Why yes, I realize it has been a very long time since my last post. I have a good excuse though! I have a new job and with the holidays, it's been very busy around here.
First item of business: Thanksgiving
I think it is important to bring up that Thanksgiving is not celebrated in Japan... yes, I've had people ask me if it was before. (Christmas is also not a big hit over here. Buddhists aren't really into The Virgin Birth.)
Anyways, on base, Thanksgiving is a really special time for everyone. Because most of us are far away from family, we get together with our friends, eat, and watch football (at weird hours).
I really enjoyed Thanksgiving this year. Our friends, Will and Kari, brought us into their home like family- that's something really special about the military, your friends become pseudo-family.
December to Remember
December was awesome because I started my job as a Child Program Assistant at the Child Development Center on base... basically that means I teach preschool children 3-5 years old. The job has been a great learning experience for me and I really enjoy my coworkers and the children.
Christmas was amazing. Finally Jay and I were together for Christmas! We went to a Christmas Eve service on base, opened presents Christmas morning, and had brunch with friends.
It was very interesting to see the Japanese take on Christmas. Because of the influence of Disney and American popular culture, some western traditions become part of the Japanese tradition. Small Christmas trees and Christmas lights are sold in the Seiyu (Japanese WalMart) and Starbucks has special holiday drinks.
Party!
I have never been and never will be an authority on parties but 'tis the season... over the past month I've been to a Christmas party, New Years night out, 3 birthday parties (2 for 5 year olds), a baby shower, and a couple random nights out on the town.
I must preface this with "I'm not much of a drinker, but if I were, I would be in Heaven in Tokyo."
If you like to drink at all (or even just eat), there is a bar for you in Tokyo. Every bar is a different culture and I think I have learned the most about Japan in my nights on the town. To give you an idea, let me list a few.
County Clare's (Tachicawa City): Run by Irish ex-pat Nick, it is a homey Irish pub with fish 'n chips, super spicy buffalo wings, and a wide variety of beer.
Big Echo: This is a franchised bar found throughout Tokyo where you rent a private room for 2 hours with up to 9 friends. You are provided with as many drinks as you want and have your own private karaoke. This is ideal if you have a lot of money to spend.
Pub Hub and/or Sherlock Holmes (Hachioji City): Great if you like English pubs, darts, or liter beers.
Apple Martini (Hachioji City): This is my personal favorite. They play western music, serve a wide variety of food and drink, perform magic tricks, juggle liquor bottles, and put on little "shows" at the bar. We counted down to the New Year there and it was a blast.
We have also been to TGIFridays and Hard Rock Cafe in Tokyo... they are pretty much the same.
Anyways, I think my main point in discussing this was that Japan is very diverse and that is reflected in the bars and restaurants here in Tokyo. We will continue to try new things and keep you posted and hopefully, you will come to Japan soon and enjoy the diversity and culture here!
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Thursday, November 11, 2010
A Few of My Favorite Things
Because I procrastinated, I now have over a month of fun times in Japan to tell you all about. Instead of composing a novelette detailing my every experience here, I will spare your eyes and my fingers and tell you my Top Ten experiences so far.
CoCo's Curry House: Before I visited Japan, I my only experience of curry was the smelly Cup-O-Noodles version that my college piano teacher ate during lessons. Now I have discovered Japanese curry, specifically curry from CoCo's curry house. It is a delicious treat! Basically, it's a spicy sauce similar to gravy that is served with rice and meat. The spicy-ness is rated 0-10. Jay will eat 10 but just the smell makes my eyes water. I stick with regular spicy (level 2).
Riding the Train: I love riding the train in Japan... well most days... it can get crazy crowed. It's a great place to watch people although I have come to realize, in Japan, it is not appropriate to stare. Being tall and very light colored in all respects, I thought that I would get a lot of looks but Japanese people don't want to invade your space so they keep their eyes on the ground. Most read, play cellphone games, or nap on the train. Unless the partygoers are out, it's usually quiet.
Yokosuka: The Yokosuka Naval Base has great shopping! If you are military and want to visit Japan, I would highly recommend Yokosuka. First of all, it's on the water! If that isn't enough, you might get lucky and see the USS George Washington, an enormous aircraft carrier. Finally, it has arguably the best shopping in the Far East. It reminded me of shopping at the outlet malls in the states.
Halloween: Our base, Yokota Air Base, has a large variety of fun activities every month. For Halloween, we were lucky enough to attend both the Monster's Ball on Oct. 23rd and the Monster's Bash on Oct. 30th. Attendees had some of the best costumes I've ever seen. Some of my favorites were grapes, Mario, "White Trash", flapper girl, sake, Speedy Gonzales, and Pirates!
Traffic Jams: Jay, my husband, is a radio DJ on the Eagle 810 radio show here in Tokyo. The station is on our base but it airs throughout Tokyo so that our fellow Far East bases can tune in. He plays top 40 hits, promotes base events, gives the weather and movie schedule, and entertains listeners every afternoon from 2-6. He does a fantastic job and I love to listen. Lately, I have got to voice characters on some the radio spots (AFN commercials). They play randomly on the air so sometimes I hear myself on the radio... it's really weird!
Hooters: The first Tokyo Hooters opened about three weeks ago. We were lucky to get in last weekend and enjoy some tasty wings, curly fries, and fried pickles! Japanese Hooters girls aren't quite as curvy as the American version but the guys didn't seem to mind. The funniest thing about the restaurant is that there are all of the signs that have "City Name Here" printed on them. Apparently, whoever put them up doesn't read English or didn't have the "TOKYO" inserts yet.
Japanese Shoes: Japanese people, like myself, have a serious affinity for shoes. Boots are especially popular this time of year. My goal is to work on my shoe collection while I am here beause the Japanese do shoes right!
Driving: Driving in Japan is a whole different game. Once you conquer driving on the left side of the road, you have to get used to driving in REALLY tight spaces and reading 3-10 road signs at once. To properly convey the tiny-ness of Japanese roads, I should probably explain that there are mirrors at most intersections so that you can see if traffic is coming on other sides. They also have flashing lights at the center of the intersection so that you can see that you are coming upon one with enough time to stop. If you are not getting the visual yet, imagine having to pull over at the end of someone's driveway so that the other car coming at you on the "two way" road can pass by. It's insane... my driveway in Texas was wider than many of the roads. Don't let me get started on the alleys ha ha!!
High Fashion: Fashion in Japan is essential. No sweatpants and t-shirts here. Everyone dresses like they just left a catalog shoot or something. For this reason clothes are very expensive, eclectic, flashy, tailored, and high quality. It's so cool to see what everyone else is wearing but it sometimes makes me feel like a slob!
Fun with Friends on Yokota Air Base: My new friends are my favorite part of Japan so far. We love to cook out, eat all you can eat pizza at the Enlisted Club, shop, explore Fussa (the town our base is in), watch movies, and party at home! I am so lucky to have met such great people and I can't wait to tell you more about our adventures.
The wilderness must be explored! Kah Kah Roar... Katrina :)
CoCo's Curry House: Before I visited Japan, I my only experience of curry was the smelly Cup-O-Noodles version that my college piano teacher ate during lessons. Now I have discovered Japanese curry, specifically curry from CoCo's curry house. It is a delicious treat! Basically, it's a spicy sauce similar to gravy that is served with rice and meat. The spicy-ness is rated 0-10. Jay will eat 10 but just the smell makes my eyes water. I stick with regular spicy (level 2).
Riding the Train: I love riding the train in Japan... well most days... it can get crazy crowed. It's a great place to watch people although I have come to realize, in Japan, it is not appropriate to stare. Being tall and very light colored in all respects, I thought that I would get a lot of looks but Japanese people don't want to invade your space so they keep their eyes on the ground. Most read, play cellphone games, or nap on the train. Unless the partygoers are out, it's usually quiet.
Yokosuka: The Yokosuka Naval Base has great shopping! If you are military and want to visit Japan, I would highly recommend Yokosuka. First of all, it's on the water! If that isn't enough, you might get lucky and see the USS George Washington, an enormous aircraft carrier. Finally, it has arguably the best shopping in the Far East. It reminded me of shopping at the outlet malls in the states.
Halloween: Our base, Yokota Air Base, has a large variety of fun activities every month. For Halloween, we were lucky enough to attend both the Monster's Ball on Oct. 23rd and the Monster's Bash on Oct. 30th. Attendees had some of the best costumes I've ever seen. Some of my favorites were grapes, Mario, "White Trash", flapper girl, sake, Speedy Gonzales, and Pirates!
Traffic Jams: Jay, my husband, is a radio DJ on the Eagle 810 radio show here in Tokyo. The station is on our base but it airs throughout Tokyo so that our fellow Far East bases can tune in. He plays top 40 hits, promotes base events, gives the weather and movie schedule, and entertains listeners every afternoon from 2-6. He does a fantastic job and I love to listen. Lately, I have got to voice characters on some the radio spots (AFN commercials). They play randomly on the air so sometimes I hear myself on the radio... it's really weird!
Hooters: The first Tokyo Hooters opened about three weeks ago. We were lucky to get in last weekend and enjoy some tasty wings, curly fries, and fried pickles! Japanese Hooters girls aren't quite as curvy as the American version but the guys didn't seem to mind. The funniest thing about the restaurant is that there are all of the signs that have "City Name Here" printed on them. Apparently, whoever put them up doesn't read English or didn't have the "TOKYO" inserts yet.
Japanese Shoes: Japanese people, like myself, have a serious affinity for shoes. Boots are especially popular this time of year. My goal is to work on my shoe collection while I am here beause the Japanese do shoes right!
Driving: Driving in Japan is a whole different game. Once you conquer driving on the left side of the road, you have to get used to driving in REALLY tight spaces and reading 3-10 road signs at once. To properly convey the tiny-ness of Japanese roads, I should probably explain that there are mirrors at most intersections so that you can see if traffic is coming on other sides. They also have flashing lights at the center of the intersection so that you can see that you are coming upon one with enough time to stop. If you are not getting the visual yet, imagine having to pull over at the end of someone's driveway so that the other car coming at you on the "two way" road can pass by. It's insane... my driveway in Texas was wider than many of the roads. Don't let me get started on the alleys ha ha!!
High Fashion: Fashion in Japan is essential. No sweatpants and t-shirts here. Everyone dresses like they just left a catalog shoot or something. For this reason clothes are very expensive, eclectic, flashy, tailored, and high quality. It's so cool to see what everyone else is wearing but it sometimes makes me feel like a slob!
Fun with Friends on Yokota Air Base: My new friends are my favorite part of Japan so far. We love to cook out, eat all you can eat pizza at the Enlisted Club, shop, explore Fussa (the town our base is in), watch movies, and party at home! I am so lucky to have met such great people and I can't wait to tell you more about our adventures.
The wilderness must be explored! Kah Kah Roar... Katrina :)
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Procrastination
One month ago, I moved to Japan to be with my husband, Jay. Before I left, my mom asked me to make a blog so that friends and family can keep up with our adventures in the Tokyo area. Because Jay is in the military, we have to do things differently in the interest of OPSEC... basically I have to be discreet about some details to avoid being a target for terrorism. That said, I want to tell you all about the beautiful country of Japan with it's rich culture, tasty dishes, and respectful people! Enjoy :)
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