"Get under the table and cover your head," I told my 9 year old. She was shaking and had tears in her eyes. Our phones were buzzing like an Amber Alert on steroids. There were sirens wailing outside. Our first earthquake warning. Week 6 of the Family Gap Year™️. 12 hours later the government apologized for the mistaken warning. Turns out there wasn't a 9.9 heading our way. (And yes the earthquake advice came from ChatGPT... but now we know.) This week has been a good one with a nice dose of social interactions (including a small Yale reunion). A few other highlights: 1. Attended the Tokyo Derby Our first football game (off the heels of the World Cup). It was a beautiful brisk day at Ajinomoto Stadium where our (adopted) FC Tokyo won 4-nil. We followed it up with a nightcap at the Fairmont with views of the Tokyo Tower. 2. Two very Japanese encounters We were out to dinner with another couple and when the bill came, we split it. The staff went out of their way to inform us (3 times!) that the bill was an odd number, so one person would be paying one extra yen. (Half a penny.) We walked by protesters at the US embassy. I don't know the back story about what happened at one of the bases, but the chant was loud and angry. It also was polite, "USA, please go away." 3. We love the subway here Once you get over the fact there are 4 different subway systems, it's so clean and quiet. You can hear a pin drop, even during rush hour. It's seriously meditative, especially when you're outside the city center on the outdoor lines. 4. Wrapping up a hard work stretch I've had calls at 4:45 am all week (and a few calls ending at 11pm). It's probably the most physically tired I've ever been, but the work and clients are awesome. Once November hits, things quiet down for a few months. It's wearing on my family that I'm continuously sleep deprived. (I haven't drank coffee in a decade, but have transitioned to Coke Zero - can't believe I discovered this at 47) 5. What's the best thing we've eaten? We've been getting that question a lot, but tbh we haven't gone down the foodie route (especially with the kids and everyone still being on a slightly different schedule). Also, reservations here are surprisingly hard to come by. But the baseline of pretty much every meal (except Mexican) is just so high. And it's hard to spend > $50 (no alcohol) for a family of 4. We've got under a month left in Tokyo before Taiwan, Seoul and HK. Those will probably be shorter trips and starting to think about a longer stint in January (Vietnam?). Thanks for reading, friends 🇯🇵