WEDNESDAY, APRIL 17TH AND THURSDAY, APRIL 18TH (DAYS ONE AND TWO)
Met at the airport at 6:30 am for our long flight to Japan. Amazing that we didn’t have to be at the airport at 4:30 am – our usual time of departure. No problems checking in and everyone in the group was on time. Flight to Detroit was uneventful until we tried to land. We arrived early and they had us circle “in turbulence” for about a half hour. Elizabeth likes to fly about as much as I do, so we’re definitely not good for each other. We finally cleared for landing and evidently it was incredibly windy. The plane was all over the sky as we were trying to approach the runway. Elizabeth was convinced the pilot was drunk. But we landed safely. We board the huge double-decker flight for Osaka and Elizabeth and I were in the upper deck. She was lucky enough to have an off-duty pilot sitting with her. Good thing he got her instead of me because I would have quizzed him the entire 14 hours. I did manage to fire off about a dozen questions before we ever took off. He made the mistake of telling us that we were on a new plane and it was the first time for a flight with passengers. Very comforting. It was a nice aircraft but I found a few design flaws. They forgot to install the little message lights that lets you know when the lavatory is occupied. And, once inside the lavatory, when you tried to pull out a paper towel, the entire panel flew open, spilling cups and paper towels everywhere. Other than that, it was a pretty smooth flight. Landed early in Osaka and cleared immigration and customs with no problems. All our luggage and equipment made it which was a surprise because the new Detroit airport is still having major problems with their luggage handling. We’re now sitting in the Osaka airport waiting to board our flight to Kumamoto. Usually we are running to the plane to keep from missing the connection. From the time everyone got up this morning until we reach our hotel room tonight, it will have been about 30 hours. Made it to Kumamoto – early again. No problems getting to the hotel. Everyone was tired but most of the guys were going to Charlie’s nightclub to party for a while. This is the first time I’ve used my new laptop in a foreign country. Couldn’t get the modem to work but fortunately I brought along my old PCMIA card and installed it. Took me a couple of hours of “trail and error”, but as you can see, I’m up and running. Jude without her email is not a “pretty sight”….
THURSDAY, APRIL 19TH – DAY THREE I was a very loooooong day. I forgot about the “bus” that came to pick us up at the airport last night. It was a really small bus – plenty of seats inside but no room underneath for all our luggage and band equipment. We had to take the suitcases inside the bus and store on the seats. The promoter had asked for the “mid-size” but and they sent out the “toy” one! Got up at 5 am to work on email then jogging at 6 am. Saw two of the musicians when I went out to run. They had been up for a while, too. A Japanese man ran a redlight and almost hit me and two cyclists this morning. Then he had the audacity to blow his horn at us! I NEVER turn on the television when I am staying in a hotel, but this morning for some reason, I turned it on. First thing I saw was a skyscraper with a hole in it and smoke billowing out. Since all the channels are in Japanese, I couldn’t tell where it was. I thought it was here in Kumamoto, but after watching for several minutes, I saw an ambulance with “Ambulanza” on the side and knew it was Italy. I finally found the BBC channel but the person speaking English was in the background being drowned out by the Japanese newscaster interpreting his words. If I turned the tv up REALLY loud and put my ear against it, I could hear what the BBC was saying. Our first stop today was the Kumamoto Castle – one of the most famous castles in all of Japan. It was built in the 1600’s and is still being restored. A large group of school girls from Tokyo were touring the park and literally “attacked” Elizabeth when they learned she was a country music singer. They ALL wanted their photos with her and they all had their cameras with them. After sightseeing there, we went to lunch at a Japanese restaurant and everyone was brave enough to try to some of the local food. Next was a tour of the Coca-Cola Company – the major sponsor for Country Sunshine and Country Gold. It is a very moving “ceremony”. They sit all the Americans around a table and bring in all the employees to sit in front of us. Everyone is introduced and speeches are made. This year, they asked if would mind if they played “God Bless America” in remembrance of September 11th. It was a wonderful surprise and a very emotional moment to see all the Japanese stand with their heads bowed and honoring us. Makes me realize how far we have come since World War II. Everyone was treated to a tour of the actual bottling plant – which is very “sterile”. Everything is automated and you see only a handful of employees. It’s very impressive. We then went to visit with the Vice Mayor of Kumamoto and once again we were treated like visiting royalty. Last stop for the day was Suizenji Park where everyone got in some great souvenir shopping. Returned to the hotel just in time to go out to dinner. I took 3 of the guys to a great Italian restaurant (better than anything we have in Nashville). Then over to Charlie’s nightclub for a “Welcome Party”. Elizabeth sang and couple of songs and Charlie and the Cannonballs played their regular set. They do 5 sets a night, 7 nights a week and they never close. I left early so I could write emails and road kill reports! It’s always so nice to see the reaction of the artists and their musicians. This is a great group to work with and they are totally in awe of the Japanese and how hospitable they are to us. We are known for our Southern Hospitality, but I think this even goes beyond that. Many times I bring artists over here “kicking and screaming” about the long trip and within hours of arriving, they are already scamming ways to come back again the next year. All the road reports are being posted on my website WITH PHOTOS. Check out Road Kill at” “judysealeinternational.com”. Tomorrow is “show day”!
SATURDAY, APRIL 20TH – DAY FOUR: Raining this morning which killed my “jog”. Had to work out in the hotel room. Today is “show day”. At least it’s inside, so we don’t have to be concerned with the rain. We figured out yesterday when we were talking about Kumamoto being my “second home”, that I have been here 9 times for Country Sunshine, 12 times for Country Gold and 1 time just to visit. That’s 21 tours of the same castle and park. I can retire here as a tour guide, I think. Like most foreign countries, Japan does not provide wash cloths in the hotel rooms. However, their hand towels are so small, they can easily be used for a wash cloth. But, the “bath towels” are also the size of our hand towels, only they are as thin as a sheet. Each room is only supplied with one of each, so I think most of the guys have been “dripping dry” every day. Sound check was painless. Even though it continued to rain all day, we had a packed house. Because of a curfew, merch sales and autographs must be done before the concert. Elizabeth sold 111 cds, 110 photos, autographed every one of these AND posed to have her photo taken with everyone in line. It was probably more stressful than Fan Fair since there is the language barrier. After 2 hours of this, then she had to perform. She did a great show and the audience loved her. Since she is so traditional country music, she sang a lot of the old standards and the Japanese really enjoyed her concert. One of my Japanese friends brought me a copy of today’s newspaper. Evidently, someone got a little confused at our meeting with the Mayor yesterday. There was an article (in Japanese, of course) about the country music singer but the photo was of me! Hand me a microphone and I can correct that misrepresentation immediately. (At least BOTH of my eyes were open…) After dinner, one of the interpreters that we have worked with for 4 years offered to “escort” us to a nice restaurant for some “local” favorites. Now, this guy is from Canada and eats everything – dead or alive. Road kill to him is a delicacy. I warned everyone what to expect and also told him he had to tone his choices down. He insisted on ordering a “little of everything” for everyone. The edimame was great but then he brought out a platter of the local Kumamoto delicacy – raw horse meat. Three of Elizabeth’s guys tried it but none of them were begging for seconds. We had egg with eel inside – both of which were cooked. Then he brought out a platter of beef. Only after we got it in our mouths did he tell us it was beef tongue. I know I chewed mine for 20 minutes before it would go down. Tempura, yaketori, and sushi rolls were all terrific. THEN, he went to the tank and selected a fish. They cut the spinal column out of the fish, laid it on top of ice, and then cut the body in strips, just not all the way through. Brought it to the table and the little fish’s mouth was opening and closing – gasping I think. The guys would use their chopsticks and pick up a piece of his body while his little eye was watching them. It was really horrible. Tomorrow we depart for home. It has been a great trip with a truly terrific group of people. Not one “problem” child in the entire group. And, guess what, they want to come back…..
APRIL 21ST – DAY FIVE: Still raining today. We left the hotel at 8:30 am and arrived at the Kumamoto Airport by 9:30 am. For the FIRST time, we were able to check our luggage all the way through from Kumamoto to Nashville. Usually, we have to pick everything up in Osaka and take it upstairs and re-check it on Northwest. Of course, we didn’t believe the agent, so we went to baggage claim anyway – just to be sure. Nothing came out, so we felt reasonably sure that everything was okay. But, we didn’t have boarding passes, so we still had to go to the Northwest counter and check in. The strange thing was, they checked all the bags (16 pieces under one name). That is VERY unusual for an international flight since all bags have to be “matched” to the passenger traveling. We had a two hour wait in Kumamoto before we flew to Osaka, then a 4 hour layover in Osaka. Arrived Detroit (and ALL of our bags came in – Yea!) and had another 4 hour layover. It’s the layovers that KILL you. But, at least no problems and very little turbulence the entire trip. Arrived Nashville right on time and only one piece of equipment didn’t make it…the pedal steel. Poor Pete (pedal steel player) had a tough day. He and one other musician were “detained” in Osaka because when we came in, the authorities forgot to remove their work visa. Caused quite a stir for a while, but they were eventually “released” to get on the plane. Pete got searched at every security checkpoint he went through today – and there were lots of them.
Great trip. Great Show. Great group of folks. Great to be home