tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-46530187945167642712024-03-13T09:03:02.946-07:00The Great International Teddy Bear ExchangeKaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.comBlogger115125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-83076635719463251392017-09-24T06:50:00.000-07:002017-09-24T06:50:08.738-07:00Our Last Trip of Summer - KyotoKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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As our last trip with Tag, we decided to go to Kyoto. It was the capital of Japan from 794 to 1868, and because of it, there are so many temples and shrines that are historically very important and are the origin of Japanese culture.<br />
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This is Kyoto Tower right in front of Kyoto Station.<br />
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This was our first stop in Kyoto... Guess what's inside here!<br />
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These are the tickets we needed to purchase in order to go inside. From what are written on them, they seem to be charms. The small one is for kids and it is for doing good at school and for being protected from traffic accidents, and the big one is for adults and it is for having a good luck and for raising a good family.<br />
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So, our first stop was the Golden Pavilion Temple (<i>Kinkakuji</i>)! Yuki and Tag were very surprised at how golden it was! This was built as a retirement villa for this<i> shogun</i> (<i>samurai</i>/military leader), <i>Ashikaga Yoshimitsu</i> in 13th century.<br />
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There are so many shrines and temples to visit throughout Japan, but this Golden Pavilion Temple is so breath-taking and also very unique that we would definitely recommend visiting this place if you ever come to Japan!</div>
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They had a coin toss here, too.. and this time, Tag said he wanted to try, so he tried! It was very hard to get the coin into the box in front of the buddha statue!<br />
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There are so many buildings in Japanese cities and we rarely see any nature, but when we come out to those historical places, it makes us realize Japan indeed is a very beautiful country with beaituful nature and rich culture!<br />
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The rest area:<br />
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They had a little shrine inside this retirement villa:<br />
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Kyoto is also known for their green tea. There are many green tea flavored foods in Kyoto or in Japan for that matter. When we lived in Kyoto, some of the Church members told us that in their school, green tea comes out of water pipe instead of water! But because of the words of wisdom, we do not drink tea nor eat tea-flavored foods. Tea is a big part of Japanese culture that when we say we do not drink tea, many Japanese people ask what we drink instead. In Japan, Church members are allowed to drink wheat tea.<br />
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We found this golden ice cream! Yuki really wanted to try so we got it. It is actually a regular vanilla ice cream, but it has a thin layer of golden paper on top of it! Gold didn't really have any taste to it, we don't think, but it just felt weird eating gold!<br />
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We found teddy bears in monk outfits. ;P<br />
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After visiting Golden Pavilion Temple, we visited Fushimi Inari Shrine. It is very famous for their thousands of red <i>torii</i> gates, and it is actually Yuki's mom's favorite place in Kyoto!<br />
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They believe foxes were the messengers of gods, so they have statues of foxes all over this shrine.<br />
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As you can see from this map, this shrine has those <i>torii</i> gates through the mountain. We have never been to the top, but we hear it is quite a trip and the view is very beautiful when you do make it to the top.<br />
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People saying prayers. You can see those girls in <i>kimono</i> (traditional Japanese dress)!<br />
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Walking through<i> torii</i> gates...<br />
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They had a little shrine for this big piece of tree! Plus the donation box..., which we found very funny.<br />
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They had a shrine specifically for doing better at schools and for passing entrance exams for schools (that's what it says on that white board).<br />
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They had many paper cranes that people folded as they made wishes that they'd do better at schools and/or pass the entrance exams for schools.<br />
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They had festival stalls outside the shrine.<br />
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So, those 2 places are the must-visit places in Kyoto recommended by Yuki's mom! We are glad we got to visit them with Tag to conclude our summer adventure... Usually, it gets dry but stays pretty hot here until mid October, but this year, it cooled down quite fast as soon as we entered September. Fall is here!</div>
PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com0Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan35.0116363 135.7680293999999334.595911799999996 135.12258239999994 35.4273608 136.41347639999992tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-7641139282033319572017-09-17T09:30:00.002-07:002017-09-17T09:30:21.906-07:00The End of Summer... Bon Odori (Summer Festival)!Konnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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So, a while ago, we talked a bit about <i>obon</i> holidays. In relation to that, many communities hold <i>bon odori</i> (summer festivals) during summer.<br />
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They put up many lanterns...<br />
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And they set up a stage.<br />
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On the stage, several people dance <i>bon odori</i> in circle. Anyone can join in and dance <i>bon odori</i> around the stage. Even if you don't know how to dance, you can just watch people up on the stage and copy them! It's not hard at all!<br />
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Also, as you can see in photos, many people wear <i>yukata</i> to <i>bon odori</i>, which is a casual version of <i>kimono</i>, a traditional Japanese dress. Many people dress up in <i>yukata</i> during summer and go to festivals. It is pretty.. but there is a certain way to put it on, and it is not easy wearing it!<br />
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They have many stalls at the festival for food and games, too!<br />
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For this game, you scoop out little bouncy balls with a special scooper. The scooper has a round plastic frame, and there is a very thin paper in the middle. This thin paper will break when it gets wet with water, so you need to be very careful and try to scoop out bouncy balls.<br />
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For this game, you pick water balloons with a hook. A hook is tied to a string made of tissue paper. You hold this string and try to catch the rubber band tied to each water balloon with the hook. It's hard, because the string made of tissue paper will break when it gets wet with water and the hook will fall off.<br />
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For this game, you pick a string and pull it. Then, you get a prize tied in the end of the string. There are so many strings that it's hard to guess which prize you might get!<br />
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Yuki wanted to scoop some fish...<br />
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It is much like scooping bouncy balls. Only that you are scooping gold fish instead of bouncy balls... Does it sound mean? Yuki's grandma never allowed Yuki's mom to do this when she was little, but Yuki... He likes animals, including fish, and he likes to raise gold fish, so we do this only sometimes. This is a very common game at summer festivals in Japan. We've read that people started doing this as a a game in Japan in 1810!<br />
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Yuki actually did not catch any.. but they gave him 5 fish to take home!<br />
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We have taken home gold fish that we got from summer festivals in the past, and some of them lived for a couple of years. We were hoping some of them would survive this year, too, but sadly, none of them did... :'( Yuki decided after that that he will not do gold fish scooping anymore, because he realized it is not good for gold fish. We will see if he still feels that way at the festival next year.<br />
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In our neighborhood, we always have this summer festival on the last Saturday of August, right before kids go back to school. It was very bitter sweet that we finally had our local summer festival. Summer is over now...!<br />
<br />PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com0Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan34.690083 135.1955112000000634.2726045 134.55006420000007 35.1075615 135.84095820000005tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-72800056281083115742017-09-17T09:22:00.002-07:002017-09-17T09:22:42.077-07:00A Day in KobeKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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We decided to have a relaxed outing in Kobe one weekend.<br />
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Then, we came across <i>yosakoi</i> festival in the city!<br />
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<i>Yosakoi</i> is a mixture of traditional Japanese dance and modern dance. Their costumes are also traditional Japanese with a taste of modernity in it. <i>Yosakoi</i> is very popular and there are many schools and groups that perform <i>yosakoi</i>.<br />
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There are many <i>yosakoi</i> festivals, events, and competitions throughout Japan.<br />
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After enjoying some <i>yosakoi</i> performances, we headed to China Town. Yuki thought maybe you guys have China Town in Virginia, too?<br />
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To many people in the world, we, Asians, might seem the same, but each country in Asia actually has its own unique culture. We are not sure how, but just from people's appearance (or maybe the atmosphere), we, Asians, can tell which country they are from as well.<br />
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Can you see Pekin Duck!? We have never tried it yet..<br />
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It is in Japan, but stepping inside this neighborhood, you can experience totally different atmosphere!<br />
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Everything in China Town is so colorful and pretty! We believe those are lucky charms.<br />
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After going to China Town, we headed up north. This photo is of along the railway. Can you see someone wrote "No Curry, No Life" on the wall?<br />
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We found a little shrine in the corner of a neighborhood.<br />
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There was another shrine in the middle of big buildings...<br />
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It's just very interesting to see all those shrines in the middle of cities in Japan, especially considering how Japanese people are not religious at all. Shinto religion is deeply rooted in and is a part of Japanese culture and everyday life!<br />
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This is where we wanted to go! Soraku Garden. We think this could be the only (famous) Japanese garden in Kobe!? This was a part of residence of the former mayor of Kobe.<br />
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We wanted to check out the lantern festival they had. Especially during summer, there are so many lantern festivals throughout Japan!<br />
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It was actually a very pretty Japanese garden! It got dark soon after we got there, so we couldn't fully enjoy the garden. We definitely want to go back there again during the day!<br />
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They made lanterns with traditional Japanese umbrellas.<br />
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We then went to downtown Kobe to have dinner. We usually don't go out at night, so whenever we come out to the city at night, it kind of takes us by surprise how bright it is with all the lights from stores and neon signs and how many people are out!<br />
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In Japan, people ride bicycles a lot. They sometimes park their bicycles on the side of the street, because there are not enough bicycle parking lots (or maybe because it's just more convenient that way), and it is a big problem for some cities.<br />
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We did not eat Kobe beef for dinner, but we wanted to share with you that Kobe is famous for this special beef called Kobe beef. Have you heard of it...?<br />
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The basketball player, Kobe Bryant, was named after this Kobe beef! His parents came to Japan and tried Kobe beef, and they loved it so much that they named their son after it!<br />
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Also, when President Obama visited Japan in 2009, he made a request that he wanted to try Kobe beef (and tuna)!<br />
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We have tried Kobe beef before, and we did not find anything special about it, haha...<br />
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We did not spend much time in Kobe this summer, so we were glad we got to explore a bit around Kobe that weekend with Tag!PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com0Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan34.690083 135.19551120000006-14.20854 52.578323700000055 83.588706 -142.18730129999994tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-13651349755287609142017-09-03T09:00:00.000-07:002017-09-03T09:00:46.512-07:00Summer Stuff<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />During the summer there are lots of things we do frequently, and they're just part of our summer routine, so I thought I'd give you a little sampling and tell you about them in one post (rather than doing a bunch of little posts). </div>
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One of our weekly activities is going to the library. We all love to read, so it's something we always look forward to. We are very fortunate to have several libraries close by, so we have great access to lots of books, movies, and music! The libraries also put on fun educational programs for the kids. We attended one on bats (but my phone erased all the photos from it) and we even got to see a live bat. </div>
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In America, libraries work together as systems within the counties of each state. We live in Chesterfield County, which has TEN libraries, and since we have Chesterfield County library cards, we can check out books from any of those ten libraries and return them to any of the libraries in the county. And you can check out up to 30 items at one time! But because we aren't always great at remembering where we put our books, I usually only let the kids check out 5 books at a time. That's usually all they need for 1 week anyway. :-)<br /><br />Do you have a library system in Japan?</div>
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Here is Christine reading a book to Moppy. Some of our family's favorite picture books are Berenstain Bear and Curious George books. My older kids like to read Junie B. Jones, Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Harry Potter. What kinds of books do you like to read in Japan?<br /><br /></div>
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Another thing we've done a few times this summer is to go to the pool at Pocahontas State Park. This pool is really fun because it has a great water play area. It's kind of like having a playground IN the water! There are slides and water cannons and it's not too deep, so even little ones can play.</div>
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Charlotte loves to play there.</div>
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Here's Christine relaxing on a lounger by the pool. We usually pack a picnic lunch with sandwiches, chips, and fruit, and eat there at the pool.</div>
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Here's a better view of the play area. We're planning on visiting this pool one more time before summer ends!</div>
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Another thing we've done a lot of this summer is volunteering at our local food bank. In America, people who don't have enough money can get assistance from the government, but sometimes they still need more help, so we have food banks.</div>
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We helped with a special program to provide food to schoolchildren over the summer. During the school year, many children can get free lunches at school if their family doesn't have enough money to pay for lunch. But during the summer, many of those children can go hungry unless their family gets some extra help. People and businesses donate food to the food bank, and we helped to divide it up and put it into bags for the food bank to distribute to the children. It was actually really fun for us to work together with the other volunteers (just ignore Audrey's blah face- she had a great time!) and it made us feel good to know we were helping children in need!<br /><br />On the day I took these photos, we were actually at the food bank with some members of Tyson's robotics team (they're wearing the blue shirts in the background). When they're not in competition season with their robot, they try to find ways to get involved and help the community.</div>
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Moppy loved helping us "give the gift of food!"<br /></div>
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We hope you enjoyed seeing some of our more fun summer routines. Is there anything you do on a regular basis in the summer?</div>
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-29956121882903363912017-09-03T08:29:00.001-07:002017-09-03T08:29:35.592-07:00Charlotte Gets Baptized!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Saturday, September 2nd, was a very exciting day in our family, because it was Charlotte's 8th birthday AND she got baptized! </div>
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Here are all the kids together. We also had a lot of extended family members come- grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins!</div>
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Here is Charlotte with her dad, who baptized her. We are so grateful that he holds the priesthood.</div>
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This was a little display we put up with Charlotte's blessing dress from when she was a baby, and some photos of her growing up.</div>
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After the baptism, we had some treats. These are some special sugar cookies made by Charlotte's Aunt Kiley. Aunt Kiley works at a bakery, so she's very good at making fancy cookies! She knew that Charlotte loves mermaids, so she made her cookies mermaid and ocean themed. They were delicious!</div>
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I also made some yummy cupcakes. Charlotte is trying to keep Moppy from eating them all!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtk2i8Pzhd97sjGEWl1Gv2QXUkB_UT6zX2kAIZ7cjk_sKqxSaypoBLoiJ1I8OE25fEDYeBpPehXY8o8RRFDzOHJ7ghxYHKFiMl9NngQ-EZM68d5gT2K8Hcs6TqnqiBji1jbGidE-OwcidJ/s1600/IMGP0031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtk2i8Pzhd97sjGEWl1Gv2QXUkB_UT6zX2kAIZ7cjk_sKqxSaypoBLoiJ1I8OE25fEDYeBpPehXY8o8RRFDzOHJ7ghxYHKFiMl9NngQ-EZM68d5gT2K8Hcs6TqnqiBji1jbGidE-OwcidJ/s400/IMGP0031.JPG" width="400" /></a><br /><br />Here are Charlotte and Moppy in the church's Relief Society room. This is where we had the program for Charlotte's baptism. </div>
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Here is Moppy in the Primary room- maybe she wants to give a talk?<br /><br />We are so glad that Moppy was able to share this fun and special day with us!</div>
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-83063966652879551582017-09-01T21:30:00.000-07:002017-09-01T21:30:26.286-07:00Our Trip to Tokyo Part IIKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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On our second day in Tokyo, we visited many places in Tokyo.<br />
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Can you guess the first place we visited...?<br />
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When we get off Hiroo Station, take left and walk up the street, there it is! Can you see "it" in this busy residential area of Tokyo...?<br />
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Yes! We visited the LDS Tokyo Japan Temple! (So, we learned that its official name is the Tokyo Japan Temple..., not the Tokyo Temple.)<br />
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It is located in one of the most expensive areas in Tokyo! This temple is very small without any garden around it... except for this area right in front of the entrance of the temple:<br />
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Tokyo Japan Temple was the first temple to be built in Asia! It was dedicated by President Kimball in 1980, and the statute of the angel Moroni was added in 2004.<br />
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Can you see how it is right in the middle of a residential area, right next to a busy street, surrounded by all those houses and apartment buildings? But oh, the excitement and the joy you feel when you spot the angel Moroni in this busy world that we live in!<br />
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Across from the temple, there is this beautiful park called Arisugawa-no-miya Memorial Park. Whenever we visit the Tokyo Japan Temple, we love to spend some time in this park.<br />
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When we lived in Kyoto before Yuki started elementary school, Kyoto Stake arranged a Stake Temple trip once every couple of months. Our Stake rented a night bus for members, and we all came to the temple together. We left Kyoto at night and arrived at the temple in the morning. While parents went to the temple, children played at this park and waited for their parents.<br />
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They also have this beautiful Japanese garden at this park.<br />
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And we saw many<i> koi</i> fish!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOg_Vr8JZKXBytwTWlgj6aUi7ubhyphenhyphenoG2TGGYVy57Q7lh3JPMYmWV58_n_IEKJMWQWBtyWhD3dJeAkr4nIUJ_Hctmira8kv6As3RObh31PjPbjJ7GxC-mllebyUnedxGchoqriOvJXkckpf/s1600/039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1060" data-original-width="1600" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOg_Vr8JZKXBytwTWlgj6aUi7ubhyphenhyphenoG2TGGYVy57Q7lh3JPMYmWV58_n_IEKJMWQWBtyWhD3dJeAkr4nIUJ_Hctmira8kv6As3RObh31PjPbjJ7GxC-mllebyUnedxGchoqriOvJXkckpf/s400/039.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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After spending some time at the Tokyo Japan Temple and at Arisugawa-no-miya Memorial Park, we went to see Tokyo Tower. Tokyo Tower was built in 1958 as a broadcast antenna and it was the tallest building in Japan until Tokyo Skytree was built in 2012. We decided to visit Tokyo Tower this time, because we have been to Tokyo Skytree before.</div>
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It was modeled after the Eiffel Tower... Can you see the resemblance!?</div>
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We went up to the main observatory of Tokyo Tower and enjoyed the view of Tokyo!</div>
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We were not really expecting anything from Tokyo Tower, but seeing all those buildings after buildings was actually very fun! We stayed there a lot longer than we originally planned! On a clear day, you can see Mount Fuji from Tokyo Tower, but we couldn't see it that day. :/</div>
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We found a very small, modern-looking shrine at the main observatory of Tokyo Tower! It was built in 1977 to pray for the health of those involved with Tokyo Tower and for the prosperity of its business...<br />
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Here is how to pray when you are at the shrine:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIyjt_ZnOp-A_qkWd5uIFgIyrMHSJIoBBvQR95phRmCPLm2DlQJERNXQzGETIg_r8hJ6uHG0V5OyZyuJBEsrRc7C4CaF1kIVEO4L-uM2BiJ_nkC5sRvqQPtGUm3-iPFb78zW1hqOnj40PI/s1600/020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1196" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIyjt_ZnOp-A_qkWd5uIFgIyrMHSJIoBBvQR95phRmCPLm2DlQJERNXQzGETIg_r8hJ6uHG0V5OyZyuJBEsrRc7C4CaF1kIVEO4L-uM2BiJ_nkC5sRvqQPtGUm3-iPFb78zW1hqOnj40PI/s400/020.JPG" width="298" /></a></div>
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There was a "look-down window." Yuki was worried what would happen if someone accidentally broke the glass...! Tokyo Tower is going through renovation right now, and that is why there are all those iron pipes and nets..</div>
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Then, we headed to Shibuya. At Shibuya Station, there is a statue of this famous Akita dog named Hachiko. Hachiko waited for his human dad to come home from work everyday at Shibuya Station. One day, his human dad passed away at work and never returned. But Hachiko waited for his human dad's return everyday for 10 years after his human dad passed away! Believe it or not, this is a true story! Hollywood made a movie about Hachiko, and it is called Hachi: A Dog's Tale. We haven't watched it yet, though.. Have you?<br />
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When we were there, there was a cat at this Hachiko statue. Yuki's mom has read on Facebook that someone actually leaves this cat at various tourist spots around Tokyo to get attention... The cat sure was cute, but we are not sure if he actually wants to be there. Also, someone has put a Hello Kitty sticker on Hachiko..., which we found very disrespectful to the statue?</div>
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We found a Hello Kitty bus in front of Hachiko statue. Can you guess what it is? It is a Shibuya information center!</div>
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After taking a photo with the statue of Hachiko and checking out the Hello Kitty bus, we enjoyed watching Shibuya Crossing. Shibuya Crossing is known to be the world's busiest crossing. Can you believe 3,000 people cross this crossing at every blue light!? It has become one of the popular tourist spots that we saw many people taking photos as they were crossing this crossing. We even saw this girl dancing as she crossed (and her friend was filming her)!<br />
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After going to Shibuya, we visited Odaiba. One of big Japanese TV stations is in Odaiba, and our friends told us that there is always something going on in Odaiba so we should check it out.</div>
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We got to take a photo with the Statue of Liberty in Odaiba! They had a "French year" in Tokyo back in 1998 to 1999, and they placed a replica of the Statue of Liberty there. It was so popular that they got a permission from the French government and got their own Statue of Liberty since then. Behind it is another famous tourist spot, the Rainbow Bridge.</div>
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One of the things Odaiba is known for is its giant Gundam (Japanese robot anime?) statue, but it was removed in March of this year, and apparently this was the new one that's being built right now. It will not be completed until the end of September.</div>
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Also, there were replicas of some Japanese cartoons.<br />
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To be honest, Yuki's mom did not really enjoy Odaiba, but Yuki enjoyed it very much. They had many events for TV shows, Play Station, etc..</div>
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After we went to Odaiba, we headed to Tokyo Station.</div>
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Because we decided to take a bullet train back to Kobe!<br />
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We got some boxed lunch and ate them on the bullet train. Yuki's mom recently decided to become a vegetarian, but she's been failing... Look at the boxed lunches we got. It's all meat! We are carnivals...<br />
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This is inside the bullet train. Unlike the night bus, there was a plenty of space between each seats, and it was very comfortable! Can you spot Tag and Yuki taking a peek?</div>
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Yuki and Tag have developed such a strong bond this summer. We will miss Tag when he returns to the US...<br />
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One of the reasons why we decided to take a bullet train home was because we were hoping to see Mount Fuji!</div>
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But sadly, we could not see Mount Fuji clearly... wither because the air wasn't clear that day or because it was getting late and darker. But nevertheless, we did see Mount Fuji!</div>
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Living in Kobe and going to Osaka often, we have always considered ourselves city people. However, visiting Tokyo made us feel like we are from a very small town... TOKYO WAS BIG!! Below is the map of all the Metro lines in Tokyo. And it's not just metro that runs through Tokyo.. There are more lines of trains that run through Tokyo!</div>
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We were glad we visited Tokyo. We want to go explore again!</div>
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PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com2Tokyo, Japan35.6894875 139.6917063999999321.711275 119.03740939999993 49.667699999999996 160.34600339999992tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-87571592909846867032017-08-30T21:02:00.001-07:002017-08-30T21:02:28.607-07:00Our Trip to Tokyo Part I: Tokyo Disney SeaKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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As you might have already guessed it, we love theme parks and we love Disney! We are very lucky to have Tokyo Disney Resort with Disneyland and Disney Sea in Japan! We try to go visit at least once every year.<br />
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We usually take the night bus when we go to Tokyo Disney Resort. We leave Kobe/Osaka at night, and we arrive at Disney Resort in the morning! It is very exhausting actually, but it is very convenient and affordable!<br />
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This is the night view of Umeda in Osaka. Osaka is the second biggest city in Japan, and it is known for its unique culture and people. People generally say people from Osaka are a lot more friendly and down-to-earth as compared to people from Tokyo.<br />
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The bus terminal is located at Umeda Sky Building, which is a popular observatory building. We have never been there, though, because it is rather expensive, and there is always a very long line and we need to wait for hours to go up there!<br />
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This is the bus terminal.. Many people use the night bus!<br />
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We are ready for Tokyo! We left Osaka at 9:30pm and arrived at Tokyo Disney Resort at 6:30am!<br />
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This summer, we visited Disney Sea.<br />
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"Pirates Summer" was their theme this summer!<br />
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Duffy the Disney Bear is at Disney Sea! Duffy is a teddy bear that Minnie Mouse made for Mickey Mouse while he was away on a voyage to travel the world. This teddy bear was named Duffy, because Minnie put him in a duffel bag when she gave him to Mickey.</div>
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Duffy felt alone, seeing Mickey has Minnie but he did not have anyone, so Minnie made him a new friend, Shelly May (the pink teddy bear on the right). In one of his voyages with Mickey, Duffy also made a friend, Gelatoni (a cat on the left).<br />
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We thought it was kind of fun that Tag got to meet another teddy bear!<br />
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And, on March of this year, Duffy made yet another new friend, Stella Lou!<br />
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Many people enjoy dressing up their Duffy, Shelly May, Gelatoni, and Stella Lou in cute outfits, and they bring them to Tokyo Disney Sea. Yuki actually has his own Duffy, too! We thought about sending Duffy to you guys for the teddy bear exchange, but Moppy said he really wanted to travel to the US, so we decided to send him instead!<br />
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Yuki loves the summer water shows at Disney Resort! He enjoys getting wet!<br />
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Can you tell he got really wet after the show?<br />
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They have a new attraction called Nemo & Friends Sea Rider, which opened on May of this year! We finally got to ride it!</div>
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They also have this fun activity called the Leonardo Challenge at Tokyo Disney Sea. You are given a map with directions, and you try to get to the goal as you solve each clue.</div>
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If you solve all the clues and get to the goal, you can be a member of the Society of Explorers and Adventurers!<br />
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You can also learn about things Leonardo Da Vinci discovered as you solve the clues. We thought about you guys as we tried this challenge. We think you'd love it!<br />
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And Yuki's mom's favorite, Mermaid Lagoon...</div>
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It looks even prettier at night!<br />
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We really enjoyed our time at Disney Sea!<br />
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We often think that we have been to Tokyo a lot, because we have been to Tokyo Disney Resort a lot. But apparently, Tokyo Disney Resort is not actually located in Tokyo. It is in Chiba Prefecture, right next to Tokyo. So, this time, we decided to also go visit the actual Tokyo on our second day of this trip. We will write about it in our next post!</div>
<br />PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com01-1 Maihama, Urayasu, Chiba Prefecture 279-0031, Japan35.6306579 139.8828694999999710.108623400000003 98.57427549999997 61.152692400000007 -178.80853650000006tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-66257435914387030202017-08-30T08:31:00.000-07:002017-09-01T09:02:00.924-07:00Our Trip to Hiroshima Part II: Atomic Bomb DomeKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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On our second day in Hiroshima, we visited Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. At Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, there are many monuments and museums to commemorate victims of the nuclear bomb that was dropped in Hiroshima during World War II. Among that is Atomic Bomb Dome.<br />
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This is the Atomic Bomb Dome. At 8:15am on August 6th, 1945 during World War II, the nuclear bomb was dropped and exploded 600 m (2,000 ft) almost directly above this dome.<br />
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0.2 seconds after the explosion of the bomb, the heart rays from the blast covered the area, and they were a few thousand times stronger than the sun light. The temperature of the ground reached 2,000 C (3,632 F). 0.8 seconds after the explosion of the bomb, the dome was destroyed as you see in those photos.<br />
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The area within the radius of 2 km (1.243 miles) turned into ashes. The only reason this dome retained its form was because the bomb exploded almost right above it.<br />
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With this single bomb, the lives of over 200,000 people were lost and many suffered fatal injuries from the radiation.<br />
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This monument is dedicated to children who lost their lives to the nuclear bomb. The girl on top of the monument is a little girl who passed away from the radiation of the bomb. She folded 1,000 paper cranes, believing she would be cured if she did. (In Japan, we believe that if we fold 1,000 paper cranes, then it can cure diseases, because cranes are the symbol of good luck since they live for many years.)<br />
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There is also Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum in this park. However, we have been told we have to mentally prepare ourselves before entering this museum, because it really shows the horrific damage caused by a nuclear bomb.... It is very important to know what went on in wars and the damages caused by a nuclear bomb so that we really understand the horrible reality of wars and learn from the mistakes we have made in the past, but we felt that we were not ready to face it yet at this time, so we did not go inside the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. But someday, we will...</div>
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In order to write this blog post, Yuki's mom tried to read a bit more about this nuclear bombing in Hiroshima, but just reading even a bit was too much to bear. She could not keep reading even in an effort to tell you guys about it...</div>
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In late 19th century and in early 20th century, Japan was invading other countries. Japan was attacking those countries viciously and doing many horrible things to their people. There were other countries in Europe doing the same at the time, and Japan formed an alliance with them. However, even after those countries Japan formed an alliance with surrendered, Japan refused to stop and kept fighting. In order to stop it, the nuclear bombs were dropped in Hiroshima and in Nagasaki in 1945. By losing so many lives all at once by such a horrific way and having so many people suffer fatal injuries, Japan finally learned how wars hurt people.</div>
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After World War II, Japan implemented a new Constitution, which was drafted by the US. It includes Article 9, which states that Japan will not go into wars with other countries and will not have armed forces to fight with other countries.</div>
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Yuki's mom remembers feeling very proud that Japan is now a very peaceful country when she learned about Article 9 in school. However, some people question the validity of self-armed forces in Japan with Article 9 while others call for the complete revision of Article 9 so Japan can go into wars with other countries when it is necessary. (To our knowledge, Japan's self-armed forces serve people within the country in times of disasters and also provide people in war zones in other countries with resources such as food and water without actually being involved in the act of war.)</div>
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This past Tuesday morning, North Korea shot a missile that passed over Japan and dropped into the ocean very close to Japanese shores. This incident stirred a big debate over Article 9 yet again. We sure hope we can remain to be a peaceful country...</div>
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But at the same time, because we live in a very peaceful country, we often forget that there are countries in this world that are at wars right now and that there are people who live everyday fearing for their and their loved ones' lives...</div>
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There are just so many thoughts and feelings that cannot be put into words, so we will end this blog right here... We hope and pray that the world will be a peaceful place someday soon...</div>
PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com11-10 Otemachi, Naka Ward, Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture 730-0051, Japan34.395483 132.4535919999999633.976512 131.80814499999997 34.814454 133.09903899999995tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-50798213728516068822017-08-27T08:19:00.000-07:002017-08-27T08:26:41.459-07:00Bicycling on the Capital Trail<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We're very fortunate here in Richmond, Virginia, to have a lot of options for fun outdoor activities! One of those activities that our family has been wanting to try for awhile is the <a href="https://www.virginiacapitaltrail.org/">Virginia Capital Trail</a>. The VCT is 50 miles (80 km) long and goes all the way from Williamsburg to Richmond! It's called the Virginia "Captial" Trail because Richmond is the state capital of Virginia. Every state in the U.S. has a capital, which is where the government for that state is located.</div>
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The VCT is designed specifically for bicycles, although people can also jog and walk on it as well. It's a nice trail to use because it is safe- you don't have to worry about riding your bike on a busy road- and it's paved and has beautiful scenery as well.</div>
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Here is Moppy giving it a go on my bike. I think she's getting the hang of it! </div>
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Here are Audrey, Charlotte, Moppy, and Tyson on one of the trail's bridges. We ended up riding about 10 miles (16 km) as a family- we went about 5 miles (8 km) from where we'd parked, then turned around and did the 5 miles back to where we parked. Where we parked was about 10 miles (16 km) outside of the city of Richmond. If we wanted to, we could ride the trail all the way into the city of Richmond- or if we rode the other direction we could get all the way to the town of Williamsburg- but 40 miles (64 km) was a bit far for our little family. :-) </div>
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Here's Dad and Christine catching up with us. Christine is an excellent bike rider, but she's so much smaller than the rest of us it takes her a bit longer. She did such a great job! </div>
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After our biking adventure we had lunch and then played on the playground at the park where we'd picked up the trail, Dorey Park.</div>
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Tyson and Moppy had fun on this climbing wall.</div>
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Audrey decided to push Moppy on the swing.</div>
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It didn't go so well- Moppy kind of crashed, but she was okay. Just a little bit mulch-y.</div>
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Charlotte was kind enough to get her all cleaned up. Charlotte knows what it's like to crash- see those bandages on her fingers and elbow? She had a pretty nasty crash on her bike while we were on the trail. Fortunately, we always come prepared, and we used our first-aid kit to patch her up so we could keep going. She was very brave! (Our family rarely has a bike trip where someone doesn't crash!)</div>
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Here's Moppy checking out the pretty lake and these two lake residents- ducks!</div>
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Tyson and Christine took Moppy over to get a closer look at the ducks.</div>
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Such a pretty lake!</div>
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I think the ducks liked us.</div>
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On the way home we crossed a big bridge.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJeryMJnVzq-EX0vj3MeSgrWWaVxUOR_FZtxQOOKlbY7llFLH2VAbFBNnt3SgTkNNUaL4DlmX0Ukv8t7hp4FBny8aEu3eyTJ4y_YiPmuWL1W-pKl3i4e7QgTl1JT7o77cKFssvtdadVxOi/s1600/20170825_153118.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="961" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJeryMJnVzq-EX0vj3MeSgrWWaVxUOR_FZtxQOOKlbY7llFLH2VAbFBNnt3SgTkNNUaL4DlmX0Ukv8t7hp4FBny8aEu3eyTJ4y_YiPmuWL1W-pKl3i4e7QgTl1JT7o77cKFssvtdadVxOi/s400/20170825_153118.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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That's the James River, which is actually another way to get from Richmond to Williamsburg, because it goes the whole way! Many people go kayaking and canoeing on this river.</div>
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Moppy was having so much fun checking out all the sights that we gave her the best seat in the van!</div>
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We hope you enjoyed seeing a little bit more about Richmond. </div>
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Did you know that this week is our last week before school starts on September 5th? Yikes! Soon it will be time for Moppy and Tag to go home. We sure will miss this sweet little monster! But we'll be sure to do a few more fun things with her before she heads home.</div>
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Do you ever go biking in Japan?</div>
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-52318008335694690762017-08-24T14:19:00.001-07:002017-08-24T14:19:12.795-07:00SOLAR ECLIPSE!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR5qA3nGc7T-RL4B2JT0a7QgHBODVJK9P_UOJbdvq6YpcrQb-LtZWdmSYO86k8n-FZ92fk74uKs87Rcr6ybzIG8U3erhfpY2d9sY5bIrNrT11Pqsj8t_iMWeEbjkTQPVt0OED2CkVeefin/s1600/20170821_135535.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR5qA3nGc7T-RL4B2JT0a7QgHBODVJK9P_UOJbdvq6YpcrQb-LtZWdmSYO86k8n-FZ92fk74uKs87Rcr6ybzIG8U3erhfpY2d9sY5bIrNrT11Pqsj8t_iMWeEbjkTQPVt0OED2CkVeefin/s400/20170821_135535.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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On Monday, August 21st, we had the rare opportunity here in the U.S. to see a solar eclipse. Because of where we live, we only got a partial solar eclipse- other areas to the west and south of us got to experience a full eclipse, but we weren't up to traveling 5-6 hours to see the full effect. So instead, we just watched it from our own backyard. It didn't get totally dark, but it definitely got dimmer, and everything took on a weird tint.<br /></div>
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Fortunately, we did have some special solar eclipse glasses so we were able to view the partial eclipse, and we also saw another neat phenomenon called the "pinhole effect."<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDXSB4Imbigd5ckeEk58NfZD_E_neOBS5IUNbzBtV4qFaBzdxaS4ZF78poUxye-X1lJzoUM5vE7TVTggY7lSQC8hhEXOyt7FJ2NayQZcn1AuzKVwNvoDfMpwVEaptdNmUImnQBNi7vjKR/s1600/20170821_143135.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="961" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtDXSB4Imbigd5ckeEk58NfZD_E_neOBS5IUNbzBtV4qFaBzdxaS4ZF78poUxye-X1lJzoUM5vE7TVTggY7lSQC8hhEXOyt7FJ2NayQZcn1AuzKVwNvoDfMpwVEaptdNmUImnQBNi7vjKR/s400/20170821_143135.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We first noticed it on our deck- normally, these shadows look like any shadows you'd see when the sunlight shines through the leaves on a tree. But due to the solar eclipse, every place the sun shined through was a bright crescent shape.<br /></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSzBpHXk4a-_zyN9mzOIfVhln4M2p6ZAW_XQgzl8TKL24_dtushEDEepydx1IKTBKczafo9pj7sVFEkgwnYez0SQBBsSVEAnEp8SLEvuQuKMoHg6Va72nclts_FHTXg6NUbUTzyRdho5nU/s1600/20170821_143307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSzBpHXk4a-_zyN9mzOIfVhln4M2p6ZAW_XQgzl8TKL24_dtushEDEepydx1IKTBKczafo9pj7sVFEkgwnYez0SQBBsSVEAnEp8SLEvuQuKMoHg6Va72nclts_FHTXg6NUbUTzyRdho5nU/s400/20170821_143307.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><br />We could see it really clearly on our living room carpet (which was a bit messy because we kept going in and out of the house to see the progress of the eclipse!)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBRS7tZnvfcEFVuzFNxZlVYNMbkHdhce8hLYODWC3CJaJogGG3LbM-RGY_YMS7TOJkYZ2hUAkvjwohiyTlvGQZXNeI47rGdfAAx8eIRLKVNlH8z0cItxTG4zuoKeFRiecq_0-fNmUAKpqI/s1600/20170821_144659.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBRS7tZnvfcEFVuzFNxZlVYNMbkHdhce8hLYODWC3CJaJogGG3LbM-RGY_YMS7TOJkYZ2hUAkvjwohiyTlvGQZXNeI47rGdfAAx8eIRLKVNlH8z0cItxTG4zuoKeFRiecq_0-fNmUAKpqI/s400/20170821_144659.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><br />And on our driveway. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvs1MpsgHJrFQTnhblCeTzdB_1zVF1IuHIiN5lKam2T0PNTSsC50e-4MpXtzxy1w0c_kcy0R7r05qmTXGN7GnaMyiU8krcwO3zn5GzouWMQkH8yTAN-ceurilwc6IlxIuX3oHXvUJ1Mkdj/s1600/20170821_144843.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvs1MpsgHJrFQTnhblCeTzdB_1zVF1IuHIiN5lKam2T0PNTSsC50e-4MpXtzxy1w0c_kcy0R7r05qmTXGN7GnaMyiU8krcwO3zn5GzouWMQkH8yTAN-ceurilwc6IlxIuX3oHXvUJ1Mkdj/s400/20170821_144843.jpg" width="240" /></a><br /><br />I thought the effect on the paint on my husband's old car was really cool. It reminded me of billowing smoke.<br /><br />Because I'd heard this called the "pinhole effect," I decided I wanted to see what would happen if I actually put a pinhole in a sheet of paper and let the sun shine through it.</div>
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See that tiny bright crescent shape that looks kind of like a fingernail? That's the sun in the midst of a solar eclipse! That's what came through the pinhole I'd made in the paper.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzDkp_w24cNtYeFdCs2GC3ncQn9y92KMXC1EdKBMhNDCSehIlJDQTjuAgKc1Lps6BitzaYs-gYJYHf3QYcX6RBWoToR2TIcb54LiTaRngelxlzoAyBMvlaKZwtGxVcIBvZn0tKtKq9lu6Y/s1600/20170821_135629.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="961" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzDkp_w24cNtYeFdCs2GC3ncQn9y92KMXC1EdKBMhNDCSehIlJDQTjuAgKc1Lps6BitzaYs-gYJYHf3QYcX6RBWoToR2TIcb54LiTaRngelxlzoAyBMvlaKZwtGxVcIBvZn0tKtKq9lu6Y/s400/20170821_135629.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We made sure to be extra safe while watching the eclipse- everyone had their own pair of eclipse glasses, and since the glasses are designed for adults- not kids- we fitted the girls' glasses with some extra protection in the form of paper plates. Safety first!<br /><br />Have you ever experienced a solar eclipse? The next one will be coming to the U.S. in 2024, and we're already excited for it! </div>
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-61044335837119095942017-08-23T08:36:00.001-07:002017-08-27T07:53:01.066-07:00Our Trip to Hiroshima Part I: Miyajima, the Shrine IslandKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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Before our <i>obon</i> holiday was over, we decided to visit Hiroshima.<br />
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From Kobe, it's about 2 hours to Hiroshima by a bullet train, but since bullet train is very expensive, we decided to take local trains to Hiroshima, which took us 6 hours! One of the train companies called JR sells this special kind of tickets during holiday seasons called <i>seishun 18 kippu</i>, and with that, you can ride any local trains for a day for only about $25!<br />
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We left our home in Kobe around 8am. On our way to Hiroshima, we enjoyed spending time together on the train and watching beautiful scenery outside.<br />
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Our first stop was this island called <i>Miyajima</i>, which means the shrine island. You take a 10-minute ferry ride to <i>Miyajima</i> from the mainland.<br />
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On <i>Miyajima</i>, there are <i>Itsukushima</i> Shrine and this <i>torii</i> gate that are built on water... Yes, on water! During high tide, it looks like they are floating on water! At low tide, you can walk to the <i>torii</i> gate.<br />
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It is ranked as one of the 3 best views in Japan and also is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the National Treasure.<br />
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<span style="text-align: start;">According to the record, it was built in the beginning of the 7th century! People at the time actually calculated and incorporated the tide into building this shrine and the </span><i style="text-align: start;">torii</i><span style="text-align: start;"> gate! How smart is that!?</span></div>
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There were many deer walking around <i>Miyajima</i> just like at <i>Todaiji</i> Temple in Nara! But unlike how we could buy deer crackers and feed them to deer at <i>Todaiji</i> Temple, there were signs in <i>Miyajima</i> that said no feeding of deer.<br />
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<i>Miyajima</i> is famous for maple trees, which are called <i>momiji</i> in Japanese. One of their famous souvenirs is <i>momiji manju</i>, which is pastries shaped of maple leaf, filled with<i> azuki</i> (red mung beans) jam or custard. We tried the fried <i>momiji manju</i>! They were so tasty!<br />
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This is the machine that they use to make <i>momiji manju</i>! Some stores let you see how they make <i>momiji manju</i> through the window.</div>
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They also had fish cake called <i>chikuwa</i>, shaped of maple leaf!</div>
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They are also famous for their oysters. We had to try them!</div>
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<i>Miyajima</i> is also very famous for <i>shamoji</i>. S<i>hamoji</i> is a special spoon used to serve cooked rice. It is said that a monk from <i>Miyajima</i> invented <i>shamoji</i>. We took a photo in front of the world's biggest <i>shamoji</i>! Haha! Also, we never thought about it until now, but how weird is that we have a special spoon just for the purpose of serving rice!? Oh, and... can you see those coins in front of <i>shamoji</i>!? If you could throw the coin into the little box in front of <i>shamoji</i>, you can have your wish come true.. :P<br />
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In <i>Miyajima</i>, there are many temples and shrines besides <i>Itsukushima</i> Shrine.<br />
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In Japan, we regard temples as the places with Buddha statues and monks and shrines as the places that worship Shinto religion. Buddhism came from China and India, while Shito started in Japan. When we were reading about Shinto, we learned that Shinto is practiced only in Japan. We thought that was interesting..<br />
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Shito believes in many gods. They believe that <i>Amenominakanushi</i> was the first god<i>.</i> From there, many gods came into existence. Gods of Shinto seem to be based on mythology and are manifested in many forms, including nature such as mountains, rivers and animals, natural phenomenons, and even our ancestors.<br />
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According to some old writings, the emperors of Japan are the descendants of <i>Amenominakanushi</i>, the first god. There is a genealogy that shows that!? However, of course, the validity of this genealogy has not been proven. The emperors of Japan and their families practice Shinto rites.<br />
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Most Japanese do not actively believe in any god. Yet, they visit shrines often, and when they do, they bow their heads and say a little prayer at the alter after throwing some coins into the donation box. It seems like religion to many Japanese is more about old customs than the faith or the philosophy of life.<br />
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And before we end this post, we want to explain what <i>torii</i> gate is. There are holy areas in shrines where gods descend. In order to divide the world where gods live and the world where people live, they built <i>torii</i> gate. And just in case you are still not sure what <i>torii</i> gate is, this is it ↓.<br />
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Apologies Yuki's mom likes to go on and on about things... It's just that we are having so much fun re-discovering Japan with Tag! He is so patient with Yuki's mom.. and very attentive, too!<br />
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On our next post, we would like to talk about our visit to Hiroshima Atomic Bomb Dome.PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com5Hiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan34.3852029 132.4552926999999733.966231900000004 131.80984569999998 34.8041739 133.10073969999996tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-57036701629420039002017-08-21T07:29:00.000-07:002017-08-21T07:35:12.990-07:00A Day Trip to Osaka!Konnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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We wonder if you have watched it before, but Disney On Ice, a Disney figure skating show, comes to Japan every summer from the US, and we have been going to watch their show every year since Yuki was 5!<br />
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This is Osaka Castle Park. They host this show at Osaka Castle Hall. It was a beautiful (and hot) day!<br />
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Every year when we go watch Disney On Ice, we wonder if we could see Joe again... Joe is the man who comes to Japan every year with Disney On Ice and sells pamphlets. He is definitely one of the reasons why we go watch Disney On Ice every year! Can you believe he is 88!? And he remembered us from last year, too...!<br />
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We cannot forget the souvenir... We got some shaved ice in Dolly-shaped cup!<br />
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The show was very magical! Time flew so fast, and before we knew it, it was over... Now we cannot wait to come back next year!</div>
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After Disney On Ice, Tag wanted to eat <i>takoyaki</i> again! He must have loved it very much the last time he ate it!<br />
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Many Japanese restaurants have displays of their menu like this outside.<br />
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This is how they make <i>takoyaki</i>!</div>
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And this time, we also ordered our yet another favorite Japanese food, <i>okonomiyaki</i>! We would describe it as cabbage pancakes. It is a mixture of sliced cabbage, eggs, water, and flour. You can add some meat or seafood with your preference.<br />
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After eating, we decided to take Tag to Osaka Castle, which is right next to Osaka Castle Hall, where we watched Disney On Ice!<br />
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In 16th century, Japan was divided into many provinces, each governed by <i>bushi/samurai</i> (Japanese warriors), but <i>bushi </i>and their clans started to fight with each other, trying to conquer and unify Japan. One of the last <i>bushi</i> who came very close to unify Japan was <i>Oda Nobunaga</i>. He actually allowed many Western cultures to come into Japan, including guns and Christianity. However, right before he was to unify Japan, he was killed by one of his retainers. Then, <i>Toyotomi Hideyoshi</i>, who was <i>Oda Nobunaga</i>'s favorite retainer killed the retainer who killed <i>Oda Nobunaga</i>. He was the one who started the construction of Osaka Castle in 1583, and it was completed in 1598. It was the largest castle at the time.<br />
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There are 2 moats surrounding the castle!<br />
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They had a performance right in front of the castle the day we went. Also, you might be wondering what the glass box on the left side of the castle is... Osaka Castle went through many reconstructions and renovations over the years, and that glass box is actually an elevator, which was added to the castle not many years ago!<br />
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We got to take a photo with this guy dressed in <i>bushi/samurai</i> outfits!</div>
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<i>Toyotomi Hideyoshi</i> passed away and his son succeeded, but his son was soon defeated by <i>Tokugawa Ieyasu</i>, who became the one to actually conquer and unify Japan. Sadly, <i>Tokugawa Ieyasu</i> persecuted Christians, and Christians in Japan had to go through many hardships.<br />
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In 19th century, Osaka Castle was used as an arsenal, where 60,000 people manufactured guns and bombs. During World War II, Osaka Castle was targeted for many bombing raids as an arsenal.<br />
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In today's Japan, Osaka Castle is a very popular landmark where many tourists come visit. They also hold many concerts at Osaka Castle Hall and we often go to Osaka Castle Park for picnics, etc.. We never really knew that it played a major role in the unification of Japan in 16th century Japan or that it was used as an arsenal after 19th century until we read about the history of Osaka Castle to write this blog! It was bizarre to think about all the history behind Osaka Castle, but it gave us a chance to realize history really is a part of our lives!PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com31-1 Osakajo, Chuo Ward, Osaka, Osaka Prefecture 540-0002, Japan34.6873153 135.526201300000039.1652808000000014 94.217607300000026 60.2093498 176.83479530000002tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-76360945086386696312017-08-20T16:57:00.000-07:002017-08-24T14:23:17.576-07:00Fun & Games with Moppy: Baseball and Bowling<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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When we got back from Grandma's house, Chad and I decided to go to a baseball game and bring Moppy with us! Our local team is the Richmond Flying Squirrels. See that giant inflated squirrel behind Moppy? His name is Nutzy. There's a girl squirrel too, and her name is Nutasha. </div>
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So nice of Moppy to take our picture!<br />
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We decided to return the favor. Moppy loved watching the game with us! </div>
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On the way home from the game I snapped a photo of downtown Richmond out the window- it's blurry, but still pretty!</div>
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The next day we went bowling as a family. </div>
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Moppy watches Tyson help Christine line up her shot using a special ramp that's for little kids who can't roll a heavy bowling ball all by themselves. They just push it down the ramp!</div>
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Here's Audrey watching her ball go down the lane. Looks like a pretty good shot!</div>
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Now Dad helps Christine line up her shot. Silly Moppy photo bomb!</div>
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Christine says, "Silly Moppy!"<br />
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Once Christine's turn was over she decided to keep Moppy out of trouble by showing her the buttons for the score screen.<br />
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Moppy checks the scores- looks like Dad is winning, as usual!</div>
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We had a great time at the bowling alley and it looks like Moppy did too! Do you ever go bowling in Japan?</div>
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<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-43172614961297500322017-08-17T07:18:00.000-07:002017-08-17T07:18:33.687-07:00Horsin' Around!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVOXruwM3-VM3Wurr3cXPHRjOWcp0YGOGLaoFBqKDUrpzBTZ4mwGXbPmoPO_wrQ2AMHBye3Oq51-L5dtmBfuNaLkRTqMD9rl9fmcYG0hudzl9pUd8dAgbz3uH-eO3syg5RNlsj0VKe5G1/s1600/IMGP0267.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxVOXruwM3-VM3Wurr3cXPHRjOWcp0YGOGLaoFBqKDUrpzBTZ4mwGXbPmoPO_wrQ2AMHBye3Oq51-L5dtmBfuNaLkRTqMD9rl9fmcYG0hudzl9pUd8dAgbz3uH-eO3syg5RNlsj0VKe5G1/s400/IMGP0267.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Silly me, I was about to make a post about some things we did with Moppy over the weekend and I forgot I still had one more post to do from Grandma's house!</div>
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One of our favorite things about Grandma's house are the horses. Grandma has four horses: Chance (who is the one with Moppy in the photos above), Charm, Chase, and Tala.</div>
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Here is Moppy petting Chase. Can you tell he likes that? He's an old horse who can't really be ridden anymore, but everyone loves him.<br />
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Moppy is watching Audrey get ready for a riding lesson with Grandma. Audrey is riding Tala.</div>
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Audrey actually came to Grandma's house a few days earlier for a special "horse camp" with Grandma. She got all kinds of lessons about horses, and learned about how to take care of them and how to ride them. As you can tell from the smile on her face, she LOVES riding! I love riding too- I even competed in horseback riding when I was in college!</div>
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See that black mask on Tala's face? It's a fly mask- it helps keep those buzzing flies away from her face. Sometimes I wish <i>I</i> had a fly mask when I'm outside!<br />
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Here are Chance, Charm, and Chase hanging out in their stalls in the barn. Most of the time they are out in the field grazing, but they had just finished breakfast and were waiting to go out. See how each horse has their own fan to keep them cool? Grandma takes excellent care of her horses.<br />
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And her horses love her, too! Here's Tala giving Grandma some love. Grandma just finished giving Tala a quick bath to cool her down after the riding lesson. That green thing in her hand is a special tool used to squeegee the water off the horse. If a horse gets too wet and isn't dried properly, they can catch a cold!<br />
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The little girls had a chance to ride, too. Here is Christine riding Charm. Charm is also getting old, but she is still up for giving some pony rides. Here's a fun fact: Charm's full name is "Charm My Heart", and she is actually the granddaughter of the famous racehorse, Secretariat! They even made a movie about him!<br />
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Also, Charm and I were pregnant at the same time. I was pregnant with Christine, and Charm was pregnant with her foal, Bear.<br />
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Here's Charlotte after her ride on Charm. I think Charm enjoys giving the little ones rides. :-)</div>
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This is a picture that Grandma has in her house, and we told Moppy that she can be a Virginian by adoption. She was very happy about that. She seems to like Virginia!<br />
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Moppy relaxes in a rocking chair on Grandma's front porch. There's nothing like a relaxing summer day on a farm in Virginia! </div>
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-58907144811532260922017-08-16T07:54:00.001-07:002017-08-17T07:04:48.036-07:00Tag's First Temple Visit!Konnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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Today, we would like to talk about religions in Japan. Most Japanese do not actively believe in any religion. However, Buddhism has a very strong influence in our daily lives.<br />
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During August, we have a big holiday season called <i>obon</i>. It is an annual Buddhist event to commemorate our ancestors and is observed from August 13th to August 15th. It is believed that our ancestors' spirits return to this world during <i>obon</i>, and there are many festivals throughout Japan to celebrate it. With another national holiday and weekends, it can be a long holiday season, and many people also go back and visit their families during <i>obon </i>like you do on Thanksgiving in the US.<br />
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On the first day of our <i>obon</i> holiday season this year, we decided to visit <i>Todaiji</i> Temple in Nara (red dot in the map below)!<br />
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<i>Todaiji</i> Temple is one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites.<br />
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In 7th century Japan, there were many natural disasters, rebellions, and epidemics. Emperor <i>Shomu</i> decided to govern the country with help from gods, and he promoted the construction of provincial temples all over Japan, and <i>Todaiji</i> Temple was officially appointed as the head of all those temples in 752. Nara was the capital of Japan when <i>Todaiji </i>Temple was built.<br />
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Ancient Japanese believed that deer are messengers of gods so they were treasured and protected. To this day, there are many deer walking around Nara Park!<br />
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Yuki loves animals, so he was very excited to see all those deer walking around Nara Park!<br />
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At <i>Nandaimon</i> Gate:<br />
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When you stand under <i>Nandaimon</i> Gate, you see 2 big guardian statues, <i>Agyou</i> on your right and <i>Ungyou</i> on your left watching over the temple. They are 8.4m (27ft 6.7in) tall! Their faces look very scary... but Yuki thought their posing was rather funny!<br />
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After <i>Nandaimon</i> Gate, there is yet another gate called <i>Chumon</i> Gate.</div>
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And behind this <i>Chumon</i> Gate, there is finally <i>Daibutsuden</i> (Great Buddha Hall) that houses Great Buddha! This Great Buddha Hall is said to be the largest wooden building in the world!<br />
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At the entrance to Great Buddha Hall, people were offering incense. When Yuki's mom was small, Yuki's Grandma told her that the smoke of incense will make her smarter. However, when she did some reading on <i>Todaiji</i> Temple before we visited this time, she read that the smoke of incense is supposed to make you clean before you go in front of Buddha.<br />
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And finally inside Great Buddha Hall is <i>Daibutsu</i> of Nara, which is the biggest bronze Buddha statue in the world at about 15m (49ft 2.6in)!<br />
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Emperor <i>Shomu</i> expected citizens to make many offerings including bronze and rice to make Great Buddha, so citizens suffered a lot in order to build this Great Buddha and the country almost went bankrupt. It is said that 2,600,000 people (1/3 of the population at the time) helped making this Buddha, taking 9 years!</div>
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There was a golden statue on each side of Buddha. So, there were one Great Buddha and 2 small golden Buddhas...</div>
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This hole on the pillar is the same size as the nostril of Great Buddha, and it is believed that if you go through it, you will stay healthy and free from any harm all your life. We also read that it is believed that if you could go through this hole on the pillar, you are guaranteed a place in heaven!?!? Yuki's mom went through this hole when she was little, and this day, Yuki and Tag went through it, too!</div>
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Nara Park was very big, and there were many other temples and shrines besides <i>Todaiji</i> Temple! It was like one big hiking trail in the forest with so many beautiful historical sights to see! We enjoyed it very much and wished we had one more day to explore!</div>
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These are called <i>ema</i> (picture horse). Ancient people would donate horses, which were considered holy and were the symbol of power, to shrines to have their prayers heard. However, since most people could not donate horses, they started offering horses made from wood and cray. That eventually turned into wooden plaques that shrines would sell for a small fee, on which people would write their prayers or wishes.<br />
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This is called <i>chozuya</i>. They have one at every shrine so you can purify yourself before approaching the main shrine. There is a certain way to do this. First, you bow lightly in front of <i>chozuya</i>. Then, you hold the water ladle with your right hand and get water in the water ladle. Then, you wash your left hand. Then, you hold the water ladle with your left hand and wash your right hand. Then, hold the water ladle with your right hand again and pour water in your left palm and wash your mouth with the water in your left palm. Finally, you hold the ladle up so the remaining water will wash the ladle and you put it back on <i>chozuya</i>. Phew...! So much to do, huh!<br />
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Lanterns were placed throughout Nara park in preparation for <i>obon</i> festival when we visited. We decided to come home before it became dark, because we were getting very tired and also our kitties were waiting for us at home. So, we did not get to see those lanterns being lit...<br />
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After <i>Todaiji</i> Temple was built, the power of Buddhism became very strong in Japan, and it even started to interfere greatly with politics. So, they eventually decided to move the capital from <i>Nara</i> to <i>Nagaoka</i> in 784.</div>
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After our trip to <i>Todaiji</i> Temple in Nara, we visited <i>Itsukushima</i> Shrine in Hiroshima. In our next post, we want to talk about <i>Shinto</i>, another religion beside Buddhism that has a big influence in Japanese culture. So, stay tuned for our next post!</div>
PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com1Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan34.6850869 135.805000234.4761079 135.4822767 34.8940659 136.1277237tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-76998203573488076842017-08-12T11:30:00.000-07:002017-08-12T11:30:18.698-07:00A Trip to Grandma's Part II: Harpers Ferry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The day after the Air & Space Museum, we decided we wanted to spend more time outdoors because the weather was beautiful, so we headed over to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, a small town that's also a national park about 30 minutes from Grandma & Grandpa's house.</div>
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We arrived at the park visitors center and then rode a shuttle bus down to the town. It was a nice ride with beautiful views.<br />
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Harpers Ferry is a unique place- it's a town at the convergence of two rivers, the Shenandoah and the Potomac. It's also right near the borders of 3 different states: Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland. Bet you didn't know Moppy would get to see that many states on her American adventure!</div>
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Before I tell you more about Harpers Ferry, however, I'll take a moment to tell you about a fun activity we've been doing this summer- rocking! What is rocking? It's pretty simple- you get some smooth rocks, you paint them with whatever designs you want, and then you leave them places for people to find. When they find them, they can choose to leave them, keep them or re-hide them somewhere else. People also usually take photos of the rocks to post to the social media pages for the different local rocking groups.</div>
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We didn't go to Harpers Ferry expecting to find rocks- not all locations do it- but when we got there, we found lots! We were so excited!</div>
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These were just a few of our favorites. Maybe when Moppy comes home she can help you start a rocking group in Japan! It's great fun and it's a good way to use your creativity, show kindness to others, spend time with your family, and get exercise as you go rock hunting.</div>
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Back to Harpers Ferry! Do you know what kind of hat Moppy is wearing? Here's a hint: North vs. South; Union vs. Confederate... these were the two sides who fought in the U.S. Civil War which lasted from 1861 to 1865. It's a big part of our nation's history, and Harpers Ferry had a tough time during that war because it changed hands EIGHT times during the war! This was most likely because of its strategic location: it was on a supply line, and it was the location of an armory where weapons were made.</div>
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Since we're from Richmond- a Confederate city- we thought Moppy should fight for the South, so she's wearing a gray soldier's cap.</div>
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This is the beautiful church high up on a hill overlooking the river.</div>
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Here's another view of the church from further up the hill above it. We hiked up the hill so we could check out the view from Jefferson Rock, where Thomas Jefferson, one of America's founding fathers, said "This scene is worth a voyage across the Atlantic." Maybe across the Pacific too? ;-) </div>
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The view is certainly different now than it was in Jefferson's day, but still very beautiful.</div>
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Moppy loved it up there!</div>
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The kids and Moppy posed with Grandma.</div>
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On the way back down I snapped a photo of this cool ruin of another church. Can you see the railroad bridge across the river in the background?</div>
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We stopped to get a photo of the kids and Moppy in front of the church.</div>
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Then Moppy got thrown in prison! That mischievous little monster!</div>
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Just kidding- she was really just checking out one of these root cellars.</div>
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Many of the buildings in the town have little exhibits with items from the Civil War. Here is Moppy with a cannonball. I certainly wouldn't want to see that flying through the air!</div>
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Another interesting thing about Harpers Ferry is that it is part of the Appalachian Trail, a hiking trail that is over 2,000 miles long and goes all the way from the state of Maine in the north down to Georgia in the south- and through every state in between! Every year many people make the trek from one state to the other, camping out along the way. As someone who loves hiking, it's something I've always wanted to try, especially if you get to see such beautiful places like Harpers Ferry along the way. Do you have any really long hiking trails like that in Japan?</div>
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After exploring the town, we got some ice cream and then made our way across the railroad bridge- but don't worry, they have half of it designed just for pedestrians so there's no risk of getting run over by a train!</div>
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When we got to the other side, we found some large rocks down by the river and sat down to take a rest. Looks like Moppy and Audrey are both tuckered out!</div>
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This was a sign with an aerial photograph of Harpers Ferry and it shows the different parts of the town, like Jefferson's Rock (near the top) and the church.<br />
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This was just a beautiful area down by the river. So peaceful!</div>
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And here's one last view looking up one of the streets in the town. We had a wonderful day there, and just like the Air & Space museum, there was more to see than we had time for! So we are looking forward to returning for another visit to see even more.</div>
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We hope you enjoyed our day in Harpers Ferry! Stay tuned for one more look at the fun we had visiting Grandma...<br />
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-60961599023063594302017-08-11T06:28:00.001-07:002017-08-11T06:28:22.884-07:00Yuki is off to Boy Scouts camp!Konnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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Last week, Yuki was gone for 3 nights and 4 days to Boy Scouts camp!<br />
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Our stake, Kobe Stake, organizes Boy Scouts, which we feel very blessed! Since the Church is still fairly small in Japan, some boys in Boy Scouts are the only kid in their wards. By coming to Boy Scouts, they are able to make friends with other members of the Church who are their age and support each other and grow together in the faith!<br />
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Cuddly Bear was very sad Yuki was gone... She waited for his return at <i>genkan</i> (a space at the front door where we take our shoes off before coming inside the house)...<br />
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She could not have survived it if it wasn't for Tag comforting her! Thank you, Tag!!<br />
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<br />PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com4Japan36.204824 138.2529249.549143 96.944330000000008 62.860505 179.561518tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-62011640893603609802017-08-11T06:12:00.001-07:002017-08-11T06:12:52.985-07:00Beach Day!Konnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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This week, we went to Suma Beach. It is only about 40 minutes away from our house with 2 trains, so we go there often during summer.<br />
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They have some beach houses at the beach that sell foods and drinks during summer (this photo was taken when we were leaving the beach), so we got some <i>takoyaki</i> from there for lunch when we arrived at the beach and ate them in our tent.<br />
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<i>T</i><i>akoyaki</i> is made from a mixture of flour, eggs, and water with diced octopus, fried into round balls using a special moulded pan. <i>Tako</i> means octopus!<br />
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You eat them with some <i>takoyaki</i> sauce, mayonnaise, green laver called <i>aonori</i> and shavings of dried bonito called <i>katsuobushi</i>. It is definitely one of our favorite Japanese foods, and Tag loved it, too!<br />
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After eating <i>takoyaki</i> for lunch, Yuki, Tag, and Yuki's mom enjoyed some swimming in the ocean with our big turtle float!</div>
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This is Suma Beach. It is located right behind Suma Aquarium and has a very beautiful view! Can you spot the bridge on the left side of the photo below? It is called <i>Akashi Kaikyo Bridge</i> and it connects the mainland Japan and <i>Awaji Island</i>. It is actually the longest suspension bridge <b>in the world</b> at 1,991 meters/6,532 ft/1.237 miles! Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco comes 14th at 1,280 meters/4,200 ft. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_longest_suspension_bridge_spans)</div>
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Another thing that might be interesting is... Can you spot those blue floats in the ocean? They indicate that people cannot go beyond those floats. Once, Yuki has gone rather close to one of the blue floats and he was pulled back to the shore by a life guard... We are not sure if you have them in the US, too...? They are not that far from the shore as you can see, though. Japan is a very strict country and there are many rules we need to follow.</div>
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A few years ago, Suma Aquarium, which is right next to Suma Beach, started this project where they partition a part of the ocean with some floats and nets and let their dolphins swim there during summer.<br />
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We could see dolphins swimming in the ocean right next to us, and it was really cool! They were doing some training, too, and we could see them jumping!<br />
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We love spending the day at the beach, and today, we felt grateful we live in a port city, Kobe, where we have the beaches close by!</div>
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<br />PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com1Suma Ward, Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan34.6586326 135.1337000999999434.554166599999995 134.97233859999994 34.7630986 135.29506159999994tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-21627562746625573372017-08-09T16:50:00.000-07:002017-08-09T17:21:21.590-07:00A Trip to Grandma's Part I: The Udvar-Hazy Center for the National Air & Space Museum<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We're on the move again! This week we're visiting Grandma in Lovettsville, Virginia. Lovettsville is about a 3-hour drive from our home in Richmond, and it's only about an hour from Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States of America. </div>
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Grandma had the great idea to take us to the Udvar-Hazy Center for the National Air & Space Museum. It's about an hour away from her home, near Dulles International Airport, and it is HUGE!</div>
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There are hangars with LOTS of airplanes- and even the space shuttle!! Can you see it through the doorway way back there behind Christine, Moppy, and Charlotte? Trust me, it's bigger than it looks!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhg_0FbSFTxWJXA8hVrTxm8RhIXuOvJt0qEzYPBhk0yE-MeikkDxzNG6r0_BjXQUsWoSsHspECTZMbGCHaGpPZ7twzyBR1afTp66Q7zt_kGnWVRp1jODueQsBOFABrIIM0lRGXZ5V0mmm/s1600/20170808_131513.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuhg_0FbSFTxWJXA8hVrTxm8RhIXuOvJt0qEzYPBhk0yE-MeikkDxzNG6r0_BjXQUsWoSsHspECTZMbGCHaGpPZ7twzyBR1afTp66Q7zt_kGnWVRp1jODueQsBOFABrIIM0lRGXZ5V0mmm/s400/20170808_131513.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Here is the Blackbird, one of the fastest jets ever designed. Too bad it costs so much to fly!<br />
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Here are the girls in front of a Japanese plane, the Nakajima Gekko "Irving." Read all about it below.<br />
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And here's another Japanese World War II plane...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZBUkFAjanUOzE7u99uIRst5IOwEtev82zkalQt0bbphvRTtgf0xtbEkCVkcYgwQiAjeVlji-NtnXTh8EyR7ouLBWgn0RpP90zQdj3I5SReOUgDhyE1MOWgYIcUV3JPmfqe_15PI0EXVek/s1600/20170808_132425.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="961" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZBUkFAjanUOzE7u99uIRst5IOwEtev82zkalQt0bbphvRTtgf0xtbEkCVkcYgwQiAjeVlji-NtnXTh8EyR7ouLBWgn0RpP90zQdj3I5SReOUgDhyE1MOWgYIcUV3JPmfqe_15PI0EXVek/s400/20170808_132425.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUA5F0Pkb8DegCWzT-7ih88w8K5KXZZwNi6SRLWtr_7PyKqhDYr8inGCm4VFA85XiM8ripMDik1EhNGkbcGsEL-1_mR8pEh9jVDRWYzx3t9rB_HgKp4bM4T8tCVDAWpMyolL-F2XpwFYR/s1600/20170808_132801.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="961" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFUA5F0Pkb8DegCWzT-7ih88w8K5KXZZwNi6SRLWtr_7PyKqhDYr8inGCm4VFA85XiM8ripMDik1EhNGkbcGsEL-1_mR8pEh9jVDRWYzx3t9rB_HgKp4bM4T8tCVDAWpMyolL-F2XpwFYR/s400/20170808_132801.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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This plane made us feel very sad. It's the Enola Gay, the plane that dropped the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. What a terrible, terrible war. But this is why it is so important for us to learn from history so we don't repeat such awful times.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHbfvAM2UdcEG2A0IJV9O5zUmb11EumGcNrsykqWvs6H6KZyoC1sJ6IBx4Gx96Yewm5Ok_XJ38mL6DpnvgtFAe_Ke3v8Aqz842XkKj1LToxTzQBrKzEhojX-jbTtV5BlhyphenhyphenvfErp7BzwOyw/s1600/20170808_133556.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHbfvAM2UdcEG2A0IJV9O5zUmb11EumGcNrsykqWvs6H6KZyoC1sJ6IBx4Gx96Yewm5Ok_XJ38mL6DpnvgtFAe_Ke3v8Aqz842XkKj1LToxTzQBrKzEhojX-jbTtV5BlhyphenhyphenvfErp7BzwOyw/s400/20170808_133556.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Our extended family is very connected to everything air & space- this is Grandma in front of the Boeing 707, which she says was her favorite plane to fly in when she worked as a flight attendant for Pan Am back in the 1960s. It was a very glamorous job back then! She actually met the kids' grandpa when she was working at Dulles Airport. He was a pilot- he had his own company where he would return people's lost luggage to them. He flew all over the place! They aren't married anymore, but Grandma remarried someone else who had an interest in the air & space industry...more on that later. ;-) </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvWE3PXixgxx9MCNK3FKos6-ZG1PSVWas8BD0gLcbgdW-1EPkTWK81QPyeNMcgtauH58MfCoox1MFZ0D2aDpoT7eYzU2olybeANtaLwK5S_HMmg6YFYA0W7Y5LzlpOcgHdhszBDSh6S0w/s1600/20170808_144559.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsvWE3PXixgxx9MCNK3FKos6-ZG1PSVWas8BD0gLcbgdW-1EPkTWK81QPyeNMcgtauH58MfCoox1MFZ0D2aDpoT7eYzU2olybeANtaLwK5S_HMmg6YFYA0W7Y5LzlpOcgHdhszBDSh6S0w/s400/20170808_144559.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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We ate at a McDonald's in the museum for lunch. The restaurant had big windows so we could watch the planes flying into Dulles Airport. They flew so low, we thought they were going to land in the parking lot!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZIwv4npj16jy2nN5Gk1PcZ1XCF0sBWV9pzsVmSBHG6v-mxzgB5AYzFTOzE0VmyuKCCARHk2GcgwPIlUEOOR-OVQwWI5jMFrh4yYsfQUTCmDjiCOWvCjjm7UjUn71Z_QL0hdRqzIsEEv7X/s1600/20170808_145405.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZIwv4npj16jy2nN5Gk1PcZ1XCF0sBWV9pzsVmSBHG6v-mxzgB5AYzFTOzE0VmyuKCCARHk2GcgwPIlUEOOR-OVQwWI5jMFrh4yYsfQUTCmDjiCOWvCjjm7UjUn71Z_QL0hdRqzIsEEv7X/s400/20170808_145405.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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Next we stopped at the gift shop- can you spot that Moppy?</div>
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We stopped at this machine to buy Moppy a special souvenir so she could remember her time with us. It's a pressed penny!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCLaKvApTBSqAPB3WAdur25Q1T_ZxDKpkiQCdZWpK863Ing1tt1rrxszsHAKSV_nuPxSDQMZ57mFtQ2Nvb-rfjQUPwqton9ndlnldp8WFjPl095-6NyEXu1AJn40ll3Z2qA5-ckVcTQ_WA/s1600/20170808_150643.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCLaKvApTBSqAPB3WAdur25Q1T_ZxDKpkiQCdZWpK863Ing1tt1rrxszsHAKSV_nuPxSDQMZ57mFtQ2Nvb-rfjQUPwqton9ndlnldp8WFjPl095-6NyEXu1AJn40ll3Z2qA5-ckVcTQ_WA/s400/20170808_150643.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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You put in the money, plus a penny to be pressed, you pick the design you want, then turn the crank and your penny comes out flattened with a design pressed into it. These machines are very common in the U.S., especially at tourist spots. It usually costs between $0.50 and $1.00- plus a penny- to make one. Moppy's arms weren't quite long enough, so Christine helped her out.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6hoi4I0hdgYGWKGr7RclOWeg0CZuas2XY26zUySIb5yGsZfysgy6LtkpCZ-7-HY1aFrzPhEOmmEDx2wl8n_XLzhYFheQ7XpuSRY4w-NV6uhyYxJg8QnAGLZ0SxX-LeaIY_gLZ-wGuitUp/s1600/20170808_150924.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="961" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6hoi4I0hdgYGWKGr7RclOWeg0CZuas2XY26zUySIb5yGsZfysgy6LtkpCZ-7-HY1aFrzPhEOmmEDx2wl8n_XLzhYFheQ7XpuSRY4w-NV6uhyYxJg8QnAGLZ0SxX-LeaIY_gLZ-wGuitUp/s400/20170808_150924.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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We got a quick photo with an astronaut. (Actually just a cutout. But still very cool!)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXKzYZcrPBcBewKf-LATPgjXTsnUxBYDUkjD2HeO6h_VTDLYz7vjhczx7UaV_aTsXdGfRUPm9-atvRNpzzVD3pQKPIaEcgvFZJSShmZ_PpNVgUBMpgVZBMHs_KCCs4yVzhGbabJtizNcl2/s1600/20170808_151300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXKzYZcrPBcBewKf-LATPgjXTsnUxBYDUkjD2HeO6h_VTDLYz7vjhczx7UaV_aTsXdGfRUPm9-atvRNpzzVD3pQKPIaEcgvFZJSShmZ_PpNVgUBMpgVZBMHs_KCCs4yVzhGbabJtizNcl2/s400/20170808_151300.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
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And then we went to see the space shuttle. This was our favorite part.<br />
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It was SO BIG!<br />
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This is the space shuttle Discovery. It flew 39 missions between 1984 and 2011 and spent over a YEAR in space! When Grandma remarried, she married Grandpa John, who worked as a software engineer for NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). One of his jobs was to work on the computer software that made the space shuttle work. How cool is that?</div>
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I think this picture gives you a good idea of how big it is- check out the engines on that ship! It was really amazing to see it in person.<br />
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Just behind the space shuttle were these neat models of Japanese rockets- a definite must-see for Moppy.<br />
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You can read all about them!<br />
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Here's another view of the museum- look at all those airplanes! The one that says "Air France" in the back is the Concorde. It was the fastest passenger jet in the world when it was operating. It could fly twice the speed of sound, and made it from New York to London in only 2 hours and 53 minutes- a flight that usually takes about 7 hours and 30 minutes! Unfortunately, just like the Blackbird, it cost too much to operate, so it went out of commission.<br />
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We had a wonderful time at the museum and we hope to go back again soon- there was still so much we didn't get to see!<br />
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<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-46271757550228438362017-08-05T17:28:00.001-07:002017-08-05T17:30:00.114-07:00Moppy Goes to Florida Part III: Orlando Science Center<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This summer we decided to get a membership to the Science Museum of Virginia, and we were happy we did because we found out that it gave us a reciprocal membership to other museums, including the Orlando Science Center in Florida! </div>
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This was fun- they had an area where you could make your own paper airplanes and then use a special launcher to shoot them at some targets. </div>
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Here is Tyson working on making some tsunami-sized waves in this big water tank.</div>
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This was a platform that shook to simulate an earthquake. Christine held Moppy tight so she wouldn't get scared!</div>
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Here are Christine, Moppy, and Charlotte in a hurricane simulator. Boy, did it get windy in there!</div>
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Peekaboo! Moppy loved checking out this super cool geode.</div>
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Moppy loved this giant graphic all about how to be a good engineer: imagine, plan, create, improve, and ask!<br />
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Charlotte, Christine, and Tyson did some engineering of their own to design this neat place for Moppy to relax.</div>
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We loved the windowed elevator and the cool trees in the science center's atrium.</div>
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Christine and Moppy "dig" for fossils in the dinosaur room. That material isn't dirt- it's actually shredded tires!</div>
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Moppy really got into it- she even tried on this cool archaeologist's hat!</div>
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The kids played with some iron ferrite and magnets. It made some cool effects!</div>
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In one part of the museum they had a machine that would take your picture and then use a computer program to change your image to a different race or gender. Since Moppy is joining us from Japan this summer, I changed my image to Asian. I loved how it turned out! Not quite as beautiful as Yuki's mom, but close! ;-) </div>
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Charlotte decided to give it a try with Moppy.</div>
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Yikes! This program clearly wasn't designed for little pink monsters!!</div>
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Audrey gave Moppy a ride by pulling on this rope and lifting them both up using a pulley. What a great machine a pulley is!</div>
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I tried it too- it was pretty tough!</div>
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The lower level had all kinds of plants and animals. It was like walking through nature!</div>
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Here is Moppy with a mangrove tree. These are very common trees in Florida, and they are known for their prominent roots. They are very protected as well- we found out on our boat tour that some homeowners were fined over TWO MILLION dollars for clearing some mangroves off their property! Wowsa! </div>
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Here is Moppy checking out some neat fish in this aquarium. Look at all that beautiful coral.<br />
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Later, Christine had a chance to "pick" some oranges from this pretend orange grove. Oranges are a huge crop in Florida. They grow really well in the tropical climate.</div>
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She and Moppy took their orange harvest to the "factory" where they got to send them through some machines that pretended to wash and sort them. It was really fun!</div>
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We took a photo on this rainbow bridge on our way out. See all those hearts hanging from the ceiling? They're made of paper- origami, in fact!</div>
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And this doesn't have to do with the Orlando Science Center, but just consider it a bonus- this is where our room was at the resort:</div>
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Can you see the kids and Moppy? They're on the second balcony from the top!</div>
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We had a great view from up there. We had a blast in Florida but we were happy to get home, too. We look forward to sharing more of our summer adventures in Virginia with you.</div>
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-73478310397451257102017-08-04T11:38:00.000-07:002017-08-05T17:29:47.255-07:00Moppy Goes to Florida Part II: Pool Play and Polynesian Revue<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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One of our favorite things to do at the Marriott Grande Vista Resort in Florida is to play in the POOL! They have 2 main pools that we like to play in. This year we noticed that the pool near the reception area was warmer than the pool with the water cannons, so we spent more time at the warmer one.</div>
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Here's the rest of the gang- Chad's parents are the ones who own the timeshare at the Marriott, so it's thanks to their generosity that we're able to take such a nice vacation there. His sister also came with her two kids.</div>
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Audrey loves the pool!</div>
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Tyson spent most of his time underwater.</div>
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Charlotte takes a jump off the side.</div>
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Tyson goes for a cannonball.</div>
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Christine preferred to splash around with her floats on.</div>
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And Moppy preferred to take in some sun! Again, problem with the pink fur...sure hope she put on sunscreen!</div>
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Here's a view of the other (chillier) pool. We played there a few times when it was hot enough outside!<br />
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This is the main pool again, but at dusk. We went there one night for their special Polynesian show.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLK29OGQ7fNhsWZk-1MxuWmGuMXEQHeuuHrzvBiByQRsgaOvpbySfE_2AX6eK1gfQOvC5HLEmcEZPJn1_-UWMe6LfJFybr0IV8Yfe8NTuoVzxMRYXMS8W0gBUtzT4Jr2CsB0EFMwqRW61l/s1600/IMGP0103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLK29OGQ7fNhsWZk-1MxuWmGuMXEQHeuuHrzvBiByQRsgaOvpbySfE_2AX6eK1gfQOvC5HLEmcEZPJn1_-UWMe6LfJFybr0IV8Yfe8NTuoVzxMRYXMS8W0gBUtzT4Jr2CsB0EFMwqRW61l/s400/IMGP0103.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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The kids' cousin, Ollie, made sure Moppy got plenty of cuddles (and kisses) during the show. They really seemed to hit it off.</div>
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Here are the hula dancers.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxBaIeNhaMkKOdEBmS33AEC0losfzNI7NnNdDWUtDwlLR_xpwB4YpvZzwGWtjizJPw56g9ccAOw6HiXav7Ca8D6TNc9G0j9OtZY2IWkX8to69feb0hWtt1eZivz9ZnpfXfwNSdSMztrAo/s1600/IMGP0115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGxBaIeNhaMkKOdEBmS33AEC0losfzNI7NnNdDWUtDwlLR_xpwB4YpvZzwGWtjizJPw56g9ccAOw6HiXav7Ca8D6TNc9G0j9OtZY2IWkX8to69feb0hWtt1eZivz9ZnpfXfwNSdSMztrAo/s400/IMGP0115.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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And this guy played with fire! The kids were watching from the pool- I don't think any of us would have been brave enough to get that close if we hadn't been IN the water! We could feel the heat from the flames!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiax-Xy03gTVLFE9mlRsK13mMagnTqcZsestQeLTXlbwvaIeDPIq2MtlhAEYfn_oYXpK06MDZv0cBumeLMdkvEm3P_BAy3b0VF1h2cbzg-nXrNu7_pC8C60syRjb3YA4YL2dsHx8FTq2EJl/s1600/IMGP0123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiax-Xy03gTVLFE9mlRsK13mMagnTqcZsestQeLTXlbwvaIeDPIq2MtlhAEYfn_oYXpK06MDZv0cBumeLMdkvEm3P_BAy3b0VF1h2cbzg-nXrNu7_pC8C60syRjb3YA4YL2dsHx8FTq2EJl/s400/IMGP0123.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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After the show, Charlotte and Christine and Moppy got a picture with the dancers. They were amazing!<br />
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And here are a few more pool shots from the next day:</div>
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Group jump!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXWrpD487KjFueZvGpyWclaCBoONMANJ_V-xBZJ4fDbjWAvhHBh223RelOZQq4IsQEh3Cy_TZA778i9BxCCrHgkR4h2T1zZRk7birdPuoxQ3DvMY06BPVio2dhN0dAL_P40AlW2nNp_ssl/s1600/IMGP0132.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXWrpD487KjFueZvGpyWclaCBoONMANJ_V-xBZJ4fDbjWAvhHBh223RelOZQq4IsQEh3Cy_TZA778i9BxCCrHgkR4h2T1zZRk7birdPuoxQ3DvMY06BPVio2dhN0dAL_P40AlW2nNp_ssl/s400/IMGP0132.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Christine doing some tricks with the help of her dad.<br />
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And, the most exciting part of the trip for Charlotte- when she got to become a mermaid!<br />
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They have mermaid tails for rent at the resort, so she was able to use one for an hour.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRLgcIhuw5RNVGjmCAV4T4s6_l7WoDzAIFOpkfqdibtpALcTn8dfTUu9zzLzqWeFZcd95IbiqnNz1f8Uwpms0Z8WNK5YLO6A7KJbuZ44slZFTy4-omYz6q-CWs9bAHCWc5qdv0f-Lr0Yc6/s1600/G0131008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRLgcIhuw5RNVGjmCAV4T4s6_l7WoDzAIFOpkfqdibtpALcTn8dfTUu9zzLzqWeFZcd95IbiqnNz1f8Uwpms0Z8WNK5YLO6A7KJbuZ44slZFTy4-omYz6q-CWs9bAHCWc5qdv0f-Lr0Yc6/s400/G0131008.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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She said it was a dream come true!!<br />
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Stay tuned for more Florida adventures...<br />
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-45812112181166688802017-08-04T07:48:00.001-07:002017-08-04T07:48:26.722-07:00Seeing Carnivals without any fence at Himeji Central Park! :OKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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This past Saturday, we went to "Himeji Central Park" in Himeji City, Hyogo Prefecture with Yuki's Grandpa!<br />
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This park is basically a zoo with an amusement park next to it. But what makes it very different from other zoos is that we can go through a part of this zoo in our car with animals right outside the car without any fence between us!<br />
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It reminded us of the movie, Jurassic Park.<br />
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Zoo was divided into little sections, such as the section for tigers, the section for cheetahs, and the section for lions, etc., etc., and each section is double-gated. Only one gate opens at a time to make sure the animals inside do not escape. There are guards in cars watching at each section.<br />
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Tiger:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM5wwUxtOX1YZTIq1WPQ91y1KI1WWtl14APz2VEwG0ZuM8yECsdhgB8A18luzxKwWxPNbC4m77anTrvSQ6s9iFYYmyOlNxZTFHqQ6fQx1jGZrPndwPjtad_HchYW_jUXwTB2g_lr_dk3N_/s1600/IMG_7228.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM5wwUxtOX1YZTIq1WPQ91y1KI1WWtl14APz2VEwG0ZuM8yECsdhgB8A18luzxKwWxPNbC4m77anTrvSQ6s9iFYYmyOlNxZTFHqQ6fQx1jGZrPndwPjtad_HchYW_jUXwTB2g_lr_dk3N_/s400/IMG_7228.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Female lions:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM_b1_lspk9OWTRgHDY2TegVzh3ITIS8UGlKKoOYYhCNijjv7swFfy5Yqrtdcv3wNF1FHuwMxIzbhC-XvSEvfdSdyIjwyTjy41Y1u1oLm_IkT9D8YOBBw87eKLzzKUXpcm3n8f-rtoo0VL/s1600/IMG_7230.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM_b1_lspk9OWTRgHDY2TegVzh3ITIS8UGlKKoOYYhCNijjv7swFfy5Yqrtdcv3wNF1FHuwMxIzbhC-XvSEvfdSdyIjwyTjy41Y1u1oLm_IkT9D8YOBBw87eKLzzKUXpcm3n8f-rtoo0VL/s400/IMG_7230.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Rhinoceros:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ9URFb_DeyQzoGQ04_0beCEgM_f-ibn1OqtGZwCNSYD7pzKREeRdFSDriOuENsrv8q6wXnuc4hl02OkYFhD2osd3k0cfAd0F5BTZkmL0pZ7QPVthetI9FKCuM6tGeHUi7yAnctmL_dnYX/s1600/IMG_7232.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1196" data-original-width="1600" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ9URFb_DeyQzoGQ04_0beCEgM_f-ibn1OqtGZwCNSYD7pzKREeRdFSDriOuENsrv8q6wXnuc4hl02OkYFhD2osd3k0cfAd0F5BTZkmL0pZ7QPVthetI9FKCuM6tGeHUi7yAnctmL_dnYX/s400/IMG_7232.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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It was very different to see those animals right outside our car windows without any fence between us. When we first saw them, we were a bit afraid they might come attack us. But they all seemed very well fed (the guards in cars threw meats at them once in a while), and they were just lying down.</div>
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Herbivores had a bit more action going on. Some of them were crossing the street as the cars were passing and they came very close to our car!</div>
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This park is also known for their White Lions and White Tigers.</div>
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Can you tell what this animal is in the photo below...? It is actually a female White Lion! You could feed her a piece of meat on a stick through the fence. Yuki did not feed her, but people feeding her were saying she was very strong!<br />
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White tiger:<br />
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We also got to take a photo with one of the twin White Lions, born on May 22nd of this year at the park! We think he was getting tired... He seemed upset and was roaring! It got us a bit scared! He was little... but he was a lion after all!<br />
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This photo did not come out good, but we also got to feed some bears! They knew we could give them foods, so they would wave at us asking for foods! :O</div>
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We could also go up very close to giraffes and feed them. They had some grass and carrots. Can you guess which their favorite food was? The answer is... carrots!<br />
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We also came across this very lazy chimpanzee! But he was catching everyone's attention!<br />
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After the zoo, we went to the amusement park. It was a good old Japanese amusement park. Yuki's mom cannot ride anything that falls, but Yuki loves roller coasters!<br />
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Yuki has ridden all the rides at Tokyo Disney Resort and also at Universal Studios Japan, but this ride in the photo below... he says it was the most scary ride he has ever ridden! Yuki was happy he had Tag to go on this ride with this time!<br />
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We also found a fun vending machine inside the park!<br />
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It was a long, hot day. But we had so much fun!</div>
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<br />PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com1Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan34.815149 134.6853528000000333.981125999999996 133.39445930000002 35.649172 135.97624630000004tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-73780206913455479982017-08-04T06:27:00.000-07:002017-08-04T06:27:24.881-07:00Staying Home AloneKonnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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So, our family consists of Yuki's mom, Yuki, Sunshine, and Cuddly Bear. Yuki's mom is an accountant, and she works full-time.<br />
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During Yuki's summer vacation, Yuki's mom tries to take days off from work as much as possible so she can spend time with Yuki and go to places with him to enjoy his summer vacation. Yuki also visits his Grandma in Kyoto and his Great Grandma in Okayama during his summer vacation and spends several days with them.<br />
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But guess how he spends the rest of his summer vacation?<br />
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Well, he spends it home alone.<br />
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In Japan, it is okay for kids to be alone without their parents' supervision just as long as their parents make sure it is safe for them.<br />
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When kids enter elementary school, they are expected to go to school and come home from school on their own. Up until Grade 3, there are after-school daycares, which are run by the government that kids can go to if both their parents work. However, after Grade 3, kids are generally on their own after school until their parents come home from work.<br />
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This day, Yuki and Tag came to visit Yuki's mom at work during her lunch break. Yuki's mom works 40 minutes away from home by 2 trains.<br />
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We all had lunch together. We had some Korean foods!<br />
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After lunch, Yuki's mom went back to work. Yuki and Tag went to watch Pokemon movie before he went home.<br />
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In Japan, they have free movie flyers for movies that are coming out in theaters, and Yuki has been collecting those flyers since he was 5!<br />
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Tag says he really enjoyed this new Pokemon movie... Yuki and Tag couldn't stop talking about it when Yuki's mom came home!</div>
<br />PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com1Japan36.204824 138.2529249.549143 96.944330000000008 62.860505 179.561518tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-48834397143662746302017-08-01T19:15:00.000-07:002017-08-01T19:30:41.917-07:00Moppy Goes to Florida Part I: Clearwater Marine Aquarium<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well, last summer we left off our Moppy posts right around Christine's birthday, and this year we're picking up again right where we left off! The day after Christine's birthday this year we all piled into our car and headed from where we live in Virginia all the way down to the state of Florida. As you can see from the map, it's a LONG drive! 12.5 hours, to be exact- about 14 altogether if you count rest stops.</div>
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To make it easier on the kids, we left around midnight on Friday night and drove through the night so they could sleep for most of the trip. Chad and I took turns driving. Boy were we tired when we arrived on Saturday afternoon! Fortunately, we were able to check into the resort and get plenty of sleep that night. We spent the next couple of days just relaxing, but on Tuesday we got back into the car for a 2-hour drive to Clearwater Marine Aquarium on the Gulf Coast side of Florida.<br />
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We have been wanting to visit this aquarium ever since we watched the movie "Dolphin Tale", and later, "Dolphin Tale 2." The movies tell the story of a dolphin named Winter who got caught in a crab trap and was rescued by the crew from the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. She ended up losing her tail, but some some very talented people helped design a prosthetic tail to help her swim. </div>
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Winter still lives at the aquarium, along with her friend Hope (who was one of the stars of Dolphin Tale 2), so we were very excited to go see them!</div>
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The aquarium itself is on the other side of an inter-coastal waterway, which can be crossed either by bridge or by boat, so we decided to take the boat ride over. It was a beautiful (hot) day, but the ride across the water was lovely.</div>
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Then we saw a SHARK!</div>
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And suddenly- AAAAHH!!!!</div>
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I'm just kidding. It wasn't a shark in the water, it was a dolphin- we saw a few wild dolphins swimming around on the way to the aquarium, and then this great white shark was just a picture on the wall inside. Moppy just wanted to play a joke on you. She has a pretty good scared face, doesn't she? ;-) </div>
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When we got to Winter's tank, we saw her getting some physical therapy from her handlers. They have to massage the muscles in her tail stump in order to keep them from putting too much pressure on her spine. The therapy doesn't help her swim, but it does keep her healthy. </div>
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It was so neat to see her in person! It was also very interesting to see all the things that happen at the marine aquarium as a working rescue facility and animal hospital.</div>
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Next we came to another tank where there were lots of fish, sea turtles, and other ocean life- and scuba divers! The divers held up signs with different facts about underwater. Did you know that sound travels almost 5 times faster in water?</div>
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This diver came up to the window and played Rock, Paper, Scissors with the kids. Do you ever play Rock, Paper, Scissors in Japan?</div>
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Next Moppy got a look at some stingrays. They look so graceful gliding through the water.</div>
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We got a chance to pet them, but Moppy didn't want to get her fur wet. We told her that they felt kind of slimy.</div>
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Next we went to go visit Hope in her tank. She was having a great time swimming around!</div>
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She even came right up to the window and made friends with Christine. It was so neat!</div>
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Moppy had fun taking a ride on a special dolphin in the gift shop. Notice the dolphin's white tail? It's just like Winter's prosthetic tail. Another neat fact- because Winter's dolphin skin is so sensitive, they had to develop a new kind of gel to use as a sleeve for her prosthetic. The gel worked so well for her, they started using it for people as well, and it's helped many people with prosthetics wear them more comfortably. Thanks, Winter!</div>
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Here are the kids and Moppy (she wasn't looking at the camera, oops!) in front of the houseboat used as Hazel's home in the movies.</div>
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After touring the aquarium, we took a special boat ride called the Sea Life Safari. We had a guide who told us all about the ocean life under the water, and they also put down a net and collected some samples of fish for us to look at. They take samples like that to research the different fish species and keep track of what's going on in the water. We were on an estuary, which kind of acts like a nursery for baby animals because it's a more protected area than the open ocean.</div>
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The boat took us out to a tiny island called Shell Island, because it's almost entirely made up of shells! We had about 15 minutes to walk around and collect shells. See how clear the water is? So pretty!</div>
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Moppy decided to do some sunbathing on the shell beach. :-) We can't tell whether or not she got a sunburn because she's already pink. Hmm... ;-)</div>
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It was a lovely boat ride!</div>
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This is a part of the museum with parts of the sets from the movie. We got to learn about which parts of the movies were true and which were fictional. </div>
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It was so fun getting to learn more about Winter, Hope, and all the creatures in and around the Clearwater Marine Aquarium! Maybe there will be a Dolphin Tale 3 someday?</div>
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That was just one part of our Florida vacation- stay tuned for more!<br />
<br />KaseyQhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18394640941485859111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4653018794516764271.post-36297169574833016282017-07-31T06:09:00.001-07:002017-07-31T06:10:41.885-07:00Introducing Tag to Rugby!Konnichiwa, Tyson, Audrey, Charlotte, and Christine!<br />
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Baseball and soccer are two of the most popular sports in Japan.<br />
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Yuki and Yuki's mom are not big fans of sports, but we have some professional sports teams that are based in this region of Kobe and Osaka, including 2 baseball teams called Hanshin Tigers and ORIX Buffaloes, a soccer team called Vissel Kobe, a basketball team called Nishinomiya Storks, and a rugby team called KOBELCO Steelers. So, every once in a while, we go check out their games.<br />
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We heard that rugby is the most popular sports in Western Hemisphere, including New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa, and it seems to be slowly gaining popularity in Japan as well. Rugby World Cup, which is held every 4 years like Olympics, will be hosted by Japan in 2019.<br />
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There was a rugby festival hosted by KOBELCO Steelers at their practice ground near where we live, so we decided to go check it out. They had some food stalls, performances by the athletes, and some games.<br />
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Yuki and Tag took a photo with their team mascot, Korokun. He had a special festival outfits on today!</div>
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They also displayed a tractor their team sponsor, KOBELCO, makes.<br />
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And Hyogo Prefecture Police was there, too, and Yuki and Tag got to ride their motorcycle known as <i>shirobai</i> (white motorcycle) and the police car!<br />
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We hope Tag enjoyed being introduced to rugby and riding the Japanese police motorcycle and police car!<br />
<br />PeachGirl517http://www.blogger.com/profile/00820681572048420387noreply@blogger.com1Japan36.204824 138.2529249.549143 96.944330000000008 62.860505 179.561518