The Garlic House and Touristy stuff

Well for all of those waiting with me to hear about our housing situation....wait on McDuff! Friday was a Japanese holiday and therefore, our housing counselor was off and unable to let us know what the military has to offer us! So here I am, staring at a phone that never rings, and hoping that the off-base place we like has not been taken should the military offer us something less than appealing.

To distract ourselves from this apprehensive wait, we had a fairly eventful weekend. Friday night we were invited out by the lovely Meghan and Melissa (two of the best reasons to live on base!) to the Garlic House. Its actually called Arin Kirin but its a delicious variety of foods flavored with garlic which (the sign will tell you) is very convenience material for the health.

Saturday, Adrian and I swung down to Naha, the capital of the prefecture, to see the Shurigo Castle. Shuri castle was built by the Ryukyu kings who ran the show on these islands form the 12th through the 19th centuries when they were non too nicely welcomed into the Empire of Japan. Before then, the Ryukyu chain of islands maintained themselves through trade with China and Southeast Asia. That its why much of the food, architecture and textiles that Okinawa is famous for have a unique blend of cultures.

We then stopped by American Village for a wander round and found our way to a beach inlet right at sunset. It was really beautiful and a couple were lucky enough to be having their wedding reception right there on the sand.

Also this weekend we saw Flags of our Fathers. If any of you are like me and despise gore I would still recommend it with the caveat that you do as I did and watch the better part of the scenes of the battle of Iwo Jima through your fingers. But its an important look at what heroism really is and how we use it to package war. Along the same lines, I would really recommend a film called The Americanization of Emily. A very different look at the same subject made 40 years ago which tells a pretty pitful story on the progress of mankind and how little we've learned.

It made me also think of what gets lost in the crossfire. Only recently has Shuri castle been put back together following its destruction during the Battle of Okinawa in 1945. One thing I hope to play some small part in while I'm here is the reconstruction of something much more difficult, the goodwill of the Okinawans toward the Americans. From what I here and see, things are already moving in that direction. Natives and Americans living here tell me that more and more comingling is going on in restaurants and coffee houses.

Well, while musing about things is pretty much the extent of my disenfranchised permanent resident power, I would like to ask also for your thoughts/prayers/positive vibes (whatever ya got) to send out to my friend Rory and Meghan's husband Clint who are soon crossing out of Kuwait and into Iraq.

Nothing more to say except...Vote!