Sakura Movie

We made a 6+ minute film of the cherry trees in Sagamihara.  It is posted on YouTube.  If you search for /sakura movie 0001/ you can find it.  Or you can watch it here:

Sakura!

It's Cherry Blossom (Sakura) time in Japan.  It's a beautiful time to be here.  Everyone is in good spirits and the gorgeous blooming trees are everywhere you look.  Some are already starting to drop their blossoms and it is like gently falling snow (without the cold).  It is a favorite pastime of the Japanese to take time to have a picnic under the blooming cherry trees.  Last weekend we went to Showa park to view all of the flowers and trees. 

Then the next day there was a cherry blossom festival at Camp Zama.  It was open to the public so it got very crowded!  

We had some yakitori (grilled meat on a stick) and enjoyed the sights, sounds and smells of the festival.
The next day we hosted a barbeque at our house in Sagamihara.  We invited the Mizushimas, the Kimuras, our neighbors the Owens and Donovans.  It was a beautiful day so after stuffing ourselves with beef sausage, shrimp, pork tenderloin, pork ribs, smoked chicken, garlic cheese biscuits, green beans, pea salad, fruit salad, white chocolate chip cookies, caramel cheesecake, plenty of cold beer, margaritas and more, we decided to take a walk.
These are some of the trees at the elementary school.

This is our favorite tree.   It is in the middle of a field near the elementary school.  We like to picnic here when it is warm.




Maddie on her way to school.  She is now in the 5th grade!  Below is a very short video we took of the walk to the gate with Madeleine this morning.

Wish you were all here to experience it with us!  Love to all.

Rebuilding Smith Point

On my way back from Cozumel I stopped in at Smith Point. We had some work done on the house and I wanted to check it out. The contractor, Justin Weitekemp, was a disappointment. If anybody in Chambers County is reading this blog, don't use him for any repairs! The good news is that we have a place to come back to that is liveable and we can complete the restoration this summer. A huge thanks to our friends Lou, Ben, Bill, Ralph, James, and of course Fred and Jen for all of their generosity and help. You guys are great!!

New tile in upstairs bathroom.

New flooring upstairs.

Downstairs bathroom renovation. Still needs paint!

Exterior walls rebuilt. We will fill these large windows with screening this summer.

Looks like the big tree in our backyard is going to make it!

Happy Birthday Patricia!

About two weeks ago I flew to Cozumel to see the Carrillo family and celebrate Patricia's 50th birthday party. It was a special time and great to see the ever-growing Cozumel family. My friends Charlie, Chip and Chris (and family) also flew in for the festivities. It was a great week and we celebrated in style at Patricia's new house. The kids hired a mariachi band and we all danced and toasted the birthday girl. Patty, Angela, William and Monsie were all on hand for the big party. We laughed, we cried (tears of joy) and just had a grand time. I got to meet many of the extended family which was very nice. I also got to spend some time with Big William which was great. It was wonderful to see the whole family doing so well. We love you Carrillo family! I took lots of pictures but did not get permission to post pictures of anyone so for now I will just post some of the nature pics. Enjoy!


Maddie's name is still on the rafters at Paradise Cafe.
View from the cafe where we ate breakfast every morning.
View from the top of the lighthouse at Punta Sur.
Beach at Punta Sur.
Pelican on sea wall in town.