Another Store Bites The Dust

Bit after noon. At the ryokan, waiting for my clothes to finish drying at the nearby coin laundry.

The news is on and they're displaying maps showing the path of the approaching typhoon which should soon hit Kyushu and destroy large parts of my travel plans.

Still have a bit of a cough but I'm feeling better. Woke up at 6 but let myself keep falling back to sleep.

Went for a jog. Not my old route but large chunks of it. On the way, something I feared I'd seen from the subway on the way home was confirmed. Nagasakiya, my main grocery store, is now a Mega Don Quixote. I peaked in through the glass doors and, what used to be a quiet clothing store (the grocery store was on the basement level), was now full of aisles and aisles Don Quixote crap.

Along with the closure of the Foodland near cast housing and the transformation of the 99 yen store, all of the places I once did my food shopping are gone.

How depressing.

Coin Raundry

Finally doing some laundry.  A wash cost 200 yen.  About 2 bucks.  Not great but not bad.

The dryer, on the other hand, costs 100 yen for 10 minutes.  So, around 3 bucks to dry a full load.  Ouch. (No wonder everyone hangs their stuff out to dry.)

But, it only costs 40 yen for laundry detergent and it's a cool little pouch you just toss into the load and it dissolves.  So, I guess that’s cool.

Seattle News vs. Japanese News

Seattle News:

Newborn girl left at Federal Way church:

"A baby girl born this weekend was left at a Federal Way church, and police are searching for her mother."

Japan News:

Foreign baby left at 'baby hatch':

"A baby with foreign nationality was left at Japan's first 'baby hatch' at a Kumamoto hospital, according to a report on Monday by a panel examining the practice."

Slight Change of Plans

What is it with me and typhoons?


I like how this one is taking a u-turn just to come bug me.

Anyway, finally heading back to Osaka now. Going to try to squeeze in a trip down to Kyushu mid-week (and get my money's worth with this train pass) before spending my last few days in Osaka.

Where did this month go??

Feeling Better

Decided to walk back to Megumi's place from the cafe instead of taking the train. The temperature has dropped quite a bit since the typhoon passed and I actually saw a few stars. (Would have been a great night to climb Fuji but I don't think I'd want to risk a night climb this long after the season has ended.)

It was nice taking all of the little side streets and trying to find my way back. Made Tokyo seem a little bit more normal. More like the Japan I love.

Tomorrow's Autumnal Equinox so Megumi's got the day off. We're taking a day trip to Kamakura to see the Great Buddha. It'll be nice to get out of the city.

More later. (Consider "later" as broad as possible.)