Monday, March 27th, 1989

Note:  This is a series of journal entries from my two years living in Himeji, Japan (1988-1990).  I'm archiving them electronically through my blog.  Last names have been deleted and replaced with first initial only.  For details on this series of blog entries, see this post.

I met Kimberly at the Christian bookstore at 4:30.  Robin and Ben were there too.  K. and I shopped for a couple of hours, then went to a shabu-shabu place for dinner.  We thought it would cost only about 2,500 yen, but much to our economic delight...instead, our lack of knowing Japanese & of reading kanji brought the grand total to 6,500 yen!  Ugh!  (But it was good)!

I spent the night with Kimberly.  After a restless night, we woke up at 5:00.  I showered, and attempted to do my hair.  At 6:30 we left and caught a train to Rokko.  We met a guy named Mark at Mikage Station, and he came with us.  We took a taxi to Canadian Academy for the Sunrise Easter Service at 7:00.  It was on the balcony of the library.  It was beautiful!

After the service we all went to B's for a breakfast.  There were a lot of people there, and it was fun!

 Mitsuko and Janet B.

 Charles and Paula

 Me and Nora

After that, G's invited a bunch of us singles over for games, lunch, etc.  We played Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy (on the computer), and Twister.

Kimberly, Glen, and I left at about 1:30 and took the train to Osaka.  We said goodbye to Glen, then met Kim's friend Chicka.  We took the train to Kintetsu Station (by Tanimachi Subway- to Tanimachi, 9-chome)(5 stops).  We went to a coffee shop for frozen yogurt, then to the Kintetsu Dept. Store, then to "Phantom of the Opera".

"Phantom" was fabulous!  It was very elaborate, both in costume and set design, and, as "Les Miz" was, very elaborate technically.

My favorite technical effects were when the Phantom appeared in the mirror in Christine's dressing room with her reflection, then the mirror slid away and he took her hand and brought her through, then it closed and they were gone.

I also loved the scene where the phantom and Christine descend into his world.  First he takes her through the mirror, then down a trap door, then across a bridge at the back of the state that tilts different directions to emphasize the length, then in a boat across a misty, candle filled lake...very realistic- especially later when Rolf jumps off the bridge into the lake and disappears- (presumably through a trap door in the floor).

The scene in which he materializes from a cross over Christine's father's grave is great, too.  (The cross is dimly lit, and his cape hides him within the big cross).  The phantom also materializes from the "Pegasus" on the roof after Christine and Rolf pledge their love, and he "disappears" in both the masquerade scene and after covering himself with his cape and sitting in his chair in the last scene...marvelous effects...lots of mists, fabulous sound effects, and the characters of the phantom, Rolf, Christine, her ballerina friend, and the Countess Carlotta were excellently acted.

I felt so sorry for the phantom at the end, when he let Christine and Rolf go, sacrificing his love for her. I actually didn't cry, but was really close.

The only negative aspects of the show were that Kimberly had a wheezy, coughy, sniffly cold, Gary didn't show up, and Akira and Hiroko didn't get there until the end of the 1st act.  (Also, the chandelier falling into the audience wasn't very realistic).

Otherwise, it was a fabulous show!

After the show, Akira, Hiroko & I drove home, but stopped at a robata under the Washington Hotel in Sannomiya, where Akira used to work in college, for dinner.  It was great!