Sara writes about her first few weeks in Japan (April 2009)

An update from Japan! Hope all is fabulous with everyone! SO I am getting used to our neighborhood, where the stores are etc. Everything is pretty close there are great restaurants and shopping all within a mile. We ride our bikes all over the place! It is still a bit cold here...around 50 each day usually with sunny skies. The train station is close too and I actually went to Toyko last Saturday and Sunday to see Chase play in the Tokyo Dome (that is like Japan's Yankee Stadium). It was quite an experience to walk through the busiest train station in the world on the way there! Our friends Mr. and Mrs. Kobayashi took me to the game the first day and the next day I braved the subway on my own! The Dome was packed for these spring training games and the fans are LOUD the entire game. They sit in cheering sections together and sing an individual song for each player! Talk about loyal fans! So after the game on Saturday night Chase and I went to the Ritz Carlton and had a drink at the 45th floor lobby bar. The Ritz was beautiful as you would imagine and the service was impeccable! The prices were outrageous though...there was an $18,000 martini, and a $140 hamburger! Chase's manager Bobby dropped us off there (we would have never been able to find this on our own!) Out of the panoramic windows we could see for miles it seemed like, and after the sun set all of the outstanding architecture sparkled with lights...we could even see the Imperial palace grounds! It was pretty amazing. We actually met two New Yorkers who work on Wall St. that were in Japan on business, it was great to hear the accents! We decided to walk around the city and find a place for dinner, and everything was so intriguing that before we knew it was almost 9 PM still hadn't had dinner, and still had to navigate the subway home (about 45 minutes away). We got to see the neat modern neighborhoods named Roppongi Hills, and Ginza- they have all the shopping like Tiffany & Co, Prada, and a Louis Vuitton the size of Texas! The trees were all beautifully decorated with white lights, and there was even a two story robot in the courtyard of the mall that breathed fire...we saw the robot, but only saw the flames in the brochure! Eventually we find the a place that looks great but find out from the super nice waitress that one of the main courses on the prix fixe menu is carvallos...um "what is that?" I ask...um horse...OKAY! Chase says I made a funny face but I don't recall that. We politely said sayonara and off to the chinese place that was recommended to us earlier! I haven't eaten chinese food since 1988 so there was a good chance this wasn't going to work out either! The place must have great food because it was packed! We waited 40 minutes for a table and then we finally got to sit down I realized I was suffocating! It was about 110 degrees in there (if I think it was hot...you know it was!) and smoky! There was another group of young hipsters just sitting at our table with out asking too! Grrrrr...I have the best husband in the world because he knew this was not going to work for me! So even after all the struggle just to get a table and he is BEYOND hungry at this point he smiles and says lets go find a better place! We walked around the corner found a little mozzarella bar, Obika and waited again for a table (can you say Tokyo Saturday night 9 PM!) and finally ate a decent little meal. The host graciously explained to us what subway and train to take home and we couldn't wait to get back to our little apartment! Tokyo was a blast! We hope to go back again!

On Monday Chase's team asked us and Chase's teammate Gary to do a little bit of public relations. We visited the Kanda University of International Studies and the senior English majors gave us a tour of the town. They taught us some Japanese, we ate lunch together, helped me try to find earrings (the guys were happy about that!) and we all walked to the Japanese gardens where we live in Makuhari. If you read on below there is an email from the leader of their club and a picture that he sent. They were all over the moon to meet Chase and Gary! At lunch their advisor asked them to introduce themselves and tell a bit about themselves. This is how it went- My name is so and so, and I LOVE BASEBALL, my Dad loves baseball and my whole family loves the Marines! Baseball is a way of life for people here and it meant the world to them to spend an afternoon with two Marine's players. We ended the day off with a toast to the end of spring training on the 50th floor of the APA hotel here in Makuhari. You can see Mt. Fuji, Tokyo (if it's clear) and it looks directly down on the ocean and Chiba Marines Stadium. We watched the sun set and it was a gorgeous view! Chase says he wishes all of our family and friends could see this too...we really have to get a camera! We promise to very soon! Here is the website that has a nice picture on the home page. http://www.tokyobay-makuhari.com/english/index.html I am having the time of my life here with Chase- I keep telling him I feel like it's Christmas!!! I love Japan and I love being newlyweds! I am the luckiest!

More later!
BIG LOVE,Saraxoxo