The Bush Warbler of Happiness

Japan and my endorphin levels

We’ve begun our second week in Japan and I wanted to share a few observations.

1. I knew this from previous visits but there is a lot of walking and my bunion is not happy about that.

2. Seating is often so low that I worry about my ability to both lower my body gracefully down and my ability to stand unassisted. At one museum I borrowed a docent’s chair to sit properly.

3. Unit baths, the bathroom unit that combines a toilet, sink, and shower/tub in a single space, in business hotels are very cramped and you need to exercise a fair amount of acrobatics to maneuver in them. I’m at four bruises and counting.

4. And I am happy. Happy to be with Hiro here. Happy to reconnect with friends and colleagues. Happy to hear the birds outside my hotel window. Happy to explore. And happy to think I might be able to retire here.

I know that living here won’t be an intravenous drip of oxytocin. I know I will miss friends and family in the US. And I also remember how well I adapted to Japan nearly forty years ago. And I have Hiro at my side.