Put Olivia in the Zoo

After Benny participated in a Polar Bear Swim and Olivia sang and clapped at Alligator Steps and took a little nap, the three of us headed to the Okinawa Zoo and Children's Musuem called Okinawa Children's World.


A place where you can dangerously close to the caged animals. Too close in my opinion.







You can feed an elephant and take your photo for only 200 yen. Affordable wildlife experience.


Inside the Children's Museum, Olivia watched as Benny and I acted like children.

The truth about onsen

Disclaimer: This blog posting is rated PG-13. In this blog posting, Michelle talks about adult situations, adult nudity and being uncomfortable being naked around strangers. If you aren't comfortable reading about Michelle talking about nudity, please skip this posting and look at photos of Olivia eating sweet potatoes. That is all.

Our Nago hotel was nice. Better than a Super 8, but not the quality of a Hilton. It was like a Marriott that needed a renovation. A little facelift. Not bad, but not great.

One of the reasons we selected this hotel was its feature of a "spa." Spa is a loosely translated word in Japan. Spa can mean a business where you get a chocolate facial. Or it can mean a place where men to engage in illegal activity. Or in this case, it was more like a sento (public bath) or onsen (hot springs bath).

Knowing the translation from spa to onsen, I went to the library prior to our vacation to do some Japanese bathing research. Luckily I found a book that detailed (with cartoon drawings) the proper etiquette for being an onsen user. The book talked a lot about nudity, so I felt like I was prepared.

On our last night at the hotel, I decided (with some coaxing from Benny) to face my fear of the onsen. I had nothing to fear, but fear itself. The unknown was creating this nervousness. Armed with my yukata (cotton bath robe kind of like a kimono) and towel, I reviewed the spa social rules in my head while walking through the door marked "spa."

I found the passage with the sign "Women Only" in Japanese (there are separate spas for men and women) and took a deep breath. It's now or never. I proceeded to walk into the locker room and disrobed. Everywhere I looked women were naked. Fully naked. No shame. Nothing was hidden. It was open. It was a lot of skin.

I disrobed, placed my clothes in a basket and placed the basket on the shelf. Even though the rule book I read at the library said to walk into the hot springs bath room completely naked, I couldn't do it. I wrapped a towel around my body and prayed for forgiveness. After all I am a foreigner.

I pushed my way through the doors and faced a wall of steam. The room, which was enclosed, was designed to look like an outdoor hot spring. I believe that hot springs water was pumped in from a different location. Once my eyes adjusted to the steam, I saw the pool of water filled with women and children to my right. All naked. Yes, children. As old as 8 years old, in my estimation. On my left, was shower cubicles, soap, shampoo, stools, buckets. Women were using these showers as though they were washing themselves in the privacy of their own homes. Exposure was everything. A hook to hang my towel was MIA.

Turning red faced more from embarrassment than the heat, I turned and walked calmly back to locker room. I tossed my towel in the basket. I held my head high as I walked back to the onsen.

I showered at the stalls. This is very important. It is a no-no to enter the hot spring without washing first. If you didn't shower, you are basically mixing your filthy self with everyone else in the public water. Nasty.

I stepped into the pool and tried to breathe through the heat. It was warm. Very warm. I felt my face getting red. Beads of sweat where collecting on my upper lip, forehead. The nude children, who were jumping in and out of the pool, looked at me. Stared at me. I smiled and closed my eyes. Try to relax, I told myself. This is suppose to be relaxing.

I relaxed for a bit before feeling too warm. At that point, I climbed out of the pool, rinsed off, dried off and proceeded to wrap my very red skin body inside my yukuta. I was red. Like sunburned red. Not attractive. I kept my head down as I walked back to my room.

But I did it! I faced my fear of the cultural experience of the onsen and survived. In the end, my skin felt soft and pampered and my muscles were relaxed. It was something I would recommend to everyone. The whole experience helped me understand the group culture of Japan. It was a cultural experience I will never forget and I can cross it off my Last Year in Okinawa list.

Olivia vs. Sweet Potatoes (Round 2)

Since the sweet potatoes took round one, Olivia was ready for round two.








And Little O wins by KO in the second round.

Our Little Purple People Eater

Olivia eats Saints for Breakfast - Go Vikes!!!

Happy Birthday Aunt Colleen!

This Happy Birthday sign tastes great and all, but I could really go for some birthday mochi.

Staycation Day 2

Benny reminded me that our Martin Luther King Weekend in Motobu was a Staycation, hence the titled of this blog.

On Sunday morning, we enjoyed a breakfast buffet at the hotel that included all the random Japanese food before going to Ocean Expo Park for the race. Ocean Expo Park is home to the second largest aquarium in the world, along with other parks and museums. Benny and I have only been to the aquarium and the gardens for the orchid festival last year.

The Ocean Expo National Trim Marathon was AWESOME. The weather was sunny, no rain. The crowds were large. Benny did the 10K and finished in time to join Olivia and I for the Family 3.5K race. There were eisa drummers alongside the path, cheering you on. Children as young as 2 were walking alongside their parents and grandparents. Olivia in her stroller was among friends. The race started with fireworks and event is just another example of the healthy lifestyle incorporated into Japanese culture.

Here are families having picnic lunches of rice, noodles and fruit after the race. Another Japanese thing that I wish I could bring back to the States with me.

Olivia fell asleep in her stroller just as our race was starting. Poor girl, she missed the main event. We threw the green towel we got for participating over her.


But I am PRETTY bummed that no one told me that I was encouraged to dress in a costume for the race.





After a hot shower and a change of clothes, we ate at Pizza in the Sky, a popular restaurant known for its excellent Italian pizza and tasty Japanese salads.

And the view isn't bad.



Next Stop: NEO Park, a small zoo designed for children.










We ended the evening with a dip in the indoor pool back at the hotel.

Taste This: Adventures in Baby Food

Stroll through the baby food aisle of a Japanese grocery store and you’ll see some of the same processed foods that Americans serve their babies: strained apples, banana pudding and pureed sweet potato. Take a closer look and you’ll find a colorful smorgasbord of jars with pictorial lists of ingredients. A jar of codfish and mashed potatoes sits next to a serving of steamed egg with vegetables. Babies can wash it down with genmaicha (brown rice tea).

Mass produced baby food is a relatively new concept in Japan. Packaged in convenient pouches, the dairy company, Meiji, exposes little ones to a “repertoire of flavors,” according to the foodmaker’s website. With a focus on nutrition, mothers “can experience a variety of well-balanced flavor, not a fussy baby” as they “teach the joy of eating. “

One of Meiji’s most popular items is a baby curry that contains potatoes, carrots, apples and pineapple. Other items include a salmon and vegetable noodle stew made from three types of salmon using the flavor of kelp. Creamy tuna spaghetti and sweet and sour pickled pork in a mild sauce with onions doesn’t seem scary. But the jar labeled “horsemeat with vegetables” caused a double-take. The same can be said of the fried rice with baby sardines.

Another popular brand, Kewpie, produces children’s snacks. Instead of Cheerios, a mother could offer sweet potato bites or soft rice and seaweed crackers.

Despite the variety of flavors, one food staple seemed to be missing: goya. I wonder when Okinawa children get their first taste of the island’s bitter melon.

Dad, trust me, I've handled hundreds of butterflies before

...as Benny keeps Olivia just out of reach of the butterflies on the red hat.

We'll be adding more as time allows about our adventures in Motobu over the weekend.

Butterfly House, Nakijin Castle

As I said before, the pressure of the last year in Okinawa is starting to weigh heavy on my shoulders. I feel like EVERY weekend should be an opportunity to explore this island (that I didn't explore for the last 2 years.)And 3-day weekends are special and should be treated as such.

Martin Luther King Holiday Weekend came too fast after Christmas and New Year's Day, so we didn't have our act together enough to plan an off-island vacation.

When we were invited to participate in the annual Trim Marathon at Ocean Expo Park (90 minute drive north of our house), I suggested to Benny that we get a hotel room and explore the North part of the island (Motobu region) for the weekend.

Friday night was spent with my co-workers at an izakaya for a ShinNen-Kai (New Year Party).

Olivia was in good hands at home with the babysitter. She didn't even wake up when an earthquake shook the buildings.

After Alligator Steps on Saturday morning we packed the car with the essentials.


Checked into the hotel.


Went to the Butterfly House.





Hiked Nakijin Castle ruins right before sunset.


Didn't see a bounty of cherry blossoms, as I had hoped.

Enjoyed an Okinawa dinner at the hotel restaurant before heading to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a big day.

10, count them 10

Olivia turned 10 months old this month.

She wanted to show you here pearly whites. Her sixth tooth just popped through the gums today.

Family traditions

Christmas 2009. It's Olivia's first Christmas and a lot is at stake here.

First of all, this is the beginning of our family traditions. Last year I emailed a group of friends and asked about family traditions for Christmas. I was already thinking of our baby's first Christmas. And I'm always amazed about the rules and strict traditions of Japanese culture. Everyone does basically the same things for the same holidays. They eat the same food. They do the same activities. And Americans seem a bit more hodge-podge than that.

So back to family traditions.

First we took some of Benny's family traditions. We went to candlelight service at the chapel on Christmas Eve. We made and ate oyster stew, Benny's mom's recipe.

Then we took some of my family's traditions. Olivia used the Advent calendar I've had since I was a child (my dear friend, Irene made it for me). It was Olivia's countdown to Dec. 25 and I think she enjoyed moving the mouse to a new pocket each day. And we took a family photo on Christmas Eve.

Then I thought about this red Christmas journal that my mom had and would write down the details of every Christmas. For example, you write what the weather was like that day, what you ate, what you did and what your favorite gift was. As an adult, it's amusing to go back to read about our family Christmases (is that a word) from the past 25 years. I wonder if my mom continues to write in this journal. Or if it all filled in and forgotten?

In any case, I really want to have one to start documenting the Volkmann family Christmases, so I ordered one on Amazon. I'm hoping to have it in 10 days.

Two traditions we started doing this year, we stole from other families. Is that bad?

I believe it was Shelly who first told me about the tradition of new pajamas for everyone in the family given out in Christmas Eve. And I believe that Benny's mom has given new pajamas to the grandchildren occasionally on Dec. 24. So I LOVE this tradition. The idea of sleeping snug in new soft pajamas is better than a plate full of cookies with a glass of milk. So Olivia received red Christmas pajamas.

You can't quite see it, but there are reindeer with antlers on them. And on her chest it says "Santa's Helper." Adorable.

And finally we decided to start a 3 present limit on gifts. I first heard about this from his sister Colleen. She has a friend whose children receive only 3 gifts from Santa because the wise men brought 3 gifts to baby Jesus. Again, I LOVE this idea and couldn't wait to start it with our children.

But once shopping started in December, this self-imposed limit was much harder than I ever imagined. There was so much I wanted to buy Olivia because of course she "needed" it.

Instead I waged my options, researched Parents magazine articles and customer reviews on Amazon.com. Olivia's three gifts were: a doll (her first), a set of wooden blocks and a baby band set complete with a drum (which is lost in the mail somewhere over the Pacific Ocean and still has not arrived.)

Benny received a yellow Orion T-shirt, a Japanese stamp that has Volkmann written in Kanji and "Daddy Time" gift certificates that he can redeem for hours to play ultimate Frisbee or study for his professional engineer exam.

I received a sweatshirt (that I picked out), Ryukyu glass chopstick rests (that Benny picked out!) and a picture frame for a family picture.

When I was researching this three gift idea, I came across a mother used this idea and made special holiday gift tags to identify this gifts. So even within the 3 gifts there is a special meaning for each gift.

If I make these permanent gift tags as a Christmas craft project, would Tammy be proud of me?

But we have one tradition left undecided: When to open our gifts? My family opens them on Christmas Eve and Benny's family opens their presents on Christmas Day.

Any opinions on this one?

A gift from Aunt Colleen

The video of Olivia opening her first gift:

Good holiday spirit

On Dec. 4, I made a huge mistake. At the end of the year party (bonnekai) for Benny's office, everyone kept asking me about the plans for Olivia's first Christmas. I told them repeatedly that I wasn't in the Christmas mood, didn't plan on doing anything special and didn't even want to decorate. She is 9 months old, she'll never know the difference, I reasoned.

The mistake I made was announcing my anti-Christmas plans within ear shot of Benny.

The next morning Olivia and I came home from her Saturday morning Alligator Steps to blaring Christmas music, ornaments scattered all over the floor and Benny holding up Olivia's stocking and asking "Where does this go?"

I told myself I wasn't going to help him decorate the house. But he marched on in a happy elf way. Finally I gave in and started to hang the Chinese Christmas paper lanterns I bought at the 100 Yen store in Tokyo in November. And I pointed and told Benny where to put things he pulled out of the box. It's hard to ignore someone when they are singing, "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth" over and over again.

Benny even convinced me to buy a real tree, one of the last ones on the lot.

I had previously refused to purchased a fake tree with the reason being why should we spend money on something that we will use for 3 weeks and store for 11 months.

Come Christmas morning, it was nice to smell the tree and take Olivia's picture in front of it.


I admit it -- I was grumpy and I'm grateful that Benny forced some good holiday spirit down my throat. I needed it.