Keeping Busy

Mike has been away for almost 2 weeks now, and I have survived! Though I miss him every day, the time goes by faster when I have a full social schedule. Many of the wives and I have planned several events to keep us busy and distracted. It's been a great excuse to not only pass the time but to also explore our surroundings and get to know each other better. I have had a blast going out to dinner, watching The Bachelor, playing crud, sharing countless bottles of wine, and lots of girl nights together! There have been a few events, however, that are worth highlighting!

Last weekend my friends Kristyn Szala, Andrea Slattery, and I went to a place called Chula-U. They call it a "bath house" which made me nervous, to be honest. Once we arrived, however, we found out it was a glorified YMCA with several pools and a sauna. We spent a few hours lounging in an outdoor pool supplied by local hot springs. It was so relaxing! On our way out, Kristyn and I tried out the Dr. Fish. I have been wanting to try this for a while! You put your feet in a tank and little minnow-like fish nibble on your dead skin! It was honestly one of the freakier experiences I have ever had!! They swarm you and tickle every surface of your lower legs. I couldn't help but scream which made all the Japanese ladies giggle. It is certainly something to experience!!

Another day was spent exploring with Dan and Tanya Schiller. We started by walking along Torii Beach hunting for shells and beach glass. We were very successful and left with a huge bag full of treasures. From there we went up the coast to Zanpa Point because we had heard it was a gorgeous view! The coastline is cliff after cliff of jagged volcanic rocks that drop drastically into the roaring ocean below. We climbed out on the rocks to get a better look and watched the waves crash into the rocks. It was a beautiful sight. The only things missing were a sunset and Mike!

Finally, I took a half-day cooking class at a culinary school in Naha with a few friends. We learned how to make curry! It was a great experience and lots of fun! The food was great too, if I do say so myself. All who visit are promised a curry meal!

The Dr. Fish nibbling on my toes!

I was trying not to scream because it tickled so bad!

Zanpa Point on the west coast of the island.

It reminds me of the Cliffs of Moore in Ireland.

Tanya in the middle of a pond in the rocks.

These rocks were so sharp!

Dan was watching the waves crash on the rocks.

I tried to direct the waves and encourage them to make bigger splashes.

Katy Clark and I start our delicious curry.

Katy, Brittany, and Jenn continue the recipe.

The final product was sooooo good! YUM!

A Nice Little Saturday.

The weekend before Mike left for Vegas and Red Flag, we spent an afternoon together exploring some of the island. We got in the Surf and drove north (on the left side of the road, of course) to see what we could see.

We went to a place call Manza Point which had a beautiful view of the turquoise water and rough coast line. From there we continued north to a town call Nago. In the hills overlooking the town and the water, we found some castle ruins, a shrine, and an amazing view! Finally, we went to the Orion brewery for a tour and some free samples.

All in all it was a great day with one beautiful site after another. More than anything, I loved spending the day with my hubby exploring new places and sharing these memories together.

I miss you, Michael!!

Driving on the left can be freaky at first but you get used to it quickly!

Manza Point is beautiful and the water looks like that all year round.

It was windy and a little chilly, but the sun was shining!

Manza Bay is gorgeous. I want to go out on that beach one day.

Any takers?

Another of Manza Bay from the point.

Now on to Nago. That is the town below.

We are on the hill/mountain above in a quiet park.

The only other people around were a cute Japanese couple playing some form of croquette.

The shrine was down below and had these typical statues lining the walkway.

One of these days I will learn what they are called and what they do.

Mike in front of this small shrine on the hill overlooking Nago.

Orion Brewery. I was the driver so I got a cherry soda and nuts.

Aw nuts! Next time I want the beer!!

Orion: For you happy time!

We finished the night with a very nice dinner at Sam's By the Sea.

We both actually got steaks!! That is a rare occasion!

Thank you, Honey for a great weekend. Can't wait for many more when you get back to the island! Miss you!

Rusty's Birthday Party

Our puppy dog, Mr. Rusty F. Bones turned 1 on January 5th! Rusty and I spent the whole day together. We took a long walk and a nap, and Mike joined us for a nice dinner and a few gifts! It was everything a dog could ask for!

But we found out that week that our friends, Katy and Cody Clark, also have a dog who has a birthday on January 5th!! (Are you shaking your head and scoffing yet?) We decided they needed a bigger birthday bash! So, a few weeks ago, we did just that!

We invited all of our friends and their four-legged family members to join us for an afternoon of food, fun, and fetching! We served hot dogs, puppy chow, brisket and all the fixin's. Even the dogs had pup-cakes and ice cream! The guys sat outside near the beer coolers to talk about flying while the ladies stayed inside where it was warm and cozy. The dogs ran and played until the humans got tired of watching them.

It was a great excuse to get together with friends and have a few drinks. But more than anything, it was SO GREAT to watch Rusty run and play with new puppy friends. It has been so difficult to find playmates for him, and I can tell he has been feeling socially isolated. He had a smile on his face the whole night. That makes me happy too.

The party planners - Lynn and Katy

The girls hanging inside near the yummy food.

Lisa with Roxy and Lola.

The guys drinking and talking about flying outside.

We had human cake in addition to pup-cakes for the dogs.

(When Katy ordered the cake and asked the Japanese lady for paw prints on top, she put foot prints!)

People even brought gifts!

All the dogs got ice cream!

(They actually sell ice cream for dogs in the commissary!!)

Dillon enjoys his ice cream.

Libby and Miya

Katy and Cody with Libby (the birthday girl) and Miya.

My birthday boy! Can you see the smile on his face!? It's still plastered there!

Feeling a Little Sad

Mike left yesterday for Las Vegas. His squadron will be participating in Red Flag at Nellis AFB, a 2 week exercise that simulates a real war situation. It is a real honor that he is able to go so early in his Eagle career. Some guys wait years to get this chance! I know he is really excited to be there but I sure do miss him. He will be gone for a whole month!! So, I am here in Okinawa trying to distract myself. Keep him in your thoughts. Please skype, call, or email whenever! I am just here waiting for him to return!

Rusty really misses him too.

Tangerine Time!

Okinawa is known for many of its natural fruits: bananas, pineapples, and .... tangerines! Now is the time of year when farms from the northern part of the island harvest their tangerines, and I wanted to check it out for myself. The travel office on base was offering a day trip to the tangerine fields, so a few friends and I signed up.

We took a bus to a town called Motobu where they gave us an hour to pick and EAT all the fruit we could! Our lovely Okinawan tour guide informed us that there were many different kinds of tangerines but the best was described as "ugly guy but very juicy on inside."

On our way back to base, we stopped at an area where the cherry blossoms are very popular. They don't bloom for a few weeks, but we stopped to see what we could see anyway. Our guide said, "They are sleeping now. You come back in 10 days. They bloom. Very beautiful!" The area was already set up for the festival held on the last weekend of January.

Overall, the day was a great opportunity to see some new parts of the island and experience some of the natural wonders and foods of Okinawa. I love these little chances to explore, spend time with new friends, and eat great food!

Our guide showing us "the ugly guys."

Jen and Andrea are filling their bags and bellies!

These are the "rouge" tangerines. Slightly sour but much more picturesque.

Andrea samples another tangerine! Yum!

This cute guy was the owner of the farm. He and his helper measured our pickin's on our way on the bus.

"Sleeping" cherry blossoms. They will be beautiful in a few weeks!!

What is the first thing you do when you set up for a festival?

Set out the vending machines - Good Coffee Smile

...And set up beer and Coke signs!

New Paint Job

There are few things that I have instantly LOVED here in Okinawa. One of those is a trip to Cocok's for a pedicure. I talked about this place in a previous post but I just have to share my experience again. It is such a wonderful place! As you can see from the pictures below, you sit in a Lazy Boy with a warm blanket over your lap, a cup of iced tea, the company of friends, and the view of the ocean. For an hour they message your feet and legs. The last hour they painstakingly paint the most intricate designs on your toes. You leave feeling relaxed and fabulous with your new paint job.

Lisa and Monica enjoy the view and relaxation.

Tanya picks her pattern.

The final product. Fabulous!!

The girls take a walk on the seawall afterwards.

I love COCOK'S!

Tokyo Trip

As I mentioned in the last post, Mike and I went to Tokyo for four days over the New Years with our friends Punk and Kendra Stolee. We traveled around the city and saw as much as possible given that most places were closed from the 31st to the 4th!! Most of our adventures are best highlighted with pictures so here we go!!

We started our vacation right with some beers in Naha the airport. We flew on a Japanese airline which meant that nothing was in English, even the boarding call. We just followed the crowed.

We arrived late on Wednesday but in time to meet Punk and Kendra for a night of karaoke, Japanese style. You rent a room with a booth and a TV screen. You pick your songs and sing your heart out for only your friends, not a ton of strangers!!

Karaoke places charge you a flat hourly rate but it's all you can drink. This place was fancy. They had a remote control where you punched in the number pertaining to the drink you wanted and a waiter showed up with your drink!

Needless to say, we had a GREAT time!!

Mike found a Gold Star but was disappointed when they didn't serve chili.

We stayed in an area call Roppongi. Our first night a Japanese hotel room was interesting. Mike models the complimentary robe and sandals. Of course, you can't wear your shoes inside. This is also the full size of the room. What you see is what you get!

Mike now shows off the bathroom and the shower/bathtub. The whole bathroom is only slightly larger than an airplane bathroom. The shower is also connected to the sink. So to shower, you redirect the water from the sink!

We started our first full day in Tokyo at the Imperial Palace. Unfortunately, the grounds were not open. Dang!

Even though it was cold, the flowers were still in bloom!

Mike makes the typical Japanese pose in front of a former emperor.

Someone found lost keys and hung them on this sign. They read from the top to the bottom and from the right to the left side of the page!

More of the Imperial Palace.

From the palace, we went to an area called Ueno. This guy was standing outside the train station. I think he was asking for money.

This dude loves ham enough to put it on his butt!!

We walked through the park and found this sign: Difficult rowing ahead!

We walked to the island in this pond where the Benten-do Buddhist temple was located.

The decorations are beautiful!

These are fortunes that you get from the temples around New Years. After reading them, you tie them to these strings.

Again, the temple is beautiful.

We walked on to see the lake. These must be the hard-to-row boats the sign was talking about!

Photo op.

Now we are on to the Toshogu shrine (shinto). All shrines have a torii like this one through which you must enter to see the shrine and the grounds.

The walkways are lined with these statues. It looks like candles or incense can be lit inside, but not this time.

Prayers are written in every different language on these wooden cards and hung.

Leaving the shrine, we wonder through a city park where we found a small amusement park and food stands like this one. Everything is so colorful!!

We also found this pastry place where you could watch the machine work!

It made small pandas filled with creme! It was so tasty!

Finally, we walked through the Ameyoko Arcade. Most areas of town have an arcade (narrow alley with pedestrian traffic only) similar to this where they sell food, clothes, purses, etc. They are usually crowded and Mike stood a full head taller than most of them!

Just an example of the fresh food available. Only 2,500 yen (~$25) for all those tentacles?! What a deal?!

This man was roasting some kind of nut. The nut didn't look appetizing, but the picture was beautiful.

Friday, we started our day at the Tokyo Tower. It's similar to the Eiffel Tower but not nearly as pretty. It does offer a fantastic view of the city though.

Tokyo

They also had windows in the floor looking down!

Next we headed up north to Asakusa so see the Senso-ji Temple. Another busy arcade leads you to the entrance.

The stores sold everything from colorful fans to sumo wigs!

I loved the action, color, and energy!

This is the Hozomon, the doorway onto the temple grounds.

This is different from torii we saw at the shinto shrine.

Once inside, we saw the 5 storied pagoda, the 2nd tallest in Japan!

On the grounds there were lots of little "shrines" with statues of gods. It was cold so they dressed the statues to keep them warm. This one has an airplane patterned Snuggie!!

They also have a place where you can get your fortune! You put 100 yen in a slot, grab the metal canister and shake it until a wooden stick comes out. On the stick is a number that corresponds to one of the drawers on the wall. In that drawer is a sheet of paper with your fortune on it!

If you look close enough, the middle section is English and that's my fortune!

Cooler than a fortune cookie but not nearly as yummy!

The grounds were filled with food booths in preparation to feed the masses during the New Years Eve celebrations that night. We took advantage of the opportunity to eat some chicken on a stick and have a beer.

Next, a sake bar! We know nothing of sake so we had to get a sampler.

New Year's Eve in Ikebukuro on our way to the Irish pub. For the rest of our NYE events, please see my last post.

Friday, New Years day, was a lazy day. We spent most of it resting, eating, and shopping. Later that night we went to the Hyatt skyline bar to have a few cocktails in this swanky environment on the 52nd floor. This is the location where the movie Lost In Translation starring Bill Murray was filmed!

The rest of the night was spent chatting, drinking, and have a great time at the Stolee's hotel bar, the New Sanno. This place is a US military only hotel!! It's so nice and CHEAP!

They even had a casino where Kendra won $60 in the slots!!

Overall, it was a great trip. I will admit that I will not go again over the New Years, but we will have lots of advice for those who do want to travel then. There were several things that we missed because they were closed, but this gives us an excuse to go back!!