Our Thanksgiving

Our Thanksgiving was Friday, Japan's Thanksgiving (or Labor) Day. We got the day off, but there was no turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, or pumpkin pie to be found. So, instead, we decided to do some sightseeing with the Morimura's. It was so nice of them to take us out, since we still don't know how to get to many places. Our first stop was Ritsurin Park, one of the most famous historical parks in Japan--it dates back to 1625!
A view at the entrance of the park:

I loved this orange bridge:

Can you guess who the gaizin is in this picture? Note my lovely expression as I taste a sakura An-Dango (cherry-blossom rice flour dumpling--definitely an acquired taste!) Also note little vampire baby's expression, having been wheeled into direct sunlight:

Cash enjoys the ride:

After the trip to Ritsurin Park, we made our way to Yoshima. Yosima is a sight-seeing island along the Seto-Ohashi bridge. It is inbetween Shikoku Island and Honshu Island. Apparently, when the bridge was finished twenty years ago, so many people wanted to visit the island each day that it would lock up one lane of traffic on the bridge for the whole day. The bridge costs around 4000 yen to cross, so imagine how frustrating it would be if you spent that and ended up having to just sit in your car on the bridge all day because the island was too crowded.
Every ten minutes or so, a beautiful touring boat would stop outside the restaurant where we were eatting. It was sort of sad to only see a handful of people getting on and off at one time. If you didn't want to go sightseeing on the boat, the island also offered tours on a helicopter. We opted for neither as Fox is not a big fan of either flying or boating. The main attraction to the island was basically the Fisherman's Wharf, where you could dine or shop to your hearts content (unless you happen to be a gaizin with a weak stomach - then you just shop).
The Ellis Family at Yoshima


The one thing we were thankful for this year: Lots of warm sunshine!!! Enjoy your snow AMERICA!!!!!!!!