Here in the United States, many people do not receive the opportunity to experience the places they’ve seen on TV. Instead, they live vicariously through people on TV or just dream about going there one day, never accomplishing their goal. Fortunately, for two years I was able to live out my childhood dream, in Japan. In turn, Okinawa, Japan became my favorite place due to the variation in types of people, the pure and beautiful scenery, and the home cooked health centered meals.
In Japan, there were many types of people that I encountered but that can be put into a few basic categories: the warm citizens, the swindlers, and the anti-American rebels. Most citizens of Okinawa are friendly, easy going, interesting people. A common trait also is curiosity about where Americans are from and their story; they try to absorb as much as they can. It seemed like their goal was to always make you feel like family: like a distant cousin or old family friend. Having late nights eating and drinking just sharing stories, breaking language and cultural barriers, bonding as people.The community was also peppered with your swindlers looking for prey in young military personnel. Selling things for way above the usual price, promising one thing but doing another, making a lot of young military personnel wiser than when they came. Wheedled into the community were also the people of the older generation still living in the times of the 1945 Battle of Okinawa. Every move you made was watched carefully and pugnaciously. They never missed a chance to let you know that you of all people were unwelcome in their country. Along with these ungracious few were the anti-American rebels, organizing small riots at military base entrances monthly to bi-monthly to show that they were still there. These Riots involved: burning mattresses, urine, feces being launched through the air, long bamboo sticks that could touch you on the second floor of an apartment building, and scooters. You...