Pictures of some of our Japanese adventures

Now that I got the picture posting thing figured out (I think) I'll finally share some pics from this past week's adventures. Here ya go:

 First, the Japanese toilets- you either love them or hate them. There are some that are literally holes in the ground (picture a man's urinal laid out flat on the ground)- I've managed to skip those so far, but I am sure I will have to brave it one of these days. But sometimes you get lucky, and find the super fancy ones- with heated seats, a flushing sound to cover up any noises you might make, various sprays to clean you afterwards, perfumed spray...they are out of control. I know most people don't put toilet pics in their blog, but prego+exploring Japan=toilet exploration!! 

Daphne and I found the Diamond City Mall. Apparently it has now been renamed the AEON mall though. It is HUGE and we had a good time walking around. Surprisingly, lots of the stores have English names (and there is even an LLBean, Eddie Bauer, Gap and Lush stores inside!) They also have a store on one end that takes up the whole end of the mall and is fairly well priced for home decor, clothing, baby items, etc. It is close to base (requires only 1 turn- I could probably get there on my own!) so I'm sure I'll be back. This is also the place where I experienced green tea flavored ice cream. All I can say about that is...ICK!!!

Very NOT ick was the sushi Brett and I ate the other night. We went to a place called Santa Sushi, and it was YUM!! I am not a big fish eater, and have heard the numerous warnings about not eating sushi while being pregnant. However, I'm in Japan folks, home of the sushi roll- I had to branch out. We just ordered a "sushi snack" as we called it (we were walking home from the train station and weren't all that hungry really, but had to stop in and try a few bites). The place is tiny- maybe 10 chairs around a counter top. We ordered cucumber rolls, shrimp rolls, crab rolls, and fried oyster rolls. Unlike the states, you don't get a huge plate full of sushi- you get about 2-3 rolls per order. But, they aren't expensive ($1.50-$4 depending on what you order). It was SUPER yummy, and we will be back (and if you come visit, I have a feeling we will take you here!) Note the chopsticks in the picture too- no forks to be found in this place! People we have talked to who have been stationed here for a while, or multiple times, all swear this place is one of the best and most authentic and I 100% believe them!!