January 28, 2016 • mccsokinawa.com
Thomas Alan Smilie
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inter’s frosty breath has drifted into Okinawa—the days are short, dark and cold. Lost in a sea of paperwork, muscles sore from tension and the cold holding you captive in a warm bed, it’s time to shake off the winter chill with a unique Japanese tradition: onsen (hot spring bath). Overflowing with geothermal springs and volcanically-heated mineral water, naturally Japan enjoys the ritual of bathing. Rooted in centuriesold tradition, communal bathing is still a way to socialize, cleanse, heal and forget about the world. There are two main types of communal baths—onsen and sentō. The difference is in the water. Onsen, regulated by Japanese law, must use naturally heated, underground mineral water, vapor
inside
or gas. Sentō, originally created for the city dwellers without at-home baths, use heated municipal water. Communal baths are a social gathering, at one time equivalent to pubs for Westerners. Most Japanese bathe at least once a day. This does not mean a quick rinse from the shower, either. This is immersion—whether at home or at the local sentō. When entering an onsen or sentō, first undress in the locker room. Then wash your body thoroughly at a seated shower station. This way the onsen remains clean. Once rinsed, gently slip into the warm waters of the onsen. Even though men and women bathe separately, for Westerners, it can still be uncomfortable to bathe with total strangers. But for the Japanese, a society built on honor and social status, it is a
Color Me Fun Run | 3 Valentine's Date Night | 3 Why is that? Okinawan Health | 5 Japanese Phrase of the Week | 5
luxury. Social status is stripped along with the clothes. Hadaka-no-tsukiai reflects the atmosphere of an onsen—the fellowship that develops when nothing is hidden. Onsen are a place to just be. Onsen environments vary from open-air to garden enclosed, and the water color can range from clear to milky blue to iron-rich rust-colored, depending on the minerals present. Soaking in a steamy onsen, with the warm water lapping at your shoulders, is a divine experience. Check out our “Pick of the Week” to find our favorite local onsen. More cultural curiosities? Sign up for one of Marine & Family Programs’ Cultural Awareness courses. Call 645-2104 or visit mccsokinawa.com/culturalawareness. —Caylee Reid
Pick of the Week: Tennen Onsen Aroma| 7 Vietnam/Cambodia Tour | 9 Off-Base Events | 11 Semper Fit Events | 11
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livingatlarge
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Color Me Fun Run
unning can be bland. Endless stretches of gray pavement or even worse—the muttering drone of the treadmill under fluorescent tubes. Perhaps this is what turns new runners off from running—it looks boring. The EFMP 5K Color Me Fun Run will add some excitement to a seemingly tedious and drab workout. Runners will be blasted with colorful powder every kilometer, including one big color explosion at the start of the race. Unlike a regular run where you look soggy and defeated afterwards, a color run is the only occasion you will finish a run looking more glamorous than when you started. First time doing a color run? First time running? No problem, this is a fun run, open to anyone regardless of skill or fitness level. Here are some tips on how to get ready and what to expect: Zip it. Habitual runners consume three times more bugs than the av-
erage person. While mid-run bug snacks are always a treat during a run, a mouth full of colored powder isn’t. Though the colorful powder used is harmless, it’s uncomfortable to inhale and will stain your teeth (plus it has no nutritional value). Eye protection. A pair of shades will go a long way in keeping the rainbow fog out of your eyes. Relax. This is not a race or a competitive event. If anything, perhaps the person with the most colors
on their person at the end might be considered the “winner.” The Color Me Fun Run is on April 2 at 9 a.m. at the Camp Foster Gunners Fitness Center. Participants will have a chance to win an overnight stay at Moon Ocean Ginowan Hotel and Residence, two overnight stays at Marriott Resort and Spa, Red Lobster gift certificates and more. Register from February 1 to March 30 at mccsokinawa.com/ colormefunrun.
events&happenings
Top: Thomas Alan Smilie, Bottom: Maridav/bigstock.com
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Valentine’s Date Night
alentine’s Day is a reminder to stop and think about what your significant other means to you. If they mean anything to you, anything at all, the least you can do is take them to the Butler Officer’s Club for Valentine’s Date Night Dinner on February 13. Surely a night of dinner and drinks will make this a night to remember. What is love without a good meal? Probably not real love. There’s a reason why a nice dinner is one of the top things couples do on Valentine’s Day—nothing celebrates love and life like feasting with the one you admire. The evening won’t only consist of feasting. If the night isn’t romantic enough already, you and your loved one can extend it dancing away on the dance floor. Enjoy a five-course meal, excellent wine and dancing as the recipe to a perfect Valentine’s evening with someone special. If you are truly trying to earn
points with your loved one, you can pre-order wine and flowers and have them displayed at your dinner. Don’t wait too long to make reservations because space is limited. This is the perfect opportunity for you and your date to hit it off or for couples to realize how
much they love each other. Hurry and reserve a table for a guaranteed memorable night. This event is $95 and is for adults only and is open to all ranks and services. Dress code is business casual. For more details, call 645-7530 or visit mccsokinawa.com/clubs.
CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER | Jim Kassebaum MANAGING EDITOR | Ryan Anastoplus ART DIRECTOR | Hector Nieves CULTURAL RESEARCH SPECIALIST | Ayako Kawamitsu GRAPHIC ARTS MANAGER | Henry Ortega GRAPHIC DESIGNERS | Margie Shimabukuro, Lisa Miyagi, Kelli Davis, Catherine Newquist EDITOR-IN-CHIEF | Mike Daley EDITOR | Caylee Reid PHOTOGRAPHER | Thomas Alan Smilie AD/SPONSORSHIP MANAGER | Roy Forster AD SALES | Yoshihiro Shinzato, Aya Chilcote, Yoriko Yamashiro, Carina Fils-Julien, Lisa Hicks DISTRIBUTION | Gideon Juko, Sho Vivas MARKETING ACCOUNTS MANAGER | Andrew Menges ACCOUNTS & RESEARCH | Amanda Bakun, Katherine Melrose, Kayla Christen, Jenessa Reutov, Jennifer Dowd, Marissa DeSmet BROADCAST | Victor Mercado, Kathlene Millette, Gabriel Archer CAREER PRACTICUM INTERNS | Michael Johnson, Skylor Stevens
Questions? Comments? Please e-mail OLW@okinawa.usmc-mccs.org. To advertise in Okinawa LivingWeekly, call 645-2245, fax 645-0975, or email sales@okinawa.usmc-mccs.org. MCCS is not responsible for designing and editing outside ads. No Department of Defense, U.S. Marine Corps or Marine Corps Community Services endorsement of commercial advertisers or sponsors implied.
This publication printed with
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japanese phrase
whyisthat?
of the week
A
Kurejitto kādo de onegai shimasu. I’d like to pay by credit card.
Clockwise from the top left: diego cervo/bigstock.com, szefei/bigstock.com
For details about FREE Japanese language classes, please call Marine & Family Programs–Resources at 645-2104/2106.
The Secrets of Okinawan Health
study published in the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences discusses how calorie restriction may promote increased life span, prevent age-related diseases, improve stress resistance and decrease functional decline. The idea of “don’t eat so much” to be healthier is nothing groundbreaking, but only one group of people make calorie restriction a lifestyle: Okinawans. In fact, Okinawans have a name for this concept—hara hachi bu, a Confucian teaching that instructs people to eat until they are 80% full. For all the popularity the Okinawan diet has gained as both a weight-loss plan and a way to live a healthier and longer life, hara hachi bu is perhaps the most important bit of knowledge to take away from this philosophy of eating. The average Okinawan following hara hachi bu consumes 1,800 to 1,900 calories per day consisting of green and yellow vegetables, purple sweet potato, soy, pork and a little
bit of fish. Eating until you are 80% full will teach you to not overeat. It is also a way of regulating our natural energy balance (calories in and calories out), which is the core principle of maintaining a healthy weight. Eating to the point of what we consider “full” is well beyond the point of satiety, and is one of the main
things that not only prevents us from losing weight, but adds inches to our midsection. Take it from Confucius, the largest population of centurions in the world or modern science—eat a bit less, and be a lot healthier. —Ryan Anastoplus
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getting there
pickoftheweek
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Tennen Onsen Aroma
From the Camp Foster Kitamae (commissary) gate, turn left onto Hwy. 58. At the first traffic light, turn right onto the Ginowan Bypass. Turn right just past the McDonald’s and immediately before the Uniqlo store. Go straight past the Don Quijote, and the onsen will be on your left.
Tennen Onsen Aroma
lthough onsen did not trickle down to Okinawa until after WWII, there are now several on the island and a handful of sentō sprinkled throughout. Our pick this week is an onsen close to home. Located in Ginowan, Tennen Onsen Aroma offers a traditional onsen experience. Slip into the sodium chloride-rich spring water of its rotenburo (outdoor onsen)—open-air but encircled by a carefully manicured zen garden. This serene setting is common on the mainland, but a rarity on Okinawa. According to Tennen Onsen Aroma, you can also take a dip in their jet-stream bath for improved circulation, and a cold-water bath and a warm cypress bath for improved heart health. The high-temperature sauna and the low-temperature salt scrub sauna claim to enhance the metabolism. This onsen provides all your necessities: towels, soap and loosefitting apparel to relax in afterward. Massages, facials and body scrubs
are available. Enjoy simple Okinawan cuisine and then curl up in one of the large reclining chairs for a nap. If this is your first onsen experience, take a deep breath and take the plunge. Men and women are separated, and you may use a small privacy towel before getting into the water. The staff provides English instructions. Unfortunately, tattoos (no matter how small) are strictly prohibited.
Tennen Onsen Aroma is open daily from 6 a.m.–midnight. Adults are ¥1,500; children (high school age) are ¥1,000; 6–15 are ¥750 and under 6 are FREE. Dip in the onsen for a simple relaxation session after work or make a whole day of it and truly immerse yourself in a memorable Japanese tradition. —Caylee Reid
Top: tomophotography/bigstock.com Bottom: Thomas Alan Smilie
photooftheweek
In Japan, winter means gathering around a cast-iron pot with friends and partaking in a bubbling bowl of nabe—a dish filled to the brim with simmering meats, noodles and broth.
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more details
spotlight
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Trip dates: April 8–17 Registration deadline: February 26
Clockwise from the top left: dElena Ermakova, Pang-rum/bigstock.com
Visit mccsokinawa.com/tours or your local Tours+ office for more details.
Vietnam and Cambodia Tour
illed with dense jungles and ancient temples, join the MCCS Tours+ trip to Cambodia and Vietnam, and greet Cambodia with a Siem Reap sunrise. On Bakheng Hill, the sunlight spills over a distant silhouette of Angkor Wat, all mirrored in Tonlé Sap Lake. Ride around the mysterious Bayon Temple on an elephant’s back. In the afternoon, visit the largest religious monument in the world, the temple complex of Angkor Wat. Finish Siem Reap, with a visit to Srah Srang—the royal bath water reservoir—dipped in the colors of early morning. Tour the incomplete temple of Banteay Kdei. Left untouched and in its original form, the “Citadel of Chambers” is swallowed by jungle roots of surrounding fig trees. The last stop in Cambodia is the Angkor Silk Farm. Enjoy an early dinner, then fly out to Hồ Chí Minh City in Vietnam. Explore Củ Chi, the labyrinth of nar-
row tunnels built by “Vietcong” guerillas used during the war. Grab a local lunch before the half-day tour where you will get a taste of what this roaring city offers. Travel to Hội An the following morning. Enjoy a walking tour of the charming town—including ancient merchant houses and the colorful riverside market. End the day with a sunset boat trip on Thu Bồn River to a pottery village. Take a three-hour
bus ride to Huế that hugs the coastline, winds through green paddy fields and climbs over the dramatic Hải Vân mountain pass. On one of the last days, relax with a seafood lunch on a five-hour boat cruise on the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Hạlong Bay—a stunning seascape of limestone cliffs. For more details or to register for this trip, visit your local Tours+ office or visit mccsokinawa.com/tours.
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tours+
adventure begins here. Expo Park Orchid Show & Aquarium* February 6, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Adults $37, Children (16–17) $32, (12–15) $26, (6–11) $22, (under 6) FREE Stroll through the largest Orchid show in Japan, see a dolphin show, visit an Okinawan village or relax on Emerald beach.
Food & Flower Festival* February 7, 9:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m. Adults $20, Children (3–11) $13 (under 3) FREE Adventure through the food and flowers produced locally at the annual Okinawa Farmers’ Market.
Battle Sites* February 6, 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Adults $28, Children (3–11) $18 (under 3) FREE Visit the Battle of Okinawa Historical Society’s museum on Camp Kinser, explore the Japanese Naval Underground Headquarters and end the day at Peace Prayer Park.
Nakijin Cherry Blossom Moonlight Festival* February 7, 3–9 p.m. Adults $23, Children (6–12) $15 (3–5) $12, (under 3) FREE Enjoy family fun with festival food, cultural dances, a parade and more beneath the clouds of freshly bloomed cherry blossoms.
*Bring yen for additional food, drinks and/or purchases. For more information, contact MCCS Tours+: Camp Foster 646-3502 | Camp Hansen 623-6344 | Camp Kinser 637-2744
off-baseevents get out and explore.
Nago Castle Cherry Blossom Festival January 30–31, 1–8:30 p.m. Nago Castle Ruins, Nago City FREE
Proud sponsor of MCCS Youth Sports
Athletics/Adult Sports
Top to bottom: joloei/bigstock.com, Aya Chilcote
645-3521/3522
Aquatics 645-3180 Courtney Ironworks 622-9261/7297 Futenma Semper Fit 636-2672 Gunners Fitness Center 645-3985/2235 Hansen House of Pain 623-5558/4831 Health Promotion 645-3484/3910 Kinser Fitness Center 637-1869/1114 Schwab Power Dome 625-2654/2442 Taiyo Golf Club 622-2004 Tsunami SCUBA 645-9500 Youth Sports 645-3533/3534
BJ League Basketball Tournament January 30, 7 p.m. & January 31, 2 p.m. Ryukyu Golden Kings vs. Oita Heat Devils Okinawa City Gym, Okinawa City Call Tours+ at 646-3502 for tickets.
Okinawa International Orchid Show January 30–February 7 8:30 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Ocean Expo Park Tropical Dream Center, Motobu Village Adults ¥670, Children (6–15) ¥340
upcoming semperfitevents Open Softball Tournament February 5–7 Gunners Fitness Center Register at any MCCS Fitness Center by 1 p.m. on February 1. This event is open to all participants island wide. Awards will be given to first, second and third-place winners in each division Tournament brackets and rules will be emailed to each participant. Pricing details: 645-3003/4866.
Open Hansen 6 vs. 6 Soccer February 5–7 Camp Hansen House of Pain Register at any MCCS Fitness Center by 1 p.m. on February 1 for $90. This event is open to all participants island wide. Awards will be given to first, second and third-place winners. Tournament brackets and rules will be emailed to each participant. Details: 623-5569/5558.
classof theweek Night Club Cardio This cardio dance class plays hip hop, rock, rap, dance, techno, pop and the list goes on! Dancing skills are not necessary. Camps Foster & Kinser
For a full class schedule and times, visit mccsokinawa.com/groupfitness