Everyday Adventures

Well.... we still do not have internet access at home, so there will be no photos attached here until then. We have now been in Kyoto for just over two weeks. Chris is already in the full swing of all things mathematical.

Meanwhile, I am trying to explore while completing everyday tasks with more difficulty than expected.

Grocery shopping is a blast. Some things, especially produce is automatically recognizable. A tomato is a tomato. But, in the realm of dairy, meats, fish, and anything that comes in a bag, box or can... great adventures abound. Recent victories were a canned product that was indeed tuna despite the label "1/2" and a pink container with a cow cartoon on it which ended up being strawberry yogurt. Yes! Some of the beverages though have been harder to decode. One looked like it could be lemonade but was overripe honeydew melon soda instead. Yep, that's every bit as delicious as it sounds. Yesterday I bought what I thought might be a pineapple orange juice carton. Instead it is definitely a fruit flavored milk drink. Not bad, but very unexpected.

Chris had a great analogy for another typical task... laundry. The machine is very high-tech and has dozens of buttons and lights. He says it's like a slot machine. You press some things. Lights turn on, others off. If the machine starts, you win!

Even taking a bath an adventure. The bath tub is twice as deep and half as long as a typical US tub and it comes with .... a remote control to regulate the temperature and level to which you want the tub filled. Manual override is possible, but confusing.

Thankfully, walking around Kyoto is fun and the temples and shrines are beautiful. Also, the restaurants are great, especially if you like curry or soba noodles. Restaurants are the one place we have the necessary japanese vocabulary, so it is fun to go out.