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September 22, 2006
First Full Day in Japan
I had my first full day in Japan today! Ohh boy and what a crazy day it was. We didn't have time to do much because there were some major changes in the plans.
But Maki is a trooper and being so strong. She spent the morning on the phone, so I waited for her while lounging around the hotel room, finishing my romance novel and getting over my jetlag;-) (oh the sacrafices that I make for my best friend ;-)
When she finished her calls we headed to "Hawkstown" which is a mall that's pretty much connected to our hotel. We only had a few hours so we walked around, I tried on some Japanese clothes (where I am seriously huge and need a diet compared to these japanese women). We spent the majority of our time at the arcade taking pictures of ourselves with these special machines where you can draw on your picture and add borders and text.
Maki's parents met us there. It was my first time meeting them. I was so nervous! I spent the entire cab ride memorizing my one and only sentance that I can say to them: "Konichiwa, eioudek-te ushimasen" (Hello! I'm so pleased to meet you!). The poor taxi driver must have thought we were crazy because I kept repeating it outloud, forgetting it, and then repeating it the entire ride.
Her parents are the CUTEST thing ever :-) They are so friendly and although they didn't speak any English, and I don't speak any Japanese we communicated easily through "body language" as Maki's mom put it. I gave them a scrapbook of Maki's life in Rochester, and we spent the whole time pointing and signing to talk. It was really neat actaully...and I'm pretty sure they understood me :-) The only mix up we had was when her dad bought me an iced coffee and I had to send it back and get a coke instead because I am allergic to coffee :-/
So anyway, we finally headed to dinner with her parents. Here's a pic (excuse the quality, but I don't have photoshop on this machine):
Posted by beth at September 22, 2006 11:35 AM
Comments
Beth...I love taking a break from work to read your stories! Glad you are having fun although a HUGE bummer there is no wedding. Have a safe trip back and a fun weekend!
Posted by: Danielle at September 22, 2006 03:50 PM
i totally agree, i love reading beth adventures! it's kind of like 'where in the world is carmen san diego?', but 'where in the world is beth and how is she getting internet access?'
love you! have fun!
Posted by: allee at September 22, 2006 09:28 PM