Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Japanese Dog Treats
And this is why I buy AJ's treats online. Although I'm interested to know if he would eat them....
My Japanese iPhone
This is what my inbox looks like on my iPhone. I am constantly receiving text messages in Japanese, mostly from our carrier Softbank and our Wi-Fi box Fon, but I have no idea what they say. At first I was a bit confused, so I would go in and talk to the Softbank lady
, and she would smile and tell me not to worry. But I was a bit worried, since Sprint used to send us important messages regarding our account through text messaging. They have a cell phone kiosk on base, with English speaking saleswomen, to ease the communication barrier. While it was helpful having an English speaker, the process was still confusing and we left not understanding what we had signed. But we had new iPhones, so we were happy! I asked a lot of questions, and the woman just smiled and told me not to worry about it. In the end, we gave up and signed our contract (that we couldn’t read) because we figured everyone else was doing it. We had a laugh with the JAG about it later, because he felt the same way. He was asking questions that weren’t being answered so he finally just signed because everyone else was. The cell phone plans are opposite of those in the US. Our free minutes are from 1 am to 9 pm, and our calls are only free if we are calling other Softbank users. If we call any other number (which is most of Japan and on base), then we are charged 17 cents a minute. If we call to listen to our voicemail, we are charged 40 cents a minute, so we just don’t check our voicemail. Plus, we can’t figure out how to change it to English, so we aren’t really sure how to check it in the first place. We don’t get cell phone service in our house, or in any building on base, so the actual phone part of our iPhones isn’t that useful. Even so, we use Wi-Fi in the house to use the internet, and we get service out in town which allows us to use google maps GPS. This is the most useful app ever, and James and I would be lost without it (literally).
, and she would smile and tell me not to worry. But I was a bit worried, since Sprint used to send us important messages regarding our account through text messaging. They have a cell phone kiosk on base, with English speaking saleswomen, to ease the communication barrier. While it was helpful having an English speaker, the process was still confusing and we left not understanding what we had signed. But we had new iPhones, so we were happy! I asked a lot of questions, and the woman just smiled and told me not to worry about it. In the end, we gave up and signed our contract (that we couldn’t read) because we figured everyone else was doing it. We had a laugh with the JAG about it later, because he felt the same way. He was asking questions that weren’t being answered so he finally just signed because everyone else was. The cell phone plans are opposite of those in the US. Our free minutes are from 1 am to 9 pm, and our calls are only free if we are calling other Softbank users. If we call any other number (which is most of Japan and on base), then we are charged 17 cents a minute. If we call to listen to our voicemail, we are charged 40 cents a minute, so we just don’t check our voicemail. Plus, we can’t figure out how to change it to English, so we aren’t really sure how to check it in the first place. We don’t get cell phone service in our house, or in any building on base, so the actual phone part of our iPhones isn’t that useful. Even so, we use Wi-Fi in the house to use the internet, and we get service out in town which allows us to use google maps GPS. This is the most useful app ever, and James and I would be lost without it (literally).
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Chocolate Mushrooms
Okay, so these aren’t really mushrooms. They are just chocolate cookie treats shaped like mushrooms (yummy). These little fungi are by far my favorite treat in the Japanese candy aisle to date! So cute!
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Sushi-Go-Round
I never imaged my lunch involving a conveyor belt, but sitting in our booth at the local Sushi-Go-Round, that’s exactly what happened. As we sat down, I was mesmerized by the yellow and white plates slowly moving past me with bright oranges, reds, whites, and pieces of fish I couldn’t decipher sitting on perfect rectangles of rice. How fabulous! 
We pulled cups from the stand above the conveyor belt, and an old Japanese man sitting behind us motioned for us to get water out of the faucet at our table. We filled our tea cups with scalding hot water, and were then instructed to pour two scoops of green tea powder into the mizu (water), which he demonstrated for us. Hai, Domo arigato gozaimasu! Though he also laughed at me a few times, he was extremely helpful. I thought he was going to fall out of his seat laughing when I dropped a piece of sushi that didn’t quite reach my mouth from the chopsticks. I’m sure he told all of his friends about the funny American girl who couldn’t eat sushi with chopsticks. But, after he stopped laughing at me, he motioned for me to eat it with my hands. So I followed suit and found it to be much easier.
Sushi-Go-Rounds are fast food sushi restaurants, where you literally pick the sushi you want off of the conveyor belt. James, Cliff (one of James’ co-workers visiting from the states), and I enjoyed a fast-food sushi lunch before heading to
an office barbeque. While it’s not the best sushi you can get in Japan, it’s fast, cheap, and convenient. The best part about the Sushi-Go-Round is you can try something without having to order a lot of it. Each plate has one or two pieces of Sushi on it, depending on the type. And if you don’t like it, no worries! The sushi chef isn’t there to offend, so you can just leave it on the plate. It gives you the opportunity to be adventurous without having to spend a lot of money and without having to eat something you don’t like. The perfect combination for us! Our local Sushi-Go-Round is on the 2nd floor of the grocery store, and each plate is only 105 yen. That’s basically a dollar a plate. There are other things besides sushi on the conveyor belt, like sides and desserts, and those have different prices associated with them. At higher end Sushi-Go-Rounds, the color of the plate will coincide with the cost. When you have finished eating, you ring the bell for the waitress to come, and she counts the number of plates you have eaten. In her hand held device, she punches in the number, and out comes your bill. It is a must see in Japan, and I can’t wait to take all of our visitors to experience our local Sushi-Go-Round!
We pulled cups from the stand above the conveyor belt, and an old Japanese man sitting behind us motioned for us to get water out of the faucet at our table. We filled our tea cups with scalding hot water, and were then instructed to pour two scoops of green tea powder into the mizu (water), which he demonstrated for us. Hai, Domo arigato gozaimasu! Though he also laughed at me a few times, he was extremely helpful. I thought he was going to fall out of his seat laughing when I dropped a piece of sushi that didn’t quite reach my mouth from the chopsticks. I’m sure he told all of his friends about the funny American girl who couldn’t eat sushi with chopsticks. But, after he stopped laughing at me, he motioned for me to eat it with my hands. So I followed suit and found it to be much easier.Sushi-Go-Rounds are fast food sushi restaurants, where you literally pick the sushi you want off of the conveyor belt. James, Cliff (one of James’ co-workers visiting from the states), and I enjoyed a fast-food sushi lunch before heading to
an office barbeque. While it’s not the best sushi you can get in Japan, it’s fast, cheap, and convenient. The best part about the Sushi-Go-Round is you can try something without having to order a lot of it. Each plate has one or two pieces of Sushi on it, depending on the type. And if you don’t like it, no worries! The sushi chef isn’t there to offend, so you can just leave it on the plate. It gives you the opportunity to be adventurous without having to spend a lot of money and without having to eat something you don’t like. The perfect combination for us! Our local Sushi-Go-Round is on the 2nd floor of the grocery store, and each plate is only 105 yen. That’s basically a dollar a plate. There are other things besides sushi on the conveyor belt, like sides and desserts, and those have different prices associated with them. At higher end Sushi-Go-Rounds, the color of the plate will coincide with the cost. When you have finished eating, you ring the bell for the waitress to come, and she counts the number of plates you have eaten. In her hand held device, she punches in the number, and out comes your bill. It is a must see in Japan, and I can’t wait to take all of our visitors to experience our local Sushi-Go-Round!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Hase-dera Temple
In Kamakura, we visited our first Buddhist temple, Kaikozan Jisho-in Hase-dera, or simply Hase-dera temple. When we entered the gardens, I was blown away by the hydrangeas in bloom! 
We just so happened to be visiting during the hydrangea festival, and I saw variations of hydrangea I had never seen before. Vivid shades of purple surrounded the koi pond and covered the garden grounds. We wandered through the gardens, admiring the blooms of Japanese hydrangea and the meticulously kept gardens before finding our way to the bottom of the steps leading up to the temple. The temple sits on a hill, overlooking the ocean, and the gardens cover the base of the hill. As you walk up the steps, tiny statues line the hills, a dedication to children who have passed away. The closer we came to the top of the steps, the smell of incense began to fill the air (the holy smoke of Buddhist temples). I enjoy the smell, but it gives James a headache, so we didn’t stand next to the incense for very long.
The Hase-dera temple houses a statue of the Buddhist goddess of mercy. The statue was carved from a single tree, stands over 30 feet high, and is covered in gold (and has eleven heads). It is disrespectful to take photos within the temple, so I didn’t, and just observed what others were doing. Many people were praying in front of the statue, buying trinkets to commemorate their visit, and I believe buying fortunes. We didn’t stay inside very long, as seeing people praying to
a golden statue made me a bit uncomfortable. I kept seeing verses about the golden calf idol in my head, and decided to admire the architecture and gardens outside. I know that seems strange, and I respect others for having different beliefs, but gold religious statues are very foreign to James and I. I also wouldn’t want people who didn’t believe the same things as I did watching me pray in church, as though I was just a tourist attraction. There were other statues of smaller gods there as well, including the god of luck (I think) and another one I was shooed away from by a tiny Japanese woman before I had a good look. I was later told that a Japanese person making a big X across their chest doesn’t mean they are strongly telling you something, but it is similar to shaking your head no. I didn’t know that at the time, and thought that I was aggressively being told to leave the area.
The architecture and woodwork of the temple was incredible, as is the age of the statue, which is believed to have been carved in the 700’s. Being in Japan has really made me understand that the United States is a very young country. James and I have been all over the country visiting historic American sites, and we are continuously amazed at how much older everything is in Japan than in America. Another interesting aspect of the temple was the Shinto shrine that shared the temple grounds. Shintoism was the religion of Japan long before Buddhism was brought from China, and it remains very important in the lives of the Japanese. What I find interesting is the convergence of the two, as it is not uncommon to find a Shinto shrine at a Buddhist temple.
We just so happened to be visiting during the hydrangea festival, and I saw variations of hydrangea I had never seen before. Vivid shades of purple surrounded the koi pond and covered the garden grounds. We wandered through the gardens, admiring the blooms of Japanese hydrangea and the meticulously kept gardens before finding our way to the bottom of the steps leading up to the temple. The temple sits on a hill, overlooking the ocean, and the gardens cover the base of the hill. As you walk up the steps, tiny statues line the hills, a dedication to children who have passed away. The closer we came to the top of the steps, the smell of incense began to fill the air (the holy smoke of Buddhist temples). I enjoy the smell, but it gives James a headache, so we didn’t stand next to the incense for very long.The Hase-dera temple houses a statue of the Buddhist goddess of mercy. The statue was carved from a single tree, stands over 30 feet high, and is covered in gold (and has eleven heads). It is disrespectful to take photos within the temple, so I didn’t, and just observed what others were doing. Many people were praying in front of the statue, buying trinkets to commemorate their visit, and I believe buying fortunes. We didn’t stay inside very long, as seeing people praying to
a golden statue made me a bit uncomfortable. I kept seeing verses about the golden calf idol in my head, and decided to admire the architecture and gardens outside. I know that seems strange, and I respect others for having different beliefs, but gold religious statues are very foreign to James and I. I also wouldn’t want people who didn’t believe the same things as I did watching me pray in church, as though I was just a tourist attraction. There were other statues of smaller gods there as well, including the god of luck (I think) and another one I was shooed away from by a tiny Japanese woman before I had a good look. I was later told that a Japanese person making a big X across their chest doesn’t mean they are strongly telling you something, but it is similar to shaking your head no. I didn’t know that at the time, and thought that I was aggressively being told to leave the area.The architecture and woodwork of the temple was incredible, as is the age of the statue, which is believed to have been carved in the 700’s. Being in Japan has really made me understand that the United States is a very young country. James and I have been all over the country visiting historic American sites, and we are continuously amazed at how much older everything is in Japan than in America. Another interesting aspect of the temple was the Shinto shrine that shared the temple grounds. Shintoism was the religion of Japan long before Buddhism was brought from China, and it remains very important in the lives of the Japanese. What I find interesting is the convergence of the two, as it is not uncommon to find a Shinto shrine at a Buddhist temple.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Field Trip to Kamakura
Being new to the country, the Navy requires us to go through an Intercultural Relations Course where we learn the basic customs and manners of the country, including some language, and helpful things like how to use the train systems and order food at restaurants. It was a week long course, including a field trip on the fourth day of class. For the field trip, we had to plan where we wanted to go in small groups, and our group (James and two of his coworkers) decided to go see the Great Buddha in Kamakura. Kamakura is only about a 45 minute train ride away, yet it feels like you have traveled across the world. 
It was the first time I realized we were in a totally different country, in a place where the culture, beliefs, history, and tradition are entirely different from ours. In Ayase city, you notice the signs being in a different language, and a few things that are slightly different, but for the most part, it’s very similar to the US. People wear similar clothes, the stores are pretty much the same, and so are the roads, lights, and 7-11’s. Really, everything kind of feels like home. But when you start to venture out to the shrines and historical sites, the Japan you read about in books comes to life in front of your very eyes. This was definitely my experience during the field trip. It was very exciting! We only got lost once, trying to switch train lines, which somehow took us wandering around inside of a mall, and when we got off the train in Kamakura, we were transformed into a little oceanfront Japanese town. It seemed like we were worlds away from our congested metropolitan suburb. On our field trip, we had to do various things like interact with a local, visit a place and write about it, use a Japanese pay phone, and fill out a report sheet that discussed our experiences, impressions, and questions. We visited the Hasadera Temple, The Great Buddha, another small shrine, and a Soba noodle shop. There were many Japanese students on field trips as well, and I felt like we had been transformed to the 3rd grade (like many of these students) as we filled out our three page report sheet.
It was the first time I realized we were in a totally different country, in a place where the culture, beliefs, history, and tradition are entirely different from ours. In Ayase city, you notice the signs being in a different language, and a few things that are slightly different, but for the most part, it’s very similar to the US. People wear similar clothes, the stores are pretty much the same, and so are the roads, lights, and 7-11’s. Really, everything kind of feels like home. But when you start to venture out to the shrines and historical sites, the Japan you read about in books comes to life in front of your very eyes. This was definitely my experience during the field trip. It was very exciting! We only got lost once, trying to switch train lines, which somehow took us wandering around inside of a mall, and when we got off the train in Kamakura, we were transformed into a little oceanfront Japanese town. It seemed like we were worlds away from our congested metropolitan suburb. On our field trip, we had to do various things like interact with a local, visit a place and write about it, use a Japanese pay phone, and fill out a report sheet that discussed our experiences, impressions, and questions. We visited the Hasadera Temple, The Great Buddha, another small shrine, and a Soba noodle shop. There were many Japanese students on field trips as well, and I felt like we had been transformed to the 3rd grade (like many of these students) as we filled out our three page report sheet.
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Our “New” Ride
After a one-day class of memorizing Japanese road signs (Japanese Road Signs) and learning how to perform “goman” (apologies), in case we are involved in an accident, James and I took a test and received our Japanese driver’s licenses. Without every stepping foot in a car that drove on the other side of the road, James and I became professional drivers in Japan. And by professional, I mean professional. This means that if we get into an accident, we are more at fault than the other person, because we are experienced, professional drivers. Seriously. With 
our new licenses in hand, we began the car search. My eyes were set on a little Mercedes Benz, but it was a bit too expensive for us, and James convinced me that it wasn’t practical due to the fact that it only had two seats. Most of the cars available were minivans, and I definitely didn’t want one of those, so we began looking for something in between a two seater and a minivan! We ended up getting a 1998 Toyota Nadia, which wasn’t sold in the US, so I’m not sure anyone knows what it is. It’s a hatchback, which gives us plenty of room to pick up people and their luggage at the airport. (*Hint**Hint*) I don’t really like the rims on it (or lack thereof) but I do like the sunroof! It’s the perfect little car for us, and it will be our ride for the next three years. I also don't like that it beeps whenever you back up. This is a standard safety feature in Japanese cars, but it only beeps inside of the car, so the driver is aware that they are backing up. It always makes me think that something is wrong! If you want to know what it looks like to buy a car in cash….here it is! (Cash money) I had to take a picture! And this is minus our deposit. It is very strange driving on the other side of the road, and I find myself having to focus much more on driving than I ever had to in the US. Your entire spatial awareness shifts. I’m not really sure how to describe it, but it is definitely interesting. Sometimes in parking lots I forget which side of the road I am supposed to be on, and I have to recite the very useful phrase: “Keep your hiney to the liney.”
our new licenses in hand, we began the car search. My eyes were set on a little Mercedes Benz, but it was a bit too expensive for us, and James convinced me that it wasn’t practical due to the fact that it only had two seats. Most of the cars available were minivans, and I definitely didn’t want one of those, so we began looking for something in between a two seater and a minivan! We ended up getting a 1998 Toyota Nadia, which wasn’t sold in the US, so I’m not sure anyone knows what it is. It’s a hatchback, which gives us plenty of room to pick up people and their luggage at the airport. (*Hint**Hint*) I don’t really like the rims on it (or lack thereof) but I do like the sunroof! It’s the perfect little car for us, and it will be our ride for the next three years. I also don't like that it beeps whenever you back up. This is a standard safety feature in Japanese cars, but it only beeps inside of the car, so the driver is aware that they are backing up. It always makes me think that something is wrong! If you want to know what it looks like to buy a car in cash….here it is! (Cash money) I had to take a picture! And this is minus our deposit. It is very strange driving on the other side of the road, and I find myself having to focus much more on driving than I ever had to in the US. Your entire spatial awareness shifts. I’m not really sure how to describe it, but it is definitely interesting. Sometimes in parking lots I forget which side of the road I am supposed to be on, and I have to recite the very useful phrase: “Keep your hiney to the liney.”
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