Funny things from Area Orientation

Before we forget, we had a very entertaining Japanese woman full of energy who laughed at the wrong times and then made us laugh (hai, hi, hai!) and taught the quick 6 hour cultural immersion; here are the highlights:

*  Japanese are very respectful and polite and say long expressions, but between friends they just say the first word.  For example, domo arigota goizou means thank you very much, but to get to the point you can just say - domo - which just means very?!  And you're welcome - sounds close-enough to "don't touch my mustache!"
*  if you get lost look for the symbol that looks like a samurai soldier, and if you want to go to Fukuoka look for the 2 signs that look like a crazy cat trapped in your bedroom! 
*  we also practiced with chop sticks and saw the various learner chop sticks for kids!  Jeff for years has been putting a small paper wedge in between them and using a hair tie on the end for the girls to use, but of course here in Japan they have Hello Kitty ones!
*  we learned how to ask where we are, for help (differentiating a help by scream which means ambulance/police and a more subdued help for what we consider help - ie help me buy a train ticket for a train I'm about too miss!!!)

It was fun and most importantly we are starting to make friends.  There is a guy here I used to run with occasionally that good friends of my triathlon buddies in Naples.  The girls each day tell me how much they like it and have made more friends.  They have been going to kid watch while we have been in area orientation.