Konichiwa from Okinawa! (For all of you who didn't get the email)
Hi all!
Some of you I see every day and some of you I haven't talked to for a long time, but you are all dear to me so I wanted to share with you the HUGE HAPPINESS my life is at this point in time. I am on a tropical adventure with my sweetie, Jared. I'm now on the AF base in Kadena so I have internet access whenever I need it. Humor me by reading my novel of an email and replying at your leisure so I can get little bits of home every now and then!
Starting at the beginning...
Ingrid (interim roommate and fantastic human being in general) dropped a very nervous and ecstatic Signe at the Sea-Tac airport for her red-eye to Taipei. I arrived there a little before 6:30am Taipei time. The flight over here was fantastic--though I was sitting in economy class I could have sworn that I was being looked after like a first-class passenger. I got to sit next to the sweet Thai lady (about my age) who checked in at Sea-Tac right before me. We bonded. :) We were served Western-style breakfast at 2am (French toast and sausage with chopsticks) and little snacks every couple hours or so. I have never seen more instant noodles than on that plane. And the little bags of peanuts had dried green peas and wasabi--very Chinese! I was the only white person on the whole flight, and the tallest by far. They thought I was amusing. I slept for about eight hours, which surprised me, and woke up to lunch of chicken Madeira, spinach salad, and tiramisu. With chopsticks. The seats had little built-in computers with headsets and remote controls so you could choose from 40 different movies and 85 different music albums. My choices (don't laugh. Okay, laugh a little.): The Sound of Music, Toy Story, and Ice Princess for movies and Jim Brickman and Shania Twain's Greatest Hits for music. They also had outboard cameras to see in front of and underneath the plane as it was flying, and satellite images giving the plane's location on a map, including worldwide time zones, temperature, speed, latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates, transit time, and expected landing time. All in Chinese language, English language, metric measurements, and British standard measurements.
Everything was (and still is) incredibly easy for a travel novice like me to navigate. The Taipei airport is about as big as Cosmopolis (really) and bright and clean. I was disappointed though, to find that I could purchase nothing there that I couldn't buy in Seattle. The whole place was like a shopping mall for Fendi, Gucci, Prada, Armani, Salvatore Ferragamo, Hermes, Lancome, MAC, Stila, Clinique, and a whole bunch of European name-droppers that I didn't care to purchase. American tobacco and whiskey were big in the duty-free shops, as well as German and Belgian chocolate. Awesome. No Taiwanese culture in the entire place, except the mountains of orchids spilling out of doorways and alcoves. It's so humid and rich over here that the very air can sprout seedlings.
On the connecting flight to Naha (capital city of Okinawa), I got a window seat so I enjoyed the beautiful view afforded by tropical seas and emerald islands. I could tell it was lush and beautiful even from 10,000 feet. Dinner on the plane was sushi with plum Jell-o and Chinese tea--with a fork. Very confusing, I tell you. I arrived at the Naha airport a little before 11am Okinawa time on July 3rd. Honestly, I was glad that Jared wasn't there when I got out of customs because I got a little time to collect myself and change clothes and look cool as a cucumber by the time he arrived to pick me up.
When he DID get there...yes, like a bad Nora Ephron movie I dropped my book and ran into his arms for the nicest, longest hug ever. Yes, Kirsten, I made lots of eye contact. I am still amazed that I am here with him. Being together in person is even better than talking on the phone (surprise, surprise...imagine that) and I don't think I've stopped smiling since I got here.
We spent the first three days and two nights at the Loisir Resort in Naha City. I am extremely touched by the kindness and graciousness of all the people I've met on the island so far. I don't think Americans often are guests at this particular resort, but even with the language barrier the service was excellent and I don't think we could have had a nicer time. They have a room full of butterflies (there are dozens of species all over the island) that you can hang out in--much like the Butchart Gardens in Victoria--and a waterfall pool and a lovely shopping center and easy walking/taxi access to all the neat things in the South end of the island. I even got my first manicure and Jared got a foot and leg treatment at the day spa upstairs. Taxis (honchos to the locals) are everywhere and surprisingly cheap, as is the food. The most we've spent so far is Y1990 (about $20) for both of us at a VERY good Italian restaurant. I had risotto there that was better than risotto Stateside.
We traveled by Monorail (if only Seattle could see how they do it here) to Shuri-jo Castle in Shuri, a little bit Northwest of Naha. It's one of the oldest castles on the island, and in the whole of Japanese culture. Like in the majority of Okinawa, you can see the obvious Chinese influence in the building structure and paint colors, because Okinawa had far more contact and trade relations with China and Taiwan than Japan, even though it became a Japanese prefecture in 1879. The masonry at the castle site is exquisite. Limestone blocks chiseled like puzzle pieces make solid walls that still stand after 500+ years of fire and war--without mortar. I walked through a gate that Okinawan kings passed under and knelt at a shrine that was built before Columbus discovered America. Shoes off out of respect, we walked through the castle drinking Diet Coke and stood before the red mother-of-pearl inlaid throne of the kings of Okinawa. We saw reproductions of the onoes of the Okinawan kings (the originals were destroyed in the Battle of Okinawa) and looked at ancient royal kimono in hermetically sealed glass cases.
We had lunch at a cute little cafe at the castle, and I had umi-buro (caviar-seaweed salad). SO good. The seaweed looks like little green caviar on a string, and has a very delicate taste, not fishy like a lot of other seaweed. There was also a spidery purple kind of seaweed that was good too.
Also at Shuri-jo was the largest damn spider I've ever seen or ever hope to see. I have pictures. Jared laughed. There was a big one on the wall of my hotel room this morning, too. Ugh.
We left Naha yesterday afternoon to arrive at Kadena, where I am now. There was a bit of a hassle to get me a permit that lasts more than 24 hours, and I can't leave the base and get back on without Jared because I'm not his dependent. Oh well.
I'm hanging out until Jared gets back from work, when we'll go out and explore Kadena Town and have dinner at Chili's back on base (which I think is hilarious). He's promised me to try sushi at some point while I'm here, as I'm determined to have sushi while I'm in Japan. I don't think they have sushi at Chili's, however. I think it's more quesadilla-and-margarita type fare. Le sigh.
I don't know how I'm going to manage to come home. Everything here is warm and beautiful and comfortable and...well, perfect. It's going to be so hard to seperate myself from Jared again--we are turning out to be a perfect match for each other and I love him so very much. Chances are very good that he'll get to come home for Christmas!!!!!! Anyway, I plan to make the most of the ten days we have left together and hopefully I'll have a minute to write another obnoxiously long email detailing the romance of this giddy girl.
Sorry for the mush.
I miss you all and wish that you could see the fantastic things that we are getting to see over here. I promise lots of pictures when I get home and emails when I can get to the library.
Take care, and please pass this email along to anyone whose email address I don't have (like Ingrid's!).
Much love always,
Your darling daughter,
granddaughter,
sister,
roommate,
friend,
and LOVAH,
Signe
THIS, my friends, is the banana spider.
