Just a little taste

We jumped right into the culture here and started trying things off base pretty quickly. When I first moved to Oklahoma we didn't live on base so I didn't really connect with anyone or try to make friends. It is completely different when you live overseas because you really stick together and help each other out. A friend of mine from Oklahoma has a cousin who is out here and she introduced us through Facebook and she has been a great friend to us! After the first couple of days we were here she invited us to join her and her two kids at a park. Luckily they have a couple of nice indoor parks here because it is really hot to be playing outside in the middle of the day, especially in July and August. We went to the ATM because a lot of places off base take yen or cash only and then headed off to the indoor park. Tyler really enjoyed running around and playing in the lego area they have. As we've gone back more he's gotten more brave and gone down slides and even climbed to the top level. The parks they have are nice and clean and have counter service food. You can also bring your own food if you don't want to pay for what they offer. It's a great way to beat the heat and let the kids get their energy out. Since I was so absorbed in watching Tyler have fun I only have a picture of the flyer we got so we had the information to visit again. 

We also had to get new iPhones over here and signed up for a new plan. au is who we went with and they were really nice and helped us set everything up. They even gave us a treat bag for signing up with them. Of course I was overly excited about this because they were all Japanese snacks that we had no idea what they were. It was fun trying to guess what they were and then trying it and seeing if we were right. There was one that definitely looked like a cracker and even had seeds on it but it turned out to be a cookie. There was a jumbo cheese puff and some flaky type candy. If anything it was very interesting and fun to try some new snacks.

We also went shopping off base which was a little bit difficult the first couple of times. We couldn't buy much because we still didn't have a car at that point but there was a grocery store that wasn't too far of a walk. The mayo and ketchup come on soft squeeze bottles and wrapped in a plastic bag. Also some of their stuff has Kewpie doll on it. Mayo is used on everything! even pizza... although I haven't tried that. But I did have pizza with corn on it. Corn is another popular food here. Of course we had to try even more of the different snacks they have. Japan is known for their many flavors of kit kats so of course we went with the green tea ones. They are not my favorite... but if you love green tea then you will love them. We got these fake ice cream cones. I think the inside is like freeze dried ice cream. It was kind of like astronaut food and is shelf stable.

And of course we had to try Coco's curry house. A very popular restaurant among everyone. Curry is definitely a favorite dish. Nick had talked a lot about Coco's and even did his best to recreate it at home. Basically you can pick what kind of meat you want from pork, chicken, shrimp, beef, veggies, eggs, and others. Then you pick a spice level 1-10. I'm a wimp and get the mild which is below a 1. Japan also knows how to take care of the kids at restaurants. They always have cute divided kids plate with kid sized silverware. Also a little cup and bib to try and keep him somewhat clean. Tyler loves Coco's for the little jelly dessert he gets and the toy he can get out of the machine at the end. 

(Tyler's chicken nugget curry)

(my crispy chicken with cheese mix)

So that was our first little taste of some of the different snacks and foods they have here. We have a ton more we want to try but with four years here we will take our time. Its a small island so we want to space our adventurous times out a little bit but we are excited to keep exploring all that Okinawa has to offer. 

until next time, 

Courtney