Family trip to Yokohama

    On the 26th, we drove to Yokohama to take a short family trip. When we checked into the AirBnB, Januck about had a heart attack because the price was listed in Euros, which was ¥6,708,978.  I called the owner to confirm and it was a typo.  Thank goodness!

 We stayed in Chinatown and enjoyed the dumplings there.  Alex shopped in a thrift store and found a really bright Columbia jacket that is a throw back to the 90's.  We went to TGIF for burgers and salad and later Januck complained of a stomachache (which always happens when he now eats greasy food, like burgers because his body isn't used to it).

   The next day, we got up and Januck did some geocaching, Alex went to Starbucks to listen to music and Rachel and I found a cute cafe that had excellent croissants.  I really wanted to take them to the Ramen museum because it had gotten good reviews on TripAdvisor and it was really interesting.  The history of ramen was displayed and then you go downstairs where it was old Japan with a bunch of ramen shops that you could try.  It was a bit confusing what to choose but we got in line and bought meal tickets from a machine.

   After eating, Rachel and I went shopping and the boys went geocaching.  Then we met up at the very tall Ferris wheel in Minato Mirai area of Yokohama.  I hate heights by the way and my family just tortures me by going on bridges, chairlifts and now a Ferris wheel.  I was sick to my stomach but the view WAS amazing.  We could see the SkyTree in Tokyo and Mt. Fuji in the other direction because it was such a clear day.  I felt better when Januck and Rachel even felt scared at the top.
   After that we tried cheese fries and a shake from Shake Shack before walking back to our apt. in Chinatown.  What I like about Yokohama is you can walk everywhere easily and the port area is beautiful.  It reminds me of Kobe where I grew up.

   We had to visit the Baird Beer and was sent upstairs for beer and BBQ.  I had thought about trying to take the kids clubbing but they were tired after a full day and so was I!  The next day, some of us took walks by the park and pier and then we came home.

 It was so nice to be together and I will cherish these times forever.

Christmas Day

It was so good to have the whole family together to open presents and we also had Rachel's friend who we hoped felt like she was around family. We saw her off at the train station and then had to take care of recycling, on Christmas Day here, but our sorting went so fast because there were four of us instead of just the two of us. We then made our way down to the port to Baird Beer for an evening drink and when we were there this past weekend, the worker Chris said that he was making a turkey for Christmas Eve and hoped we would make it because he was making 20 plates. We stayed home for Christmas Eve but luckily he still had 4 plates left and we were more than happy to take those off of his hands. It was a great Christmas Day dinner!

 Just chillin...

 Before

 After. If we were at home I would have licked the plate.

 A Charlie Brown looking Christmas tree on the way home.

Family Christmas

The holidays and winter break came quickly this year even though we were woking a lot and maybe that is why. We've been lucky to have the kids back for another Christmas as well has having friends of the kids stay with us. There really isn't much Christmas buildup here but we try to make the best of it and part of that is playing music, watching Christmas movies (Die Hard), and drinking eggnog. Well, minus the eggnog. Rachel wrapped the matching Christmas sweaters for her and Alex to open and it was so much fun watching them wear them again. Alex introduced us to a new game called Phase 10 and it was a little bit hard to understand at first but once we got the hang of it then we had a blast. Tomorrow we are off to Yokohama for a few days and we plan to visit the Ramen Museum. Joanna likes Yokohama because it reminds her of her hometown of Kobe.

 We found these cute cups and thought we would get the set so we know whose coffee is whose.

 On the roof of our apartment building.

 Simply the best!

Our local pastry shop only had Christmas themed pastries. We didn't mind.

Beautiful Sunset

We finally made it! We are finished with school and now have two week off for Winter Break. Rachel is here and Alex will be here soon. The weather has been cold but amazing and last night we had a wonderful sunset that I had to bring Joanna out onto the balcony to see.

Weekend Fun

We have had such a great weekend after Rachel came home and then a day later her friend Kayla came to visit. It was topped off yesterday when Alex's roommate Megan came back through for a second visit. It is so nice to have family here but it is even more special when their friends visit. 

 Curry omochi udon.

 Kayla is wearing the special paper bib provided!

 Out for gyoza with Megan.

Gyoza time!

There are by far the biggest and most delicious gyoza ever! They make them right there while you wait!

Tea Ceremony

I've really enjoyed our Tea Ceremony culture club this year and for Christmas we had a Christmas themed tea ceremony. The bowls that the green tea was served in were so cute and the treats were reindeer shaped and were delicious. 

 Iside of the bowl.

 Santa

The reindeer treats on a Christmas platter.

Baseball

One of my earliest memories of baseball is when my mother took me to my first baseball game at Dodger Stadium. If you've never been there, then it is one of the most beautiful baseball stadiums that you could ever go to. I've been to Wrigley and Fenway and they are both amazing in their own way but going to Dodger Stadium on a summer evening is magical. I was probably around 8 or 9 years old and I can still remember walking through the tunnel and seeing the field unfold in front of me. We were in the upper deck and I remember my mom telling me that they have double headers sometimes where you can watch two games for the price of one. I was so excited and my mom turned around to the ladies seated behind us to ask if that game was part of a double header and they said no. I was disappointed but still excited to watch a baseball game, a Dodgers baseball game live. The team had an awkward third baseman by the name of Steve Garvey who dropped a popup in the infield and I remember everyone booing him. Later in the game he hit a home run and suddenly he was everyone's hero. The Dodgers lost the game but I didn't care. I was now a fan for life.

We used to go to Dodgers games because my sisters would get free tickets due to good grades but I remember we would always have to leave around the 7th or 8th inning to beat the traffic (an unfortunate habit that I carried into my adulthood). We also went to Angels games because we were only about 20 minutes away from the stadium and the Angels weren't that good so we could get cheap tickets close to the field. As I entered high school, I started going to a lot more Angels games and my love for them started to grow. They always seemed to have bad luck and we used to joke around that the stadium must have been built on an ancient Indian burial ground. One time my cousin and I decided to go to a Rams game when they used to play at Angels Stadium and we weren't sure which tickets to buy. As we stood outside of the ticket booth trying to decide what seats to buy, someone walked up with an extra ticket and gave it to us. We were shocked but then thought, hey, maybe if we hang out here long enough somebody else might give us a ticket. Sure enough, not more than five minutes later someone came up and offered an extra ticket. I think companies bought a block of tickets and not everyone could go so they would try to get rid of the extra tickets. We got in for free and we just walked around the whole game without ever going to the seats that were given to us. I then decided to try my luck at Angels games so I would go before the game and stand in front of  the ticket booth waiting. It worked. Somebody always had extra tickets and would offer me one so I would get in for free. It may sound really lame but I would go to the right field stands and find an empty seat and when someone would hit a home run to right field, I would stand up and wave and then go home and watch the 11 PM news. There I was! Standing and waving! I know, lame...but I enjoyed doing it.

I kept going to games and they won the division in 1979 and 1982. I was able to get ticket to game 5 in 1979 but they never made it that far falling to the Orioles. I was able to get tickets to game 2 in 1982 but they ended up being the first team ever to win the first two games and then lose the next three. 1986 seemed to be the year that they would go to the World Series but again, they were one strike away from going when Dave Henderson of the Red Sox hit the home run to crush our dreams once again. They ended up losing both games in Boston and that was it. The next year I remember going to their first home game and Donnie Moore (who gave up the home run to Dave Henderson) came into the game and people booed. I was one of them. He ended up killing himself and it haunts me to this day. He tried his best and I booed him. I remember it being a turning point in my life.

We moved back to the States where I continued to follow the Angels and in 2002 I remember it was the first time that Rachel would sit down with me and watch Angels games with me. We watched a lot of games that summer so when the Angels made the playoffs as the Wild Card team, it sure seemed like a special year. We got tickets to the first game against the Yankees and they gave us Thunder Sticks that when banged together were very loud. We were in the right field bleachers and the noise was deafening. The Angels came from behind and won and it was spectacular. We got tickets again, just Rachel and I against the Twins and when the Angels won, we were walking out and some man picked up Rachel and gave her a hug because he was so happy. I think she'll always remember that. Then came the World Series. I got a single ticket to Game 1 and the Angels lost but I couldn't believe I was there watching. For Game 6 we went to our friend's house and watched again as the Angels came from behind to beat the Giants. I tried to get tickets to Game 7 and almost had one but somebody outbid me at the last second and I wasn't able to go

. I stayed home and watched it on television. We had a case of water near the couch and I kept drinking bottles of water because I was so nervous. My family made fun of me because I couldn't stop drinking water. When the Angels finally won the game, I fell on the ground in our living room and started to cry. It was so many years of emotions that came flooding out that I couldn't help it. Rachel was freaked out a bit and asked Joanna why I was crying. Joanna had to tell her that it was tears of joy. The Angels had a victory parade at Disneyland and I pulled Rachel out of school and we went to watch it. I told Rachel that from that day forward, she will always be an Angels fan and I believe that to be true.

After that and over the years we've had our ups and downs. We went through the Vlad years which to this day he is still one of my favorite players ever. His home runs were magical to watch. We then got Pujols and CJ Wilson and things seemed to be getting better and we finally had some guy named Trout that made watching baseball so much more fun. It has been awhile since we've been in the playoffs but I know our time will come soon enough. This week it was announced that the Angels were going to sign Shohei Ohtani from Japan which makes me think of Spring Training and how I can't wait to see how he fits in our club.

I will always bleed Dodger Blue but I will love the Angels always...and hopefully Rachel will too!

Rachel and I loving baseball!

Christmas Caroling!?!?

Sometimes it is hard to tell that we are approaching Christmas while living in Japan but much has changed since we first visited here about 25 years ago. We see a lot more decorations in the stores and there are many more Christmas items that we can buy here now. Unfortunately there is a lot of X-mas things but we do see Merry Christmas much more than we used to.

The spirit of Christmas is somewhat here but it was evident that it isn't completely when our junior high and high school wanted to have their typhoon makeup day on the 25th however, they changed it pretty quickly. It is nice that they are sensitive to the foreign staff who obviously must have said something.

For Joanna and I, the spirit of Christmas is about Christ's message to give and give freely. Joanna has been volunteering at the library once a month to read an English book to children. I have been doing the Caring Fund in my classroom for about 15 years now to encourage students to give money, however large or small, to help provide money or goods to other people in need. My class is raising money right now but we're not sure where we will give the money. There is a local food bank that needs donations to give food to those who are less fortunate so I might push them in that direction.

Last night Joanna and I were watching YouTube and were watching and listening to Christmas Carols and we came across a flash mob in a mall somewhere that started singing the Hallelujah Chorus and it looked like so much fun. Then we had an idea...what if we went out caroling here in Japan? We are not sure how we would be perceived but it might be worth a try. We came up with a plan to sing outside of train stations, maybe 5 or 6 songs, and then move down the line. I have never done anything like this before but it sure seems like it would be a lot of fun. We have to work a half day next Saturday to make up the typhoon day so since we will already be dressed up, then why not go out caroling? I'm terrified but excited at the same time.

If anyone around here is interested in joining us, then please let us know. The more the merrier!

We were talking about Caring in class and these are some of the things the students came up with.

Student Loving

After teaching 6th grade for many years, I was assigned to 4th grade this year. I always received a lot of affection but I've realized that once I moved to 4th grade, the level of loving has increased. 6th grade at the elementary school level is very challenging because you are trying to transition them from elementary school to junior high school and they are trying to navigate all of the emotions that come with it. Our students this year are so nice and I wonder if it is the grade level or the class we have. Or maybe it is just us and them. Joanna and I have embraced the Poligon and Polichan labels and have run with it. We really have enjoyed working together and have enjoyed our class immensely.

 One of our newer students hand stitched a Poligon face for me.

 I just received this one today.

 This is from the same student.

 A really nice postcard.

 Got this one when it was my birthday.

A student made me an album that I can put things into.

Maybe I'll just stay in fourth grade for awhile!

Christmas Decorations

I remember as a kid the excitement of decorating our house for Christmas. My father had hooks permanently screwed in on the eaves of our house to hang up the Christmas lights outside which I always thought was so smart. When we bought our first house it was two stories and I had a long ladder that went to the second floor and I got about half way up and decided, nah, it just wasn't me. The first year we were there a neighbor down the street fell off of his ladder and we all rushed over to see if he was alright. He ended up being fine but that sealed it for me, we would only put lights on the first floor of our house and that was it.

Living in Japan, Christmas is recognized and many of our students celebrate Christmas and get gifts but they don't really celebrate the meaning of Christmas. We certainly see a lot more Christmas items in the stores compared to when we first came to Japan. It's funny because our jr. high and high school needed to have a make up school day because of a typhoon earlier in the year and of course, they chose Christmas Day. Sacrilege! They ended up moving the day to another day.

We decorate (well, I'll admit, Joanna decorates our apartment) and I really like the spirit of Christmas when everything is put out. I remember, yes another memory, when we first moved to Numazu twenty years ago and we needed a Christmas tree but couldn't really find one and Joanna had her students at school make a paper Christmas tree which was on long butcher paper. She told me that she would bring it home and we could hang it on the wall and use it as a Christmas tree. I thought she was crazy but looking back all these years later, it sure brings back fond memories. Here are some of our decorations now.

 Our front door.

 Our dining room table.

 Some cool Christmas stuff.

 Alex!

 Our other table.

 Beautiful pillow!

 We got this wooden nativity set as a wedding gift and it has brought a lot of joy over the years.

 Our Marshmallow snowmen (Lithuanian one included).

Who doesn't need a little Darth to bring some holiday cheer!

Star Wars outfit

   Januck always makes fun of my outfits and then tells me I am fashionable!  So this is my Jedi look when I went out with a friend this week.

I'm glad I can amuse him in this way!