Jason has also created a blog for the Japan trip. Join him at jasonaharkins@blogspot.com.

Members of Keiko’s family greeted us after our arrival at the hotel and we walked to the nearby restaurant district. Jane (a vegetarian) joined the Fujikawa family at a soba noodle/tempura place while Jason, Tony, Joe, Russ, Jeremy, and Ian joined me at a favorite ramen noodle shop.

Crossing the International Dateline puts our arrival at Narita Airport in Japan at 4:30 PM on Monday, May 16. As the photo of the group suggests, everyone is tired, but energized by the experience of finally being back to earth in the Land of the Rising Sun. Clearing Customs has taken some time (Delta neglected to put Keiko’s suitcase on the plane!) but our chartered van was ready to transport the crew to our downtown Tokyo hotel. The weather is overcast with a temperature of 70F so the 1 hour ride offered everyone an opportunity to see the transition of the diverse Japanese landscape changing from lush country-side views to the vibrant urban environment of Tokyo, home to 13+ million people, the most populated city in the world.

Keiko has selected a business budget apartment hotel called the Weekly Mansion for our 7 day stay in Tokyo. Located in the busy central Akasaka district of the city, (http://www.wmt.co.jp/en/location/akasaka/index.html). The hotel has all the comforts and amenities of a furnished apartment, but most importantly, the hotel is in the heart of it all. It is ideally located in a vibrant area of the city with many diverse eating and refreshment options and easy access to a train station. Our UMaine students will enjoy here the traditional culture of Japan and rub shoulders with the people.

After checking in, faculty and students briefly toured the surrounding area, selected a nearby restaurant for their first Japanese meal, and sat in a relaxing environment to reflect on the travel adventure, share expectations about the coming days, discuss tomorrow’s first business appointment and cultural events–––and prepare for a well deserved experience of laying down and sleeping on a comfortable, albeit smaller than American standard, bed!

The 23 hour journey to Tokyo Japan from Maine began with a 5:00AM pre-flight check-in at Bangor International Airport for the first leg of thre trip, a one hour flight to New York’s LaGuardia Airport. Despite some rain and heavy clouds the Delta flight was quick and uneventful. A short 15 minute charter van ride to John F. Kennedy International Airport and checking into Delta’s non-stop New York-Tokyo flight #173. Being 5 hours early on a quiet Sunday morning meant no stress or long delayed ticketing and security screening at one of the world’s busiest airport.

The UMaine crew was in high spirits and used the waiting hours to eat, relax and become better acquainted with one another. The time went by much faster than anyone imagined. At 1:30PM we joined the 500 hundred other passengers boarding a stretch Boeing 747 jet aircraft bound for Tokyo Japan with continuing service to Manila.

What to do as you fly the famed Artic Circle route expected to take a mere 12-13 hours from take-off to touch down is quite a challenge. Everyone seemed well prepared and at ease. As I write this part of the blog posting approaching midnight, I am the only one awake. Having made this trip on more occasions than I can remember, I transitioned to Tokyo time (+13 hours) over the days before departure. With roughly four hours remaining in the flight, and feeling well rested from three solid hours of sleep, I am pretty much adjusted to it being early afternoon at our destination. It will be interesting to see how the rest of the crew adapts to the longest day journey.