Summer in Japan has been full of excitement for us. Since Markus has Jidokan summer hiatus until the first week of September, we've had more time during the week to venture off to different places (most of which cater to Markus). We visit with our neighbor friends and have afternoon tea together almost every other day. You will see in the slideshow that Markus had a chance to meet Elmo live at Isetan Mall in Shinjuku. A week-long Sesame Street tribute and presentation was held in the children's department of the mall. We joined in the arts and crafts activities. Markus helped make an Elmo puppet and a paper fan.
On August 5, we held a Hanabi (fireworks) party at our home. The fireworks display was held at the Arakawa River, a few miles north of our apartment. We were able to view the fireworks from outside our front corridor. We celebrated with an assortment of food including Mexican, Italian, Japanese cuisine and of course spinach dip. It was a crowded house, but plenty of room for good company and good conversation. We continue to experience many new Japanese foods - some of which have not been so easy on the tastebuds, but we enjoy most of it.
In addition to our busy summer, I have begun teaching private English lessons to three students. It's been a great experience so far. They enjoy conversation and learning about our western culture. We spend about an hour and half reviewing basic grammar and pronunciation. They are very interested in learning the meanings behind common cliches and idioms.
For added enjoyment and convenience, we bought a bicycle with a child seat. Rodney does the riding with Markus most of the time. I'm still a bit hesitant to ride on the busy streets and narrow sidewalks especially with Markus on the bike. I prefer to jog beside them and keep a close eye on traffic. Usually we'll bike around our neighborhood to parks and also to other supas further away.
Other trips included a boat tour down the Sumida River with the Haggerty's. We sorta saw the sunset as we docked off the Hinode Pier heading towards Odaiba where we enjoyed a dinner overlooking the water.
It has been wonderful and endearing to be a full-time housewife and spending all this time with Markus. Each morning Rodney gets Markus out of bed and they spend quality time before he heads off to work. He has grown so much in such a short time and we are enjoying every bit of watching him develop into a fun-loving toddler. He still enjoys watching Baby Einstein videos, but nothing compares to Finding Nemo, which he will watch from beginning to end - even the credits. He loves dancing to the theme songs. He performs his dances on Skype webcam for family and friends. Each day we show Markus pictures of family and friends with hopes he'll remember the faces when he reunites with everyone next spring. Each new day, he surprises us with something new he says or does. What can I say, he's just a pure joy!! Thanks to Skype, we keep in close contact with our loved ones.
We hope you enjoy our Okinawa vacation posting. We had a fantastic time! So what's next...Mt. Fuji climb on September 15. The excitement continues so stay tuned...
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