Sights to See

This past week has been busy for me! I am officially a Cheerleading coach again! I will be helping coach the youth all star team on base. It's a team made of girls from the different military bases on the island. We will only practice 2 times a week which is a nice change from practicing everyday like we did back home. I'm glad it's not as big of a time commitment! They will perform at events on the island throughout the year. I think it'll be fun! I will be helping coach the younger girls which is a change of pace for me. Wednesday through Friday we had a cheer clinic every night where we taught the girls a dance and a cheer that they would do at tryouts. Saturday morning were the actual tryouts. Everything went well and I can't wait for our first practice next week!

Chad also had to work on Saturday so once we both got home we decided to venture to the bomb dump. Chad has been wanting to take me there for a couple weeks now to show me some hidden gems. The bomb dump is where Chad works; it's on Kadena AB but it is its own separate part. The rest of Kadena AB could fit inside the bomb dump, that's how big it is. Not just anyone can get on the bomb dump but since Chad works there he was able to get me through the gate. The first place Chad took me was a small waterfall. We had to hike a little bit through the woods on a path that wasn't very well kept. I am not a "hike through the woods" type of person. I was freaked out that a snake or some wild creature was going to attack me! After only tripping once and bruising up both of my knees, we made it to the waterfall. After that, Chad took me to a building that has a ladder attached to it so you could get on the roof. Chad climbed to the top but I decided to stay on the ground. It was so high up! The last thing we went to see was some Japanese shrines. They kinda freaked me out but were cool to see at the same time.

On Sunday we went to Shuri Castle, which was the palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom. The original castle was actually destroyed in the Battle of Okinawa but in 1992 it was rebuilt and is now used as a World Heritage Site. We got to walk through the castle and learn some of the history. I thought it was interesting and cool to see! We even had to take our shoes off before we entered the castle. Surrounding the castle are other historical sites to see as well as gift shops and restaurants.

After visiting the castle, we wanted to check out the Garlic House restaurant which was on our way back. Unfortunately when we got there, we realized they are only open for dinner. A lot of restaurants are like that around here, I don't like it! We've heard good things about the Garlic House, so we'll have to make a trip back some evening. Instead, we went to CoCo Currys which we have been to once before. A lot of people on the island say that CoCo's is addicting, but we don't really find it to be craving good.

Once our stomachs were full we decided we wanted to go snorkeling! Neither of us had been in the sea since we've been here which sounds crazy since we're surrounded by it! We went and bought some snorkeling gear and headed to Torii Beach. It's not really a prime snorkeling spot, but it's a nice beach and close by! We had so much fun! We didn't see a whole lot, a few fish here and there but it was fun swimming around. We did see a snake though! When we got home I researched what kind of snake it may be and the one that I found that looks just like it, says it is very poisonous but not aggressive. Yikes! I'm kind of freaked out to be swimming in the Sea/Ocean because of all the creatures in there. You never know what's going to sneak up on you! Despite that, we look forward to finding better snorkeling spots in the near future. I wish I had an underwater camera!

Finally, for dinner we went to a Chinese restaurant that we hadn't been to before called Pete's Place. The owner actually spoke perfect English. I haven't heard a Japanese (maybe Chinese?) person speak such good English since I've been here! The food was good and the workers were super nice! Before we left, the owner even invited us to go with them to the Beer fest that was going on down the street with them. They were going to take a taxi after cleaning up our table and wanted to know if we wanted to share it with them. I thought that was so nice! It might sound creepy but we could tell she was being sincere. After our long day, we were just ready to get home!

We are now cuddled up on the couch watching season 5 of Lost while I write this blog while everything we did is still fresh in my mind :) Tomorrow all of our stuff is getting delivered, Halleluiah! Chad has to work 12 hour night shifts this week starting tomorrow night. It will be nice that he is here when our stuff is delivered but sucks he won't be here in the evenings to watch Lost with me!