okinawa is for hoarders

baking soda is a pretty common baking item, right? right.  normal grocery stores are fully stocked with baking soda at all times.  well, i went to the commissary for several weeks in a row and they were out of baking soda.  what the what?  when i finally found baking soda, i bought 8 boxes.  okinawa has turned me into a hoarder.  i have a pantry full of baking soda, garbanzo beans, and coconut milk.  if i find something i want/need, i feel the strong need to buy multiples of it.  like multiples of 10.  i just bought items for three different holidays in fear they won't be available next time i go.  it may be a problem.

it has also made me a hoarder of things that need to be retired.  take my favorite pair of jeans for example.  the right pocket is now just a hole and the top button keeps falling off but i just keep re-attaching it and rocking the jeans.  i refuse to give them up in fear of what i may have to replace them with.  in some ways, it is a good thing.  it makes me fix things i would otherwise just throw away and makes me make due with what i have.  

in other news, i feel like i am getting a little dumber.  my spelling has taken a huge hit lately and my music knowledge is decreasing.  it's very disconcerting.  i also lost my big toenails from hiking mt. fuji.  good thing it's finally cooling off and i can wear real shoes cause my feet are real ugly.  

this weekend is veteran's weekend and i am excited for a long weekend.  originally i was going to go to taiwan but it didn't end up working out so i'm going to enjoy a fun weekend on island.  maybe do some touristy things i've been putting off.  

planes, trains, and automobiles

over columbus day weekend, a friend and i took a quick trip to hong kong.  it's only a 2.5 hour flight from Okinawa so we were able to go for a long weekend without too much time traveling.  we made the most of our time time there.  

we took a ridiculous number of kinds of transportation.  we walked (and walked and walked), rode a bus, took the subway, rode the ferry, took a tram, took a cable car, rode a train, rode on rickshaw, took a plane, and rode in taxis.

here is a rundown of our trip:

went to hong kong museum of history. 

shopped a ton at flea markets.

had afternoon tea at the peninsula.

got a foot massage.

went to temple street night market and ate fresh steamed crab.

took the star ferry to hong kong island.

took the tram to victoria's peak

went man mo temple.

ate at lin gueng tea house.

walked the tsim sha tsui promonade/avenue of stars.

got a foot massage  at a very questionable salon and ate mcdonalds.

lds temple and church

went to lantau island, saw big buddha, and went to min lo monestary

took a ferry to macau, ate at clube militar de macau, took a rickshaw ride

we had a really busy but really fun trip.  i'm exited for my next adventure!

5 done, 26 more to go

1. hike mt. fuji-done and done
2. live to be 32-in progress; i've survived 3 months of being 31
3. make 5 new friends-haven't started yet
4. avoid great white shark breeding grounds (contributed by my bro, Josh)-in process
5. visit at least 3 new countries-trip booked to hong kong for columbus day weekend!
6. get SCUBA certified-haven't started yet; going to take the class after my MAC certification test is over.
7. grow my hair out-in progress; it's to my chin!
8. get a will-haven't started yet
9. get a japanese massage-done
10. go to tokyo disneyland-done
11. go to the states at least once-done
12. get master in addiction counseling certification-in progress; took my test.  now i'm waiting to find out the results.
13. read more than i watch tv-in progress
14. save my cost of living money every month-in progress
15. learn basics of japanese-in progress
16. walk the seawall by my house every night-in progress; i haven't done it as much as i've meant to but i have been working out 5 days a week so that's something
17. use my vitamix everyday-in progress; i pretty much use it everyday.  best. purchase. ever.
18. use less store bought items, make more things myself-in progress; made homemade fizzing bath balls, sugar scrub, and cleaner.  i'm also working on only using natural products. i'm slowly using up the products i already have and replacing them with natural versions.
19. blog once a week-in progress; i blame the internet.  my internet has been really finicky.
20. email a friend/family member once a week-in progress; doing better but not quite weekly. i'm actually writing more than emailing but i think that counts.
21. actually do the things i pin on pinterest-in progress; i use pinterest ideas all of the time. 
22. get five stars on just dance-done
23. read 5 classics-haven't started yet; i keep spending my reading time on book club books but i have several downloaded on my kindle.
24. be active in my ward-in progress
25. get laser hair removal-haven't started yet
26. sew one thing-haven't started yet
27. keep a daily gratitude journal-in progress
28. use my craft supplies-in progress; i'm planning on being more crafty during the winter.
29. decorate for every holiday-haven't started yet; i plan to decorate for halloween in the next week or so
30. only buy things i really love-in progress; this is something i'm trying really hard to do and i'm doing much better.  i'm going to have to hold myself back in hong kong because the shopping there is supposed to be phenomenal
31. cut back on dairy intake-in progress; i have gotten rid of all the dairy in my house (minus baking supplies) and am working really hard to avoid dairy.  being dairy free seems to be helping my stomach and my skin.

oh, the internet

my internet has been the bane of my existence lately.  one of the recent typhoons ripped my fiber optic cable off my building so my internet was down for two weeks.  i got it fixed and one week later my well-meaning friend was trying to do something fancy with my xbox and somehow made my internet stop working.  after a week of trying a million different things, my home teacher figured it out and got it working, thankfully!  we have another typhoon coming this weekend and i want to research stuff to do in hong kong while i'm stuck inside.  

here are the highlights of the last month or so:

-took my MAC certification test.  just waiting to hear back about my results.  i'm freaking out a little bit but hopefully i'll find out soon and it will be good news.

-i booked a trip to hong kong for columbus day weekend!  i'm supposed to be going with my friend but she may be going on a short deployment at the same time so i may end up going alone.  apparently hong kong is a very safe place for single women to visit alone.  i'm very excited to see the sights and shop in the markets.  it'll be a good experience for me to travel on my own.

-i've been working out with a trainer for about a month now.  we train three times a week.  i've lost 3 inches so far and have gotten tons stronger.  i've really enjoyed the training and have noticed an increase in my energy and mood.

-at work, we moved into our new wing.  it's freshly painted, sound proofed (sort of) with new furniture.  it'll be nice to be in a real clinic setting.

-got a japanese aromatherapy massage.  it was great and very relaxing.  the same day, i got a pedicure.  i was rewarding myself for taking the MAC test.

-we've had a number of typhoons in the last month and have one coming this weekend.  typhoons always come on the weekend.  that's not even an exaggeration.  they come on saturday and sunday and are usually cleared up by monday, just in time for us to go back to work.

-overall, it's been a low-key month but now that i no longer have to study, i can play more!

if nothing, i'm consistently inconsistent

for some reason, i find emailing, texting, blogging, facebooking, etc to be so hard.  i don't know why that is but i definitely struggle to keep up/in touch via those means.  oh, and the phone.  so basically, if you want to know what is going on in my life, come visit ;)

exciting (ok, maybe that's a strong word) goings on:

it's been beautiful weather, minus the humidity of course.  i went snorkeling this past saturday and it was so beautiful underwater.  the water was really rough so i did get a touch of motion sickness.  it could have been really bad but i made it out of the water without losing my lunch.

i'm crazy busy at work with clients, upcoming inspections, trainings, and lots and lots of paperwork.  it's nice to be busy but now it's getting to be too busy.  it all depends on the day though.  some days, i have a bunch of "no shows" and get lots of stuff done.  of course on the days i hope people will "no show," everyone makes their appointment.

i'm (trying) to study for my upcoming certification test.  nothing makes me procrastinate more than school work.  i have serious anxiety about it but find a million other things to do instead of studying.  tonight i was especially productive;  i avoided cleaning my house AND studying.  

i've watched/seen more movies here than i ever have.  i guess it's how we feel connected to the states.  and everything (except bars) closes early so its the default activity.  my friend is going to set up my xbox to stream netflix then it's really going to be on.

i've come to really appreciate ocean sunsets.  i have an amazing view from my house and try to watch the sun set most evenings.  i wish i had a fancy schmancy camera so my pictures would do the sunsets justice.

i miss everyone like crazy.  it feels like it's been forever since i was in the states but it's only been like 3 weeks.

i really want to go galavanting through asia.  anyone want to meet up for a tour of asia?

update on 31 things

i must say, so far i'm doing much better this year than i did last year.  here's for setting your sights low!


1. hike mt. fuji-done and done
2. live to be 32-in progress; i've survived over a month of being 31
3. make 5 new friends-haven't started yet
4. avoid great white shark breeding grounds (contributed by my bro, Josh)-in process
5. visit at least 3 new countries-haven't started yet
6. get SCUBA certified-haven't started yet; going to take the class after my MAC certification test is over.
7. grow my hair out-in progress; it's to my chin!
8. get a will-haven't started yet
9. get a japanese massage-done
10. go to tokyo disneyland-done
11. go to the states at least once-done
12. get master in addiction counseling certification-in progress; i take my test in 6 weeks...eek
13. read more than i watch tv-in progress
14. save my cost of living money every month-in progress
15. learn basics of japanese-in progress
16. walk the seawall by my house every night-in progress; walked it for the first time last week but haven't been able to since then due to the typhoon.
17. use my vitamix everyday-in progress; not quite daily yet but a lot
18. use less store bought items, make more things myself-in progress; made homemade facial toner.  
19. blog once a week-in progress; you are reading a post right now so that's something.
20. email a friend/family member once a week-in progress; this may be pushing it.  my mom emailed me to say she mailed my boxes and i replied with thank you.
21. actually do the things i pin on pinterest-in progress; see #18
22. get five stars on just dance-in progress
23. read 5 classics-haven't started yet; the memoirs of cleopatra is taking forever to finish.
24. be active in my ward-in progress
25. get laser hair removal-haven't started yet
26. sew one thing-haven't started yet
27. keep a daily gratitude journal-in progress
28. use my craft supplies-in progress; i made an adorable wall hanging with some antique silverware and scrapbooking paper.
29. decorate for every holiday-haven't started yet; to be fair, i was gone for the 4th.
30. only buy things i really love-in progress
31. cut back on dairy intake-in progress; i have to eat all the dairy in my house before i totally commit to being mostly dairy free.

tokyo trip

my friend, amanda, and i decided to go to tokyo with the main goal of hiking mt. fuji but with some other fun things thrown in there, like tokyo disneyland!


here are the highlights of our trip:  


tiniest hotel room ever-

meiji shrine-

summit of mt. fuji-

tokyo disneyland-

31 things in the year of 31

i like to make goals for myself every year on my birthday.  last year i was a bit ambitious (i only accomplished 12 out of 30) so this year i decided to be more realistic.  here are the 31 things i want to do before i turn 31:


1. hike mt. fuji
2. live to be 32
3. make 5 new friends
4. avoid great white shark breeding grounds (contributed by my bro, Josh)
5. visit at least 3 new countries
6. get SCUBA certified
7. grow my hair out
8. get a will
9. get a japanese massage
10. go to tokyo disneyland
11. go to the states at least once
12. get master in addiction counseling certification
13. read more than i watch tv
14. save my cost of living money every month
15. learn basics of japanese
16. walk the seawall by my house every night
17. use my vitamix everyday
18. use less store bought items, make more things myself
19. blog once a week
20. email a friend/family member once a week
21. actually do the things i pin on pinterest
22. get five stars on just dance
23. read 5 classics
24. be active in my ward
25. get laser hair removal
26. sew one thing
27. keep a daily gratitude journal
28. use my craft supplies
29. decorate for every holiday
30. only buy things i really love
31. cut back on dairy intake

my birthday in pictures

typhoon time!

okinawa is located in what they call "typhoon alley" which means we are supposed to get quite a few typhoons.  i was excited for typhoon mawar so i could experience my first typhoon.  mawar was a huge disappointment.  in fact, during the time mawar was supposed to be coming through, it rained less and was nicer than it has been in weeks!  we are getting another typhoon tonight, typhoon guchol.  apparently he is headed straight for okinawa but things change on a dime around here so i'm not holding my breath.  i'm not going to lie, it would be awesome to be sent home from work or told to stay home, watch an awesome storm, and do whatever i want!  my patients keep telling my that typhoons are boring but i would find plenty of stuff to do on a "typhoon day."  i've got a running list including:

-read

-play "just dance" or the "michael jackson experience"

-clean

-craft

-watch movies

-cook

-bake

-eat

-mani/pedi

-blog

-sleep

-skype!

-online shop (let's be honest, i don't need a typhoon to help me find an excuse to hit up amazon.com)

-actually do the things on my "to do" list

-work on my karaoke

-work out

-sort through my clothes

-make concoctions in my vitamix (i'm obsessed!)

-write in my journal

-learn how to sew

-stretch

as you can see, i'm ready for a typhoon!  i also have a ridiculous amount of canned goods and candles.  and bottle water.  and books on my kindle.

6 months, say what?

i have officially lived in okinawa for 6 months now.  i'm a fourth of the way through my contract.  i can't believe how fast time has gone.  i still feel like i'm brand new to the island.  i need to start seeing more of the island so another 6 months doesn't pass and i'm still pretending i have tons of time to do stuff.

i did go snorkeling yesterday with some friends.  i bought my own snorkeling gear and can i just say, who knew snorkeling gear was that pricey?  i wasn't prepared for the prices but i figure that when i get scuba certified, i'll already have most of the stuff i need.  fyi, okinawa is in the top 10 best diving spots in the world.

we went to cape maeda, which is pretty close to my house.  cape maeda is where they do a lot of scuba lessons.  when we got there, there were SO many people getting in and out of the water but we were able to swim away from the crowd.  it was so pretty.  i find snorkeling to be really peaceful.  until one of the guys grabs my fins and freaks me out.  the water is unbelievably clear and the coral is beautiful.  i can walk two blocks from my house and go to a great snorkeling spot.  

after snorkeling, we went to a place called american village.  it's an huge shopping center with restaurants, stores, and a place called "doctor fish."  doctor fish is a place where you put your feet in a tub of water with freshwater carp and they nibble off your dry skin.  it's the weirdest feeling.  i took a video but stupid blogger won't let me upload it.  here is a picture instead.

we also went to a restaurant where you sit around a grill and cook your own food.  it's all you can eat and most of the items on the menu are meat products.  the guys thought this was heaven.  it's pretty good but WAY too much meat for my taste.  i swear, i sweat grease after i eat there.  

thoughts on okinawa

things i love about okinawa:

-they have the best drinks here.  and they are so available!

-the japanese seriously come up with the most ingenious ideas and inventions. 

-waking up to a gorgeous view of the ocean and being able to eat lunch at a beautiful beach.

-i can leave my doors unlocked and not worry about anything being stolen, broken into, etc.  it's so safe here.

-the small portions.  i love that they serve meals with a bunch of different dishes but all in very small portions.  makes portion control easy and allows me to try a bunch of different things.

-i have a great ward.  they are very welcoming and thoughtful people.

-i am so close to lots of great places.  2.5 hour plane ride to a bunch of other countries.

-the japanese use the word "hai" (pronounced like "hi") a million times a day.  it means yes and it's their favorite word.  it is now my favorite word.

 things i don't love about okinawa:

-tailgating.  it's like a japanese past time.  i've gotten used to it in town but the rage comes out when people tailgate me on base.  everyone knows you don't speed on a military base so back off!

-i swear it happens every week.  it will be sunny and beautiful outside during the work week but as soon as the weekend hits, cloudy, rain, etc.  it kills me.

-i miss being able to buy certain things in stores.  mostly things that make my life more convenient.  i can order most things on amazon but they don't mail organic produce.

-i love my apartment, it's really nice and spacious but i have to take an elevator since i live on the 8th floor.  that makes it difficult to get my bike downstairs to ride.  not the end of the world but kind of annoying.

-it's a small island so unfortunately i run into people i know a lot.  it's only a pain when i see my client in public and it makes things awkward.

-the main thing i don't love about okinawa is that my friends and family aren't here.

 things i gotten used to living in okinawa:

-rain doesn't even phase me anymore.  i rarely use my umbrella or rain jacket until it's sideways rain.  and using rain gear in sideways rain is futile.  no one bats an eye when i walk into work sopping wet.

-using hand gestures and my very, very broken japanese to communicate. 

-nodding in thanks

-driving on the left side of the road.  when i watch movies set in the states, it throws me off that they are driving on the right side of the road.

-showing my military id for anything and everything.

-driving the speed limit.

-not talking on the phone while driving. 

-using old fashion means to find my way places.  no calling people up if i'm lost, no reading street signs.  basically, the old fashion means i am referring to is driving in circles until i find what i'm looking for.  luckily, i live on a island so i can only get so lost.

-calculating the yen to dollar conversion and vice versa

-calculating the time difference in the states

-hearing a mix of japanese and english pretty much all of the time

happenings from oki

i’m the world’s worst blogger.  for some reason it seems really hard to blog.  i clearly put too much thought into it. 

here are the things that i’ve been up to:

-work.  it's fine but i really miss my kids.  and my old co-workers.  this place lacks humor. 

-joined a book club.  we are reading “the memoirs of cleopatra.”  we meet june 5th to talk about it.  it's 1000 pages.  i just bought the book...i even procrastinate "fun."

-joined a bunco group.  i’ve never played bunco before so we’ll see how it goes.

-took a karate lesson.  grab my shirt or my wrist and see what happens.

-went to the dragon boat races in naha.  they do them every year during golden week (they have 4 national holidays in the space of a week).  the races were a bit anti-climatic but we had fun eating japanese street food and losing at carnival games.

-stood in line for 3 hours to see the avengers and for 2 hours to see hunger games.  movies are a big deal here because they show them so sporadically and in such small theaters on base.  like, they'll show a movie once and then again in two weeks.  it's weird.  it costs $5 to see a movie on base and $18 to see a movie in town so we generally go on base.

-paddle boarded on torii beach.  it’s actually the beach on the base where i work so i avoid going there to avoid my clients but it’s a great place to kayak and paddle board.  and super close to my house.

-went to round one.  it’s an 8 story place of awesomeness.  one floor is arcade games, one floor has a roller skating rink and mechanical bull, one floor is chair massagers and comics, one floor is a bowling , alley, etc.  it was really fun except for a little boy got right in front of my while i was roller skating and it was like he felled a tree.  i don’t remember ever having had the wind knocked out of me like that before.

-finally bought a tv.  i also bought an xbox and a kinect.  been playing a lot of "just dance."  i sweat here like i've never sweated before.  it's pretty gross.

-went to a Japanese thrift store.  

here are some things i'm going to do:

-buy snorkeling equipment and start snorkeling on saturday mornings. 

-hike mt. fuji in july and most likely go to disneyland in tokyo!  i'm really excited.  mostly about disneyland but mt. fuji might be cool too. 

-try to hit all of the beaches on okinawa one by one. 

-ride my sweet beach cruiser with the elderly okinawan men on the seawall by my house.

-go to hong kong or taiwan before the summer is over.

-study for my MAC test (master's in addiction counseling).  it's in september and if it don't pass, i don't have a job.  talk about pressure!

-not be the whitest person here.  my legs are transparent!

growing pains

i am a terrible blogger.  there, i said it.


part of the reason i haven't blogged lately is because i haven't done anything very exciting and part of it is that i have been struggling a little bit.  and when i struggle, i disappear.  when i signed up for this "personal growth" thing i forgot it included growing pains. good thing i forgot or i might not have done it because these growing pains are giving me a run for my money.   my learning curve in all areas of my life is pretty dang steep right now.  some areas are going better than others but i definitely didn't prepare myself for how much things were going to be different or harder.  but, i'm surviving and i have hope that it will get easier soon.  my new mantra has become "if it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you."  


in more exciting news, i finally finished the harry potter series.  only too me 8 years or so to read all 7 books.  now i have to watch all the movies.  it might take me another 8 years for that.


it's finally starting to get warmer here and the sun is starting to show its face!  i eat lunch at the beach the days its wam and soak up the sun.  anyone who has seen my legs knows i need to!  the japanese, on the other hand, are heading for their hats.  okinawans are terrified of the sun. they have these hats that look like bee keeper masks so the only part of their face you can see are their eyes.  


on a totally unrelated note, i have skype on my phone and a skype phone number so people can call me on their phone and i can answer on skype on my phone.  just putting that out there.

what cherry blossoms?

i went to see a japanese cherry blossom festival at some castle ruins.

the cherry blossoms were a little late this year due to a colder winter so several of the trees were this bare.  i did get to see some that had bloomed but they were kind of sad.

this trip ended up being a three for one trip.  i got to see the cherry blossoms, the castle ruins, 

and a traditional japanese wedding.  they had the wedding in the middle of the ruins and everyone who was there for the cherry blossom festival got to watch.

they did the traditional tea ceremonies, had the okinawan drummers, and i got to dance with the wedding party.  no pictures of that, unfortunately.

the highlight of the trip was getting a hotdog taco:

trashy

the u.s. government does not support blogging, hence my absence.  i recently got fiber optic internet installed so i have freedom of blogging back.  i also have a home!  and furniture!  my house is adorable.  i'll post pictures. 


today, i want to talk trash.  literally.


the trash system here is complicated and kinda stresses me out.   i have to sort my trash into:  burnable, non-burnable, glass, and recyclables, which is really just plastic bottles.  glass has to be double bagged and labeled.  cardboard has to be tied together.  they will not pick up certain items.  every city has different requirements and different mandatory garbage bags.  btw: the mandatory trash bags cost Y660 (which equals about $8) for 20 and they only sell my city's bags at like two stores.  they are hard core aka rule followers. if you don't follow one of the many rules, they won't take your trash.  in fact, they will leave you a nasty gram (said in the most polite way) that they won't pick up your trash until you fix whatever mistake you made.  i lucked out; my supervisor has six trash cans in her house.  i still got a lengthy instruction sheet about how to get rid of trash.  when i first moved in, i had to reference the instruction sheet every time i threw something away.  


needless to say, the trash situation here kind of stinks.


on a disgusting note, on the military bases, all trash is thrown away together and then hired contractors sort it.  


worst. job. ever.  

i haven't crashed. yet.

after weeks of being a passenger, i finally purchased a car.  i am disappointed in it's normal-ness.  it's a honda and it has a super boring name.  sm-x.  i was really hoping to score a "fairlady z" or even an "every."   it feels like i'm driving a mini-van because it sits so high up.  i thought about rocking a mini-van so this is the next best thing.  except, it's a three door.  two doors on the passenger side, and one on the driver's side.  super random.  my only complaint is that it smells like cigarette smoke.  whenever i turn on the heat or a/c, i get a nice whiff of smoke.  i need to febreeze the vents or take up smoking.

my pride and joy.  until i get my apartment.  i need to name her.  suggestions?


driving on the left side of the road has had me all worked up since i got here.  however, it hasn't been that scary or unnatural.  i think being a passenger for several weeks helped me to acclimate to the driving situation.  i do turn on my windshield wipers pretty regularly when i am attempting to turn my turn signal on or off.  i have not turned into oncoming traffic (knock on wood) but i have gone over a few curbs in my attempt to stay as far away from other cars as possible.

driving here is interesting.  the fastest speed limit i've seen so far is 60 kph (about 45 mph).  a lot of times it is 40 kph (about 25 mph) so it takes a while to get anywhere.  it's against the law to talk on cell phones while driving so people will just pull over where ever they are to answer their phones.  they put on their hazards and chat it up.  motorcycles can go in between the lanes so they are always zipping around, especially at red lights.  they go to the front of the line.  it's a bit terrifying.  people don't really seem to have road rage here.  they just smile as people cut them off or suddenly stop in the middle of the raod.  it's nice but i'm sure the slowness of it all will eventually drive me crazy. right now, i'm grateful that i'm not the only one driving under the speed limit.  speeding tickets are crazy expensive, like in the thousands, so that is another motivator to drive the speed limit.  they have speed cams and if they catch you, you get a hefty ticket in the mail.  parking tickets are upwards of $200.  american owned vehicles have "y" license plates and they sometimes target those plates because americans are rich.  it's a fact.

the road system is chaos.  my coworker accurately described it as "someone took a bunch of noodles, threw them on a piece of paper, and said 'this is how we should build our roads.'"  however, the nice thing about living on a small island is that you can't get that lost.  and there are so many military bases here that if you get lost, you just ask where the nearest base is and go there.


i could write 50 posts about the driving here.  it's a bit ridiculous, sometimes hilarious, and always a little bit unsettling.

food friday, #1

after the convenience store food found out about thirsty thursdays, there was an uproar.  hence, food fridays.

i very recently went to my first convenience store here.  there are convenience stores on every corner.  the japanese love their snacks and beverages!  

lawson's is where i had my first convenience store experience.  unlike most of the stores i had been in so far, there was not much in english.  therefore, i had to guess.  here is what i ended up with:

some random little green things in a bag, mitsuya cider, and a rice ball with plum in the center.  rice balls are a misnomer.  they are rice triangles.

the olive things turned out to pickled eggs of some sort.  i almost vomited after trying them.  and i attempted to look them up on the internets but no luck.  who knows what i really ate!  

the rice ball was pretty good but i was surprised by the rice ball filling.  for some reason, i thought it would be sweet plum but it was pickled.  japan loves to pickle their food.

the mitsuya cider was delicious.  it was like a less sweet version of sunkist.


maybe next food friday i'll actually pick something that is not pickled.