Good Times -- Hai!!!

Last week Rich & Ali made their final pit-stop before heading back to Canada after an amazing year overseas. For those of you who don't know them, Rich did a fire-fighter exchange with a guy from Sydney. They left for Australia last February and had kept busy working and traveling around S.E. Asia. When we were all still back in Vancouver they had said that if we were in Japan when their contract was up, they would swing by and visit.....and that's just what they did.

We met them last Thursday and it was great to see some familiar, friendly and TAN faces. We instantly took advantage of the fact that you can roam the streets with open alcohol by greeting them with some beer and chuhai. We spent the day catching up and getting some advice as to where we should go in Thailand. We hung out and hit Dotmobori to show them the night scene. Then we headed back to the hood and took them to the local izakaya and introduced them to the local Osakan cuisine.

The next day we got up and headed to the Osaka Dome. Rich was interested in checking out some Ichiro Orix Blue Waves apparel (his team before he became a Mariner). The stadium was open and we were greeted by people handing us a bag at the front door. We had no idea what we were getting into, so we just followed the crowd. The field was covered with kiosks and from what we gather it was some sort of investors conference. Oh well, at least we got to see the inside, touch a bit of the turf and got a free pen out of the deal. Rich even sat in the dug-out for a quick photo op before the security guard started eying him up!

After that we headed to Osaka - Jo (a.k.a - castle). It is one of Osaka's most famous sites...just ask Ali to show you her pin:) This time of year the grounds are covered with plum blossoms that give off a sweet smell. We were stopped several times by local people just wanting to chat. As we were viewing these 3 trees that were on display, a man insisted that he take our photo in front of them. We posed as he gestured we had to bend down more while practically holding the camera above his head. According to him we were too tall to get the full effect of the blossoms in the background.

We ate an early dinner, went back to our place for a bit before we headed out to Tins. It was during this time that Ali and I filled out that survey e-mail, while the guys went to track down some lime for some good ol' gin and tonic. We had some bevies and then headed out...once again taking advantage of the whole "open booze is A-ok".

We got to the bar and the guys were well on their way to a good night (must've been drinking the mega beers on the train ride over). The night seemed to fly by...before we knew it it was 2am and Jame and I had to get up for work 6 hours later. We hit up McD's before the cab ride home. That was an interesting time....Jame losing his Ginger burger, us thinking we were going to get arrested, and Rich partaking in a police investigation. HAI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Needless to say the next day was rough and we never did make it to work. Rich and Ali went to Umeda for a bit (the plan was to go to Nara for the day, but no one could have physically pulled that off) and I went to the hospital for my back (long story -- I'm ok -- keep in mind that they don't have clinics here...you go to the hospital for everything!!).

The following 3 days Rich and Ali checked out Hiroshima and Kyoto while Jame and I went back to work. Tonight is their last night in Osaka and tomorrow they head to Tokyo for the night before they fly out of Narita on the 22nd. For dinner we checked out one of the local sushi restaurants. The food was delicious (even though they didn't have any "sake sashimi") and the hot sake was nice and smooth.

Lots of laughs and good times! Thanks for the visit guys! :)