Friday in Fukuoka....

Seeing everyone again was great.  It is never definite  you'll ever actually meet up with random people that you meet while traveling.  I usually try to embrace our time however long or short due to this uncertainty.  Being in their living room brought back memories of our first meeting.  Things were still confusing because of the language barrier but a certain level of comfort was present.  The kids embraced Kaleena and directed her in coloring and performed a piano/recorder duet.  We sat and chatted via phrase book/cell phone translator/dictionary.  The two girls got out their English lesson books to show us.  We named things in our own languages with mutual interest.  After the meal of amazing sushi,  we arranged to meet up with Yuming and Megumi on Saturday to see a show*.  

Friday was ours to do as we wished...and that wish didn't start until noon.  We were on vacation!!  After considering our options we left the hotel.  Starving, since we missed our free breakfast that was served way before we left dream land, we were on a mission to try famous pork ramen.   We shuffled over to the subway and got off at Tenjin.  This district held shops, boutiques, restaurants and bars all occupying tall buildings.  Stores never ending after the first floor but continuing up sometimes eight floors, each a different product.  Being in a new place is always exciting.  You are seeing everything for the first time, the shops, the people,the smell, all part of taking in the rhythm of a new city. 

 Found a restaurant that looked good and bought our meal by inserting yen into a vending machine pushing buttons of pictures that looked appetizing and giving the produced tickets to the server.  The pork ramen was delicious.  Japanese food is so different from the standard Korean we normally eat.  Very savory and not spicy at all, which is the biggest difference.  The noodles were al dente in a sense and hit the spot.  As we sat there a group of business men came in for a quick bite and a couple was finishing up their meal.  I noticed panels with Japanese writing and traditional masks hanging on the walls.   Sampled the various jars of sauces, sesame seeds, and ginger sitting on the table.  We slurped our way down to the bottom or our bowls, in our truest Japanese fashion. The meal rejuvenated us and we went to wander some more.  As usual no particular destination was on our list, so we wandered.

I was feeling a bit ill due to a travel cold so we went back to the hotel to rest for a bit.  Kaleena searched the Internet for some interesting bars.  We were in the mood to see what the nightlife in Fukuoka was all about. 

*show tba

Fukuoka.....

After a rest at the hotel we met up with the 'family' for dinner.  We had sushi.  They are so adorable.  I'll let the picture speak for itself.   

Merry Christmas!!

Arrived in Japan this morning.  We exited the ferry and went through customs.  After a couple failed attempts we reached Ayato.  He told us to wait at the Camilla Ferry Port. We waited outside taking in the energy of Japan.  It feels so different from Korea.  We sat there with our bags sitting on newspapers.  

 Ayato's friend Kuming came to pick us up.  As we were walking toward the parking lot she motioned for us to get into the semi truck that was parked there.  Yes ,a full size semi truck! I know they had a trucking business but i didn't know we'd be picked up in a semi truck.  She took us to  meet up with Megumi who drove us to our Hotel. We are here now showering, calling family and napping.  We'll meet them for dinner around 4.     

Fukuoka

Last year, when I was leaving Korea after my contract with Kidsclub, I took a ferry over to Fukuoka.  On this ferry I met a woman and her friends.  They shared some of their food and beer with me and we chatted in Korean/Japanese via my limited Korean and Japanese phrase book.  When we exited the ferry we parted ways.  I had no plans so I was considering my options of getting a hostel or hopping on the train to another part of Japan.  I was awaiting confirmation on my Vipassana course so I had a couple days to putz around.  As I stared at the map trying to find a symbol that looked like a locker, she come over and in limited English/gestures invites me to meet her daughter.  I hesitated for a moment but considering that I had nothing to do I chalked it up to an adventure in the making.  Her daughter met us and invited me to go to a museum with her and her sister.  We went and had a nice time.  They introduced me to soba noodles and powered green tea.  I went back to their mother's house with them and met their brother and kids.  

Megumi was 25, Yuming 26 and Ayato their brother 30.  They also have children varying ages, all so cute but I can't remember their names.  A baby girl, a little boy, a young girl and Yuming was expecting a baby that winter.    I spent a couple days with their family throughout the 2 months i stayed in Japan.  I met back up with them after the vipassana course.   We've been keeping in touch through brief emails that I translate through the Internet.  They email short statements and attach pictures of their kids.  

After toying around with a couple Christmas options I emailed them to see if they were busy.  They immediately called me saying I can come and visit any time. It was a little difficult to express ourselves but we managed.  So...this Wednesday Kaleena and I will take a train down to Busan and then the ferry over to Fukuoka for a couple days.  It's been a year and a half since I've seen them.  I can't wait to see how big the kids have gotten and I hope that i'll be able to communicate better.  I am going to download some Japanese language options for my ipod...gotta love technology.  They used their phone translators and gestures the last time and i used my phrase book and expressions.  Communication in all forms can be so powerful. 

I have had this happen a couple times in my life, but it still fascinates me to this day how a connection with certain people can be formed no matter the language, back ground,  or other factors that seem to keep people from being kind to each other.   There is a connection between people that goes much deeper than the superficial factors that make us feel comfortable.     

In a Helicopter

There is a game where you insert a phrase at the end of the sentence to make it funny.  Well on Saturday night the phrase "in a helicopter." could honestly be added to everything we did.

About 10 years ago a man decided to build a replica of a military helicopter.  He slowly worked on it over the years until it was complete.  A couple people stopped in one day to check it out.  It's not everyday you see a giant helicopter just hanging out in the middle of no where.  Turns out the center of this helicopter is now a quant little bar.

On Saturday night I was eating pizza, talking with people from various parts of the world, drinking a beer and listening to live music- in a helicopter.