Japanese Beauty

Here are some random photos taken around the country that are different forms of beauty. Statues, flowers, etc. I know I've mentioned how amazing the flowers are here, but every day I'm amazed at the beauty. Along the streets, where strips of grass or bushes would be in America, there are flower beds with dozens of different species. Irises, daisies, roses, wisteria, and tons of others that are just bursting with a rainbow of color. There is so much concrete in Japan, but wherever they can squeeze in some dirt, they grow gorgeous flowers that really make walking around town enjoyable.

This is the ceiling inside the Tokyo train station. 

Sushiro

I just want to share our favorite sushi joint, Sushiro. It's a conveyor belt restaurant, and they have wonderful food, and a pretty good variety. Mostly sushi, of course, but they have fried foods, soups, and desserts. They have wasabi ice cream which is delicious, and creme brulee ice cream which is even better!

Bugs

I often feel like I'm hosting Bizarre Foods, which is AWESOME. I got to try locusts, which were really good! This was the first time I had ever tried insects before. They had been marinated in teriyaki sauce and served on a bed of cabbage. They had a slight crunch and were really sweet. Jonathan wouldn't try them, but I think sooner or later he will. I'm a fan!

Ranko!!

We made it up to Tokyo to meet up with our friend Ranko! Long time no see!! We had so much fun. We went to a Buddhist temple, ate a ton of great food, drank some great beer, and did something none of us had ever done before - took a tour on the top of a double decker bus! It was amazing! It was a great tour of Tokyo, and we were really shocked when the bus got on the highway. Being on top of a vehicle going 60mph is pretty wild! My hair was out of control! Haha

It was so great seeing an old friend, especially in her hometown. We can't wait to see you again, Ranko!

The silver tower pictured between buildings is the Tokyo Skytree. It is the tallest tower in the world and is used for broadcasting and has a restaurant in the top. 

The orange and white tower that looks like the Eiffel Tower is Tokyo Tower. It is also used for broadcasting, and you can go up to an observation deck in it. 

This lovely building is the Asahi Beer headquarters, and yes, is was designed to look like a mug of beer with a frothy head. 

A Guest

It's been quite a while since a post because we have been getting settled into our new house! We got a 4 bedroom, 2 story house, however since everything is small in Japan, our house is only 1000 square ft. Much smaller than an American 4 bedroom house, but for us it's the perfect size. Pictures, plus a walk through video will come soon.

We had a guest in the backyard the other day! A little Japanese skink was sunbathing on the patio. A bird or something had nabbed his tail, poor guy.

Arcades

Arcades and game places are everywhere here, and there are tons of fun games and machines you can feed your money into. A lot of the prize machines have very unique items inside... here are some examples:

Extremely realistic plastic replica key chains. Here we have some super realistic yakitori. The chicken meat, tentacles, and quail eggs are insane with the detail. It looks like actual food laying there.

Hyper realistic shell fish. These look alive. I just don't even know.

You want some realistic rubber squid key chains? I know where you can get some.

At many bakeries they make rolls in the shape of turtles and animal faces. It's super cute. And you can get tiny plastic versions on key chains!

There is an interesting cartoon egg character here named Gudetama. You can see some videos of him on YouTube. He is a sassy little yolk. 

And one of my favorite prizes: staplers!

The Beach!

Being a chain of islands, there are thousands of beaches to explore. We went to a very nice beach in Zushi, which looks out over Sagami Bay. It was beautiful and sunny, and we haven't seen a beach yet that doesn't allow pets. Dogs are always running and playing in the water! It's great!

This beach in Zushi was unique because of the high amount of sea shells there. The half of the beach closest to the water is mostly made of shells! There are trillions, in all shapes and sizes and colors. You have to dig down through them before you hit sand. I could sit in one spot for hours and comb over all of them.