12-31-2010

The Churaumi Aquarium at Ocean Expo Park (the site of the 1975 World Expo) in Nago, Okinawa has a lot of local aquatic life.  The main attraction are a trio of whale sharks.  Japan currently has five whale sharks in captivity, while the rest of the world combined has eight.  The three in Okinawa are often the focus of animal rights groups because of their status as endangered species as well as the fact that they are ocean-dwelling creatures in a small tank.

The critter posing for me in this photo is the giant Okinawan Spiny Lobster.  I wanted to eat him, along with the Japanese people muttering "美味しそう。。。" ("Looks delicious...") behind me.

12-30-2010

Not all of Okinawan traditional culture has disappeared beneath kitsch; within Shuri Castle, there's a tearoom that serves jasmine tea and traditional Ryukyu Kingdom-era pastries. They also give out sheets explaining how the cookies were made.

The ones with the rippled edges are called chinsuko, and are a popular souvenir to bring back to families and coworkers.  These are what I decided to bring.

12-29-2010

Most of the food to be found around Okinawa is American, or American-influened.  At this cafe, there was a Mint Oreo Shake on the menu we had to try.  It was expensive, but pretty good.   :o)

12-28-2010

The areas around the military bases in Okinawa are a sad study in how poor areas adapt to suit wealthy tourists. Okinawan culture is largely hidden behind big, shiny American displays. This shopping area, Depot Island, was new and obviously targeted toward those from the base, seen in clothing and shoe sizes available, for example. Still, it had a charming feel to it as I explored the area near my hotel.

12-27-2010

Yokohama Chinatown has many attractions.  The ones that seem to catch on the best in Japan are those that lean toward the cute.

This パンダマン (panda bun) is filled with pork and is a classic Chinese food turned Japanese snack.  In convenience stores steamed buns filled with curry, pizza sauce and cheese, or taco meat, cheese and seasoning can be bought for about ￥120.  Of course, the typical and convenience store varieties aren't adorned with sad panda faces.

12-26-2010

In Tokyo there is sometimes little else to do than go shopping.  There are thousands of stores selling anything you could possibly want.  Surrounded by so much consumerism there are often stores with products you couldn't imagine people buying (and yet people do!).  But once in a while those same shops have some of the most interesting decor.  If they were selling these chandeliers I might have considered buying one; but they weren't for sale.  On the contrary, I was scolded for taking photos of the products beneath the chandelier while checking my photos.  Rest assured, salesperson, I had zero interest in photographic your products, but you may want to rethink your sales strategy.

12-25-2010

While I've shown it before, Christmas cake is something I couldn't skip taking a photo of on Christmas.  Plus, it's a lot more photogenic than the McDonald's chicken we had...

This came together in about 20 minutes, including whipping the cream (though I had help with that while I washed and cut the strawberries.

The powdered sugar is the most snow I will see this year.   (-_-);