September 2023

 NEW CARS

We got new cars. Luckily the cars out here are cheap so we got two newer cars for the same price as our 2 junker cars in the states. Jared drives the Black Honda Odyssey that looks like a Hearse because it's black and so low to the ground. Keeping with tradition, I got a white minivan. It has been strange to drive on the other side of the road, and we often turn on our wipers instead of blinker (they are on opposite sides here). With all the American military members here this is quite common and is known as the Okinawa wave. We have had to get used to much slower speed limits here too. Even the express toll way only goes 80 km/h (about 50 mph). Most everything around town is 40 km/h (about 25 mph). We do love how the drivers here are much nicer than in DC. When you put on your blinker to change lanes people often slow down to let you in. To say thank you to someone for letting you in, it is polite to flash your emergency lights at them. 

ARAHA BEACH

There is a nice sandy beach a 15 min drive from our house. 

SUNSET DINNER CRUISE

Jared and I all dressed up in yukatas for his work sunset dinner cruise to celebrate the 111th birthday of the Navy Dental Corps.

The name of our ship.

Commander Rosacker's GPR residents.

Kelsey and I are each wearing a yukata, which is like a less formal, summertime kimono. We had fun picking them out together.

The sunset was beautiful!

VEGEFUL CAFE

My new favorite all you can eat Japanese vegetarian restaurant! They even make bitter melon taste good.

HOMECOMING

Homecoming at a new school with new friends.

A nice woman in the branch lent us dresses so Maddy and Abby could go to the dance while we are still waiting on our household goods to arrive. 

 Abby and Maddy had so much fun, although Maddy regretted wearing heels. When it comes to dancing, tennis shoes are the way to go.

What a fun group!

TORII BEACH

The girls loved the waterslide

The shells and coral were pretty, but hurt to walk on.

Nathan paddle boarding for the first time.

KADENA MARINA

My new friend Teri was awesome and taught me how to paddle board.

Brooklyn and Audrey liked going for a ride. 

Audrey was so excited to paddle out to the island.

Me trying to keep my balance!

NAKAGUSUKU CASTLE RUINS

We had fun exploring this14th century castle from the Ryukyu Kingdom.

View of Naritasan Fukusen-ji Temple

I love family outings with my sweet kids

The castle offered a fantastic view of the ocean!

We got lost on a steep, narrow road through a graveyard, but we finally found Lord Gosamaru’s Tomb

AMERICAN VILLAGE

Every week we try to have a family outing so we can make the most of our time here. Since we had to go homecoming dress shopping, we decided to check out American Village. It’s a group of shops near the ocean that are either US stores (like Starbucks) or those with a US theme like the Christmas shop (although most of the stuff in it was from Germany). Japanese tourists visit American Village to get a taste of the US in Japan (kind of like how we visit Chinatown to get a taste of China in the US). We laughed at some of the random US items for sale, such as a T shirt from a middle school in Indiana. It was a beautiful location to watch the sunset, and we loved the fireworks that they do over the ocean each night.

KUBASAKI HIGH SCHOOL

We had a teacher meet and greet at the school. We love that Kubasaki's mascot is a dragon. How cool is that!

OKINAWA WORLD

We spent the day at Okinawa World. It was really fun to learn more about Okinawan history, culture, and nature.

The little girls love all the Shisa!

Who doesn't want their picture taken in a bitter melon?

We loved the Habu snake show and the Super Eisa Show (not pictured).

Gyokusendo cave was beautiful and amazing!

We had fun touring the tropical orchards

Pineapple take about 2 years to grow!

It was fun to watch the glass blowing

Walking on the glass bumps felt good at first, but by the end of the row it really hurt!

Okinawan singing traditional songs with the traditional Okinawan sanshin instrument.

Ryukyu Kingdom castle town

The tatami mat is actually quite comfortable to walk, sit, and lie on. 

Sometimes I just have to stop and take a picture of all the awesome trees and plants. 

The Habu snake museum was interesting

Fruit bats are very common here. We actually have quite a few near our house. 

Maddy was brave and touched a live snake. 

Brooklyn touched it, but then screamed and scared everyone!

THINGS WE LIKE ABOUT JAPAN

If I ever build a dream house, I’m getting a Japanese toilet. Notice the music feature to help you relax and cover any embarrassing bodily noises. I’m also a big fan of the wand to help with any remaining messes after flushing.

Fresh ramen is so good! Much better than the prepackaged stuff you get from the grocery store. 

Beni Imo (Okinawan purple sweet potatoes)--the secret to long life!

Asian pears

Rambutan

Why not have a chandelier in an auto repair shop? It made me feel so fancy while I waited for my van.

Hand washing stations at gas stations!

Random cool tree in my backyard

Jared loves being stationed with the Marines because he gets 4 day weekends for all the federal holidays.

Date nights with Jared! It's really nice that going out to eat here is almost half of what it costs in the states so we can go out more often.

THOMAS' BIRTHDAY

We celebrated Thomas' birthday with a cake and going to the Okinawa Temple Open house. No pictures of the temple because of the pouring rain, but it was beautiful both inside and out. Nathan's not pictured because he was home in bed sick. We found out later that he had COVID.