I left my social apartment in Eda at 9:30 am on Monday, May 27th, and walked 8 minutes down the hill to the train station. From there its a 5 minute train ride two stops to a main station that has the Narita airport bus station. Paying just under $30, I boarded a non-stop direct 2-hour bus to the airport terminal. I flew Korean Airlines- a short lay-over in Seoul, then on to SFO. After proceeding through customs, Mom and Lex picked me up at 1:00pm and somehow it was still Monday the 27th! The whole week, my body never really quite figured it out!
I was greeted at home by a fantastic home-made veggie friendly BBQ hosted by my family! It was fantastic to see so many familiar faces all in one place. It was a great time to spend with so many supportive and loving friends.
On Tuesday I drove up to my college town of Davis for a reunion with a dear college friend of mine, Mary Anne. I was lucky enough to meet baby number 2: Levi who is 5 months old. We visited old haunts, and enjoyed some much needed catch-up time! Our lives have branched off in two totally different directions, and it is so wonderful to live vicariously through each other's stories- each of us secretly wanting the other person's life...if only for just a moment!
On Wednesday, my mom found me a bike. She, Lex and I took a tour of downtown Oakland. It was great to see the new life that seems to have blown into this city. We met Dans down by Lake Merit for lunch then explored some old and new neighborhoods.
On Thursday I headed into San Francisco to visit two friends who have made a new life there. Stefany has been living in the city for over 4 years now and with my good high school friend, Laurie, we celebrated her new teaching position at a small high school. Both girls spent the evening trying to convince me that when I am ready, San Francisco is the place to move to! Hmmm... it sounded rather good to me, I just don't know when that will be!
The next morning, Friday, I headed over to Pier 39 and got to be tourist for the day with my good teacher friends, Teresa and Heather. They had played hooky from school and we took the ferry out to Alcatraz! It was my first time there and quite an awesome spot to visit. The audio guide through the prison was fascinating and the stories were super captivating. What a unique place.
Saturday morning I met up with a good high school friend, Cristina and we had a great time enjoying pumpkin pancakes at Crepevine and kept swapping stories for nearly two hours. I love how we can pick right back up again every few years...one of these days it will be for more than just a quick hello!
That afternoon my family drove down to Los Gatos for my cousin, Shanel's wedding. What can I say? It was absolutely spectacular!
Sunday evening I headed down to Monterey to catch up with my good friend, America. We tried bar-hopping downtown. The one and only bar we made it to, since they gave us a last call at 10:30! Well, America- just wait until you come to Tokyo!
Monday night I had to head into Salinas for an evening of Zumba at the YMCA. What a fantastic welcome! It was so great to see those ladies again! We rocked out to Gangam Style, and plenty of other old favorites.
Tuesday morning- I know I'm flying back to Japan because of these ladies sleeping right here at LAX-
Serendipitously at the bus station in Tama Plaza, I ran into a co-worker who was waiting for her boyfriend to come in from the airport too! I took it as a good sign that she was there to greet me too!
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