Tsukuba-Dooba-Doo

Maybe it was the insanely busy week.  Maybe it was the comfort one can only experience in a sleep pod.  Or maybe it was Maybelline.  Whatever it was, I had the best night of sleep in my life while in the sleep pod hotel.  I didn't hear a peep from anybody throughout the night.  In contrast, the girls would later tell us that they met a Chinese girl, who sounded like she was from California, roaming around Japan for two weeks by herself.  She shared my passion for the sleep pod experience as well as my snobbishness towards this particular establishment.


I didn't envy their late night 'Baby-sitters Club' gossiping because I woke up totally refreshed and ready to hit the ground running.  That extra energy would come in handy because the previous night we decided to spend this day at DISNEYLAND!!!

I don't know the exact figure on how many times Jonce and/or Katie have been to Disneyland.  However, I do know that they are professionals when it comes to indulging in childhood fantasies.  I won't detail the day since I already blogged about Disneyland on Reagan's 2nd birthday.  I will just hit the highlights.  As soon as we walked in the gate we rushed to get our first fast pass (something we failed to do when we came with Matt and Chelsae) and primed the whole day by hoping on the tea cup ride. 




Of course, Splash Mountain was at the top of the list of rides to ride.  Jonce and Katie both loved the fact that most of the audio is in Japanese, naturally.  Since I've never been to an English speaking Disneyland, everyone in our group had to explain the storyline of the ride to me.  We also brainstormed our photo pose.  As you can see, we went with the stereotypical 'overly-excited Japanese person' approach. 


We proceeded to do the 'ride-the-rides' thing until magic hour was upon us.  It was then that we took a breather and snapped some classic D-land pics.

If you will kindly direct your attention to the gray sweaters that Jonce and I are wearing in the above photos.  The Katies thought it would be hilarious if both Jonce and I wore gray sweaters (that they bought for us) at the same time, thus exponentially increasing our chances of looking like twins.  We agreed.  We obliged.  The hilarity of the matter was confirmed by the countless double takes we noticed throughout the day.

For dinner we ate at the Blue Bayou Cafe which is located inside of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride.  As we waited in line, I became increasingly concerned that my legs were literally going to fall off in protest to my abuse of them.  God himself could not foresee the amount of walking/standing these feeble little legs would endure (Okay, He could, but still...).  We did, however, get sit on some benches when we got to the front of the line.  As I looked around it seemed like it was only me, Jonce, and a bunch of old ladies sitting in them.  Lets forget the implications of that...  Anyway, we finally got our seats and had an amazing dinner in which we discussed Katie Jean's business policies. 

The next morning I had to go back to wark. I mean werk.  Wait....that doesn't sound right..."wirk"...?  *WORK!*  Oh ya, that's what it is!  Between the trip to South Korea, Katie coming back, and everybody visiting, I had almost forgot what work is.  Although I was about to get reacquainted with this concept, it would have to wait until after I had breakfast with Kate, Jonce, and Katie Jean at a bakery with the infamous octopus doughnut, or so we thought.


As I mounted my bike for work I gave Jonce and Katie one last hug and said goodbye.  It was the weirdest thing saying goodbye to them at somewhere other than the airport.  An even more surreal fact was that they would remain in Japan for a couple more days as they visited Katie Jean's cousin.  Kate actually joined them that day as they walked around "Fabric Town" in Tokyo.

My short ride to work was a perfect time to reflect on the incredible week I had experienced.  It is these moments that should always be remembered, which is why I created this blog in the first place.  So I guess what I'm saying is....kudos to me  :)

-Seth

*P.S.*
I had to sift through over 650 photos to pick and chose the ones I wanted to include in these recent posts.  You can view any/all of these by clicking here.

Only six days after their arrival, we said 'sayonara' to mom and Joe.  Jonce and I took them to the airport and enjoyed a helping of pork cutlet curry before they went through security.  On the drive back, Jonce and I discussed plans for the rest of their stay with us.  We had about a day and a half together before they met up with Katie Jean's cousin on the other side of Tokyo.  Jonce and I enthusiastically decided that we MUST stay in a sleep pod hotel.  The girls found and reserved a really cheap one in Asakasa (East Tokyo). 

I must come clean...before I go on any more I need to catch up on a small adventure us young bucks experienced on Thanksgiving night.  Since we weren't able to visit Asakasa on the day we went to Tokyo, we decided to go check it out.   






Okay, now that I got that off my chest I can continue...where was I...? SLEEP PODS IN TOKYO! That's right, now I remember.  We all got packed up and was just about ready to go when the girls mentioned one thing they wanted to do before we left Tsukuba.  Kate looked at me with deer-like eyes, batted her eyelashes and said "Bambi-na!"




Satisfied with our photo shoot, we boarded the train bound for Asakasa.  This time there was no rain, which made our exploration of the area much easier.  I lead everyone in the direction of the main canal that cuts through the area.  We found our sleep pod hotel, dropped off our bags, and dilly-dallied around for a while. 






A couple of things are givens when it comes to Japanese karaoke.  Beer will always be involved, the re-verb is turned up way too high, and everyone will spend 90% of the time standing on the seats.


The men's pod room housed 8-12 pods.  Apparently there were some other men in our room, but Jonce and I never heard a peep.  The women's pod room was separate and had about the same number of pods.  Between us was a community sink.  Bathrooms and showers were located on different levels because the hotel was in a tall, slender building.      

Thanksgiving Day was upon us.  Out of everything that we had planned for the week, this proved to be the most ambitious endeavor.  Coincidentally, Chelsae's parents were also visiting Japan during this week AND our friend Akira and his wife wanted to experience an American Thanksgiving.  This brought our attendance up to a whopping 13 people for the meal.  It doesn't seem very impressive by normal American standards, but it's quite impressive considering our situation here.

We rented a large room with a full kitchen to accommodate our celebration.  Four ovens and stove tops were working simultaneously in three separate rooms to cook all of the turkeys, pies, and casseroles.  I was constantly on the phone, sending runners, or dashing from room-to-room myself.  I felt like an army general coordinating a strike on three war fronts.  Aside from difficulties with the gas ovens in the rental room, we functioned as a well oiled Thanksgiving-preparation machine.   




Here we are carving up one of the birds.  We purchased two 7-lb turkeys for dinner, mere babies compared to their American counterparts.  Would you like to guess what the total was for both turkeys...?  I will give you some options for your guess:



As with all holiday gatherings, there are two potential outcomes.  In one scenario the turkey is moist, smiles are on everybody's face, and joyous chatter fills the room.  It is the picture perfect holiday feast. 





However, there is an alternative outcome.  One where the smallest mis-speak could result in a full on fistfight, babies crying everywhere, drinks get knocked over...oh, and the turkey is as dry as the Sahara. 





Lucky for us, and babies everywhere, Thanksgiving dinner was absolutely amazing.  Before we dug into the food, we went around the table and everyone said what they were thankful for.  Of course, it got emotional as many of us ended up crying, myself included.  There was just so much to be thankful for: visiting family, delicious food, amazing friends, wonderful jobs, loving family and friends back in the States, ect., ect., ect. The list of blessings is endless.

Next we headed to the central campus of AIST to the science museum called AIST Science Square. 





Following the science museum we went to the AIST Geological Museum which houses an impressive collection of rocks and minerals.  This is where you really separate the nerds from the norms.  It is always difficult to keep people from yawning their way though the whole thing.  I can't help but think of my grandfather, the geologist, every time I go in there.  I know he would find it all very fascinating. 



We had a reprieve from walking as we were able to catch a bus from AIST East to Tsukuba Center.  Once there we took care of some serious business; eating, shopping, banking.  Later that night we made some tako yaki (fried octopus balls) on the 9th floor, which is becoming quite the tradition for visitors. 

I know all too well that my mom and Joe are early risers.  In fact, there was one particular incident that will forever live in infamy.  While visiting Farmington during my freshman year in college I pulled into the driveway late one night (or early depending on perspective).  I saw Joe making coffee through the front window..."NOOOOO!"  I had narrowly escaped this confrontation on the previous two nights, but I finally pushed it too far...my luck had run out.

I sat in my car for a second to come up with a strategy for my next move.  The way I saw it, I had two options.  1)  I could walk in, admit defeat, apologize for being so late, and walk to my room with my tail between my legs OR  2)  I could walk in, casually say hello, and walk back to my room before anything further could be discussed.  Admitting defeat seemed far less appealing so I opted for the casual/quick approach. 

As I strolled through the front door I saw Joe kicking back on a cup of joe in the kitchen.  I stole a quick glance his way and noticed a smirk on his face.  I think he was enjoying this.  Still smiling he said "Good morning!" in an almost sing song tone.  The set up was too perfect, I had to respond in kind.  I turned in the direction of my room and responded "Good night!" and went straight to bed.  Now every time we discuss staying up late, Joe cheerfully reminds me of that incident.  Well played, sir.   :)   

For day three of the Walker & Grenawalt's Japanese experience we hit up Tokyo early.  We caught the 7:50 rapid train to Tokyo, which just so happens to be one of the busiest trains of the day.  I was pleased to let everyone experience the sardine-like feeling as an endless flow of commuters packed the train.  Once we were in Tokyo, we energized with Starbucks and went to our first destination: Shibuya.





Our next stop was the Tokyo Tower.  A huge bonus to visiting the Tower is taking a gander at the Zojoji Temple on the way. 

We happened to pop our heads in the temple just as a Buddhist ceremony was starting.  I didn't think anybody had witnessed any eastern religious worshiping so we sat and watched for a little bit. 


The visibility was astounding!  The endless sea of urban development made the group speechless.  We could even see Mt. Fuji in the distance.


Ginza is considered one of the most luxurious shopping districts in the world.  After eating lunch at a Korean restaurant the men instinctively gave the women their respective spending allowances, set a meeting time, and hung out in the 4-story Apple store.  


The girls had a great time shopping.  I know Katie Jean especially enjoyed some fashion inspiration for her dress making business, KT Jean Designs.  People were starting to get tired so we hopped on the Tsukuba Express and headed back to the Ninomiya House.

Our "more experienced" party members went to bed fairly early; Tokyo has a way of taking it out of you.  However, us young-folk (Haines family included) decided to cut lose and go to karaoke.  I won't go into detail about the events that may or may not have transpired.  I will simply provide a single photo that sums it up pretty well...


Well, I can't tell you exactly what time we finally made it to bed, but I'm 57% sure it was before Joe woke up for his morning coffee.

The next day was a good 'ol fashioned Thanksgiving.  More to come! Whooohooo!

-Seth