Japanese Random Thoughts

It has been fun seeing things that I read about in tour books. This section will be updated as our trip progresses. Pictures to be added once we get home. 

Electric Outlets and Plugs

The Japanese use the same outlets as ours, but a different currency. We brought electronic gadgets that can handle both and have been fine so far. The only issue was that three pronged outlets are not common, so Hiroko picked up a three to two prong converter from us from a hardware store. The shame of it is we have a converter like that in NJ. Oh well. I really do want to charge up my mini laptop so I can keep updating the blog easily.

Gas Stations

When we filled up the rental car today we noticed the gas pump nozzles were suspended from a wire, rather than attached to pumps that are on the ground. Much better use of space, though we could not see the amount ticking away.

Phone Booths

Really shocked by the vast quantity of telephone booths, especially given how hard they are to find in NYC. There was even one in our hotel lobby in Nikko. We saw one in a train station that had unattached phone books with it.

Hotel Room Light

You have to put your card key in the slot in order for the lights to turn on in the room. Someone had told me about this, but it was still fun to see in person.

Slippers

Every hotel we have stayed in included slippers for us to wear while in the room. 

Toilets

Japan is famous for their toilets. We've encountered the basic hole in the

ground to toilets with way too many whistles and bells, including a music button to make it sound like the toilet is flushing if you are taking too long. Based on what I've read about toilets in Japan, I was not taking a chance on pushing too many buttons. I do love the heated toilet seats and wish we had included that when we remodeled our bathroom last summer. I keep finding it odd to see phones in bathrooms -- both in hotels and out in public. Ashley now makes sure she finds "Western" toilets rather than "Japanese" ones. Can't say that I blame her.

Most bathrooms we have gone to include a seat for a baby (5 m - 2 1/2 years old). Wish more of those existed in NJ when Ashley was a baby. Seriously, what do they expect us to do with tiny babies when new moms go to the bathroom? Let them crawl around on the dirty bathroom floor? Hold them while also trying to take care of business?

Stay LEFT

I'm struggling with the concept of staying LEFT since it is ingrained in me to stay RIGHT. I just keep looking both ways, and looking again and again before crossing the street. I kept my eyes closed in the rental car.

American-style Food

Our forays into American-style food (such as burgers) still includes a side of

rice.

Pantomiming

We were becoming experts in pantomiming while at Tokyo Disneyland. That game was not played in Nikko where they expected us to speak more Japanese. We'll see what happens in Nara, Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo.




Rain

When it rains in California, the locals stay home and wait for a nicer day. When it rains in Japan, the locals pop open umbrellas (often non-compact ones so they can add them to the ever-present umbrella racks) or wear rain ponchos. Our Americanism stands out because we just wear sweatshirts with hoods and tough it out. We just are not fans of umbrellas. 

Tipping at Shows

We noticed at Tokyo Disney that the map said Cast Members cannot accept gifts. That statement made more sense when we went to EdoWonderland and learned the custom is to tip the performers, if you want. Each time we went into a show, we were handed a square piece of wax paper. We were invited to put some coins in the wax paper, twist it, and toss it on the stage at the end of the show. We had no idea how much to toss, and our friends were not doing it, so we skipped it.

Tipping at Restaurants

It just isn’t done. As a result, the servers are not extremely attentive. If you need something, there is often a bell (like a doorbell) on the table to use to flag them down. There are times I wished this existed back home! It is also nice that the final bill is figured out by adding up the items since sales tax is wrapped into the bill.

More on Rain

We saw a bicyclist riding his bike while carrying an open umbrella. Mind you,

only 5 drops of rain had fallen so far, but we were still impressed by his dexterity. Don saw an umbrella case attached to a bicycle. If it keeps raining, we hope to take a picture of this feat. Ideally, though, the rain will stop. (Update: it rained again and we snapped a picture this time.)

Subways

There are women only cars during rush hour. We are hoping to avoid rush hour on the subways since we’ve heard about the gropers and the white gloved train attendants who squeeze you into the train.

Bicycles

So far we’ve seen some pretty neat bike gadgets. We’ve seen to bikes fitted with front and rear baby seats. Don hopes to visit at least one bike shop while in Tokyo.

Hotel room accoutrements

In the United States many hotel rooms come with a coffee maker. In Japanese hotel rooms there is always a way to make tea. Yes, I should have been smart enough to realize this before we left NJ, but I wasn’t. Don packed his giant mug and a bunch of tea bags, but I didn’t. Honestly we haven’t slowed down enough on this trip for me to buy more tea bags, so we’ve been sharing the tea bag.

The other new to us kind of thing they have in hotel rooms is a nightdress.

I’m used to towels, sheets, blankets, and pillows, but before this trip we never stayed in a hotel that included pajamas for our use.

Plastic Bags

Being on the Sustainable Lawrence committee to push to ban plastic bags I am probably more aware of the issue than most others. The amount of plastic bags is shocking! We bought danishes for breakfast. The danish came wrapped in a plastic bag, then the plastic bag was wrapped in a bigger / nicer plastic bag. When we bought bananas, they, too were put in a plastic bag. We tried to say no bag ("sono mama"). The comment that was told to us was that there are hardly any trash containers, so you need something to hold your banana peel until you find one. The lack of trash cans dates back to a bombing that took place in Japan over 20 years ago.

Trash containers

The reason for so few trash containers stems back to an act of biological warfare that took place in 1995. Someone put a gas explosive in a trash can. The reaction was to take away most public trash containers. This is similar to the reaction the US had when the shoe bomber was detected, and now we all have to take off our shoes when we pass through airport security.

Litter

Even with so few trash containers, there is still very little litter. Remarkable!

Vending machines

We have seen vending machines for ice cream, cigarettes, beer, and hot drinks in cans, as well as Coke and water. Later we found a camera equipment vending machine, too.

ADA

Yes, I know the first A in ADA is Americans, but bear with me here. For a country that has lots of sidewalks with lanes in them for blind people to use with a white cane, they have a lot of unnecessary steps. Our goal is to survive the trip without visiting a Japanese hospital. However, if we do, it should be covered by our trip insurance.

Strollers

I noticed at Disney that strollers are a lot smaller, and that kids are out of the stroller age at a much earlier age than in the States. 




Bicyclists

There is bike-friendly and bike-dominant. While Don is having fun like at the bicycle gadgets (and contemplating buying at least one), I am playing dodge the bicycle. We've only noticed three people wearing helmets -- and one was a small child. They mostly ride on the sidewalk along with the pedestrians. so far so good.

Unchained--Don's first Art exhibit

Last night was a lot of fun! We attended ArtWorks opening reception of the exhibit Unchained: the art of the bicycle. This was his first juried exhibit. The guidelines were that you had to submit art that involved bicycles in some way, shape, or form. there were many photographs and drawings, and a few sculptures. 

Don wore his "Don's Double Century" polo shirt.

This tricycle has a camera mounted on the front and pictures taken by that camera on the wall behind it.

This pooch is made out of bicycle chains.

Don's artwork was pictures he took at Walt Disney World and turned into a calendar. Rather than submitting the calendar, he turned it into a collage. Even enlarged, it is hard to distinguish the images. January was taken at Epcot (near France). October and December were both taken in MGM (before it became known as Hollywood Studios) in the back lot area. The rest were taken in Animal Kingdom. If you love the image, ArtWorks is selling it for $25 with all proceeds going to ArtWorks. Or perhaps a deal can be made with the artist.

What made the evening the most special, though, was seeing so many people from different stages of Don's life. There were the usual Trenton cycling crowd (Jacque, Kate, Mike, and Wills), Lawrence cycling friends (Dennis and his wife, Laura), friends from college (Mike and Debbi, with their boys), and friends from our former church (Jen and Ben). I know as Don reads this, he will remind me of others who turned out for the opening reception. It was so much fun seeing friends from different parts of life come together to celebrate. One of the biggest reasons I have been keeping this blog is to help us to remember special moments in our lives such as this one, and to share those moments with those of you who live too far away to share them with us in person.

His art will be on exhibit through June 13. I encourage you to go to celebrate Trenton's rich art culture. ArtWorks is most easily found by taking the Market Street exit off of Route 1 South. When you come off of the highway, the building is across the street from the exit.

Trenton Times article about the event: http://www.nj.com/mercer/index.ssf/2013/05/artworks_unveils_bicycle_art_s.html

Summer Fun

I think the Summer of 2012 has been one of my favorite summers thus far. We spent most of it at home, or close to it. We saw lots of friends and family. I'm sad to see it come to an end.

I summed up our summer recently to a friend in the following message (since edited):

* Ashley thinks having a bearded dragon is even better than she ever imagined. I still can't believe we own a reptile.

* Ashley taught herself how to do a handstand and a cartwheel. She enjoys doing them over and over and over again. Skills I never mastered! 

* We survived our "cruise to nowhere" out of NYC. This satisfied my desire to see the inside of a cruise ship -- a wish that dated back to the 1980s when I watched "The Love Boat" each week. Not sure if we will go on a cruise again, but if we do I want to go somewhere -- preferably someplace without rain.

* Don rode his bike 200 miles in June. I'm tired just thinking about it.

* Our contractor finished our master bathroom project. We now have 2 1/2 working bathrooms again (the 1/2 being the downstairs powder room). It will be nice not having to wait in line for a shower again. Reminded me too much of college days. Ashley is happy to have "her" bathroom back again.

* I'm thinking I am insane for signing up for two more half marathons (Columbus, OH on October 21 with family, and Trenton on November 10 alone since my friends signed up for the 10K). Hopefully once school starts and the humidity disappears I'll enjoy running again.

* Ashley was cast as Lucy in "Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe." November 30-December 16 at Somerset Valley Players. I see lots of drives to Hillsborough in our near future. She sees lots of lines to memorize (120 of them). Should be a good show as the director is insisting on British accents for the family members and is treating the children as adults.

* I signed up to join a couple of committees -- Sustainable Lawrence and Somerset Valley Players. Trying to gain some grant writing experience. I believe strongly in both of these organizations and look forward to seeing where this takes me.

* One of my Patch articles received the WPIX Pix of the Day award earlier this month. With it comes bragging rights and nothing else. Freelancing was light this summer. I'm looking for more steady income once the school year starts again.

* Ashley loved Terhune Farm Camp, Lenape Camp (Junior Counselor again this year), VBS, and a few days in Williamsburg with my parents. Most of the days she was in camp I was running in the heat and humidity. I'm really looking forward to more pleasant running weather. What doesn't kill me just makes me stronger, right?

* Saw all three plays at Edison's Plays in the Park as well as a couple of other community theater productions. Wish I saw more shows.

* We loved going to Music in the Park almost every Thursday this summer. We only missed the one week to cover the Sustainable Jersey Farm to Table Fundraiser at Terhune for the Lawrenceville Patch.

* We learned how to Skype this summer! Ashley had several Skype playdates with Emma, her best friend from kindergarten who now lives in Michigan.

* I was thrilled to get together with Melanie and her family in NYC, Karin and Michelle at Quiet Valley Historical Living Farm, and Heather and Jolie at their house. Play dates with Sophie, Maia and other friends too far to see regulary, in addition to play dates with closer friends, such as Emily, plus pool dates with my parents, and a visit with Aunt Barbara and Uncle Al. Don couldn't believe he got together with Tony in NYC after all these years. We enjoyed three Kappa parties (thanks Pattersons, Kaspers, and Trish) -- one in each part of New Jersey. (If I left anyone out, blame it on my old brain cells and not on our lack of having fun with you -- the joy of an online newsletter is that I can edit it in a flash.)

* We all read lots of books, most of which we borrowed from our local library.

The best part of summer, though, was seeing Ashley's spark return. Her eyes twinkled. She became animated and really fun to be with again. I want that 

spark to always remain with her.

Guess it has been a busy summer after all. 

Tell us about your summer!

Don's Double Century

Don wrote a blog post about his experience riding 200 miles in one day. 

On Saturday, June 23, I completed my first double century. I was tired at the end but finished with a smile and really glad I did it. The day was a real blessing. The days before and after were super hot.

The northern half of the ride was most interesting and fun. Up through Frenchtown, the rolling country side leading to Round Valley Reservoir, riding through Whitehouse Station, down along the D&R Canal to Kingston out through Plainsboro to Windsor. The southern half was more monotonous. From Windsor I continued out to Millstone and then south through the Pine Barrens to Chatsworth west to Smithville and returning north via Columbus (NJ) back to Mercer County Park and finally home.

This was a solo venture. My SAG support was carrying a cell phone with Jacquie and Ashley at home “on stand-by alert.” There were no pre-defined rest stops with ample supplies of food and water. I was following a route someone posted to a website. The directions were amazingly good. But I was surprised by the lack of convenience stores and places to grab a bite to eat along the route. Fortunately, there happened to be two strategically placed stores that were real godsends. (I bought a gallon of water from each.)

The really remarkable aspect of the day is for something created by someone I’ve never met, the route provided a virtual scrap book tour of my 14 years of bike commuting. I ended up seeing a lot of new stuff while traversing familiar ground. The initial portion of the ride touched upon Anchor House training rides. The middle of the ride brought back memories of commuting along the towpath to New Brunswick. The trip was wrapped up by utilizing portions of my present commute.

When I discovered this route last August and set in motion plans to do it, I started with the grandest of intentions for training. That didn’t exactly happen. I did supplement my regular commute with hill training rides but the best thing I did was a week before the ride, on a whim, I did the northern half of the ride. This proved to be the best prep of all. First, it acquainted me with the route. But the best training came when my rear derailleur broke half way into the ride. Getting home with just the 3 front gears proved to be the most valuable lesson of all. Ascending any sort of incline required me to get out of the saddle and ride standing up. (Something I normally don’t do.) Drawing upon the extra strength provided by the additional leverage from standing on the pedals was the only resource that got me through the last 25 miles on June 23rd.

In case you want the details: I left at 3:15am, finished at 7:30pm, traveled 210 miles and took about an hour of breaks along the way.  I did not have any mechanical failures during the ride. Although my odometer did quit 20 miles before the end. Fortunately I was on familiar enough ground to be able to find my way home. Had it stopped working any earlier I would have been sunk. There were several intersections without street signs. Without knowing exactly how far since my last turn, I would not know where to turn and would have been lost.

The next day I did get back on the bike to join Ashley for a ride to the park (< ½ mile). She was faster than me.  – Don

I Bike NYC

by Don

This year I developed a fondness for bicycling in Manhattan, which is quite surprising given my aversion to riding with traffic. What helps me is over the past three years, New York has added 200 miles of bike lanes, some of which are protected bike paths completely segregated from cars.

On four separate days I loaded my bike into the car and drove to New York to explore this new treasure.

On April 30 I went to the Blessing of the Bikes at the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine. I stood with my bike in the sanctuary along with hundreds of other cyclists and their bicycles. The priest read scripture, led us in prayer, and sprinkled us with holy water. After the service I joined the Five Borough Bicycle Club for a ride to Brooklyn and to the New Amsterdam Bike Show. Most of this ride was on the Greenway, which hugs the Manhattan coastline. 

Six weeks later I returned for the World Naked Bike Ride. Even though it was June, it was a frigid day and as a result the ride was cancelled. Instead, I cycled to the Plaza Hotel in search of a temporary display of Ai Weiwei’s “Circle of Animals: Zodiac Heads” sculpture. While cycling along 1^st Ave I realized the scope of the bike infrastructure. To my surprise, there were signs directing cyclists to various destinations.

A week later I returned at 8 PM for “Bike All Night.” This turned out to be too disorganized for me. I left the group and explored the Greenway, Broadway, the financial district and Central Park instead.

By far, my longest ride this year was the NYC Century on September 18. This ride, covering 100 miles in a single day, extended into Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. The highlight was finally making it to the site of the 1964 World’s Fair and posing next to the Unisphere in Flushing Meadows.

Tour de Fat

Chicago, IL. July took us on an adventure through 7 states in 9 days and numerous stops for local treats.

The road trip stemmed from Don’s desire to experience the Tour de Fat – a bicycle-centric festival sponsored by the New Belgium Brewing Company.

The festival was held in Palmer Square, a park on the outskirts of Chicago. Highlights included a performance by synchronized bicycle dancers (think synchronized swimming, but using bicycles instead of water), a bicycle parade, and The Bike Pit (artistically altered bicycles anyone could ride – Ashley’s favorite had a series of shoes in lieu of tires). There were also bicycle-themed skits and activities.

While in Chicago we walked along Lake Michigan, around downtown and on the Magnificent Mile, visiting the American Girl Store and the Disney Store. 

The trip turned into a personal “Tour de Fat.” It coincided with a major heat wave and each stop included sampling local ice cream and other sweets.

Our first stop was Columbus, OH. We stayed with Aunt Debra and Uncle Tom Smith. After touring Slate Run (a historic site), we stopped at Fantasy Cupcakes in Canal Winchester, OH with them and Cousin Laura. Later we visited Tom’s mom, Marge Smith, and his sister, Joanie Smith Morris. Joanie, my running partner, happened to be in Bexley at the same time, so we went on our only training run together. It was great running with her, and great to have a chance to burn off some calories.

While in Columbus, we visited with our friend Heidi Harendza, a New Jersey transplant living in the German Village section of the city. She took us to Jeni’s, a new ice cream parlor that is rapidly spreading beyond its Columbus origins. We also visited Cousin David Smith at his new job at Tim Horton’s, where we had a fruit smoothie.

Continuing west, our next stop was Beaver Creek, OH for lunch with Joe

Langer, a friend of Don’s from high school. We met at Mimi’s Café for lunch and shared a dessert trio.

The next leg of the trip (the drive to Chicago) was not so sweet. We sat for 2¼ hours in a traffic jam, or should I say we stood in a traffic jam since we were able to get out of our car and walk around meeting people. If only Indiana had a Patch.com site I could have sent them some great pictures.

After the Tour de Fat festival in Chicago, we continued to Washington, IL to visit our friend Rebecca Weltmann. We have known her since she was a teen. Now she is the solo pastor of Washington Presbyterian Church. The timing allowed us to hear her preach and go out to lunch with her. Lunch was followed by Key Lime Pie over ice cream.

A benefit of going to the Tour de Fat festival in Chicago was visiting my 85-year-old great aunt, Lee Thomas. Three years ago she moved from New Jersey to an assisted living residence in Illinois. It was great seeing her looking so well.

Barbara, Scott, Blaire and Haleigh Theurerkoff (Aunt Lee’s daughter and her family) joined us for Gino’s Chicago deep dish pizza, followed by ice cream at Oberweis Dairy.

The trip home we took a different route. We spent two days in East Lansing, MI with Jennie, Chris, Emma, Bella and Luke Waters. Emma and Ashley are best friends from kindergarten, but had not seen each other in three years. They picked up as if only three days had passed. It was hard to separate them at the end of our stay. The Waters family took us to the Michigan State University Dairy Store. Ice cream is produced there as part of their Food Science program.

While Ashley stayed with Emma and her family, Don and I drove to Grand Rapids to visit Steve Paulsen. Steve, Don and I worked together many years ago. Steve navigated us to Holland, MI where we toured Steve’s alma mater, Hope College, and watched the sun set over Lake Michigan. Though we did not have dessert with Mr. Paulsen, Don did have a tasty beer called Dragon’s Milk.

We continued east with a stop in Bethel Park, PA to visit Bruce and Debbie Thomas, Aunt Lee’s son and daughter-in-law. Debbie cooked a wonderful meal, including homemade peanut butter ice cream for dessert. Yum!

After the last five hours on the road, we celebrated coming home with Chinese food from Tiger Noodle. Based on the rest of this trip, we should have had Purple Cow Ice Cream instead.      

W & OD Trail

Don and Ashley brought their bikes with them to Virginia. I planned to go for a run while they biked, but settled for a walk as I was still sore from my run two days earlier.

The Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) Trail is very well maintained. It is a 44-mile trail that runs through Virginia. It is amazing. There is a paved part that is perfect for bicycling. It is flat and straight. A winding trail made of crushed stone runs along side it and up some hills. That trail is perfect for mountain biking, walking, running and (of course, given the area) horse back riding.You know a lot of people ride horses when the signs give them the right of way. There seemed to be a rest area about once every mile, and placards talking about the local history fairly often.

For us the day was going along really well. I walked about a mile up, and a mile back. I was hanging out on this nice bench in the shade, next to a water fountain, when my cell phone rang. Uh oh! Ashley and Don rode about 6 miles when she fell off her bike and scraped her knee. Fortunately all she needed was a first aid kit. It was just enough, though, for them to ask me to pick them up further on the path. About the time the phone rang someone stopped and, using his new Smart phone, he was able to give me terrific directions to find Don and Ashley. Alls well that ends well, I suppose.

http://www.wodfriends.org/trail.html

Tour de Fat - Chicago

When Don suggested we take a road trip to Chicago to go to the Tour de Fat (a festival sponsored by New Belgium Brewing Company) I had no idea what to expect. I'm willing to admit I jumped into this one a bit blind. I did ask if it was open to people of all ages (it was sponsored by a beer company). Assured that it was (based more on the 10AM -4 PM schedule, being in a public park, and absence of being told it was only open to those legal drinking age) I said sure, why not.

The festival is a celebration of all things bicycle related. An early highlight was seeing synchronized bicycle dancing by the Racketeers -- a local group. Prior to the trip, we saw a different group of women performing similar stunts in the documentary Veer (http://www.amazon.com/Veer-Matthew-Modine/dp/B0033G9NPG/ref=sr_1_7?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1311796583&sr=1-7). Think of Ethel Williams' group hopping out of the water and riding bicycles and you ahve a good idea of what we saw. It was quite entertaining.

One of the anticipated highlights was that the event was kicked off by a bicycle ride through the section of Chicago near Palmer Square. We hadn't expected to see people in costumes. This has renewed my interest in creating a costume for the Disneyland Half Marathon. My favorite was seeing The Flintstones. The dads even toted "Pebbles" and "Bamm Bamm" behind them. Very clever!




 I had not anticipated being able to ride novelty bicycles. This one was clearly Ashley's favorite since the wheels are made out of shoes. Unfortunately she was a little too short for it. In this area they conformed bicycles into all different shapes -- there were three bicycles put into a triangle shape that went around in circles, a unicycle with training wheels, and hinges put in place so the bicycle could not steer strait. Remember -- this is a beer festival so you have that added dimension to bike riding. Helmets were a requirement.

Ashely rode a bicycle "all around the world." I think she went about 7 times before getting "too tired." (a little bicycle humor for you)

Don sampled some beers he really liked. Unfortunately New Belgium is not in our part of the country, and the beer he liked most is only available in bars.

One note about the festival, it ran "off the grid" using panels that were pedalled around the park. Hence they call themselves a "Pedal Powered FUNdraiser of Sustainable Folly."

Next month New Belgium is breaking into the Washington, DC /Maryland market. Maybe next year's Tour de Fat will have a stop on the East Coast.

http://www.newbelgium.com/events/tour-de-fat.aspx

Bike Activist

This year my role as cyclist has transformed into activist. It all started innocently enough when I attended the NJ Bike Coalition annual summit in February. Since then I've gotten involved with the township’s bike/pedestrian task force, attended similar committee meetings in neighboring towns to both learn about their actions and to meet compatriots. I also participated in several "touring" rides to witness firsthand the progress being made. In NYC, I rode along the city’s Greenbelt circling Manhattan Island and rode through the Big Apple’s streets on their spiffy new bike lanes. I participated in two different East Coast Greenway rides. The first showcasing the newly completed trail from Lawrence Twp to Trenton (a trail link I now regularly use for commuting home from the train station) and the second discussing the challenges and planned improvements for the route from Trenton to Philadelphia. In September, Kevin Gruenfeld and I participated in Philadelphia’s Naked Bike Ride. In case you are curious, yes, I did wear my helmet.

Amidst all this activism, the number of bike commutes has suffered this year. Late last year I set a personal goal of cycling more of the route and relying less on NJ Transit’s RiverLine rail service. Interestingly enough, between the longer distance and fewer trips, I ended up commuting the same number of miles. The past two years I commuted 3,000 miles with my bicycle. I need to figure out if my primary objective is to ride longer or drive less.