April 16, 2006
09:11 EDT: I'm sitting on the plane bound for Houston having just finished my apple juice and apple spiced muffin, and I'm watching the clouds go by outside my window. It's 9:12 Atlanta time, and there's about an hour left for this flight. I found out this morning that I won't have to worry about my checked suitcase when I get to Houston; the airline transfers it to the other plane for me. I was concerned about that, so that makes me happy.
A little while ago I realized that I'll be seeing the Pacific ocean for the first time in my life on this trip, so I can add that to the list of firsts. Not only will I see it for the first time, but I'm going to see a whole lot of it too since that's all I'll be seeing out the windows for most of the next flight.
10:53 EDT: The flight from Atlanta to Houston was one of the most comfortable flights I've ever taken. Of course I was wearing my Earplanes, but the discomfort was minimal and that is awesome. I'm hoping all of the flights are that good.
I stopped off at the NASA store here in the airport to pick up a souvenir, and ended up getting a NASA mug. I also had to indulge in some freeze-dried mint chocolate chip ice cream as well. Now I'm sitting at gate E7 frustrated that both Atlanta airport and this one want to charge for internet access, and the fee isn't worth the access time until boarding. I'll have to send these updates to Accipiter.org from Tokyo.
Oh, and it's really really easy to spot a U-Haul storage building from the air.
13:32 EDT: My hopes that somehow the international flight would have internet access have been dashed, as there is no such service available. In addition, the EmPower port in my seat is broken, but I'm able to use the one in the next seat over, so all is not lost. In any case, I have my music and some movies to keep me occupied.
We had a delay at the gate due to some instrumentation problems. Apparently one of the instruments in the cockpit was not functioning, so we had to pull back into the gate to have it checked out. I don't know if we're flying with a still broken instrument, but we're flying. I'm just west of Oklahoma City at this point, and I don't know how much sleep I'm going to get on the flight. I did manage to lightly nap through takeoff though.
20:47 JST: I made it! I'm sitting in my hotel room enjoying some noodles and green tea. The flight from Houston to Narita was god-awful long, but uneventful. I also didn't see much of the Pacific ocean; apparently it's always cloudy over the ocean. Once landing at Narita, I picked up my luggage, checked through a customs inspection, then rode the rail to Chiba station where I transferred to another train which brought me to Ryogoku station. My hotel was easy to find, since it's right next to the station. Speaking of my hotel, I am extremely pissed off. The advertising for the hotel within Expedia clearly states that all rooms come equipped with internet access. Check in to the hotel, however, and you'll find that it's only available on the 10th and 11th floors. If I want to use internet, I have to use the computers in the lobby - Windows XP machines with full install rights and Internet Explorer. I'm scared to death to use them. I need to find an internet cafe where I can use my iBook.
Anyway, after I unloaded my stuff at my hotel I took a stroll around Ryogoku, popping into stores here and there to see what the locale is like. Tomorrow should be an interesting day.
Now I'm going to load this on to my flash drive and bring it to the lobby to update the site. LAME.
21:17 JST: Holy crap fuck this keyboard layout.
(08:20)
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