More farewells

Many people ask if I feel homesick or find it difficult living away from my family in New Zealand. I always answer "no - if anything I feel closer". This may seem strange, but since I came here I feel like I have had more contact with, and more opportunities to spend longer periods of time with different people from my family than I would have had if I was living in New Zealand. This year we have been particularly lucky with many different visitors and having Beth and Terry here was no different. It really was great to get to know them better and to be able to show them just a little bit of the area around here.

They left today for a week on the beach in Thailand (after 10 days here with my children they need it!), but before they went we managed to fit in a day at "monkey mountain" and Terry also went for a soak in the mountain hotspring while the rest of us went shopping at the 100 yen shop! I'd show you a photo of Terry relaxing in the outdoor onsen, but.... as Terry commented - I think my husband may have used the zoom a little much!

On our way home from Fukuoka we detoured past "Scarecrow Village", which was a neat little area where someone had very cleverly made a whole lot of scarecrows doing everyday things. Kids playing, people watching TV, people fishing, hunting, taking a bath etc. etc. A little bit of fun in the rice fields that are now looking very bare!
There are no guests due for a little while so anyone who feels like a break from the big city is welcome to come anytime! Thanks Beth and Terry for some more great memories.