It is Cherry Blossom Time in Tokyo !!!!!

God has been very kind to me. Rakhat used to say "The weather in Kauai is so kind."

I flew to Hong Kong on March 21th. The weather was a bit rainy but that did not stop Andy,Tracy and I from having dinner in a popular Indian restaurant and then later taking a boat to Hong Kong island and going up to the Peak to witness a spectacular view. Andy and Tracy have lived in Hong Kong all their lives but had never gone up. In her email to me recently she said it was an awesome experience for her that she will long remember. Going back to the Indian restaurant we sat next to a table of young university students. Some were from Malaysia as well as Hong Kong. But the one closes to us Tracy thought spoke Japanese. So I asked him if he was Japanese. He was,but he could also speak Cantonese and he learned the language by listening to the Hong Kong radio stations in Japan. Quite remarkable.

I had to catch a 5:30am bus to the airport next day. I met two filipino men waiting for the airport bus on the street. They both now live in Florida. On the bus I sat near two girls from Holland who had spent three months in New Zealand and stopped in Hong Kong for a day of shopping and were now on their way home.

When I arrived at Narita airport I had no Japanese money and promised Isoko of Tokyo that I would call her before getting on the bus which would take me to the Keio Hotel where she would meet me. To my surprise I had to go to three floors before I could find an ATM that would allow me to draw money. Japan operate on a different system. I later learned that the 7-11 stores have an international ATM that will. I also soon learned that I could not put a Japanese sim card in my cell phone as I was able to do in Kenya,Pakistan,Thailand,and China. The country I thought I would have least trouble traveling around I have experienced the most problems. Getting access to the internet has also been difficult. If I had stayed in a hostel I would not have had the problem because all hostels have internet. In Hiroshima I stayed at the International Youth House and there was no internet that I could use. And finding internet cafes is not easy. Isoko in Tokyo has a computer but it is six years old and was acting funny. In Hiroshima I finally found a internet cafe but the name Popeye was written in Japanese so I could not read it and had difficulty finding it and did not have time. In the Kisa/Miyoshi small village Kazue had a computer but no internet access. I could not use a computer for two weeks.

Here at the Bakpak Tokyo Hostel I am happy I find internet access and it is free.

I have been at the computer practically all day except for lunch break. I wanted to send an email message to Chisato again hoping to connect with her while in Tokyo. She said that she would be moving to Tokyo on March 28 and enrolling in a college,but did not say which one.

I have been wanting to sent an email to Emily Cousins in Sidney,Australia. I received an email from her mother and made a reply today. I will be leaving on Saturday April 5 for Sidney.

I learned today that I am very close to Ueno and Asakusa both historical places in Tokyo. The flier says Ueno became famous shortly after the establishment of Tokugawa Shogunate in Edo in 1603. It has beautiful park with many Cherry Blossoms. One of the guest here said she was there yesterday and the trees are in full bloom.

I plan to visit these places tomorrow. I will be able to discrib them better after my visit.
Aloha, Joanne