Kristen: Birthday/Homecoming/Yokohama

Thursday was my birthday both in Japan and in the states. When it was my birthday in Japan, it was only the 19th in the states, and when it was my birthday in the states, it was the day after my birthday in Japan, so I celebrated my birthday both days :) On my birthday in Japan, I went to work and my students and teachers celebrated my birthday with me. When I walked into one of my classes, the students had written "Happy Birthday Kristen" on the chalk board. They also sang Happy Birthday to me (yes in English), and gave me presents (which was mostly candy and snacks and some handwritten letters). During lunch time, my teachers sang Happy Birthday to me (like I had suspected) and gave me a piece of strawberry cake which was really yummy! And despite what I thought, I actually did have a yearbook picture taken at 1:00 like they had said. So they aren't complete liars :)

Then on Friday (my real birthday in the states), I took the day off of work to pick up Justin!! His ship pulled in around 3:00 and I was on the pier watching the ship come in, waiting for him to get off the boat. Too bad it took forever and a day because they had a problem connecting the bridge that lets them off of the ship. I stood there for over 2 hours in the freeeeezing cold waiting for him. But once I saw him and was in his arms again it made it all worth it. :) We had planned on going out to dinner that night to celebrate my birthday, but because of the fact that he got off the boat later than we had planned, and the fact that I was turning into a popsicle I just wanted to go home. So we picked up some McDonalds on the way and had a nice Big Mac dinner.

On Saturday we spent the day in Yokohama. We had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe, did some shopping, and went on a few rides. We even went up to the very top of the tallest building in Japan. It was 70 floors high. The elevator ride alone made me sick but the view from the top was amazing! Seeing Japan all lit up at night was so pretty, and I swear we could see the Tokyo Tower from there but we weren't too sure. I wish we could have taken a pic but I dont think it would have completely grasped the beauty in the view. After that, we sat and watched some street performers, got some Cold Stone ice cream and explored some more around Yokohama. It was a really fun day and a very pretty city. I have some pics which I will post on here.

Yesterday Justin and I went down to base and bought our Christmas tree. We had fun setting it up and decorating it last night. Its a pretty tree and is just the right size. :) Today Justin had to go back to work, and I had the day off (because its a Japanese holiday) but ended up meeting Justin down on base. When he got off of work, we went and picked up his Acoustic Guitar. I know its supposed to be his Christmas present, but I figure now he gets an extra month of learning how to play. :) Anyways here are some pics. Enjoy! Sorry they are not in any particular order.