Pusan, Korea and the GW

Glenn was in Korea last month and I finally got the CD of pictures that he emailed me. So, some fun pictures of Glenn cause you don't get to see those very often!

A night out drinking with the squadron in Pusan.

 Toni and Glenn in Korea. I don't know.

Caribou in Korea! He's excited.

Workin' hard for the money.

Glenn working as an LSO (Landing Signals Officer) making sure the airplanes land on board safely.

Wordless Wednesday: It isn't all bad living on a boat

Happy Birthday to Me?

I know my birthday is still a month away, but all of the fall shoes have started creeping up online and I can't resist drooling/oogling at them! I want them all. I might just have to choose one as a Happy-birthday-to-me-my-husband-isn't-here-to-make-my-day-extra-special-present-to-myself.

Bowtied Beauties from Anthro

Anticline Wedges from Anthro

Fergie Fallen on Piperlime

Which to choose????? In case you're curious though, I'm a size 10 and my address is over on the left side of the blog. :)

Singapore: Day 15

Since Glenn was on duty all day, I met up with my friend Nicole because her husband was also on duty on the ship. Perfect!

We started our day at the Asian Civilizations Museum. We arrived just in time for a guided tour. I would recommend that this is the only way to see this museum. Otherwise, it just seems like a hodge podge of a bunch of stuff. The tour guide helped connect all the different exhibits and point out what was important to make note of.

Our next stop was lunch. We found a pub near the harbor that was open since our first plan was not. Tandoori chicken wrap, please!

From there we had a great view of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel. If you remember from our trip in April, I pointed out this building in a post and how cool I thought it was. Well, 4 months later and the hotel is open! We wanted to check out the Sky Park, the observation tower from the 56th floor aka the boat.

After being blocked off by the set up for the opening ceremony of the Youth Olympic Games which was occurring in the same harbor in just a few hours, delayed by a rain storm and hailing a cab, we finally made it. After a detour through the lobby and S$20, we were at the top!

There was a headset tour that you could follow to point out all the different landmarks you were seeing. A audio tour seems funny for an observation deck, but it made the S$20 worth it! I learned a lot about the hotel and what the plans were for all the construction in the area as well as the harbor and a little history.

The most amazing part of the hotel was definitely the pool. A huge infinity pool overlooking the Singapore skyline. It was kind of a rainy day so not too many people were enjoying it, but I wish I could have!

 The colorful stadium is where the opening ceremony was going to take place. The weird flower looking building will be a science and art museum once it is completed. Rain actually collects on the top and makes a waterfall through the center of the building- which is why the giant hole is there. They can also set up 1500 seats on the top for a light and laser show. Pretty amazing.

 After the Sky park, Nicole and I parted ways and I returned to the hotel to meet Glenn and Nicole went to her hotel to clean up. We met up later for dinner at the White Rabbit. It was an old church that had been converted in to a restaurant in the Dempsey Hill area.

Russell and Angelica joined us as well.

Phew... only a few more days of my trip. Just in time to start another one! I can see why people get behind and give up, but I am determined to catch up!

Crossing the Line

A guest post by Glenn! It only took over 600 posts for him to write his second ever blog post! Yay!

We (USS George Washington and CVW-5) recently underwent one of the oldest and most revered Naval rituals: Crossing the Line.

 

Let’s begin with some definitions:

Pollywog (or Wog for short) - a nasty, smelly, slimy creature, closely resembling a sea slug.

Shellback - the transformed and more superior creature evolved from a pollywog.

Golden Shellback – A shellback who was cleansed while simultaneously crossing the equator and the International Dateline.

Neptunis Rex – King of the Deep, Ruler of the Raging Main .

It is said that Neptunis Rex does not allow a ship to cross the equator until it has been cleansed, therefore ridding it of all Pollywogs.  He sends his representative, Davey Jones, to offer said ship the opportunity to cleanse itself, less the ship and her crew be taken by the sea.  It is the responsibility of the Shellbacks to deal with the Wog infestation.  The ship hoists the Jolly Rogers and devotes the entire day to the cleansing.  This cleansing includes much humiliation, ridicule, and hilarity at the expense of the wogs, as well as a whole lot of water.  Once the ritual is complete, Neptunis Rex grants those who have been cleansed the title of Shellback, and the ship is allowed to cross the line unscathed.

Ritual and rhetoric aside, the Crossing the Line ceremony is a great time for the entire ship and a beloved tradition by our Navy.  I went through as a wog last year, so this year I was able to view the ceremony as a Shellback.  It is much more fun on this side of the fence, but impossible to appreciate without first being on the other side.

Singapore: Day 14

On our last trip to Singapore, Glenn and I never got a chance to make it to Sentosa Island. I knew on this trip, I wanted to spend a day there. Sentosa island is a man-made island just south of Singpore and is probably less than 2 miles long. Singapore claims the island as "Asia's Favorite Playground." I felt like we were in Disneyland sans Mickey.

We took our time waking up in the morning. Got some breakfast at a local coffee shop around the corner from our hotel and then walked the 200 meters to Bugis train station. We headed south to Harbour Station and then hopped on the Monorail (like I said, Disney).

Our first stop was lunch and then Underwater World. The aquarium was small but very well done. I've seen my fair share of aquariums (cause I love them) and I rank this one pretty high. They had some big sharks in the tunnel that we like a lot.

Our next stop was Dolphin Lagoon which is home to the famous pink dolphins and several seals and other fun animals. We stayed for the seal show and actually understood it. It's nice to be in an English speaking country. :)

After the show we walked next door to Fort Siloso. The fort is a former WWII gun battery that is now used as a museum. Glenn and I happened to show up when a guided tour was starting so we got our own private tour of the grounds. It is interesting going to WWII museums where they document the place we are visiting, the American influence in the war and the attacks from Japan. It's neat to see the war from all different sides- all sides that we have a little bit bigger picture than some do. 

PS. Doesn't Glenn look good in this picture? I think so. :)

Next stop. Ice cream. Ben and Jerry's no less! Yes!

Next stop- the southern most point of continental Asia. If that doesn't sound made up, I don't know what is. Especially since we were on an island that is connected to Sentosa island by a bridge that is connected to mainland Singapore by another bridge. That doesn't sound so continental to me. Malaysia would probably agree, too. Oh well, I never said I wasn't a tourist.

After an unexpected walking tour, we found our way back to the train station and headed back to Singapore. We got off the train near the Esplanade theater to eat at our favorite Hawker Center from our last trip. Yummy noodles, fried food and Tiger beer coming up!

 

After dinner we headed back to our hotel. Glenn had to return to the boat tonight since he had tour guide duty back on the ship in the morning. We soaked up every minute together before he had to head back. Luckily, he got a pretty good duty pick that would have him home by dinner time the next evening. Another wonderful day in Singapore!

1 year!

One of my best friends, Emily, is getting married one year from today! Can't wait to celebrate with you and Chris. Happy planning!

Stellton

I'm watching my friend's dog this week, Elton. He and Stella have gotten along really well considering she's usually a dominating, territorial, protective bitch, but for whatever reason- she and Elton are good friends! She just doesn't like when he comes over to get petted and she has already claimed my lap. She gets over it though.

Elton has also discovered Stella's bed (that she never uses) and has claimed that as his own. Good for you Elton!

Stella is not so sure how she feels about Elton using her bed:

Happy Labor Day!

Part of our neighborhood had a picnic on Monday. It was about 95 degrees out, but it felt a little like home. Hope you had a good holiday weekend!

Moms know how to do the picnic thing right!

Cassie and Haley

So many kids! I enjoyed the margaritas and mojitos!

Denyea knows how to party! PS. She's drinking O'douls.

2 down, 1 to go!

Can you believe it? Glenn and I are 2/3 of our way through this tour! We will be leaving Japan this time next year. That means our pack out is only 10 months away, our orders are (hopefully) 9 months away. This will be our last winter in Japan. Our last Cherry Blossom season. It's hard to believe!

If you want to come visit- well, it's getting towards the end. You may have missed your chance if you haven't started planning yet! Your loss!

Here's to a wonderful last year in Japan. I've loved it, but come next fall, I think I'll be ready to get back to the States! Although, I'm not sure I'll be ready to get a real job again. :)