Where Globe-Trotting meets Beach-Combing
This is the least crowded Narita was all day. I started my day at 3:15am. I was no longer trying to think of last-minute items to pack; I had no room in my very heavy suitcase already. I’m good at packing for trips usually, but this wasn’t packing for a trip. I wasn’t really sure…
As soon as Chris and I decided yesterday that I should leave, I bought the earliest available ticket out (leaving Saturday). Then he called me and said, “The entire squadron is moving north to be closer to the search and rescue area. I’m leaving tomorrow morning.” I said, “What are you going to do with…
If it were just me, I would unequivocally stay. Three days of ‘sheltering in place’ and listening to the Japanese kids playing in the sunshine up and down the street was making me feel like a crazy person, so I walked along the river to several konbini (convenience stores) nearby. There are no noodles, no…
We are “Sheltering in Place,” which means I’m staying home from work in my jammies and reading books about geisha. First thing this morning, measurable levels of radiation were detected in the air on Atsugi Base. Normally that would not concern me at all, but the day after I found out we’re having a baby…
So here’s what’s going on around my house just southwest of Tokyo: nothing. Literally. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano said, “Maximum efforts by the nation are indispensable, such as avoiding going out unless it is necessary or urgent,” so I am being a good resident and staying put. Chris and I woke up to echoing…
We got back to our Chiang Mai hotel room and collapsed on the bed. We’d just finished two long days of price negotiation, product inspection, bargaining, measuring, baht conversion, price calculations, and tromping around from shop to shop in mid-90s Thai humidity. We spent all our money; we filled all our suitcases—we were exhausted but…
We are headed to Thailand tomorrow! I was told when I first became a merchandise buyer at Ichiban Collectibles that a merchandise buying trip was probably out of the question. A what?! Wow!! I thought. I knew my job would entail shopping flea markets, thrift stores and antique shops around Japan; the rest of Asia…
