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Comment by Anti M on January 15, 2009 at 2:30pm

LOL, the no shoes is indoors only! Going barefoot outdoors is a truly foreign idea to the Japanese. We wore a lot of flip-flops in the summer. It does get chilly/cold in the winter. We even had snow one year.

Bikes... I wore a helmet and gloves, and you have to register them on base. There's a lot of bike theft, which is odd, the Japanese are very honest to a fault... except for bikes and umbrellas. And riding in traffic is scary, but you get used to it. My hubby once got pulled over by security on base because he was "speeding" on his bike! They told him if he was outpacing the cars, he was exceeding the speed limit!

Comment by Mary, Proud Mom of Nick on January 15, 2009 at 8:42am

Housing on base - used to have a one year wait. Don't know if that has improved or not. We loved living off base and when our time came to move on to base, we said...no Thanks!

Also space is a premium in Japan but we lived out on the bay in a old fishing village and we had a "western" style home that was two stories and almost as big as any house we lived in - in the US. It did not have a furnace but we learned how to use kerosene heaters...used to be a great way to heat up the sake' at night!

Comment by Anti M on January 14, 2009 at 10:07pm

Yokosuka, Sandy? On base housing has a fairly lengthy wait list. There are apartment towers, some duplexes and houses. I don't know if the old housing units off base are still open in Negishi and um, the other one I can't recall the name of, probably not.

Japanese rentals ... there's houses or apartments, and the base has a list of house agents who have been certified as non-discriminatory. Some people really take to living offbase, others can't adjust to the differences. Perhaps there are newer apartments now that have things like, oh, central heat. I didn't mind sleeping on the futon on the tatami mats and taking off my shoes, kerosene heaters weren't a problem, and we biked to base so parking wasn't an issue. It is more difficult with children, but they adapt well.

Comment by Anti M on January 14, 2009 at 5:25pm

Wow, Susan, he'll be a giant in Japan!

Comment by Anti M on January 14, 2009 at 2:45pm

Anti M = Auntie Em = Aunt Margaret Not specifically for the Wiz, but it has taken that on. I was invited to be the Maid of Honor at an Oz themed wedding!

The house was adorable, but uninsulated, unheated, no oven, and was up a very steep set of stairs. You couldn't drive up to it, and there was no parking nearby. We paid $30 a month to rent a parking space for the Harley at the foot of the stairs. Still, I loved it, the neighborhood was quiet and friendly, and we even had a yard.

Comment by Anti M on January 14, 2009 at 1:45pm

My hubby was in Sasebo when I transferred to Yokosuka; I rented the cutest little old house. Every room was divided from the others by beautiful shoji sliding doors ... glass or paper panels. The toilet, which in Japan is usually set off from the bath, had a western style door, but all the others doors were sliding screens. I am short, hubby is six-one. The shoji door frames all hit him smack across the forehead. Ouch! We lived in that house for nine years, ducking was second nature to him.

Comment by Anti M on January 12, 2009 at 2:12am

Oh, I can tell you about offbase housing , we declined the base apartments and lived in the same little house for nine years (my 12 was split into 3 of my own orders and then 9 of my hubby's). I didn't mind sleeping on the floor on a futon, and using the kerosene heaters, and not having a an oven and no AC ... but I loved the neighbors and it was ... quaint.

Comment by Anti M on January 11, 2009 at 10:13pm

In Yokosuka, the on base drinking age is 21. Some years the policy varies and the clubs will serve low alcohol content beer to sailors who are 18+. Sasebo may have a different set of guidelines. The Japanese age to drink is 20, and there are beer machines all over the place off base. And the JN bars tend to not ID sailors.

I was in Yoko for 12 years.

Comment by Melissa mom of Chip on December 25, 2008 at 12:29pm

Just wanted to wish all the Navy Moms and Dads a Merry Christmas. I have not heard from my son in a couple of days. He had his cell phone turned off already since he will be leaving Japan around the 1st of the year. Hope you all get to hear from your sailor today.

Comment by Mary, Proud Mom of Nick on December 24, 2008 at 9:04am

Wishing each of our Japan Moms a wonderful Christmas. I know it is not easy to have them so far away but if they are in port - they actually will be able to enjoy the holidays. The Japanese culture celbrate Christmas more each year and the spirit is definitely in the air!!!

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