how do you say "impressed"?

Jason and I spent 8 days in Japan and if I spoke fluent Japanese I'd be begging Jason to move there. What an amazing culture and what endearing people.

I would have to say the best part of Japan is the people. It's so obvious they take pride in their heritage, their city, their appearance, and their service. Is it like that in all of Japan? I don't know, but I do know we Americans, myself included, could learn a little from them. Oh man, and I loved the fashion! It was like eye candy for me. They wore patterns on top of patterns and it mismatched so much, it somehow matched. I wish I could get a way with wearing the things I saw, but I'm afraid I'd end up on "What not to wear".

I also fell in love with the kids. Everywhere we went there were school kids wearing their uniforms and color hats. They were so excited to use the little English they had learned on us. "Hello, my name is..." they would say and then giggle when we'd respond.

I was completely fascinated with the geisha's. I'm fascinated with their clothing, makeup, and the overall idea of what a geisha is. It's weird, seeing them in person made me a bit starstruck.

I'm surprised at how clean it was. And yet, we were hard-pressed to find a garbage can. I sat and watched a teenage kid run after a plastic bag blowing in the wind just to throw it away.

Back on the fashion, the women wore heels everywhere. And I mean everywhere. And, as you all know, I'm such a shoe fanatic it was simply inspiring to me. Absolutely no flip-flops for me this summer. Of course I had to buy a pair of shoes while I was there! Red, strappy, very cute.

Lastly, the food. I thought I was going to starve but I ended up loving everything I ate. I tried it all (always with chopsticks, never a fork) and surprised myself when I couldn't get enough. I am sorry to say I still don't like sushi, but if ever there was a place to learn to love it, it would be Japan. I have officially given sushi a chance.

And so, it's hard to adjust to real life again -- screaming Eva, whining Ella, charges from Japan going through, etc. -- but we had such a great time. I wanted to include some photos we took: