I have a riddle for you! I’m thinking of a place. You can say it in German: “Edelweiss,” Hawaiian: “Hale Koa,” Japanese: “New Sanno,” or even Floridian: “Shades of Green” and Virginian: “Cape Henry.” You can sleep, eat, shop, swim and travel to and from here. Do you know what I’m talking about? Military MWR resorts! Military MWR (Morale,...
CONTRIBUTED BY CRYSTAL SCHOLLARD
Moving to Okinawa with 2 boys (ages 2 & 4), a bunch of bags and a great husband!
*I write this from a completely personal stand-point (I do not work, endorse, or profit any of the companies listed below). The following is some of the last minute travel things I wish I had known prior to leaving...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER SHUE
This little gem is nestled right between the Toys R Us/Babies R Us and the Naha Mainplace. If you’ve been down there you must have seen it. The outside is the creamy limestone so common in Okinawa and is stylistically reminiscent of the various gusuku sites scattered around the island. Inside, it is beautiful, open, and...
CONTRIBUTED SARRA MCMILLAN
Shortly after my arrival in Okinawa in December 2009, a new-found friend pulled me towards the flashing lights and screaming sounds of teenagers playing arcade games. “Have you ever done purikura?” she asked.The word was as unknown to me at that time as arigatou and irasshaimase, so I just looked at her blankly – a popular facial...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER SHUE
The other night my husband and I were watching downloaded episodes (legitimately! - through iTunes) of last season’s Top Gear. In Season 15, Episode 6, the main host, Jeremy, had borrowed another host’s car (a Ferrari 430) who was particularly OCD about how tidy his car was at all times. So, Jeremy, obnoxious as ever, proceeded...
CONTRIBUTED BY HEATHER GELORMINE
I don't want to alarm anyone but THE HOLIDAYS ARE RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER! *ahem* (I think my panic and unpreparedness are showing.) Unless you've already put in your order for our fabulous 2011 Okinawa Hai calendars, you may still be scrambling around, looking for local gifts for all those special people on your list.
There is,...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER MARTINEZ
In a desperate attempt to find coordinating orange and teal ribbons for our dear friend's baby shower, my neighbor Julie and I journeyed out to Shalimar House of 66 Cents. While this fabric store is fantastic and I could easily get lost for days, this article is about a quaint Mexican restaurant we found on the...
CONTRIBUTED BY MARTHA
You've driven by one or several of them. The baby blue sign with Roman letters spelling out "Kumon", but the O is an ambivalent-face. Boisterous Okinawan kids head in and out with their blue and yellow Kumon messenger bags. Perhaps you wonder what is going on in there.
Or maybe you're better-informed than I, and you already know...
CONTRIBUTED BY SARAH FORTE
You can’t go far on Okinawa without bumping into Orion: Orion lanterns, Orion Fest, Orion shirts, and of course Orion beer! Orion (pronounced O-ree-on) is uniquely tied to Okinawa: Orion beer controls a majority share of beer consumption on Okinawa, while in mainland it is a distant fifth to the other bigger beer names. Ninety percent...
CONTRIBUTED BY MICHELLE D.
The Dae Jang Geum restaurant (大長今) in Urasoe City (浦添市) advertises its menu as “homestyle” Korean cuisine, and true to the claim, the reasonably-priced menu features items beyond the typical Korean BBQ that most Americans associate with Korean food.
The Name: Dae Jang Geum is named after a Korean TV drama by the same name, which aired...
CONTRIBUTED BY AMANDA HARMS
PLAY ROLLER DERBY WITH US… the KOKESHI ROLLER DOLLS!
Part manifesto- part invitation, here is my proposition:
So there I was… Thirty-one years old and pregnant with #3. I could feel my body succumbing to the demands of pregnancy and as much as I love being a Mom and as much as I adore my children, the feeling...
CONTRIBUTED BY SARAH FORTE
Whale sharks and Okinawa. Some things just go together.
If the Churaumi Aquarium’s awe-inspiring tank of whale sharks left you wanting an even closer encounter with the world’s largest fish, you are in luck! Torii Scuba Locker offers divers a chance to interact with these gentle giants.
Annually, approximately 40 whale sharks are caught accidentally by Okinawan fishing...
CONTRIBUTED BY ANALICIA MCCLELLAN
I'm sure a lot of you have been to the Pineapple Park in Nago, but did you know a couple blocks down, there’s a Tropical Kingdom awaiting you? We had a playdate there and the kids loved it!
They have hundreds of fruit trees, one of which bears the world’s largest fruit -- the Jackfruit! There is...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER SHUE
Here on Okinawa Hai we all seem to love a good bakery. If you look through the To Eat Index by cuisine type, bakeries (especially if you include the tea time places like Miche Miche and bakery-cafes like Marco Polo) are our second most numerous category, following only to the local cuisine. The thought of crusty...
CONTRIBUTED BY STACY STORRS
After a fun, exhausting trip up the Cape Zanpa Lighthouse my family and I decided it was time for some lunch. We enjoy cruising around and trying to find someplace we have never been for a new and adventurous meal. On our way back to Kadena from Cape Zanpa we found a cute little sign for a...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER SHUE
Riding the “train” is one of my daughter’s favorite things to do here on Okinawa. Every time she sees it passing overhead the next words out of her mouth invariably are, “Can we go ride the train? Please, Mommy!!” Every time we do ride it, it is the highlight of her day. And it is so...
It's been a number of weeks since we've updated you on the process of the Howe Family PCS. There is a good reason why -- though not a fun reason...
CONTRIBUTED BY RJ HOWE
Hey everyone, sorry it's been so long since I've written, but I didn't want to write you until I had the final answer. Unfortunately, The Howes will...
CONTRIBUTED BY JOY BARNES
On a recent trip to mainland Japan, I discovered an important insight into how my family travels… we do much better in the small towns. We spent three nights in Tokyo and three nights in a gem of a town called Nikko, about 2 hours by train north of Tokyo. While Tokyo was definitely a “must-see”...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER SHUE
For our anniversary last month, my husband and I wanted to try something new and different. Something out of the ordinary for us. He had been gone for almost a year and a half, give or take (with a few breaks of togetherness here and there), so we wanted it to be a little bit special,...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER SHUE
As the weather starts to cool just a little, maybe your thoughts are turning towards Sunday afternoon picnics in the park, playing outside at a playground, taking a nap in the grass on a blanket under a tree - or something along those lines. (Something beyond the confines of the a/c unit or the local pool.)...
Before coming to Okinawa I was faced with the daunting task of guessing where we might be living and hoping for some answers. It’s hard to plan ahead of time for household things you may want to bring or purchase before you come. I had a personal obsession about curtains because with two children under three, who are already...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER MARTINEZ
After our trip to Cape Zanpa Lighthouse, my family and I saw a small sign to Zakimi Castle Ruins -- 1.6km. We were on our way home, but thought why not finsh the day strong? If we didn’t make it to the castle that day we may never have made it. One thing I’ve noticed after 2...
CONTRIBUTED BY MARTHA HEPLER
Our very first weekend in Okinawa, my husband, baby and I piled into the car and headed up north to Churaumi Aquarium, apparently worried that in three years on this gigantic island we would not make it to that minor tourist attraction. By the time we got there, we were starving, so we bypassed the...
CONTRIBUTED BY JOELLE YAMADA AND HEATHER GELORMINE
A few weeks before PCSing back to the States last spring, Heather and I got to talking about our financial situation. Turns out we were both experiencing a bit of panic about money & PCSing. We collaborated on this post and thought this might be good for those of you planning to PCS...
CONTRIBUTED BY CHIP STEITZ AND TARA HOWES
This summer I received an email from Chip Steitz regarding the Special Olympics held each year on Kadena Air Base. He wanted to get the word out about how we can all be involved in this special volunteer opportunity. He said:
Kadena Special Olympics transcends stereotypes, politics, nationalities and communities. The Spirit of...
Editor's Note: Our original review of Bollywood Dreams was published in 2010. Since then, the owner has re-vamped the menu with many new dishes, drinks, and desserts. Marie took new photos of the restaurant in September 2014 and updated a few details, but we're keeping much of Kate's original review here so you can still see all the comments!
CONTRIBUTED BY KATE...
CONTRIBUTED BY JENNIFER MARTINEZ
It was a bright sunny day. The kids and I were ready for adventure. We got into daddy’s new car, pulled out the map we got from the Schilling Center, and picked a spot not far from Kadena. At first glance Zanpa Beach caught my eye. So we headed out for our first real off-base adventure.
At...
CONTRIBUTED BY REBEKHA SMITH
Since I am a Seattleite at heart, coffee is pretty much central to my existence. Not only do I have a caffeine addiction that even hypnotherapy couldn't cure, I love to savor the entire coffee experience--from the gentle aroma, to the gurgling sound of percolation, to the comfort of simply holding a hot mug in my...
Join the Howe Family as they prepare to PCS to Okinawa. If you've missed any of their journey, you can find more here: PCS I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII
CONTRIBUTED BY RJ HOWE
We’re under the 90 day window until we PCS to Kadena and everyone is getting anxious about the move. Red has been sorting and organizing everything in our house. Last weekend...
I received a fun email from Brenda last week about a video her son directed and edited and had uploaded to YouTube. In the last couple of days, the video seems to have gone "viral" on FaceBook as well! Here's the story behind the video:
CONTRIBUTED BY BRENDA JONES
This is a music video featuring Okinawa. It was directed and edited...