As many of you know, Martin and I were involved with the Ronald McDonald House in Lexington. This past Tuesday, our personal ministry day, we went to visit the Tokyo Ronald McDonald House. It is located in another smaller city about two hours away by rail. There are six RMHs in Japan and we learned during our visit that another one will open on our rail line in March of 2010. We are excited because it will only be 30 minutes from where we live, and we will have an opportunity to do volunteer work there. The house was very similar to the one in Lexington. You can see that some things are "lost" in the translation.

We thought it was cute how the slippers they had for us also had the RMH insignia on them. All guests remove their shoes at the door and wear these slippers inside the house. We were given a tour of the facility and found the house manager and staff very welcoming; just like Lexington. All of the houses in Japan have been built since 2001.

Today on our day off, we wanted to take advantage of the nice fall weather, so some of our team climbed the nearest mountain, Mt. Takao.

L to R: Jude, Sharon, Whitney, Amy, and us. Jude, Whitney and Amy are interns working here for 3 months. They arrived shortly before we did. We, and Sharon, are working as a team to establish a church in Tachikawa in early 2010.

Our day started out as a fun day outdoors, but having shared the same adventure, it turned out to be a bonding time for us.

On the way up to the 2,000 ft. summit, we came across an active Buddhist temple: leading to the temple were the "108 steps of sin" of Buddhism; each step representing a Buddist teaching.

I am thankful for a living and forgiving God that is with me at all times.

Fall festivals are the same no matter what country you are in; lots of food and huge pumpkins.

Some of you had asked about Halloween; if it was observed or not. Well, I'm not sure if they think of it as Halloween or just something to do in the fall . These jack-o-lanterns were hanging from a lamp post downtown Tokyo near the Imperial Palace.

Lots of trick-or-treat items are for sale. I've seen more in the department stores rather than places that would be comparable to Wal-mart. These items were for sale in Starbucks. I'm curious; those of you who frequent this coffee shop, have you seen these same items?

Krispy Kreme fans; you would be glad to know that you don't have to go far without getting your hot doughnut; they are favored by the Japanese.

The children don't go "trick-or- treating" as they do in the states. They dress up in their costumes and just walk around. Last night we saw a group of them on the street dressed as witches, the preferred costume, and having lots of fun. It does appear that they have modeled their observance after the U.S.

Our team covers the western section of Tokyo. Martin and I work in three communities along the Chuo train line that runs from central Tokyo to the west: Kunitachi, Tachikawa, and Hachioji. When volunteers come to Tokyo to work with the 5 minute English ministry, if they are assigned to us, we will take them to these three communities.

The pictures I am sharing with you this week were taken in Hachioji. This view from the train station, shows the downtown business district.

On the same overpass, there was a universal sight; Cub Scouts raising money. For your donation you received a small red feather.

The small street restaurants are fun places to visit. This couple is preparing tako yaki, a flour ball stuffed with octopus. They also make a delicious custard pastry that is shaped like a fish. The Japanese are very friendly and enjoy sharing their culture.

We really enjoy cantaloupe but decided that we would pass on this one. If you notice, the price says 4980 yen. With today's currency exchange rate, the cost is about $55.00. No more cantaloupe! This is certainly an affirmation that Japan is the most expensive place in the world to live.


In the states we have parking lots for cars; here is one of the many bicycle parking lots that you see throughout Japan.

The location of our apartment is about a 70 minute train ride from central Tokyo. As you can see in the pictures, the landscape in our neighborhood is quite different from downtown Tokyo. (that's Martin collecting our mail) Most of our team memebers live in the same apartment compound about an hour away, so we feel fortunate to have the opportunity to actually live in a unique community among the Japanese. Our building has 12 apartments with most of our neighbors speaking some English. They have accepted us into their building and have been very helpful.

I took this picture from the 45th floor of the Tokyo Goverment Building. Far in the distance is the area of the city where we live, Koganei-shi; a community of about 500,000. Our apartment is within walking distance of grocery stores, a shopping mall, restaurants, the train station, bus stops, and "McDonalds".

It's 4:45 AM and we are in Lexington checking our bags. We fly to Chicago and then on to Japan; a 14 hour flight. After we are picked up in Tokyo, we will be taken to our apartment.

Our new address will be: Martin / Julia Pinkston, 1-6-2 Honmachi, Koganaei-shi, Tokyo 184-0004, Japan. If you are in the neighborhood, stop by!!