Our First Month in Japan

Well, we survived our first month in Japan!  It has definitely been an adventure.  We saw Craig off a few days after our arrival and the kids and I have been running in high gear ever since.  The first couple of weeks were spent orienting ourselves to the base, city, and culture.  We attended the Obon festival when each year, the Japanese celebrate the return of the spirits of deceased relatives and using floating lanterns, send them away with good wishes.

Craig skipped the lanterns and headed straight for the squid on a stick.  It left a little to be desired.  Although, he got his money's worth as it took hours to chew the darn thing.

We have had many other adventures as well.  We visited the aquarium, which had dolphins, turtles, lobsters, and some crazy Pacific creatures.  That said, while looking at a number of exhibits and admiring tropical fish, we were surprised to see a fish suddenly turn into a crab!  The Japanese love 3D computer animation and I must say I was fooled by numerous "tanks" as they were simply filled with projections of fish.  Strange.  I guess it is cheaper that way.

Driving and shopping are adventures in themselves.  We tried to go native the other day and order food court noodles at the local mall.  Interesting that we were the only Americans there and the only ones eating noodles.  Everyone else was Japanese and scarfing down McDonalds.  It is nice to see that America has no bounds.

It is also interesting to see what your kids will actually eat.  We visited a "sushi-go-round" where a long thin conveyor belt traces its ways through the restaurant.  On the belt are numerous plates of mystery sushi.  You snag one of interest as it goes by and are charged by the height of the pile of plates that you accumulate at the end of the table.  Then, to order a beer or something special, you type your request into a touchscreen computer mounted at the table.  Needless to say, it is an experience, particularly when you mistake dried green tea for wasabi and wonder why your soy sauce isn't getting spicy no matter how much you put in, but instead, you can feel your caffeine addiction being sated. They are both green right?  At one such restaurant, Caitlin decided she loved bubbles (salmon roe)!



Driving is yet another adventure.  I purchased a car, a flaming red Honda fit that we zip around in.  Only in Japan can you call a dealer, request a car sight unseen and not test driven, meet the unknown dealer and car at a park, and pay her with an envelop full of cash.  A perfect car drug deal.  I am truly impressed that the thing drives. The brakes are questionable, but I am so desperate, I am willing to ignore certain things.  Once the car was purchased, then came the task of learning to drive on the left hand side, deciphering road signs written in Japanese, and avoiding the express toll lane where you get stuck and an angry little man jumps out of nowhere waving a bright orange flag in your face yelling something in Japanese as you drop a questionable amount of yen in his hand and wait until he lifts the gate for you to pass.  His angry yelling has since changed to hysterical laughter.

Among all of our embarrassing stories, we had time this week to see the Imagination Movers and the girls had a great time dancing to all of the songs.  I can't express how much I appreciate performers, particularly in children's theater, who make the time and take the effort to visit overseas bases.  We do not have access to these things, and I truly thank them for making a hard situation more bearable for our children by distracting them and giving them joy, even just for a couple of hours.

Beyond our many adventures, I have been diligently working on creating a home for me and my children.  School was a disaster for Caitlin, so both kids are home with me and we are chipping away at the never ending process of unpacking.  Here is what the apartment looks like so far!

That about wraps up our month.  I am looking forward to a routine and some calmer days, but who I am kidding!?  I hope everyone stateside is doing well.  We sure do miss you all!

Welcome to Japan!

Greetings from Japan.  We made it!  The three day trek from Arizona to Sasebo was quite the adventure.  A few highlights...

1. Although the flights went well, we are not going back to the states until the Navy forces us to leave.  Being trapped in a metal tube for 11 plus hours with a fractious toddler and newborn leaves the nerves a little frayed and I am so very sick of Tinkerbell movies.  That said, the kids did very well, but thank god we are done.

2. We are definitely the Americans.  While at Narita airport, we watched so many Japanese children playing quietly waiting to board the aircraft.  Then, we watched our beautiful daughter pitch a huge fit screaming "No more noodles!!" at the top of her lungs interspersed with high pitch wailing, and flailing in her seat like a dying fish.  Yup, we are the Americans.  That said, Narita was easy to navigate, everyone was wonderfully helpful and Caitlin, for the most part, behaved.

3. Humid.  My god is it humid.  This picture, it isn't blurry, that is the humidity.  Enough said.

4. "Trains, buses, you're all going the wrong way!"  Caitlin's first observation of Japan.  She is going to be a great backseat driver once I get on the road.

5.  Sasebo, we made it!  The city is beautiful.  Mountains drop into the ocean, the people are gracious, the city is fascinating, and we already feel at home. We are slowly adapting to the time change and the 3am requests for lunch are becoming less frequent.  This is going to be a good three years.

Craig departs in a few days and will be gone for all but two months of the coming year.  We wish him safe travels and we send every bit of our love.  While he is gone and with my kids in tow, we will experience Japan and keep you posted on the adventure.

A Month on the Road

The Paganucci family spent all of July making the rounds of the US.  We visited family, numerous friends, and ate as much American food as possible along the way.  Our first stop was in NH to celebrate the 4th of July with the Emonds and Steeles.  Uncle Mike got his 57 Dodge up and running so all could participate in the annual parade.  Happy birthday America!



























A few days later, we ventured to Brunswick, ME to visit the Paganuccis and see some amazing friends.  Bowdoin always feels like home!  We managed to eat our weight in lobster, Caitlin enjoyed the beach and we had to visit Cote's for ice cream.











Following Maine, we went back to NH for a few days before moving onto our final destination, Wickenburg, AZ.  It wouldn't be a Paganucci family trip if it did not involve an insane travel itinerary.  Wickenburg was amazing.  The whole Emond clan came with us and a huge thank you to the Steeles for helping us get there.  We spent two weeks in the pool, at the zoo, tracking lizards, seeing family and most importantly, celebrating Caitlin's 3rd birthday (a tad early) with a pony party.

Sadly, our trip came to an end and we had to say a very tearful goodbye to the whole family.  We will miss Great Grandma Eloise, the whole Emond family, Paganuccis and friends immensely.  However, we hope you will all visit us here in Sasebo!

Goodbye America, hello Japan!

Empty nest, packing, hails and bails, and last day in Pax

On Monday I took Laura and the kids the two hours north to BWI so they could fly up to Mimi and Poppa's house in New Hampshire. Their departure left the Household Goods (HHG) move in the able hands and paws of myself and The Great American Brown Dog, Murphy. Monday night was a quick hustle of trying to identify and separate the last of the stuff I didn't want the packers to send off to Japan. Tuesday and Wednesday saw the arrival of the packers and the cocooning of all of our stuff the ubiquitous brown paper. On Thursday the movers came and took all of our HHGs, put them in to large crates and sent them off to be sent via ship (I think) to Japan. Or they may just end up forgotten in their crates in the back of a warehouse next to the Ark being worked on by "Top Men." Thus ends the packing phase of our PCS and begins the hope that our stuff will look the same when it gets to Japan and manages to avoid the nefarious "HHG smasher."


The HHG smasher is up there with other nefarious and possibly imaginary military machines such as the cake drier and lettuce wilter (possibly the same device, but more on that later). Sometimes your HHGs show up no worse for the wear. Other times they bear a few understandable scars from a move. And then other times they show up in such a state of disrepair that the only possible explanation is that they were purposefully destroyed. But hopefully all of our earthly possessions will avoid such a fate on their trek around the world.


At the end of Thursday Murphy and I were left in an empty house with no place to sit and, even worse, no Internet. All Friday and most of today was spent emptying the house of all the trash that seems to accumulate under sinks and in garages. A few trips to the dump and a pack of sniffers later and our empty shell of a home was not only empty but clean as well.


Friday was my "last day of work" and my Hail and Bail. The Hail and Bail, or more formally, the Hail and Farewell, is a nice little informal ceremony that Navy squadrons hold to bookend an individual's time in the squadron. A Hail and Bail is usually held every couple of months to welcome (hail) new arrivals and their families and to send off (bail) departing members. They're usually held in a bar or similar location and involve pitchers of beer and chicken wings. They also tend to be kind of peculiar; during your first year in a squadron you go because the boss is the and the beer is free (or you've already paid for it with your dues). The guys who are leaving are unknown to you. During your second year and third year you know most of the folks who are leaving and they can be kind of bittersweet as another buddy heads off on the next set of orders. By the time your hail and bail comes, chances are you might know one-third of the people in attendance. The other two-thirds are there for the beer and wings and are hoping it's over quickly so they can start their weekend.


Because of this, I always find myself rolling my eyes at the prospect of my own hail and bail. You're usually a little distracted with trying to move your family and tie up any loose ends that are involved with leaving a squadron. But both times I've found myself standing there in front of a few of my buds and a bunch of co-workers I find myself getting close to choked up. As exciting as going to a new job can be, it always stinks to say goodbye to all the good people you've worked with over the years. I ended up getting pelted with water balloons from my friends, followed up with some handshakes into hugs, which is how we show our love in this world.


Today is my last day in the Pax River house. It was frigid and incredibly expensive to heat in the winter, it's yard and surrounding woods were full of Lyme carrying deer ticks in the summer, in the fall the leaves fell in monstrous drifts, and it was showing its age and not well updated, but it will always be our first family home. When we moved in in 2009 we had no kids, when we left in 2012, we had been blessed with two beautiful children and some great memories.


Soon Murph and I hit the road to NH to catch up with Laura and the kids to begin our stateside family tour. T-minus 28 days to Japan!

Last few days in PAX River

Well, add another travel blog to your list. The Paganucci family decided to go with the general blogging trend and inundate your internet surfing with pictures, anecdotes, and news of our adventures in Japan. Hopefully you will enjoy seeing a slice of our lives and this will act as a great way to stay in touch.

The Paganucci family is headed to Sasebo, Japan! In true form, we decided that our lives weren't crazy enough and thought we would add to the exciting arrival of our second child by moving overseas before he is 3 months old. We love to keep it dynamic.

Needless to say, we are excited to get on the road. Craig wrapped up his last flight at VX-1 and we are sad to say goodbye to an amazing command and community.



We are traveling the US for 4 weeks to visit family prior to leaving for Japan at the end of July. Once there, Craig is deploying on the USS Bon Homme Richard as part of the Air Department. The kids and I will set up camp, learn how to drive on the other side of the road, and try to decipher Japanese menus. I am sure there is more to life in Japan, but this is what I am focusing on first :)


Please keep in touch and we look forward to sharing this adventure with you!