Finally, an internet connection.

I’ve spent most of the past two days in the back of a car and now I’m trying to stay awake. Yesterday we went from Maebashi to a Japanese hot spring with a stop at the prefectural government building and their spectacular view.

gunmapref

We also had a stop for soba for lunch somewhere in the mountains in between stops at lakes, viewpoints, and other mountaintop recreational areas.

sobalunch

We also made a stop to see our friend’s single apple tree (the one right behind my mom).

appletree

We got to the hot springs in the afternoon and I don’t have any pictures because I was too busy relaxing. We went with my mom’s friend Mieko and were met by her husband, Dr. Kobayashi who I haven’t seen in 18 years. He’s usually too busy to get away from his doctoring. I wish I had pictures of the baths because it’s so relaxing taking a bath and then soaking in a pool of hot water. Unfortunately, there were lots of people around and I’m not about to post a picture of a bunch of naked middle-aged Japanese men. This isn’t that kind of blog. The food was pretty good as well but I was still too busy relaxing to take a picture of the food.

I was in the back of Mieko’s car for a second day while we made our way to the Kawasaki residence in Toyama. We made some stops to see friends and also Yasuhiko Jinja.

yasuhikotorii

yasuhikojinja

In any case, I can’t believe how tired I am for just having sat in the back of a car for two days. I guess I’d better cut this short before I end up passing out.

However, here’s a picture of a girl’s shirt with some fine examples of Engrish which I thought was appropriate for Halloween.

sweets-t

Plus some cows in the back of a transport truck. They probably couldn’t fit on the Japanese version of Greyhound.
cowtruck