Rob Here:

Hello everyone. I just wanted to point out that we still haven't gotten our own internet connection. Luckily one of the neighbors has a Fon Hotspot and we are able to buy single days of access or five day packs. It it gets a little pricy, so we are rationing our days out. Luckily though, perhaps because Google is a major investor in the company, all of their websites are accessible regardless of if we are signed into a paid session or not. So we are able to access our Gmail, this blogging website, Google Translate and Google Maps (which causes more frustration than it is worth, as everything is in Japanese and searches must be done in Japanese). Facebook, however, isn't accessible except on days that we pay, so don't think we are ignoring you guys on there. I know Olivia sent out a mass email to announce this blog, but if there is anyone else you might think would be interested to know what we are up to, feel free to share the link as much as you want.

I can't believe we've already been here for a week! I like it more and more every day, and we just keep getting more comfortable with our day to day tasks. We have been taking off in a different direction every day and slowly expanding our knowledge of the area. There is a 24-hour Circle K convenience store a stones throw from our apartment to which we have been making daily pilgrimages. They have a little bit of everything there, and most of it is priced pretty comparably to the grocery store. It is also one of the few smaller stores we have discovered that takes credit cards. People generally use cash for most transactions here, so the grocery store and most restaurants don't take cards. We definitely should have brought more yen with us, as it spends very quickly when you are starting a new life in a new country. This became more of an issue when I realized that in all my excitement, I forgot to call Wells Fargo card services to let them know I would be in Japan. Luckily I found a number to call them toll-free collect from Japan and got that sorted out. The only place we are able to use the ATM is at the post-office, since Japanese banks are apparently on a different type of network, but they are all over the place, and one is on the route to on of the schools where Olivia works. I can't wait to see what sort of atrocious fees Wells Fargo tacks on, but once Olivia starts getting paid in Yen it will become a moot point.

Some other highlights of our shopping excursions have been: a great little grocery store about a 10 minute walk from the apartment along with a Drug Store (think Walgreen's) across the street from that, a 15-20 minute walk in the other direction takes us to Joshin Electronics and Midori which is very similar. Electronics stores in Japan are certainly an experience, with the brightest Fluorescent lighting you have ever seen, every item coming in 6+ bright colors and a cacophony of noise coming from every device on display. It's certainly not a place you would want to visit with a headache, but it's sort of overwhelming in a very awesome sort of way. One of our favorite things is the abundance of 100 yen stores. There is actually some pretty decent stuff in there, and we were able to acquire many household goods for very little money. It probably helps that we are so close to China and Thailand and such where these items can be produced very cheaply. While American dollar stores are filled with stuff that is obviously worth a dollar or less, the items in 100 yen stores could reasonably sold at higher prices if you encountered them elsewhere. I made a great find last night, there is a little import whiskey shop right near one of Olivia's schools that has everything, some of the Scotch and Irish whiskey is less that half the price you would pay in the US.