Deigo Hotel Okinawa

... into that here. I will say though that, although the bases no doubt serve an important purpose for U.S. interests in the Far East, they are a contemporary expression of the military tragedies of the past that have befallen this beautiful island. If you want to get a more graphic and political view of the impact of these bases, read "Sorrows of Empire" by Chalmers Johnson. <br><br>Our first stop was at a re-creation of a traditional Ryukyu village. Ryukyu (if I didn't ...

... carnage that took place here -- basically a city the size of Regina wiped out during a battle that lasted several months. Let's hope that nothing like that ever happens again in this beautiful place.<br><br>To close out the day, we did something quite strange. As we were walking home we came across a small Russian restaurant called Perestroika. The sign on the front had a picture of Mikhail Gorbachev on it -- cheesy but strangely enticing nonetheless. We decided ...

... this though, I probably would not have noticed this at all -- the signs that this prefecture is a bit behind others are subtle. A shabby building here, some litter in a river there -- things that one tends not to see to such a degree in other parts of the country. Nonetheless, this is quite a nice place and definitely a sub-tropical paradise.<br><br>We will definitely see a lot more of rural Okinawa over ...

... a stunningly hot day and the indoor area was air conditioned. After Shuri Castle, we went to Kokusai street in Naha City. This is a palm-lined street with tons of small souvenir shops, with a surfer atmosphere. I picked up quite a few gifts here! My favorite purchase was a red coral necklace for myself. The store's owner was so happy to see me for some reason that she gave me free shisa keychain. Riley was getting restless, so ...

... handled this very gracefully and eventually ended up running back and forth through it in her diaper screaming. If only we'd just skipped all the museum stuff and brought her right to the fountain!<br><br>FOr dinner we tried Obbligato, a Mexican restaurant as imagined by the Japanese. It was pretty good; I got chimichangas for the first time and they reminded me of eggrolls. We also had a pitcher of margaritas, so a good time was had. <br>

... been rebuilt. The kids got a chance to paint a Shi-Shi dog (one set together). Manna wasn't too crazy about the Habo (snake) house. It was really nice to have her here for Christmas! Santa was able to find all of us out here. Taking her to the airport was hard for all of us, especially because we knew that ment the end of our visitors for a little while.

For Halloween, Noah was buzzlightyear. He was so excited when we first got it in the mail...then we put it on him and he wasn't too thrilled. He acted like the kid in Christmas Carol with the snow suit on. He wouldn't move. He just wanted to put all the pieces together like it was a ...

... the moment. The van has had dogs in it before and Samantha's mother in law is allergic to dogs and she is coming to visit soon so they are getting another car. the air conditioner needs minor repairs and they have decided to GIVE us their van. Its a great van and it seats seven people so now we have room for whom ever comes to visit. I guess the week is turning around for the good. at least i hope so. I should have some pictures next time. &lt;3 Krystal

... English, which has been nice for me, and I'm sure, a relief for my translator. Our time here has helped to show us that there is a need everywhere and while the challenges may be different the message remains the same. I'm thinking everyday about what will happen when we return. I will be the same person but I don't want to live the same life focused around myself. While I can tell now that this trip is incredibly meaningful to me, I am curious to see what it ...

... infernoksi ja heti pysähtyessä alkaa lieskat polttelemaan persuuksia :-) No joo, mainitaan nyt tässä vaiheessa, että mahtavasti on kyllä molemmat reissukaverit Sami ja Tuomo pärjänneet, eikä tässä tahdissa mikään turha jätkä tai valittaja olisi selvinnyt päivääkään. Äijissä on selvästi ainesta oikein kunnon travellereiksi, hyvä! On se kiva olla kerrankin oikeassa ja huomata, että ihan oikeita jätkiä kutsuin mukaani tälle reissulle! Katja nyt on jo ...