take me OUT

One of Graham's co-workers is a big baseball fan and his team is doing particularly well this year so he invited us all out to a game to help cheer them on. We did not bring the kids to the game but will definitely take them (or at least Blue) before we leave. Even if he only makes it through thirty minutes it is quite the experience.


Baseball game in Japan from Micaelan Davis on Vimeo.

Each fan base has their own set of cheers, chants, and props that they use to encourage their team for the ENTIRE game. There are cheerleaders (funny, because I am sure it is an American rip-off but we don't have cheerleaders in baseball) but there is also a cheer leader who stands on a podium in the stands and literally conducts the cheers. The Carp (our adopted team) have little plastic baseball bats that they raise in the air or bang together as their signature prop.

 

    

There were groups of middle-aged women at the game enjoying it together. Some families packed their dinner and ate from little tupperware containers (you can bring your own food and drinks!). Overall, it was a far cry from the male-dominated, sometimes coarse tone of American sports.

a BRIGHT spot

So, you get that the first couple weeks were hard. But we moved into our permanent apartment at the beginning of week three and it has been a major bright spot in our stay. We moved in three days before our furniture arrived, sleeping on blankets on the floor, just to get our own rooms, a kitchen, and close proximity to parks and school.

The unit is one level above ground level in a fairly large apartment building. There are probably seven or so units on each floor and a total of four floors (one of the floors is partially underground, the building is on a hill). We have a view of the trees that surround the complex which is pretty unusual here in Tokyo. We are also in a corner unit so we have windows on two sides. Basically, we get a lot of light and see a lot of green which is priceless. Plus, the building is full of kids and other expats. It is really the perfect spot.

    

The unit is 1590 square feet which is just 60 square feet less than our house in Austin! We have one big master bedroom with two closets and a full bathroom attached. Wiley and Blue each have their own small room with a closet and share a large bathroom off the hallway. And then there is a third bathroom for guests in the entry area. So we decreased our bedroom size and the size of our common areas but we gained two bathrooms! There is tons of built-in storage and little closets tucked in here and there. We have lots of empty cupboards. 

      

All of our furniture is rented. We went through several versions of how we might furnish the place in the weeks before our departure but the final date was set so quickly and we were leaving without visas so G's company didn't want us to ship anything. We thought we might have to purchase stuff outright but in the end they let us use the shipping budget to rent furniture so that is what we did. The process is pretty straightforward. We visited the rental office and were assigned a designer to help us make selections. We chose from their used inventory when we could but I also selected a handful of new pieces. The used pieces were delivered a few days after we moved in and the quality is high. But it is especially nice to have someone else carry and assemble everything. And in the end they will come pick it all back up. Most of the new pieces are still being made so we have replacement items for a couple of months. At the end of the rental period we can buy any of the items for a pretty small fee. So if we fall in love with anything over the course of the year we can bring it back home with us.

The finishes in the apartment are all really nice - especially in comparison to our place in Austin that needs lots of TLC. So it feels a bit like a nice hotel at times. I am working on getting art on the walls in the hopes that it will feel a little more like home. But overall I am really grateful to get to live in such a nice, spacious, well-located space!

blue's FIRST day

We arrived in Tokyo on a Tuesday and Blue started school that next Monday. I was glad for it to be a part of our immediate routine. The school is Willowbrook International School and Blue is attending three mornings a week in the English-only class. They also offer dual language programs in Japanese/English or Chinese/English. The school is very similar to Four Seasons (Blue's Austin school) in its approach but very different in its feel. The rooms are small and somewhat sparse and there is no outside play space. The children walk to the park occasionally and there is an indoor gym. The teachers are very calm and warm. He is one of several older boys in the class and most of the friends don't speak much English. Blue is still reluctant to go in the mornings which is a change for him and talks often about his friends and experiences back in Austin. I am hopeful he will grow to like it a bit more.

     

I started documenting our first walk to school not realizing just how eventful it would become. It was really a tough journey for such little legs. We had maybe a seven minute walk to the train. Then a twenty minute train ride. Then a twenty minute uphill walk to the school. Those times are child-paced and Blue broke down in tears a couple times. He was nervous and wet his pants mid-walk too - thus the outfit change. But we made it and it was a little bit easier the next time around...

gotta get OUT

In our search for something to do nearby with the kids during the day, we headed for a bit of green Graham found on the map. Turns out that it was Hama Rikyu - a landscape garden in the middle of a bunch of big buildings. It was unbelievably hot outside but the scenery was quite pretty. I think I must have been too hot to take many pictures.

  

On a picture note, I haven't really taken my big camera out and about yet. So most of what you are seeing are iPhone pics. There is just so much to carry and there is so much walking that I just haven't worked up the energy to lug it about. 

tiny TINY space

For two weeks after we arrived, we stayed at a service apartment near Graham's office in Ginza. The space was about 450 square feet with a kitchen, bathroom, living area, and bedroom all in one big room about the size of our sunroom back home. Which meant that whenever one child woke up in the middle of the night adjusting to the time change everyone woke up! We unearthed the noise machine and stuck Wiley at one end of the room (the kitchen) and Blue at the other. To say that was a success would be an exaggeration but it got us by. Blue developed some bad sleeping habits with his bed being right next to ours. We are still working to overcome them weeks later. 

 

 

   

 

 

   

The kitchen was tiny but we still managed to cook oatmeal each morning and spaghetti and ramen a couple times for dinner. After sleeping, the second hardest thing about the apartment was having to eat out for every meal. Eating out is NOT kid-friendly here. No high chairs. Small, quiet restaurants. And unfamiliar food. I have never been so happy to grocery shop and meal plan as I am here in Tokyo. 

The bathroom was the one bright spot. I should do a separate posts on Japanese bathrooms... But until then, just know they are nice. 

 

 

The other semi-bright spot was the location. I say "semi" because it was not close to Blue's school which he started during the second week of our service apartment stay. Which meant my mornings were quite the ordeal and totally exhausting. But it was close to lots of fun shops (Ginza is sort of the Tokyo version of Fifth Avenue, but bigger) and the Tsukiji fish market which meant good sushi for Graham. Blue was a particular fan of a nearby toy store. On our last visit we let him pick out one thing and he got the dinosaur from Toy Story. He calls is Japanese T Rex. Because it speaks Japanese. 

things BLUE says

This was from a while back, but it still makes me laugh...

Mom:  These are my flip flops. Do you hear me flip floppin'?
Blue:  I'm boot'n.

the OTHER side

Sorry for the long radio silence folks and thanks for your patience. We made it to the other side of the world! We packed up our house in Austin and left it in very good hands, passed off Lucy to some good friends for the year, tried desperately to foresee and plan for the Duval house remodel, packed eleven huge duffel bags full of clothes, toys, kitchen supplies, and American souvenirs, said some sad goodbyes, and boarded the plane.

 

 

We had a short little flight to Dallas first thing Monday morning and then settled in for the long 12 hour leg from Dallas direct to Tokyo. The kids did amazingly well. We didn't even come close to using all the toys and snacks we brought along. And we didn't have a breakdown until after we got all our bags through customs and were headed to the train. At that point, it was 3 or 4am Texas time and Blue especially was looking very tired. We were greeted by all of Graham's Japanese co-workers once we got to the hotel with plans to take us to dinner! A sweet thought but there was no way the babies were going to make it through that. So Graham went ahead and the kids and I were in bed by 7pm.

 

 

We are staying in a service apartment while our apartment details are getting worked out, and while it is better than I was prepared for, it is still quite small and basically just one open room. Adjusting to time change has been tricky in such a small space. We were all failing miserably until I unearthed the sound machine from the bags. Now Blue can wake up and have a cry about not wanting to go back to sleep and Wiley can sleep through it. One week later and I think we are all mostly adjusted. The hardest part now is that Blue's little pallet is right next to our bed and such close proximity is tough for our chatty one. Most mornings we have been up by 6am and our the door an hour or so later. Nothing really opens until 10 or 11 though so we have been doing lots of morning strolls.

 

 

 

 

 

The morning strolls provide good exercise for the kids but not the good, free, run around, explore, kind of exercise they are used to. More of the - hold my hand in the street, watch out, keep up - kind of exercise. We found a good park though, near the apartment we hope to settle into, that has places to just be. This same park is also used by the school Blue will be attending so I am sure we will all become very familiar with it.

Sayonara for now. That is literally one of maybe four Japanese words I know. A project for when we feel a little more settled I think.