Well, my blog was down yesterday but back up again to-day – some kind of server problem which is now fixed. It’s now  two days later and things seem to go from bad to worse in Japan with the threat of radiation poisoning spreading by the hour. The pictures outside Sendai show a devastation not seen since Hiroshima or Nagasaki and the sight of people fleeing Tokyo only adds to the horror. Emperor Akihito spoke to the nation to-day in a broadcast to the Japanese people – this is most unusual and an indicator of the severity of the situation in Japan. One thing I have decided this evening is, rather than focus on the troubles beleaguering Japan, I’ll list some of the many happy memories we have of our trips to this wonderful country. So, here goes – some of the most memorable times we have had on the other side of the world:

1. Cat Cafe on the seventh floor of a sky scraper in Shinjuku in Tokyo stroking Persian cats at midnight

2. Sitting on tatami mats in Komagata loach restaurant in Asakusa in Tokyo eating tiny fish with chop sticks

3. A long, beer-infused night of karaoke in a karaoke bar in Osaka

4. Walking in Kamikochi in the Japanese Alps followed by a barbeque in the woods

5. Beautiful Nikko in the snow with its moss-covered stone lanterns and old temple complex

6. Feeding rice cakes to the cheeky deer in Nara

7. Drinking coffee in a Maid Cafe - less said the better!

8. Sitting on the bullet train eating noodles and admiring a snow-capped Fuji from the window

9. Wonderstruck at the ice and snow sculptures in Sapporo at the annual snow and ice festival

10. Spotting the geisha in old Gion in Kyoto

11. Hearing the crack of ice as our ice-breaker boat crunched through the frozen sea off the coast of northern Hokkaido

12. Enjoying a steaming onsen on the top of a mountain as snow fell at night

13. Endless detours to the many Seven Eleven stores to buy Melty Kisses, Almond Joy and seaweed-flavour crisps

14. Rows of vending machines selling hot coffee, pancakes in tins, flowers and bottles of Pocari Sweat

15. Every minute of every day of every week spent in Japan. Arigato gozaimasu ( thank you very much ) Japan