Helping Others

While walking back home today, I came across a lady who was picking trash up from the street. It was everywhere and she told me a cat had gotten in it and dragged it everywhere. I started helping her pick it up, and she was so thankful! After we were done, she told me to wait a moment, and she literally ran to her house. A few minutes later she returned with wet wipes for my hands, and flowers as a thank you for helping her. I was stunned! I certainly didn't expect anything! I bowed and thanked her a million times, and we exchanged names. We have such great neighbors!

Dino

I forgot to mention that we have a dinosaur that lives down the street. He stays tied to a tree on the side of the road. I don't know his story, but he's a nice guy.

What are we eating now?

Any guesses?

(It's squid)

Home Tour

Just for fun, and to kind of put the layout together for friends back home, we did a home tour video! We had to upload it to YouTube since it's a larger file, so here is the link:

Japanese Home Tour This-a-way!

Our House!

Here is our home in Japan! It has several pretty neat features. It's a 2-story, 4 bedroom home. It doesn't really have a yard, as most homes here don't due to lack of space. In front of our house we have a driveway big enough to fit one car in. In the back, we have  a little patio big enough for some seating and a small grill. We don't have anything on the sides, and no grass at all - Japan is all concrete!

We have a washer/dryer unit. Saves space and no need to transfer clothes to another machine. On our balcony we have poles installed to hang clothes to air dry if we like.

Japanese homes do not have ovens like we think of in America. They all have stove tops, but if you're lucky, you'll get a fish broiler. It's a tiny little grill right under the burners, and it's just big enough to broil a fish in. Definitely not baking any cakes or pies in there!

Also, showers take up the entire room. They aren't a separate space in a bathroom like we are used to. The bathtub is also in the shower room, but you cannot use soap in it due to its specialized heated plumbing (the tubs have circulating plumbing so your bath water never gets cold). 

The toilet is in its own room away from the shower room. The toilet rooms look like tiny hallway closets, and when you open the door the only thing in there is just a toilet. To save space and resources, the sink is in the back of the toilet on top of the tank. It's great!

Another neat feature is the secret storage in our kitchen. There is a door in our kitchen floor that opens to a storage space where you can keep dry goods. 

Natto

So, again with the trying of wild foods. This is natto, and I must say, the locusts I tried last week were WAY better. Natto is an ancient Japanese dish, which is fermented soybeans. It is extremely slimy. The slime on this stuff is so elastic, that I moved the spoon 3ft away from the dish and ALL the gooey strands stretched the whole way, without breaking, like some massive gooey spider web. I don't mind the smell. I think it smells like coffee, but the taste is not good. And don't get me started on the texture.

Beer Vending Machine

These are everywhere! Pop one open and walk down the street. Yep!