Scenes from our first day in Tokyo March 24, 2002

This huge cemetary is across the street from the Hardy Barracks where we are staying in Tokyo.  It's about 15 km from downtown Tokyo and about a 15 walk from the Tokyo Japan Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints where we were sealed last Nov.  We went to church right next door to the temple today and had lunch at the McDonald's just down the street.  Took the McD picture after dinner at the New Sanno, the military hotel about a 10 min. the other side of the temple.

Hurray!  The self-timer on the new camera works.  Jim and Janet enjoying the beauty of the cherry blossoms and other spring flowers.  When we left Misawa, it was snowing!

While we knew that picnicing in the park during hanami was popular, we hadn't expected food vendors and picnics in a cemetary!

The salmon color is a lady's shirt.  Two ladies are kneeling and cleaning the family's gravesite.  It is a common weekend outing to come in the spring and fall and clean the gravesite and put in fresh flowers.   The wooden sticks have the names of the individuals buried in the family site.

Danielle skipped the cherry blossoms to go swing in the park.  But while she was there, she saw this old man with three cats on leashes.  She ran back to the hotel, got her drawing pad and spent several hours drawing his cats.  She did miss seeing Grave Cat (center of right picture), though.

We suffered immensely in Tokyo.  Here we are at the New Sanno Hotel's Hero Snack Shop.  The kids had pizza and make your own sundaes while watching "The Emperor's New Groove" while Jim and Janet ate the scrumptious seafood buffet downstairs.  Lunch was at the McDonald's down the street.  In fact, we had several McD trips.