Made It! Now in Hiratsuka.

We made it to Japan! We even managed to figure out that train map. It's not too bad once you figure out where you are actually going to, and then you just work your way back.


The flight was nice - it went by rather quickly and was pretty smooth. They fed us a lot. I think we had like 4 meals on the plane. I think if airlines want to cut back on expenses, they should cut one of these maybe instead of taking our drinks from our domestic flights. Bah!

We got there and I had a few problems with my ATM card. After some tinkering we managed to acquire some Yen. 1 dollar =~ 108 Yen.

Then we took the trains to get to Jeremy's in Hiratsuka. It is a decent ways from Tokyo actually. It's probably about as far as Springfield, VA was from DC, though, so not too bad. We haven't checked the town out too much, but here is a view from our balcony:


By the way, we are staying at the place of some guy Jeremy knows, named Eric. Eric's not even here! Thanks for the room though. Here's the bedroom. Note the Japanese style tatami flooring. No shoes allowed!


Jeremy took us to a fun little local joint where we had cold saki and yakatori, which is grilled chicken on a stick. Jen also got her first lesson in proper chop-stick usage. Apparently, if she's going to feed herself over in Asia, she's going to have to catch on quickly.

I also have to comment on the toilet here. It's a toilet/sink. When you flush the water that fills the tank comes through the top like a sink for hand washing. Pretty wild. For more info click HERE.

Here's a new feature for you to check out. Go to THIS google map link to see where we are at.

That's it for now. We are going to the beach this morning which is just down the road.