Our first Christmas in Japan was nice and quiet, we shared a wonderful dinner with new friends.  Thank-you family and friends for all the cards and packages sent our way, it helped ease the sadness of being away from my family.  It’s always exciting to go to the post office this time of year, you never know what Santa might bring.  I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and New Years with loved ones.

This post I just wanted to share a little trip we made the day after Christmas to Itoman, for the 16th Annual Itoman Peaceful Illumination, to see their beautiful light display. Itoman is about an hour from our house, on the southern tip of Okinawa.  They had thousands of twinkling lights in various colors decorating the entire facility. There were many food and game vendors to enjoy, much like a fair back home.  The aroma of fried foods made it hard to resist, but Cole and went with a cabbage and vegetable omelet, it was quiet tasty.  They even had fresh made donuts and cotton candy to satisfy your sweet tooth.

My silly bunch, never a dull moment!

Fresh donuts with a variety of toppings, yum!

I didn’t get all of this in the picture, but it said “PEACEFULL”, I’m sure it made all the Americans smile.

The meltdown has begun, see the joy on Ava’s face, must have been all the sugar.

The people here are very polite and helpful, which makes it easier when ordering food or trying to get directions.  It’s a great learning experience for the kiddos, we’re soaking up as much of the culture as we can while we are here.  We enjoyed our trip to Itoman and hope to make it back again next year.

Happy New Year to you all!

Jessica