Johnny 5 need input!

I have begun to laugh at myself a lot more as of late. I am in overload in regard to the amount of new information, language and customs and trying to decipher everything. Most signage here is in the traditional Japanese characters, sometimes it is coupled with with English letters. G has told me over the years that a consonant does not stand along, it always goes with a vowel sound therefore I am reading every sign in my head trying to sound it out before saying it. We were at Aeon, the large grocery/mall, the other day and I felt like I was doing really well. I had ordered my own food, got a tea refill, figured out the money and checked out in the grocery store. On the way home I was reading all of the signs, off in my own little world, when I came across a sign that when sounded out according to Japanese alphabet rules would have been Po Pee Ye. I was confused for a moment because those aren’t sounds that I am familiar with in the language. I tried again with the same results-then promptly burst out laughing because the signage was PoPeYe- flippin’ POPEYE! When I told G he shook his head and just laughed along with me. I said that I wasn’t going to be an American that misses out on the culture but maybe I need to dial it back a bit and remember my English language rules as well. J

Tonight, we went to dinner at a Hawaiian restaurant it was phenomenal! I ordered the cobb salad which had smoked salmon, avocado, boiled shrimp and egg and topped with a citrus vinegar dressing that was to die for! We also ordered dessert, Okinawan cheesecake. It isn’t as dense as American cheese cake and it was served with a small purple berry (not a clue what it was besides delicious) and mint leaf. Eating a little of the mint leaf with each bite coupled with the creamy cheese, berry and decadent crust was perfection in your mouth.  When you come to visit remind me and we will for sure go back. They also offered a better dollar to yen exchange so we were able to pay with dollars which is cool when the normal exchange has been 78 Yen to the dollar and they were offering 80 Yen to the dollar. It was a $47 meal so not bad on our part. Every Ichi adds up J