"February is merely as long as is needed..."

"...to pass the time until March."
-   Dr. J. R. Stockton


The month of February gets a pretty bad rap. Just try to look up positive quotes about February... it ain't easy. For my part, however, I enjoyed just about every day of February. Here are some reasons why: 

February 6th : The weather! 

Can you believe this blue sky?? Though some days were pretty 

wet and miserable, we had enough of THIS weather to lift my spirits. 

When the cherry blossomed bloomed, it really felt like spring. 

February 12th:  Pre-Valentine's Day Ladies' Brunch

I invited some really lovely ladies to my apartment to eat some 

heart-shaped pancakes and other delicious brunch food. 

It's a Valentine tradition that I love and hope to continue far into the future. 

February 13th: Baking

I just love holidays. Even Valentine's Day. :) 

It's a great excuse to decorate, cook theme food, and dress up. 

These sugar cookies were for my co-workers. Yum. 

February 20th: I just love my little pet turtle. He's had an excess of energy lately,

 so I let him roam loose in the apartment. He looks happy, doesn't he?

February 21st: Shabu Shabu Party!

I've had this plug in Shabu Shabu pot since I came and have never used it before! 

Shabu Shabu is a Japanese winter tradition. Everyone sits around a pot full of broth,

 loads it upwith vegetables, and then cooks chunks of meat in it. Then you take out whatever

 you want, dip it in sauce, and eat up. It is an inexpensive, delicious, 

and fun way to warm up with friends during the chillier February days. 

24 February: Hamabe no Chaya Cafe 

The weather was SO gorgeous that I couldn't bear the thought of being indoors. 

Since I had no one to adventure with that day, I went for a little hike, walked on the beach, and ended up here with a cup of coffee, a salad, and a Murakami novel. Bliss.

25 February: Shibaechaya Cafe 

Fridays are long lunch days, so An, Max, and I checked out a cute cafe called

 Shibaechaya. Delicious tempura and really lovely views. Win. :) 

February may have been short, but it was anything but boring. I think this coming month will be just as full of beautiful weather and adventures (including a short trip to Seattle! Wow!).

(These photos are from my Project 365 on Flickr)

Idaho in Japan

When I first came to Japan I had to make a decision: to claim Idaho, my birthplace and high school home, or Seattle, my college city and futurehome, as my "hometown." I consulted with others who had been in Japan and learned that Seattle is an easily recognized name with concrete references in the minds of students: references such as Ichiro Suzuki and the Mariner's baseball team.

So, for the last two years I've told my students quite simply, "I'm from Seattle."

"Shi-a-te-roo?!" they exclaim; "Do you know Ichiro?!" they ask.

"Yes, of course." I reply, "He's my boyfriend."

*squeals*

However, this got a little confusing around Christmas time when I told my students I was going "home" for the holidays and they automatically assumed I meant Seattle.

So, when I returned from my vacation in both Seattle AND Idaho, I decided to inform them of both of my American homes. So in my first lesson back, I made sure to distinguish between the two places and showed video and pictures of both. However, when the word "Idaho" flashed across the screen, all I got were blank faces. Despite the map visual and all the photos of snow I could squeeze into 4 minutes, they still had no comprehensible point of reference to this "Idaho" place.

Enter: The Idaho Burger

Cue epic music. 

Leave it to McDonald's to take a giant hamburger patty, top it with a deep fried potato, slap some crazy sauces on it, and name it after an obscure state. But, it seems to be working. For the weeks following this new burger announcement, my mention of "Idaho" was met with slightly confused but somewhat comprehending looks. Hoorah!

As a proud native Idahoan, I vowed that I would enter under those golden arches and taste of this unnaturally delicious-looking burger. However, despite my best intentions, the final day of the Idaho Burger's reign quickly approached.

On that last day, I cleared my schedule, grabbed my friend Sarra, and walked eagerly into "Maku" only to be greeted with sparkling new posters of the "Miami Burger." Fearing the worst, I tentatively approached the counter and asked "IDaHo Ba-ga Arimasuka?" to which the cashier replied that there was, in fact, one burger left. I squealed with delight, whipped out 1000 yen, and waited for the cashier to bring me my hometown's japanese pride.

However, I was two minutes too late, the last Idaho Burger was gone, and I had to settle for a regular ole cheeseburger instead. 

Heartbreak

My last small spark of happiness came when I decided to improvise. If I couldn't have the real thing, I would do my best to replicate it. 

French fries on a cheeseburger? Good enough.

In conclusion, while I may not have tasted it's potatoe-y goodness, this burger's short time on Japan was enough to give my students the glimmer of comprehension which my stories and pictures failed to elicit. I just hope that glimmer lasts longer than the burger itself.

*Photos by Sarra.

Dear Valentine(s),

Dear Valentine
Originally uploaded by ReBekha Michele

I wish you all a very happy St. Valentine's Day.

From Japan with Love,
ReBekha

A Month in Pictures

Hello friends, it's been awhile. :) I've had one of those months where blog posts will constantly pop into my brain but I lack the time and motivation to actually get them out. Today, I will break that horrible spell, and briefly update you on the last month of my life. :)

I've been wanting do start Project 365 (a challenge to take a photo every day for a year) since I joined Flickr years ago, but finally decided to start on January 1st. So, I will hopefully be taking a photo every day to document my third year in Japan! There have been some hiccups already (including a dysfunctional camera lens and a broken auto focus... grrr) but I've only missed two days and have made them up with extra weekend pictures. Works for me!

So, since January is over, I can now show you my month, in pictures. Click the link below each picture to read about what happened on that day, or why I took that photo.

January 1st

January 3rd

January 4th

January 6th

January 8th

January 9th

January 11th

January 16th

January 15th

January 20th

January 21st

January 26th

January 30th

January 31st

February 1st

I only included my favorites. To see all the pictures, click here. 

Two Weeks in Twenty Minutes: GO!

Whenever I finish a trip or experience that is as full and exciting as my holiday trip home was, I feel too overwhelmed to write a proper blog. There is just no way that I can devote all the time and energy necessary to capture every amazing day of my vacation. So, instead of writing, I hem and haw and waste my time, promising myself that I will do it eventually and putting it off until it is not fresh anymore. Instead of prolonging it any longer, I will just give you a brief, brief highlight of my two week craziness.

Adventures with An Yang were a bit more exciting than either of us would have liked. You can refer to my previous blog, Planning Your International Trip, for the details of our crazy itinerary. The gist of it is that my friend who was traveling with me couldn't board the international flight because we had a layover in Canada. Something about China and visas.. ugh. In the end, she paid for a direct flight to Seattle, and we flew separately. So disappointing.

Eventually, we made it to Idaho and were greeted by my wonderful family.
The next two days were a blur of holiday cheer. Snow, food, family, family, family, presents, more snow, more food. It was perfect. Just the sort of Christmas I had missed last year when I stayed in Okinawa.

After Christmas, we had a whole week to just enjoy Idaho. I saw many friends, including my old classmates, we played in the snow, went to church, went snowboarding/skiing, and ate so much delicious food. My mom is such a great cook!

When our time in Idaho was over, we were both sad to be leaving "Narnia" as An calls it, but looking forward to our next adventure: Seattle!

To set the tone for our week, our very first stop, direct from the airport was Century Ballroom for a night of swing dancing. An was hesitant at first but she picked it right up and was dancing happily the whole night. I, of course, was thrilled to be back in my old swing scene and lindied my way around the room with a bunch of my favorite leads. Pure joy.

The rest of our trip involved three more nights of dancing, adventures all over Seattle, Kirkland, Bellevue, and Edmonds, more cups of coffee than I care to count, and more friends than I possibly deserve. I was completely overwhelmed by how many wonderful people still, not only remember, but care about me. I am the luckiest girl on the planet.

At the end of the week, we were both exhausted, a little grumpy, and a lot socially exhuasted. So, though I shed some tears to leave the city and the people that I love, it was a relief to finally (after two days of travel) be back in my new element: Okinawa. With great friends here, my own space, my car, and my pet turtle, I feel right at home.

Planning Your International Trip

I am no stranger to traveling overseas, but previously all of the nitty gritty of the details have been the responsibility of someone else: the JET program, a choir director, a professor, a pastor. Until now. Most of you know that I went home for Christmas break, but what you may not know is that I did a terrible job of planning my flights and layovers. To save you some heartache on your next international trip, here's a cautionary tale of my experiences.

But first, a pretty picture. I love clouds from above. :) 

What Not To Do When Planning Your International Trip

Departing Flight: 


Decide to book your international and domestic flights separately to "save money" without considering all the factors. 

Book through Canada Air because it's cheaper at the time and then find out that a Japanese travel agent could have SAVED you money.... and a TON stress. 

Fly Okinawa to Haneda airport in Tokyo (domestic).

Take a $30 bus ride to Narita airport in Tokyo (international). Begin to feel anxious.

Have two hours to kill before you can even check in for your flight.  Feel restless. 

Attempt to check in and discover that your travel companion cannot go without you because she doesn't have a Canadian visa for the layover in Vancouver. Panic. 

Watch your travel companion spend an extra $3000 for a direct flight to Seattle. Cry. 

Fly to Vancouver alone. Sit next to an anti-social grump who begrudges your need to use the restroom twice during a nine hour flight. Sleep.

Arrive in Vancouver. Go through customs, Drink coffee. Email travel companion who beat you to America. Feel sad. Wait for two hours. 

Board puddle-jumper to Seattle for a 45 minute waste of time. 

Claim baggage. 

Re-check baggage. Check in for Horizon flight. Meet travel companion. At last. 

Wait two hours. Delay. Delay. Delay. 

Board another puddle jumper for a 1 hour trip to Boise. 

Meet family after midnight. Sigh. 

Return flight: 

Fly to Seattle. Don't look at ticket closely. Take 3 hour trip which should have lasted 1 hour. Stop in numerous tiny Idaho towns with one-lane airports. Sigh. 

Arrive in Seattle. 

One week later, return to Seatac. 

Say goodbye to travel companion again. Fly to Vancouver alone. Drink coffee. Wait three hours. 

Wait longer. Delay, delay, airplane change, delay. 

Board international flight. Sit next to man who, despite his small size, takes up half of your room with his pokey elbows. Shift uncomfortably. Sleep. 

Arrive in Tokyo at Narita (International). Customs. Claim bags. Greet travel companion at last. Sigh. Smile a little. 

Board subway. Change subways. Change again. Ignore arm pains from lugging suitcases all over Tokyo. Lose smile.  2 hours later, arrive at stranger's house. Sleep on floor. 

Wake up. Board subway. Squish in with two heavy suitcases. Try not to feel guilty. Transfer to train. Change trains. Arrive at Haneda (domestic) two and a half hours later. Wait 30 minutes. Get in wrong check-in line, wait thirty minutes. Move to correct check-in line, wait another 30 minutes. Go to security. Try to push slightly too large bag through x-ray, get yelled at, transfer some stuff to other bag. Finally pass security. 

Try to suppress eye twitch. Wait one hour. Sit in massage chair. Realize you're out of cash. Kick massage chair. 

Wait two hours. Type this blog and feel angry at yourself. Listen to calming music and wish you knew meditation techniques. 

Board flight to Okinawa. Close eyes and breathe. Arrive in Okinawa, 3 hours later. Drive 30 miles in over an hour. Lug giant bags up stairs. Crash. Collapse. Die. 

What To Do When Planning Your International Trip

Resolve to use the travel agent next time and book your luggage all the way through, regardless of the cost. Also resolve to pack lighter.  And buy more omiyage (souveniers). And get more sleep. 

To end on a positive note, here is a rough version of the video I made to show students about my trip: CLICK HERE!

Happiness Thus Far

It's good to be home. :)