Damn, there's a lot to do

Well, there's still lots to do before this trip takes off and the days are really just flying by now. There are final trips to the bike shop to be made, packing and repacking of panniers to be done, and loose ends to tie up before this trip begins (bills to pay, phone calls to friends and family to make, fabulous Bon Voyage parties to attend). Luckily, a lot of the hard work has already been done: Diana and I have been studying Japanese at Soko Gakuen in Japantown for months (see sidebar), Diana's been busy finding some great places to stay in Sapporo and in Tokyo and sketching out our adventure, and we've both been working hard trying to figure out as much as we can about packing up the bikes and being our own mechanics for this trip. I had no idea that it would take so much planning. However, I think that it's all about to pay off: we're set to take off on June 11th, and by June 13th we'll have the bikes together and be heading off into the hills of Hokkaido, Japan.

We both have a lot of people to thank before we go, especially in the area of bike preparation: First and foremost, a huge Thank You goes out to Jon and to Cameron for their mechanical assistance and technical guidance. Without these two, we would be touring Japan by train and not by bike. Last weekend's trip to Salt Point State Park (I know, you never did get your full report. Did I mention I'm a procrastinator?) was the first true test of our touring bikes and both passed with flying colors. Thanks guys. We've also received a lot of help on the touring-detail end of things. We've gotten tons of advice about camping equipment, clothing, panniers, racks, e-mailing gadgets, places to visit, and food to eat. Thank you to everyone who took the time to help us make the most out of planning this trip. We won't forget you when we're famous.

So, now that the Thank Yous are out of the way, I'll be movin' on with my evil plan (insert evil laugh here) to make you all as envious as possible. Tomorrow, I'm buying the gadget that'll transport our adventure, glorious moment by moment, to all of you via the wonder that is the Internet. Really, this is just my way of trying to get all of you to join in on an adventure with us in the future!