Shizuoka: January 2006

(Keiko, Jo, and Kanako~ they picked me up at the station!!)

Where does a lonely girl go?
To a place she loves and can be loved.....
SHIZUOKA!!!
Shizuoka is the "birthplace" of my heart and love for Japan.
To know and love me is to know and love Japan; especially Shizuoka!

The first time I visited Japan I came on a summer trip in 2003.
And I came to SHIZUOKA!! The people that I met and the friends I made are lifelong.
So when I was homesick, I thought, "I should go visit my friends in Shizuoka!!"
So here is "Joanna's Adventures in Shizuoka: January 2006"
The above picture is the view from the house I stayed in (with Amy Hatcher) "Lighthouse"
(above)Shizuoka friends: Keiko, Jo, Nami, Shige, and Kanako
So we had dinner at the guys house "Joy House"
and a lot of students came to visit with me again and hang out.
Then, in true Japanese fashion, we headed off to KARAOKE!!
(above) My friends~ Shige, Ayaka, Nami, and me
(below) What can I say about this guy? :) This is my good friend Hidekazu Koshi
or as most call him, Koshi. Koshi lived in JoyHouse when I was a
summerworker (Nav. term for summer missionary) so my friend Amy and I got to hang out
with him, and the three other guys~ Taka, Ura, and Shigeo so much.

Aw, Shige!! You are such a great singer... and so stylish!
The next day, after Kanako and I slept in, I went to lunch with Keiko, Kanako, and Shigeo
and then I went to Nami's for tea and "hang out" time. It was
so much fun to catch up with my Lighthouse roommate.
Isn't she sooo cute?
I think so!!
Okay, so I want to tell you a story about my good friend Kanako Suzuki!
Kanako and I were making Japanese food (2003) and in exchange she asked me for something American, to which I replied, "I can't make anything."
She gently and ever so kindly told me, "Joanna, a woman who can cook is loved by all!"
And I have taken those words to heart. ;)
So fast forward to this visit: Kanako and I decided to make breakfast for some of the fellas.
So I thought, "Great! I can show Kanako my new skills!"
Unfortunately I am but a humble chef and so I burned the "volcano pancakes"!
Sad!!
It wasn't even bad tasting (underneath the burnt stuff~ ha ha)
but it was SO ugly. I couldn't even put a picture on the website. It's just not cool!
ha ha

So, we had breakfast at Shige and Kuma's apartment. AT 7:00 AM
no joke!
The food was delicious and Kanako even let me be in charge of scrambling the eggs.
It was so much fun.
I think that my Shizuoka friends are some of the funniest people I know.
No joke!
They have so much energy and are always laughing.
It's great cause I love to laugh.
These students are a joy in my life... even if I have to get up super early. It is still fun!
(above top) Joanna's tired eyes and Kuma
(above bottom) "Coffee please!" Shige's coffee was oishi! So good.
Wonder if he would have enough skills to work for Ebbers in Nebraska?
I think so!

...And then, my life changed. Semi-Lighthouse Resident Michio
came over to say hello.
There is no easy way to explain Michio. He is a gentleman, he is hilarious.
He often is found sleeping on Lighthouse's sofa.
The summer of 2003, I guess you could say Amy and I "adopted" Michio.
ha! ha! Michio has a lot of good ideas... take for instance, playing Sequence.

Hmmm... that looks totally harmless as Michio plans his next move. But then Michi says to me,
"We should have a penelty!"
And he comes up with the penelty of whoever loses gets marker on their faces...
except what Michio and I weren't expecting was Shige...
Shige joined the game and beat both Michio and I.
Michio had something written on one check and then
"Happy New Year 2007" on the other.
It says 2007 cause I took a picture and will use it for next year.
On my face, Shige wrote across the forehead and chin the two characters for
"SHIZUOKA"
and across my cheeks
"TOKYO"

This way, as I was riding the train home, people would know where I was going.
Yes, riding the train with my face painted was part of the deal...
It was an interesting ride. I had a lot of people do a "double take" of my face.
And a lot of people laughed at me.
Michio and I agreed that spreading happiness was our job. So, if my face painted makes someone stop in their busy day and enjoy a smile... then my day is fuller.
:)

For lunch we went to "Bochan's" which is a summerworker/Navigator favorite. The sign behind my head, "EAT AT BOCHANS" was made by Mark Rood and many people have signed it. (see far below) Here I am, face painted and everything, with my friend Kanako. Isn't she sweet? I adore her. She makes me laugh. Kanako is always singing with me or dances with me. She thinks that I am crazy but I think we are BOTH crazy (heck, i know i'm crazy! ha ha). Kanako is a very loving person. You can see this in her friendships. She was the best hostess, taking good care of me. Kanako also went to PENN STATE ("We are!!") for a year with Shige and has kept in touch with some pretty fun people.
Thanks Kanako for a fun three days!!

On a different note: one of my favorite things is motorcycling (along with other outdoor activities we frequented in the barren tundra of Wisconsin~ snowmobiling, 4-wheeling, etc.)!
But many students drive their scooters/mopeds, etc. to class and their part-time jobs.
So I had the pleasure of riding with Shigeo on the back of his.
Woo Woo!! So much fun!
Shige is driving on the top
Hidekazu is parking below

Shigeo and Jo are actually driving... Shigeo looks scared but I wasn't!! Everyone was so nice to me and took such good care of me. Shigeo often had to pick me up and take me places cause I didn't have a car. And everyone was flexible with plans.
So it was an amazing couple of days.
I really love Shizuoka and just felt a lot of peace being there.
It's so cool to revisit a lot of landmarks I had forgotten about.

This, below, is one of the landmarks I had tucked in the back of my mind. Here is the "Bochans" sign... and there is my name... right below "Jamie Geiger"!
Jame~ I don't know if you are reading this but thanks for the years of friendship and love
you poured into my life.
What a special treat to be able to sign below your name, four years after you. (I signed in 2003 not now) Your constant love and friendship has given me the wings
to soar into new places; like Japan.
You have taught me so much.
Thanks for being my spiritual "Mommy"!!

And Amy, you are never far from my mind as I live in Japan.
Girl, hurry up and get some vacation time!!

That's my story... through pictures. WOO WOO!!!
The ride home was safe and uneventful, except my face. :)

And if you've made it this far... all I want to say is
"Oh yeah....kudon"