August 9 - 15, 2010
After an exhausting week overflowing with festivals, this week was pretty low key... thank goodness.
Monday Eric's supervisor Kobayashi-san came over to meet Glenn and Patti. They were very excited to meet each other. Kobayashi has gone above and beyond to take care of us, like missing the principles retirement dinner to drive us to Aomori in a blizzard when the trains got stopped, see what I mean, he's fantastic. He often tells Eric that he is like a son :) Monday night we went out to dinner with Toshiya, our tutor. We had dinner in a Japanese restaurant near by that specializes in Tempura and Sushi, the food was amazing and the view of the ocean was incredible! We had an awesome meal together and had a really good time. With the amount of delicious food we've been eating, it's a good thing I walked a lot during the festival and that Glenn and I have been swimming so much.
Monday Eric's supervisor Kobayashi-san came over to meet Glenn and Patti. They were very excited to meet each other. Kobayashi has gone above and beyond to take care of us, like missing the principles retirement dinner to drive us to Aomori in a blizzard when the trains got stopped, see what I mean, he's fantastic. He often tells Eric that he is like a son :) Monday night we went out to dinner with Toshiya, our tutor. We had dinner in a Japanese restaurant near by that specializes in Tempura and Sushi, the food was amazing and the view of the ocean was incredible! We had an awesome meal together and had a really good time. With the amount of delicious food we've been eating, it's a good thing I walked a lot during the festival and that Glenn and I have been swimming so much.
Tuesday we went to Hirosaki Castle and enjoyed the quietness of the park. It's amazing how different a place can feel when it's not packed with people! This is our new family home :) Just kidding, we wish! 
It was built in 1611 and unfortunately this small building is all that's left of the castle. 
The sun started to set while we were in the park and the way the light was beaming through the clouds was truly and very naturally beautiful. It made me think of heaven, and all of the angels watching down on us. 
Glenn and Patti we ready for a break from Japanese food so we picked up some scrumptious Pizza Hut while we were in the city! We passed on the Tuna, Corn and Mayonnaise pizza and stuck to the good old Cheese Pizza! What a nice taste of home :)
On Wednesday we went swimming again, we had to swim off all that Pizza, and make room for dinner at English club. We had our monthly adult English club meeting tonight and we took Glenn and Patti to meet our friends! Patti and a lady from our class are going to be pen pals and Patti's friend's grandson is going to be the little girls pen pal! The new pen pals are the woman and her daughter standing between me and Eric in the photo.
Thursday was another day spent lapping the pool and by the evening we were pretty much too tired to move, so we had movie night and spent some quality family time together.
It was built in 1611 and unfortunately this small building is all that's left of the castle. 
The sun started to set while we were in the park and the way the light was beaming through the clouds was truly and very naturally beautiful. It made me think of heaven, and all of the angels watching down on us. 
Glenn and Patti we ready for a break from Japanese food so we picked up some scrumptious Pizza Hut while we were in the city! We passed on the Tuna, Corn and Mayonnaise pizza and stuck to the good old Cheese Pizza! What a nice taste of home :)On Wednesday we went swimming again, we had to swim off all that Pizza, and make room for dinner at English club. We had our monthly adult English club meeting tonight and we took Glenn and Patti to meet our friends! Patti and a lady from our class are going to be pen pals and Patti's friend's grandson is going to be the little girls pen pal! The new pen pals are the woman and her daughter standing between me and Eric in the photo.
Thursday was another day spent lapping the pool and by the evening we were pretty much too tired to move, so we had movie night and spent some quality family time together.
Friday marked the beginning of Obon, a holiday where most of the Japanese people return to their home towns or to the town with the oldest living relative. In our case, it meant our town was SWAMPED. Because many of the people who are born in the country grow up and move to the cities for work, more people are from Ajigasawa than currently live here, by a lot! It was difficult to do much of anything. We had a nice quiet Friday night Shabbot at home, played games, and hid-out from the craziness of the town.
Saturday we went to Goshogowara and stopped at our favorite recycle shop to check out some old Japanese goods, we also stopped into the Techi Nebuta museum to show Glenn and Patti how the floats from the Nebuta festival were made. After that we showed them what malls in Japan are like, Patti had already been to a smaller mall but was interested to see the popular weekend hangout. We didn't last long in the mall because weekend crowds, especially during Obon, are pretty unnecessary. On our way home we ate a delicious Udon Noodle house for dinner, the line was ridiculous due to Obon but the noodles were freshly made just like always, and dinner for 4 was under $20, and it wasn't Taco Bell! Not that I would mind having dinner at Taco Bell sometime soon ;)
On Sunday we drove to Hirosaki again and went to a fancier shopping mall so they could do some shopping. Patti and I ended up buying Kimono's from a second hand store. Patti is turning hers into a beautiful robe and I am going to have the missing finishing stitches put into mine. I purchased what should have been probably a $900-$1000 Kimono, but because it's missing maybe 15 minutes worth of sewing... it cost me a whole $22!!!! Well worth it! It fits perfectly and its absolutely beautiful in my opinion! Pictures to come, eventually. I'm really excited to finally own a Kimono. It's the one thing I knew I would want to buy in Japan before we came, as soon as I set foot in a Kimono shop for the first time and saw how many digits were involved with Kimonos my hopes were squashed, but thanks to a long and hard search, I found a true diamond in the rough that just needs a little bit more work and then it will be complete. Plus, I love bargain shopping, so it all worked out!
Saturday we went to Goshogowara and stopped at our favorite recycle shop to check out some old Japanese goods, we also stopped into the Techi Nebuta museum to show Glenn and Patti how the floats from the Nebuta festival were made. After that we showed them what malls in Japan are like, Patti had already been to a smaller mall but was interested to see the popular weekend hangout. We didn't last long in the mall because weekend crowds, especially during Obon, are pretty unnecessary. On our way home we ate a delicious Udon Noodle house for dinner, the line was ridiculous due to Obon but the noodles were freshly made just like always, and dinner for 4 was under $20, and it wasn't Taco Bell! Not that I would mind having dinner at Taco Bell sometime soon ;)
On Sunday we drove to Hirosaki again and went to a fancier shopping mall so they could do some shopping. Patti and I ended up buying Kimono's from a second hand store. Patti is turning hers into a beautiful robe and I am going to have the missing finishing stitches put into mine. I purchased what should have been probably a $900-$1000 Kimono, but because it's missing maybe 15 minutes worth of sewing... it cost me a whole $22!!!! Well worth it! It fits perfectly and its absolutely beautiful in my opinion! Pictures to come, eventually. I'm really excited to finally own a Kimono. It's the one thing I knew I would want to buy in Japan before we came, as soon as I set foot in a Kimono shop for the first time and saw how many digits were involved with Kimonos my hopes were squashed, but thanks to a long and hard search, I found a true diamond in the rough that just needs a little bit more work and then it will be complete. Plus, I love bargain shopping, so it all worked out!
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