the sun is shining brightly here too . . .

i think it may be a walk-to-the-beach day. all went as scheduled, as advertised, as planned. actually i made it home 30 minutes before i thought i would . . . and 5 hours before i left. it is still the 1st isn't it?

the sun is shining brightly as my long day begins

tony at the window at 754am . . . Noriko is leaving for work on that bus. soon Noriko`s Father willl be leaving for his Green Hills "onsen". and soon after we will be walking to Minoo train station for the short train ride Hotarugaike transfering of course at Ishibashi. and then it`s one stop to Itami International Airport on the monorail. my flight is at 1:45pm on ANA to Narita (Tokyo). my flight to LA will be around 5pm. about 10 hours later i should be arriving at LAX arounnd 930am on the 1st (today here now). if all that goes as planned i should have my suitcase, backpack and tony and be on the bus home by noon. that`s the plan at least.

as always a very big Thank You to Noriko and her Parents and Family who have welcomed me into their home and made this a very special autumn. いろいろをせわになりました。(again).

and one more photo of Misa and Daigo.

homeward bound eve

one last photo from my last full day in Minoo

and two from yesterday at the waterfall

last walk to Minoo Taki and more, and less

tony and i left early this morning for Minoo Taki. we took a break in this little park after buying some pan from Isamu Bakery and Trattoria

i thought he was a statue at first. he reminded me of my Mother`s two Schnauser`s (in Doggie Heaven now) except he did not bark. he seemed very peaceful just watching the world and me walk by. i know the feeling.

saying goodbye to Takechi-san, Danny, Look and Popo.

Minoo Taki. i think this is very similar to the photo in yesterday`s newspaper

one more saturday

we made the front page! we is Minoo and the Minoo waterfall. i hope to take a similar photo tomorrow.

an iro iro day at home doing a little home repair and putting out some Christmas decorations. and then a few errands here and there around Minoo. it was definately cooler today and it might rain again tomorrow. after taking and dropping off some clothes at the coin laundry (for drying) we went to Visola Market Park for lunch . . . a cheeseburger happy set-o from McDonald`s. earlier in the day i saw a commercial on tv about the new "Sugar bunnies" toy. i got Kurousa, the brown bunny. of course we stopped by the new 100 shop at Visola before grocery shopping at Carrefour and then it was back to the coin laundry. dinner was delicious as always as you will see in the photo below. there are some photos from part 1 and part 3 of yesterday. the highlight of part 1 was Noriko`s Father going to his day-service with a smile on his face. another highlight was hearing "yuki-ya-kon-ko" and recording it. the highlight of part 3 was meeting Rits and her three cute Chihuahuas.


not the last supper but close to it.


a passion flower on a narrow path somewhere in Minoo

hmmm, what do you think this sign means?

kumo not kumo or kumo and kumo

a little French garden in Minoo

i stopped by the field of susuki again on my way to the station

more yellow soon to be reddish/orangish, soon to be gone (me too, not reddish/orangish but gone)

14 legs (12 short and cute, 2 long and beautiful)

bonus video from yesterday at Kyuanji. i intended to make a peaceful little video featuring the momiji (maple leaves) and the water reflecting off the toro (stone lantern). don`t worry, a little embarrased and very wet but she was fine. still not sure how she fell in. yes, i knew the water was just passed ankle deep.

today part 2

and where is part 1 and part 3? here are some images from my walk, train and bus rides to from Kyuanji. actually all these photos are from Kyuanji. part 1 and part 3 would be the before and after. it was another warm late november day with a blue blue sky and as you will see beautiful momiji.

more thanks and one more Happy Birthday to Daigo

a nice thanksgiving day is almost over. the weather was beautiful all day and surprisingly warm consider November will be over soon. and tomorrow is supposed to be a wee bit warmer. after going for walk with Noriko`s Father up to sanrokusen and back and after refusing lunch from Noriko`s Mother, i left for my little adventure to Nakayama-dera. actually i wasn`t sure where i would go once i reached Minoo Station. oh, i stopped by Go to English again to chat with Aya-san. i hope her and her husband`s new English school continues to grow and prosper...and her baby too. back to Minoo Station and then by train to Nakayama transfering at Ishibashi. i stopped by Lawson for some lunch to take to the temple. it is really just a short walk to Nakayama-dera (temple). the walk inside the temple grounds is much longer. and then there are the stairs. but wait, there is an elevator. i think this is the only temple or shrine i have seen with an elevator. of course, i walked but it is convenient for those who need it. i had lunch under a beautiful momiji (maple) tree. and took some photos of some shichi-go-san kids. and then there was the nice security guard who insisted on taken my photo after i took his with Tony. from Nakayama to Minoo by train and then by bus to Visola Market Park. and then a short walk home in time for dinner. Noriko was bringing obento home as today she returns late from work. dinner was delicious as always but the highlight was the takoyaki-shu. to be continued tomorrow or another day. here are a few images from after the sunrise.

first thanks

the first "thank you" of the day goes to the sun. it is not usually so noticeable in the early morning recently. and yes, it does rise in the west.


not quite 7:11 but can you see the 711?


sunrise reflection off the blue tiled roof


we have a lot to be thankful on this Thanksgiving Day. a very big Okini to the Maekawa Family. (this is the blue tiled roof from the photo above.)


beautiful blue sky over the mountains. the view out of the back/mountain facing/north window