Happy Mother's Day

I'm a week late, but I just uploaded this picture from my camera and I love it. My mom and I are always taking pictures of other people and ALWAYS forget to take a picture of the two of us. Like my wedding day for example, no pictures of just the two of us. What was I thinking? Mom and Dad came to visit at the end of April before I went back to work. We drove down to Raleigh to see Grandpa for a few days as well.

Happy Mother's day to the best mama. I hope I can be as good an example to Lincoln as you have been to me. I love you!

Mom & Dad Visit: Day 6 & 7

We didn't take too many pictures on mom and dad's last couple days in Japan, but we definitely crossed a few more items of their list:
- Fuji Sightseeing (at 120 mph, but that's ok)
- 100 yen store visit
- Indian food take out (ok, maybe that was on my list)
- Met my fellow Liberty Belles
- Relax a bit!

Thanks again for making the trip out here. Surprisingly you never felt an earthquake while you were here. We've had several since you left! I can't wait to see you soon!

Mom & Dad Visit: Day 5

Day 5 started out with a "yummy" Japanese breakfast. Is it bad when you are excited about salad the most? We got cleaned up and checked out the morning markets in Takayama.

Takayama is a cute little town. It is famous for it's old style buildings and relaxed atmosphere. We browsed, we ate, we shopped.

After shopping, we found a Humburger shop for lunch. They were pretty quiet, but still delicious.

In the afternoon we took a short bus ride to Hida no Sato or the Hida Folk Village. Gifu prefecture moved about 30 old style homes from all over the prefecture to one village area. It showed the construction and the life style of the era. There was a lot of English signage and it was very interesting. We spent about 3 hours wandering in and out of all of the buildings.

After the village, we headed back to the ryokan for nap time and dinner. We set our alarms for 3:45 am that night to watch the US vs. Japan women's World Cup final. We were also headed home the next day. Only one more night before they leave. Mom and Dad's trip just flew by because we were so busy every day. Lots of public transportation and sightseeing!

Mom & Dad Visit: Day 4

Our first stop on Day 4 was Nijo Castle. Beautiful gardens and architecture. Dad was intrigued by all of the Japanese roofs everywhere we went.

On Day 3 we stuck mostly to the East side of Kyoto so on Day 4 we decided to hit up the West side.

Our second stop was Ginkakuji, the Golden Pavillion. Since it was now the weekend, the place was very crowded. We didn't take our leisurely strolls through the gardens like we did in other places, instead, we got the pictures and got out!

In the afternoon, we grabbed some ekiben (train station lunch boxes) before we caught the shinkansen back east towards Nagoya. Then we grabbed an express train North to Takayama.

The train ride curved through the mountains and along the river and hydro-power plants.  It was a beautiful train ride!

Once we got to our traditional style ryokan in Takayama, the cutest little Japanese girl showed us our room and where everything was. She didn't speak any English so it was a game of charades for part of the time, but we figured it out. We explored the neighborhood a bit and then got cleaned up for dinner.

We were all loving the matching pajamas! Although, this picture looks like we have all been admitted to a padded cell somewhere, I think.

Mom and Dad's first experience with Japanese food was lots of fun.

"What's this?"

"I don't know, but I like it!"

Soup. Pickles. Mystery foods. Repeat.

Mom & Dad Visit: Day 3

We started our morning leisurely since Mom was sleeping past 5 am. Dad started his morning with the sun again. Our first stop after breakfast was the Kyoto Imperial Palace. We had a guided tour in English that answered all of Dad's questions about how those roofs are built. From the palace we moved on to the Philosopher's Path, more temples, more shrines and more walking! The wonderful thing about Kyoto is that there is always something new to see.

The next stop on our temple treck was Kiyomizu-dera. The Clear Water Temple. It is a classic visit in Kyoto and one I've seen many times, but still a must see. The hike up the street street is worth it for the great views of Kyoto!

 

Plus, this time we got an extra bonus! Geisha! I don't think they were true professionals, probably tourists like ourselves, but still fun to see.

After visiting Kiyomizudera, we hopped on the bus back towards the Gion district. We had a few hours before our dinner reservation so we popped in to Yasuka Shrine. We happened to have timed our visit perfectly and the Gion Matsuri festival started that evening. The whole street was just down with vendors, beer stands and people practicing for the parade in a few days. Perfect! We stopped for a beer and attempted to cool down from our miles of walking. We walked down the street for a bit and found a restaurant along the river with outdoor seating. A perfect place for round 2!

We ended Day 3 at Grill Miyata. A few friends from the squadron recommended that we go so I figured it was worth a shot. I wasn't really sure what we were in for, but what we got was a kooky old man and stories upon stories. I can't even begin to describe it, but it was quite entertaining. We rolled out of the restaurant 3 hours later full from an awesome steak, quite intoxicated and our sides hurting from laughing so hard.

Another busy day!

Mom & Dad Visit: Day 2

Mom and Dad had barely been in the country for 24 hours and we had a full day planned for Day #2. We headed south along the coast to Miyajima Island. A famous sightseeing spot for the floating torii gate and beautiful views.

We spent almost the entire day at the island: checking out the torii gate, the shrine, Mount Misen and the torii gate again at low tide. We weren't exactly expecting to hike up an entire mountain, but when we realized the cable car only took you part way, we had to hike a bit further to check out the view.

It was definitely worth it!

Last time that Glenn and I had been at Miyajima, it was high tide and we weren't there long enough to see the tide go out. It really gave a perspective just how BIG the torii gates are! After a long, hot, sweaty day at Miyajima, we headed back to the hotel, grabbed our bags and hopped on the train for our next stop- Kyoto!

Tuesday 10: Eating in Takayama

My parents are pretty good sports when it comes to trying new things. They were very good sports when it came to the ryokan (J hotel) that we stayed at during our last two nights traveling. There were somethings that after 3 years living here that seem normal to me, but there were definitely some new things. I just shrugged my shoulders and took a bite. Here are a few:

1. Tiny crab!

2. Cold mystery vegetable goo with slimy sauce. Despite the name, not so bad.

 

3. Salt baked fish. Before. After.

 4. Tempura. Delicious minus the fish guy.

5. Lots and lots of pickles, rice and soup!

6. Breakfast!

 7. Dinner on the second night was shabu-shabu. It was delicious! It was lots of veggies and beef soup essentially.

 

8. Cherries for dessert.

9. I think this was breakfast. I can only tell because of the orange though.

10. We also had pickle omelet for breakfast.