Hawaiian Festival in Sakae at Oasis 21

I went to the Hawaiian Festival! It was great.

I packed up and 3 kids and we headed out just before ten. Walked to the subway and got on the train. When the train stopped at Nagoya a ton of people got on. They had the employees on the platforms to make sure that the doors would close. Most people got off at Sakae, which was where we were going as well. Its hard to be on a packed train with 3 small children and a stroller, but we made it there without too much trouble.

First thing we did

Getting a Ride at the Doctor's

Went to my third prenatal appointment today. Everything went great. We left the house and got there without a problem. I got my paper and number and took care of "business" and got to the waiting area. Leah and Charlette were great and didn't cry of fuss when I left them in the waiting area and finished measuring my weight and taking my blood pressure. Teddy stayed with me when the doctor saw me and was pretty good. He got a bit worried when I put him down and laid down for my ultrasound, but it wasn't a problem.

Then came the fun part.

Nagoya Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens

So much excitement! Teddy can't handle it.

Today, I took my children to the zoo. The "Nagoya Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens" in fact.

It is a great place to take your children. There is lots to see and do. We took the subway all the way there. There is a "Food Trek" right outside the main entrance to the zoo, which is where we stopped and picked up some rolls, chips, and drinks for lunch at the zoo. Then we cross the street and buy our tickets. You don't have to buy tickets for anyone under junior high, so I just paid for my ticket and my 3 kids were free.

Nagoya Podcast Post

I'm putting up a series of audio rambles about stuff I think of when driving to and from work in Nagoya.
I would upload them directly on this site, but there's no convenient way to host audio files. Get on that Blogger!

First podcast: Cute Trucks with associated transcript.
Second podcast: Floods, Convenience, and English with associated transcript.

At least one more is on its way.

Trip to Yoro

Today, we went to the town of Yoro, at the foot of the Yoro mountains, right next to Mount Yoro, and saw the Yoro Waterfall. In Japanese, the consonants "r" and "l" are combined, so I amused myself by internally substituting "YOLO" for all of these instances.

The trip to Yoro is about 45 minutes in good traffic, or just over 80 minutes by train. There are tradeoffs both ways. In the car we can be loud and go at our own pace. On the train, I can look around at the scenery instead of paying attention to the road. We took the train this time, but we may go back by car at some point. It was good for the soul to get out of the city.

Drive to Work

So, every week day, I drive to work. It takes about 45 minutes, more or less depending on traffic. Here are some pictures from along the way.

Here's the first bridge over the road. This is where the trains pass over, just North of Nagoya Station. We walk this way on the way to the nearest subway station as well.

Pregnant in Japan without Japanese Insurance

I didn't have any idea of where I was going to give birth or seek prenatal care when I left America. I am also not in a place where I could go back to America to have the baby and be able to return to Japan, so if I was going to have the baby State side I would have to stay there with all my children, leaving my husband in Japan for the remainder of his business trip. So we decided to give birth here in Japan. I thought that "I can figure it out when I get there". Which you can, but its a hard, since most people don't speak English. Its going to be hard even if you do research before you come, even more so if your not going to qualify for Japanese Health Insurance (which is the case for us since we are on a visitor's visa).

But, if you think about it before hand, here are some things you should do before you arrive:

My Second Visit to the Hospital

First thing was to remember to have my vial of "morning urine" sample (Vial? More like vile!) and my mother's handbook with me when I left the house. I got myself ready and the children and stepped out the door to find that the trash we had left out had been gotten into by a bird. It was a huge mess and was terrible. I had not put time in my day to clean up a mess before leaving for the hospital. I run back in the house and grab my broom and a new trash bag. I clean up the mess and take the trash down to the curb-side drop-off.

Now finally on my way to the train to get to the hospital, nothing else unexpected happened. YAY.

Getting your Mother's Handbook from your Ward Office

One of the things that your care provider will want you to have, whether you have Japanese insurance or not, is the Japanese Mother's Handbook. This is important because it's where the doctors record your information. It's basically a log-book for your baby's development, so the doctors need it to keep their notes... except that they put everything in the computer, so I don't even know why this is a thing.

Anyway, it's important, and here's how I got it.

Science Museum

It's Golden Week, a holiday season in Japan, and we're sitting around being lazy. Finally, on Saturday, we pack up the kids, pack up ourselves, and head to the Nagoya Science Museum. We've been hearing a ton of praise for this place ever since we got here, so this had better be good!

We take the subway, and walk the three blocks to the museum. The approach on the museum grounds proper is through a park-like area with trees and some artificial water features. The water channels, stepping stones, and fountains strongly remind me of similar elements at the Getty museum in Los Angeles. Very pretty.