Commute

First commute. Just shy of 10 miles round trip.
No South Hill. No Spokane River. No Bluff. No dirt. No peace and quiet. No fun? 
Well, it was fun but different. I need to ride differently here. Can't really ride exclusively with traffic. You really need to use the sidewalk to be safer. Especially when turning across lanes. Haven't seen any cyclists do that yet. Some of the roads were just too narrow. I just need to get used to everything. I'll be riding my bike around like an ass in no time.
For most part I think the cars can adjust to cyclists on the road because there's so many scooters here. The scooter dudes zip in and out of traffic like crazy.

It's the same distance as it was between my house in Spokane and The Scoop but there's so much stuff between my house and work here that it feels like a world away. Too much traffic too.
I'm not too excited about all the cars but look forward to a lot of exploration. Found a cool bike shop on my way to work. Ended up buying a new Nitto handle bar for my bike. They had a bunch of nice bikes too. I'll write about my bike too next time. It's a ton-a fun.

Above Bike Store.

Bought one of them.

Ta da. Want it.

One of each please.

I'll take it to go.

Package

So awesome to get a package from Spokane. Thanks to you the package sender. The Skittles are gone and great coffee will soon be enjoyed.

Random photos with captions

Well, we're here. What do we get?

Halloween costume purchase at Japanese dollar store.

For a good time, make it Suntory time.

Baby loves tatami.

Stuck.

 

Elissa posing with a bike that's not her's. Not smiling.

Engrish is now wearable.

Toofless Miyo self portrait.

Says to sister "I walk. Now I destroy you."

No caption necessary.

The Shopping Trifecta.

You know you are settling in to a routine when you are brave enough to attempt a trip to the Apple Store in Shibuya. They just released the iPhone4 here yesterday. I am not that current with these sort of events but I thought it was odd that the store was open two hours early. We were there. And we ruled so much, that we did not have to wait in the huge line. Actually, I managed to get the attention of an Apple employee who spoke English. He was from Italy. Go figure.



In order to complete the elusive trifecta, it is highly recommended to have coffee. Most coffee here we have had, either from a vending machine, instant, anywhere...sucks. We have gone to Starbucks TWICE in two days, and I gotta say that it is very oishi. That is Pajanese for yummy. It is pretty pricey though. 8 bucks of coffee pictured.

I really wanted Patrick to help me steal this bike. I figured it needed a new home because it has a very flat tire. The sad thing is, that people barely lock these gems up, and this one is locked to nothing. It would never last 5 minutes in Spokane. I love it here. Your Bianchi Volpe is safe.








Patrick is the king of taking his own picture. This is not easily done when you are holding this little baby that I have nick named, the honey badger. I am pretty sure her first word will not be in English. It might be in Pajanese, right now she is good at yelling about what she wants . We had to hit the ramen store after our morning shopping. Fuel up for the trifecta!

These are the best gyoza ever known to man. I think I am in love. I can talk all day about the food here. It is serious business. The fruit is beautiful and as Lauren said "they treat it like a baby". Boy do they ever. Not just the Japanese food. All of the food is so good. People like to eat here, and is shows. I like to eat here too!

They also just love soft serve ice cream here. And lucky for us...we love it also. I am pretty sure my kids' first food they could feed themselves came in a cone. So, this is turning into a food blog. I am sorry, did I say that I love the food here? It is sort of a tradition to get soft serve for us now. Where are my running shoes? I need to run off some of this food!

This is Miyo.


So, back to this trifecta thing. We went shopping at three used stores. It is like going thrift shopping but better. In Japan, used means like new. They usually save the box that something comes in and all the instructions. I keep finding great washing machines. Miyo is good at finding toys and Hello Kitty things. Patrick is good at finding stuff we actually need. Nanae is good at drawing attention to us. We had a great, long day of shopping and everyone is asleep or about ready to pass out. Yes, I think I can handle the life Pajan.

Calmness

Nanae is naked in this picture cuz she's hot. It's been 15 plus years since I've been here during fall. Apparently it gets pretty warm here in October. Most days I'm in my T-shirt and shorts. In Spokane I'd be lamenting the days of warmer weather but enjoying the beauty and energy the changing season brings. I miss it.

When Miyo gets bored, we take her to the park. When Miyo gets hungry we feed her. When Miyo's being cute we take pictures of her. I spend a lot of time thinking of what she's going thru. I never had to move away from my home at a young age. Most people have told me that this move would be a great adventure for her. My head understands it, but my heart aches for her. She misses her friends. She missed her grandma Vickie. She misses little Fernie. She misses the Moose Bucket. I hope we settle in soon.

I found this picture of Elissa on the camera. I didn't take it. She doesn't know I'm using it. Sorry honey. She's the key to our new life in Pajan. Over here, she's a fish out of water. She only knows a few foreign words. Give her a map of her world, she'd have no idea where she is. When I'm not around, the only people she can talk to are a 5year old and a baby. Mother in law? Yeah, mother in law. 99% Spokane girl. 100% gonna surprise us all.

Pajan pictures

 In Pajan, we don't let our cars fart.

 Toofless Miyo.

Proof that we rock

Smile! You're gonna be haulin' our Frackin kids foreva! Baby not pictured.

From Spokane to Japan.

We are in Japan, living the life and breathing the air.

We - my wife and I - will update this blog as often as we want to.
We're really busy you know - livin' the life.
Miss Miyo may show off some of her photography visions - Miyo willing.

Nanae cries more than any Japanese baby we've ever seen.
It isn't embarassing - that's just how awesome we are.

We don't know how much we miss Spokane yet.
We don't know how much we like Japan yet.

Don't tell this to Miss Miyo, but I really really need some Lucky Charms......

Thanks to Miss Ruby of the Tully-Lannigan clan for coining the place that is Pajan.

We are here, and we are here to stay.

And that, was a note from Pajan.