Tokyo Giants Baseball

Tokyo Giants Baseball

On August 2, 2017

In Baseball, Japan, Tokyo, Tokyo Giants, Yokohama Baystars

Thank you for the outpouring of love, support, and congratulations shared yesterday. Dave and I truly appreciate the kind words. I’m happy I could share his promotion with you. Thank you.

Meanwhile, back in Japan… I’m almost caught up to real time. Which is good, because on Thursday Dave and I are taking a trip to Kyoto. I will have so much more to share!

Saturday, July 29th, Dave and I went to the Tokyo Giants baseball game at the Tokyo Dome. The Tokyo Giants were playing the Yokohama Baystars. The Dome from the outside is impressive! The roller coasters and rides in the background are part of the Tokyo Dome City – an amusement park.

From a distance the sunflowers looked amazing. Upon closer inspection they were even more amazing! They are fake flowers that are actually water misters! Perfect for a hot summer day in Tokyo. Plus, they are kawaii!! (As you can tell by the pictures, it was cloudy and drizzly so the misters weren’t needed too much today.)

There is an American Baseball store right by the Tokyo Dome with all the American team’s logos. I paused to pose in my favorite t-shirt’s team. I mean next to my favorite baseball team. Go Brewers!

There were so many people entering the stadium!

We had a group of SRF sailors join us for the game. The orange towels were the free gift of the game. They made GQ ties for the gents!

The Dome was impressive and perfect. It was mildly air conditioned and it prevented a rain delay!

My friend, Sonia, also joined us for the game. Originally from the San Fransisco area, she sported her SF Giants gear with Giants Pride.

At halftime (?), we went on a hotdog run.

A hotdog with potato chips, BBQ sauce, and a side of fries. Yes, please! Because, Japan.

It was a very fun night. The Giants baseball game at the Dome seemed less animated than the Yokohama Baystars game. The biggest difference was that they didn’t have the balloons during the seventh inning stretch. Simultaneously, the crowd didn’t seem as excited, even though the Giants were winning throughout the entire game. All in all, it was a fun night. Japanese baseball is an experience. If you are brave enough to visit during the summer, I’ll make sure we catch a game! “Put me in coach…”

Captain Dwyer

By wabisabisole

On August 1, 2017

In Captain, Japan, Navy, Promotion

August 1st, 2017, Dave was officially promoted to the rank of Captain. He enlisted in the Navy 33 years ago and today received his 13th promotion. I am so proud of all his hard work, dedication, and commitment throughout his career. The promotion ceremony was held at 9:00am at SRF-JRMC on the Naval Base.

His boss, Captain Farman, read the oath of office.

After accepting the oath, Dave was ready to have his collar devices switched. Goodbye oak leaves, hello eagles!!

The end result was a fine looking O-6!

After the ceremony, Dave took a few minutes to give thanks to his family, mentors, and shipmates. I know he missed being able to have everyone who has given him support and guidance attend the ceremony. You were definitely in our hearts.

Dave also passed down his old collar devices to a couple officers stationed at SRF.

The promotion ceremony was well attended by friends, coworkers, and shipmates.

As with all official Navy ceremonies, it wasn’t complete without a cake! The cake was made by a CS1 who works in the Galley on base. He heard about the need for a cake for Captain Dwyer’s promotion and quickly accepted the job.

After the ceremony the celebration continued. The lead secretary in Dave’s office and several other of the Japanese ladies presented Dave with flowers!

The ceremony was a perfect tribute to a dedicated sailor who has reached the pinnacle rank of his career. The only thing missing was all of you – our family and friends. But no worries, you didn’t completely miss it. I had someone use my phone to video the ceremony. The next time we see you, we can enjoy a beer and watch the 20 minute video of Dave becoming Captain Dwyer.

Dave, I’m so very proud of you. You truly are an inspiration. Congratulations! I love you!

Big Sur

By wabisabisole

On July 31, 2017

In Big Sur, Friendship, Japan

Monday was my last full day of my American Adventure. It ended on a high note with more views of the Pacific Ocean as we drove along the coast to Big Sur.

We stopped frequently because we didn’t have too many miles between where we were staying on the north end of Big Sur and where the landslide was blocking the road. Each stop gave us more beautiful views.

We were fortunate to have a bright sunny morning for our journey.

The breeze was strong as well. Providing the perfect opportunity for one last “flock of seagulls” hair picture. Check out Roxanne. No wind can mess up her perfect style!

As we continued south, we came to Pfeiffer Big Sur State Park. We stopped to walk around and took a quick walk through a few Big Trees. They weren’t quite as large at the trees in Redwood but, magnificent in their own way.

One trail that led to the beach was one of the few trails open. It seemed like a sign. Beach friends find a trail to the beach! Off we went.

We took a little time to play on the beach!

As the clouds rolled in again and the breeze picked up, we retreated from the beach. We made it safely to the van, stopped for lunch, and began our trip back to the airb&b.

We were glad to have enjoyed the beautiful sunset the night before because our last night was full of clouds.

The clouds didn’t dampen our spirits or our time together. We finished the evening with a salmon dinner, wine, and dominoes (chicken feet – our new favorite). The time I was able to spend with my friends and family over the past three weeks was just what I needed. Dave and I are enjoying our time living in Japan with the daily adventures. Living so far away from our loved ones is perhaps the most difficult part. Thank you for taking the time to let me savor my time while I was with everyone and also for giving me time to share the experience with you. I’m so appreciative of everyone who worked their summer schedules to make this vacation possible. Thank you and I love you!

One last closing thought. July 31st marks our one year anniversary in Japan. I have enjoyed “wabisabisole” as a means to share my experiences. While I can’t say I fit in like a local, I can definitely say I’ve developed a new sense of confidence, adventure, and independence as a result of living abroad for the past year. I appreciate all your love and support throughout our Japan Journey. I look forward to sharing even more stories with you over the next couple years. Simultaneously, if you are thinking about coming to visit, now might be a good time to start planning your own adventures!

Monterey & Carmel-By-The-Sea

By wabisabisole

On July 31, 2017

In Carmel-By-The-Sea, Friendship, Japan, Monterey, Road trip

Sunday, 7/22, Sara headed back to San Diego and the rest of us took a short road trip from Paso Robles to the coast. Our first stop was in Monterey. We enjoyed a walk through the quaint little town. It was fun to see Cannery Row. Since high school, I have been a huge John Steinbeck fan.

The Pacific coast enticed me yet again.

After our visit in Monterey, we continued towards Carmel-By-The-Sea and drove along the beautiful 17 mile drive. Slowly, the clouds started to lift.

17-Mile Drive is a scenic road that runs along the coast and connects Monterey to Carmel-By-The-Sea. There are several golf courses. The most famous being Pebble Beach. I honestly, just loved seeing the rocky shoreline of the Pacific.

It didn’t take long for the clouds to settle again. Bird Rock is pictured on the background. Again, you can’t hear all of the California sea lions lounging on Bird Rock. Using Mark’s binoculars, they were easy to spot. Using a picture from my iPhone, not so easy to spot.

One of the most iconic spots along the drive is the Lone Cypress. The clouds had definitely settled by this point. Nonetheless, we enjoyed taking tourist pictures!

We stopped in Carmel-By-The-Sea for lunch.

After lunch, we continued driving south to Big Sur. For the next two nights, Sue arranged for us to stay in an amazing airb&b at the top of of Palo Colorado Road off of US1. Before heading up the mountain to our airb&b we made a quick stop at the grocery store. Would you believe our luck – they had a wine tasting! Thank you, don’t mind if we do!

The house were we stayed was spectacular! The views were incredible. We literally were above the clouds. The Pacific Ocean is under the clouds.

We enjoyed a lively game of dominoes as we watched the sunset.

Watching the fog roll in after the sunset was captivating and eerie.

Despite the low clouds, Allison and I enjoyed a clear night sky to stargaze. We saw two satellites and three shooting stars!

Paso Robles Wine Camp

By wabisabisole

On July 30, 2017

In Friendship, Japan, Paso Robles, Running, Wine

The third part of my American Adventure was uniting with my friends from Virginia Beach. Friday, 7/21, I linked up with Mark and Roxanne at the San Francisco airport. After enduring a bit of rental car drama, the three of us drove south along 101 to Paso Robles. The traffic was awful. When finally made it to our airb&b rental we were beyond relieved and excited! Here we rendezvoused with the rest of our VB friends. Sue, Jeff and their daughter, Allison, had spent the week in San Diego visiting our friend, Sara and her family. They were driving north to Paso Robles.

The reunion was magnificent! And definitely better than our selfie stick pictures. Somehow we couldn’t quite get all seven of us in one picture! Or smiling. Or looking at the camera.

After our snack, we decided to charge our glasses and take a walk around the grounds of the airb&b.

The owner’s dog acted as an escort.

As the sunset, we seized the opportunity for a few modeling shots.

This one makes me laugh. Mark and his paparazzi’s shadows.

Allison and her paparazzi!

After dinner, Roxanne began the first lesson of Wine Camp. She used her socks to school us on her expectations.

Saturday morning, before our day of Wine Camp, Sara and I enjoyed a run through the J. Lohr vineyards.

Our first appointment for wine tasting was at 10:30 at the J.Lohr vineyard. Off we go!

Another friend in VB helped to arrange a personal tasting experience with Elisa. Despite having an appointment and being told not to be late, Elisa seemed to have no clue who we were or why we asked for her. None the less, she provided us with a VIP experience.

Perhaps you notice the cat ears? I brought them with me from Japan for us to wear. We spent the day explaining the purpose. They are “kawaii”, Allison (our driver for the day) was the cat herder, we wanted to be able to find each other, we wanted to fit in with the numerous bachelorette parties, and well, because Japan. We never quite perfected the story. Personally, I think cat herder was most appropriate.

Our second winery of the day was at Eberle winery. This winery was our favorite for several reasons. 1. The staff was super friendly. Even when we broke a glass!

2. The wines were delicious.

3. The tour of the winery caves was interesting and our tour guide was super animated.

4. Free pizza.

After a stop for lunch, we continued to our third winery, Sculpterra.

The wines were delicious and the sculptures throughout the gardens were really impressive and unique.

Our fourth and final winery was San Marcos Creek Vineyard. It was a quiet winery with delicious wines. It was the perfect quiet ending to a lively and exciting day. Kanpie! To dear friends!

Our five souvenir bottles from the day!

I want to give a special shoutout to our driver, Allison. She drove us around all day and patiently waited for us at each winery. She earned the highly esteemed honor of Cat Herder. Thank you, Allison, for enduring the day and keeping us safe!

Redwoods and PC Highway

By wabisabisole

On July 29, 2017

In Camping, Family, Japan, Northern California, Redwood National and State Parks, Redwoods, Road trip

We finished up our stay in the Redwoods National and State Parks with one last hike along the Cathedral Trees Trail.

Along this hike, we not only saw more big trees…

We also saw the biggest tree of them all.

We circled back to the RV on the Trillium Falls Trail.

With more trees…

And a waterfall.

A cute sign that made us giggle and look for bears.

And family!

We drove down the Pacific Coast Highway before camping for the evening.

The sunset was amazing.

The next morning, we continued along the PC Highway and stopped occasionally to enjoy the view. Seeing these views, I quickly joined Team Pacific and was ready to move here!

One last picture of my family.

And one last picture of The Rig at our last campsite surrounded by big trees.

It is hard to believe how quickly two weeks passed. I enjoyed having time to spend together without feeling rushed or distracted. This vacation provided quality time to laugh, talk, and enjoy each other’s company. I will cherish so many memories. One of my favorite memories which, I have no picture to document, was stargazing. We would stretch out on a log or picnic table and watch the millions of stars in the night sky. Being away from city lights made the stars bright and mesmerizing. It was always a bonus to see a shooting star or satellite.

I’m truly appreciative of my brother for organizing and plan this adventure. Also, I’m thankful everyone was willing to come together and share the experience.

On Friday, 7/21, my mom and I were dropped off at the San Francisco Airport. After returning The Rig, George, Juliana, and Fiona had planned to spend a few days in San Francisco. My mom was flying home and I would be meeting up with my VB friends for the remaining portion of the vacation. Can you believe I saw even more of Northern California and more friends! I am a lucky girl.

Team Redwood

By wabisabisole

On July 28, 2017

In Family, Hiking, Japan, Redwood National and State Parks, Redwoods

Our next destination on our RV adventure was Redwood National and State Parks along the Northern California Coast. Redwood National and State Parks encompass a string of protected forests, beaches and grasslands.

We spent the night of Sunday 7/16 along the coast in the middle of big trees.

Monday morning, we were up early and went to Pebble Beach to investigate tide pools. I wish you could hear the seals on the big island barking and the crashing of the waves.

After lunch, we took a six mile hike through the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. The trail took us through dense old-growth woods. There were big trees everywhere! We all took turns being trees in the trees!

I took a picture of this branch that fell. It’s called a widow maker. Because if you’re under it when it falls, it will kill you. Notice how it stuck in the ground. And how new growth is already sprouting. The branches hold so much water and nutrients, they act as a nurse log for the new growth.

Can you see me?

I also saw my first banana slug.

Dinner that night was a well earned crab feast!

Our six mile hike was just a warm up for our 11+ mile hike on Tuesday. (Depending on whose device you checked we walked somewhere between 11 and 16 miles – but who’s counting miles when they are filled with beautiful big trees?) We took a hike to Fern Canyon in the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. Fern Canyon is aptly named because of its high, plant-covered walls.

I attempted to capture the magnificent Redwoods throughout the hike.

Both of these hikes were beyond my definition of hiking through the woods. The strength of the beautiful big trees was inspiring. I’ve seen Giant Sequoias and now I’ve seen the world’s tallest trees. Both are worthy of appreciation. However, if I must choose between the two, I stand tall with Team Redwood.

Crater Lake Boat Ride

By wabisabisole

On July 27, 2017

In Camping, Crater Lake National Park, Japan

On Saturday, July 15th, we enjoyed a two-hour boat ride around Crater Lake. Obtaining the tickets required patience and a lot of luck. The tickets went on sale 24 hours prior to the sailing time and were available for purchase at a kiosk inside the Crater Lake Lodge. We waited in line to purchase the 11:30 tickets and watched as they sold out after the first group of guests booked three seats. We decided to wait for the 12:00 tickets. As we waited, we began to strategize with the people in front of us. There were two groups ahead of us in line (6 people total) and the five of our group. We thought we might have a better chance of securing tickets the 11 tickets if we bought the tickets all together in one transaction. During the last few minutes, the number of tickets available went from 15 down to 11. There was so much stress! Promptly at noon, my new friends, Fiona, and I, input our 11 ticket request and I swiped my credit card. The transaction went through and we had 11 tickets! We all did a dance of joy, they gave me cash for the tickets, and we agreed to meet at the check in booth at 11am the next day to catch the boat. Yay!

Saturday morning, after checking in for the boat trip at the top of the Cleetwood Cove Trail, we walked down to the bottom of the trail. Because of the delicate nature of the sides of the crater, this is the only trail available to access the lake.

The walk down provided beautiful views of the lake.

Once we were on the boat, we had up close views of Wizard Island and the steep sides of the crater.

We also had the good fortune to see the “Old Man of the Lake”, a full-sized tree which is now a stump that has been bobbing vertically in the lake for over a century. According to our guide, the low temperature of the water has slowed the decomposition of the wood, enhancing the longevity of the bobbing tree working its way around the lake. It is considered lucky to be able to see the tree.

The boat tour also gave us views of a waterfall.

As well as a close up view of the Phantom Ship.

During the tour, we learned this was only the second day they were offering boat tours. We yet again felt very fortunate!

The hike back up the side of the crater wasn’t as easy as going down. We took our time and enjoyed the views!

That evening, we decided to return back to the east side of the rim to watch the sunset over the lake. We stopped at a few overlooks along the way.

Check out the wind! Flock of Seagulls strikes again!

Plus, a few pictures of us goofing around.

And then, there was sunset. Without the mosquitos that were swarming at the campsite.

Crater Lake – Day 1

By wabisabisole

On July 25, 2017

In Camping, Crater Lake National Park, Family, Japan, Road trip

Crater Lake National Park is located in south-central Oregon. The main feature of Crater Lake National Park is Crater Lake. Crater Lake is famous for its deep blue color and water clarity. Approximately 7,700 years ago, when Mount Mazama Volcano erupted, it exploded and then collapsed to form a caldera over 2,000 feet deep. It took about 250 years after the eruption for rain and snow to slowly fill the caldera and ultimately created Crater Lake. The island in the lake is Wizard Island. Wizard Island formed when a Cinder Cone Volcano erupted after the crater began to fill up.

Crater Lake has no rivers flowing into or out of the lake. The evaporation rate equals the rain/ snowfall replenishment rates. The lake has a depth of 1,949 feet, making it the deepest in the U.S. and the ninth in the world. I took this picture looking down the steep sides of the caldera. The blue is the lake – not the sky!

We spent three days/two nights in Crater Lake National Park. The first full day, 7/14, we were fortunate enough to secure tickets for the boat ride tour of the lake the next day, Saturday, 7/15. I will come back to that story in the next post, for now, I’ll just say, Fiona and I worked magic.

After securing our boat tickets, we took a hike up to Garfield Peak. The trail was closed shortly before the peak but, we enjoyed amazing views along the way.

One of the highlights was viewing the Phantom Ship rock.

From here, we could see Garfield Peak.

The views made taking a break even more fun.

Here you can understand why the trail was still closed. There was a huge slab of ice snow still on the trail!

After our hike, we made another short hike around a short loop.

We had to cross through more snowy trails. I was impressed by my sandal hiking family!

One last picture of our super sweet campsite! What you can’t see in this picture are the thousands of mosquitoes swarming around us! If you go to Crater Lake – take bug spray!

PS. Thanks for being patient with me as I blog a little late about my travels. At the time I’m posting this, I’m in SFO about to fly home to Tokyo. I enjoyed the past three weeks immensely. I needed an American vacation with my family and friends. And I can honestly say, by disconnecting I was able to reconnect. It did my heart good.

Last Night in Lassen

By wabisabisole

On July 21, 2017

In Japan, Lassen National Park

After our hike of Cinder Cone Volcano, we drove from Butte Lake camping area in the northeast corner of the park to Manzanita Lake campground in the northwest corner. In Manzanita Lake, we were able to shower, do a load of laundry, and eat dinner before heading out for a sunset hike around Manzanita Lake.

A lesson was learned this evening. When camping, if you have a chance to wash clothes, take it. You never know if laundry facilities will be available or working at your next location. The advertised laundry facilities were secured at Crater Lake for water conservation. Needless to say, by the end of the trip, freshy-fresh clothes were a privilege.

Also, Fiona and I worked on our rap album while walking around the lake. Be on the lookout for our album: “Two White Girls Who Rap Like White Girls”. Our picture is on the cover.

Finding Beauty with Imperfection

Author: wabisabisole Page 25 of 54