My Grandkids in Japan

I had a a wonderful visit to Fukuoka, Japan. It was my first trip overseas alone so I was trying to keep it all together with all the changes etc. I loved being back in Japan and with my Grandkids and Titus and Mia. They made it all possible for me.
So much has changed there and it did take me a while to get out of my "shy" mode but I finally did. The people there are still just wonderful. I took early morning walks on the beach nearby and started making friends with the older people that also walked each day.  They even started bringing me little gifts. Japan has Thrift shops now, an abundance of blonde and red haired Japanese people, There were so many small changes but a lot happens in 20 years, I think I just spent the first few days comparing.
My grandaughter loves cooking shows on Youtube and has the earmarks of a future chef. Deren showed me his school and I met his teacher. I marveled at how he speaks and writes Japanese and does so well in school and then comes home to get his homeschooling done in English. He is a very talented child. I was a bit taken back by the fact that kids go all over alone as it's just a lot safer there. I kept thinking, should  they be doing that? It seems kids just are more independant in a way.
I could never get over the fact that kids aren't really belted in the car while driving. That makes me nervous but I really didn't see any accidents while there.
It was hard to take the plane, leaving my wonderful family there and the island that had won my heart. I just wanted to stay longer. I missed my home but it was so hard to leave. I was sniffling and drying my eyes for hours while crossing the Pacific.
Something always happens to redirect me however, I had a window seat and when needing to use the restroom, could not wake the young man next to me. If he was not a Sumo wrestler, he was that size and he was actually taking up part of my seat. I tried to crawl over him, which turned out to be a disaster as I ended up falling and  hopping in the aisle in the dark all tangled up in headphone wires. It was dark and I caused a big stir and everyone had a good laugh.

Well, here are a few pictures.