coin laundry :)

Also in our little town a new coin laundry has opened, it is located in the old part of the town not so far from us. This morning I had to go to wash my sofa cover because Momochan has made it dirty with felt pens .... washable felt pens but anyway my home washmashine is too little to put it inside :)
Momochan amuses so much in putting coins inside the mashine :)
This little shop has two washmashine less than 10 kilos and one for 10 kilos laundry plus three dryers. There is a coin change, a distributor for coffee and beverages and a distributor for soap but you can also take your soap from home if you want.
In a corner there is a table to organize your laundry once is cleaned and dryed.
Well it is not like in Japan, were we wnt to Chap Chap laundry but just in the nearby there is a pizza shop where you can eat and just behind the corner there is a coffee shop, in front there is the naviglio (water course) and this morning we happened to see some crazy guys cooking grill, singing and transmitting to the local radio :)
We put the sofa cover inside the washmashine and Momochan inserted the coins (6.50 euro) then we went out to eat some pizza. After pizza we went to change and to put sofa cover into the dryer mashine and Momochan inserted other coins (3.00 euro)

new bicycle trip

Today I have thought to make a short trip with Momochan with our new bicycle across the fields. Funny thing I realized while wheeling around, japanese granny is living in the middle of the rice crops but also the italian granny is living near rice crops, give a look at the green hairy right side of the foto :)
Sky is cloudy and sunny at the same time, it is very humid and except Momochan sitting backside and taking air, I am sweating so much and drinking much water :)

While we are passing on the bridge a train passes under us, Momochan loves trains and she starts to shout and tell me there is a loooong train arriving :)
I have thought to go towards Vigevano or Gaggiano along the navigli in the middle of the rice crops fields :)
We have a side of the route closed and divided so that bicycles, runners and joggers can go along in total security, cars are not allowed and the path is not as large as a car would need. Along this route there are dozens of farms, some has cows, some hass poultry and pigs, many sell rice, eggs, milk, cheese, is cute to buy food from theese places because you are sure its fresh and you can clearly see from where it comes :)
Many of theese farms has a shop in which they produce and sell ham and salami togather with the other products, honey, wheat flour, marmelade.
Recently in Italy people is starting to be ecologic so apart from dividing the trash they also buy food where and when possible, coming the nearest place, so for instance in the supermarket the food more sold are the ones produced inside Italy, food coming from abroad are seldom bought.
In case of a nearest farm is even more ecologic, no truck and no Co2, you can see its fresh and most of the times you even spare some money.
In my case if sometimes it happens I go to some farm I know and buy salami, ready made crostate cakes, cheese and fresh milk. The rice is also good but we are now accustomed to japanese rice and I cannot use italian one inside the rice cooker if I want to make onigiri or some preparation I need sticky rice for :)
After 15 kilometers we arrive in Gaggiano town, and we have a pit stop in a local ministore.
It is not a coffee shop because it hasn't a coffee mashine (would have been better) but is a kind of little minimarket, it sells icecreams and fresh salami and ham, bresaola and cheese, you can also ask them to make a sandwich and as you see from the foto on the right, the place has two tables where you can have a rest and eat.
It also sell beverages and fresh fruits, could be fantastic but in reality the prices are simply crazy so we just buy a bottle of water and two ice creams and we rest a little.
As it is quite late (around six thirty) is better if we come back towards home because it will take a little time, Momochan is quite heavy now, last time we went bike is two years ago and she was tiny and lighter but know is difficult to take her around because everytime she moves I have to make efforts to keep the bicycle in balance or else wee fall down :)
Now in the air mosquitos are everywhere like a constant cloud around us, the near water course is full of fishes, ducks and mosquitos flying around.
After 6 kilometers we pass by a farm which has cows at the street border, there is a heavy smell, guess they are not so clean, but there is also another smell which makes me remember pigs.
The place is open and the cows can have a look directly on the naviglio, the street, people passing by and the panorama :)
We go on, on the left side we see a little truck selling fruits and vegetables, mostly melons and watermelon, tomatoes, onions, carrots ....
We arrive at another town directly developed near the water, we can clearly see the main church, coffee shops, restaurants, houses, shops ...
Last week on the naviglio there was a race with the canoes and there were many people watching.
WOW, I'm a little tired, I still have to practice before going without no problem but anyway today I am less tired than the other day and this is good :)
Once home I will take a shower togather with Momochan and I will prepare her for the night then we will go kitchen to prepare and have dinner and after I will put her to bed, guess we will be home not before 20.00 PM this evening :)

cascina Femegro, kindergarden trip

Today Momochan and all kindergarden kids are going on a trip in a near farm called Cascina Femegro.
This morning when I took her to kindergarden the teachers where giving to the kids some badge to hang at the neck, every kid was wearing a special t-shirt they have made the days before and the school cook were giving the kids a bag with the lunch they will eat at midday in the farm garden :)

The farm has many animals, ducks, cows, piggies, they have fields, produce salami, rice, fresh cheese, milk, honey, marmelade and they sell directly, eventually I guess I can come back with Momichan in july and buy some salami, milk, honey and rice. I hope it will be amusing, guess Momochan will have many things to tell me when I will go to take her up at kindergarden at 16.00 PM (today's trip will last until four o'clock, kids will stay farm all the time and will not sleep, guess she will be tired in the afternoon :)

bicycle trip

This morning I went to Decathlon store and I bought a new bicycle. I had to bouy it much time ago, even before leaving for Japan but we didn't have time before, now Momochan and I can choose if to go park and play with the other kids or going on a short trip along the navigli or else, take some fresh air and see nature around us :)
The old bicycle I had two years ago I have sold last summer because it didn't work for us, it was a bicycle just for short trips and also Momichan was not so heavy as she is now; most of the time during the summer normally we ride for 50 kilometers so the one I bought today is special for long tour until 90 km per day.
I needed a very strong bicycle, not a one you can just use inside the city to go office, Momochan is now 16 kilos and I still have to carry her with the special child seat (in the foto Momochan is in kindergarden at 16.15 PM).

I decided to go along the "navigli", a tipical water way we have near Milano and that flows for many kilometers all along the city.
Sometimes we have also a special boat leaving from our little town and arriving in Milan touching all the cutes points of the navigli, tickets has to be bought in special places the Townhall communicate every year in this period.
During the summer in three or four places and the official Canottieri Olona, people can rent a special canoe to use on the water flow, on special days and sometimes you can follow special canoe racing for regional championships or else and many teams fight to arrive for first.
Inside the "naviglio" which is cleaned every year before starting season, there are many fishes and also many ducks.
Panorama along the navigli is quite cute, there is a special way for bicycles where car are not allowed though from time to time you can see some coming in the opposite direction GRRR :@
Sometimes you can see people fishing inside the naviglio and along the route many people go in line skating, running and with the bicycle, sometimes we meet people we know like this time, a girl working in Ikea store who know Momochan pretty well :))
Along the route, going opposite direction of the city, you can also find some farms with cows and you can also see some herons walking in the rice fields to catch frogs, long beacks and long legs, white feathers and brilliant dark eyes :)
The ride we choosed is along 35/40 kilometers going and coming back so as it was this year first time, when we came back home I was simply, totally destroyed so much I could hardly find the strenght to eat some dinner, I gave meal to Momochan and put her o bed then I went on the sofa to relax a little watching a movie (Catwoman) :))

daisukina nomimono :)

When we were in Japan, we always went konbini to take some onigiri or sweets for breakfast or snack and also some beverages, if it was not my preferred milk tea, it was this two water shown in the fotos tasting fruit (ringo, norenji) Momochan loved them all, it is simply water but really tasted like orange or apple juice, we bought so many, we also had the morning we went to Narita ^^
Of the same "family" we often bought the water bottle because strange is but in Shizuoka most of the cases, water we drank at home or in the restaurants, came from special fountain :)
Daddy loves Calpis, a strange lemon/milk juice but here in Italy we do not have except maybe in some japanese/asian food market in Chinatown in Milano.

This morning I found in Decathlon Sport Store some special waters which are very similar to theese ones, sold for sport, you can find in many fruit flavours such as strawberries, wood berries, apple and lemon :)
My preferred beverage was some milk tea sold in small or 1,5 liter bottle, most of the bottle were from Kirin which normally makes beer :)

yochen again :)

Momochan this morning is again yochen :) while her daddy has left yesterday afternoon for Sardinia. Yesterday Momo has left yochen at 13.15 to come with me to take daddy to his work place because he had to help put everything for the restaurant they have to open in Sardinia in a few days. There were three trucks and they were carrying tables, fridges, chairs, dishes, cups, hashi, tools, wines, everything the may need :) the restaurant in Porto Cervo Sardinia is just seasonal, open from june to first week of september, every year a group of ryourinin is going there for the summer.
This morning, as soon as Momochan woke up the first words she said were "where's daddy ?" "daddy is travelling to Sardinia" I said and she smiled, a few minutes later while we were coming out of the shower ready to get dressed to go to yochen, daddy called, "hello, how are you ?" :)
Since we are back Momo is wearing the pijama granny gave her as present when we arrived in Japan and often sleeps togather with the pelouche auntie gave her (do you know this character ? is Minnie Mouse pet).

daddy leaves for work again

Sampei leaves today for Sardinia for all summer. Like last year his boss has sent him to the new opened restaurant Fingers Porto Cervo.
If we are lucky we will have the possibility to reach him for a week and stay togather so that Momochan can see her daddy before he comes home again in september :)
For the moment she is not realizing too much about an entire summer without daddy I hope she will not become too sad this time anyway summer will run faster than we can realize and soon 5th september will arrive again and she will restart kindergarden, daddy will arrive a few days later :)

going park after a rainy morning :)

Here we are back home, Momichan and I are quite sad, it would have been better to stay Japan, she is sad because here there is no granny and no cusins neither all the cute things and placese we have seen (and moreover, no stickers we found in 100 Yen Stores HAHAHA).

This morning was raining hard and daddy had to go out quick because today at work he had some special catering to prepare. On monday daddy will prepare suitcase while Momichan will be back yochen (kindergarden) and after we will take daddy togather to his working place because he is leaving for entire summer for Sardinia as last year :(

Momo is no happy about and me too but anyway daddy will be seaside and will make many fotos to show us and will have many things to tell us, also we have change contract from 3 to Tim so that we have free calls between us and we will have the opportunity to speak to daddy whenever we will want :))

This morning after breackfast, Momichan and I went to the park, two novelties came to our eyes, attached to the tree near the balances is appeared a bat nest :))

The other novelty is that now we have again four balances, someone has hanged the fourth while we were on vacation :))

If time is good we will take a walk as soon as Momichan will wake up from her usual italian nap.

We noticed this morning train carousel is still here after all this time but will leave until next year, this evening so this afternoon Momichan will have last opportunity to go.

roadhouse grill

We are back and what best if not to go out with the italian granny to eat something and tell her everything about our vacation ?
We do not have all the cute restaurants present in Yaizu, we have just a couple so we decided to take granny at Roadhouse Grill Steakhouse.
Meat is yummy and Momichan likes because of the potatoes and the chiken "katsudon" soft but cruncy. Daddy ordered a 500 gr beef burger (it was so much time he wanted to try but had not thought it was too big HAHAHA)
Momochan has a "cotoletta" big soft and cruncy with many potatoes, I had (foto up on the right) chiken fried with special honey sauce and granny half grilled chiken.
I also had a special baked potato with creamy sauce and garlic but not really yummy, best the other fried potatoes. I helped Momichan to finish her meal because her "cotoletta" was really enormous for her .... here we do not have child menu and portions are giant. anyway she eated much of it and finished the fries.
We are still living something like in a dream, are not yet still consciuous of being come back, Japan was better for everybody about company, panorama, food and many other things :) we hope soon to come back again :)