Interesting Fact

Interesting Fact

Three days ago, the first subway I took was delayed. I don't know why it was delayed . . . all the announcements were given in Japanese. All I know is that we sat at one station for a rather long time with the subway doors open (letting in quite a draft). By the end of our wait, I was very, very thankful that I was one of the few passengers lucky enough to have a seat!

When the subway did eventually arrive at my transfer station, I passed a guard handing out pieces of paper. He was giving them to everybody, and I took one. I had no idea what it meant, but an inkling that it had something to do with the delay.

The piece of paper

Something I find funny when travelling is that for me (since I can't read any written form of Japanese) this message was as good as a cipher. I could make educated guesses as to its meaning, but beyond that, I was in the dark. In the meantime, for anyone who can read Japanese, this was as standard as as any subway ticket!

Yes, I do realize I haven't explained just what it is yet. I just had to let you experience the "clueless" feeling first. Isn't that nice of me?

Now, as I was saying before I interupted myself, I didn't know what the piece of paper meant, but I intended to find out. So, once I arrived at the office I asked Hiroko. She glanced at it and said, "Oh, you don't need that." I had been pretty sure of that fact already. Still, I asked what it was. She explained that it is a pass from the railway company for employees to give their employers, explaining about the delay. Mystery solved!

A Walk to the Station

Yudai came along . . . oh for the energy of an 8 year old! It doesn't help that I'm getting over a cold, but I certainly feel quite old with Yudai capering around me as I walk!

This is the busiest road I walk along

A university I pass each day

My destination, Ogawa Station

I thought these apartments were rather fun

Some normal houses (notice all the green!)

Speaking of green, look at the bamboo. Isn't it lovely? In Korea it grows on the mountains, giving them a beautiful "feathery" look.

Back to Japan though, this is a yakitori bar. I love the architecture with all the timber.

These look a wee bit sad, but I had to take a picture. Flowers in January: unthinkable! (Being from Wisconsin, I have certain stereotypes for what sort of things to expect in January. These include snow, ice, frigid temperatures . . . anything but flowers!)

A postal box; isn't it fun?

A vantage point :)

Views of the Neighborhood

Looking out the apartment window

A neighboring school

Apartments . . .

and more apartments . . .

There's something special about these parking places; they're multi-level. To get your car (if it's the second or third down), simply insert a key into the meter and pull a lever.

The spiral staircase caught my eye, and if you look closely, you can see mountains on the horizon.

You don't see this sort of thing in Wisconsin during January!

Or this either!

The really gnarled looking trees are cherry trees. During April this will be gorgeous!

A streetview: see if you can match this with the view from my apartment.

Looking back up the same street

My host family's apartment building is on the right.

That's all for the present. Did you like the pictures? If so, you better check back soon. In my next post, I'm going to include pictures from my walk to the subway station!