Wine Making at the Vineyard/Gorge Hike

We had a great one-day outing to eat, pick, and stomp grapes, and hike with our wonderful friends!


Hey, you CAN stand up in the vineyard!



Maddie and Vanessa stomping grapes with Trish and Leah.

Doug and Troy giving it a try.

Troy and Angelo taste the wine.

Watching out for bears!

Leah and Angelo

Leah is a new Speech-Language Pathologist hired this year who we were lucky to get to sponsor. After lots of email communications and an event-packed summer, including a wedding, graduation, and international move, Leah and Angelo arrived at Narita. We were so happy to meet them in person! From the airport we took them on a driving tour through Tokyo and Yokohama (only getting lost once ... Oops!) and then to dinner at a favorite sushi-go-round restaurant. It's amazing how they look so fresh!



Welcome to Japan! We are so happy you are here!

Mt. Takao Beer Mount

To get a break from the summer heat, we headed to Mt. Takao with the Mizushima's. The were lots of shops along the way. Maddie had some delicious shaved ice.
Hidemi explained the Tengu to Troy.
The Beer Mount is very popular, and we managed to get in after a wait. It was well worth it, though - a bountiful buffet of all you can eat and all the beer you can drink!
We moved to another seating area to enjoy the view.
Masako and Vanessa had after dinner cocktails of lychee liquor.
Riding back down on the cable car:

We love Beer Mount! We'll be back next year!

Kamakura

Since we moved back to Japan, Troy and I have made several visits to Kamakura. It's a must-see for our guests who have come to visit. However, Maddie has not gone because she has been in school each time. Ironically, she was probably in school studying her social studies, which includes Japanese history, and she was probably studying the Kamakura period. Here's a page I copied out of her social studies notebook:Kamakura is the name of the time period 900 years ago and the city which was the center of power. It was the country's first era of military history. The most famous attraction is the statue of Buddha. A 15th century tsunami destroyed the temple that used to house the giant statue.



We left Kamakura on the Enoden electric railway. It's great because it travels down the middle of some streets. The cars on the road have to move over!
We ended the day at Enoshima, a beautiful island on the coast. We explored the cliffs along the shore.

Bon Odori

A highlight of summers in Japan is the numerous festivals, especially Bon Odori. Bon dancing is traditional Japanese folk dance - sort of Japanese-style line dancing. The popular garment to wear during festivals this time of year is yukata - a little like kimono, but made of light cotton. Maddie and I got help to get into our yukatas. It's a little complicated.

Maddie and friends:
It was a beautiful summer evening ending with a spectacular fireworks show.
Maddie with the dance instructors: