Exit strategy

The beginning of the end is most certainly upon us. This past week has been focused on the initial steps of our transition. Somehow it is already Friday of yet another week. The weeks are absolutely flying.

Julia (the Kenyan chick) during her first go at Beep Bop

Sad as I am to start the process of bowing out of here, some pieces of the puzzle have come together relatively easily to help the transition flow smoothly. Last week our church council hired someone to fill my position as youth director. I'm really excited for Julia to come on board. She has worked with the families of our church before during one of our programs last fall, so she's not a completely new face around here. It's the right time in her career to take an opportunity like this, and I know she's going to do great things for the program. She was the first person to respond to the position when we posted it on a couple of local Facebook pages. We didn't even have to advertise and we filled the job with our first candidate. Sounds like an answer to prayer to me.

This week I also met up with someone who's interested in taking over the Fresh Factor blog after I leave. I heard about this person through my friend Megan from church. Megan's friend made a comment in passing that she loves the Fresh Factor and would like to write for that blog one day. Megan said, "Funny you should say that. I know the girl who writes it and she's leaving soon." We met at her home over homemade mango banana smoothies to talk details. I couldn't think of a more perfect person to continue the column. This lady even makes her own coconut milk. I actually think she's more qualified to write the blog than I am.

Golf with the new guys

Nick has continued doing turnover with his replacement at work as well. A guy moved here in May who will be taking over his job. Crazy thing is that this same guy lived across the walkway from us in our apartment complex in Coronado while he was going through training. I got a message from him back in January saying he was coming out here after his deployment. And here he is, our old neighbor who we watched become a team guy, stepping into Nick's shoes. Nick has already cleaned his desk and packed up his gear storage in anticipation of the movers coming.

Yes, the movers are coming. I keep looking around at our cozy living room setup and blinking in disbelief that it will all disappear in about 10 days.

Our living room grew a putting green

I know we will set it all up in our new place and it will look lovely there. But it won't have this backdrop of blue skies and palm trees swaying in the breeze through the window. We also have pinned down the day on the calendar during the last week of September when we'll board a plane, writing the last sentences of the final chapter of this very special story. We still have a good six weeks left, but just knowing that day is getting closer makes me cringe a little.

Our new house... Wait... where are the palm trees?!

As easily as our exit has been so far, our entrance to Virginia Beach is strangely already coming together as well. As in, we already found a place to rent through friends, from friends, right down the street from friends. Nick and I have both been in several of the units in this neighborhood before. They are very new and really nice. It won't have a yard (no mowing), but it has enough space for my one requirement... an herb garden. It also has a garage where we will be setting up our crossfit gym. I have been in touch with several friends in the area, and I'm excited to reunite with so many people we already know.

It was exactly a year ago this week that Nick came home with the news that Virginia Beach, not Coronado, may be the best next step for us. I spent the next few weeks, months moping about the change in plans. One year later, I find myself finally getting excited to be moving there. There are a few loose ends to tie up still. I haven't decided what I am going to do with Peyt's Island just yet. And I still have no idea what awaits me in terms of what I will be doing in my new place. But I have learned not to worry about such details. As the exit strategy continues rolling and the weeks keep flying, I'm doing my best not to get ahead of the calendar... to stay present in the present... to hold on to island time and float along in paradise as long as I can.

The Fresh Factor: Thai Papaya Salad

It's hard to believe that my trip to Thailand with Jen was almost a year ago. Thailand was a special trip for me in a number of ways, but here's a biggie. The whole premise of traveling to other places to learn how other people live and work and eat and sleep... the whole premise of traveling abroad is that you might learn something new... and that learning some new thing might somehow change you. Taking a cooking class in Thailand was the catalyst that changed the way I think about food... specifically, the sourcing of food. It's something I had always been aware of before, but it was not something I made an effort to act on prior to going to Thailand.

In taking action, I was able to pair a writing opportunity with this new passion for eating local, creating an opportunity to learn and even teach more about the food and farming available locally on Guam. My aim has been to encourage others to eat fresh, local produce and seafood, not just because it costs less or tastes better (it does!), but because it makes sense... for our families, our island, and our planet.

So this Guam Guide post is no ordinary Thai Papaya Salad recipe. This was a moment in time where everything changed. Who knew a simple green papaya from a small market in Chiang Mai harnessed so much power?

Hello Japan Friends!

With Nick out of town for two weeks of conferences in Hawaii, I decided to leave my calendar wide open in the off chance a flight opened up on Space-A for me to meet up with him. As luck would have it, a Friday afternoon flight was heading straight there, so I packed up my bathing suits and sundresses, closed up the house, and drove to the terminal crossing my fingers.

I arrived to find out that the flight was no longer traveling east and instead was heading west to Okinawa, Japan. Bummer! My dreams of spending the weekend at the Ko Olina resort were quickly squashed. Luckily I have played the Space-A game before, so I was not at all surprised and only mildly disappointed.

Coronado neighbor turned traveling buddy!

With a whole unscheduled week ahead of me, I sat down in the terminal to check out some options. I had a Facebook message from my friend Kristi, my former neighbor in Coronado who now lives in Japan. She was writing to tell me how excited she is that we are both going to be on the East Coast in a few months. I replied on a whim and said something like, "Hey, can I come visit you... like tomorrow?"

A few hours later when I got home, I lugged my disappointing Hawaii bags back into the house and checked for her reply, which was simply, "Come on!!" I was going to be sensible and fly out two days later, but was met with the news that Kristi had already lined up a babysitter for Sunday night to go to a lantern festival in Tokyo. Yeah, I need to go to that, I thought. So at 10pm I booked a flight to leave the next morning. I repacked my bags, found a last-minute ride to the airport, and just like that was off to Japan!

First Japan visit in 2010!

While this trip wasn't technically on the calendar, it wasn't a completely whimsical decision to go either. I went to visit my friends Mary and Kristi back in September 2010 when I first moved to Guam (a trip that was also booked with less than a week's notice... sorry Japan friends!). Nick was away on his first long work trip, and my friends in Japan were smack in the middle of their first foreign deployment. The unexpected visitor (me!) was a welcome distraction while their husbands were away, and I got to see Japan, my first glimpse of Asia.

Japan's very own Tofu Fox!

Looking back, I remember that the nuances of traveling there were completely overwhelming at the time. Despite being a comfortable traveler (or so I thought), I had no concept how my friend Mary was navigating the crazy, confusing network of trains in a language that didn't even use a recognizable alphabet. Everything from the food to the transportation to the customs seemed so foreign.

As our overseas tour is coming to a close, it has been on my radar to slip in one final visit there to see my friends and to do a few more exciting things in Japan (which, conveniently is only a three-hour flight and one time zone change away!). My friend Mary has been blogging about her adventures and discoveries for the past few months as the Tofu Fox. It made me realize that there was a lot I missed on my first trip simply from being in a fog of misunderstanding. I wanted to visit Japan within the context of the many other fascinating countries I have traveled to so I could better appreciate how truly unique and extraordinary of a place it is.

Two years later, I had a very different experience in Japan. I felt like I could actually get around the city on my own if I needed to, and rather than spend the moments in my brain fretting over the city's complexities, I now had the space to focus on its captivating intricacies. Everything there is so beautifully decorated and delicately presented. A small part of me is envious that my friends have been able to live somewhere so different, so elegant for their overseas tour... while I was sloshing around in a muddy jungle.

And with that, here are some pictures from my first couple of days in Japan!

Lantern festival in Tokyo

 

 I wish I knew what the lanterns are for aside from beautiful beach decor.

Have some crazy architecture

And some really awkward train signs! 

Like Singapore, Tokyo loves its order and its signs.

Hi friends!! Meeting up with Mary and Annika and kiddos on Omotesando-dori 

for a day of shopping and lunching and shrines!

Japan has lots of fun surprises... like an energy drink that shoots out of a cooler. 

Nice catch Kristi!

So great to see this little guy... I have known Will since he was three months old. Now (somehow) he is about to start second grade!

And last time I saw Bean he was six months old. Now he is covered in ice cream and wants to get out of his stroller :)

Sights along the gorgeous wooded stroll to Meiji Shrine

We arrived during a wedding procession! What luck!!

I love the sea of tourists that formed a little paparazzi pod on the left, including Mary :) She got much better pictures than I did with her fancy camera and front row seat. See them and read more about the weddings we saw that day and the shrine on Mary's post here.

Entrance way at Meiji Shrine

Hi friends! So great to see everyone!

We unknowingly went to this area on a very eventful Monday. It was a school holiday, and there was a massive protest as the nuclear power plants began reopening in the previous weeks. We later learned there were over 170,000 people present for the protest. It was hands down the most polite and orderly protest I have ever seen (that's Japan!).

A few people crossing the street

The fabulous outfits were everywhere. The Japanese are always dressed to the nines, but this particular ensemble caught my eye. So chic!

And, oh yes, there was Zara :)

The same Zara we stopped by almost two years ago... 

 look how much Annika-chan has grown!

I think it's safe to say we've all grown quite a bit in these past two years abroad. My friends in Japan are also wrapping up their overseas tours, and I'm crossing my fingers that Mary's family will join Kristi's in being our neighbors on that side of the world too. So grateful for Kristi and Mary for hosting me during two wonderful trips to Japan. Definitely goes to show that you never know where the friendships of this small Navy world will take you... and if you're lucky, maybe even twice.

Sharing Paradise

 

Last week we were blessed with one final visitor to share this island adventure with. After much prodding over Christmas break, we convinced our friend Annie to come out from Houston. Annie went to high school with both of us and, after running a zillion marathons and biking between major US cities, is one of the most active Muggles we know. We had a hunch that she would love Guam as much as we do, and we didn't want the opportunity to pass without getting to show her our slice of paradise. What do you know, she actually took us up on the idea and flew out over 4th of July week. We had an absolute blast showing her around! Here's the Annie on Guam photo shoot that ensued throughout the week:

 Peeking in the bunkers at the WWII landing site in Agat

 Defending herself against mad cow disease

 Enjoying the gorgeous views

 Not afraid to get her hands dirty, Annie experienced what I mean when I say that we earn our showers around here!

 She discovered the underwater world we so love

 Got to hike to Spanish Steps (which has been closed during several of our last visitors' trips!)

 I loved Annie's observation about the beaches... that what makes them so amazing (in addition to how beautiful they are), is that we are the only ones there!! The above picture was taken at picturesque Tarague Beach.

 Finally Nick was able to join us for the Fourth of July festivities... we snorkeled the massive coral heads behind the Apra Harbor breakwater.

 And we kayaked out to Anae Island, one of my favorite spots only accessible by boat.

 

Everyone make fun of Annie's Grandpa socks! (oh, and I called Stacey and Clinton to see if you could be on the next episode...)

Checking out the sights around Anae Island (or "Annie Island" as I called it for the day!)

A memorable July 4th for so many reasons!

 ....The main one being that we sank our kayak! Check out that lovely hole! Our hunch is we must have scraped a weak spot on the bottom with some of the sharp coral in the shallow area around the island. Nick swam the sunken kayak back to the island and Tim & Annie towed me back so we could figure out Plan B. With only one kayak (now) and four people, the guys insisted Annie and I take the kayak while they swam the mile back to the mainland. Luckily the guys in our crew are very good swimmers!

 The next day we opted for some less action-packed adventures. I took Annie to our church so she could see the gorgeous mural my sister painted. Having seen pictures on the blog, she said it was even more impressive to see in person :)

 We went shopping, went to lunch, and then went cave exploring in Pagat Caves.

 Friday made for an absolutely perfect beach day at Gun Beach.

 Followed by the tough girls hike to the top of Mt. LamLam, arguably the world's highest mountain.

 Big smiles at the top

 And gorgeous sunset views

 A few last activities... we played tennis, hit golf balls, and took Annie to see the plane wreck near the old runway behind our house.

And in the early hours of Annie's last day, we went paddle boarding at Gab Gab.  We saw lots of turtles and two black tip reef sharks, in addition to a beautiful sunrise before taking our friend to the airport to start her long journey home.

Of course I LOVED showing the best and most beautiful parts of Guam to our friend and sharing this awesome experience with her. But even more than that, my favorite part of her visit was getting to catch up... to really catch up. Amid our beach sitting and muddy hiking (and kayak sinking!), we found ourselves deep in conversations about real things that matter to us... about friends and family, joy and sadness, heartache and triumph. We have both been through a host of new life experiences these past two years, experiences that our quick dinners and coffee dates on my stopovers in Houston haven't completely covered. But with a whole week to ourselves and few distractions of everyday life, we had the beautiful gift of each others' time and presence to make up for years apart. Guam simply provided the gorgeous scenery for my friend and I to get properly caught up.

Once again our house has that eerie and familiar quiet that has each time accompanied the day after taking special visitors to the airport. The stack of beach towels have been washed and put away. The guest room is ready again for whoever (if anyone) comes next. Annie's visit is over, and yet our shared experience here will be tucked in the folds of our memories for years to come.

Thanks for coming out, Annie! As much as I'm going to miss it here, spending time with a good friend from back home is making me excited about heading that way here shortly. See you in ten weeks (gasp!).

PS... Good luck with the jet lag!