A Quick COVID Update + Vaccines in Japan
I’ve gotten a lot of questions recently about the COVID situation here in Okinawa, so I wanted to give a quick update. The good news is that Courtney and I just signed up to get our first doses of the Moderna vaccine on July 5th! The bad news is that it has taken this long to begin with. In recent months, as friends and family back home received vaccines and things returned to normal, the situation here has gotten worse.
Why Okinawa Isn’t Like the Rest of Japan
When Courtney first told me she was applying for a job in Okinawa, I immediately constructed a mental image of my new life. Thoughts of Shibuya Crossing, Tsukiji Fish Market, micro hotels, packed subway cars, and izakayas full of salary men raced through my mind. Like most Americans, my primary reference point for Japan is the hustle and bustle of Tokyo shown on TV and in movies. As I’d soon find out, though, Okinawa is very much its own place.
One Month In
As soon as we arrived and set down our suitcases in the new apartment, the empty cupboards and bare mattresses spurred us right back out the door to pick up some essentials. The first trip to the grocery store was a “Shopping Spree Showdown” as we piled up the cart with American and Japanese pantry staples…
The Long Road to Okinawa (Part 2)
I’ve done a few long international trips over the years and never felt the effects of the dreaded jet-lag, so I figure maybe I was immune to it. WRONG! The first few days in Tokyo were a hellish time warp, as I repeatedly bolted awake in the middle of the night and was begging for sleep by mid-afternoon. Luckily, I could nap as I pleased since we were stuck in quarantine for two weeks…
The Long Road to Okinawa (Part 1)
After over a year of speculating, planning, and paperwork, culminating in a long-ass flight (all in the face of COVID, no less) we finally arrived in Japan! What started with an email from Courtney to a researcher at OIST in November 2019 got us to where we are today - looking out of our apartment window at the brilliant blue waters of the East China Sea…