This morning was an early morning as we had a train to catch at Tokyo Station. Our host, Meg and her husband, picked us up in their awesome Honda minivan - Japanese style. They have been so kind and gracious - we are grateful for having such a beautiful apartment to stay in for the last few days. Today is our first trip on the Shinkansen - Japan's high speed railway system that links major cities across Japan. We will be traveling at about 150-200 mph as we head south. Our first stop is Kyoto and then Kobe later this afternoon. Between Tokyo and Osaka (which is halfway between Kyoto and Kobe) 13 trains travel each direction per hour with 16 cars each. Each train can carry up to 1300 passengers at a time. This is one of the busiest rail systems in the world, surpassed only by China a few years ago when they started operating their high speed train system.
One of the most picturesque sights as we leave Tokyo behind is Mt Fuji. At over 12,000 feet in elevation it towers over the landscape. Bruce was lucky enough to capture a few images as we sped by at 150+ mph!
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| We love the Shinkansen! |
The photo above is the inside of Kyoto's new train station. This is Japan's second-largest station building after Nagoya Station and is one of the country's largest buildings. We've had fun exploring this 15 storied structure with beautiful rooftop views, and amazing shopping and food courts. We grabbed a quick lunch of yakitori in the Isetan department store basement. Unfortunately, what looked like barbecued beef turned out to be chicken livers - lol. Oh well, that's what happens when all the signs are in Japanese! I'm just proud of us for figuring out how to get on the right train this morning and making it this far without any assistance in English! We figure out our train platforms by looking for departure times on the signboards - if it has the right departure time we head for that platform! So far this has worked. Definitely less English signs here in Kyoto than in Tokyo and even fewer in Kobe!
After lunch we boarded the Shinkansen to Kobe to attend a testimony meeting for the leaving missionaries at the mission home. We were going to go out and walk around Kobe for awhile before heading to the mission home, however, being dressed in our suits and dresses, we took one step outside and quickly turned around and headed back inside the train station. It was so COLD! The kind of cold that goes right through you! So much for exploring the city today, we are staying warm inside the adjacent hotel and shopping area until it's time to go to the mission home.
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Here we are with our beautiful missionary!
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President and Sister Welch with the returning sister missionaries and the one lone elder!
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On a more serious note, tonight's testimony meeting was one of the most beautiful spiritual experiences I have ever had. The spirit was so powerful. These sister missionaries and elder are so amazing. The people of Japan have been well served by these missionaries. Their love for the gospel and for their Savior is so strong. President Welch closed the meeting with a beautiful prayer and blessing on each of these missionaries, there was not a dry eye in the room. I am so grateful that we were able to be together as a family in the mission home tonight. This was truly a gift from our Father in Heaven.
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