Yokohama Navy Exchange was where?

Your welcome. Want a good reference? My desktop is
WWW. RefDesk.com
Try it.. or I will give you your money back.
For facts try CIA world factbook.. your taxes at work.

just reading these entries as i searched for "nasugbu beach, japan". tech skills lacking, don't even know when these were posted, but the trip down memory lane was worth it. Started in Minami Rinken, lived in Area II, '56-'59, went to NB Elem 3, 4, 5th grade. Went to Bill Chickering theater -on the far right side, I think, of the little shopping area there. And yes, Navy PX was there, in the middle, and the Pixie Pantry (my favorite) was on the left side. Not really sure if it was called Pixie Pantry, because I remember buying candy there... pixie sticks- those straws filled with colored sugar...so was that a coincidence?? Don't know. Fond memories of Sankien Gardens, and my whole time in Japan. Possibly taking a family trip back next year. Thanks for the deja vu experience!!

Do you remember the names of your teachers at Nasugbu Beach ?

Did you keep your YO-HI annuals ?

It's taken me over two weeks, but I'm finally current on this thread! I'm not sure if I'm logging in correctly (the site isn't very intuitive) so this is my test. Hello!

Hi Miya
Do you mean to say that you read ALL of our semi-useless dribble ? Welcome ! If you have read all of this you may be in need of some help.
I know a lady that makes good chicken soup. Want some?So..?? whatsup !

Yea, I'm in! Yes, I read all of the blogs. Not that I remember all of the details, but definitely the feel of the thread. I am so glad that I found all of you! All of your stories have definitely blown some of the cobwebs from my memory and have made my time in Japan come back to life. As Steffi had mentioned in earlier blogs, a book should be written of the groups collective memories.

Okay, this is my introduction. My dad was in the Navy and met my mom in Japan. They married and I was born in Yokosuka Naval hospital. We came Stateside and returned to Yokosuka in 1970. Dad was stationed in Yokosuka and we lived in Yokohama. I attended Byrd Elem and then went on to Kinnick Middle School.

Dave Horne, thanks for the wonderful links. Boy, those pictures sure brought back memories! Dave, you mentioned in a past blog that in "54, you were aboard the Anderson...would that be the R.B. Anderson a Naval destroyer? My dad served on the Anderson.

Peter, thank you for welcoming me onto the thread. I'll continue to check in. Miya

Glad you found us. I still can't believe that you read all of this .. but you sure know who some of us are.
I hope our new found friend Ginger has not gone away, I wanted to see what she thought of the old photo of the Motomachi neighborhood.
If you don't mind me asking what is the derivation of your name, Miya? very nice. With the talent we have now we could publish this. Dave could get the copyright, Barbara could edit and Wally and I could work on my spelling. Eric could correct us on all of our forgotton memories.

Peter,

My mom, who passed away 2 years ago, named me and said it was a favorite name of hers. My mom was born and raised in Sakata.

When in Yokohama, I lived in Area 2, B...? I remember it was at the end of the base near the swimming pool. Was the Seaside club in Area 2? It sounds familiar. My parents loved to go dancing and I remember them mentioning the Zebra club. Isezaki-cho was a place my mom would take me many times. We always finished our shopping trip with a visit to Fujiya? I think that was the name. I remember how funny I thought the building was because different types of food were served on different floors. I loved the ground floor because of the fabulous desserts!

Thank you, Peter, for sharing the information about WWW.RefDesk.com and CIA world factbook -- terrific sites. I'm going to keep them handy for future reference and recommend them to everyone else, though once I enter those information caves, you may never see or hear from me again!

Barbara-san, I hope you don't think I'm putting you on, but I remember you. As soon as I saw your sister's name and I had a last name to connect with Barbara, I remembered you from the school bus. I remember you as a very attractive and popular girl who was much older than I was, the difference between a seventh grader and a junior being a vast difference in ages at that point in our lives. I guess most of my fellow seventh graders from fifty-fours ago would still remember the names of most of the upperclassmen who rode our bus because of the godlike qualities that all of you had then compared to our lowly existence. So far I don't remember your sister but maybe I will when I find my old yearbook that I haven't been able to find for a couple of years.
I've made the magical goggle street view tour of the neighborhood and in fact directed Steffi-san to her old house some time back. If you look at the tennis court where your house used to be and then look directly behind you, you will see a steep street going downhill at a diagonal from Yamate-cho and almost immediately turning to the left. The Shinto shrine was to the right immediately after the turn. There is a house there now. Google will take you down that street but it is totally different now like everything else in the neighborhood.
The long stairs to Motomachi you mentioned were probably next to my house if you went down a slopping street that passed a row of hotels on the right and the Cherry Hotel on the left. Google will take you on that street too but it will not take you up the steps which have been redesigned into series of gently sloping steps that run back and forth instead of running straight up.
Miya-san, welcome. I can't believe you read this whole forum. I've been working on that for months and I still have about ten pages in the middle that I haven't read yet. The Anderson I was on in 1954 was a troopship that also hauled dependants and was named after an Army general.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_General_A._E._Anderson...
The destroyer was named after a Marine Corps PFC. , http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Richard_B._Anderson_(D...
Dave-san

Miya:
I think the Seaside club and the big pool were in Area 1.
I took Red Cross swimming lessons every summer for several years at this pool.

Miya-san - If you look at this map you may find your old house.
http://yohidevils.net/kanto/1956yoko/56yoko07.gif
Dave-san

Barbara-san - This map shows the road leading down in front of your house, 8-506, where the Shinto shrine was located by the elbow in the road. The road goes through the U in BLUFF. The next road to the right leads to my house, 8-599. The steep stairs were right above the R in the word AREA.
http://yohidevils.net/kanto/1956yoko/56yoko06.gif
Dave-san

Dave, you are the guru of online links! Thanks for the wiki link regarding my dad's ship the R.B Anderson. Now I know where my dad was when my mom and I were safe at home in Yokohama. Wow.
Eric, thanks for clarifying where the pool was. Now I definitely know we lived in Area 1. Kinnick Middle school must of been in Area 2 then... Is there anyone here that went to Kinnick during 71-73? I remember Mr. Shaughnessy a great science teacher and Mr. Johnson, the very-good looking PE teacher, who was quite the sensation because of the dolphin-shorts he used to wear =) I also remember the bon odori's that used to be held in the PX parking lot. My mom, dad and I would dress up in our summer kimonos and dance around the drum towers. I also remember the little stands serving a variety of goodies like yakitori and grilled squid on a stick. Do you remember fishing for goldfish with the little paper fans? You had to scoop fast before the tissue paper broke. Hmmmmm, such great memories.

Dave, you are a clever detective and have an amazing memory, but I was not as old as you might have thought on that school bus. Because my birthday was just inside the deadline for first grade, I started school very young; later I skipped fourth grade, so I was always self-conscious about being the youngest in my class and a sixteen-year-old college freshman. Still, you are right about the age difference seeming exaggerated during adolescence. I hope we were not a bossy bunch of upperclassmen on that school bus. Thank you for your kind and generous words.

Regarding the street with the Shinto shrine, I now understand where it is. I have only a fuzzy 1952-54 memory of it, but must have crossed it every day to get to the bus stop. Slowly, the memory is coming back. I must return to Google street view and take another look. Do you know anything about the tennis court where my house used to be? It doesn't look like a residential court with a parking lot next to it, and I can't read the Japanese signs. Do you know where the old Bluff Yo-Hi uses to be before it was moved to the beach location? I think, perhaps, the Bluff building was near your house. Your description of the steps to Motomachi sounds familiar. Thank you for your additional clear instructions about the 1956 Army Engineer's map. You are a font of information and a great asset to this forum!

I have been following the discussion here, as usual. Welcome to everyone who's joined in recently - I do think this continues to be an amazing experience for us all. A book sounds like a great idea. Also Peter's original idea about having a "reunion" somewhere if possible - and maybe someone will make a movie? There are lots of stories here which we're all enjoying tremendously.

Dave, when you're done with your current tracking, and have some spare time, I have another request when you have the time - not to detract you, however, from your current projects on behalf of Barbara: my Mom's boss at the ARC Billets where she worked was an amazing lady called Ann Pendleton, who I seem to remember came from an important military family. She was an officer, never married, who eventually went back to the States and settled in the DC area, where she died after a long retirement. I have several pictures of her, and perhaps some of her letters to my Mom. I wondered if she was related in any way to the Camp Pendleton, which I think is out west somewhere. My Mom kept in touch with her for years, but I guess never got around to asking the specifics of her background.

Good idea.. I vote for Dave's place. Were easy keepers..Dave is there a helipad ? [ hate to land on streets]
Also.. the Japanese holdouts were considered heros because they never gave up [ at least one of them] and finally they found his former commander to formally releave him.. hero or oddity..thats an open quiestion.

Miya;

Maybe you can remember the Japanese word for puppet theater. Something I read recently brought back a memory of traveling with our family friend, Mr. Lang in a small rural village. The Japanese kids had gathered up to watch a man with puppets tell a story. The puppets were in a box, about the size of a wood duck box and acted out the story with vocal accompanyment by the puppet man. Was this called "Benraku?"

Any reunion we plan should take place in Yokohama. Peter-san is just suggesting my place because he doesn't want you to know that there is no place for me to land my jet at his place.
Dave-san

Yes its true. Our runway does not accomidate jets. We use the local Air National Guard ten thousand foot strip for that. But Dave does have an idea [ probably not the first] We should meet in Yokohama! The Japanese media would probably pay huge bucks to cover our event....nah..We could meet at Gingers place.. I think I know where it is. In the 40's they called it Texas Street.
Also I would like to here more of Steffi's movie idea.
I sure could use some Gyoza.
And I loved the Japanese puppet theater Bunraku..which predated Kabuki. We saw a show in Tokyo and it was absolutely fantastic. Three puppeteres for one puppet.. and there were horses, waterfalls, earthquakes ghosts, the works. I wish my Japanese was better.