February: Classes start, Visitors, Sushi-Go-Round, Okinawa Zoo

I started grad school classes in February. It's been several years since I finished my undergraduate degree, so getting my academic brain back in action took a few weeks. I'm taking two classes this term, one with UMUC and one with SNHU. I'm loving being back in school, though the thought of homework is always in the back of my mind. But thankfully I have enough time at work while I'm proctoring tests to do all my homework, so I don't actually have to do any at home at all! It's working out quite well.

Our college friend Gem visited for a few days. She teaches English in Taiwan, which is just a short flight away. She and two other girls needed to renew their visas, so they stayed with us and we showed them the island.

A new favorite place of ours is the sushi-go-round. This particular one is called Hamazushi. You select what item you want from the screen, and a few minutes later, it appears on the belt and you snag it. Or else you can simply grab any of the plates that are not marked as reserved. At the end of the night, you pay based on how many plates are stacked on your table. Such a fun way to have a meal! They even have hamburger sushi. 

In late February, we spent a day at the zoo with the other RPs. They're pretty good at getting us to drive them wherever they want to go. But we hadn't been to this zoo, so we were happy to go.

January: Grad school, Legos, Commissary trouble, and Lysander

Hi everyone! I'm sure you've figured out by my absence that we have been very busy! I'll catch you up.

January was an interesting combination. Nathan worked a lot over the New Years holiday, even all the way to midnight. We literally rang in the new year with a giant bell as part of a service.

The big news for me was being accepted into graduate school. I'll be studying Higher Education Administration with Southern New Hampshire University, as well as taking a few Distance Education Leadership classes with my employer, UMUC (gotta love free tuition). I've been considering grad school for two years now, but moving overseas changed a lot of my plans. I've been actively applying since last summer and was turned down more than once, so this is a triumph for me. I should be able to finish the degree before I leave island.

In January, we had fun trying some new things, including a Lindy Hop swing dance lesson taught by those at Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology. Danced with a room full of PhD candidates! We spent an afternoon messing around with Legos, cameras, and computers to make a comic book page. It was a neat combination of hobbies. 

For several weeks (that turned into months), the commissary- our word for on-base grocery store- has been struggling with stocking the shelves. There were strikes in the shipping ports, so we were unable to get a lot of fresh items. It was a little freaky, but there are always the Japanese grocery stores we shop at with translation apps. 

One amazing addition was Lysander, our ball python. His 

owner was looking for a new home for him, and I gladly brought him home. We absolutely love him. He is very calm and likes to explore.

March, Part 6: Churami Aquarium

The last day of vacation touring was spent at Ocean Expo Park, just the aquarium part. We had been here before, but it always deserves posting a few pictures. We managed to catch a dolphin show, which was fantastic. 

And that was March! Obviously there was a lot going on, but our island touring was the focus of the month.

this guy is about three feet long

 the aquarium is famed for its giant tank, hosting three whale sharks. that thing is every bit as big as it looks. 

they had a small whale in their dolphin tank...

March, Part 5: Whale Watching, Pineapple Park, Neo Park

Wow, really far behind here. 

We came home from White Beach on Friday, March 14th. After a weekend relaxing from all that vacation, we headed to a harbor in Naha. We had signed up for a whale watching tour about a month before, and I had been anticipating it even since. Humpback whales spend about two months every spring around the island, and I had heard great things about taking a boat tour to see them. We were not disappointed. We boarded a two-level boat, along with Japanese, French, and German passengers. We spent about an hour out on the water, watching schools of dolphins. At last we spotted a whale, or possibly several different ones, as I could not tell them apart. It was breathtaking, being so close to such a large creature. 

This was a long and slightly sunburning day, but very rewarding. After this, we went to a Japanese McDonalds for the first time. And yes, they are different, evidenced by the fact that I got a shrimp burger and melon soda. Also that the burgers look exactly as pictured. None of those squashed meals here!

dolphin midair 

a humpback breaching 

and the tail

Wednesday, March 19th, we went two places. The first was Pineapple Park, a tourist attraction set up to show you around a pineapple farm and give you a chance to view the many pineapple products made on the island. We got to walk around and ride a small cart through the fields, and also sampled fresh pineapple and pineapple pound cake. Okinawan pineapples are simply amazing. The flavor of the pineapples shipped in to the commissaries doesn't begin to compare!

one of the fields

a baby pineapple

The next stop was Neo Park, which was an open-style zoo. We wandered along trails and through large enclosures, watching, photographing, and petting many types of animals, mostly birds. There are lots of pictures from this day, so email me or look at the Facebook album to see more.

we took a train ride around the facility before touring it on foot

mama and baby lemur

 turtles, as always

 there were lots of different birds, all kept together, that we could walk right up to. this shot is from about two feet away.

they were easily fooled into thinking leaves were food. this bird's bill was wider at the bottom than the top.

for the life of me, I can't remember what these are called. they roamed freely with the peacocks and liked cabbage.

March, Part 4: Shopping around/ E5 Exam/ Birthday!

Wednesday, March 12. This was the day before Nathan's E5 exam, and as he wanted to get in some last minute studying, we kept our activities to a minimum. We did go out for a little while in the afternoon to stretch our legs, stopping at the Ikea of Okinawa, Nitori, to get some things for the house. We also got some scarves and a vest at a clothing chain called Mac House, our first time going in one. And lastly, we wandered through a chain called Don Quixote, a giant store that has, well, basically everything. Clothes, blankets, shoes, jewelry, kitchen appliances, TVs, and everything else they could throw in, following typical Japanese style. This was a low-key day, most of it being spent with Nathan in front of his computer.

Thursday, March 13. My 23rd birthday! Nathan left around 5am to drive the hour to Camp Shields, straight across the island from White Beach. I slept ad hung out in the cabin until he came back, bearing flowers, cake, and gifts. We spent the afternoon in American Village. The whole day was a blast.

Dr. Suess Converses. He knows me so well.

 New year, new hair, compliments of Nathan's Salon.

 Dr. Fish. They eat away old skin and tickle like mad.

 Dinner was shabu shabu, named for the swishing sound the meat makes as you cook it in the broth.

The view from the Ferris wheel

Frozen yogurt at Partyland. They have exotic flavors like royal milk tea, mango, and aceola, plus Okinawan cookies and other local toppings.

Nathan's

 Mine

 Super fun birthday :)

Ocean Expo Park Part 2: Tropical Dream Center

(Last posts about January. Slowly catching up.)

On the northern end of the island, near the city of Nago, is an area called Ocean Expo Park. It covers a rather large area and contains several different sites, including the Churaumi Aquarium, several gardens and arboretums, a native Okinawan village, and a museum. On this trip, we visited the one of the arboretums, called the Greenery Kingdom, and the Tropical Dream Center, a large indoor/outdoor garden walk, featuring hundreds of orchids and other flowers and an observation tower. Again, another pictorial post. The photos aren't in order, but in this case, it doesn't really matter.

the orchids were mostly kept indoors

the orchids looked like they were covered in glitter

the observation tower. you took an elevator up several stories, then climbed stairs the rest of the way.

 and the view