Today was a fairly busy day for us.  We started the day with a team breakfast at the hotel and headed to our first workout right after.  Since we were still feeling the effects of traveling across 8 time zones, we took the morning easy and basically just stretched out.  Nonetheless, it was nice to get our bodies moving after having traveled a long way to get here.

Japan Cup poster

After morning workout we ate a quick lunch and took a short break before heading back to our second workout.  We did a little more in the afternoon  but definitely felt a like we needed a bit more time to get used to the new environment and work out some kinks in our body.  Speaking of the environment, the arena is completely light blue!  I felt like I was in smurf land, but aside from the crazy color, the gym is great with all the equipment situated on podiums.  I think that starting tomorrow we should start to feel more accustomed to the arena and come Saturday, we should be completely good to go.

the competition arena

We ended the day with a “welcome banquet,” which all the participants (athletes, coaches, etc) were invited to attend.  I’ve gotta say, the Japanese really know how to prepare food.  Doesn’t matter if it’s Japanese food or western food, they make it taste good.  Anyway, the people here, especially the Japanese delegation has been very hospitable and Team USA is excited to be here to kick start the new quadrennium!