Picture time

More pictures can be viewed at http://82fly.myphotoalbum.com/albums.php.

** I have added a link to the first page of this site (under the picture of me in my adorable wings) where you can see the weather in Kofu if it interests anyone (Dad, Emily,...).**

So this weekend was pretty good.  I finally finished cleaning my apartment and setting everything up.  It looks pretty good.  I uploaded the pictures of my apartment to my MyPhotoAlbum site.  I haven't quite worked out yet how to add them here or how I want to organize them anyway.  The address for that site is http://82fly.myphotoalbum.com/albums.php.

Ayami and Junko came to visit me yesterday (Monday) which was a public holiday here.  We went to Shosenkyo waterfall to do some sightseeing.  (I will post my pictures of this tomorrow or the next day but for now you can visit the following websites.  This one  http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e6952.html is pretty good and obviously written by native English speakers.  This one http://www.city.kofu.yamanashi.jp/english/sightseeing/ss.htm was obviously NOT written by native English speakers.  It is from the official Kofu City website, though, and has several sites in and around Kofu, some others of which I hope to visit at some time.)

We also visited some real estate agents and the grocery store.  The idea of getting my own apartment sort of fell through!  The man wanted me to pay $2000 for the first month with the possibility of getting $300 back when I left.  The best he could do was for me to pay $350 rent, $350 to him for finding me the place, $350 cleaning fee so they can clean everything once I leave!  and some extras for garbage, insurance, etc.  Even the places that he said had no key fees had all sorts of hidden costs.  I don't know how Robert (the Australian teacher who originally told me this was a viable option) did it.  But I decided that I might as well stay in my place until they kick me out.

The grocery store was much more successful!  I found out that the kanji that I thought meant animal fat just means oil!  So sometimes (when paired with particular other kanji) it does mean animal fat but the ingredient in my crackers, bread, soy sauce, etc. was plant oil!  So I was sitting here thinking that I couldn't eat anything with oil in it! It's like a whole world of possibilties has just opened up.  I was really starting to worry that there was nothing I could eat!

The biggest problem I am facing at the moment is that I am quickly running out of cash and my bank cards are not working at the machines here.  One because it just doesn't work and the other one because I can't remember the PIN.  Japan is very much a cash society and I am really limited in what I can get and where I can shop with my mastercard.  I am trying to make it stretch though!  Hopefully I can get something sorted out soon so that I can stop worrying about all these minor details (food, money, a place to live) and start concentrating on having fun and enjoying this country!

Anyway, that's all for now.  The office man is wanting lock up again so I must go.  Like I said I will upload some more pictures tomorrow (the ones from Shosenkyo and others as well).  I will probably also come back and edit this text because I am really not in an eloquent mood and am not expressing myself as well as I would like to!!