Japan 101

David and I have been going through our AOB (Area Orientation Brief) class this week. It is a five day class in which the military holds your hand through the introduction of all aspects of life on base and off. I know that we are very lucky to have this level of guidance moving to foreign country and there were some topics that were really interesting and helpful, such as Table Manners, and local Yokosuka history. Other topics were less so, like the Drug and Alcohol Awareness which was basically a less informative version of every D.A.R.E class I have had since elementary school.
The whole brief, useful and non-useful parts, is mandatory. For some reason that has made me revert to teenager-hood so I complain about having to go each day, and whether or not I am going to actually need the information provided in my day to day life. We're even considering skipping tomorrow-Field Trip Day. Couldn't get permission slips-our parents are too many thousands of miles away. No seriously, we have houses to visit with a rental agent. (but there really is a field trip)
The Japanese Driving Test is the culmination of the entire week. The whole week must be attended before you can take the test and receive your license. I guess the anticipation of getting my license is another reason that I feel a bit like a teenager. Since they drive on the other side of the road here, we are hoping that the car we use to take the test is not a manual!

Some Interesting Points from our Brief:
*You can be arrested for arguing with police, regardless of the situation
*Police here are so thorough, when a case finally goes to trial there is an over 99% conviction rate
*If it's not registered, the base police will confiscate your bike
*Umm, there was a tsunami here on Monday.( it was small)
*We need 3 days worth of water and MRE's (Meal Ready to Eat) in case of Tsunami's and Earthquakes
*If you live out in town and fire up your grill, the locals will call the fire department
*My childhood belief that all Asians know martial arts is apparently true: everyone here takes karate in P.E. from junior high on and all police are required to know two forms of martial arts
*If there doesn't seem to be room on the train during rush hour-don't worry-there are people hired to push you on!
*Despite what people say, the Japanese do have a sense of humor. Our speaker today, a Kendo sensei, did an impression of Mr. Miyagi...you know the line.

BTW new pics on the right