvy up the goods. Inexpensive, efficient, and another reason to maintain neighborhood harmony. I call it a win for everyone.

So, here's the trip in a photographic nutshell:

Our parking spot, if you can believe it!

The view once you walk through the doors.

This is magic steak that would still taste tender,
even if you overcooked it.

My husband's lunch. I kid, but only a little.

Midway down is a full sized pool table.

There? On the right? Squid ink pasta sauce.

There was more. Of course. So much more. Fresh bread, tons of alcohol (literally, I'm pretty sure), clothing, toys, tents, lots and lots of chocolate, and quite a few American treats like Snickers and Dum Dum suckers that were fun to see. But the item I was most excited to find was:

An essential pantry item in the US.
Not so much in Japan.

Yup, you got it. Humble distilled white vinegar. Thanks to a litany of Facebook posters sharing the simple hacks that revolve around this liquid, I felt a little bit lost when I couldn't find it at our local store. Now, look out laundry, and windows, and deviled eggs! My secret weapon is back in my tool belt!

What happened to December?

So, I had the best of intentions for December. I really did. I was going to post, right after we bought the Christmas presents that needed to cross international borders. And then I was going to post after we finally got them shipped. And then I was going to post during my son and husband's holiday, but my husband and daughter got sick and then stayed sick. For. The. Whole. Holiday.

Like I said, I had the best of intentions. So, here's the gist of December from our POV.

We made our own tree out of construction paper hands. It's taped to our door. The lights cost us about $25.

My daughter with the beginning of our tree

All done! Kinda. The origami nativity ornaments
will hopefully be completed next year.

Origami shepherd (jawa-esque, right?), sheep, star,
and everything is always better with glittery pompoms.

The buck-toothed camel really adds a nice touch.

So, the tree was finished just in time for no one to care, honestly. We opened presents on the Japanese Emperor's birthday (two days before Christmas) because my husband needed to work on Christmas. The kids had an entire day of gorging themselves on the newness, delivered by the postman on behalf of our generous relatives in America, before my daughter came down with a severe cold that included delightful episodes of fever and barfing. Barfing, on our bed. And let me remind you that, while we have a washing machine with a capacity that can accommodate our bed cover, we don't have a dryer. That's called "outside," except when it's raining. Like it did, every day that my daughter threw up. And then my husband got sick. And then my son woke up with pinkeye and I had to have a neighbor drive me to the eye doctor with him on what was probably the last clinic day before the entire country went on vacation for a week.

Fast forward through that awfulness (how I envy you right now), and everybody is healthy now and life is pretty much back to normal. And the tree is still up. So maybe "normal" is overselling it a bit...

A typical day for us

We've finally kind of settled into a routine. Weekdays I'm up at 6:30 so that I can start getting ready for the day before I wake my son up at 7:00. I help him get moving while my husband makes breakfast. By 7:30 we've loaded our son up with his various school bags and, if it's Monday or Wednesday, I walk with his school group the entire way to school. Other weekdays I walk him halfway so that I can get home and walk the recycling or garbage (depending on the day, sometimes both) to the select site in time for pickup.

First on the to-do list every morning:
remove the washed, now-dry recyclables
from the wall and counter

My husband heads off for work a little before nine, and then my daughter and I have breakfast, I hang the laundry out if it's not raining, and we head off to the grocery store on our bicycle (she has a child seat behind me). The grocery run almost always ends with me trying to figure out how to carry too many things home when all I have is a front basket and a backpack (and two handlebars that are just asking to carry something, too, right?), but we manage to wobble home safely somehow. Thank goodness the way back is downhill, and my husband can make a quick run after work for anything else we need!

By the time we get back home it's about lunchtime and my husband will be joining us soon. I can hear the first town bells of the day play "Greensleeves" on the noon hour while I prepare a quick something (sandwiches, or some of the prepared foods from the store). We all eat, maybe watching a few of the Japanese kid videos available on Japan's youtube, and then my hubby takes his leave so that he can be back at work before his hour is up.

My daughter and I snuggle in for a nap that ends too soon, and then it's time to walk to my son's school. We pick him up at 3:10 and I have a quick minute to check in with his teacher and see if we're still on track. Then it's time to head back home with his group (smaller, since the older kids stay at school a little later).

The second bells of the day ring at 4:30 during the winter, 6:00 during the summer. That's when I take my cue to pull the laundry in, if there is any. My son and daughter have free time until 5:00 (I try to get the dishes done), and then it's time for homework. If we're lucky, we'll be finished by 5:30 and I can start dinner. My husband comes home just after that and keeps the kids happy while I cook something. The meal takes us until 6:30 or 7:00, and if it's one of our two weekday bath nights we get the kids squeaky clean, read books, and tuck them in by 8:00. The hubby and I work on any leftover chores, start a load of laundry, and without fail make sure the sink is clear (and the recycling washed and hung up to dry) before we have a few minutes to ourselves and call it a night.

Our library has the most beautiful stone
mosaic art piece displayed inside.

Weekends are completely haphazard. We check out the local festivals or go to the library and find something interesting to read or watch. It's also a day for catching up on the chores we couldn't get to during the week, or exploring the nearby playgrounds with the kids. Aside from where we shop, our weekends in Japan are a pretty good copy of our weekends in America.

There is a reason our time here is passing so quickly! :-) That darned sun just keeps insisting on rising every day! And then it goes and sets again!

Thanksgiving in Japan

Turkey-day passed without fanfare in our house. It was the day of the 800 meter race for our son at his school, so we were required to take his temperature and sign a permission slip for him to participate. It was a beautiful morning; sunny and low 60's (F). The race was supposed to take place the day before, but had been delayed due to rain. 

Parents in the "stands" ready to cheer the kids on

My daughter and I showed up at his school a little after 9:00 to cheer with the other parents as we watched the kids run by. Winners were announced, trophies were awarded to the fastest in each of the four groups they had split the kids into, and then it was time for the kids to go in and recover and resume their lessons. We waved to my son and he seemed in good spirits, but the school called me less than two hours later to tell me that he had developed a fever and that I needed to pick him up. A friend helped us take him home in her car, for which I was very grateful. He spent the remainder of the day resting and didn't eat much at dinner, so he went to bed early. By the next morning he had recovered well, and seemed his regular self by the time the American Thanksgiving was gearing up. 

We've had many friends ask us if it felt lonely to be away from America for the holidays. So far the answer is no. We miss our family and friends, of course, but it's rather nice to take a step back and appreciate missing them, if that makes any sense. And since we didn't need to prepare for Thanksgiving we were able to enjoy the birthday shopping that we always need to do this time of year. 

Our microwave and only oven. Can you see a turkey
roasting in here? Yeah, no, me either.

Did we miss the food? I think we missed the tradition of the food, but we would have regretted the great lengths and expense that a traditional Thanksgiving would have required. I mean, I haven't even seen turkey lunchmeat here. I know of at least one company that can deliver cranberry sauce to my door, but I'll pass, thank you. And without all of the planning and preparation that Thanksgiving requires, we don't feel like we're required to rush toward another holiday before recovering from the last one. It's much simpler this year, and I like simple.

"So is it expensive to live there?"

We were really worried about the cost of living in Japan, especially because it was hard to find data for our region. Here's where I'm going to surprise you: because of our unique situation, no, it's really not expensive.

Kind of a bombshell, right? Everyone, it seems, has heard horror stories of tiny apartments in Japan costing over a thousand dollars. Yet here we sit in one of the largest homes we've ever rented, and we're shocked to discover we still have money in the bank at the end of the month. We've checked three times to make sure we didn't forget to pay someone.

So, how? We're living in subsidized housing, so my husband's work is paying for 2/3 of the monthly rental costs. Our utility costs are low because our water is heated on-demand and we haven't bought one of those fancy, energy-hogging heater/air-conditioner units. The biggest cost saver for us, though, is the fact that we don't have a car. Gas, monthly payments, maintenance, insurance and taxes always cost us more than we were willing to admit when we were back in the US, especially since we had two vehicles.

Probably the most tofu I will ever be able to buy
for less than 50 cents US

What about food and necessities? Clothing is comparable, and food really depends. I can buy a large enough block of tofu to put in a dinner for 4 for about $0.50, but the price of meat is higher and the portions for sale are much smaller (no family packs of chicken thighs, for instance). A liter of milk is a little less than $2, so it's equivalent to about $9/gallon US (I know, right? Yikes). A carton of 10 eggs is about $2. But fish is incredibly cheap.

So really it just depends on what we buy. We're paying through the nose for milk (well that's a yucky visual...sorry), but we're coming out ahead by the end of every month. And we're still checking to make sure we haven't forgotten a bill because, really, we still can't believe it ourselves.