We woke up at Nel’s place around seven in the morning, and decided to go out and do a little hiking. The area around his apartment is really nice, with lots of trails that lead all over the mountainside. I was pretty envious of his set up.
Below his apartment complex is a small lake, and as we stood on the bridge looking down, about 15 turtles swam up and waited expectantly for us to drop food down to them. Since we didn’t have anything to give them, we walked around a bit more, and then gathered up our gear and went into town.
Near Nel’s train station is a place that has “Morning Service”. Depending on who you talk to, this can mean a lot of things, but in Japan, it means a light breakfast. We ordered some iced coffees, and with your drink you get a giant slice of buttered toast and a banana. The good news is that the food is free, you just pay for the drink. We got out of there for just a couple of bucks.
Next we took the train one station over and went to the beach. The weather was perfect, and although I didn’t bring a suit or a towel, I kicked off my shoes and walked around in the waves a bit. The water temperature was warmer than what I’m used to, and it was fun to walk around a bit and watch the locals. The girls swam with their clothes on – there were no bikinis in sight. The guys were wearing bathing suits, and people were just kind of lounging around. There was a lot of trash laying around, and I was surprised that they didn’t really take care of the beach.
After having a Zen moment at the beach we went back to the train station and went our separate ways. It was good visiting these guys, and I’m looking forward to our next visit.
I relaxed around the house, doing laundry and taking care of chores. In the evening Melanie came down with some beers and we compared notes on our weekends. I was getting ready to cook up some udon soup with pork, so I invited her to stick around. She brought down some frozen gyoza (pot stickers) and so I cooked up the lot and we had a couple more beers. The udon soup turned out nicely, and it was fun to cook for someone. The only downside was that we were eating hot soup on a hot day, but overall it was nice.
After dinner Mel took off and I made my weekly pilgrimage to the local 7-11. The 7-11 is not the closest convenience store, and not even really that convenient. The big attraction in this store is one of the employees, and she always works on Sundays. I usually take the 20 minute walk to the store for an ice cream on Sundays. The employee speaks in the most incredibly high, squeaky voice I have ever heard. You really must hear it to appreciate it, but it is amazing. It is worth a 20 minute walk, and 100 yen for an ice cream. She gives you great service, and finishes with an extra deep bow and the strangest, squeakiest “arigatoo gozaimashitaaaaaaa” you’ll ever get.
