Airport process and Hotel Jail....

 I am back home in Tokyo, out of hotel quarantine, and now in apartment quarantine.  It was quite a difficult four days.  My trip door to door took 25 hours, with a head cold.  The process at the airport was arduous.  If you follow me on IG I wrote about it there.  An hours-long process of walking in line, various checkpoints with lots of paperwork, Covid test (low point for me was having to have the brain swab.  I'm on cold meds and couldn't for the life of me, spit)

 Next was a whole process where they make sure our tracking apps are downloaded onto our phones, immigration, customs, etc, I was finally bussed with some others, 90 minutes from the airport into Tokyo for our 72-hour hotel quarantine.   All of this whole process was done in near silence and took hours.  I just sort of kept thinking "never again."  

Me contemplating life in hotel jail, lol: 

My room was teeny-tiny.  I could walk the whole room in 6-7 steps.  One-two-three-four-five-six-pivot, one-two...... like a caged animal.   My window was frosted over, so, yes some natural light but no view or sense of where I even was.  Uncomfortable bed, flat pillow.  

Clean, nice bathroom, good Wifi, good A/C. Mini fridge and water kettle for boiling water. 

We were not allowed to open our doors except when the announcement came to retrieve our meals from our doorknobs.   There was always a security guard within sight, when I opened my door. 

We had three cold meals delivered each day.  

These bentos were beautiful but just not my kind of food.  Nine straight meals like this.   

To be fair, I think these are nice bentos and most Japanese people would be really pleased with this food - David too.   But, not me. 

I was VERY grateful I had prepared a stash of alternative food.  

How about this for a "Western" breakfast - all cold:  hamburger patty, spaghetti, one french fry, sausage, egg, pickles, potato salad, and rice.  

I had thought I'd "get so much done" (blogs, geneology, reading, hand work) but my stress level, and the lack of any comfortable seating, made that impossible.  I watched a lot of Netflix.  

Early yesterday morning, we had Covid tests, and at 1:00pm, I got a call to my room saying please pack up by 2:00.  No problem! 

Please, let me out of here: 

By 3:00 we were on a bus back to the airport where a private car service picked me up (we aren't allowed to use public transportation).   When I walked into the apartment, David was making me a nice simple hot  dinner of pork loin, carrots, and potatoes.  Heaven.  

I still haven't blogged about the rest of my time in the US, and I want to show the indigo throw that I finished for Tommy!  I will do that real soon.  Thanks for putting up with a whiny post;).    

xo

Cynthia