We are back from Japan. It was a whirlwind trip and I think we are perhaps a little crazy for doing it in four days. Sean could not have been better. He had a few moments, but they were minimal. We hauled him all over and he was a trooper.
On Thursday night we flew into the Kansai International Airport. Check it out! It is on an island. Pretty amazing. Pat knows his way around immigration and customs so that was a breeze. I am fairly confident I will be able to do it by myself when necessary. My first impression at the airport was, wow these ladies love their fancy purses. I know, I know. I am so shallow. But, seriously, the fashion is something to be noticed and this was not even Tokyo. Gucci, Prada, and Louis Vuitton were very present.
After getting our luggage and going through Customs we caught a bus to the hotel. It was approximately a 45 minute ride. I was hot. I was hot the entire trip. Osaka is huge and it kind of reminded me of Dallas in the way that it is spread out. I did see quite a few driving ranges (the three story type) and a lot of water parks. I am sure Pat will be amused that I noticed water parks and driving ranges and fashion.
The hotel we stayed at is located on Rokko Island (we may end up living on the Island). We arrived around 7 pm. Being exhausted and sweaty, we went straight to the room and stayed in for the night.
The following day we started house hunting, or apartment hunting rather. The planner plus two real estate agents picked us up and we headed into Kobe. We looked at four apartments in a beautiful, contemporary, new building. The view from the apartments is remarkable with mountains on one side and water on the other. That sums up the view from many places in Osaka. It is gorgeous to be surrounded by mountains and ocean. Sean started to melt down at the last apartment. We took a lunch break and then looked at apartments on Rokko Island.
The entourage we had with us were attentive, kind, and very anxious for us to make a decision. We have yet to decide, but all of the apartments are very nice, and I am not worried about our living situation while in Japan at all.
When we arrived back at the hotel we all three took about a four hour nap. That was delightful. That evening we went to hang out with friends. Yes friends! Yay. When this move became a reality I searched the internet and found the blog of a family who had just moved to Japan. I followed their entries for a while and then emailed them. It felt awkward to email a stranger. I was mostly concerned they would think I was a lunatic. I am so glad I did though. We corresponded and then Pat was able to meet them on one of his trips over. Friday night I me was able to meet Mike and Ilena, and on Saturday we went sightseeing with them and their two fabulous kids. Check the family out here. They are wonderful and their blog reads like a travel guide to Japan.
We had dinner on Saturday night with another American family we met through Pat's work. It was a great dinner and good company. I was feeling the jet lag by dinnertime, unfortunately.
We flew home on Sunday. Japan is beautiful and I am excited about the move.
I will leave you with Sean in the Northwest Lounge at the Kansai International Airport. We like to call this,
"business baby."
