It’s been an entire month without a post, but don’t worry, we’re still here.  We’ve just been extremely busy with our move to Tokyo! If you think moving is really stressful (spoiler: it is), moving to another country where you don’t speak the language is quite… well, quite the experience (spoiler: next level stressful).

It’s by far the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life.

One thing that really caught us off-guard is how untrusting (some) Japanese people and companies were with us. Being from Hawaii, I know we’re generally a lot friendlier and trusting than peeps in big cities. However, Sara and I both have a lot going for us career / education-wise so it was a bit frustrating. Not to mention, we’re both ethnically Japanese, and (I think) I qualify as a highly skilled professional (- foreigners Japan is currently trying to attract!). We experienced so many highs/lows (and nuances) moving to Japan that we’ll have to save that rant for another day.

In any case, we finally made it!

We wanted to send a small update to say that we’ve finally settled into a small two bedroom apartment in Nakano-ku!  We’re on the south side of the station – so it’s quiet and suburban-like with the madness of Nakano Broadway only a few minutes away. We’re also one stop from Shinjuku and one transfer (three stops) away from Shibuya.

Now to the important part.

If we’ve ever crossed paths in life* and you need a place to stay in Tokyo, please email us!

No guarantees, but if the room is available, we’ll try to get you in.

*Even if we’ve never met, we love to meet new friends.


Here’s a Google calendar that shows the extra room’s availability.

Bonus points to my mother-in-law who will be our first guest in a few weeks! Yay, mom!

p.s. We’d also like to give a big shout-out to Tomo, Misaki, Sheldon/Eri, and Lisa – because without y’all, none of this would have been possible. <3