Konichwa! I'm in Japan today.

Hello fellow travelers,
I'm in Japan today. And freezing my patootie off! Crazy. I cannot for the life of me figure out the word for heat on the Japanese remote. I slept with layers upon layers and was toasty warm until I had to get out of bed. Thankfully, I was able to figure out how to crank the heat on the hot water heater resulting in a comfortably warm shower.

I landed in Osaka's Kansai airport at 4:30pm yesterday. I'm a bit confused as to what day it exactly is here or at home in Wisconsin. I'll figure it out eventually. It's not too important.

Customs was understandable, empty of long lines (cool!), and prompt. The Custom's agent who checked me in was adorable. I could've taken him home as a souvenir! My bag came up very fast on the belt; was it because I'm silver status with Delta? I wonder.

I was met at the airport by a very friendly and hospitable man, we'll call him Taka for short, who works at the University I'm visiting and being hosted by. He helped me get yen and a Japanese cell phone for the 13 days I'm here. That was helpful and cool.

Everything at the airport was orderly and understandable. The building's design reminded me of the Cincinnati airport, when the Cinti airport is not under its frequent construction.

We then jumped into the waiting van and sped off toward the Hyogo region where I'll be staying. I was immediately surprised by the fact that the driver's side is on the right of the vehicle. They drive on the opposite side of the street than in the US. It's just like in Ireland or England, which I never did master when I was in either of those places either. I definitely had the sensation that we were going to hit another car several times! It's a basic difference, but one that always serves to mess with my mind. lol! So much for the world traveler.

The drive into the mountains skirted the city of Osaka. Osaka from the highway looked like an endless sea of buildings reaching to the ocean. Lining the route were jazzy looking sleazy hotels for a quick romp for those seeking a bit of privacy and the ability to moan loudly as well as industrial and residential buildings. What I didn't see were many restaurants lining the route, but perhaps it was my vantage point. The roads had an uncanny resemblance to American highways in their appearance and design. I learned that almost all the roads are toll roads, so that is why they are well maintained. Although, the recent gov't is supposedly trying to change that. My new friend, Taka, who lived in Vancouver, Canada for several years explained this and many things to me as we drove into the descending night.

We arrived at campus a little before 8:30pm. There were these odd little cartoon signs of an idealized little girl that were on the sidewalks. I guessed that they were for bus stops, but found out that they are "children crossing" signs. The reminded me of the surreal store manequins in Thailand with the hyperhappy faces and silver hair. I was taken to the int'l visitors' dorms and shown my apartment. It is #403 on the fourth floor and no, there is no elevator. It's good for the legs to climb anyway. It is a one bedroom flat with a balcony overlooking a tree-lined road. There is a washing machine! Ethernet cable, tv, dvd, microwave, etc. Everything I need to get along well for nearly two weeks. Now, I just need to get to the grocery store, which I gather according to my schedule is to be after the campus tour this afternoon.

After I settled in a bit, Taka took me and the downstairs graduate student neighbor from Mexico, Paula, to a "rolling sushi" restaurant. It was a visually stimulating place. About 6 rows of booths lined the mini sushi conveyor belt, so that diners could select the sushi they wished. There was even a special order touch screen, which I used, with a lot of help since it was written in Japanese, to order some Unagi, my favorite. We were joined at the restaurant by my host, Professor Imai, and two other colleagues from the Int'l office where Taka works. We had green tea, rounds of sushi including maguro, corn, smelt roe, uni, unagi, makerel, salmon, crab in tempura, and many other kinds of fish I couldn't identify. The sushi was poignantly fresh; I could taste a degree of freshness I'd not in sushi in the US. It was sublime. I was in cuisine nirvana! I hope to have some more for lunch. The new friends and I laughed and chatted in various languages including Spanish throughout the evening. I teased Taka relentlessly as he and I seem to have the same sense of humor and a unique understanding of each other. I think we bonded on the drive when we chatted about his son and my nephew with Autism. Imai asked us how long we'd known each other! lol. Taka wants my students to come here and teach EFL. This is a very good start to the trip. I need to chat with Elyssa in ES 409 about this development; Maybe she'll come this summer?

Stopped at 7-11 on the way home last night! Hahaha, I had no idea they had the company 7-11 here. It cracked me up. I purchased some food for the apartment for this morning, and some other items of need. The 7-11 looked just like all the others with the exception that there are mostly Japanese items on the shelves, and of course, Starbucks and Coke brands. Right before we were leaving, after I'd checked out, I noticed a bag of what looked like cotton candy. I asked Taka and Paula about it and they confirmed that it was. This was serendipitous, because Maddy had asked me to roll down the airplane window and grab some cotton candy cloud for her to eat and to bring it back with me! So, of course, I took the opportunity to purchase some. The odd thing was that stores here, like in the US, don't usually sell cotton candy. It's a fair or festival kind of thing. Taka and Paula thought this was a lucky coincidence, as did I. Lucky I was.

I slept soundly all night thanks to my new friend, melatonin. I did wake up with a raging headache that had me decapacitated for a bit, but I rebounded with effort. This morning, when I awoke, I heard the most beautiful bird calls. Some I've never heard before. I'll investigate to find out more about the type of bird.

I think I venture down to Paula's apt, 203, and ask about the heat and the birds.
ttyl.