Yokohama Navy Exchange was where?

I read this past weekend that the new government in Tokyo will oppose construction of a new base on Okinama. This is not a big surprise since the US footprint in Japan has been steadily reduced over the past decades and Japan's recent signal that it would no longer support our Iraq & Afghanistan actions by cutting off bunkering for US Navy ships. After 65 years it appears Japan is ready to go its own way.

I thought that the Marines were moving to Guam, if this is true, then there will be their old facilities left behind.. then why do they need to build a new base and what kind of base would they want or need ?

Also today maybe the last day in Japan for Steffis son Jeff, I also would love to hear all about it, and I know I speak for all of us in wishing him safe travels home. I wonder what little gift he got for his mom? Any guesses ?

The new, smaller base was to be located away from the population center to help resolve noise and other problems associated with the existing base. The Marine relocation was the first step toward making the smaller base work. A large number of Marines are still headed for Guam.
The existing Okinawa base remains an issue.

My son Jeff's plane will be here in about an hour. it's taking less than 12 hours - flight from Tokyo went west, over China, Europe, the Atlantic ocean, then Newark Airport. I always thought they'd fly over the arctic, but I'm wrong. Interesting to follow flights on the computer.

I misread the map - the plane is flying east, so it's going over the Pacific, then the States until it lands here. So it's now about 700 miles west of New Jersey.

I misread the map - the plane is flying east, so it's going over the Pacific, then the States until it lands here. So it's now about 700 miles west of New Jersey.

Got to love those New Yorkers. Unless its "uptown" or "crosstown" or "downtown"
hard to tell east from west.
Welcome home Jeff.. pix pix pix !!

Yeah, and they think it goes George Washington Bridge to New Jersey and then Los Angeles and the Pacific Ocean. Just kidding Steffi. Welcome home Jeff, can�ft wait to hear the details of your trip!

Yup - you're right. We NYC people are used to living in a gridded city with logically numbered streets at right angles to each other - so we don't need to develop a sense of direction, I admit it - everything's either uptown, downtown, midtown or crosstown. And you're kidding about there being anything between here and California, right? Never heard that before.

Jeff's comments on landing in Newark and trying to acclimatise culturally: "People are so noisy here....in Japan no one makes any noise while in public transport - they whisper at most.....I never got an incorrect direction during the two months I was there, but here I got wrong information within 5 minutes when asking about the bus to NY.....you can't believe the sushi - it tastes nothing like the stuff we get here...etc, etc." Right now he's roaming around, stretching his long legs. He slept and watched some movies on the plane - otherwise, uneventful. Great. I don't know about pics - all I can do is ask him, which I will do. Best to all, whereever you are!

Getting around New York City is a lot easier than finding one�fs way around Yokohama. I went to dinner at a young lady�fs grandfather�fs house one Sunday afternoon in Yokohama. I had the correct address, but there were about ten houses in the block with the same house number. I had to knock on a lot of doors before I found the grandfather�fs house.

Jeff�fs comment about public transportation made me recall a train trip early one morning in Tokyo. The train was packed of course, and I was at one end of the car, and at one of the stops a Korean gentleman got on and came and stood by me. He must have eaten a big bowl of kim chee because he really reeked, and I�fm talking industrial strength. A couple of minutes later I looked around and all the Japanese passengers had moved to the other end of the car, and the Korean and I had the whole one end to ourselves! The train was so crowded I still can�ft figure out how all the other passengers packed into one end. You know, that Korean guy might have figured out a way to get space on a crowded train.

Jeff mentions everyone's wonderful politeness. When the conductor passes through a train, he bows to everyone before he moves on to the next car. When Jeff tried to use a Tokyo metrocard elsewhere, the conductor apologized profusely that that was not possible - even though it was Jeff's mistake. People are unfailingly polite and kind, it seems.

Also, the food of choice on a daily basis seems to be ramen - a noodle soup - along with rice. Jeff says in the better restaurants it is amazingly delicious, with "sections" of the soup featuring surprising differences in content and taste. I don't remember that at all. And the warnings about how expensive it is to eat in Japan is not necessarily true, it seems - there are economical and excellent sources of food and snacks everywhere, including 7-11 stores, minus the gas stations, and other similar places.

I found a good source for excellent, American made Wasabi horseradish the other day.
The farm is in Oregon.
Check www.freshwasabi.com

If you make your own tasty Japanese-style sushi, use a rice wine vinegar to flavor the rice before rolling it out with whatever ingredients you want to include. The sushi that's often served in the US leaves out this step, which makes such a big difference in taste.

By the way, the Japanese are all still slim, according to Jeff. And he estimates their average height as roughly 5 feet 9 for the men, shorter for the women. That seems to be a bit taller than I remember.

Well, back in the 1960s the average height of an American man was 5�f 9�h, and I was exactly average height. I walked around the streets of Yokohama and was at least a head taller than everyone else. It is hard for me to believe that the average height of a Japanese man today is 5�f 9�h, but I have heard that the Japanese diet has changed and they eat a lot more red meat. Is Jeff tall? I wonder what the average height of an American is now?

If you have a look at the clothes the average American wore in the 1930s, you'd find we were generally smaller too.
The addition of more protein to the diet can do wonders.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_height

Honto?

Jeff is 6 ft 4, so perhaps he isn't the best judge of people's heights. He didn't think the Japanese were terribly short in comparison to Americans.

Jeff is 6�f 4�h? That�fs why the Japanese people were so nice to him, they thought he was Godzilla! (Just kidding.)

Peter, Wally, Steffi, Lori, Eric, Torigoe, Karen and others- I have been going back and trying to read past postings and will try to answer some questions. I had not gone back to read the postings, in this category, since my last one. My apologies.
Wally-I do not have an older sister and no, I do not have a French sounding name. My last name was Fletcher (I have taken it as my middle name since marriage). I swear...your name sounds soooo familiar to me. I had very long, black hair. I did most of the filing in the Registrar's office. I have a picture of some of the people who were in the office. If I can find it, I will post it. Specialist Keppler was one of the guys in my area. There was another guy, with an Italian or Greek sounding name. I just remember that he had an explosive personality. I was told that he had a head injury from Nam.

Lori- I was in the Navy Lodge in 1980! Our Siamese, who came with us walked out on the ledge of our 3rd floor room and fell! I was sure she was dead but, when I looked out the window and little girl with blonde hair was holding her. I ran down the stairs and took her from the little girl, who was holding her so gently. We took our cat to the Vet. and the x-ray showed nothing was broken; only a bruised hip. The rain, the night before, had softened the earth (grassy area along the sidewalk) and had broken her fall! One of her nine lives gone that day.

Torigoe- I, too, am a 1970 graduate of Yohi! What is your name?

Peter- You mentioned a newsletter about Yokohama. I used to read the Yokohama Echos; it had tid-bits about Yokohama and gave information about travel to other parts of Japan as well. I don't recall any others.

Karen-You said you lived in YC&AC? I taught at the YC&AC from 1980 to 1986. Mr. Yoda was the Manager at the time.

Eric-You mentioned the Flying Tigers. I was a passenger on a Flying Tigers plane, back in the 60's. We took it from Tachikawa to the U.S.A. My first trip to America.

Steffi-I read with fascination your narrative of Japan and your history. You should write a book about your accounts!

My husband worked at Kamiseya and it is not the same base as Atsugi. Atsugi is an Air Station/Base. The fly-ins used to take place there. Kamiseya is something else.(I'll let others tell what it is...or not.)

In the early 90's, I worked with a young lady, who's father was an announcer for FEN during the time I was a teen! Levy was his last name.

Cowbell was a beer garden on the roof of a building located across from JR Kannai Station. Near Yokohama Stadium. I never went there but the guys used to tell me about the beer they could drink there.

The Bund Hotel was located across from the canal that separated China Town from Motomachi. It was at the end of Motomachi, closer to the bay side of it.

I went to Japan in June, with my grand-daughter. We stayed for a month and we covered quite a bit. The weather cooperated with us and it was cool at times, which was surprising for that time of the year. We had the Japan Rail Pass so, we took advantage of it and rode it all over! We also bought the Suica card and that took us throughout Metro Tokyo and even to Yokohama (by subway).

I ate and ate and LOVED it! We walked so much, I didn't gain an ounce. Hurray!

I took my granddaughter to Yokosuka, to see the pre-school she attended on the base. We purchased bags and bags of goodies at the 100 Yen store across from Daiei, near Shioiri Station. We got many "omiyage" (gifts) for our friends in the States.

I did't plan on writing a novel but, I wanted to let you know that I wasn't being a snob and no, Wally, you didn't scare me off! LOL.

Enjoyed all the posting!

You are a fountain of interesting experiences and connections to almost everyone on this thread. I'm sure everyone's busy poring over your email. Thanks for sharing all this with us, and welcome back. I've looked up your prior postings, and you're been on this site for a while. And yes, I have been thinking of jotting down my experiences - before dementia kicks in and I forget - perhaps not a book, but maybe an article, or a personal memoir for my son to keep. We send you our best regards - talking about memory, nothing wrong with yours - your remembrance of detail is almost as astounding as Eric's. And it must have been amazing to share Japan with your granddaughter. I gather you're a military family, perhaps multigenerational since you mention that she went to early school there. Where are you now? Are you back in the US to stay?