Arrived!

We made it. We are all here in Osaka, present and accounted for. It was a long journey, but very smooth overall.

The flight.

The technology of overseas flights has really improved in the past 10 years. Everyone has a touch screen with movies, games and music right in front of them. I had seen this before, of course, but as someone who remembers the days of having no choice but to watch the one in-flight movie on a main cabin screen, this never fails to impress me.

But here’s the catch: while my Digital Age kids were happy to have a touch screen at their disposal, they were most impressed with the fact that one could turn on the light and call the flight attendant from little buttons on the side of the arm rest. “Boy, they’ve really thought of everything!” my son marveled. Yes, sweetie. Yes, they have.

The kids also loved the blankets and pillows that were supplied on each seat, and immediately asked if they could keep them once the flight was done. “Trust me. In 14 hours, you won’t want them,” I said. And they didn’t.

One detail that caught us off guard was Beijing’s insistence that ALL passengers go through immigration + customs + security AGAIN, even just for an international transfer. When did this start? Is this par for the course with international flights these days? The long lines made what was supposed to be a short-but-leisurely transfer become a nail-biting rush to the gate. They held the plane for us and we made it, but our bags didn’t. So it will be Tuesday before I get the maternal pleasure of seeing my children in clean clothes. Oh well.

But here’s the upside to the lost baggage story. Japan is the most brilliantly service-oriented society. In the US (as in most countries, dare I venture?), we would have waited for our bags to appear on the carousel, and when they didn’t appear, we would have found the closest service desk to start filling out forms. Not in Japan. No, instead, an incredibly efficient airline professional found US to relay the news. And then she took us to a desk where not one, not two, but FOUR airline attendants helped us fill out the paperwork, while another two attendants engaged the kids in conversation on the side. There was no “Just fill out that form, ma’am.” It was more like: “Please, let me help you complete this form, and might you please describe the bag so that we can ensure that we deliver the correct bag to you?” I love this country! And here’s a random jet-lag-induced idea:

Every new staff member at my company takes a customer service training. Might I suggest that we just send all new staff to Japan for two weeks and let this culture train them instead? No one does it better. No one.

The apartment.

Our landlady, a connection from my company, met us at the airport and drove us to our new apartment. The apartment is cute, and while small, actually larger than I was preparing myself for. (Pics to come!) So we were pleasantly surprised. And this is where my work connections are really helping. We are living in an apartment that is typically rented to CET Japan study abroad students. So while we still have some shopping and rearranging to do, things like towel hooks, trash bins and extension cords are already here and ready to go. Small conveniences make a big difference.

Everyone was too wired to sleep when we got in, so we took a walk around our new neighborhood. Eli has apparently inherited Jeremy’s keen sense of direction, so after our walk to the local convenience store, he volunteered to lead us back to our apartment, and did so perfectly.

I’m a mess with directions (full disclosure: I still have to whisper “Never Eat Shredded Wheat” to myself in order to keep east and west straight….wait, did I just admit that publicly?) so it will take me a few rounds before I can make it to the train station and back without consulting my husband or a map….or now my son.

New loves. 

The kids were introduced to two Japan pleasures last night:

Combini food. Japanese convenience stores have GREAT FOOD. Rice balls and noodles and oden that are actually GOOD. Jeremy and I have both lived on convenience store (combini) food during earlier stints in Japan and Taiwan, and I have a feeling we will be no strangers to it this time.

Ofuro. Japanese baths. LOVE ‘em. You wash outside the tub. No soapy water in the tub! After you’re clean, you get to soak in a tub that is so deep, the water covers your shoulders. It’s a ton of water, but because there’s no yucky soap scum, the water stays clean and pure, and is used for all family members. In a typical Japanese family, the dad bathes first. Then the kids, and then the mom at the end. (And she gets to be the one to drain the water and clean everything up.) But we are doing this Japan thing in our own way! Kids went first. Then me. Jeremy last. 

Today’s list.

1. Shop for apartment needs and food.

2. Figure out train lines and teach the kids Japanese trains work. 

3. Lunch at a ramen shop. 

More later!