I Write the Songs

...or at least sing the songs!  Yes, that was Grammie on Saturday night when we took her out on the town to a karaoke bar.  Now, if you don't know my mom well, you might not know that she has a song for everything.  Start a conversation about some topic and she'll bust out into a song that has to do with it.  So I thought that karaoke would be perfect for her - and it was!

I've written about other karaoke experiences we've had before, but in case you weren't paying attention, Japanese karaoke isn't like American karaoke.  In Japan, every group gets their own room complete with two mikes, their own TV and sound system, computers to input songs, and of course a giant song book.

The hardest part of karaoke is figuring out how to use the computer.

BIG book of songs

It took Grammie just a little bit to get the hang of it and then she was off and running.  She sang Elvis and the Beatles and Barry Manilow and a little Taylor Swift, Jewel and Bon Jovi to boot!  I think she had a great time!

Making our selections

Mike and Kelly singing "You're the One"

Not sure what the conversation was here, but it's a funny picture!

Stevie explaining the "Dam" book.

I think she's having fun.

Really getting into it now -dancing and singing!

Mother and Daughter

Liz and Don - Liz has a beautiful voice

Araha Park

It was a beautiful spring afternoon yesterday, Stevie was home from work early, and London was off school early so we (read I) decided to walk to pick up Emmy from school.  It's a little too far for some of the gang to go the whole way so we drove to Sunset beach and then walked along the sea wall the rest of the way.  London had a great time biking and I dragged Emmy's bike so she could ride home too.

Along the way is Araha Park otherwise known as Pirate Ship Park by the Americans.  It's a really fun playground for the kids that sits right on the beach.  What a great way to spend an afternoon!

At the end of the walk, near where we parked the van, is a spa that has a natural sulfur hot spring outside.  It feels wonderful on your tootsies after walking that far!

Date Night

Thanks to Grammie, Stevie and I were able to escape for a little date on Wednesday night.  I've been wanting to check out a new sushi restaurant I'd heard about but before going for dinner we went down to the sea wall to watch the sunset...

Then we headed to Newport Sushi for some yummmmmmmyyyyyy sushi.  Really different kinds like the Cotton Boat - little rice, lots of crab topped with shrimp

Or the Monkey Ball - crab stuffed inside a shitake mushroom then tempura deep fried

Or the San-O roll - seared salmon, jalepeno and green onions over a California roll

Is your mouth watering yet???  Stevie's was - he gave it the double peace sign

Cute little chopstick rest...

Okuma with Grammie, part 2

So it's taken me a few days to get the second half of our trip to Okuma on the blog, but here goes...

On Tuesday, the weather turned nice - some sun and less wind - so the first order of the days was to rent some "buggies".  The last time Grammie joined us at Okuma we rented bikes and the kids did not forget that so it had to be done again.  We rented one "speed racer" bike for the boys to take turns on while the other 4 of us were to ride on a four-seater.  I didn't realize until after we rented the bikes that the four-seater was for two people peddling, and two people riding in front.  Cannon was trying to be gallant and offer to peddle for Grammie so she could ride, but boy did Grammie look funny stuck in the front of the bike with Emmy!  Everyone in the parking lot was laughing at her!  Of course, it was me and Cannon who weren't laughing after about five minutes of peddling Her Highness with Princess Emmy next to her!  Well, it was fun and we had a good laugh.

After our bike excursion, we tried to find another hike but ended up going on a long twisty mountain road that led to no where.  We did find what we thought was a hike, but after about 10 minutes of going strait down hill, we decided it might not be such a good idea to continue.  Mom and I were thinking of the uphill return - and I must admit I was a little scared of a stray habu snake crossing our path.  Habu snakes are very poisonous and very common on Okinawa and with this being the first warm day in a while my head was full of visions of them sunning themselves on the path or falling out of the trees (known to happen!)

Instead of our hike, we found a wonderful nature center that focused on the indigenous wildlife in this area of Okinawa.  There is a species of bird, the Okinawan Rail (or the "famous bird" as Emmy called it), which was just discovered in 1984 and is on the endangered species list.  We had been hoping for a sighting of one of these birds during our stay, but only found a model at the nature center.

Not sure why this Okinawan Rail is lifting a dumb bell, but had to take a picture!

The Okinawan Rail

The day ended by one last short hike to a part of Okuma which is truly beautiful, especially at sunset.  Grammie just loves cliffs and crashing waves and I think I could have left her here all night!

Career Day

Friday was Career Day at London’s elementary school. Not an unusual thing to have at school, right? When I picked him up from school I asked him what his favorite career was. Not an unusual question, right? It was his answer that was unusual… sumo wrestling! It was another reminder that we’re not in Kansas anymore!

Here’s London teaching Cannon how to sumo wrestle. Apparently he was taking good notes!

Okuma with Grammie

One of Grammie’s requests before she came over was that we visit Okuma while she’s here. Great! Any excuse to go to Okuma, the military resort in the north of the island, is fine by me. So I made a reservation and here we are. Stevie, unfortunately, was on call when we came on Sunday and after an inundation of term pregnant women from the mainland due to the earthquake and tsunami and radiation, he gratefully took the opportunity to stay home and have a quiet break.

We arrived Sunday afternoon and had a nice stroll and play on the beach. We were searching for the trampoline that they used to have here when we found the playground and I challenged Grammie to her first game of tetherball. Well, after 67 years, Grammie has found her champion sport! She rocked at tetherball beating everyone multiple times. Of course it probably helped her that I was laughing so hard that I was crying. Who knew tetherball could be so fun?

Beating Emmy

Beating Cannon

Beating London

Monday we headed over to the restaurant to fill our bellies on biscuits and gravy, pancakes and other champion American breakfast foods for breakfast. Then we drove a short distance to a fabulous hike that I haven’t done in 18 months. This wonderful trail leads you up and down the steep sides of the northern Okinawan landscape, over gorges and out to a gushing waterfall called Hiji Falls. Although the weather was too cool for the beach, it was perfect for a strenuous hike through the hills.

A little artistic photography mixed in with my hike...

Hiji Falls

Emmy was a trooper on this hike - these were not easy steps, but she took them like a champ!

Go Grammie, go!

After our hike, we headed down the road to the Bashofu Weaving Center. Bashofu weaving is a traditional handmade craft that has been a part of Okinawan culture for centuries. This tiny little center in the middle of a tiny little village is a reminder of how life used to be. They showed us a video (in English!) which really explained the process as well as giving us an insight into traditional life. I think this is the first time I’ve actually been anywhere in Japan and had a very eloquent and informative video shown to me in English. I wish there had been others because I really understand now instead of piecing history together through poorly translated sub-titles and pictographs.

The short version of bashofu weaving is that women of this village use banana plants (bashofu) to make fibers to make thread to weave into cloth to make traditional kimono and other items. Intricate “splash” patterns are designed and the thread is dyed in specific places using one of two natural dyes (indigo or brown) to create the patterns when woven on a loom. It was unbelievably time intensive to make the finished material and I now have an appreciation of why the price is so high. Unfortunately, the signs were clear that there was to be no photography, so I have nothing but words to share with you.

And the Winner is...

CANNON COATS!!!!

Yes, he won the Okinawa District Science Fair!  His presentation and research on the effect of UVC light on E-coli blew them out of the water!  We are all so very, very proud of him.

There's our winner!

The District Science Fair was held on Kadena at the Community Center and displayed 85 entries from American elementary school students on the island.  Of the 85 entries, 50 of the boards were prepared by fifth graders so the awards were for 1st through 5th place.  But our Cannon took the top prize!  The judges were so impressed by him that one came up and asked for his picture with Cannon!  We have a celebrity!  After the winners were announced, the student had to tell everyone what their research was about and what they learned.  Here's what Cannon had to say:

Unfortunately, the winners were not even presented with a ribbon or a certificate from the District, which has me brooding.  I will correct that for Cannon, but the District will also be hearing from me on Monday...  Is this a commentary on the importance of science in our society?