First Trip to Hirado

On Oshogatsu, having very few other plans but wanting to take advantage of the day off, we decided to head to Hirado and "find out what that's all about."

The drive was a ramble through misty jade mountains, past giant white windmills, curving along small rivers and jigsaw puzzle coastlines.  In other words, it was quite lovely, evoking several classic images of Japan's natural beauty.

The longer-than-expected drive took us through several smaller towns and past a couple different insect museums (we were unaware there was such a big demand for those in these parts), until at last we came to a fork in the road.  One prong took us toward a waterside fish market, while the other took us over a big red bridge (sort of like a miniature of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco).  Having no set plans other than "to have an adventure" we chose the bridge, thus ending up on Hirado island. 

 

We drove around some more, trying to find a good place to stop and start exploring on foot.  After a short but awkward detour into what may have very well been someone's private backyard distillery, we at last found what looked like the parking lot to a natural park of some sort.  We parked.  We took a potty break.  We started walking. 

And this is what we saw:

We began with a climb up a grassy hill.

Then came across a rock monument of some sort, and a very severely leaning bench.

Then Aria took the lead and decided we were to climb the nearest giant hill, to see what was on the other side.

Where we found these views, and a large stone compass rose.

Daddy played pony on the way back to the car.

New Year, Old News

Akemashite Omedetou and Happy New Year as well!

Sorry for the long hiatus from this blog.  Being better about updating is on my list of resolutions.  Dedicating myself to so many resolutions at once, however, is making things a bit more challenging.  Here is some stuff I meant to post about forever ago:

Thanksgiving

Our first Thanksgiving in Sasebo meant our first Thanksgiving without access to a full size oven.  Or any oven at all.  It was readily apparent if the traditional turkey and sides were to be consumed this year, it would have to be through acquisition of pre-made dinners on base.  Luckily, we knew of at least two places on base that were offering cooked full size turkeys and all sorts of traditional side dishes for fairly reasonable prices.  We'd seen the signs on base.  So we were set.  With that, the stress of Thanksgiving prep went away.

Three days prior to the feasting holiday, I went to Popeye's to reserve a turkey.  As I stepped up to the counter, I read the sign closely for the first time.  In small (but legible enough that it's not a fair excuse) print, I read the words "orders must be placed at least two weeks in advance." 

"Oooops," was all I could really think.  I texted Hubby, and he called Brody's, only to discover the same rule applied there.

With that, we determined a traditional Thanksgiving meal wasn't in the cards this year.  Refusing to feel defeated, we simply decided to go out for a nice meal somewhere out on the town.  After some discussion, we solidified a plan to get Thai Food at a wonderful hillside restaurant we found.  Just to be clear, while "liking it fine" I have never been a Thai food zealot.  This restaurant's green curry changed all that forever.  I could eat there every day.  But at the heart of it, the decision was based on the following logic:

Thanksgiving & Thai start with the same three letters.  Plus Thai food is delicious.  This was meant to be.

We functioned under this logic all the way through the week, and Thanksgiving day, right up to the moment when we drove up to the restaurant... and found it closed.  No lights on whatsoever.  A big dark black hole of Thanksgiving failure. :-/

We then proceeded to get cranky, because we were all getting increasingly hungry and fed up.  After a bit of snippiness and disagreement, I got the idea to go to Bistro Bijou.  It was a French-influenced family restaurant, and just our luck, it was open.

The rest of the night was a great success.  The food was tasty, I got a massive dessert sampler plate that made me especially happy, and Aria not only got a delicious meal, and ice cream, AND candy, but she also got a lovely yellow balloon poodle from the nice waiter.  We ended the holiday with satisfied tummies and smiling faces.  That, and several key lessons learned for next year.

I wonder if Popeye's will start taking orders now for next year's turkeys... 

Christmas

I will keep this Christmas portion brief, and simply say it was low key, but wonderful.  Aria received some truly beautiful clothes from her grandparents, aunt & uncle, and great aunt and uncle as well, along with several other very kind gifts.  And since she decided (especially when reminded) to be a good girl for Santa, he brought her the special pink kokeshi doll she had asked for.

Hubby got himself a PS3 and Madden, and had been enjoying the gift several weeks prior to Christmas.

I was blessed with a new USB hookup microphone to record music, a pair of amazing Bose earbuds, and a super cute mini skillet brownie making set.  

The whole family also got some super sweet Nike shoes from "Obaachama."

The other element of note was that Aria had a big hand in the decorating around our house this Christmas.  She and Daddy decided to put everything up one evening when I had other stuff going on, and I was informed our little girl dictated where everything should go.  Not to brag, but she has a really good eye for interior design.  I was impressed (and not just "I'm her mom so I'm biased" impressed... LEGITIMATELY impressed).

We enjoyed a special Christmas brunch at Harbor View Club on base, and otherwise just focused on being a family and sharing lots of hugs.  Even without the hoopla, I couldn't have been happier with how this Christmas turned out.

New Year's/Oshogatsu

We rang in the New Year with a combination of traditional Japanese cuisine and American champagne at midnight, and very little fanfare beyond that.  We bought our door hanging, with lobster and daidai attached, along with our kagami mochi for the sacred shrine.  It was tiny, and looked even tinier in the shrine space.  But it was Avery's, and Avery's little daidai given to her by the nice lady at the market sat atop it.  So for us, it felt perfect.

And yes, Mom, we cleaned the house thoroughly.  I know the rules.

I was fairly proud of myself for making the traditional foods on my own from scratch, with a bit of careful research, a bit of panicked phone calling to my mother, and a little luck.  It may not have been as ornate as most people's meals, but it was tasty and made with love.  And yes, I carved all those carrot slices individually.  NEVER AGAIN. Next year I am just buying a shaped cutter.