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We went to a new onsen or sento on Saturday. These sento do not have special spring water but merely natural water yet this one was incredible and my joint favourite one. The best thing about this sento is that they have three large stone pots which have running water pour into it. I sat in one with legs sprawling out the side and it was incredible.

Japan won the Asian cup on Saturday 3-1 against China. Although they did this by beating the combined might of Jordan, Bahrain and China they could still teach the allegedly all powerful English something about winning. Reiko thinks I was secretly supporting the Chinese as everytime a Chinese player fell under a crunching Japanese tackle or a Japanese player dived I said so but oh well.

On Sunday it was Reiko`s birthday and so we went to the city centre and ate and shopped. We also went to a chocolate cafe where everything is made from chocolate. The cake is chocolate, the beer is chocolate and the tables are made out of chocolate. Well maybe the last one isn`t true but anyway you get the idea. I had a cup of hot chocolate, which was surprisingly bitter. But it came with two chocolate balls which seemed to come from the finest Belgian chocolate kitchen. OISHEE!

Then we did an hour and a half of karaoke at 140 yen (or 70p) for half an hour and free alcoholic tea included. I had a good time. Now they have a meter on the side of the screen which measures if you have hit the right note and if you are in time etcetera and they rate your performance against all the people that have sung that song (allegedly in the whole of Japan) We got a few first places especially as we chose mainly English songs which aren`t so well known here. I sung the Monty Python classic “Sit on my face and tell me that you love me” and garnered a first place position by being the only one to have attempted this composition. I reckon you should win something but it was just for honour.

Today after dreaming about dangerous water spiders which looked like NES systems (!????) we went for a barbecue by the beach. It wasn`t actually on the beach but on a small field next to a beach (which was incidentally next to an airport with shadow provided by a motorway high up above) but nevertheless a good time was had by all. We were taken by Maki and Tommy and their kids again. I spent all day amusing myself by kicking footballs and throwing frisbees and generally feeling like the third child. I managed to reduce Kotaro (who only recently celebrated his first birthday) to tears by directing a high velocity football at his face. Tommy jokingly said “You bastard” and I am sure he only half meant it?