The Chicken Shack

Possibly since our first day in Iwakuni, people have been mentioning The Chicken Shack to us. To me, the restaurant name evokes memories of trying to find a safe place to use the bathroom in Detroit. Any restaurant that brags about catering your party for $4 a person is a little sketchy to me. Please enjoy this link to Michigan's own Chicken Shack if you'd like.

For this superficial reason, I prefer to call the restaurant by it's Japanese name: Sanzoku. According to a well-informed Japanese man, sanzoku means "mountain bandit" in Japanese. We all know the American childhood cliches of being afraid of a monster under the bed/in the closet, but there is a similar fear in Iwakuni of roving mountain bandit attacks. 

Kara had also been urged to check out Sanzoku, so we made a point of going for lunch. We drove up the mountain, taking care to watch out for bandits, and arrived to find the whole place decked out in traditional Japanese flags and tacky Christmas decorations. 

It's awfully Christmas-y for a nation that is 99% Shinto Buddhist, amirite? I guess our spirit is just contagious.

So, we finally wandered our way inside, accidentally asked to be sat in the middle of the smoking section, and the waitress gave us English menus. I ordered udon (thick noodles in broth) with yamame (because it sounds like "call me" in Spanish), a rice ball, and chicken on a skewer (their specialty). Well, yamame turned out to be a whole fish plopped into my udon.

You can take your shoes off to sit here.

Fish in my soup, chicken on my skewer.

The chicken had a good marinade on it, and the decor was very Japanese, but I'm not sure why people insist new people go to Sanzoku. We decided to walk around the outside for a while to check out the famous grounds. 

In-ground tables have heaters underneath! The heat is trapped inside using the tablecloth.

Kara with a pagoda in the background

Pretty waterfall on your way to the dining area

More outdoor seating

A snowman who has put up with one too many snowy nights outside

Kara about to fall in the zen garden!

Um...

I really liked the Chicken Shack, and I'm excited to know how close it is. The old-time decor and traditional Japanese seating were enough to give me a taste for Japanese culture, but the fish in my soup was not exactly what I wanted - I told Kara before we started eating that I just didn't want a head in my soup. Wish not granted!

Thanksgiving with Kara

Kara just left  the day before yesterday and it was hard to see her go! I had a great time reconnecting, sharing my little Japanese air station town with her, and seeing some of the sites I love here in Japan. Her stay in Iwakuni overlapped with Thanksgiving and I was truly thankful to have her to share the holiday with!


We played our time together by ear and still managed to check off lots of Iwakuni Bucket List items. Here's a quick rundown of the beginning of her visit:


Kara made it here on a space-available flight on the day of Joe's Wet Down! Shockingly, it only took an hour and a half, and it was free because we are military dependents! We had beer chilling and put Kara to work immediately with getting things set up for the festivities. She excelled in setting out cheese at a 45-degree angle. ;) We had lots of fun and even Eddie got to enjoy the party (or rather, our guests got to enjoy Eddie). 


On Monday, we went to Yanai with my friend Alex. She is (very unfortunately!) PCSing soon and wanted to stock up on soy sauce from an actual soy sauce brewery in Yanai. I had no idea what to expect, but was surprised that a goldfish was the city's claim to fame. There were cartoon goldfish everywhere! We walked around the quiet downtown area and checked out the famous white walls from the Edo period. We finally found our way to the brewery and got to climb stairs to check out the brewing process.

Wilkommen to Yakai! This adorable dude looks like an owl but he's a goldfish. Love me some manhole covers.

At the brewery! Kara and Alex are posing in front of the massive platform that houses the soy sauce pools.

It looks like coffee grounds, but is actually soy sauce in progress. Nobody took me up on my dare to grab a handful.

Next up is our visit to Iwakuni's famed cultural site: The Chicken Shack a.k.a Sanzoku. Watch for the next post!

An Island Visitor!

I'm so excited to have my friend Kara here in Iwakuni! I got to see her when I went to Okinawa and told that story in this post. She made it here on a military flight the day of Joe's wet down celebration and we put her to work helping us prepare. ;) A "wet down" is a promotion party in the military where you celebrate your promotion with people of the same rank. It's customary to spend your first month's pay raise on booze to get the party going. This meant we had a healthy chunk of change to spend!

Joe is a beer fanatic and wanted to have his favorite microbrews available. Luckily, our Marine Exchange recently partnered with the comparatively luxe Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) to get exciting beers like Blue Moon, Fat Tire, Rogue and more for the past few weeks. Between the exchange and Joe's work adventures taking him to Hawaii, Guam, Australia, and Fukuoka, we had acquired 31 different beers! We had a great time and Eddie even joined the festivities. I think every Marine liked hanging out with the tiny little dog. 

Through some stroke of bad luck, Joe had a flight the morning after his party. I groggily drove him the the Shinkansen (bullet train) station so he could get to the airport on time. Kara and I were left to our own devices to find ways to preserve the leftover beer. This is what we came up with: 

There was beer fully stocked in the fridge too! We poured ice on top of our bathtub beer, put the handy Japanese bath cover over it, and now we're calling it our cooler. Thank goodness for Kara's ingenuity!

We hung out at the Kintai Bridge, explored the town of Yanai, and had lunch at the Chicken Shack for the first time. Iwakuni is a tiny little town, but we're heading to Hiroshima tomorrow to get a feel for the big city. It's so fun to share my new home with an old friend!

Fukuoka

Last weekend was incredible! I was a bit disappointed at first by the fact that our Marine Corps Birthday Ball would be on a Wednesday night, but then discovered that the Marines would have Thursday to Sunday off work! We made the most of the time off by taking a trip to Fukuoka the morning after the ball. 

First, Happy Birthday Marine Corps! Being a family member of the Marine Corps has given me so many challenges, and with that, so many opportunities to find out the kind of person I am and can be. Defending freedom comes with sacrifice, and I am proud to make sacrifices now to protect the American way of life for the future. I'm usually not happy about it, but I try not to complain because I can't think of a better reason to endure sacrifice.


The other great part of being a Marine wife is that we are treated like princesses for one day a year! I love this picture that my friend Emily took at the ball: 

Finagling a formal look in the countryside of Japan wasn't easy! The base exchange took measurements and custom ordered dresses from China, I bought over-priced costume jewelry at a Japanese department store (YouMe Town), my shoes came from Zappos.com (free shipping and returns), and I had to wait in line at 9am to make a hair appointment since there are only a few hair stylists on base. Oy! This experience in Iwakuni will make me never take the abundance in America for granted again.

We partied all night long with our friends and I got to sit between a female war vet (Hi, Theresa!) and a Ukrainian stripper (Hi, Sasha!) for dinner. Never a dull moment.

After the party, we landed back at our house and then got up early - miraculously without a hangover (thanks, vodka!) - kissed Eddie goodbye, and walked to the nearest train station. My hair was still fun and curly from the ball, so I really just had to roll out of bed and put it in a ponytail! I wish my hair was curly all the time!

Super curly side ponytail!

My favorite view!

Mountain islands behind me

We took the local train (rather than the bullet train) to Fukuoka to save a hundred dollars or so, but also discovered that we could enjoy the amazing view while riding along the coastline. It was very relaxing to sit on the heated seats and to read our Kindles with a nice view. 




I would definitely recommend getting a Kindle for travelers who like to read. It was so easy to pack the two of them in my purse and pull them out from time to time on public transportation. Joe is reading the Game of Thrones books and I'm reading The Hunger Games books, so it's nice to not lug around lengthy paperbacks or have to wait to buy the next book in your trilogy. 

Once we arrived, we stepped out of Hakata Station and I was in complete amazement! The most exciting thing was seeing our hotel right down the street from a Starbucks! There are a few Starbucks about an hour away in Hiroshima, but I've only been there a few times. Anyway, I was bracing myself for the impact of caffeine on my system and VERY excited about it. We stopped for a quick picture at Hakata Station before making our way to Sunlife Hotel.

I really liked this sculptural fountain with granite and grafitti artwork

We went to Hawks Town Mall (a mall named after the city's baseball team) to look around and then to The Hard Rock Cafe! I haven't had such good food since I was in America, so this was a big deal. Normally, the HRC is not exciting to me (except when one opened in Detroit) and I've always avoided their kitschy goodness in favor of local flavors. After too much time bracing ourselves to eat on base and lowering our expectations by joking, "Hopefully today there won't be much sawdust in the sandwiches!", and eating tempura (fried) everything in Japan, fresh and flavorful American food could not have been more exciting! We ordered a combo platter with Santa Fe egg rolls, SPICY buffalo wings, chicken fingers, etc..., a huge chopped salad for me, and a jerk chicken burger for Joe. We ended up packing up about half of our dinner, but it was really exciting! 

A portrait of excess

Lots of people like going to Fukuoka for the shopping, but I don't really get into the schoolgirl style that is popular in Japan, so I went for the cafe route. Joe and I grabbed coffee at Seattle's Best at the base of this mall (I can't remember the name because there are so many) and then wanted to check out the roof garden. WHOA:

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We renewed our vows...with the topiary deer as witnesses.

He puts up with so much for me! I can't stop laughing.

In this same mall, there was an adorable little milkshake shop with a seating area behind it. I looked closer at the seating area, and it's a place to touch up your hair and makeup! Ew. 

This might be the right time to talk about how grossed out I am by Japanese style sometimes. Grown women follow this trend of dressing like a baby and it's really creepy to me. They wear contacts that make their eyes seem bigger, fake eyelashes to look like a doll, and all the photoshopping makes women look like kids. I'm all for moisturizing my skin and staying out of the sun to protect my skin and stay youthful looking, but Japan takes it way too far. I found this store in Fukuoka and all the clothes look like they are made for dolls: 

I think Japan might just have a different outlook on pedophilia than the United States. The legal age of consent in 13 here and I know Japan has a longer history than the US. Maybe it stems from older men being able to take care of young women long ago? Anyway, it's only cute for a minute until you realize how strange it would be to dress like this in any other country. It's almost as weird to me as grown women in the U.S. dying their hair as blonde as it was as a child. Who can trust a blonde adult? ;)


Here is a smattering of other strangeness from the Japanese imagination:

Michigan: Imagination is More Important than Knowledge

I gasped as I walked by this little dog dressed in a beret and left by itself.

I can't help myself.

Silly hats only.

Awesome style spotting at the fish market.

Punk dog

A Brucey dog with his little sister on a sidecar leash! KAWAII!

Detroit-themed haircuts?

The main event for our trip to Fukuoka was to go to our first sumo wrestling match. We bought tickets at FamilyMart (a convenience store like 7-11) and made our way to the match on the very last day we were in Fukuoka. It was BIZARRE. Sumo wrestlers are nothing to joke about! These guys have rippling muscles and rippling fat stores. We learned a lot about the history from a brochure they gave us on arrival and about all the symbolism in the ring. Here are some pictures from our crazy afternoon watching sumo:

There are things in this life better left unseen. We had the crack-view for the entire match.

We discovered that seating is a bit different in Japan. You can buy a futon area for around $200 and fit as many people as you'd like on it. I'd recommend the cheap seats!

We took lots of video from the event, but I just can't bring myself to rewatch the footage and see all those naked butts again. Maybe another time!

Thanks for reading!

Fall Activities

Joe's home! No, I can barely believe it either. I have so much more fun sharing experiences with Joe than going it alone, so we've been making the most of our time together by checking out new restaurants and seasonal events in the area. 

I'm really not sure what the purpose of this parade was, but someone posted about it on one of the Iwakuni facebook pages to which I subscribe and we decided to check it out. Eddie came along with us because it's only about a five minute drive and he behaved well until all the noise and strangers petting him got overwhelming. It's okay, Eddie.


Here's a shot of Eddie climbing on my lap to take in all the sights and sounds:

These older ladies were my favorite. They were so poised and their kimonos are gorgeous.

 

 I'm 90% confident that this mascot is the albino habu snake. I've never seen one, but there is a visitor center near the castle where you can hang out with them (if that's your thing). 

  
Since the parade, we've decided that this strange green man that appears on everything in Iwakuni is a promotional character for to help Iwakuni lure athletes to train for the Olympics.

We love getting the scoop on new restaurants to try in Iwakuni, so we tried out another yakiniku (a.k.a. grill your own raw veggies, obscure animal parts, and delicious beef) place across the street from Jan Jaka at a friend's suggestion. I've come to partially hate yakiniku restaurants because their poorly translated menus describe normally gross animal parts in the absolutely most disgusting way thinkable. Joe ordered a massive set for himself that included chicken gristle, salted pork tongue (flattened), and a host of other vomit-inducing treats. It did include some tasty kim chi that I snagged off Joe's plate. I ordered some dependably delicious bi bim bap (under ¥1000) and the unlimited soda bar (¥220) while also stealing a few bite-sized pieces of steak from the grill. How would Joe even notice they were missing as he was filling up on all those other horrors?

The grill in action.

You might be figuring out that I hate grocery shopping, cooking in my obscenely small kitchen, and washing dishes without a dishwasher. Well, here is another way of avoiding such chores: Monte Beer! I think the idea is that it's a "bar" and restaurant rather than a brewery, because we didn't come across any new beers on the menu. My heart skipped a beat when I entered the restaurant because it looks like a (Japanified) Max & Erma's! We opened the menu and I was so excited to see American pub food on the menu!

How could you not order a Guinness "harf and harf"? This ridiculous beer was over $5. Blasphemy.

My first Caesar salad in a restaurant in almost a year!

Joe said his burger tasted like meatloaf. This seems to be a common recipe in Japan.

Love the Italianese plate and tasty (but not spicy) buffalo wings.

This is what to look for if you're in downtown Iwakuni (close to the train station). It's hard to miss and the waitstaff speaks good English!

I've been whining since we got here about the lack of cafes and sandwich shops. I was driving around with Joe trying to find a coffee shop I thought I had seen (maybe I dreamt it) when we saw this cute little bakery along the "New Road" (outside the main gate, past Mike's Tex-Mex, before the bridge). I'm thinking we were there around 5pm on a Saturday hoping to drink coffee and eat fancy desserts, but they were closing up shop for the day. I've noticed quite a few Japanese places that do brew coffee only do so between 10am at the earliest and 4pm at the latest.

Heartbroken with defeat, we took home this small consolation prize. I assumed from the color that it would be a mocha, cappuccino, or caramel flavor, but it's important to let go of any silly assumptions like that in Japan. This little treat was bean and lemon flavored with a sugar cookie center.

If you need to see something delicious again, here's Eddie:

It's love.

Through all my traveling, I've never missed food from home so much! Who wants to ship over a combo platter from Al Oumara? How about a sandwich and salad from Panera? Red pizza from Tomato's Apizza? Spicy garlic boneless wings from B Dubs? What about all those pumpkin beers and treats I've been seeing all over Facebook? I'm just getting started! I know you still have them! Put them all in boxes for me.


xoxoxo
Heather

For the Price of a Cup of Tea

More shopping adventures! Whenever I want to make a price comparison, this song always pops into my head. Go ahead and play it, it's a good one.

Here in the land of the rising sun, I've been stunned by the prices of everyday products like Parmesan cheese (or really any kind of cheese), melon, and today: grapes!

We can get all these things on base at average American prices, but I try to do my grocery shopping out in town where everything is fresh and, not unusually, very local. The problem with the food on base is that it comes from the USA, so it's already been on a boat for a few days before it arrives in Guam, leaves a shipment in Okinawa, then the boat makes another stop in Fukuoka, and finally we get the rest here in Iwakuni.

There are lots of rumors about the food here, like we get the meat that doesn't sell on clearance in the states, so it is frozen and then sent to "institutions" (i.e. prisons, hospitals, the military). Meat is a lot cheaper on base than off, but you can't get any fresh meat on base. I also think it's sort of questionable to have eggs and milk on a boat or airplane for that long.


So, I like to pack up my reusable bags (Japanese grocery stores usually only provide bags that are flimsier and smaller than our produce bags in the US), and peruse the aisles. Here is a selection of interesting things I've found lately:

At today's exchange rate, this cheese is $12.90. OUTRAGE.

$19.30 for ONE melon. You can bet I haven't tried one.

$7.68 for the bushel

Apparently Japan knows their grapes. OH MY GOODNESS. I read about an ITT trip for grape picking here in Japan, but didn't want to make a day of it. Finally I gave in and bought this stem of grapes with my normal-sized iPhone for size comparison. They are massive! They absolutely don't skimp on flavor either. They taste like a juicy plum and a seedless grape had a baby together. If you're in Japan, you have to try these! If you're not in Japan, well...I'm sorry.


That's all for now, folks. Did you catch my Halloween tablecloth in that picture? I'm getting the house extra creepy for Halloween this year! I don't think we'll have any trick-or-treaters, but we might have some drinkers. I'm so excited to see all the costumes!

Eddie Update!

The puppy and I have been very busy lately. We're going on lots of walks and meeting lots of neighbors who can't resist his adorable face. I can't blame them.

Our neighborhood has some great scenery for long walks. Here are the lotus fields at the end of the growing season.

The lotus fields, a neighbor's house, and the sunset.

A picture from a walk at dusk.

Kisses!

Strike a pose!

These are some of the cutest kids in the neighborhood. 

The two little girls were fishing and ran over to play with Eddie when they saw him. The little boy is Filipino-American and loves Eddie too! These kids motivate me to learn Japanese! Kawaii!

                 

Eddie loves his care package from my Grandma Anna! :P Thank you so much! He loves his lion the most but he has fun with all his toys. He will chase his basketball to the end of the earth. :)


Now, here's a chance to get up close and personal with Eddie. Most of his cuddle time comes after a bit of biting and being bad. I think he might be making progress, but it's the reality of puppyhood. Eddie's teeth are growing fast and I was going to just take a picture, but he moves so fast that a video helped me capture his teeth better. Then it turned into tickle torture. Enjoy!

I think these moves might be inspired by the following classic:

Then! A spoiler! If you want to be surprised by Eddie's Halloween costume this year, don't click "play" below. If you don't mind because you're on the other side of the world and you need more cute puppy videos; play on, playa!

The main reason why we call our pup "Eddie" is because it reminds us of this hilarious cartoon: 

In Japanese, mame means 'bean', so a mameshiba (Eddie's breed) is a bean-sized dog, or shiba. We saw it only fitting that he should dress up to explain his name to his friends. I guess it's similar to a dachshund dressing up as a hotdog for Halloween. One word: adorable.


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