I figured I should hold good on my promise of one last sayounara post before ending my Tokyo blog. Not that I really want it to end, but it wouldn’t be a Tokyo blog without the Tokyo. And even though I’ve been back in Melbourne over a month, I still want to mark the end of our time in Japan (this time around) with a final entry.
December in Tokyo was a blur of farewells, Christmas parties and karaoke, ending on the 18th when we picked the kids up from the school bus stop, jumped in a cab and headed for Narita. If I was one of my kids, I would have been a little confused by the whole thing. In the morning, we asked them to pack their school bags with whatever they wanted to take on the plane as hand luggage. They had a normal day at school, caught the bus home, said goodbye to our friends and then began the next journey back to Melbourne. Fourteen hours later, they were swimming at the beach near Gold Coast Airport as we waited for our connecting flight.
After Christmas the kids spent some quality time with their grandparents at a Victorian beach, while Michael and I came back to Japan for a couple of weeks travel and to pack up the apartment. I’ll let the pictures tell the story, but we took in Nagasaki, Hiroshima and Kobe before heading to Hakuba for some skiing. And by the way, the ‘brown bath’ pictures? It’s compost. Yes, compost. Hot and smelly and apparently good for your health.
So, that’s that. We’re in Melbourne and I’m scouting around for things to do now that the kids are back at school. I’ve signed up for a Japanese subject at uni and am looking for the perfect job (does it exist?). I’ve recruited some local karaoke tragics and the first Ladies Night was a roaring success. There’s a supermarket down the road where I can buy Pocky and Japanese curry. Unfortunately, now that I can read the list of ingredients, I find the curry is loaded with MSG, but I might keep serving it for old time’s sake.
I miss Tokyo already, but am just biding my time til I go back. Thanks to everyone who helped make our stint so mind-blowingly fabulous! どもありがとございました！またね！
Leave a Comment so far
Leave a comment
