Turkey Day

Happy Thanksgiving everybody. Not to worry, Alisa and I filled our stomachs with a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, complete with cranberry sauce and green bean casserole, courtesy of my chief and his family. They were kind enough to open up their house to the division and even cooked two turkeys!
I’m quickly learning that public transportation can make a mountain out of a mole hill. Funny Thanksgiving story... Of course Alisa and I won’t feel right if we celebrate a holiday at only one party. Soooo, after Chief’s dinner, our next stop was the Junior Officer (JO) party where we were responsible for bringing mashed potatoes. Well, after cooking the potatoes all morning in our Navy Lodge microwave and mashing them in a commissary bought tin pan, we carried them – all 15 POUNDS of them – to the party. The trip encompassed a long walk from the base to the train station, a tight fit on the train (where we got plenty of stares), a long walk to Chief’s house, another train ride, and finally a short car ride that ended up at the JO’s party. The topper is … no one ate the damn potatoes! We arrived after they had finished dinner and so all stomachs were full. No worries ... we showed them! Alisa and I brought the potatoes back to the lodge for our turkey day leftovers (I’m sure they’ll last for months). Our fall PT test is coming up next week so it was a good thing that we didn’t come home with more food that we did.
How about this news: Thailand protests ordered to leave airport. Alisa and I will have to be careful when traveling in this part of the world. I heard that there may be a couple of Sailors stuck in the country until they can get past the protesters. Yikes!
I posted my FPO address on the right side of the blog incase anyone was wondering what it was. Of note any mail sent to that address will be charged for an United States postage (read: cheaper than sending to our local address).
Okay, get back out there in your jogging suites, thanksgiving is over.
-Mark

First day in Japan

What up!

Happy Sunday (or in your case it’s still Saturday). I’ve finally experienced my first full day in Japan, and what a day it was. Well, let me back up. The first thing I did was sleep for about 12-13 hours (shipboard life is busy) and then I experienced my first full day in Japan. Yokosuka’s weather is relatively similar to what we all know in Philadelphia. We haven’t had any snow on the ground in Yokosuka yet (unlike good old Jersey), but when COWPENS sailed into Sagami-wan (Sagami Bay) the rising sun was shining on a very snowy Mt. Fuji summit – a very beautiful way to be welcomed home. Understandably then, Alisa and I are very patiently waiting for our winter jackets to be delivered to our new house. So after a good night sleep and a morning trip to the gym, the good wife had our real-estate agent drive us over to tour our prospective living quarters. I have to say, Alisa picked out a very nice place. The neighborhood is very quite and the view from our second floor balcony is a great one and complete with authentic Japanese rooftops and narrow streets as far as the eye can see. My commute to work should be an easy one. Starting from the house I can take an easy (down hill) bike ride to the train. Five minutes later I will be dropped off just outside of the gate to the naval station and 10-15 minutes later I will be walking across the brow onto CG-63, the mighty Moooooo (get it … COWpens). I’m glad to have learned rush hour will not be a problem for me as most businesses do not open until 9:00am.
Our next stop was a short train ride north to Japan’s second largest city – Yokohama. We got a late start in the city (arrived around 3:30pm) so our exploration was limited but we still had a good time and experienced all sorts of new things. I got my first hot coffee from one of the many vending machines. I felt very awkward walking across traffic in which drivers sat on the wrong side of the car and drove on the wrong side of the road. I asked for directions to the city’s huge ferris wheel (in circuit city) and instead the kind lady thought I wanted to buy a TV. I saw a ton of young children but absolutely no prego women. I noticed the food portions are much smaller than in the US (we ate Italian and had ice cream from coldstone - how funny in Japan). I experienced a cash economy where most stores do not accept plastic. I saw a street performance where I understood nothing they said to the crowd that stared on. I saw students and businessmen studying and working on a Saturday – this culture has a very strong work ethic. And I experienced this all with Alisa! It’s so nice to be back together again.
Before I got to Japan … I didn’t end up seeing much of Guam because I was busy turning over the navigator duties. No worries, apparently we frequently visit the island. The movement out of the harbor was very pretty though, as was the open Pacific. The water is a very clear greenish-blue color and can become very rough when the wind blows. The COWPENS really rolls when the seas are high. One night I woke up in my bed as I rolled against my safety straps that keep me from falling the six feet down to the floor. I didn’t think that the ship would right itself since I was disoriented from the sleep. It was a funny experience for sure. The bridge or pilot house actually has a wire running the width of the space so that we have something to hold onto as the ship rolls from side to side – sometimes 20 degrees or more. Funny, the most I ever saw on the BATAAN was 13 degrees! Our exercises kept us very busy and now I am spending a very relaxing and well deserved Sunday morning typing all of my news to my fans – my family. I miss you all and love you much!
-Mark

Made it safe and sound

Yup yup yup. Mark is safe and sound onboard the USS COWPENS. What a flight! Eleven and a half hours from LA to Japan, an hour and a half layover, and a three and a half hour flight to Guam is what I call long. No three hour tours for this giligan.
By the way, thanks for all of the support you all gave Alisa and I while moving. It is a strangely hectic time and I am glad it is over. I'm settling in to my new role on board today and things are already getting busy. :)
That's it for now.
Much love,
Mark

otherwise, we'd never have known (click me I'm a link)

I really enjoyed Alisa's thoughts on our past two years here in Norfolk. Here's another memory for ya ... never would have known anything about how St Patties Day folk get down in Oceanview if we hadn't been stationed here.

We'll miss you Norfolk - actually, we'll miss the people. See ya guys!

We're Off to Japan (click me I'm a link)

Get ready for more fun and adventure through Mark and Alisa's eyes. We are moving to Japan for 18 months and plan on capturing lots of pictures and video for everyone to see what kind of messes we can get into.

Our last days in the states are quickly approaching so if you want to see us before we're off, you better see us soon! October 18th we're on the plane.

Love you all,
Mark and Alisa