Finally, Scott looks relaxed!

Wedding Portrait

Scott and his Homies, pre-ceremony.

Even when being draped in pounds of Kimono, a bride is never far from her Keitai.

Mr. and Mrs. Pike

Finished!!! Its all done and over. The guests have come and gone, the unpacking is proceeding at a lax pace, and there are now TWO Pikes living at Bijogi 2-16-9, Apartment 101. Kotomi and I were married on Sunday, August 21st in her home prefecture of Aomori. Early reviews told us that the ceremony and reception were "wonderful", "beautiful" and "tear-jerking", but rather than sit too high on our horse, we will just say that K and I worked hard to make it a fun time for all.

No doubt this little contribution to the blog will be lost in the sea of pictures I am about to post, but Mrs. Pike and I would again like to thank all of our friends and family who attended, as well as those who passed along their warm wished and kind words. Like I said at the wedding, our happiness is largely due to the love and support of you all.... THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!!

Lastly, here is a brief re-cap of how the wedding went down, as seen from the perspective of the Gaijin Groom....

5:00am... Solitary onsen and mental preparation.
5:30 - 7:55am... Feverishly writing the speeches I had so far put off.
8:00am... Kotomi's Wardrobe and Make-up... Scott was still writing the speeches...
9:15am.... Scott slips into his Kimono
10:00am... Final wedding portrait (The heavens were kind and we got our wish of an outdoor shot)
11:00am... Ceremony rehearsal.... "Wait, wait... what was that middle part he said?"
11:07am... Ceremony - The 9 shots of sake helped to steady the nerves.... Dad, you did great!!!
11:30am... Group Wedding Photo.... again, outside.
12:30pm... Reception rehearsal.... "Ok, now explain it all to me one more time..."
1:00 - 4:00pm Wedding Reception including:
- Fantastic entrance with a rising stage and lush backdrop overlooking an outside fountain
- Wonderful speeches
- "Beer service" from Scott and the 20 kg. keg mounted on his back.
- Guest Karaoke, Janken Tournament (for MONEY!!), Video Tribute (a la Meaux), and Prize Giveaway!
- Special Yosakoi Dance from our dance troop friends... Special Dancer - Scott in his TUX!
- Canada Flag Cake
- Kotomi's Letter to her Parents
-AWESOME FOOD......... or so we were told (no time to eat for the Bride and Groom!)
5:15-7:30pm... The AFTER Party.... good friends and great singing at the local karaoke bar. Scott and Kotomi looked pooped but happy.
8:00pm-12:00am... The AFTER AFTER Party... our beautiful friends proceeded to cultivate memorable hangovers while the newlyweds proceeded to their suite for some much needed downtime. We ate the leftovers of our reception dinner and sipped Dom on our bed, replayed the day over and over in our heads, and passed out around ten.

We be rockin' proper at the Japan v. UAE footie match in June, 2005. Our boys lost this one, but they went on to clinch a berth in the 2006 World Cup. Doitsu e ikou!!! P.S. I am sorry for wearing my England jersey to a Japan game. If someone would be kind enough to please send me a Team Japan jersey in size XXXL (preferably with Nakamura Shunsuke's name and number on it), I will make sure this terrible faux pas never happens again :)

Please see the story below entitled "Better than Hiroshima?" ... and call me da Man!!!!

Yamanote Line passing DoCoMo Tower... Shinjuku

Meiji-Jingu, June 2005... Traditional Shinto Wedding. Will Scott and Kotomi's wedding look like this too? Your guess is as good as mine.

Kotomi Poppins on our Hanami pic-nic, April 2005. (Sorry for the lateness, I forgot to post these)

Hanami Scene - Everybody doing there own leisurely thing on a Hanami Saturday afternoon. Reminds me of a wood-block print. Scott is chillin' in the top right.

This one goes out to my Homies, namely Sam and Maurice. Sam, best takoyaki I have ever had. Maurice... LOOK!!!! ITS SMOTHERED IN MAYONNAISE AND EGG!!!

Hahaha!! Didn't I tell you all I was gonna be the King of Japan someday??!! Rollin', in my Five Point Oh!

May 14, 2005..... Kotomi and I have a new edition to the family. We don't know if it is a boy or a girl, but its birthday should be sometime soon. I am not going to tell you what it is, we will all wait for the big day together. Until then, post-up with your best guess!! P.S. Its about the size of a Tube Steak sausage and weighs about as much as a mandarin orange.... for now.

The dramatic serenity of Mount Fuji...... AND THE BEST PREMIUM OUTLET SHOPPING THIS SIDE OF THE PACIFIC!!! Gotemba - May 7, 2005

Reason I Love Japan (Number 13,983) - EBINA SERVICE AREA.... Kotomi, her sister Manami and I headed off to an outlet mall near Mt. Fuji. We kept wondering why so many Ferraris were passing us on the expressway. When we got to the Ebina Service Area, we found out why. This place was a FREAK SHOW of super cool cars - about 50-75 Italian beauties when I counted. It was also a fabulous FREAK SHOW of Japanese mania. Motorcyclists dressed up as cops and motor-cross champions (minus the mud, of course). All of this AND a fabulous place to stop, shop and eat.... all before 9 AM!

Dunno about you, but I think Scott is trying a little TOO hard to be all Zen.

Kotomi at Matsushima.

I tried for 30 minutes to get this shot. Kotomi got it on her second try.

Matsushima, bird, and Shrimp