All in one weekend

I had a busy couple of days this past weekend.
First of all, my family and I went to Tokyo Disneyland together. My kids like the Disney Halloween that is done during the month of October at Tokyo Disneyland.

I also got my driver’s license renewed since it was going to expire next month.

When I was a teenager in Florida I had a U.S. (Florida) driver’s license but I didn’t live in America long enough to need to have it renewed…so I’m not sure where it is easier, America or Japan, to renew a license.
And, actually, my Florida driver license has expired years ago…I have had a Japanese driver’s license for many years but not a U.S. one!

Anyways, I have a “gold license“…so it is the easiest (and least expensive) of the Japanese driver’s licenses to renew.

“What is a gold license“, you ask?

In Japan, driver’s licenses have a stripe that is one of three colors…either green, blue or gold.
A “green license” is a “beginner driver”. These drivers must have a special decal on their car that identifies them as a beginner driver. This license is valid of three years (my oldest daughter has this one now).

A “blue license” is a regular “operator’s license”.

And a “gold license” is a “safe driver“. This license, as I mentioned, is the quickest, easiest and least expensive to renew. It only takes about one hour from the time I walk in the driver license office til I exit with my renewed license.
Also, a “gold driver” pays less for automobile insurance.

As a sidenote, in Japan, if you take a driver license exam with an automatic-transmission car, then that’s the only type you’ll be licensed to drive.
I took my exam years ago with a standard transmission (“stick shift”) car…so I can legally drive both a manual transmission or an automatic. My license also allows me to drive an eight-ton truck.

While I was in the driver’s license office I noticed a poster advertising Tokyo’s bid for the 2020 Olympics.

It says “The 2020 Olympics / Paralympics in Japan!”

I wrote a post about Tokyo’s bid for the 2016 Olympics (that was ultimately unsuccessful).
Click here to read it…it has the official promotion video for the bid campaign.

And finally, my wife and I went to a festival.

There were lumberjacks at this festival that put on a log-rolling show.
Very entertaining!

They also put on a “strong man demonstration“.
At one point they put heavy hay stacks, barrels and a small boat on a man’s chest…and then three other men climbed onto the boat while it was on the man’s chest!

Ultraman was there too!