Mikoshi Parade Fun

A little tiny kid-size Mikoshi... so cute!

Mikoshi are literally translated as a divine palanquin (wheel-less vehicle)... they are believed to be a vehicle to transport deity from the main shrine to other shrines or locations for festivals! They sort of resemble a miniture shrine with a roof, pillars, and walls, and have VERY ornate design! They are truly beautiful and all so unique. Mikoshi are all different shapes and sizes from small ones children can carry to very large ones that take over 50 people to lift. The Mikoshi Parade in Yokosuka was on October 21st and started out in town and then moved onto base... it lasted for hours and hours. We watched all of it from on base and it took about 2 hours for the entire parade to go through! It was a hot day to boot and by the time the mikoshi's made it to us some of the people were drenched in sweat and looked defeated!

There are many different ways to "shoulder" a mikoshi and I'm not even going to get into it because it's complicated, however, I will tell you that each way has a different chant and a different pattern for moving/swaying the mikoshi around... some go up and down, some side to side... Some of them even get wild and wave it all around... this was thought to "entertain the gods." The people who carry the Mikoshi are usually all dressed the same or in the same color... then there are a few people in costumes... I'm not sure of the significance, but it sure is entertaining! A lot of people wear garments that do not cover their goods... if you know what I mean... This guy had jingle bells hanging off his thong... Thanks Lois for the pictures!!!!

One of the many Mikoshi in the parade!

I was sitting on the sidewalk watching the parade go by, minding my business, clapping and singing along (I was making up my own words since I couldn't figure it out) and one of the guys pulls me out to help carry the Mikoshi... At first I protested since I have ZERO muscles and really shouldn't be lifting but I figured when else will I ever get to do this??? The picture reminds me of that old Sesame Street bit "One of these things is not like the other... one of these things just doesn't belong... la la la." I stand out a little.. and that thing was heavy as all heck and I barely had it on my shoulder. I look ridiculous in my workout gear too, but it was pretty neat. After I finished and went back to my spot in the shade, the man who pulled me out gave me this really cool linen cloth that I am going to frame since it has the date and "Yokosuka Mikoshi Parade" on it!!! BONUS!!!!

Thanks again Lois for getting my picture! I can now cross this off my bucket list... I'm a little sad Damian has to miss all this fun stuff because I know he would really like it, but maybe we can go to another Mikoshi parade somewhere else before we leave Japan!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Shiri (she-ree): Butt

Oktoberfest 2012: Yokohama, Japan

whoop whoop!!!

I know what you are all thinking... Oktoberfest in Japan???  Well, think again... it was a blast! The Japanese know how to do it up! We went on the last day of the festival which had already been going on for a few weeks. Yokohama is about a 30 minute train ride from the base and I went with a group of friends... some beer drinkers... most not! We got there before they even opened the gates and we were wrapped in a very long line... once they opened the gate it was a mad dash to get a seat in the tent near where the band would be... by the time we got in we found a table outside and were quite content. There were sooooooo many beers... how to chose.... hmmm.... the coolest glass... brilliant!!!!! We went to a booth that had these cool looking glasses shaped like a boot with Japanese writing on them... but when we actually go them they only had English- mostly because it was the last day and they ran out... I drank the beer and returned the glass and got money back and I was off to find a cooler glass for a souvenir... the one in my hand is the one I ended up getting... it has the Yokohama ferris wheel on it and says Yokohama Brewery... that's pretty cool! The non-beer drinkers with me also wanted glasses and many of them got glasses filled with beer and then I drank it... this made for a very entertaining afternoon.. to say the least!

Me, Laura, and Lois

The food at any Oktoberfest anywhere in the world is not really catered towards us vegetarians... I knew this going in... I had a big breakfast!!! They did have soft pretzels which were my only option for food. It was the usual German food you would find at any beer festival... lots of sausages and other meats in that shape... don't ask me specifics... I have no clue! It was kind of funny to watch people eating sausages and bratwurst with chopsticks! It's the little things I find entertaining.

My new friends!!!

The band playing was great and the Japanese people really loved it and were getting into it. I wandered inside the tent so I could get closer to the tent and join in the fun! I found a table with an open seat and sat down... I was surrounded by Japanese people and when the band sang.. we sang along... in German... "eins, zwei, drei" and then after that we all clinked glasses and drank... When my friends came in to look for me, this is where they found me... so much fun!!!! The train ride home was fun as we (mostly just me) danced and sang with anyone who would humor me!

I heard they have another Oktoberfest in May up in Yokohama and I am hoping to be able to enjoy this with Damian!

Japanese Word of the Day: (I think I may have used this one before, but it's an important word)
Biru (beer-eww) *say it quickly: Beer

***Arigato gozaimus to Lois for taking pictures!!!! :) Even all these silly ones!!!!

Port Call: Guam, USA

A few weeks ago I met the Damian in Guam on a 4 day port call. Guam is a US territory so technically I was back in the US for a few days! It is about a 3 hour flight from Japan and only 1 hour time difference so it was definitely an easy port call to go to. It was so hot and humid there- and extremely close to the equator! It is a pretty small island, but when a ship that big pulls in, it becomes really crowded with sailors!!! Guam is a very popular spot for the Japanese to vacation so everything was first in Japanese and then in English... sort of felt like Japan so it wasn't really a big adjustment! We stayed at a hotel a little bit of the main strip to have some quiet, and we had a nice ocean view as you can see from the picture! It was overcast and cloudy most of the days we were there but we still got A LOT of sun... maybe even too much. This was not a big adventurous vacation like most of our trips since it was barely 2 weeks after my surgery and I still was recovering and taking it pretty easy. Damian also needed a little R&R as he has been working like crazy on the ship the past few months!

We pretty much hung out by the pool at the hotel and took lots of naps during this vacation. We did venture into the busy part of Guam and went to an aquarium. At night it turns into a lounge with drinks and tables right next to the tanks where you can watch the fish, sharks, and stingrays swim around you! It was actually pretty cool and a relaxing and fun time. We spent about 3 and a half days together and then I headed back to Japan and Damian back to the ship... a few more months of deployment left and I won't be making it to any other ports before the ship pulls back in...  That's all for now.

Tokyo Disney Sea

Before getting on the monorail

Again, I apologize for the delay in the blog, but this whole "working" thing really gets in the way of my creative flow! So a few weeks ago when Damian was still home I took my first day off from work (I finally accrued enough time to do this) and Damian had the day off as well and we headed to the happiest place on earth!!! In Tokyo there is a Disneyland and also Disney Sea... it was hard to decide which one to go to, but we decided on Disney Sea as it is something different than any other Disney experience we have ever had.... we will definitely have to hit up Disneyland Tokyo before we leave Japan next year! Everyone says Disney Sea is more for adults, but I think they only say that because you can drink there! I think either one would be just as fun for adults! We started off early on our day off and it took us almost 2 hours on 3 different trains to get there... Disneyland and Disney Sea are right next to each other and you take a monorail to get around to the different parks and resort areas!

Mickey Windows

Too cute!

The monorail was pretty cool with lots of Disney details!!!! You had the Mickey shaped windows to look at towards the Magic Kingdom and then you had the Mickey handles for when standing on the train! Too cute! I really did appreciate so many of these small details that made our day! Even though it was during the week I think we expected to see a lot of other "foreigners" at Disney this day, but it was mostly Japanese people! It was funny because some stuff was in English and then other stuff was in Japanese- and it would always catch us off guard to hear Mickey's voice saying something in Japanese! One thing that was really funny was in the Aladdin area we saw Princess Jasmine and Aladdin walking around and talking to people- they were American and it was funny to hear them speak English to all these little Japanese kids! Oh the little things...

Can you find Damian & Beth??? hahaha

Indiana Jones

Disney Sea had a lot of the same rides as Disney and California Adventure have. We did the Tower of Terror when we first got there... mostly because I wanted to do this one before we ate anything! We also rode Indiana Jones, some Storm Chasers weather ride, and Toy Story Mania (our personal favorite). We waited in line for the Toy Story Mania for almost 2 hours... it was like that for so many of the rides! The day we went was about 100 degrees and waiting in line was mostly inside or in the shade which was some nice relief from the heat. We also rode 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Journey to the Center of the Earth (roller coaster) which we thought might be a little more scary and longer... oh well! We spent ALL day there and weren't able to go on EVERY ride mostly because of wait times and we were exhausted! The heat and humidity really take it all out of you... especially when you're almost 30!

Strawberry Popcorn

Little Green Men

One of the most unique things was some of the snack choices at Disney Sea... Everyone told us about the popcorn! They have a bunch of different flavored popcorn and it is a BIG hit! They have Apple Cinnamon, Strawberry, Curry, and Pepper. We tried the Strawberry and the Curry and liked both! It was hot so ice cream was obviously in order... Damian had a frozen mango (yummmm) and I had a Tiramisu ice cream sandwich (oishii)!!!!  At the end of the night we saw everyone with these little green men and we just HAD to try them. They were these delightful little gooey treats with different flavored pudding in each one. They were chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry and they were so amazing! I wish I could send you all a care package with little green men in it!

Dam-O and Mickey

We had such a wonderful day at Disney. This is a picture of Damian in the "Cape Cod" area of Disney Sea- I cannot make this up. They had New England Style buildings, a lighthouse, a tall ship, and everything said "Welcome to Cape Cod Village." They had a little area that sold hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, and soda! This was the funniest part of my day... it almost felt like the Cape- except I was completely surrounded by Japanese people! We are definitely planning another day trip to Disneyland before we leave here but maybe during the week on a rainy day when it will be less crowded! The one thing we did buy at Disney Sea was ornaments for our Chrismakuh Tree 2012! We got a little Minnie & Mickey dressed in Kimono! It is perfect for our second holiday season in Japan!

Not too much else going on, Damian is back out to sea- I don't think he was even in port long enough to get his sea legs ;) hehehe! Anyway, work is busy and continues to make the days fly by! I can't believe I have been here for over a year and mostly I can't believe I haven't seen most of my friends/family in over a year... this is a first! Hopefully I will have some more stuff to blog about in the next few months! Thanks for reading and mostly thank you for your patience!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Jettokosuta (jett-o-koast-a): Roller Coaster

Conquering Fuji-San!!!

Summit of Mt. Fuji right after sunrise

"One who has never climbed Mt. Fuji is a fool! But, the person who climbs it more than once is a bigger fool." -Japanese proverb 


Well... fools we are not because we're NOT going to do that again... well, Damian said he would, but I think I'm all set- he can be a fool all he wants! First I would like to apologize to all of our faithful readers for being patient the past few months while the blogging has been slow (or non-existent), I will try to be better about keeping up! This blog is going to be a long one and should help fill that Beth & Damian void I know you are all having!

At the 8th Station

Well, let's start with a few Fuji facts!!! Mt. Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan and located on the main island of Honshu, about a 2.5 hour drive from where we live in Yokosuka. The summit is 3,776 meters high (or 12, 389 feet). Mount Fuji is a (dormant???) volcano and last erupted in 1707-1708. Geologists say Fuji is approximately 600,000 years old and people have been climbing it for over 1000 years! The first person to climb it was an anonymous monk in 663; the entire mountain is thought to be sacred and often worshipped! Women were not allowed to climb until 1858, and foreigners were not allowed to climb it until after that! Now, people of all cultures and all ages climb this mountain each year! The official climbing season in July & August, mostly because the weather permits you to get to the top and most of the snow is melted! It is estimated that about 300,000 people climb Mt. Fuji each year! More Fuji facts to follow, but let's get to our adventure...

All our bags are packed... we're ready to go!

Damian and I both worked a full day on Friday, and after work we rented a van and headed up towards Fuji with some friends. We rented the van for a few reasons: first, we weren't sure our 1996 Nissan Presea would make it up to the mountain, and second, if you rent a car on base, they pay for all your tolls on the way up there... which costs approximately $130 for both ways. It is about a 2.5 hour drive up to the 5th station which is where we started our hike. The picture to the right shows all of the stuff we brought with us... included in our packs was rain gear, flashlights, extra socks, hats, gloves, scarves, snacks, LOTS of water, Excedrin (for altitude related headaches), Immodium (for altitude related upset stomachs), chaptick, sunscreen, purell (LOTS), hand warmers, extra batteries, headlamps, lots of Yen, and of course bandaids for blisters (which we didn't get)! The temperature at the 5th station was a little cool, but the top was about 40 degrees and windy- I was happy I had lots of layers on!

Here comes the sun.... doo doo doo doo... here comes the sun!

We started our hike around 9:30pm from the 5th station which is located at 2,305 meters and you can already feel the altitude at this station! Before we began our long climb, we bought Fuji climbing sticks so we could collect stamps along the way! There was a full moon the night before so the moon was pretty big the night we climbed and helped to light the way. We also both had headlamps which we were very thankful for as the trail has many different terrains and you really have to watch your footing! At the first few stops we were both working up a pretty good sweat and when we stopped, got chilled right away! The altitude we were at was obvious almost immediately. I am glad we prophylactically took the Excedrin to prevent headaches, but the nausea was not so fun as we climbed higher. Damian did pretty well, but I was struggling for awhile with the altitude sickness- the nausea and shortness of breath was definitely not my favorite feeling in the world! Damian didn't tell me while we were on the mountain, but on the way home he admitted that he didn't think I was going to make it a few times... I guess he didn't realize how determined I was to climb to the TOP! It was probably the most physically demanding thing I've ever done, but my mind was set and no matter how rotten I felt, I was going to keep on climbing!

One of many stamps along the way.

At each of the stops on the way to the top you could get your climbing stick stamped- they do it with a hot iron heated over a fire- it was pretty neat! We ended up each getting 25 stamps in total (at around 300 Yen ($4) a pop)! They are all different and even though we don't know what most of them say- we think it is pretty cool! They look good in our house too! At the top we got a stamp that says "Sunrise Top of Mt Fuji 2012" which is pretty awesome! We also bought an extra flag to tie on our climbing sticks that says the height and "Summit of Mt Fuji" in kanji. Our climbing sticks are the BEST souvenir we could have ever gotten on this adventure. You can even see on each of ours where we held it from the sweat and oils from our skin... mine has blood, sweat, and even a few tears on it- Damian's just has sweat! haha I will get to the blood and tears later in the blog... At each of the stops you could also use the restroom (for a 200 Yen donation) and get food, drinks, supplies, and cans of oxygen... the higher you got, the more expensive it all got! We bought a few things along the way... I bought a banana (for almost $2) and Damian bought some Fuji pins that he put into our sticks when we got home- he's so smart!!! We both had enough water at least to get to the top in our camelbacks, but I ran out on the climb down and had to "borrow" some of Damian's! Even drinking almost 3 liters of water, I still felt dehydrated! Fuji fact: You burn around 7000 calories climbing Mt. Fuji! whoop whoop!

Sunrise over Japan!

Once we got to the 8th station we had been hiking for close to 5 hours... with just very short breaks along the way! Many people start their climb in the afternoon and stop at the 8th station and stay in one of the "hotels" for the night and then start the rest of the climb before sunrise. After seeing the accommodations, I was happy we decided to power through and climb it in one shot!  It  was pretty cold up there and at each stop we were adding more layers, hats, and gloves! It was worse when we stopped so we tried to keep moving up the mountain. Some parts were incredibly steep and you literally had to hang on to the rocks as you climbed at very steep angles! Damian was much better with this than me, but I had a little "Japanxiety" along the way as there were a lot of other people climbing and I felt like I was being rushed and I was getting nervous about climbing up the rocks fast enough... I couldn't believe some of these much older people and even kids who were climbing- that certainly helped motivate me (and discourage too- since I was sucking wind)!!! Once we could actually see the summit it was slow going- because of all the people. It was getting close to sunrise and everyone wanted to get to the top to see the spectacular sunrise in the land of the rising sun! It took a long time to actually reach the summit and we stopped to watch the sun come up and then finished our climb. From the 5th station to the summit (10th station) it took about 8.5 hours. We got up to the summit right around 5:15 am- and it was chilly up there!!!!

Summit of Mt. Fuji: 12, 389 feet!!!!

The top was pretty crowded when we first got there and we were surprised at how much was up there! There were a bunch of huts selling souvenirs, food and all sorts of stuff. You could hike around the crater (which takes an hour and we didn't do) or go to the Post Office (highest in Japan) to get a postmark from! We did walk over to the crater to check it out... it was nothing more than a giant hole with some snow. We got our sunrise stamps and paid 600 Yen to go to the restroom! Using a squatty potty after climbing a mountain adds insult to injury... my legs were shaking the whole time while I squatted- it was pretty gross... as a squatty potty on the top of a mountain would be! We spent about an hour or so up there taking in all the beauty the view had to offer. We went into one of the huts and got some oishii (yummy) miso soup with noodles- it was perfect and warmed us up! The Japanese guy who brought our soup saw our Red Sox hats and asked about Boston... he then apologized for Daisuke Matsuzaka and said he wished the Red Sox would have gotten a better Japanese baseball player... absolutely priceless!

Getting ready to start the climb down.

We started the decent around 6:30am, and it went A LOT faster than climbing up... BUT it was also a lot harder! Coming down puts a lot of pressure on your toes and ankles and you really have to be careful- as I learned many times as I fell! Even using the walking stick, the rocks under your feet were constantly moving and it was hard- never mind we had both been awake for well over 24 hours with NO sleep! This is where the blood and tears came in... I fell a few times (maybe more than a few), but I caught myself with my hands on the sharp rocks... except for one last fall close to the bottom where I landed right on my butt... ouch!!!! Not only am I sore today, but I can also feel where I fell that last time yesterday! I told Damian that all of my battle wounds shows just how hard of a fight I put up while climbing! The way down was really hot as well- the sun was out as you can see and it felt really strong- especially being at such a high altitude! After a few minutes we both took off some layers! As we climbed down, you sort of had to slide your feet- which made A LOT of dust flying through the air from everyone... as you can see below, we both look like chimney sweeps after the climb down! haha

Yup... we really are that dirty!!!!

We were back down to the 5th station around 10am and on our way home soon after. By the time we got back to base and settled at home we had been up for over 36 hours and we were both exhausted! We couldn't wait to shower and get ALL the Fuji dirt off... ugh!!!! We went to bed soon after getting home, but Damian had to go back to the ship last night for the next few days! I'm feeling pretty sore today but overall a good sense of accomplishment! As I said before, Damian said he would do it again, but I think climbing Fuji once in my lifetime was more than enough... on to the next adventure for me!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Yama: Mountain

Karaoke is for ME!!!

Japanese word of the day at the beginning of the blog: KARAOKE (I hope you all know how to say this) and it literally means "empty orchestra." This is extremely popular here in Japan and has been around since the 1960's!  Now, I have done karaoke a time or two or A LOT and I've even done "live-band karaoke" in Austin, TX, but the way it is done here is so much better! Let me tell you about my new favorite place... it's right off the base- totally walking distance and it this building where you get private karaoke rooms. There are many options depending how big your party is but there was only 5 of us so we had a pretty small room, and we also opted for the ALL you can drink option- 3500 Yen (approx $44).

So, we got our room # and took the elevator up, when you walk into the room there is couches and table and is really comfy! In the corner is a table with tambourines, books of songs, iPad looking things which lets you pick songs and then play them on the big TV and also microphones... OH and don't forget the drink list. There is a phone in the room and all you do is pick it up and order your drinks- they are delivered right to the room!!! We opted for Mango chu-hi's... after I swore I wasn't drinking chu-hi's that night too! They were really yummy though! It was a good time, we sang songs for hours, and I had no voice by the end of the night. I just really liked the idea of having your own private karaoke room for you and your friends. In the top picture is a few of my new coworkers at the hospital!

They had most of the songs you would maybe want to sing, but certainly not nearly enough 80's for me... I need more Hall & Oates and Pat Benatar if I am really going to rock out! All in all a very good time had by all, can't wait to take Damian here when he gets home! :)

San Antonio Trip

 It's been a busy few weeks and this rainy weekend has given me an opportunity to catch up on a few of my blogs to keep everyone updated on what's going on over on this side of the world. I recently traveled to San Antonio for my new job for a few days. I was literally only in San Antonio for about 4 days... It felt like I spent just as much time traveling as I actually did at the conference. The hospital sent me to an APIC conference which is a conference for Professionals involved in Infection Control and Prevention. I know a medical conference sounds pretty dull to most of you, but I really enjoyed this one and was very impressed as well. I did a lot of networking not only with Navy people but also with other people doing jobs similar to mine. It was really great and I took a lot from it. There were 4500+ people attending the conference... mostly nurses but other professionals involved in Infection Prevention as well.  There was an exhibit hall with lots of vendors as well which was a great opportunity for me to learn more about some of the products that my hospital uses since I am still new.

I also had some time to check out San Antonio and all it has to offer. My hotel was right downtown so I was just a few short blocks to the Alamo which was a lot smaller than I had imagined it. It was still pretty cool though! I sort of felt like I should have a raccoon hat like Davy Crockett when I was standing in front of this historic landmark, but at the same time that is really gross! :( The Riverwalk was also a few blocks away which had amazing Mexican food and drinks!!!! I had veggie quesadillas and margaritas every single night... I figured I won't see good Mexican food like that in Japan so I might as well get my fill! I met some really great people and we had dinner down on the Riverwalk each night, some of the vendors also had parties in the evening to attend so it was a very busy few days!

I was extremely jet-lagged after I got back- mostly because it was such a short trip. It took me almost a week to get back on a normal-ish schedule, and at least I had a weekend to recover before heading back to work.

Deployment Season

Tis the season... for deployments... and humidity! As you probably guessed Damian is underway... or as I refer to it as his big metal cruise ship!!! He is gone for an undisclosed amount of time- I certainly can't tell you because "loose tweeets, sink fleets!" (I like that they updated the saying to adapt to social media... although loose lips could still sink ships) Anyway, I think he was pretty excited before he left... not to leave ME of course, but since he has already deployed with the GW I think he knew a little more what to expect this time around! I borrowed this picture of the GW from the FB page because I thought it was so pretty... I can't even begin to imagine how awesome it is way out there in the middle of the ocean. Damian talks about the water being so blue you wouldn't believe... sounds kinda magical to me!

I don't have much to write about, I almost didn't even write this blog because I have nothing really to update everyone on. I've been a little under the weather so I didn't do much this past holiday weekend except for rest up for my work week ahead... this whole working 5 days a week.... it's for the birds!!! I have a newfound respect for all of you out there that work 5 days a week... and I also understand why you are so excited on Friday! I think when this is all done, I would much rather go back to my three 12 hour shifts... at night and be done for the week! I am not cut out for office work... I have a very hard time sitting still at my desk most of the day and sometimes instead of picking up the phone to call someone in the hospital I get up and walk to their office/unit instead... I'm way too much of a busy body to be chained to my desk! PLUS- I want to see patients... that is why I became a nurse... but I'm up to my neck in paperwork so I don't usually see any patients! This is definitely a different side of nursing than I have not previously been exposed to... it's good to get exposed, but I'm pretty sure this is not my passion! My boss is pretty cool and is going to let me volunteer in the family practice clinic a few days a month to get some experience as a Nurse Practitioner- which is fantastic!!!!

It's starting to get pretty warm here... and humid too... I've already got the dehumidifier running at full blast! Not that I needed the dehumidifier to tell me it's humid... I just look in the mirror every morning at my ridiculous hair and that says it all! :) haha! I haven't had any fun Japanese adventures lately but I do plan on having some while Damian is gone... I've got plenty of time.

I'm off to San Antonio in a few days for an Infection Control & Prevention Conference (contain your jealousy!), on the Navy's dime.... whoop whoop! The conference is only 3 days, but with travel I will be gone almost a week! It'll be quick, but hopefully very beneficial to this new job! Will update all again soon! Hope you are all doing well! Miss you ALL!!!!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Shikke no oi (shkay no oy): Humid

Cinco de Mayo & some other stuff too!

WOW! Has it really been 2+ weeks since I last blogged... sorry... a lot going on over here in Japan! Cinco de Mayo came and went and we had a little fiesta at our place to celebrate... what better place to celebrate than... err... Japan!?!? That's completely besides the point... it was a Saturday and sunny and margaritas were in order! We had margaritas, sangria, and lots of Coronas! Chips, dip, tacos, quac, etc along with Eugene's famous fried chicken which I stayed away from but is always a BIG hit!!!! We get really great afternoon sun on our patio and it was nice to sit out there and get a little sun and enjoy the night with good friends. It was also the "super-moon" that night and the sky was clear and from the other side of our building we could see it perfectly! It was a perfect evening.... now the next day was a little rough for me, but well worth it!!!!

I started my new job at the hospital here on base as the "Infection Preventionist" last Monday and have survived my first week and a half... barely. It is basically an infection control nurse job and very different from any other job I have ever had in nursing. It is not bedside nursing care which I have always done and I am up to my ears in paperwork, policies, and military politics... it is quite interesting actually! Hopefully I can survive the next year doing this until we move back to the U.S. The REALLY great thing is that i have a real JOB... finally!!!! It's a little strange to wake up every morning and have to actually get dressed and go to work instead of hanging out in my sweatpants, but it is definitely a nice change of pace!

The U.S.S. George Washington is out and about in the ocean conducting "sea trials" for the past 5 or so days to get the ship ready for deployment, so Damian has been very busy with that! The week before he was working very long hours getting ready for their upcoming deployment so I wasn't seeing him much anyway!

I really do need to keep up with these blogs because so much has happened in the past few weeks... crazy! My grandmother passed away last week... she was the most amazing woman I have ever known and feel very lucky to have so many memories of time spent with her. She has influenced my life so much and I am a better person because of it! If you would like to see just how amazing she was... click on this link.

Happy belated Mother's Day to all the mothers out there! I will try to keep up on the blog a little better!

Japanese Word of the Day:
haha: mother (that's funny... really I can't make this up!!!)

Japanese Bicycles... Proof the Japanese Should Rule the World

Buying a Japanese bicycle at our local store was like buying a Cadillac back home... I felt like they rolled out the red carpet for us... once we picked them out from all of the many bikes to choose from we tried it out in the store for size, and then when we decided we wanted it, we filled out paperwork with our name/address etc, then we paid. While we were doing that, they were busy pumping up the tires, adjusting the seats, and making sure they were perfect for us to ride off into the sunset! Absolutely amazing! We knew we were going to be buying bikes and we had looked around before and knew that we were going to get beach cruiser-like bikes to ride around base... mostly for us to get to work on so we don't have to drive everywhere! The store we went to is about a mile away from base and Sunday was very sunny and a perfect day for a walk out in town. By the time we got to the store we were all sweaty because it is finally warm here and we definitely underestimated the strength of the sun! It's already time to break out the sweat rags that we needed when we first got here... great!!! (*note the sarcasm here...)

Damian got a snazzy sliver bike with the works and I got a vintage looking yellow and brown one... LOVE it!!! Usually when you buy a bike you basically get the frame and are lucky if the brakes are included... we not only got a fully working beautiful new bike, but it comes with front headlights... that are activated by the wheel turning (brilliant) and a lock already attached to the bike frame and wheel so you don't have to fumble with a bike lock and finding a place to lock it up, and also the BEST kickstand in the whole world... you may all be laughing at this point because no one should be THIS excited about getting a new bike, but you don't understand until you have experienced a Japanese bike... everything about it is so smart- it blows my mind that the Japanese think of absolutely EVERYTHING and make everything so easy... they should truly rule the world!

I forgot the basket... it came with the bikes... awesome! Who doesn't love a bike with a basket!! I think the best part of this whole bicycle experience was after we bought it and the salesman (who didn't speak much English) was saying goodbye to us, but Damian and I were still standing there in awe of our new bikes... The salesman must have thought we had never had a bike before because I kept asking him how to use everything... "sumimasen..." (which means "excuse me") and then I would point to the lock... and then "sumimasen..." and then I would point to the light... "sumimasen..." and then I pointed to the kickstand... HAHAHA I think he was happy when we left! We rode off into the sunset (not really it was 2 pm) back to base and are very happy with our brand new bikes!!!! Wooooohooooo!

 Japanese Word of the Day:
Jitensha (gee-ten-shah): Bicycle

Golden Week

Happy Golden Week.... oh you don't know what that is??? Let me tell you about it... It is a bunch of Japanese holidays all clumped into one week. It is a very popular time for the Japanese to take vacations and travel as it is a short week for work with all of the holidays. Many flights and trains are completely booked during this week. In Japan during this week, many stores have different hours, and they even change the traffic lights to account for more people not working during this time! It's kind of a big deal! April 29th is the Emperor's birthday, but it was the old Emperor (until 1988) however it is still celebrated today. May 3rd is Constitution Day honoring the Japanese Constitution put into effect in 1947. Greenery Day in on May 4th and is in honor of the emperor who served from 1926-1989. This day is important because it calls for reflection of this turbulent time in Japanese history instead of actually celebrating the emperor. The final holiday is Children's Day, previously known as Boys' Day!!! Now, it is to celebrate ALL children but it used to be just for the boys with lots of fun traditions to go along with it.

Boys' Day is to celebrate the happiness of the boys in Japan. It is on the 5th day of the 5th month at the end of Golden Week! *I'm pretty sure Cinco de Mayo is NOT a big holiday celebration here...* Boys' Day has been celebrated for hundreds and hundreds of years and is also celebrated in many other Asian countries as it is based on the Chinese calendar and traditions. If you remember the previous blog where I talked all about Girls' Day and talked about some of the traditions to have happy, healthy girls who don't have to wait long to get married and they put out the figures of the prince and princess... Anyway, the Boys' Day has it's own traditions for strong and healthy boys. The BIG thing is these carp flags as you can see in the picture. Chinese legend is the basis for this and it all comes from the idea that a carp that swims upstream against the current becomes a dragon... thus being strong!!! The carp blowing in the wind are said to look like they are swimming! So cool! Another big thing for Boys' Day is to get a Japanese military helmet (kabuto) for your boy and display it because it represents strength!!! Very neat traditions here!

Japanese Word of the Day:
Kyujitsu (key-you-jit-sue): Holiday

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Sunday was a FUNDAY this week! We headed up to Tokyo with a group of friends for some amazing brunch at the New Sanno Hotel (military hotel) and of course mimosas!!! After the delicious brunch and finishing off every last drop of champagne at the hotel we headed to Harajuku to see some of the Japanese youth fashion choices, although there weren't too many out and about on Sunday as it was rainy and kind of dreary. Then over to the Meiji Shrine one of my favorites and then to a Japanese baseball game! whoop whoop!!! We went to Jingu Stadium, home of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, built in 1926 and holds about 38,000 fans (although only about 9,000 last night)... only a little bit bigger than Fenway Park (Happy 100th Birthday Fenway)!!! No green monster though...

The swallows have been around since the 1950's, however they didn't become the Yakult Swallows until 2006! Yakult is the name of the Japanese corporation that owns the team- a company that makes a probiotic milk-like drink. The team's mascot is a black and white swallow with a red face and also has a female counterpart which is meant to be the "little sister." The game we went to was against the Yomiuri Giants. *** Fun Fact Alert: Hideki Matsui formerly of the New York Yankees (gag!?!?) started his baseball career playing for the Yokiuri Giants here in Japan.  Now... A LOT of things are very different at a Japanese baseball game than when you are at a Boston Red Sox game or any other lesser MLB team... First off, when you buy your ticket you tell them what team you are there for because they put all the fans for each team on opposite sides... This would be a BRILLIANT idea at a Red Sox vs. Yankees game... much less fighting this way! It would never ever happen in the U.S. but it is for sure a nice idea. So we sat on the Swallows side and all the Giants fans were on the other side... this is much more fun when everyone is cheering for their team!

One other thing that was different were the cheerleaders... that's right, cheerleaders at a baseball game! Unfortunately we did have a rainy evening so there wasn't very many people there, but the ones that were there were definitely loyal fans! Since it was raining everyone had their clear umbrellas UP, but at least you could see through them to see the game! hahaha! We got seats out in right field and were smack in the middle of a bunch of Swallow fans! We made some new friends and learned some of the cheers... they yell "go go Swallows" in English which made it pretty easy! Most of the fans use those clapping sticks so they don't actually clap... Some fans even bring instruments and play songs that everyone sings along to. There was a bunch of guys with trumpets and this was totally normal... kinda different! The swallows fans also have a song/dance where they sing a bunch of stuff in Japanese and then flap their arms just like wings... I liked this one and took part eagerly!!! GO GO Swallows!!!!! Also, when the Swallows scored everyone lifted their umbrellas up and down while doing a cheer... it was sort of out of a scene from Mary Poppins... so awesome looking behind us and seeing all the fans lifting their umbrellas in unison.

Although there was peanuts, popcorn, and lots of beer... there were also BIG difference in food choices! This was the first time I ever had noodles and ate with chopsticks at a baseball game! Damian had a rice/meat bowl which looked pretty good too. Some of our friends had the more common baseball snack foods... french fries and caramel corn! The beer girls walk around with these mini-keg backpacks and cups- pretty funny and ingenious! As you can see from the picture- I had an obstructed view because of all the umbrellas... and because of the plastic bag the man in front of me was wearing on his head... but whatever it takes to stay dry! Around the 2nd inning it started to rain harder... I was surprised the game wasn't called.. then we saw a HUGE puddle forming around 2nd base... still the game went on. We were all getting soaked and still had quite a long train ride home so we left around the 5th. It was really fun and we even got to see  a homerun hit by the Swallows player Wladimir Balentien who played in the MLB Minor Leagues for 4 years before being called up for the Seattle Mariners in 2008, but didn't really cut it so he signed with the Yakult Swallows in 2010 for 65 million Yen for a year (roughly 800,000 depending on the exchange rate)... The Swallows did end up winning last night (even though we left early) and it was thanks to a game winning RBI by Lastings Milledge who also played for many different teams in the MLB before signing with the Swallows in 2011... too funny!

We go to baseball games in the U.S. and see players like Daisuke Matsuzaka (Dice-K) and Hideki Matsui playing for our home teams and then we come to Japan and see players from our country playing for Tokyo's home teams... so weird! All in all a great day had by everyone! A very long day to boot... 12 hours from the time we left in the AM for brunch until we got home on the train... that makes for a rough Monday morning! Damian worked all day, and I am subbing tomorrow at the school. I will try not to take so long for the next blogs :) Thanks for your patience and support.


Japanese Word of the Day:
Yakyu (yaw-kew): Baseball

Vegas baby Vegas!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post... it's been a busy few weeks and the jet-lag really took a toll on us when we got back to Japan and hit the ground running and got back into our usual daily schedules! So 2 weeks ago we spent about 8 days in Vegas... I know, 8 days is WAY too long to be in Vegas, we agree! We went for a Critical Care Nursing Conference that both of us were attending. Damian had a brief 2 day review course before and then we went together to 3 days of lectures and had some pretty good seminars and we definitely both took some good stuff away from this conference. AND we both got all of the continuing education credits we needed to keep up our nursing licenses... BONUS! In Vegas we stayed at Paris which was really nice and centrally located on the strip so we could walk everywhere! Very nice! The first few days were beautiful and warm and we even got to sit by the pool, then it got much colder and rainy, but we were inside at the conference anyway...

We saw 2 shows, Zumanity at New York, New York, and Ka at MGM- both incredible and we highly recommend seeing both! We also ate at some amazing restaurants and got our fill of all the "american" food we had been craving. The first night we went out for Mexican because that is something that is hard to come by here in Japan- it was delicious! My friend Brandy flew down from San Fran for a few days of girl time including a spa day, pool time, shopping, and lots of fun! Damian's Mom was also in Vegas for a conference the next week so we got to spend a lot of time with her which was awesome!

 We got back to Japan after flight delays, missed connections, and a very long 24 hours, and then Damian had to go back to work the next morning... it was a rough few days to get back on Japan time for sure! Then of course that week we had lots of stuff going on with a lot of our friends leaving soon we did a lot of eating out and going to good-bye parties etc. Last Friday night we had a date night and got 100 yen sushi and then finally went to see The Hunger Games- fantastic! And on Saturday we had a going away party at the bowling alley, and then Sunday... you'll have to read about in the next blog ;)

Japanese Word of the Day:
Momo: Peach