Welcome to Rumoi

YAY! We finally have internet, kind of.

So we have the internet working on one computer, the one that isn't a pc and isn't running vista (ahem). So far our two weeks here in Rumoi have been interesting, funny, and at times, a little frustrating, We REALLY need to learn more japanese, ASAP. At least we have the hiragana, one of the 3 syllabaries, memorized. This means we can sound out written words and then look them up. The kanji is impossible though, and on everything. They are borrowed chinese characters and are hard to remember. At least I have figured out how the washer-dryer, microwave-oven, and the rice cooker work. I'll post a slideshow with some pictures of what we have been up to. We have mostly been cleaning and fixing things around the house. Our yard was a jungle, but I convinced Don to buy a little push-mower for the grass.
This past weekend we went to a town a little south of Rumoi called Mashike and saw beautiful orchards and buildings, but did not get to sample their famous salmon sushi - maybe our next visit. We also witnessed our first festival Saturday night. There were tons of huge lit-up floats, dancers, drummers, and fireworks. We even lit off a few of our own to celebrate. My favorite purchase by far is my bicycle. We each bought a used one for 5,000 yen (about $50) and it has come in very very handy (like when I'm lugging a giant bag of groceries up the giant hill we live on the top of). Wheels are good.
I'll get some photos up soon, but I have to get ready for the big enkai tonight - that's a drinking party. This will be Don's official welcome party and from every story we here from fellow gaijin, there's lots of rowdiness and lots of drinking. I'll let you know how that goes tomorrow!

Sorry we haven't posted

We have successfully made it to our house in Rumoi. The town is really cute, like a beach town. We've been cleaning and shopping and running errands, but unfortunately we don't have internet yet and it may be another week or two until we do. As soon as we get that set up, we'll post photos of the house and town.

They know how to garden!

I visited the Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden. It was amazingly beautiful.

hotel

i feel like i'm on a space ship! as soon as i find our camera cord i can post some pictures. even the light switches and outlets are cool. i still can't get over the toilets. there's a flushing noise with adjustable volume, heated seat, 2 kinds of sprays with warm water and adjustable pressure, and a deodorizer. i wonder if we can get one of these shipped to the states . . .

any guesses as to what a "strawberry dome" is? i'm about to eat it for breakfast.

We have landed!

Just a quick word before we turn in for the night . . . the toilets are amazing!

ONE DAY LEFT!

We are just about done packing our 400 lbs. of luggage. Here are some interesting differences:
underwear: me-25, don-10
socks: me-20, don-10
shoes: me- 12, don-7
coats: me-5, don-2
soap: me-2, don-4
tweezers: me-3, don-0 (that's not even a joke!)

I know, not exactly shocking, but still funny. Well, in about 48 hours, we will set foot in JAPAN! Just 1 million errands, 1 14-hour plane ride, and 1 2-hour bus ride to go until we experience Tokyo!