The arrival of the Cariaga Family & Mark's Birthday

Hello readers! Hope all is well!

So much as happened since the last time I updated this blog.... Bern and I experienced two serious typhoons, I stopped taking Aikido in order to train in Pekiti Tirsia Kali, which is a Filipino combat system (another blog on this to follow), but more importantly we welcomed our friends to Yokosuka, The Cariaga Family; Ted & Kristine, along with their two boys J.R. & Kristian. Bern and Kristine used to work together back in San Diego and I knew Kit from high school. Ted also worked with my Mom at Paradise Valley Hospital so there was definitely a six degrees of seperation going on here. When a HR position became available, we were glad to hear that Kristine had applied and actually got the job! Since their arrival at the beginning of September, we've been showing them around town and trying to get them acclimated to their new life here in Japan. Needless to say, it's been really nice having them here with us!

They recently moved to an awesome apartment about two train stops away so Bern and I thought this would be a great opportunity to kill two birds with one stone...show them how to get to Tokyo by train and to celebrate my birthday.

The day beforehand though, Bern treated me out to a nice steak house called Station Grill. We both feasted on American-style prime rib which was absolutely amazing; the meat was cooked just right and was soaking in au-jus sauce. Afterwards, we decided to go for a night-cap and check out a chu-hi bar. Chu-Hi's are basically flavored shoju and carbonated water. There are tasty but very potent...so much so that Bern started feeling the effects halfway through her drink! We then went home to eat the chocolate cake she had made me for dessert; a perfect way to end my birthday night.

Oishi Ne!

 

Outside the Chu-Hi stand 

 

 

 

On to Tokyo....

Bern suggested we go to Hooters from my birthday which I had no problem with! haha But another good reason too is because it's located in heart of Shibuya, not far from the famous Shibuya Crossing. We thought this would be a cool thing to see for the Cariaga's first time in Tokyo. Even though Bern and I had been here before at night, there was a totally different vibe during the day so it was nice we got to experience both.

The Shibuya Crossing, Hachiko the Dog, & Mark City

Just like home

After our Hooter-rific lunch, we wanted to check out the Harajuku district of Tokyo which was only one stop away from Shibuya. The main focal point of Harajuku is Takeshita Dori, it's a long and narrow street where Japanese fashion & culture collide. On Sundays, people like to dress up as their favorite characters which is commonly referred to as "Cos-Play" (costume play). Not sure exactly why, but we didn't see too many people dressed up that day. Whatever the case may be, this whole area was just oozing with Japanese pop-culture...a must see for visitors!



Walking through this crowd was crazy!

   
I had a great time turning 33 this year! I want to take this opportunity to say Thank You to my wife, The Cariaga Family, & to all my family and friends back home for the birthday wishes. I definitely felt the love and can't tell you enough how much it means to me!