Mr Miyagi's Motors and My Unfortunate Accident

Well here it is, the scene of the crime. It's been over a week now so I guess it's time to discuss it. By "it", I am referring to the slightly terrifying event forever burned into my mind as the night my perfect driving record came to an end. Fine! I'll admit it, it was my fault. I, however, am blaming Starbucks as they must not have put enough caffeine in my coffee to keep me awake and alert and therefore finding myself turning smack dab in front of an oncoming vehicle. Either that, or I swear the car was dropped onto the road from the heavens cause I swear upon all that is holy that it was not there when I went to make my turn. Don't fret, there were no serious injuries (only my pride)! Thankfully the Okinawans drive slow as molasses (usually) and I, hell bent at getting out of the way of oncoming headlights, sped up thus preventing a side-swiping of my box car. Instead this poor Japanese lady came into contact with the wheel of my car, leaving me with a small dent (can't say the same for the front of her car...thank God for insurance) and the chance to meet Mori.

The accident itself left me a bit shaken up. I was terrified that I might have hurt the Japanese lady. It turns out it scared the crap out of both of us more than anything, being both of our 1st car accidents. Thank goodness I learned the Japanese phrase for "I'm sorry". We spent the 1st 20min alone together apologizing, me in Japanese and her in the two English words she knew, "so sorry". I still can't figure out why she kept apologizing to me. We spent an hour with the Japanese police (who I love for not issuing me a ticket) and the military police "investigating the scene". I told them it was my fault, let's all go home. I'm still waiting to hear from my insurance company.

I was actually surprised to find that my car was drivable. The next morning I discovered the truth or I should say, heard the truth. Something was not right with my rear wheel. A horrible noise was coming from the back and I feared the worst. I took my car straight over to Camp Foster to get checked out at the car place, this being Mistake #1. They kept my car all day just to tell me that the entire rear axle/wheel bearings/shock something or other would all need to be replaced and this would cost me a mere $1200. I told them they were smoking crack and could toss the big hunk of steal in the ocean. There's no way in hell I was going to spend half of the cost of my car to fix it. They offered me the body shop on base where I might be able to get junk parts and fix it up for half that price bringing me to Mistake #2. Now don't get me wrong, the people there were nice but they expected me to drive (in my broken car) all around Okinawa trying to find junk parts so they could charge me $500 to fix it. Mistake #3, I did try one junk yard which was interesting to say the least, me with my no Japanese and even less car-speak trying to figure out how to get said car parts. It was there I gave up and resigned myself to the fact that I was going to have to junk my pride and joy. That was until I spoke to a friend of mine who suggested I try Mori's Motor. I was hesitant but desperate. I headed over to Mori's the next morning expecting the worst. Mori greeted me as soon as I stepped out of my car. He's an older gentleman who's English is fairly decent, enough for me to explain what happened to my car and that I was concerned the "axle and all that crap in there" was broken. I didn't show him the other car shop's list of problems as I was hoping to start from scratch. After laughing at me for causing an accident he asked for my keys and took off for a little test drive. When he returned 5 minutes later he proceeded to list off everything the car shop on Camp Foster had. With only a test drive!! This man really was the Mr. Miyagi of automobiles. He then said he could fix it for $250. That's it! I dropped my car off on Monday morning and picked it up the next day. He did say I should replace the wheel at some point but that my car was now safe to drive, no worries. I love this man. That's why I'm dedicating a whole blog to his name. I highly recommend Mori for anything automotive related. And get this, his last name is Morita (you know, as in Pat Morita...the real Mr. Miyagi). I'm telling you it's fate!


Directions:
Head south on 58, just past the Camp Foster commissary gate. Make a U-turn at that next light (where the road splits off) and come back north on 58. Slow down cause you'll miss it. On your left you'll see a vertical sign Mori's Motors, the shop is pretty big but it sits off the road a bit. If you look to your right when you're coming south you'll see it back there.

Keramas....island paradise

4 boat dives off the Keramas Islands. Not a bad way to end the week. The weather started out cloudy and without sun but I've come home with a bit of sun on my shoulders so I'd say that's not

too shabby. This was my first Japanese dive company trip and I was pleasantly surprised. We went out with Reef Encounters, a local dive company started by a former Marine who couldn't bring himself to leave the island (I am often thinking of doing the same thing). Our guide, Miho, took us out on the boat with a couple other locals. Danielle and I were the only 2 out with the dive company so it was great, we basically had the tour to ourselves.

Our first dive was off the southern tip of Goat Island, our second Maejima Paradise where I found a nice spotted eel, saw 2 white tipped Reef Sharks and a sea turtle. The last 2 dives were off Okinawa, Inanbishi and Kadena North. Inanbishi was a nice site with lots of sea anenomes and different species of anenome fish along with their babies. We even found a spot where the fish had layed their eggs under the tentacles of the anenome for protection. Needless to say they were not pleased to have us taking a peek at them. The day ended much sooner than I would have liked but I feel re-energized for work tomorrow. I live in freakin' Japan!!!

Day 3 North Island Adventures...and the cell phone incident

Before the adventures of today could begin, I had 1 very important task to complete...paying my cell phone bill. In America this could be accomplished with a click of the mouse. Not so in Okinawa. Let me try and make a long story short. To make my life "easier", I signed up for direct withdrawl to pay my cell phone bill, so I was suprised to find a cell phone in my mail box last week. Only then did I realize that because I had received a new debit card (old one expiring soon), they were unable to collect my cash and thus sent me a bill. Thinking I could take care of this easily, I stopped by GI Bill Pay to add this bill to my account (we give GI Bill Pay our money, they pay the bills, easy for Americans). They informed that unfortunately they cannot pay cell phone bills, instead I would need to go to a certain Soft Bank (my cell phone company) store where they will accept payment for bills. She gave me directions to this "certain store" and I was on my way. 2 Soft Bank stores later, I found myself in the correct store to pay the bill but my account was "frozen" as they were still trying to collect the money from my now expired debit card and until the computer recognized the error, she could not accept my money. She would however modify my payment information to the new debit card. She then proceeded to tell me this wouldn't take effect for the next 2 to 3 months, however I could go to the local Family Mart (similar to a 7-11) to pay the bill "if I wanted to". Her suggestion was to wait it out, do nothing and maybe someday in the next 2-3 months my bill will miraculously be payed. Hmmmm....Can you imagine an American business operating this way? Well, let the games begin. I will see how long it takes them to turn off my phone and/or send the collection agency my way.

Now for the good stuff. Today I visited the north of the island. I started with the Chura Umi Aquarium. I feel the same way about aquariums that I do about zoos and circuses. I feel horrible for the animals all couped up in their cages, but still pay to check it out because the 10 yr old inside of me wants to see and pet all the cute and cudely creatures. Politics aside, I think this is a pretty good aquarium. The majority of the information is translated into English which is rare for Okinawan attractions. The big tank holds 3 whale sharks, that's pretty impressive. The area is part of a larger Expo area, one needs more than a day to really see it all. I suggest buying the season pass. It's good for one year and pays itself off if you go twice. The 10 yr old inside burst forth at the dolphin show, one needs no translation to enjoy the dolphins frolicking and splashing about.
I'm pretty sure I was that freaky American, sitting by herself, with a stupid grin on her face while the dolphins flipped around and performed spectacular tricks for fish. All in all, a good place. I will visit again despite the guilty "zoo/circus feeling" I get. Don't judge me!

Next, Nakijin-jo Site (Nakijin Castle Remains). The ruins are part of the 13/14th century fortress that once stood on the northern part of the island. This is a quick tour that can be easily added onto a few other trips if you find yourself up north.
It's also very close to Pizza and Sky and The British Wine and Tea Shop, two restaurants you must visit. On the way home I just happened to drive right by The British Wine and Tea Shop (see previous blog) and my mouth started salavating with the thought of scones and tea. I was forced, no lead, by a strong force to stop and visit John and Maki. Ever the attending host, John and I shared fun conversation while I enjoyed my scone and tea. Thankfully this time I knew what I was doing and there were no critical comments on my tea drinking.

Of note on the drive home. I saw the #1 and #2 plates of Okinawa. Perhaps I'm just a naive American but I thought that was pretty crazy and pictures were necessary. Then, I was almost taken out by the tourist-rental-car-japanese. This is a breed much more dangerous than the old-person-driver-japanese or the brand-new-driver-japanese. They come to Okinawa from the mainland, have no idea where they're going, and act like they own the road. I've included a picture to help you identify these pests. Feel free to ride their ass on the expressway!

Okinawa license plate #1. Sweet ride!

Okinawa license plate #2. I kid you not, I saw this one not 10 minutes after seeing #1. What are the chances?

This is a rental car. They all look like this only they are in a rainbow of colors, usually hot pink and lime green. Watch yourself on the expressway. They like to charge you down, ride your ass, get in front of you and then slow down 20km/hr. Why? Why??

3 Amazing Dives, 3 World Heritage Sites, 2 Geocaches and 1 lunch with cute kittens

Somewhere, somehow the stars aligned and I have a few days off... IN A ROW. What does one do when you have that much time off? Everything and anything you possibly can! Yesterday started with 3 amazing dives on the west coast of Okinawa. Toliet Bowl, Maeda Point and Zanpa. These are great dive sites and highly recommended. At Toliet Bowl we saw the largest Green Moray Eel I have ever seen in my entire life. I kid you not that sucker was the size of a small horse! Maeda Point is pretty crowded with hoards of divers, mostly Japanese, who are being carried along through the water by their BCD. This is quite possibly the saddest thing I've ever seen. The instructors grab ahold of the "divers" BCD and swim them along while the diver hangs in the water like a limp noodle (they look dead). I heard rumors of this practice but when I actually saw it in action, I laughed out loud-underwater, thus swallowing large amounts of sea water. Anyway, despite the crowds of limp divers, there is a pretty cool cave ("The Grotto" )you can surface in and look around. Now Zanpa, that's where things get deep and fairly interesting. I was hoping to wrestle shark, alas that was not to be. We did however catch a fairly large Moray Eel fully exposed (naked, as I like to put it) and swimming near our exit point.

The Fearless Dive Crew

Today a great adventure of southern Okinawa. First stop, concurring my 1st Okinawa geocache. Instant success, even with the rain.

Next, Okinawa World also known as Gyokusendo Kingdom Village Park (or Cave, according to the street signs). Okinawa world houses one of Japan's largest underground caverns, traditional eisa dance performances and one of the best snake museums/shows I have seen. I use the term "best" loosely as those who know me best know how deathly afraid of snakes I am. I really had to put on my game face before entering. 3 panic attacks and 2 very quickly posed photographs later I emerged claiming I am now over my fear (ha yeah right!). Really it was pretty cool and although the snake show was in Japanese we learned about Habu vs cobra attack radius and that a Mongoose can beat a sea snake in a water race.

The Cave

Words cannot describe how freaked out I was right here, the look on my face might.

After surviving the jaws of the habu, there was a stop for refueling our energy tanks (lunch). We found a nice cafe out in the middle of nowhere where they are apparently well known for their burgers (so says the magazine they are featured in) yet which we could not order because they "were out". One question, how can you possibly be out of the food that makes you famous? No matter, the food we ate was delicious and the 2 kittens continually assaulting us throughout the meal was entertaining. After lunch Shuri-jo (Shuri Castle) and Shikina En, former residences of the royal families. Beautiful paths and restored ruins (sadly all were destroyed in the Battle for Okinawa).

Shikina En

Shuri Castle

Throw in another successful geocache and I'd call it a day. Now I'm at home, sipping a cold biru and getting ready to for tomorrow's adventure. Stay tuned....