A visit to the Churaumi Aquarium and Mike's Tex-Mex

Mr. Top Gun and I decided to take a road trip to visit the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium this weekend, and we were glad we went! After the 2 hour drive (courtesy of the world's SLOWEST Japanese drivers,) we finally arrived were greeted by a SEA of Japanese tourists... Seriously, I knew this aquarium was muy famous, but this was ridiculous to me! Needless to say, the trip was a huge success and we were able to see some of world's most gorgeous sea life and creatures, not to mention the HUGE whale sharks in the tanks (3 of them) and the gigantic sting rays, sharks, tropical fish, baby sea turtles, sea snakes, eels, dolphins, manatees and so much more!

After arriving home we decided that sushi didn't sound so appetizing anymore for dinner *GASP!* I actually decided to try the new Tex-Mex restaurant up the road from our casa over my beloved sushi... something is wrong here! The food was fabulous. And coming from a little Mexican girl who grew up with this cuisine and knows how to cook it, I was uber impressed with the flavors, textures and authenticity of my meal. The chips are homemade, as are the tortillas and the addicting and utterly divine salsa. My cheese enchiladas were made with white cheese *yum* and covered with a deliciously light yet tasty sauce, and the rice and beans weren't too bad- although I think I could offer my assistance to them :) I'll leave you with a few pictures of our adventure!

Mr. Top Gun and his candid photos. He is sneaky!

The HUGE stingray!!
Gigantic Whale Shark!!

Being goofy in the car at the ATM

This is what my home looks like! Tropical everything!

The "Gem" up the road...

You want to know how I know that this Island is KLASSY? Well, then look no further than the local "Men's Relaxation Salon," right up the road from us! Now, I know some of you are thinking one of two things right now: "Is this a massage place/spa for men," or, "Holy crap. This is a sex massage place!" If you guessed the latter part, you are indeed correct! Apparently, these types of places are legal here in Japan and rather popular amongst the Japanese men and sadly some of our own American Service members stationed abroad. They are off limits to the military, but there are places that will allow entrance to their 'spa' if the price is right... The price is somewhere around $500.00 for an American guy to have a night or day filled with a relaxing, fun, and happy ending! The spas that don't charge high rates for the services performed are nasty, and I've heard of a few guys frequenting some of the off limits establishments and bringing home a 'gift' if you like for their spouses, who later realize this is the type of gift that doesn't bring happiness, but rather a very nasty STD...

Oh, and the best part about "U-Time?" It happens to be located right outside the base, and is conveniently placed between a Pizza Inn, Sushi Bar and the GI Bill Pay Service center! Oh, and it is also in the same shopping plaza that Mr. Top Gun and I bought our cars at. Now that's Klassy! I still get a kick out of seeing the guys walking into the spa in broad daylight, and when Mr. Top Gun is with me in the car and he sees them he says: "We just saw you go inside. Embarrassing!" And if you are lucky, you may sometimes even see the ladies walking to their place of employment- trust me, they don't look like they are walking to the local bank.

My Monday B list...

It's a Monday, and I don't like it. Normally, I don't have a problem with Mondays but this one has got to be the worst- ever. I am exhausted. I am mentally drained, my body is sore, and I want to go out and shop but Mr. Top Gun has the car today. Awesome! I woke up this morning and jumped in the shower hoping to be dressed and ready before the maintenance guys showed up, because god forbid I allow them to see me without my make-up on right? I come downstairs to my computer and find that my parents are on Skype! Yeah!! Then, my grandparents call from Skype at the same time! I ended up talking to them all which made my morning a nice one- because, I don't DO early mornings. Seriously, I got up at 700 this morning and felt like I was half dead. Besides, my body is having major issues with trying to adjust to this wicked time change, and I just want to crawl back into bed!

The maintenance guys show up, fix the wobbly ceiling fan, the screen to the patio, the lock on the front door and they are gone. The Japanese are such hard workers, and it's so neat to see them use my downstairs foyer area and take their shoes off. I need to go out and purchase some slippers for my guests to use now! Next, the internet people drop by... as soon as I see the guy, I realize he has NO idea why he is even here. He looks over at my MacBook on the table and says: "You are stealing wireless from someone, no?" WTF? Uh, the house is already wired for this, and the company KNEW this when Mr. Top Gun and I went in last week to make the appt!!! Ugh!! I asked him if he brought a router for my Vonage to work and he kinda looks at me like I am a space cadet (ok, sometimes I am) but today I am not. I tell him to call his boss because when Mr. Top Gun gets home and finds out that nothing was accomplished, we is going to be one grumpy man and I don't need to deal with that right now. I get him to make an appt. ASAP, and they are going to be back tomorrow with my router! Yeah, then I can call home to Texas all I want to!

I then proceed to call Flight Medicine so that I can have all of my prescriptions transferred from our previous base to here. How hard can that be? Well, when you live in Japan and you have a lovely and oh so damn complicated to use cell phone, making a call is about the HARDEST thing you'll ever do here! I can't find the number. I look for it, rustle through Mr. Top Gun's flight bag and finally find the darn sheet with all the important numbers on it. I call them- I think I called them... nope, phone starts yelling at me in Japanese! What? I don't know what happened, but it took me over an hour to figure out how to call them and finally get my appt. I go on Friday, and by then I shall have my cute little car!

And last but not least... I am tired of hearing F-22's and F-35's ROAR over my house. I have been hearing them non-stop since I got here, and I would appreciate a mere 5 minutes of quiet time... please? Don't get me wrong- I love planes, and the Air Force and I understand their purpose here, but what I don't like is not being able to talk to someone in my own home because they are zooming over the water and over my house every few seconds. I do however, love to walk out onto my many balconies and see them zip over the ocean! They fly in so low that when they get near the water, all you see is the afterburners and the water 'parting' to the side as they fly by. Neat! Now, if they could only be silenced... yeah, I know it's not gonna happen. I'll be used to it in a few days. At least Mr. Top Gun's plane isn't 'rude!' It's loud, but not rude! Enough of my tirades for now. I have laundry to fold and a dinner to start!

Wacky Wednesday?

Do you need some panties or men's underwear?

Well, look no further than my future home... Japan! Where they have vending machines for everything. I would like to note that I shall NOT be stopping by this panty vending machine! Gross, weird, awkward???

Would you like a nice refreshing beverage? Perhaps a beer, coke, or a coffee? Personally, I think Tommy Lee Jones looks pissed. Does he really want to endorse these products? I would be scared of approaching this machine too. I wonder though... Does Tommy Lee Jones come out of the machine? Does he sign the Coke product for you? Or, does he yell at you?Silly Japanese. Good for a laugh!

Is your Dad awesome? Because, clearly Mine is...

Mrs. Top Gun has an awesome Dad. Here, he is on a silly green bike in Maryland while on vacation to visit his parents. I really don't have anything else to add to this... Oh, and that's a Diet Coke in his hand. I asked him if it was a beer, because it looked like one. And yes, he is sitting on the wheel. I wonder why he didn't choose to hop on up onto the seat?

Saying goodbye to my car and talking about a baby...

This is Mrs. Top Gun's car. Her name is "Bella." She is my baby, I love her. She is shiny, hasn't got a ding or scratch upon her and has lived in a garage since being driven off the Acura lot. When Mr. Top Gun came home a few months ago, he informed me that we would be moving to JAPAN, and that we couldn't take our cars with us. What!?!? Mr. Top Gun had just purchased a brand spankin new 2008 Black Pathfinder, 4 wheel drive, fully loaded and suddenly we find ourselves having to find homes for our cars. BOO. My car is going to be gifted to my dad! He loves my car, always has and being the incredible Husband to my Mom, he really never has owned his own new car- ever. My Mom has always gotten a new car every 4 years, and my Dad just purchases a used one. I am happy to say that my car shall be going to a good home! Mrs. Top Gun's Dad needs to sell his older Acura anyways, and the money he gets from the sell is going to fund my 'new' car in Japan.

Mr. Top Gun is going to sell his SUV to a local dealer or try to sell to a fellow Military member. If not, his SUV goes into the garage at his parents, and will sit there for a good three years. Now, that is my rant for the day. And to make it worse? I get a letter from my XM radio company, explaining that I need to renew my service soon. Ironic much? Turns out that the service expires on the exact date the Top Gun's will be gone from the states. Oh well. I call my Dad and he takes over the service! He is like a kid in a candy shop right now, and I'm glad he doesn't have the keys yet... He wants to drive that car, and he wants it now!

The upside of giving up my car? Mr. Top Gun has promised me a brand new BMW when we return stateside!! Don't I just have the most fabulous husband? See, I told you he indulges me. I heart you, Mr. Top Gun. Now, let's get to making a baby!

***** Yes, a baby. We had the talk. Looks like Mrs. Top Gun is going to start a family in Japan, sometime soon. *****