The Family of Four Reunited

My sister and I had a restful sleep-in and we enjoyed some convenience store bought french toast paired with long black drip coffee (but no need for aeropress, etc). It was a perfect combination.

We hoped to bring along some of the liquid body soap and shampoo and conditioner and fabric and linen freshener with us as they smelled amazing, but we remained good guests.

We took the free shuttle service back to Narita Airport. We decided to just wait for mom and dad in the terminal that they will arrive in and it was a great choice as their estimated time of arrival turned out to be one hour in advanced.

We had lunch at N's Cafe and Dining court. We both had some golden crispy pork Tonkatsu set. Very tasty and moist inside. The oolong tea was a perfect compliment that washed the palate.

We then visited the Anime Road up in the second floor. And then it was time to meet up with mom and dad.

We waited with bated breath, and wondered what held them back as all the passengers from Cebu have already exited the arrival hall. What a beautiful reunion, some lengthy tight hugs were in order. They then explained that the customs held them back as they brought some latundan bananas that the officers did not allow them to exit with. We had a hearty laugh at this anecdote.

Mom and dad were a bit peckish and to prepare for our trip up to our accommodation about three hours away, they had some snacks at a nearby Starbucks outlet. Mom had some chamomile tea and cinnamon roll, while dad had some waffle and decaff coffee Americano. As they enjoyed their afternoon tea, we chatted some more about their flight.

We then boarded the Keisei Skyliner train service to Ueno. As we were preparing to cross through the rain to get to the JR train station, a random act of kindness from a Taiwanese lady gave mom her umbrella as she no longer required it for she was about to head to the airport. We then took the Shinkansen train (Yamabiko 69) to Koriyama. It was a tight schedule with a few minutes to spare in between services as we hoped to not arrive too late in our accommodation. The final train trip for the day was a train service to Inawashiro. We definitely felt the country town vibes as we kept getting whisked away from the metro area. The passengers appeared to be more homely and yet seemed content.

There was light rain in the station, luckily there was one taxi available. I felt so bad as he was eating his dinner, but quickly he stopped and helped us out. Unfortunately it was a regular car size and was unable to accommodate the four of us and our luggages. He tried to fit the luggages in but finally, somehow with plenty sumimasens and hand gestures we manage to convince him to take my sister and dad first and then he can just return and fetch me and my mom.

Luckily not long after he left another taxi came in. He was a jolly fellow, he looked like he knew already where we were headed.

On our way to the accommodation we saw a glimpse of the Kannonji river Sakuras. They were in full bloom! To our relief and delight, we saw a signboard at the hotel reception that the Sakura festival for this group of cherry blossoms was going to be held this weekend! We felt so blessed indeed.

Unfortunately though we could not avail the dinner service of the hotel as they still required pre arranged booking.

Luckily there were some snacks and microwave available in their souvenir shop to save the day.

It didn't take long for us to turn in for the night after a long day of travelling.Læs mere