Friends and Animals. Animals and Friends

What a great week! Lots of Tender Mercies and some unexpected detours/ mechanical failures. So we're hanging out in Sendai, having a great time. I go worship the Almighty at Church. Talk for a few hours afterwards with some of the members. And life is good. Later that day I get a message from one of them and he says he would like to take us out to eat and to drive around the City. We had a great time!

It's been over a month now of riding and I had yet to break a spoke. If you remember 12 years ago on my other cross-country trip, I broke numerous spokes. I was mitigating that by bringing extra with me. Thankfully I did because sure enough two were snapped today. Holly and I swapped bikes so she could ride mine since she's lighter. I like that we bought almost all identical items so we can swap and use each other's equipment, even bikes, without much fanfare or hassle. 

Why am I even talking right now? Let's go to the pics. And don't forget to check my last blog post and all the other ones you missed, too. I know how you guys are.

"Attention span of a moth."

Church in Sendai.

This is on top of a really tall building in the downtown area. Great views. 

Here's our buddy, Hiro. We are planning to meet up again when we get to Kysuhu.

Lunch on #thecurb. If my sister Lindsay ever looked at my blog she would like this. But since I only have 7 loyal fans. I hate everyone else. 

I didn't know bushes can go through Fall, too. Look how neat it is.

This was rich. Water litrilly came out of this rock. And yet my brother McKay says religion is a crock. 

 

Welcome to Fox Village! Look how they're just resting. 

"Shhhh shhh shhh. Just rest. It's OK."

I think a warmer day would have had more alert foxes, but they just wanted to sleep on this cloudy day. Kinda like teenage girls.

Little did you know foxes are a little spooky in real life. You don't know if this one is going to jump out and claw your face to Beep.

They made me wear a ask so we don't give Coronavirus to the foxes or some other nonsense.

When you step into the Fox Village its daunting. You open the door and they all stare at you. Some start to trot towards your direction and you don't know if they will run and bite you. There's no fence or anything to protect. But then again I'm a wuss. So maybe someone else with nerves of steel wouldn't feel the same way. 

I wanted to pet them because they are so soft, but you can't unless you want a Rabies Shot in your belly button. That's up there with passing a kidney stones or hemorrhoids. 

The foxes are nice though.

They're being good foxes. 

Here's a fun manhole.

New spokes!

Getting close to that Pacific again! Nevermind, that's another mountain range.

I love the Gates.

You guys probably missed my IG video I posted of the monkeys crossing the street. We were pushing our bikes up a steep hill and  we noticed poop on the ground. Poop. What is this? Then I see a bunch of critters crossing the road. I thought they were tanukis - the creature that Super Mario 3 is in. Alas, they were monkeys. About two dozen of them. It was all neat.

Me and the boys when we see a motorcycle passes by. I always have to call my mom after I see one.

I hadn't seen a single Pokemon manhole that I had heard all about. Then in just a few days I see three different ones.

Here's the closed roads from the radiation of the Nuclear powerplant meltdown from almost ten years ago. Ruined out plans.

At leas their English was intelligible. 

While resting at a gas station, A man walks up to use and asks if we had anywhere to stay for the night. We were just going to camp in the parking lot as we are wont to do. It was a cold night he said. Holly also didn't have her sleeping bag yet. So we took him up on his offer to stay at his cottage. And I'm soooo glad we did. It's all rich.

Here it is in the daylight.

The perfect size. I would just extend that deck farther out and wrap it around to the front door and it'd be the best.

See you can walk in right there.

I like the sunken table like traditional Japanese tables are.

I was able to scrub myself with soap, thankfully. It had been a few days.

I also used, The Can. Japanese bidets are the best. 

Full kitchen to use at our disposal.

Loft upstairs to sleep in.

Love this cottage.

Tunnels.

Lots of road work going on. They usually have a man standing there that directs traffic with a red flag telling you to stop and a green or white flag telling you to go.

I like when the bathrooms have a handy map telling you where to go. Some of the stalls are even lit up if they are currently occupied. Neat huh?

Sesame rice cream on the left and Yuzu on the right. I love anything Yuzu flavored and I have to try it when I see it. Yuzus are the Japanese lemons. I'm bringing back honey flavored Yuzu if you want to try it then.

See that tool in my hand? One of the cyclist that stayed with me in Iwakuni told me about it. Instead of bringing a heavy chain whip like I did for my last trip, you can use this little thing to remove the rear wheel cassette. It's great when you break spokes (which always are on the cassette side, dang the luck), you can do it yourself. This came a few days after I broke my two earlier this week.  

Friends.

I love this. The sign says to be careful for the sweet birdletts are above you resting in their nest. 

Now it's time for Tokyo. Next time.