Good day all

[Debbi]

Wow, it seems like there's a lot of writers here who have lived around the world. I was lucky enough to live in Khartoum, Sudan for two years when I was a kid. My dad was a professor of Education and we went over theter with the US AID program so he could help them set up more schools. On the way, we traveled through Europe and on the way back through Asia. It was such an exciting time in my life, lo, those 40+ years ago. We were there when Kennedy was shot and kicked out with all the other foriegn devils in 1964. Those experiences had a huge impact on me as far as opeining up my eyes to other cultures and away from the often jingoistic nationalism of "love it or leave it" America in the Viet Nam war era. It also gave me more of an understanding of Arab cultures as we passed through Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iran (where they wouldn't let us get off the plane!). The poverty of India was heartbreaking, the beauty of Japan and Thailand was uplifting, but the best part of the trip was when we landed in Hawaii. Back in the States! Oh, that gorgeous Waikiki beach.

The other day my dog Gretchen (the 60-lb mutt in my profile pic) knocked a clay pot we'd brought back from Sudan off my bookcase and it shatterd. I cried for half an hour, thinking about how that little pot had traveled all the way around the world, all over Califronia as I moved here and there, and then all the way to New Mexioc to sit on that bookcase for four years untouched. It porbably cost my mom 10 cents but it was 45 years worth of memories **Note** Gretchen is still in one piece. heh)

Debbi

[eek]

Oh, such yummy foods! Thanks for sharing your memories, Sherry. You jogged my Tagalog. (What very little I had.) We lived in the tiny village of Aritao, right in the middle of the island. Those U.S. bases closed after the volcano mess, but I didn't keep up with what they did with them after that.

Oh Debbi, so sorry about your pot. That is so sad, and I know exactly how you feel.
It isfun to hear where other people have lived or traveled extensively, isn't it? I've also lived in Jordan, and I met Evan in Cyprus. Spent one summer in Indonesia when I was much younger. You know, we watched Bill Murray's "Lost in Translation" the other night, and even though it was slightly depressing we howled through most of it. Anyone who has traveled or lived overseas could relate.

Oh dear, supper & family are calling. Thanks, David, for letting us rabbit trail on your welcome thread!
(Celeste - I never knew they were called Guamanians.)

[Phil]

Y'all are making me hungry! I passed through Guam and the Philippines several times when floating or flying to the next event due on the evening news. And, since Okinawa is a second home to all Marines I lived there for a while. Plus I was stationed in Hawaii and Mainland Japan. So I am an Asian, Pacific Rim food junkie. I think I am the only guy in Texas that makes his own sushi and yakisoba. We ate a lot of fried plantains (sp?) with, hold onto your hats cowpokes, pancake syrup on 'em. Good character building chow if you ask me. I miss lumpia as well; no one makes it in my neck of the woods. Good distractions from a long day - Phil

[Celeste Stewart]

Spent a few years in Okinawa myself - living in a quonset (aye the spelling - don't hold me to that one) hut. Why, I'm not quite sure but that's where we lived for a while. From there, we moved to a pink house. Okay, I was like three at the time, so my memories are tainted by three-year-old imagery.

Here in the states, we know where to get yakisoba (several of the local stores carry it) but it's hard to find the really good brands - especially those that come in a plastic box that you drain - so high tech yet so delicious! For the first time the other day, I actually saw a yakisoba ad on TV. My husband and I looked at each other in shock! (I've converted him to my ways though he still resists adding Spam and cabbage to it - he works for a Japanese company so there's hope).

My parents always lived off base even though we could've lived on base. I love that we got to experience the off-base life and get to know the culture of each place. Since my dad was technically a civilian (he was a NIS agent), our stays tended to be longer than the shorter stays of my military friends. We usually stayed three to five years in each place. When we finally got to San Diego, there were enough military bases, and my dad apparently had enough clout, to stay longer term. He eventually retired here and I've been here ever since. Still would love to go back and visit my old childhood haunts though.

[Phil]

I tried the yakisoba that they sell on the shelf next to the ramen noodles. Just isn't the same. San Diego huh? I retired from Camp Pendleton. My son-in-law and daughter are both stationed there right now. I always thought NIS were active duty that was allowed to wear civvies and grow their hair long. I would not have minded living off base in Japan proper, but I'm not so sure about Oki unless it was in the Naha area.

[Debbi]

When I lived in California, I could get any kind of food I had a craving for, especially in Sacramento and SF. Here in New Mexico, they don't have much of anything that's not smothered in red or green chile. Since I am a sissy girl and can't handle that hot stuff, I'm mostly out of luck. Albuquerque hs more variety but a pale imitation of food choice in Cali.

Debbi

[Silvercode]

I made several trips to Toronto and enjoyed as much of the city as I could. I never did figure out was a 'collector' was as it applied to a highway though.

This one I can help with. The highway near Toronto has express lanes and collector lanes. Express lanes are in the middle of the highway - they are designed for fast drivers who dont' want to get off for many exits. Collectors are the slow lanes where people hop on at one exit and off at the next, or they just drive slow for a Sunday drive or some such. The thing about the collector lanes is that lanes are always being added or removed from the sides, so its easy to find yourself in an exit lane without changing lanes! Talk about how to stay awake...

And Phil, will it help if I eat the guidelines with some butter sauce on them?
I hear your point and I will start working towards that goal.

- David

[Silvercode]

It seems you have all been busy while i was off installing windows today - 4 down, 2 to go. woohoo!.

Let's see, in no particular order:
I've drank the green coconut water, but would have preferred it cold instead of warm.
My first trip to Barbados was for my wedding, and the other guys in the wedding party and I discovered a fruit vendor that after one taste supplied them with lunch every day for a week (fresh grapefruit, oranges, bananas, mangoes, and more).
Jack fruit I have eaten cooked, but never been close to it raw. Well, I've had the trees pointed out to me often.

The only 2 exotic fruits I can think of that I've had are Bajan cherries, and Aki fruit. And dunks. The cherries are from Barbados and are said to have more Vitamin C than an orange. Aki looks very strange when its ripe with black and red parts to it - you can't eat it until the pod split open. Dunks are little fruit almost the size of a large cherry with a large pit that you have to suck the flesh off - tastey when they are ripe. I spent about an hour one day with my father-in-law, picking these things from a tree because they were almost over ripe.

Let the exotic fruit thread continue!