He just keeps steppin' it up...

VICTORY, BEST CAREER GAME, MVP... etc...

Wow- what can I say?  Ray came away from playing the Saitama Broncos (2nd in the league), utterly showing what we knew was within him the whole time: 27 points, 9 rebounds, a big one hand dunk (sorry- I didnt get it on film!!), great assists and free throws... AND, he got player of the game again, this time walking away with a brand new pink heater as a gift:)

Can't wait for the game tomorrow.  Will post again then...

Accepting his pink heater as a prize for getting MVP, from the president of Osaka Gas Co....

Signing autographs afterwards... Isn't Ray delightful??

This man is truly amazing.  He speaks good english and has become a good friend of Ray's.  Today he told Ray, "You are the only professional athlete who has ever acknowledged me."  That is probably the highest compliment Ray can hear.  Ray initially approached this man before a game at the beginning of the season to simply say hello, shake his hand.  It's a reminder how much a simple gesture can mean to someone.... Ray says that its a daily reminder of how grateful he is that God gave him the body and abilities He did.  What a gift.

Girls get away...

Dacia and I went away for a few days....

ARIMA ONSEN:

This was the first destination for Dacia's and my little excursion.  I was told that Arima was a "must see" for its ancient hotsprings.  Little did we come to find out- we couldn't find a restaurant anywhere and ended up eating from the corner store!!  Next time we will plan our meals a lot better.  Regardless, the town was charming... the trees and their color spectacular.  To note:  we rode trains, busses, shuttles, gondolas, and cable cars in order to get to and fro our destination!!  Gotta love adventure!

Our hotel at Arima Onsen...

Kobe waterfront...

OSAKA:

We hit the jackpot by finding this absolutely awesome hostel online.  It was so cute and so creative.  It was an old print shop, completely renovated to give an artsy, natural and organic Japanese feel to this hostel.  We slept on tatamis (grass mats on the floor), met some other travelers from Australia who we played cards with, and enjoyed the books and quiet atmosphere. We LOVED it and I hope to get the chance to stay there again...

The garage front entrance with antique car...

The stepping stones leading from room to room...

OSAKA CASTLE:  This Osaka sight was a 10 minute walk from our hostel.  How incredible!  Check out the pics- the day was so picturesque!  This ancient castle was built in the 1600's to protect the empire from intruders (note: there were 3 separate motes around the castle!!).  Very cool attraction!

Updates galore!!

Umemotosan, our kimono hostess for the day, met Ray at the gym and since then has "adopted" him, bringing him gifts on holidays and always being utmost loving and friendly.

She invited Dacia and I over to her house to dress us in her grandmother's kimonos, and we had the most wonderful time.  She is charming!  She ended up gifting us with several of her grandparents silk kimonos and yukatas.  What an honor...

Our first wonderful kimono experience. We walked up to Miidera Temple for some nice photos...

Toji Temple Markets.  One of the largest flea markets I have ever been to...

Dacia's first delicious sushi making experience (minus the raw stuff!!) - SO YUMMY!!

Double VICTORY!!

This weekend, the Lakes travelled 8 hours by bus to Niigata for two away games.  Wara, the Lakes' team captain (#11), played for the Niigata Albirex for 5 years before moving here to Shiga, and know them to be a very good team.

On Saturday, however, the Lakes pulled away with a win in a nearly packed house: 81-73.  Ray captured 12 points, 3 assists and 5 rebounds.  

On Sunday, they pulled in another win: 71-69.  Ray played an outstanding game, racking up another double/double of 17 points, 14 rebounds and 3 assists.

Let's keep up the winning streak, Lake Stars!!!  They will drive back tonight and get in around 2am... tiring schedule.  Next weekend, they have two more home games, though.  We are excited to have them back!

Also, check out www.basketballjapantv.com if you want to keep track of Ray's games as they happen. You just need to click in to the date of the game, which will at least give a sort of play by play score, as well as allow you to follow the stats of each member.  Again, it's in Japanese, but it's quite understandable...

Our past few adventurous days...

One of the finest maple viewing areas is at Kyomizu Temple in Kyoto.  Despite the incredible crowds of people, the maples were at their finest, and our experience gave Dacia a true Japanese story to tell...

overlooking downtown Kyoto and Kyoto tower...

eating Soba Noodle- yummy!!

We took Dacia to one of the most unique dining experiences we've had yet in Japan : a traditional Sukiyaki dinner, Japanese style, set inside a shrine on a waterfall in the town of Sakamoto.  It was an absolutely awesome time of appreciating the Fall colors, and eating some of the finest beef and veggies.  Sukiyaki is a cold-season tradition of putting raw beef, onion, cabbage, mushrooms and other veggies, in a pot of boiling water that is seasoned with sugar and soy sauce. Sounds a little strange, but its a delicacy!  We then eat family style from the same central pot.  Very fun...

I heard of the little mountain village of Ohara from a friend of mine.  It took us about an hour on a bus from Kyoto to finally reach this quaint little town, and I'm glad we made the trek up there.  It was so charming : markets lining windy walkways, overhung with brilliantly colored maples and moss.  Dacia and I wandered the trails enjoying the local handicrafts including the hand dyed silk (below), then dipped inside a warm noodle shop for some "Kitsune Udon", my favorite noodle dish with tofu and onion.  Then, we discovered a wonderful "onsen" or natural hot spring to rest our cold bodies in.  The best part is that we had the onsen to ourselves!