Day One - Aqualine, Kamakura, Odawara Castle, and cute yukatas to wear

It looks like an apocolypse outside.

But in Japan, things are always green.

Japan's weather is probably similar to Oregon's, another "green" state. The sun only comes out 100 days a year. But even in the midst of the fog and the rain, you can feel the humidity cling to your skin.

Cultural differences still abound. While I consider Japan a more westernized country than let's say China, there were little reminders that, clearly, we weren't in the States anymore. Case in point:

Example 1

Photo by Mailin Chan

Example 2:
I have never seen claw machines with stuffed animals that just might be bigger than a person's head. They have a whole arcade at Umihotaru dedicated to this venture.

Did we leave?

The terror of swine flu, having family members become ill, and having an international trip be booked so late in the game, all seemed to be signs that we weren't supposed to leave the states. Add the latest event of our gate wing being closed and evacuated by the LAPD hits the nail on the head that this trip is predestined not to happen.

Nonetheless, we wait it out. Like sheep, we listen to the LAX employee who tells us to stay until she receives further instruction and information on what's happening. Ironically though, I find myself as well as the other passengers take this frustrating situation in stride. We sit, stand, play, go to the bathroom, etc.; we do anything to pass up the time.

And...of course we leave!!! :)

After waiting half an hour, we receive the news that LAPD had reopened the gate and let all the evacuees return. We zip on over to our terminal where we again resume sitting, standing, playing, and going to the bathroom before boarding the plane.

Two movies, three meals, and countless beverages later we land in Narita, Japan.

Gozai-Imas!

Los Angeles to Narita

After months of planning, the three week trip to Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan was finally booked a week and half before we were to set to leave.

We packed our clothes, bought all travel gear necessities, and brought a pharmacy load of medications (after all, who knew what weather, medical ailments, and number of squatties would be encountered on this trip :P ). It's always best to be on the safe side than on the...not so safe side?

Our flight was set to leave at 12:30 PM. We checked in our luggage and passed through security easily with an hour to spare. The trip that had been difficult to plan, coordinate with everyone's schedules and book through the cheaper Chinese travel agency was finally happening.
We were actually GOING.

When we arrived to our gate wing, we noticed that airport employees were redirecting the flow of traffic and telling people to go around. No problem. With all the remodeling and upgrading at LAX, I thought we were just going a round-a-bout way to the gate. A few escalator walkways later, my sister realized something was wrong. There was no round-a-bout way to our gate. In fact, the two internationals wings at LAX never connect with each other. We quickly stopped dead in our tracks and turned around.

The airport employees were still redirecting us away. When we finally asked one of them "why," all she could say was that LAPD had shut down our gate wing. To top it all off everyone who had been in that wing had also been evacuated.

So much for us going.