Love In Pictures Go (5)

My so so handsome husband (L), his brother JR (M) and Uncle Doug (R). This was at a wedding a few years ago. This is one of my favorite pictures ever. These two people are two of Glen’s favorites and their smiles show how happy they were to spend time together.

Because…well, look at him! 😍😍. Also, this is at an area not far from his hometown, Riverton. Sinks Canyon is a rugged canyon at the base of the southern Wind River Mountains in Wyoming. Located on the eastern slope of the mountains, the canyon is named for a unique geologic formation, “The Sinks,” where the river vanishes underground near the mouth of the canyon. The canyon proper begins at the falls, where the Middle Fork of the Popo Agie River flows over a granite escarpment in a series of cascades. The river follows the widening canyon down into the Lander Valley. This valley is a part of the larger Wind River Basin.The Popo Agie joins the Wind River in the basin. The Wind flows into the Yellowstone, which drains into the Missouri and ultimately the Mississippi then the Gulf. The river begins in snow fields and alpine lakes near the Continental Divide. The Wind River Mountains get enough snow to support small glaciers. It is truly a beautiful representation of the power of nature.

In Virginia on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. This trip was fun because Glen drove me around and showed me places he’d lived and worked when he was stationed there in the Navy, before we met.

This picture is in Hawaii. I was visiting on one of Glen’s work trips. I didn’t know it at the time but on this trip Glen was secreting away cash for my engagement ring! That Christmas Eve he proposed in Lake Chelan.

Katsuretsuan, Kamakura

We had to run an errand to a shop in Kamakura today so decided to stop in this little place for lunch. It is called Katsuretsuan in Kamakura. I’ve read now that there is three other locations, but since their web page is all in Japanese I can’t read the addresses! 😏 Here is the yelp link: https://yelp.to/qTKq/rdDoqKG8IX. The service was wonderful, they quickly showed us the English section of the menu, and were very attentive. We have taken to making our google map directions take us on no toll roads or highways. I think we sometimes take a bit longer but we sure see a lot of land! We ended up in the middle of farmland again today! These adventures are always a tiny bit nerve wracking (roads that have drop off into the crop fields 😳) but always so entertaining and we always see someplace new. I highly recomend it if you are not on a time crunch!

Some wikipedia history on Tonkatsu: Tonkatsu is a Japanese dish that consists of a breaded, deep fried pork cutlet. The two main types are fillet and loin. It involves cutting the pig’s back center into 2-3 centimeter thick slices, smearing with bread crumbs, frying them in oil, and then serving with Japanese Worcestershire sauce, rice, and vegetable salad (mainly cabbage).

The word tonkatsu is a combination of the Sino-Japanese word ton meaning “pig” and katsu, which is a shortened form of katsuretsu, the transliteration of the English word cutlet, which again derived from French côtelette, meaning “meat chop”.

Tonkatsu originated in Japan in the 19th century. Early katsuretsu was usually beef; the pork version was invented in Japan in 1899 at a restaurant called Rengatei in Tokyo. It was called ‘Pork katsuretsu,’ ‘Porky katsuretsu’ and ‘Tonkatsu’ but the name ‘Tonkatsu’ was only used after 1959.

Tonkatsu is most commonly eaten with a type of thick brown sauce called tonkatsu sauce or simply sōsu (sauce), and perhaps a slice of lemon. It is usually served with rice, miso soup and eaten with chopsticks. It may also be served with grated daikon (radish) instead of tonkatsu sauce. In addition to being served as a single dish, it is used as a sandwich filling or in combination with curry. Tonkatsu is sometimes served with egg on a big bowl of rice as katsudon.

Several variations of tonkatsu use alternatives to pork: Chicken – which uses chicken instead, often appears in Hawaiian plate lunches. Menchi (minchi katsu mince katsu) – is a minced meat patty, breaded and deep fried. Hamu katsu (ham katsu) – a similar dish made from ham, is usually considered a budget alternative to tonkatsu. I prefer the shrimp and chicken. The chicken I had this visit was not breaded like the other items, it had a delicious sauce on it instead. Almost like teriyaki but not as sweet, more savory.

The “menu” outside! I always love when places have this, and they ad an English menu as well, which I also love! They are so accommodating.

The curtains outside the place, they are called “Noren” in Japanese. **Noren** are traditional Japanese fabric dividers hung between rooms, on walls, in doorways, or in windows. They usually have one or more vertical slits cut from the bottom to nearly the top of the fabric, allowing for easier passage or viewing. *Noren* are rectangular and come in many different materials, sizes, colors, and patterns. Exterior *noren* are traditionally used by shops and restaurants as a means of protection from sun, wind, and dust, and for displaying a shop’s name or logo. Names are often Japanese characters, especially kanji, but may be emblems, Japanese rebus monograms, or abstract designs. Noren designs are generally traditional to complement their association with traditional establishments, but modern designs also exist. Interior noren are often used to separate dining areas from kitchens or other preparation areas, which also prevents smoke or smells from escaping.

Specialties Meal: Shrimp, Pork Cutlet and Chicken. Delicious! I even love the pickled daikon radish. We both skipped the miso soup, it was too much food and also had some seafood in it that neither of us was interested in. New task: figure out from fiends that are locals how to ask them to skip part of a meal we wont eat. I feel very wasteful when we don’t even touch a part they could save for someone that will enjoy it.

Typical Table, was about 10-15 in the place. Most places are pretty small. Glen and I sometimes feel like Shrek & Fiona in these places!

Two special tonkatsu sauces, one had a little extra kick

Love in Pictures Shi (4)

As a parent, there is no greater love in the world than our babies. I was lucky enough to have one, one that is the apple of my eye, the light of my life, my Sonshine. He brings light and happiness to mine and Glens life. Glen came into our lives when Scott was almost 9 and has been all that a Father should be. Scott is so lucky to have him in his life, and I am grateful. This kid is my reason for being.

This picture is at a good friends wedding several years ago. Glen was out of town for work so Scott was my date. He is so handsome and this picture just shows our relationship! He is simply my favoritest ever!

This is from Mothers Day a few years ago. I had told Scott that if he ever would get a “Mom” tattoo that I would pay for it, and that the picture could be whatever he wanted as long as it had Mom on it. I made this statement to him several times in the preceding years and he always declined. One day he called out of the blue and had decided he wanted one. He’d been going through some things, and I had provided the support any Momma would, and that led him to decide he wanted the tattoo. It was a great weekend with him in Spokane. The weekend will be forever etched on my heart.

*He combined it with a shark he had always wanted.* The end result, I dig it!

This picture is from the day before I flew out of Seattle to move to Japan. I was staying overnight at a hotel in Seattle as I had to be at the airport very early for our international military flight with 2 dogs. I had planned to meet up with my nephew at a bar in Seattle to have dinner and then he was coming back to hang with us at the hotel and help me get all my crap plus 2 dogs with crates to the airport at 0400. I showed up at the bar and Scott was there! He and Skylie (his GF) had driven over to see me off and do all the helping. I immediately burst into tears, it was to date one of the best surprises of my life. They provided invaluable help with all the luggage I had, and seeing his face one more time before moving out of the country was priceless.

Glen and Scott, Gaetano, Tanner and Thomas. One of many holidays we had at the house. We built our house to be “that” house, the one the kids congregated to . Many games wiffle ball, ladder golf and frisbee golf were played in our yard, and we loved every minute of it. We cooked may breakfasts, pizza on the bbq and S’morgasboards. We will forever cherish the memories made in that house with all the kids that came over.

Love In Pictures San (3)

This picture was a gift from my best friend Maranda, for Christmas before we left the USA. This family means the world to me, and the notes in this picture capture so much! Its hilarious and heartfelt all at once. I have this picture on a shelf and look at it daily. I miss these faces beyond words. And, I’ve heard “Stupid Japan” many more times! 😂

Saying my final goodbye on December 14th to two of my worlds favoritest people. So heartbreaking and cried halfway home from Sequim. So so hard. The love in this picture is undescribable.

Got to make a sudden trip back to the states in March. Surprised my Cupcake at the house. Love her, love her to death.

And surprised him when school got out. The looks on their faces was priceless. Its such a feeling to love and be loved. They are all that and more.

Christmas a few years ago, decorating cookies. So much fun.

Love in Pictures Ni (2)

This is one picture of too many to count of the deer we had in our back yard at the Grapeview house. We fed them apples and carrots each year when they showed up, for as long as they stayed. We would buy large bags and chop them into bite size pieces. They would literally come out of the woods and walk across the yard looking in the windows for us. We could almost *get them to eat out of our hand. Each year Petunia would show up with* a friend, and sometimes 1 or 2 babies. We looked forward to it every year. We heard from our wonderful neighbors that the new owners have an 8 year old daughter that is loving them coming around. So, we are hoping the feeding tradition stays alive. I miss this occurring, and look forward to cultivating another relationship like this at our next homestead.

This is simply our back yard. SO many parties, wiffleball games, corn hole, ladder golf, and even a wedding took place here. We both miss having so much grass, as do the dogs. A lot of hard work went into getting that lawn in shape. Glen put in the sprinkler system, and worked each year with fertilizers and mowing to keep it in tip top shape.

This was her FAVORITE thing to do every time she went out in the nice weather! especially after she had a bath. I know she misses that, I miss it for her. For now she is using the living room rug. We’ll get her another big lawn one day.

This is the view from my brothers cabin in Cle Elum. I’ll never get tired of it. I miss seeing it in the summer and winter. So many good times there with friends. SO many memories.

This is my favorite view on the drive back to Riverton, Wyoming where Glen grew up. This is outside Jackson, the Tetons. I look forward to it every time we make that drive and never tire of it. They are incredible.

TV shows/Movies I love in Review!

Since I started my career as a professional TV watcher, aka: lazy unemployed housewife, I have watched MANY shows. To be fair, only since moving here have we had the ability to stream tv. In other words, we are OVEWHELMED with the options on Netflix, Hulu, HBO and Amazon video. So.Many.Options. If we had this back in the states, I daresay we’d have gotten nothing accomplished at our house! With my usual strong work ethic, I have grasped the role with gusto! 😏 I think I’ll call it Reviews of The Lazy Housewife, or ROTLH for short since everything popular anymore goes by acronym!

So, since I have so much new knowledge gained in my new career, I thought I would share with all my 5 followers! I will, as with my meaningful picture posts, post the review blogs occasionally as I feel it!

Spoiler alert – it seems a lot of the shows I love have a high quantity of curse words (whodathunkit??), some sexual situations and several are LGBTQ friendly. Several also have vampires, witches, werewolves, supernaturals, aliens and any number of special powers! I like to be entertained, and rarely watch reality tv. I do enjoy true crimes shows, and documentaries. I also love shows with a strong female lead. I recently watched the Twilight movie series again, and have no shame in my game! To make a long story longer, my reviews will be all over the place!

Without further ado, lets get this party started!

Lucifer (Netflix) – This show is headlined by Lucifer Morningstar, played expertly by the charmingly handsome actor Tom Ellis. He is the actual devil that became bored in his role in the heated underground (Hell) and has relocated to Los Angelas, the city of angels (coinkydink? I think not). What better place for a fallen angel than the city of angels?! This show has several strong female roles, which I love and gravitate to. Lucifer develops a working and friend relationship with Chloe Decker (Lauren German), an LA detective, after a criminal incident at his nightclub. Lucifer can get people to tell him the truth, which comes in handy for the detective at crime scenes. He quickly becomes an advisor for the LA police department. There are many multiple partner sex scenes, drug use and foul language (all markers I look for in a show!) so not a show for the younger or prudish crowd. The fun part of this show for me (which is played out in many shows I love) is their flirty love/hate relationship. Lucifer has no shame in his obviously busy and openly sexual life, but Chloe is much more reserved. Watching her squirm with his words and attraction to her is fun to watch. The other characters like his demon sidekick Mazakeen, his shrink Linda, his angel brother Amenadiel, Chloes ex-husband and baby daddy Dan and the LA police lab rat Ella, all make this show a delight to watch. Of course the situations and storyline that a guy just becomes an advisor for the police after one correct observation is absurd, but this is TV and its fun and entertaining. If you get hung up on unrealistic details and can’t get past that, this show and all tv in general really, may not be for you! However, I love it and binged watched the entire 5 seasons. Unfortunately the 5th was the final season, as I’d love to see more. I still recommend watching, even thought there is the underlying disappointment knowing it’s going to end!

Schitt’s Creek (Netflix) – I cannot say enough good things about this show. Writer and star David Levy is a comedic genius. His ability to deliver deadpan lines makes me almost pee my pants! The premise of the show is that the Rose family, through no fault of their own (shady accountant) have lost their Rose video store fortune. They go from rich to ditch in a day. The only thing the government didn’t confiscate other than what they could pack in suitcases, was the armpit town of Schitts Creek. The town was a joke birthday gift from Johnny Rose (Eugene Levy) to his son David (David Levy) at some previous time. The mayor of the town is Rolland Schitt, played expertly by Chris Elliot. That alone should indicate to you that this show is going to be great! Davids mother Moira (Catherine O’Hare) and sister Alexis (Annie Murphy) round out this spoiled, pampered & entitled family cast. Watching them learn to deal with the real world in a small town full of colorful townies is hilarious. The motel they live in (and own) comes with a charmingly snarky clerk, Stevie, that is a pivotal character, she is amazing! There are so many scenes that I love, but if you watch, the Simply The Best scene with David and Patrick is a personal fave. The other characters like Rolland, his wife Jocelyn, Mutt, Ted, Patrick and Gwen all play their roles so well you would believe they are all one big happy dysfunctional family! I cannot get enough of this show. There are 5 seasons out now and a 6th in the chute. Bummer is that the 6th will be the final. This is one I re-watch any time I feel like a good belly laugh! If you are offended my curse words or homosexuality it’s not the show for you. But if you can get over yourself, it’s must see!

Grace & Frankie (Netflix) – This show is geared toward the humorous geriatric generation but I feel it is enjoyable to all! In fact, my 26 year old son is the one that recommended it to me. Granted, he knows my twisted sense of humor but still, it’s multi generational! In the first episode, the law firm partner husbands of Grace (Jane Fonda) and Frankie (Lily Tomlin) take them to dinner and tell them that they are homosexual and have been having a secret affair for 20 years. They ask for divorces, and this is where the magic begins. The two women, who are not really “friends” end up living together in the beach house they had purchased together as individual families. Grace is an uptight, martini guzzling high society wife who founded a cosmetics company her daughter Briana (possibly the funniest one on the show!) now runs. Her other daughter Mallory is a housewife & mother and brings her own brand of humor to the cast. Frankie is a dope smoking, hippie artist with 2 adopted sons. To say that Grace & Frankie are polar opposites is an huge understatement! The hilarity that ensues with these two is diaper wearing worthy tv! The banter between the kids from both families is exceptional. The husbands, Robert (Martin Sheen) and Sal (Sam Worthington) embark on their own outing in the gay community and living together. This is another show I can’t wait for new season of. So far, there is a 6th season set to release in 2020 but no word after that. Again, if curse words or homosexuality make you uncomfortable this show is not for you. But I am telling you, if you can get past that, the topics this show covers are real life shit for the older generation. And, if you can’t laugh at that crap, you may as well pack it in!

A Picture is Worth a 1000 words…(Love in Pictures)

is what they say. However, I still like to use my own actual words! I’ve decided to post a few pictures every once in a while (don’t want to set limits I may not meet) that are some of my favorites. With the pictures, I am going to use some of those words I seem to have so many of, and tell you what means to me and why. These pictures may be current or old, or REALLY old, but they all have meaning to me and I love seeing them. They are not in any particular order or importance. And, there are also many pictures I love that I do not have electronically that I can’t share. This is just what I have, so it’s what I am sharing. Someday I am hoping this will be what the person that plans my celebration of life will use for the inevitable cry worthy video depicting my long and beautiful life! I’ll make a list of the music I want as well, but that plan is a whole ‘nother post! and something I’ve been working on for a few years. Parts of it are for obvious reasons very fluid so I keep that plan open…😏

This is my nephew Zak, and Scott. They are 6 days apart on their birth day. We have many pictures of them together. Scott is an only child so his cousins are his siblings. And, although they grew up far apart, they all have great relationships. It makes my heart happy to know that one day when I am gone, he still has them. I love this picture simply because I think they are both freaking adorable.

This is a recent picture, of my brother and his wife at the gender reveal part for his Baby Boy ,(Zak) who’s having a Baby Boy! Welcome in November 2019 to Finnigan James Worms.

This is Glen helping Cayden roast a marshmallow for his first S’more. This is in our backyard at our house in Grapeview. So many good times there. In this picture I love that Glen’s poor bald head is obviously sun burnt and Munchie is in his pajamas!

This is at the marina campground Port Hudson on Port Townsend. The weather was crap so the guys built this awesome warmed tent area. In one of my rare drinking days, this was a great fun night. he next 2-3 days sucked bad. I didn’t leave the trailer all day on Saturday, the ride home Sunday was quiet and work on Monday was “slow”. The friends we were with, and the new friends we met made the time there awesome. For a bad weather amping trip, this one was top notch!

Work ‘n other stuff…

So, I started a job this week. Its just an on-call clerk job for a contractor but can work into full time easily. It seems many people get hired in as contractors and then continue their pursuit of the elusive government job. The competition for the few available federal jobs is fierce. And, in my case I only have DOD civilian spouse preference, which puts me in front of very few applicants! The active duty spouses, veterans, and the lucky veteran spouse all are in live before me. So, if I only work for the contractor while I am here, I’ll be fine with that. It seems like a good company, and the 3 ladies in the office I have started in are very nice, smart, and not afraid to share their knowledge. You find in many jobs, people feel like knowledge is power so they do not want to share what they know to help the newbie. Not the case here, they are all very good about helping. I have started in the ID Lab, where all the CAC and ID cards are made. As I have no access yet, I cant assist with the computer part yet but I have learned to sign people in like a champ! I have been hired at this point to fill in for people out sick or on vacations, so I’ll be learning a few different departments, which I like. The more I know, the more I can do and help. So far, since I dont have the afore mentioned computer access, there isn’t a lot to do so if there are no customers we don’t have other tasks. That is so new to me, not to have 10 other things that need to be done while I am working on one. I can’t say I love it, but also can’t say I hate it…😏. I will say that I am not ready to stay home while my husband works. If I had children to care for I may feel different, but I do not. There is not enough laundry and housework in the world to keep me busy each day. And frankly, I don’t love housework. I love to pay some one to do housework while I am at work, and come home to a nice clean house. I think if we were both retired it would be different. So, I am happy for the distraction fo a job and we’ll see where it goes.

The start of my job was Thursday, and I am scheduled through Monday, just three days. I work again the 17th and 18th and then not again until July (barring anyone calling in ill, etc). I am currently looking at the whole month of July, so I am happy about that. Glen will be traveling to Washington to go visit family so being able to work 8 hours a day will really help me pass time!

Of course, I work for 2 days and on day 2 we come home to the whole house smelling like fish butt. If you hover have had a dog you know what that exactly as it sound horrible smell is. The.entire.house. At first I was not sure what it was, thinking maybe the drain in the kitchen was stinking or some such thing. But, I walked up the stairs and in the hall was the evidence of the odor. Harlee had peed on the carpet. It was very fresh so I know she held it as long as she could, my poor girl. We have had only one other instance where she has gone potty in the house, and with other behavior and veterinary confirmation found it was a Urinary Tract Infection (UTI). So, with that knowledge we suspected the same this time and the vet this morning confirmed it. First though, Glen had to follow her this morning with a aluminum disposable pie pan to get a urine sample to take to the vet. Yes, it’s as funny as it sounds. Just like the last time when I had to do it, she turns and looks at you like you are insane when you slide the tin under her urine stream. I felt as stupid as she must have thought I was! But, we love our baby dog so you do what you gotta do! She is now on a two week antibiotic regime, and I am fighting hard and winning at getting the fish butt smell out of the house!

We also decided today to cut the girls nails ourselves. We had trie din the past and had less then enjoyable results. Today was not as bad as that, but still less than enjoyable! We did however, get ‘r done! And, as I have found in most instances, the tiny terrorist was more difficult than the 65# dog! We’ve decided to make it a more often occurrence so that it becomes a habit for them. They’ve always had it done at the vet or the pet store, and behaved fine. But, like children, they behave worse for their parents!

The day to day life of these girls has changed a lot. At our old house they could go outside and run to their hearts content. Harlee had tunnels through the shrubs in our property and she used them regularly. Lucee would run laps in the back yard. You can walk a dog every day and it’s still not the same as running free. I think this has been a difficult adjustment for Harlee, more than Lucee. Lucee can still run laps in the house and tire herself out! Harlee can just across the entire living room in 2 strides! They do play chase though, and it is very fun to watch!

Another thing that is so different for us here is having wifi at home. This leads to the ability to stream Netflix, Hulu, CBS All Access, and literally a cubic ass load of other apps that have what appears to be MILLIONS of options for shows. I’ve binged so many shows! Sometimes just trying to pick something to watch is actually overwhelming with all the choices! Some shows I have watched (in no particular order); Grace & Frankie, Bosch, Hanna, Catastrophe, Lucifer, Supernatural, Schitts Creek, Encounters With Evil, Making A Murderer, Northern Rescue, and many movies and documentaries. The documentary on Chernobyl was very interesting, and lead to us watching a show called The Babushkas of Chernobyl about several old ladies that moved back to their homes in the exile zone of the reactor and are still there to this day. I’m sure all you novices to streaming know that once you watch a show the channel you are watching very helpfully shows you other shows that you may enjoy, a rabbit hole I am 100% guilty of falling down more than once! I will say though, its lead to some great viewing! I’ve watched several shows on men and women in jail, death row inmates, people who say they aren’t guilty and actually many who admit they are and talk about the vile acts they committed and why. So needless to say, the days I am not scheduled to work, I have many options in my various numerous lists to keep me busy!

Last week I went on base to do some grocery shopping. When I do this, I go get the car from Glen’s parking garage and pick him up after work. This time I went to the NEX (Exchange) to return something before going to the commissary to get food items. I parked and went to process the return, did that and came out. Walked up to the car and it did not unlock when I pulled the handle like it should as I had the fob in my purse. I tried several times, looking inside to make sire I had the right car! Because things like this automatically make a person feel like they have dome something dumb like try to open the wrong car. Nope. Its hot out and Im in the sun trying in vain to get into the car. I move to a shady area to text Glen. I also try to take apart the fob to look for the battery, using you tube to figure out how as I don’t want to damage the one key we have. First I talk to Glen via text and he tells me to just use the key that comes out the fob, which I do. When I do, the door opens, but at the same time the friggin horn starts honking and wont stop even when I get in the car and try to start it, which it also wont do. I have to lock myself back out to get the damn horn to stop. By now I am getting pretty frustrated and do not want to have to make Glen come save me! I get the fob open, and the electronics department doesn’t have the replacement.

The jewelry & watch department doesn’t have any either. Im feeling close to tears at this point. Then the lady in jewelry tells me to check the jewelry & watch repair counter, and HALLELUJAH! they have one! They test my old battery and it shows a full charge but I put the new one in anyway just to be safe. It works! So I’m feeling pretty good that I solved it myself (physically) and Glen didn’t have to get a ride over to help me! Its unfortunate that when we bought our car we only got one key, and to get another is somewhere in the $400 range…no thanks!

Before I go, here are some pictures of the flowers I have on our deck. Were doing some yard stuff but when it’s completed I’ll post pictures!

Now, I’m off to warm up leftovers for dinner and watch some more visual entertainment! Until next time, Lisa out!

Kirin Brewery, Yokohama

We decided a couple weeks ago that we wanted to tour the Kirin Brewery in Yokosuka. Glen called and made reservations for 1100. We had a nice 20 or so minute train ride to Yokohama and a 10 minute walk to the brewery. They actually have signs from the train station sowing the way to the brewery! We arrived early at 1015 and there was a group heading in at 1020 with room for 2 more so off we went. They never even looked up our reservation, which we found odd but whatever. We were given a phone like device to listen to the presentation in English.

Our listening device for the tour. Gives you a taste of what folks in the USA go through in tours! Sure is great they offer it, we were very thankful!

A portion of the history from Wikipedia; Kirin Company, Limited is an integrated beverages company. It is a subsidiary of Kirin Holdings Company, Limited. Its major operating units include Kirin Brewery Company, Limited and Kirin Beverages Company, Limited.

The Japan Brewery Company, Limited, the forerunner of Kirin Brewery, was established in 1885, taking over the assets of the Spring Valley Brewery, first founded in Yokohama in 1869 by Norwegian-American brewer, William Copeland. In a deal brokered by Thomas Blake Glover, the Japan Brewery was incorporated in Hong Kong in the name of W.H. Talbot and E.H. Abbott with financial backing provided by a group of Japanese investors including Iwasaki Yanosuke, then-president of Mitsubishi.

The Japan Brewery first began marketing Kirin Beer in 1888. The Kirin Brewery Company was established as a separate legal entity in February 1907, purchasing the assets of the Japan Brewery and expanding the business in an era of growing consumer demand. Kirin Brewery built on the traditions of the Japan Brewery retaining the use of malted grains and hops imported from Germany and employing German brewers to oversee production. Kirin Brewery sells two of the most popular beers in Japan: Kirin Lager, one of the country’s oldest beer brands which started brewing in 1888; and Ichiban Shibori. Check out http://www.kirinichiban.com.

I love ivy walls, and the red letters really pop on this one.

The *kirin* depicted on Kirin Beer labels is a legendary creature derived from ancient Chinese myths and is said to be a harbinger of good luck. When Kirin Beer first came out in 1888, beers imported to Japan had labels that featured animals such as cats and goats. Japan Brewery Co., Ltd.—the forerunner of Kirin Brewery—chose also to use an animal as the central theme for its beer label. I think it is a very striking logo.

The display they produce is incredible. In this part you are looking out at the shop floor with huge vats full of different parts of the beer producing process. They turn off the lights and it “appears” that the floor opens up to show the inside of the tank to see what the process looks like inside the tank, in each step of the process. It’s actually pretty incredible how they show it.

These two cups are tasters of the “wort” first press products, before any additional processing, and they both tasted horrible! ☺️.

Watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4ECImzG14o#action=share to see their process for the Ichiban beer, very interesting. I really enjoyed the tour, and I am not even a beer enthusiast!

At one point we were walking by an area that was a classroom with groups of guests brewing beer. As we walked by one of the brewers was waving at people. So as we come by I wave back and he turns to all the people at his table and they all turn and wave and smile at us. Not anyone else, just us. Needless to say, we were the only Americans in there. It was like they had a “sighting” the way they all waved! We got a good chuckle out of it.

The tour itself is free, and highly worth the 80 minutes. The final 20 minutes are tasting 3 of their beers, FULL glasses…anyone that has done a tasting knows this is unusual! lol. Of course I tried them all, and promptly gave mine to Glen. He made it through 4. Their beer has a lower content that we are used to, the highest of the tasters was 5.5%.

Traditional saying, like “Cheers” in America.

He thought this dark one would be his favorite, but surprisingly it was not! He liked the light one better!

Kanpai! This was the favorite of the three, Ichiban Premium

Fun picture props at the tasting area! He’s a good sport for me!

We managed to spend a few $$ at the store after also, lots of great options and reasonably priced.

We decide to go to the Spring Valley rewery that is right next door, for a bite. We went in and they take us toward a table. Another man walks over and asks if we are the Sims. Imagine our surprise he knew our name! Thinking about it we realized that apparently Glen made a reservation HERE, not at KIRIN… and by that, we’re an hour late! Luckily the place was not packed. And again, he knew it must be us as we are the only Americans in here… I ordered fish and chips. Not the typical meal you’d expect in the US, but it was very tasty! My ginger ale is literally carbonated water with ginger in the bottom. It was good, but REALLY strong at the end.

4 small pieces of fish with 4 “French fries” potatoes.

Just pretty flowers on the Kirin grounds

It was a fun 11,000 step day! We tried to go to the Ramen Museum also but it was so packed that we decided that was for another day. Ended up at a favorite ramen place in Yokohama before catching the train home. We plan to go back to he brewery again and want to find out how to get into the brewing class!

Memorial Weekend, part II, Tokyo Disney!

Since the girls were having a good time at Pet Holiday, we took off Sunday morning bound for Tokyo, specifically the Tokyo Bay Hotel right by Disney. We started off by going to Zacro, a famous bakery a 10 minute walk from our house; http://zacro-yokosuka.com (in Japanese, but some great pictures!). We got our treats and headed to the bus stop. We plan to eat them on the train.

Breakfast treats from Zacro, on the train. One is a custard pastry and the other a strawberry pastry with a sweet sauce. Both delicious, and tbh I thought making a sandwich out of them would be awesome, so will be going back to do that!

When we are taking a long train ride, we spend the extra $6.00 and get ticket for the Green Car. The advantage of Green Car passes is that they allow you to ride in the Green Car on any train that has such cars. Green Car seats are reserved, more comfortable and spacious, and have tables on seat backs for enjoying food and/or beverages. The Green Cars tend to be quieter than ordinary cars. They also tend to be less crowded. They are a lot like airline seats, but with better leg room! They even have attendants that come through selling beverages and snacks. It’s a nice way to make a long train ride more comfortable and enjoyable.

So, back to the trip. We walked from the bakery to the bus stop, rode to the train station and waited for our train. Had a pleasurable ride, I enjoy letting someone else take the wheel so we can simply enjoy views. Once we got off the train in Tokyo, we walked across the square and caught another train, the Disney one, to the hotel shuttle area. Of course there is a charge for this train as well, and after further investigation we realized it would be beneficial to simply buy the all day pass. Next time! Regardless, the Disney shuttle was amazing:

View of the Disney Resort hotel on the train ride to the shuttles. Takes some deep pockets to stay there…

We arrived at the shuttle area. Although our hotel was just across the road, I wanted to ride the bus simply to see all the more Mickey Mouse decor that is EVERYWHERE! From the doors, vents and all the way to the tail pipes, it’s Micky Mouse!

The ride to our hotel, Hilton Tokyo Bay, was less than 5 minutes, but enjoyable none the less! We were able to book our room for a discounted rate due to a flash sale by Hilton. I had to calendar the date to book it, but worth it. We got 50% off and it was still around $200 American dollars. Since we trained in, we didn’t have the $31 daily parking fee. The room had 2 twin beds, which is very common here. It is difficult to get a queen bed without paying a lot of $$. There were none available when I booked our room. We had an “Ocean view”, you can choose that or park view. Our view was nice, no beach but actually ocean with Tokyo in the skyline. For some reason I don’t have any pictures of it. The room was fine and did what we needed. Especially since we were staying only one night, and had to leave early in the morning to get home to get the girls from the kennel.

There are 3 restaurants in the hotel, that are all extremely expensive. We found that out the hard way. Next time we will go on the train to outer areas for food. There was a convenience store in the hotel with much more reasonable prices, as well as a wonderful bakery. We did have the buffet in one of the eateries, and I do not recommend it. Not very much food for the $51 per person price. And drinks other than water are extra $$! Glen had one beer and it as $12! Ridiculous. Unless you have many huge eaters in your group, this is simply not worth it. I will say though, the desert bar was lovely!

Since Disney was not our original plan and the heat deterred us from going there during the day we opted to hang out at the hotel for a couple hours before going to Disney. There are several options for tickets to Disney, differing by day of the week and time frames. One of them being a weekend pass for 3:00 pm to close for $20 less than the daily rate. We chose this option since we didn’t feel like being out in the heat and it was only a couple hours until 3:00 at this point. We didn’t actually end up heading to Disney until around 6:00 as we both took a little nap and we had dinner prior to going. The restaurant for the buffet didn’t open until 5:30, another annoying thing! lol

So, we head to Disney. Hoping since its later in the day it will be less crowded. Nope. The next trip we take will be a weekday for sure, and in the fall. ☺️

The park is still decked out in it’s Easter theme, so many egg shaped characters (See Snow White & Seven Dwarves pictures) and a lot of pastel colors.

We took in several shows, rides without long lines etc. The final shows we were waiting for were the electrical parade and the fire works. For some reason the fireworks show was canceled due to weather, although it seemed a nice day. May have something to do with the humidity, I’m not sure. Anyway, the parade was amazing (see pics below) as was the park at night! I think we are going to shoot for the Halloween theme timeframe for our next visit!

This trip was more a recon mission and we learned a lot. Now that we have good care for the girls, we will be planning many more long weekend trips. We plan to next visit the Kirin Brewery in Yokohama. Just a day trip, but the tours fill fast. Will also be visiting the Suntory Yamazaki Distillery in Kyoto as soon as we can get a slot in the tour schedule. They fill up months in advance. That trip will be a long weekend as Kyoto has so much to offer! Many gardens close to home as well, that will make for some gorgeous pictures!