Onsen Trip

We celebrated my aunt's retirement at a hot spring (Onsen) resort during three days of the national holiday (Golden Week) in Japan. My mother; my aunt and her husband; my sister, her husband and their children joined the trip. Luke and Ian had a great time with their cousins. Paul had to go to Indonesia for two academic conferences, so he was unable to join us. We all missed Paul -- we thought about him often, wishing he were here with us. But we are also excited to hear about all his fun stories when he comes back!

First, we stopped by a cycling park on the way to the hot spring resort. All riders have to pedal, so we had a great workout! For four hours we all enjoyed this park, then we were all ready to go to the hot spring.

We has only one night at the hot spring resort, but it was a wonderful time for Luke and Ian to get to know their cousins again. Last time they spent time together was two years ago, and at that time, Luke was just 2 years old. But this time, Luke is 4, and my sisters oldest son, Yuma, is 6. They get along and play together very well.

Here is a picture of our gang!

Kie (4) / Yuma (6) / Luke (4) / Ian (2)

Here are some more pictures from the hot springs trip:

My mother and my aunt -- they look alike and are best friend!

After dinner, we had a fun show that the boys put on! Do you know "sumo wrestling"? We had two tiny sumo wrestler that night -- Luke and his cousin Yuma.

Yuma-yama

Luke-yama

We all enjoyed this entertainment -- and had a lot of laughs!

Luke and Ian didn't want leave the hotel, because they had such a great time with their cousins.

Luke often asked me tonight "What do you think Yuma and Kie-chan are doing right now?" And Ian said "I miss Yuma and Kie-chan". When I talked to my Sister, she told me Yuma and Kie-chan asked her same question!--hahaha    I'm glad they had such fun!!

We are planning to visit my sister's house for a couple of weeks in June, so they will have the chance to spend time together again before we leave Japan.

Tango no Sekku - Boys' Day

Traditionally in Japan, May 5th is known as Tango no Sekku, or Boys' Festival Day. Although I think now they have changed the name to "Childrens' Day" (in case you were worried, girls do have their own day on March 3rd, called Hina Matsuri). One of the symbols of springtime in Japan is the Koinobori, a streamer shaped like the koi fish, that is hung in honor of sons, in the hope that they will grow up healthy and strong.

I am away from my two boys this May 5th, but I hope they enjoy this special day!

Here are a few of my favorite photos of Luke and Ian (and koinobori) from the past two weeks:

Naritasan Shinshoji Temple

I am leaving for Jakarta on Saturday morning, and am staying for the next couple of days near the Tokyo International Airport, in the town of Narita. I have a few writing projects to finish, and have my final online classes of the semester tomorrow morning. But I took a few minutes today to enjoy this beautiful, clear spring day, with a walk around Naritasan Shinshoji Temple, which is a walk of just a few minutes from my hotel.

Strawberries and playgrounds

We shared a fun day with Yukari's aunt, who took us strawberry picking. Of course, today was a national holiday in Japan -- the start of the long spring holiday, "Golden Week" -- so most of the strawberries had already been picked! Luke did enjoy finding a few red ones here and there, though. Ian slept through it all.

Afterward, we had a nice lunch and visited a playground in Shiozawa, another small town here in the mountains. It was a lot of fun for the boys to see so many other kids (out of school today) at the playground.

The hike

One of my favorite walks is up the mountain behind Yukari's family home here in Niigata. I have posted photos here before, from our last trip, and was really looking forward to this year as Luke and Ian are now old enough to join us hiking up the hill. There are great views overlooking the valley, and it really shows how much snow is still on the mountain tops here.

Back in Japan

We departed Charlotte a day late, due to weather, and made the long trip to Tokyo. Yukari and the boys will be staying here through to early July. I have a couple of conference presentations in Indonesia in May, but will join them again here in Japan early June for a month of rural Japanese life.

So far, we really have enjoyed visiting Japan again in the springtime. It has been years since I have seen both the snow on the mountains and the flowering trees here. Luckily, we have had a few sunny days to enjoy the sakura (cherry blossoms) with a day at Zenibuchi park, here in Yukari's hometown.

Kite Weather

Enjoyed a few days of early spring in Virginia Beach, before we leave for Japan later this month. Not exactly swimming weather yet, but a beautiful day Saturday to enjoy flying kites.

Virginia Welcome Center

Whenever we come to visit the family in Virginia Beach, we always stop at the Virginia state line Welcome center. The boys need a few minutes of fresh air at the playground there.

Decorating for Easter

Yukari is decorating our house this week for Easter.

The Day the Aliens Arrived

It was a nice sunny weekend, so we spent time outside making a movie about aliens arriving at our house. Luke wanted to be the director and cameraman, and I also think he did a great job as an actor... Ian too.. especially, rolling down the hill to escape the aliens.