Summer in Seoul, Korea: Okinawa and People From All Around The World

Landing in Okinawa. Doesn't it look like the background to the blog?

Yesterday afternoon, I arrived in Okinawa. It is a beautiful island off of Japan's mainland. It reminds me of Hawaii. There are palm trees and beaches everywhere. I have seen a lot of men wearing shirts that you would find in Hawaii. I am here visiting my cousin, Jeff, his wife, Yori, and their two sons, Noah and Luke. They are living in Camp Foster, which is a military base for US Marines. On base, it feels like I am in Oregon again. There is a Macaroni Grill next door, which is a restaurant chain in Portland, and American restaurants like A&W and Taco Bell. The locals here seem laid back like they do in Hawaii. Yori, who was born and raised in Okinawa, says the people here have their "own time." For instance, if your friends say to meet at a restaurant at 7:00, you might leave your house and arrive at the restaurant at 8:30, and no one would mind. Like in Hawaii, they live on, "Hawaiian time." Last night we went to a ramen restaurant. Japan is known for cooking really good ramen. I would have to agree!

Today we drove to Shurijo Castle. It is one of the last remaining castles on the island. There are a lot of similarites to the Korean palaces, yet they are so different.

See if you can spot the differences:

Guard at one of the palaces in Korea.

Guard at the Japanese Castle

Part of the Korean Palace

Entrance to the Japanese Castle

Korea

Japan

Before I left for Japan, I got to hang out with some of the ladies I met that are also adopted from Korea like me. Like I said before, there were 500 plus adoptees from all over the World. I became friends with a girl from Portland, who now teaches kindergarten in Hawaii and another lady from Utah. We hung out with so many people from all over. One night, we went out and had, Korea's famous chicken with some people from Denmark. It was so interesting to hear how different Denmark is. Along with the Danish folk, I got to talk with people from Sweden, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. Some of their adoption stories were so interesting. It was surreal being with so many people with the same type of background. Some of the adoptees were able to find their birth parents. Each person's experience was so different. One of the guys who came to this conference, found out his birth parents were searching for him when he applied for a visa. He is going to meet them for the first time on the 8th of August. One lady met her dad at the airport. They hung out a little, but she said it was awkward, because he is a business man who had meetings all day. He asked her to wait out in the lobby. Wheras, a guy from Salem, Oregon, found his mother and she couldn't stop crying the whole time he was with her. So many of the adoptees are astonished and appauled that I hadn't known or attended any of the conferences before. Especially, since I'm from Oregon, where Holt was established. One of the guys from Denmark, said they have scholarships for Korean Adoptees, through the Korean government. He only had to pay $100.00 for the whole trip. It included airfare, lodging, and three meals a day. I told everyone, my family and I stayed in a hotel, the last time I was here for $350.00 a night. They said, we could have stayed in a guest house for free. I can't believe, that I didn't know anything about this.

Robin, from Utah and Kristina, from Hawaii.

Tomorrow we are going to one of the biggest aquariums in the World. I am having so much fun learning about my heritage and learning about other cultures. However, I am really homesick. I have to keep myself occupied with friends and family to keep from wanting to come home early. The other day, I was cramping so much that I was walking around the subway like an old lady holding my stomach. But today, I don't feel anything. If being in pain, means being pregnant, then I would like it to continue. I hope no signs are not bad signs.

Sayonara, meaning goodbye, in Japanese.