2 Years?? Cotton & China

Somehow it's already been 2 years since we said our I Do's!

While our time together is definitely not how or where we imagined it would be, we have also grown closer than I think either of us anticipated. During our second year of marriage we spent over 2 months apart (absolutely not by choice), we've explored more and more of Japan, tried and failed to go to Alaska and are now preparing for a deployment which will mean spending more time apart than together during the next year.
We celebrated a week late due me traveling back to Japan on our anniversary and Keenan not returning from the USA until a couple days later. In keeping with the tradition we started last year, we enjoyed a couple hours of all you can eat and drink at a local yakiniku restaurant. As for gifts, we're kept with that tradition too and gave each other stuff with the yearly theme, and according to Hallmark, the second anniversary is either cotton or china.

Fall Colors of Oirase Gorge, Lake Towada & Jogakura Bridge

Yesterday, a tiny adventure to find Keenan an anniversary gift with the cotton or china theme led Ninoosh and I to a little shop with handmade pottery. Not exactly "china" but pretty close. The shop is in the home of a very friendly couple that makes everything. The guy makes the pottery and his wife does the designs on them. All of their stuff is so beautiful! So glad I found this place, I'm sure we'll be back again and again. I believe the name translates to something like Hatano, but I'm not sure. I did pick up a sake set for Keenan...

So on to today, the leaves at Lake Towada and the Oirase Gorge are at their peak and I didn't want to miss them! Keenan will be back in a couple of days and I know he won't feel like adventuring right away, making today the perfect day to head out solo. It was a great day! I stopped a few times along the gorge on my way to the lake, took my time in the small village at the lake, Yasumiya, then stopped along the gorge in different locations as I made my way to the Hakkoda Mountains to drive to Jogakura Bridge. The leaves were beautiful everywhere I went, except high in the mountains where they had already completely fallen.

Remnants of the rice harvest.

One of my favorite gardens to drive by.

Today's route. 186 km (115 mi) and a little under 5 hours
of driving, not including any stops.

Traffic at the Oirase Gorge was crazy as I expected, but not the worst I've ever encountered. This coming weekend the road will be closed to vehicles so the river and leaves will only be viewable by walking or biking. I believe there are shuttle buses, so walking only one direction is possible. Knowing the road would be closed this weekend was another reason I felt like today was a great day for me to check it out!

As you'll see, it was a popular spot, the artists that were set up were painting some amazing pieces, and as usual, I felt out of place with my middle of the road camera and no tripod, haha.

Didn't think I'd do this again in 2014...'Merica!

Yup, headed back to America last month! Never thought I'd make more than one trip this year, realistically I thought I'd only make about one trip back to the USA the entire time we are living in Japan. This was definitely a trip of opportunity, and if it wasn't for Space-A flights I wouldn't have gone. Keenan had a few weeks of training stateside so I decided to "hop" back and spend some time there too. After his training was complete we actually got to meet up and spend a few days together with our families before I headed back to Japan. Keenan spent another week getting in some hunting and family time before he followed me.

I got to spend tons of quality time with my parents (why yes, they did just visit us in Japan a short 3 weeks ago), siblings, nieces and nephews, both grandmas, had lunch and dinner dates with friends, crocheted, shopped and ate all the foods I missed. It was a great trip! 

Short lived crochet lessons. We'll try again when they're older!