The Hotel

Me talking (via Skype) to the family. Nice hair - it was so dirty, I could tie it in a knot & it stayed!!
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I'm so behind on this blog, let me back up to my arrival at the airport & checking into the hotel...

I was a little worried, because when Jeff & I boarded the plane in Detroit, he said, "When we get to Osaka, go thru Immigration, get your luggage, go thru Customs & I'll meet you at the Train Station." (Sidebar - for those of you that don't know who Jeff is, he is the President of Fuji Vegetable Oil & he is Japanese.)

Praying my butt off!!

View from my room.
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GULP!!  My mind started racing.  I asked him if he was serious.  He replied, "Oh yeah, I'll wait for you by the train.  But don't go the wrong way.  Some people on this flight are going to Taiwan.  Follow the people that aren't going to Taiwan."

Hmmm, I'm thinking how will I know which people aren't going to Taiwan?  I don't mind asking questions if I'm unsure of something, but there comes a time in life when a girl has to be a woman - is this one of those times?  I didn't want to ask him to wait for me because I was a big chicken!  I've done this before.  When I was 19 I flew to S. Korea all by myself & lived thru it.  So, I bravely sat the 14 hours PRAYING MY BUTT OFF!!

A large ferris wheel. People were riding it late into the night.
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When we landed in OSAKA, I collected my things and slowly made me way off the plane, breathing deeply, uncertain of what the next few minutes, hours & days would bring me.  And there at the end of the walkway was . . . . . . . JEFF!!!  Hooray!!

Immigrations was a breeze.  They passed out Immigration & Customs forms on the plane so that we could have them ready ahead of time.  The form asks if your are bringing any illegal weapons, drugs, etc. into the country.  It also asks something like, did anyone ask you to bring illegal items into Japan?  Do people really admit to that??  I'd be curious how many people have ever answered that yes.

Immigration & Customs cards
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Anyways, Immigration - done.

Baggage Claim - done.  (whew-no lost or damaged luggage)

Customs - done. (they didn't even open my bags??)

Jeff showed me around the shopping area of the airport so I could come back & shop during the week.  He also showed me how to buy a train ticket, how to buy a calling card & where the money excange booth was.  Not that I'll remember it, but just in case.

We took the train to the hotel - Ana Gate Tower Hotel - Osaka.  There's a nice little shopping center at the Train Station directly behind the hotel.  I'll have to go check that out tomorrow.

The first thing I did when I got to the room what plug in my laptop & log in to Skype.  I called my family to let them know I made it safely.  I got to talk to 2 of the boys before they went to school.  The Skype thing worked really good.

My room is on the 47th floor.  Great veiw of the city.  I believe I'm on the South side of the hotel.  Others recommended the North side so I could have a view of the bridge & Fuji - Osaka.  I'll probably ask to switch to a different room to get a different view tomorrow.

Room is simple & nice.  I'm probably going to elaborate on some of my observations in a separate blog post.

For now, here are some pictures of the view.