Whoo-ingy! The heater-less rooms in Hope House makes for a very cold morning. Everyone slept pretty well under lots of blankets, but because the house is typically Japanese with no insulation and no furnace, the rooms are freezing. We could all see our breath in the morning. We got the kerosene space heater going in the 8' x 10' kitchen, kept the doors closed, and soon all 6 of us were in there warming up, and getting a bite of breakfast.
We changed into our costumes, and Rob Stoddard & family came around 10:15, and guided us a mile or so to Oyumino Chapel for the bi-lingual international worship service there.
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| Rachel at the Oyumino Chapel |
Nice group of folks, including Shige and Luann Nakazawa and their 4 kids who've just returned to Japan after 10 years in Turkey as missionaries. They are going to be part of Gilbert's team in Ishinomaki. Sylvia and I knew Luann 12 years ago at our church in Tokyo, so it was fun to reconnect with her again and meet her family.
In the service, we told about our ministry then sang 2 songs, and asked them to sing along, too; they seemed to really enjoy it. After the sermon, the pastor asked if we could come back up and sing another song. Fun!
Afterwards we came back to Hope House, changed clothes, Olsons packed up, and we all left for lunch at a beef-bowl place with Nakazawas.
Then they took us to the train station, where we 6 all started off together. After a couple stops, Keith and Celia changed trains to go to Haneda for their flight back to Sapporo, and we said farewell to our good friends.
We remaining 4 took another sequence of trains over to Shinjuku, then walked over to the Metropolitan Towers, and went up to the 45th floor observation deck. It was 5:30 by now, and the sun had set over Mt Fuji, but it was still nice to see the immense city stretching out in all directions.
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| 25 million people live and work in this metropolis - wild! |
From there, we took the JR to Shibuya. Wow - lots of crowds, lights, and noise! Saw the Hachiko statue, then swam across the big intersection to the world's busiest Starbucks! Nice to be there (again for me), and enjoyed watching the river of people.
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| Shibuya! You have to experience it to believe it. |
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| On the 2nd floor of the Shibuya Starbucks |
It had gotten to be 7 PM so we went around the corner to the 8th floor of the Seibu Department Store for a marvelous splurge on the best sushi meal we've ever had. Actually, once we saw the menu, we were going to have to find another place because the prices were so high, but I talked to server, explaining our tight budget. After talking to the chef, he offered us the lunch menu which was in our price range and even more suited to our appetites. Incredible quality, very well prepared, and delightful nuances in each bite. Yummy!
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| Not an exaggeration to say it was some of the best sushi in the world! |
After the meal, we chatted through the trip, debriefing for a final time. It was going on 9 PM now, so we headed back, taking local trains via the Rinkai Line and Shin Kiba which routes past Odaiba (didn't see it) and Tokyo Disneyland (did see it - yea!). Rob was waiting for us at Honda station - bless his big heart - and drove us "home" to Hope House. It was 11 PM, and we were tired but happy puppies, and all went to sleep right away in spite of the chilly rooms.
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