Tokyo to Ofunato

Hello everyone!
I've arrived in Ofunato and all is well.
Before I launch into Ofunato life, I'd like to take you back to my Tokyo departure, the bullet train, and my journey here.
Like any major city, the Tokyo morning rush hour was intense. Here is a little taster, look out for the Jewish couple in the mix.

I then got on the wrong Shinkansen!! classic. The adrenalin surged through my body when I realised my big mistake.Luckily the train stopped in a station just outside Tokyo, so I jumped off there, and caught the right one. Below is a little video of the Shinkansen I boarded by mistake...

 

Robert ( my interpreter) and I were greeted by Dr Uchide at the station. What a lovely woman! We then travelled by car for an hour and a half through the mountains to Ofunato.Incredible scenery, red autumn leaves on jagged mountains. Bliss.

We headed straight for a restaurant by the sea to meet the President of the Japan Association of Group Homes for People with Dementia - Dr Noriya Kikawada.We had an incredible meal of onion and cheese soup, steak and carrots, and pumpkin pie with pumpkin sauce.

A few brief facts on Ofunato.
Ofunato is a coastal fishing city in the north east of Japan, in Iwate Prefecture.

After our meal Dr Uchide drove us to the town hall to meet the newly elected mayor.He'd won the mayoral election the day before, and everyone was so happy about it. There hasn't been a new mayor in 12 years! I felt like Prince Charles meeting Obama.

And then we headed for a welcome reception feast. I was so touched by their generous welcome.Sushi, sashimi ( thin slices of raw fish ) noodles of all kinds,oysters in breadcrumbs, fish stew, and sandwiches. You can see the sandwiches behind the noodles in the picture below.

The seafood was delicious, fresh from the sea that day. There were these long white tendrils in the fish stew which I thought were octopus tendrils, but in fact they were cod's testicles. Ah!

The people of Ofunato are warm, friendly and generous, I've learnt so much over the last few days. Will update you all when I get a spare moment, but my schedule is packed. There is so much to share with you. I'm definitely in the right place to learn new ideas on how to care for older people with and without dementia in care homes and in the community. Jeez they do it so differently here. Nos da from Ofunato x