Harry Potter

Well, I have finished the 7th Harry Potter book. Read it in two days over a weekend. I had to know how it all ended without looking it up on the internet. I enjoyed it and am sad that the series is over. I now look forward to the last two movies. Speaking of HP movies, I was disappointed in the lack of emotion or action that went into Sirius Black's death in The Order of the Phoenix movie. But this was not my favorite book of the series thus it is not my favorite movie. For all you HP fans, enjoy the last book.

Josh, Ronan and I have completed our first of three years in Japan. Time flew and the summer is whizzing by too. Ronan and I are looking forward to going stateside this fall. Mom be ready to eat at Taco Mania a few times while we are visiting in Shreveport. I really miss TexMex Mexican food. Oh and while I am in Louisiana I plan to have to well made Bloody Marys. I need to find out if I can bring back spicy green beans, because that is what my homemade Bloody Marys are missing.

That is all for now.

Cheers---Kristin

Enoshima, Kamakura, Tokyo, etc...

Hello All,

It is nearing the end of July. So much has gone on this month. First we welcomed Josh's sister Rebecca and her husband Peter to Japan. They visited for two weeks and we tried to pack in a lot of sight seeing. During their visit Ronan celebrated his 3rd birthday. This year he had a Thomas cake and extended family to help celebrate. This is a far cry from last year's single slice of cake from Sbarro's after eating take out Pizza in the Navy Lodge.

During R & P's time here, we went up to Gotemba at the base of Mt. Fuji. While up there we spent a day at Fuji Q Highland Amusement Park where Ronan got to see Thomasland and Rebecca, Peter and Josh rode some really hairy roller coasters. Rebecca and Peter visited an Onsen (Japanese bath) and reported that they enjoyed the experience.

We spent a few days in Tokyo, which in my opinion is just another big city. I am more partial to Kamakura. Speaking of Kamakura, we all hiked approximately 3 kilometers on a muddy trail to see the big Buddha. It was great. Peter became an expert at navigating the trains and subways while here.

We also took a day trip to Enoshima Island. It is a small island about 4 km in circumference. It is part of the city of Fujisawa. To get to it we hiked a 600 meter long bridge from the mainland to the island. While on Enoshima we ate at a restaurant called I Love NY PIZZA. This was the best pizza I have had in a long time. The owner hails from Brooklyn, NY and was most hospitable. Josh, Ronan and I will definitely be going back again and again while we are here in Japan.

Enjoy the pictures. Love to all my family and friends.

Kristin