We've Got Wheels!

As we approached the Labor Day Weekend, we were excited to have some free time!  On Friday night, we headed off base and down the street to check out one car dealer.  With our driver's license secured, we were ready for some wheels!   After talking with "Jim" and viewing his 9 choices, we said we'd think about it and  headed to the Officer's Club to see if we could meet up with some teachers!   One teacher, Erin, and her husband did show up; as did his squadron!  We did enjoy spending some time with Erin and her husband and met another "mom" of a high school kiddo.  After talking with Erin's husband, he highly suggested we go to the Honda car dealership and tell them the make and model that we wanted...saying they would get it!  Obviously, we came home and began researching ALL the Honda models and confirmed our information about "yellow" plates and "white" plates.  Long explanation...but the "yellow" means an engine smaller than a motorcycle's and is less tax.  We decided for driving around, we wanted a "white" plate.

The next morning, we slept in a bit, headed to breakfast and stopped to chat with the Sargent/Major (?)... this is PROBABLY wrong and Mac would correct me...but he is at school!  So, anyhow, he suggested we head to another dealership and ask for a friend of his.  He also shared that her son was a senior at Westpoint, so Mac would have a connection.  We grabbed food and went that direction on foot.   She had just returned from an auction the day before and had a 2002 Mitsubishi DINGO...which did NOT smell of smoke (sooooo many do!) and was perfectly clean!  It was also a bit bigger...wider, had seats that folded down completely and we could probably get our bikes inside!  (As well as Mac's long skis!)  After a bit of negotiation, we settled on a price and are now waiting for her to receive the title!  She did supply a loaner car for the weekend...a Subaru Plao (sp??)...which does smell of smoke, but it is WHEELS!!!   It is also quite small and a great car with which to practice driving on the LEFT!  The steering wheel is on the right...thus, the turn signal is on the right and the gears and windshield wipers are on the left.  We have joked that we have the CLEANEST windshields around due to mistaking the windshield wipers for the turn signal!!!  So, now it is Sat., early afternoon, and we are DYING to get out on the road.  A couple of teachers called Bill and shared that they were at Yuu Beach, about a 25 minute drive to the LEFT.  At this point, I'm really not sure what direction, but I'm thinking SOUTH...along the shoreline!  Logical, right!?  Part of the reason it takes a while to get there, is not because it is far, it is because the fastest speed section is 50km...which equates to about 30mph!!!  Japanese believe in keeping their cars free of accidents! 

The beach was BEAUTIFUL; as was the drive, once we passed all of the stores!  On my facebook account I have posted pictures.  It was VERY hot and even though it is JELLYFISH season, the fellow teachers shared that if the locals are in the water, it was okay.  They said they had seen one, very small JF, so Mac and I got in the water!  It was heavenly!  On the opposite side of the road there were some houses with amazing views.  Shannon (one teacher) said she had lived in one of them and it was incredible to see the ocean every morning, but the drive to and from the base got to be a pain.  I'm thinking it would be worth it and actually TRIED to get a look at one of those houses, but it was already under negotiations.  While sunning, we watch a group of local kids, jumping off a high seawall!  Looked scary, but they were having a BLAST!  So, we would say our first sightseeing outing was the beach!  What a great way to begin.

That evening, Pauline and her husband, Luke, treated us to some Korean food at a restaurant!  It was great fun to chat with new people and learn how to cook our own food at the table.  We ate with chopsticks and had steak, rice, vegetables and some egg!  Pauline is one of the secretaries at Mac's school.  Her husband is a recruiting officer.  We had such a good time!!

Sunday, I think all of our "pursuing" finally caught up with us and while we got up to go to church, eat off a lavish buffet at the club, we came home and crashed for 3 hours!!!  We must have needed some mental and physical rest!  When we pulled ourselves together, we headed to the Kintai Bridge Area.  It was quite overcast, threatening rain, but at least a bit cooler.  While walking around the area, we found Kikko Park which had ice cream shops, coffee shops, fountains, flowers, statues, and a sense of CALM.  It was heavenly to just stroll.  We suddenly remembered that it would get dark earlier than we were use to and that driving was still a new experience, so we should head back!  And, of course, we didn't head out soon enough and were challenged with directions back to base in the dark!!  We made it though and had the cleanest windshield around!!! 

Monday we relaxed a bit, worked on MORE, yes MORE paperwork, lesson plans for Mac, a two-hour workout at the gym, and ended the day with a movie rental.  Since this Friday is his birthday, we are hoping to find some new place to eat in town and possibly go on a hike to Seven Falls.  Not really sure where that is, but will let you know as we learn about it! 

Hope this finds you all well and busy!  I know people have had a challenge in viewing this blog, but hopefully, with input from you who are successful at reading this, I can send hints for others!  Thanks for all the emails and prayers....next post will be about HOUSING.  I began the search yesterday! 

HUGS and SMILES!
jen and mac