We were very brave and ventured out on town in the car for the first time on our own. Armed with three different sets of directions, we were able to successfully navigate to our house. Jim has been discussing the merits of a GPS with folks at work. We used ours all the time at home, and have kinda gotten spoiled. Apparently there are a couple models that have Japanese maps, but not all are in English. A GPS in Kanji would be absolutely zero help to us. Of course, with the Japanese system of numbering buildings, I don’t know if anything can help (even veteran taxi drivers get lost). Addresses consist of the name of the neighborhood, the number of the sub-area of the neighborhood, the number of the block, and finally the number of the building.
Buildings, however, are not numbered in order along a street like they are in the States. The building number refers to when it was constructed on the block (not the street)—so you can have 1 right next door to16, and could potentially have 1 right across the street from 1, since they are on different blocks. Anyway…We made it to the house, arriving with the 12 boxes of can’t-live-without-it items we had mailed to ourselves before leaving Virginia and a couple rolls of shelf paper I purchased for the kitchen cabinets. The temperature in the house was well into the mid 80s—the Japanese, for all their frugalness and environmental consciousness, do not believe in insulating their houses. After firing up all of the air conditioners (each room has its own, which could be a very nice feature), Jim commenced with unpacking the 12 boxes while I tackled the kitchen cabinets. Here is the irony of the day—in a land where peepholes in hotel doors are four feet from the floor, and the hand-straps for stand-up riders clock me in the forehead every time I get off the train, I am going to have to purchase a step stool to reach my kitchen cabinets. They are mounted all the way to the ceiling, and I cannot reach them. Who would have thunk it?? At first glance, I thought I would have plenty of cabinet space in the kitchen—it looks like there are lots of drawers/doors. On closer inspection, I have exactly one cabinet (at an easy-access height) that is wide enough for dinner plates. All of my five drawers are just over six inches wide—none of them will hold a silverware tray (guess not a high priority for the Japanese, since they use CHOPSTICKS!!!). I am not at all sure how dishes, pans, small appliances, and food are all going to fit simultaneously in this kitchen. Guess I will have to get creative—lucky for me the 100-yen store has a gazillion storage gizmos!
The day ended with an impromptu group dinner at an Indian restaurant on Kamakura Beach. Seven of us enjoyed lassis, nan bread, rice, and various chicken dishes. The Japanese love international food, although they often “fix” it to suit their tastes. The restaurant we went to was owned by an Indian family, so it was true Indian food. We haven’t been to an Italian restaurant yet, but I understand that in most, many of the items on the menu have a distinctly Japanese twist (i.e. seafood) and are served in very un-Italian portions!
Tomorrow’s plan…REST!!
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