Number 1

We had a wonderful time in the Los Angeles area. It was a little short, but it also helped us appreciate the beauty Colorado has to offer. It was great to be able to see some of our dear family and friends, then to revisit Our Lady of Grace for Sunday mass. I can't even begin to describe the feelings other than you know the saying that you don't miss something until it is gone`~well in our case coming home reminded us of how important many of you are in our lives.

The plane ride was relatively uneventful. The girls did pretty well. We were all anxious to get off when we arrived in Osaka-Kansai airport. Customs and passport control were a breeze. The only challenge was finding where the shuttle bus was that took us to the hotel and that wasn't too bad. Because of the amount of luggage we were bringing, we decided to use a luggage handler to take our bags on to Yamaguchi for us and we only kept what we would need for the night in Kansai.

The next morning, Wednesday, I think, we took a few trains to our destination of Yamaguchi where Dana is working. We missed the last train by a couple of minutes, so we ended up taking a taxi to the hotel. I actually think the taxi was easier for that last stretch anyway.

Yamaguchi is an old town and there are very few people that speak any English here, and those that do, speak it only slightly better than I speak Japanese. Needles to say, we really stand out in a crowd! Charlene in particular attracts lots of attention with her impish smile and her curly hair.

As of Monday, we will have an apartment to live in. It is a traditional Japanese place except we do have a western style toilet. There are two bedrooms, a kitchen, living room, toilet, separate "bath"room and laundry area and a "Japanese" room. The toilet is in a separate room and it has a sink on the top where the water tank usually is. After you flush the toilet, the water comes on in the sink! Guess that way the kids are reminded to wash their hands. The Japanese room has one of those bamboo-like mats on the floor, some beautiful cupboards in it and rice paper on the window area.

We got the apartment for a very good price, only about 1/3 of what it would usually cost, but the catch is that it is unfurnished. So we have rented some basic furniture as well as a refrigerator and wash machine. The rest of the stuff we will buy with the difference between the housing allowance and the rent. It is amusing shopping for household items when you are not familiar with the customs of the country. Rather than renting beds, we bought tatami's. They were not too expensive, and I think when we get home they will be great when we have guests.

We do not have a phone yet, because just to turn a phone on costs about $750. We are probably going to get cellular phone on Monday.

The girls and I went to a Five Story Pagoda today and then back to the church that is the Shrine for St. Frances Xavier. We will probably go to mass there tomorrow if I understood the times on the schedule correctly. It was all in kanji, so who knows.

Dana is off tomorrow so we will go exploring with him. We are all looking forward to spending some time with him. He has been working some long hours, but the work is on schedule so far.

We had some fun at the Laundromat today. We met some very nice people who took video of the girls and bought them each juices. They were apparently visiting this area as well. I thought it was funny that they asked me how to use the wash machines and the writing was all in kanji! I could tell how much money to put in and I just guessed which button to push. The wash machine sizes vary on weight and you also don't add soap, it goes in the machine automatically. Of course, the smallest machine costs 700 yen or about $7.00 and it is about $1.00 for 10 minutes on the dryer, so I guess the least they can do is include soap!

I guess that is about it for now. I will save the stories on driving and shopping for another chronicle.

Blessings and prayers,

Marion