Over the past couple of weeks we had my folks come out to visit us in Japan. They had originally planned to come out last year, but for various reasons they had to reschedule, and finally we figured that the Golden Week holiday would be the best time to pull it off.
This was the third (or fourth?) time that they had been to Japan, and since they were visiting during Golden Week it made a lot more sense to stay away from the sightseeing spots. My folks were far more interested in meeting up with the people that they’ve met in the past, and to spend time with them. It was our job to make that happen for them. Although we had a busy schedule with plenty of visits, I think they had enough time to spend with everyone.
We met up with the Yamaji’s, the Fukumi family, the Okamoto’s, the Kageyama’s, and Kuniko’s sister’s family came over as well. We had Chinese food in Kobe with the Ono family, and we did a little sightseeing in Osaka and Kobe as well. Most of that was just in the first week. Kuniko and I both had to work the second week, but my folks were able to relax at home.
I noticed two things that surprised me during this trip.
First, I was struck by how often I would be in a room with other people busy on their phones or computers. My parents spent a lot of time concentrating on Facebook, playing games, or looking at pictures. Perhaps it was because everyone was feeling a little out of place in the small house, but maybe the little screen is a good way to escape. Social media is a big part of my parent’s life – they are very social people – and during their visit I could really see how important these connections are to them.
The second thing that surprised me was just how physical it is to walk around Japan. My mom had some trouble getting around from the beginning, but gradually it got worse as we walked just about everywhere. For a long time I have been taking for granted the ability to walk to the station, walk to the supermarket, or walk to the beach. When we were faced with walking from one train station to another in Osaka it really hit home how tough that can be for physically challenged people. I’m not sure train stations and pedestrian thoroughfares here were designed with special needs in mind. With elevators a long distance from ticket gates it seemed like people who couldn’t climb stairs had to walk much farther than other people. Counter-intuitive, isn’t it?
Now my parents are spending the rest of the holiday on Maui, and they’ll be able to rest up and drive around more, so that should be a big help. Kuniko and I have been grazing through the fridge trying to kill off leftovers that remain, but mainly eating just kimchi and tofu. Time to lose those kilograms I put on during the visit!
