Japan, Finally

Where to start? I've had to share my computer with a number of family members on this trip, and time and access to the laptop have been in short supply, it seems. Good thing I'm not expecting to get paid for these blog entries.

Q: Why has the U.S. still not discovered the convenience of simple syrup in a single-serve size for iced coffee and tea in restaurants? We had them when we lived here 20 years ago, and we in the U.S. still live without them in 2010 for Pete's sake!

Fact (from here on noted by the letter "F", followed by a colon): My four-year-old officially learned how to spell her own and her sister's name while on this trip. She also learned how to use the room-to-room phone.

Q: Why do I find better bread products, including croissants, in Tokyo than I can find anywhere in the States?

F: Money in currencies other than one's own always feels like play money and is so easy to spend because it doesn't feel real.

Q: Why does Starbucks offer Short, in addition to Tall, Grande, and Venti in Japan, but not in the U.S.? (Anyone reading this post, I challenge you to walk into a Stateside Starbucks and ask for a "Short." Go ahead, you know you want to!)

F: I forgot how melted I get halfway through a summer day in Japan without my air-conditioned automobile. The trains are a great convenience, but in 98 degree weather, it's hard to arrive looking and feeling fresh and ready to party. It's more like wilted and ready for a dip in the pool followed by a nap. sigh.

Q: Why do Japanese look so much taller now than they did when I lived here twenty years ago? Now I'm just as diminutive here as I am anywhere else in the world.

F: Fashion in Japan has taken a decidedly casual turn since we were here eight years ago. The world's (and Japan's) economic slump has taken a toll on high fashion here. No more suits and heels. Now all we see are leggings, cropped pants, sun dresses, hawaiian shirts and sandals on both the men and the women—well, except for the sundresses. And lots of surfer hair in all shades. Kinda cool, though, because it's easier for a yank to fit in these days. A little bit, anyway.

I've had so many thoughts on our trip that I did not write down because we were in a hurry to go to one place or another. I'll try to be better about it since we leave Tokyo tomorrow morning for presumably slower-paced destinations. I just hope that connecting to the internet is easy.

Here's to posting more enlightening observations, with a bit more depth and analysis.