Golden Week and Koinobori

We're in the middle of the biggest national holiday week in Japan. This is Golden Week and it encompasses several holidays all bumped up against each other. It kicked off on April 29th when they celebrated Showa Day, the former emperor's birthday. Next comes Constitution Memorial Day on May 3rd - this celebrates the Japanese Constitution which was put in place in 1947. May 4th is Greenery Day - the Japanese personal version of Earth Day where they celebrate nature. Finally, on May 5th they celebrate kodomono-hi (Children's Day). About two months ago they celebrated girl's day, so May 5th is all children's day, with an emphasis on boys (since they don't have their own exclusive day).
The best part of Children's Day celebration, for me, are the strands of colorful carp kites that are strung outside houses and across rivers. Families with boys hang colorful carp kites, called koinobori, outside their houses - one for each boy, with the biggest representing the oldest boy at the top. In Japanese culture, the carp (or koi) represents courage and perseverance, as the fish is known for its strength and determination as it swims against the current upstream. The carp kite symbolises each family's wish for their sons to grow up brave and strong.

Today my neighbor (Liz and Lydia) and Emmy and I went to go see a display of the koinobori hanging over a river that I had read about. Persevering through terrible directions, we found the river, but not the kites. Our adventurous spirit though , led us to find a beautiful river walk, and eventually, the koinobori! There were probably a couple hundred kites ranging in color and size.

Progression of losing a tooth

London lost tooth number four tonight! Under threat that Stevie would pull it, London tried to pull it out himself, but alas, Dad had to step in and yank it. I love his faces!

(Being a big boy and trying to get the tooth out himself.)

(Getting worried, Dad's threatening to pull it!)

(Stevie just pulled it!)

(All's well, Tooth Fairy coming tonight!)

More 'Copter Encounters

As a follow-up to our field trip to see the helicopters on Saturday, today we were treated to a fly over.  Right as the kids got home from school a huge "Phrog" flew directly over our house to land at the helipad at the hospital and then flew back over us after taking off.  Hmmm, did that pilot look just like our neighbor???

Field trip to see the whirly birds

Unless you are really up on your international news, you've probably never heard of Futenma Marine Corps Air Base.  To most of the world it's an unknown, but to the Japanese, it's the thorn in their side.  Futenma is one of the many American bases on Okinawa, but it's a piece of land that's in great contention for the Japanese.  They want it and we have it.

Anyways, enough of my International News update, today we went to Futenma for the first time, not for the protests, but because one of our neighbors who is a helicopter pilot in the Marines took us there to see the helicopters. 

It was a cool field trip for the kids (both young and old) as we got up close and personal with Hueys, Cobras, Sea Knights and CH46s (Phrogs). 

When you actually see inside these things you realize that it is a miracle that anybody makes it through a battle!  I would not want to be inside one of them even if it were just for a Sunday afternoon drive.  I can't imagine Stevie ever being rescued on a battle field by one - with his fear of flying he'd probably just say "Go ahead, I'm OK.  I'll stick it out here with the enemy!"

We did warn the kids before they got in the 'copters not to push any buttons - especially if there was one that said "start" or a red one that says "fire"!

Bowling with Gram Cracker

Last Friday Cannon requested to do "something fun" with Grammie as it was her last day in Okinawa. I was thinking something Japanese-y, something truly Okinawan, something to take advantage of the beautiful beaches of Okinawa. But "Something fun" for Cannon meant bowling. OK So off to the bowling alley we went ...

Turns out Grammie hasn't bowled in 40 years and at first she said she'd just watch, but three little nagging voices (none of which was mine!) Convinced her to don a stylish pair of bowling shoes and grab a ball.

This bowling alley had the fanciest scoring system I've seen - all computerized with your choice of background themes. There was even a way of measuring how fast your ball was going when it hit the pins. (Is 8.5 MPH good???)

And in addition to the standard bumpers (which could be electronically controlled to come up for specific players - usually the young ones in which we grouped Grammie!), They also had this metal ramp which the littlest players could use to roll their ball down. Emmy was a hoot as she quickly figured out this bowling thing and would not be assisted - at all. She would lug her 6-pound ball out to the ramp and hike it up onto the ramp before pushing it down the lane. Funny thing is , she bowled better than her brothers!

And Grammie, well for not having bowled for 40 years, she bowled a couple of strikes and even broke 100! Way to go Grammie!

Kid Games

Kids are funny, aren't they? We live on a hill that has an eclectic collection of kids of various sizes and ages, yet they all seem to get along. Start a game of dodge ball and kids from age 4 to 12 are out there humming the ball at each other and, miraculously, no one seems to get hurt.

I've noticed lately that this team comraderie flows from one game to the other. There seems to be a "sport of the week (or maybe month)" and I'm not sure how one game can seem to be the best thing since sliced bread one week and then suddenly be replaced by another. Lately, four-square has been the "in" game. Ah, yes, does that bring back memories? Remember cherry bombs? Well now there are all kinds of other rules - like "body language" (I think you have to hit the ball with something other than your hands?) and "snake eyes" (when you look at one kid but bounce the ball in another kids square) and Harry Potter (where you have to name off a character from the movie while bouncing the ball?).

There is always a crudely drawn square in the middle of the parking lot and if the sound of a ball bouncing is heard anywhere on the hill, out of the crevices come the kids calling there positions and who will be "king". They even recruit innocent, adult, child-less neighbors who might just be trying to get to their car. "Hey Ms. Alicia! Wanna play 4-square?" Before she knows it, Ms. Alicia is throwing a spinny ball against an innocent 5 year old and celebrating her victory before remembering that she was really on her way to the grocery store. Gotta watch those kids, they'll suck you in!

Yesterday, abruptly, the game-of-the-week changed - to collecting tadpoles.

Yes, look out innocent frog-youth, your days are numbered. The human-youth has figured out where you are and they are scooping you up faster than you can say boo (or is that ribbit?). For three hours after school today , my kids scooped up tadpoles and made habitats for them and accidentally spilled those habitats and made more habitats and asked me questions like, Do tadpoles bite? Will a red worm eat a tadpole? I, on the other hand, spent those same 3 hours fretting over whether my kids would pick up some strange parasite, telling them not to put their fingers in their mouths, and generally worrying about the tadpoles until I surrendered my mother hen feelings and decided that tadpole collecting was a normal, innocent childhood activity that would not inflict death and disease on my children (the tadpoles, on the other hand, might not be so fortunate ...)

Now, if I could just figure out what to do with all those containers of tadpoles left on my front porch ...

Fukushu-en Gardens

Yesterday Grammie, the kids and I visited China. Well, not really, but if you stopped for just a moment and looked around it was almost like being in China. Really we went to the Fukushu-en Chinese gardens in downtown Naha (the capital city) and they were amazing. An oasis in the middle of a sea of urban concrete. A breath of serenity in a bustling environ.

The gardens are walled off from the street and upon entering you don't see the gardens, but instead another wall. But peak just around that wall and it was like being in another world. There was a large pond with a patch of wild iris and a bridge and a huge waterfall cascading at the far end. Even the kids, who were complaining about going to a garden before we got out of the van, were entranced. (Maybe that's what was so peaceful about the place - the lack of whining???) Anyways, there were little nooks and crannies full of beauty around every turn. Mini-waterfalls,

bridges with sculptures of the Chinese zodiac,

(Grammie and London next to the Goat - their birth year symbol)

fish ponds,

walls with windows that led the eye to another point of beauty,

hills with stone steps, towering temples all in this space that was really quite small. What I wouldn't give to have one tiny part of those gardens in my garden at home.

The highlight for the kids was the big waterfall and the fish and turtles. They had those fish and turtles eating out of their hands, literally. So plentiful were the fish, and so distracted by the hopes of food, that the kidscould pet them - which thrilled the kids although I'm not sure the fish felt the same.

The big waterfall was an amazing structure for not only the cascade of water, but the fact that you could climb all behind it, even walk behind the waterfall itself. There were all kinds of twists and turns built out of rock and coral. It was an awesome place for a game of hide and seek!

After the gardens we took Grammie to Kokusai Street. Kokusai in Japanese means international and this is the street full of touristy shops for all the international visitors who come to Okinawa. But tucked at the far end of the street is an indoor market that sells everything from sweet potato cookies to clothes to vegetables to herbal remedies. It's an eclectic, fun-filled place to meander along. Of course the best part is the meat and fish market which I've written about before. The place lands you in a state of sensory overload - the sights, smells and sounds of the market can be overwhelming, especially combined with the bustling of too many bodies in a tight space. It's a long way from the meat counter at Wal-Mart. But Grammie persevered and ended up buying what we think was squirrel fish from one of the counters for us to fix for dinner. Whatever kind of fish it was, it tasted delicious!

(Ice cream on Kokusai)

(my beni-imo [purple sweet potato] Okinawan donut)

Eco 35

While we were running the gauntlet of shops at Okinawa World, we stumbled upon a store that was called Eco 35. By all intents and purposes it looked like a place that sold coffee (not brewed, but coffee beans and ground coffee). We gathered , to the best of our ability (everything was in Japanese, despite this being a tourist attraction), that you could sample the coffee for free, so we took a seat at a table and ordered either "hard roast" or "medium roast" . The server was super nice, but spoke barely any English. She really wanted to communicate with us but there was a definite language barrier! She seemed to address most of her statements to me, which I tried desperately to instinctively know what she meant, but most times fell short.

Anyways, our coffee came, we sampled, it was ok, but by this time we felt obliged to buy a bag of coffee, which we did. While at the register, the lady whips out this binder notebook. It looks like a sign up for a mailing list? Stevie boldly put down our address and email address and then she asked him how to say his name. She then wrote this next to the info in Japanese. Then, and this is where the story starts getting strange, she asks us another question and motions to her cell phone. Does she want our phone number??? I'm thinking a phone conversation is not going to go much better than this live conversation. But then she shows us a photo that she's taken with her cell phone, so we say ahhh, she wants to take our picture (not that unusual of a request in this country). So we pose, or are posed, since she positioned us in front of the Eco 35 sign, and smile for our picture.

Then, as if that wasn't enough, she hands London, Cannon and Stevie bags of coffee and motions for them to hold them up. Then she asks us to make the "peace sign" (all, and I mean ALL Japanese take their photos making the peace sign). So, laughing hysterically, we comply. I think Dr. Tom was laughing the hardest as he skipped the photo to take a photo of the lady taking our photo!

So we left the store and Okinawa World wondering what the heck had just happened. We imagined our picture being used for advertisement, like we'd see it on a billboard or on the side of a bus. Drink Eco 35 because these crazy Americans do !

This morning, while brewing my Eco 35 coffee and still intrigued by the scenario from yesterday, I look at the business card in the bag and decide to look at their website. Hmmm, they have a blog. Ha, wouldn't that be funny if our photo made it to the blog. Ahhh, look who made it to cyberspace !!!!!

http://sooeido.ti-da.net/

Okinawa World

So one of the sites that we've yet to visit is a little touristy attraction called "Okinawa World". It's supposed to be a representation of all things Okinawan - awamori (a sake-like drink), black sugar, glass blowing, Eisa dancers, etc. The attraction also has a snake museum and show attached to it and the second longest cave system in Japan - a strange combination, but definately not the strangest we've encountered. Anyways, we headed down to Okinawa World on Sunday with Dr. Tom and Grammie in tow to check it out.

Steve and I let Grammie and Dr. Tom take the kids into the snake show as we just saw the snakes in Thailand, and really, how many boa constrictors do you really want hanging around your neck in any given year? They thoroughly enjoyed the show (according to the kids, even though the show was all in Japanese), had their obligatory boa picture taken, and saw live habus (of the recent Obi encounter fame).

After the show, we descended into the caves which really were quite impressive.

The cave was really long with tons of stalagmites and stalactites of all shapes and sizes.

And I have to say, it's the only cave system I've been to that has an escalator to take you back up to the surface!

The exit of the caves dumped us at the backside of the "Kingdom" through which we were funeled like cattle. The attractions, unfortunately, were few, but the shops were definitely plentiful! After every craft or Okinawan specialty there was a store selling the wares through which you had to walk to get to the next attraction. Dr. Tom, Stevie and Grammie liked the plentiful tasting stations of awamori, sake and habu sake. I thought we'd have to roll them out of there.

The funniest stop we made though needs a blog entry all its own. Look for "Eco 35" coming soon!

Okuma

We just got back from a fun overnight trip to Okuma which is a "military resort" on the north end of the island.  Stevie, the kids and I went to this resort for a few nights at the beginning of December and had a blast with some old-fashioned family fun.  The kids thought Grammie would enjoy the place and I've been wanting to show her some of the fabulous scenery that the north end of the island provides so we booked a night at the inn.  I say "resort" because although that is the official title, it's not a resort like you would think of - we were not living in the lap of luxury - but the basic accomodations are supplemented by amazingly beautiful beaches and lots of activities.  Before we were barely through the gate, the kids had me stopping at the go-carts to make a reservation!  We checked in, found our room then headed back to have a go at the go-carts.  Cannon and London drove together until Cannon crashed into the center tire bumper and then London abandoned ship saying Cannon was a lousy driver!  Meanwhile, Grammie tootled around the course while Emmy and I lapped her 5 times in 5 minutes!  The operator of the carts took pity on London and took him for a special run after we were through!

After the go-carts, we went for a beautiful nature hike over the cliffs and down onto a fabulous beach.  We had a great time collecting shells and Grammie found out that she could throw a ball with the boys.

We returned to our room before heading over to the restaurant for dinner.  After dinner we went through the maze made out of trees - kind of interesting in the dark, but with a borrowed flashlight it was fun!

This morning brought rainy skies and we thought we were going to be out of luck for any more fun, but alas, the skies cleared during breakfast and we were able to sit on the beach for a while and rent some bikes to cruise around the peninsula.  Cannon and London rode some fun little dune buggy bikes while Grammie, Emmy and I had the big buggy!

Afterward, I drove Grammie up to Hedo Point, which is the furthest point north on the island.  The drive there is amazing enough as the road runs right along the coast, through tunnels and twisting with the coastline, but Hedo Point is also amazing.  This is the point that the East China Sea and the Pacific blend and the waves and turbulent waters are mesmorizing.  The sea is a deep blue, but as the waves crest to break, the tops of the waves turn an artic frost blue.  The resulting foam reminded Grammie of melted vanilla ice cream rolling back out to sea to be churned up again and tossed up into another wave.