"Professional Driver"... HA!

Well, this week has certainly been eventful. Wednesday I took my Japanese driver's class and test (the same one Hubby took and passed with flying colors the previous Friday). I scored 100% the written portion! Though I credit much of that to my husband who warned me what to watch out for and guided me in my studying. I also passed the driving portion. Even with the entire test being administered to me in Japanese, since the instructor was relieved to have a Japanese speaker in the driver's seat for a change.  That, I did on my own.  So I am proud of that.  And in just half a day, my status in Japan was upgraded to that of "professional driver," since all licensed drivers here are considered professionals.

All this in time for the arrival of our new (used) car. A silver 2003(?) Honda Fit four door hatchback(?). Obviously I know my vehicle quite well, all the more so because the entire instruction manual is in kanji-tastic Japanese. So far from said manual I have learned the car has a dashboard, and the coolant light comes on (though the critical portion of that warning/explanation/suggested maintenance was in kanji so "it comes on" is literally the only part I got).

The very next day I was tasked with getting the parking stickers for our new car from the pass office, and with getting familiar driving around base. I made a wrong turn trying to get to the pass office, thus spent some time driving around lost and trying to just focus on staying left, following signs, and being courteous and cautious toward other cars driving around. I was so focused on this, in fact, that I ended up too far left at a curb and as I made my turn into the intersection, went "THUD! boom. rattle grind rattle rattle." Oooooh yes, a flat tire. FIVE MINUTES into my career as a "professional driver" in Japan.

Luckily (and I mean really luckily) it happened right next to the Autoport on base, so I parked, went in, asked them to fix it, and they did. It was, I kid you not, 35 minutes from "THUD" to "Here are your keys back. That will be $135, please." Truly miraculous. I got to the pass office, got the stickers, drove back to the Navy Lodge, and spent some time swearing I would never ever ever ever ever ever get behind the wheel of a car in Japan again. Of course I know I will have no choice but to drive the super narrow streets of this land. But it was a nice thought nonetheless.

Hubby was amazing about the whole thing. Very kind and understanding and encouraging-ish in that "you HAVE to drive again soon" sort of way. But he didn't get mad and that was the best thing. He very patiently asked me to be more careful.

Japan, however, decided to add insult to injury. Later in the evening we (and by "we" I mean Hubby) drove down to central Sasebo for dinner. I was still despondent and shaky from the day's events. As we were walking along the sidewalk, I tripped in a very public, noticeable, toe stubbing, awkward squawking, arm-flailing sort of way. I barely kept myself from actually hitting the ground. Hubby asked immediately if I was okay. I just frowned, nearly in tears, and said, "I can't even get WALKING in Japan right!"

I am already too tall for many doorways and ceilings here. My feet are too big to even fit into what they call an XXL size shoe here. I love this country, but I have decided it is most definitely not on my side spatially.

Sunday Sightseeing

The day began with the realization we were out of milk, out of eggs, and out of bread.  This made breakfasting a very difficult proposition.  I did, however, find several apples and a bunch of grapes in the fridge.  So decided to make fruit salad.  Not having lemon juice, and not wanting to use mayonnaise, I settled on using the contents of one vanilla pudding cup.  For a MacGyver-ed breakfast, it ended up being pretty tasty.  Everyone enjoyed it. :)

With food in our tummies we ventured off into the wilds of Sasebo, and finally decided to try heading all the way up Yumihari-san (Mt. Yumihari) to the observatory at the mountain's peak.  The drive up the narrow mountain roadways lined with cars and stores and houses and people was definitely... interesting.  Filled with that same thrilling, slightly afraid for your life feeling you get on rickety wooden roller coasters.  Hubby did an incredible job navigating his way through the labyrinth, though.  For only having had his license two full days, he has been driving like a pro.  Frankly, how they fit some of these houses into their plots is nothing short of extraordinary.  I doubt anyone knows how to use space wisely like the Japanese.

The first 1/2 of the drive was spent focusing on the streets and all the things with which we did not wish to collide.  But we suddenly glanced to the left, about halfway up the mountain, and gasped.  Sasebo had never looked so beautiful to us.  We knew the view could only get better the higher up we went.  Sure enough, about 4/5 of the way up, we ended up a bit more on the western side of the mountain, and saw the 99 Islands (Kujukushima).  From that point it was just a race to get somewhere we could park, so we could start taking pictures.  We got to the observatory, and this is what we saw.

Aria following Daddy up the steps to the top of the observation area.

Aaaaand now she's leading the way.  It was such a beautiful day, as you can see from the bright blue sky.

The base and inlet from the top of Yumihari-san.

Daddy pointing out parts of downtown Sasebo to Aria.

Kujukushima with The Terrace resort resting just below where we were on the mountain.

Downtown Sasebo, WAAAAAY down below us.

Stone steps leading down the mountain to the resort.

A poem carved into polished marble stones.

"On every one of the 99 Islands
the evening glows,
Angelers' bell peals
Sounding the time
for evening prayer"

Aria posing on a rock, looking out toward a throng of adoring fans that had recently passed by.  No joke. At this point I had separated from Hubby and Aria because nature had called.  I lost track of where they had gone, so I wandered about for a bit, when suddenly I heard a chorus of "kawaiiiii" coming from about 30 feet away, and rounded a corner to find a gaggle of Japanese tourists marveling at our daughter.  They had come on a tour bus to see this beautiful national park, and appreciate the vista; but instead spent time focusing on our blonde, blue-eyed kiddo as if she were the next Shirley Temple. At least it makes her very easy to find if she ever wanders off.  From now on, I will just follow the exclamations of kind-hearted and excessively complimentary tourists.

The view of Atago-san (Mt. Atago) from the observation area.  Our new home (hopefully, if paperwork goes well Tuesday), is located about a mile or two as the crow flies from the base of that mountain.  So you can see our neighborhood, or Cho, and the surrounding Cho's (Atago, Ainoura, Ono, etc.) in this picture.

This is a cat, I assume feral (though it seemed surprisingly comfortable around people) who came by to say hello before majestically walking away through the bamboo like a miniature tiger.  I entertain myself with the thought he or she is one of the guardians of the mountain.  Or just a cute cat.

A tour bus, upon which, rode many humans.  Thus, it was fittingly named "Human Bus."  

..... sigh -_-

After we spent a decent amount of time at the mountain top, we headed back down and found ourselves very close to where our new house would be.  This was an especially exciting discovery, because it means it's only 10 minutes of driving to either reach the 99 Islands, or to reach the top of Yumihari-san.  I am getting more and more excited about our new home by the day.  For friends and family who come visit, this means we are accruing a nice list of things to show you and places to take you.  :)

And just for fun, here is a pic Aria took when she stole my phone.

A Few Foodventures

Forgive me in advance if these food posts are a bit out of order.  I am already starting to forget which day we ate what.  With that caveat, here are some pictures and delightful moments of culinary adventure from this week.

For starters, one evening pretty early in the week, we were feeling particularly lazy (and like wearing comfy pants).  Thus we decided to eat in the hotel room.  I made Spam and rice.  Hubby made Beanee Weenees (that was the spelling on the can, though my default would be to use an "ie" instead of an "ee").  While cooking it the pot kept getting hot and bubbling no matter how low we turned the heat... just scorching the various ingredients in the Beenee Weenees.  We would scrape the bottom of the pot, saying "I think that's bean," "no, wait, that's gotta be weenie."  

So we established a new cooking game, called "Guess That Residue."  Fun stuff.  

Oh, and I set off the smoke alarm when I put soy sauce in my Spam pan.  Woops.

Thursday, we went to the Harbor View Club (an NCO club type thing of sorts, except not just for NCO's) for Mongolian Barbecue night!  Let me start by saying "YUM!"  My food was tasty.  Hubby, on the other hand, severely misjudged the size of the bowl in which he put all his raw ingredients.  He returned to the table with a bowl heaped to the very top with... well mostly meat, to be honest.  They charged $0.65 per ounce, and he paid over $20 for his bowl.  Just to give you an idea.  And just to be clear, they weigh the bowl and charge you BEFORE noodles or rice or any seasonings are added.

I have to admit I teased him a little bit (a lot).  But I caught right back up with him on the gluttony scale when it came time for dessert, as I had three cups of soft serve ice cream.  In my defense, there were three different toppings I had to try (blueberry, peach, and chocolate), and I didn't want to co-mingle them.

Anyway, I am pretty sure I heard Aria say something like "you two have embarrassed me."  Or at the very least, I am pretty sure she was thinking it.

Friday, we were looking for a kaiten-zushi ("sushi go round") place but after much frantic terrified driving we gave up and ended up at Mos Burger... which, it turned out, was about .25 km from the kaiten-zushi place.  Sigh... 

In any case the burgers were interesting.  The Mos Burger itself has a white American style cheese and what I believe is spaghetti sauce bolognese on it.  Either that or it was really weak chili. I had the Teriyaki Burger, which was good enough to fill my empty stomach.

Having finally found the kaiten-zushi place, we returned today, for lunch.  And it was glorious.  Hubby was in absolute heaven, with all kinds of unrecognizable but delicious raw fish delicacies gliding by on the a conveyor belt.  There was even one nigiri that had beef carpaccio on it.  He was a big fan of that one.  As for me, I was enthralled with all the cakes and "purin" (custard pudding/flan) that went by.  Whatever.  Don't judge.  We all get our calories different ways.  And both Hubby and I worked out this morning.

They had green tea powder and a hot water spigot at every table, so you could just help yourself to instant, delicious green tea as often as you liked.  And in the spirit of Japanese super technology, the final total cost (calculated by the # of plates you emptied), was scanned into some handheld device, then scanned onto a barcoded card, which was then scanned at the register so you could pay.  Very fun and push-button tastic.

After much exploration and driving about Shinden-cho, where we hope to be living soon, we headed back to downtown Sasebo for a burger.  A legendary burger known as the "Sasebo Burger."  Several places sell them, so we went with Log Kit which was very close to base.  

 

Log Kit was a garish but delightful place made of wood, in log cabin cantina fashion.  The employees were very fast and hardworking, perhaps powered (a la Samson) by the fun hats they were forced/privileged to wear.

Now, the Sasebo Burger consists of a beef patty, tomato, lettuce, onion, mayo, and cheese like any cheeseburger.  But then they add a fried egg, and bacon to it.  THAT makes it the artery clogging monstrosity of delicious guilt that it is.  Hubby partook of one, and allowed me a couple bites.  I hate to admit how yummy it really was.

What's worse, is that the onion rings at Log Kit were also really good.  But the onion inside the ring was so incredibly thin.  Unless the onions in Japan are just really differently layered... the only other logical explanation I can find is that they slice the onion to make the ring... then take a circular cookie cutter the exact size of the ring, to slice said ring into two thinner rings.  And the problem is, that is not logical at all.  Which is probably a good indication that's exactly how it's done.

Sorry, my mind is still reeling a bit from the whole experience.

Anyway, as I said the onion was so thinly sliced that you would not have known it was there, biting into it, if you didn't look at the ring and see it there with your eyes.  So these onion rings were less like onion rings and more like onion-flavored crispy batter rings. And they were DELICIOUS.  I hated myself for liking them so much.  If I were to add a thought bubble to the picture below, it would say "YOU, onion ring, are proof positive I am a disgusting human being."

I had a tummyache the whole ride home, feeling unsure just how quickly I would end up in the bathroom either vomiting or... well... you know.  But I had the biggest, most satisfied smile on my face at the same time.  As I told Hubby, "I'm going to be grinning big, all the way to the toilet."  

But strangely enough, by the time I got back to the hotel, I already felt much better.  The healing power of post-burger satisfaction.

  

Cultural Sensitivity

Hello to all my friends, family, and faithful readers.  I am sorry for the nearly week-long hiatus.  This week was filled with time consuming things, such as AOB/ICR (Area Orientation Brief/International Cultural Relations) training and field trips.  While it has kept me from having time to sit and blog, it has also provided me with much to blog about. Let's begin.

Tuesday was a whirlwind, and not necessarily in the best way.  We had class to attend at 9:00 AM, and that a shuttle was supposed to be picking us up from the Navy Lodge at 8:30 to take us to the base daycare (CDC) so we could drop off Aria.  8:40 rolls around, and there's still no shuttle. So we walk to the Cultural Education Center where the class is being held, and find out they cancelled the shuttle because they were not aware anyone needed CDC services.  Grrrr #1.  

So we called our sponsor and he was kind enough to pick Aria and I up, and drive us to the CDC himself.  Where they told us no one had made a reservation for her, and they were booked solid for the rest of the month at least.  Everyone on our side of the exchange (us, the sponsor, etc.) was under the impression, based on things that had been said, that FFSC was scheduling Aria's slot at the CDC. GRRRR #2. 

So we find out there is an opening for her at the CDC at Hario Village (an offshoot segment of the main Sasebo base).  So our amazing sponsor drives the 25 minutes to Hario to get Aria and I there, as I am frantically filling out the paperwork no one had told us about in the passenger seat.  Upon our arrival, the Hario CDC receptionist tells us "you were supposed to get these two pages of the packet filled out by the base medical office."  Grrrrrr #3.  But she was kind enough to let it slide for the day, and off Aria went to her class.  Then, my kind sponsor drove me over to the medical office at Hario, and we asked THEM to fill out the paperwork.  The corpsmen working there were exceptionally sweet and understanding, and said it was no problem to have the paperwork done by the next morning so I could pick it up before taking Aria to the CDC a second day.  So after all the grrr moments, at least I discovered "Hario = Helpful" could be the slogan at that branch of the base.

Our sponsor and I finally headed back to the main base, where I arrived 2.25 hours late for class, just in time to recess for lunch.  Though frankly I learned so much about driving in Japan from my sponsor that I don't really feel I missed out.  

After class ended at 3:00 PM (or 15:00 for you military types), another person had to be sent our way to drive us to Hario to pick Aria up.  At least SHE did fine rolling with the punches and was in a perfectly happy mood when we saw her.  

The next morning, we did it all again (but without the confusion of going to the CDC at main base).  Aria was more upset this time with my leaving, but she still managed to get through the day alright, from what the teachers said.  When we picked her up and asked her why she had cried all morning, she told us "I cry because I thought Mommy was coming."  Poor kid... the phrase "Mommy will be back later today" means nothing when all she can conceive is "Mommy is leaving."  I think we sometimes forget the desperation that goes with not being able to comprehend.

Though... actually... being stationed overseas puts you in touch with that feeling pretty quickly.

Wednesday we met Eriko-san, the Japanese cultural instructor here.  She... was... amazing.  I am completely convinced she was a stand-up comedienne before taking on the job of guiding culturally ignorant military folks around her city.  She played a very obvious character throughout her whole presentation; a character I only saw her break the few times she spoke in Japanese in some sidebar to a fellow Japanese citizen.

Thursday we were taken on a "field trip" all around Sasebo to familiarize ourselves with the area.  Eriko-san was our guide, and an excellent one at that.  She not only showed us some beautiful sights, but gave us very practical and helpful advice about where to go, where to drive, what this store and that restaurant and that giant building over there were.  Absolutely invaluable.

     

    

We saw Kujukushima (99 Islands) Pearl Sea Resort.  This are was supposedly named "The 99 Islands" way back when, because the fishermen in the area got tired of counting once they got to 99.  Plus apparently "99" is synonymous with "a lot" in Japanese culture.  However in modern times with bird's eye views available, the total count of islands comes to 208.  I can't wait to check them out more closely on one of the boat tours offered from the resort.

We also saw a bit of Huis Ten Bosch, after taking a long walk down from the Hario Village base.  Huis Ten Bosch was a very cute "authentic European village" theme park.  It was beautiful, but we weren't really there long enough to fully appreciate any one element of it.  There are definitely plans in our household to go back someday soon.

At one point Aria was playing on one of the boat shaped statues, and a group of people (I believe they were speaking Korean but they were speaking too quickly for me to really be able to tell) started taking photos of her and milling about her.  She is seriously becoming a tourist attraction.

Sidenote: when we went out for sushi today Aria got a lot of attention from several ladies... one of whom flat out SAID she wanted to steal her away.  Joking and complimentary as it may have been, I got a bit rattled.  

ANYWAY...

If you want to learn more about some of the places I have mentioned so far, or will inevitably mention someday soon, check out this link:

http://www.sasebo99.com/english/sasebo_sight/spot/index.html

Perhaps the most important part of the tour for me, was the visit to the Shinto shrine here in town.  It was so serene, so well kept.  Both my husband and I found it impossible not to be struck with reverence and peace.  ARIA, on the other hand, jabbered at the top of her lungs about this, that, and the other thing, and became irate when we kept shushing her.  Oh, the shrieks coming out of this child have never seemed so loud as they did echoing through this sacred space.  The only time she quieted down was when an adoring group of sweet but unrecognizable old ladies came up and started talking to her and telling her how cute she is.  Seems tripping her "stranger danger" censors will shut her down completely.  Lesson learned.  From now on if we are going somewhere requiring silence, we should be sure to have a gaggle of strangers in tow to keep Aria quiet.  :-P 

We were able to purchase a "ko-tsu anzen omamori" (safe driving talisman) there, so at least now the hope is we will not come to harm or cause harm while driving here.  VERY important, as the driving laws here are as stringent as they come, and the roads are as narrow as they come, too.  

I will write a new post about driving experiences here in the next day or so, but I am fried for now, so I will draw this one to a close.  I will also soon post about some pretty funny Aria moments from the week.  As well as a post dedicated to some food related experiences from the week. :)  Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for more! :)

Aria's Antics

There is an episode of Dora the Explorer, "Doctor Dora," which has made quite the impression on our daughter.  In it, Dora uses a stethoscope to listen to Boots the Monkey's heart.  She jokingly puts the scope on Boots' head and says "Is Boots' heart here? *Pause* No, that's his head."  Then she does the same thing with his foot until she finds his heart in his chest on the third try.  Aria has taken to this game, and using a rock she found, was playing doctor with Daddy. 

"Is Boots' heart here?"  

"No, that's Daddy's tummy."  

"Is Daddy's heart here?"  

"No, that's Daddy's cheek."  

"Is Boots' heart here?"

"No, that's Daddy's ear."

Then I chimed in and, pointing to/gently poking Aria, said: "THAT'S Daddy's heart. Right there!"  Before anyone could soak up the "awwww" factor of the moment, she corrected me and said "No! That's not Daddy's heart.  That's my shoulder!"  

Touche, Aria.  Touche.

After eating the famous/infamous Sasebo Burger, my husband made a heart-attack related joke while driving.  He said something along the lines of "Hrmmm... only one of my arms is tingly. There's a ringing in my ears, and I'm going a bit blind."  He was joking, of course, and had a huge grin on his face the whole time as he saw how it was irking me.  I finally said to him "That's NOT funny! That's not a funny joke." 

Aria, from the back seat, chimed in, "It IS funny!"  

Hubby starts busting up laughing instantly, while I sit there scowling and smirking at the same time (much trickier than you'd think).  Aria reiterates her point, saying "The joke IS funny."

I was just about to get peeved with her, too, when she starts singing "The joke is funny.  The joke is funny," to the tune of The Farmer In the Dell.

Even I had to laugh at that.

Only moments later, we were in the hotel room singing songs, and Aria insisted we sing Old MacDonald.  But she wanted to sing "Old MacDonald had a pig."  So we went with it, and sang it like this:

"Old MacDonald had a pig, E-I-E-I-O

And on that pig he had some mud, E-I-E-I-O

With a mud mud here, and a mud mud there

Here a mud, there a mud, everywhere a mud mud

Old MacDonald had a pig, E-I-E-I-O."

THEN Aria wanted to sing "Old MacDonald had a Mommy."  Keeping in the same vein, we sang:

"Old MacDonald had a Mommy, e-i-e-i-o.

And on that Mommy he had a ____"

At this point we go silent so Aria can fill in the blank.  So she chimes in "DADDY!"

Hubby was a trooper and finished the song, while I tried not to fall out of the bed from laughing so hard.

Sanba Comes to Town

Today I awoke at 5:30 AM, to the sound of someone trying to break into our hotel room. Or so I thought, as there was a strange rattling/scratching sound every 15 seconds or so coming from somewhere within earshot. But after some careful auditory analysis, I realized it was in fact the wind rattling the inner components of the vent fan in our kitchenette. No burglars! Hooray!

Assuming the typhoon was finally upon us, I looked outside. But I didn't see much. Half an hour later, I started to hear that whistle unique to high winds heard through glass windows. I looked outside again, and sure enough, things were starting to sway a bit. Nearly microscopic droplets of water in the millions were flying across the black roadway in silver sheets. Still, things weren't looking worthy of a "duck and cover," so I went back to bed for a while.

An hour or so later, when we were all up, I ventured down the hallway of the hotel, toward the door that faces the seawall. I was actually just on a quest for some Sweet & Low, but I got distracted by the sight of sea spray and cranky looking waves. The view from this doorway window was VERY different from the view we got through our hotel room window. I included a short clip below. It's not very impressive until you consider the sound of the wind is being heard from behind glass and steel.

This much shorter video was taken legitimately outdoors. :-P

I got the video while I went to throw a stinky diaper in the outdoor trash can. Right before I hit record, I (all 1** pounds of me) got knocked back by a gust of wind. I was genuinely, borderline concerned-ish for my safety. Thus the short length of the clip.

We spent a few hours going stir crazy indoors, at the request of base higher ups and hotel staff.

But after those few hours of wind and rain (not even that much rain, really), things died down and life became business as usual again.

Tomorrow we start our 4 days of training. Everything from how not to offend the Japanese to how not to crash your vehicle driving on the left side of the street. What has me most nervous right now, is the fact Aria is going to be spending all day in daycare with people I haven't met. Reputable as this place may be, I am still terrified. Not that I am attached to my little girl or anything. Luckily Hubby is calming me down by impatiently sighing and rolling his eyes, saying things like "stooooop!" and "relax!" Lucky for him I know that's his own brand of comforting reassurance. ;)

The Ginza and Gyuemon

Day 3 of serious typhoon watch and Okinawa is allegedly getting hit as I type. We are supposed to be hit in the next few hours, but so far there hasn't been much more than an obnoxiously depressing drizzle very reminiscent of the Pacific Northwest. I would say it's making me feel right at home... except the rain is my least favorite thing about the Northwest. So really, it's just making me grimace. Though we ARE already using the cherry rain boots. And I get the to see Hubby carrying Aria, with her "helping" hold the umbrella. Today was especially adorable because she kept struggling to hold the umbrella upright while snuggling her head onto Daddy's shoulder. She was in a particularly snuggly mood today.

We wanted to do some more exploring on the Ginza (Arcade), and learned that we could shave 300 yen off the cab fare if we walked to the NEX first and had a cab pick us up there. Good knowledge to have in a financial pinch. Just think of the cab fare we would save if we walked the whole way! :) If this rainy season ever lets up I will be able to do a clearer cost-benefit analysis of walking the whole way.

There were certainly some interesting signs to be seen there. We didn't really manage to do any actual shopping but we got some exercise carrying Aria everywhere. And we are much more familiar with the strip now, so next time we can head directly to whichever section we need.

I almost missed this walking by, but if you look closely at the lower right corner of the window at this barbershop, you can see a sign that says "USA Welcome." Makes you feel pretty warm and fuzzy, doesn't it? Plus with the base being closeby and enough Americans roaming about the place, it's just good business practice to invite the Americans in. I have heard rumors that not all places here are that inviting, and that some places Americans will walk in and hear "dame dame!" or even "not your people." But so far our experience has been very inviting, and I hope it remains so.

I got some funny looks for snapping a picture of this, but it was too uniquely Japanese to ignore. This sign advertises the "Superkatsu Burger." For one, the name cracks me up because the way it's actually pronounced is exactly the same as the word "Supercuts" would be if a person with a Japanese accent were to pronounce it. "Su-pa-ka-tsu." Okay, so maybe I'm alone on being amused by that. Still, what is more hilarious to me about this "burger" is that it is actually a deep-fried panko-breaded chicken breast, topped with spaghetti and Japanese mayo. I imagine it's not so different from having a chicken parm on a bun, minus the cheese.

All this wandering and finding interesting signs got us hungry, so we decided to aim for try #2 at going to Gyuemon. Poor Aria was so tired at one point she tried to take a nap under the table, using her backpack as a pillow. We kept her awake with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on my iPhone, and that seemed to re-energize her a bit. We even managed to get her to eat a few bites of food!

This place, as my husband so eloquently put it, is like a Japanese Sizzler. Or some other chain diner. Hubby got the lemon steak, which had come highly recommended by several people. I had a bite and it was pretty tasty, in my opinion. Though he said it was on the greasy side. He elected to have the rice, miso soup, and salad as his sides. So all in all a pretty healthy meal.

I on the other hand, chose something off the "light meals" menu. I had seen it going by on a tray, to another table, as we were first seated. It looked delicious. This light combo meal consisted of smaller portions of spaghetti, shrimp gratin (which was like a cross between shrimp mac n' cheese, and S.O.S. Mostly flour and milk, and exceptionally thick), salad, and cream of corn soup. There was nothing light about this meal. Even the salad dressing felt heavy.

If we return to Gyuemon, I will most definitely be getting the lemon steak instead. That being said, the service was lovely and the ambiance homey and comforting in a very Western way. So for those wanting to eat at a Japanese joint, but feeling homesick for the USA, Gyuemon is not a bad way to go.

Hubby said he was still hungry, so we returned to one of my favorite places: Mister Donut.

I

This... was a very good choice.

Home we headed with a bag of donuts and a very tired Aria. Needless to say we took the hit on the extra 300 yen, and took a taxi all the way back to the hotel. The rest of the day was spent waiting indoors in comfy pants for this Super Typhoon Sanba to make things extra miserable. So far we have been lucky, and our thoughts are with everyone hit hard by the storm (and all those still expected to be hit). This thing looks pretty ugly on the satellite imagery, but we continue to be optimistic we will remain relatively safe. And just in case, we're stocked up on pop tarts and water.