Gifu

We spent most of yesterday travelling on trains.

We didn't need to leave our room until 10:00, and we weren't due to meet Austin until 2:00 so there was no hurry in the morning. We raided the Lawsons convenience store for breakfast supplies and then kerplunked our suitcases down the stairs to make our way to the station.

Breakfast proper in Kyoto. A Morning set for me (toast, egg, ham and salad with coffee) and strawberry cake with hot chocolate for Lindsey. She had told me to chose a cake for her. She got strawberry cake because (i) I could see what it was and (ii) I knew how to say it in Japanese!

Then we made our way by various local trains to our old friend Hozumi Station. We could have gone part of the way by Shinkansen, but that is expensive compared to the local trains and also - no hurry. Plus, you see more on the local trains and you don't need to book a space for your luggage in advance.

Austin met us at Hozumi Eki and took us to their place. They have bought a house since we were last here. They moved in at the same time as Jim and I took possession of our place. So it's no longer new to them, but it is new to Lindsey and me. It has much more space than their former apartments, with three bedrooms up some stairs that my knees really are not enjoying.

We made the obligatory visit to Liquor Mountain for supplies. We went to the supermarket. We came home and ate snacks and then a Japanese chicken curry that Kaori had made for us. We have taken all the presents, chocolate and Aussie snacks out of our suitcases which are now very much lighter.

We have arrived!

Things I didn't expect to find in a Japanese liquor store:

This looks quite innocuous:

But is, in fact, a noisy and annoying robot that follows you around the store and tries to make you buy packets of soft prunes when you are engaged in the important decision of which wine to buy.

Something I didn't expect to find in a Japanese supermarket:

Had we realised - we wouldn't have brought
them with us from Australia!

And something I really wish we could find in Australian supermarkets:

Small containers of oat milk would be very useful
at my place. I seldom need huge quantities of it but do
often want a little bit

And here we all are: