MaryBrown

So, who is MaryBrown and why do I call her MaryBrown? Well, MaryBrown is my best friend ever and I call her MaryBrown because that's her name. Duh! No really, it just all seems to go together. When I talk about her she's MaryBrown and when I talk to her it's just Mary - or a nickname that she'd beat me up for if I posted it in cyber space! Anyway, why am I writing about MaryBrown? Because she was awesome enough to come visit me on the opposite side of the world. She booked her ticket about a week and a half before coming, made arrangements with work and her hubby, and then braved the 30 hour travel day to come see me. That's why she's my best friend, along with her being the smartest and funniest person I know. Mary hates having her picture taken. My sister Monica said to post a picture because she hadn't seen Mary in a while. Here's the picture Mary posed for:

She's so funny! However, I still snuck a few photos when she wasn't looking. We did all the normal Okinawa things while she was here, even though the sun didn't shine a single day of her trip! I felt bad, but I haven't learned how to control the weather yet. On her first day we went and got some sushi. It was dericious!

Chris was lucky enough to get a few days off and got to accompany us on most outings. We took her to our favorite northern beach.

A friend of the family was having heart surgery so we sent her a get well message:
After the beach we headed north to Hedo Point. I'm not sure what the big chicken statue was about, but Chris is always funny.

And I liked the message we were given:
After a long day of hiking someone was sleepy:

(Oh yeah, Mary's also my best friend because the first thing she said when meeting Rana was "pictures don't do you justice".)
We made it to Sam's by the Sea and ate the most perfect dish in the world. They have an appetizer that has shrimp, avocado, cheese, and is all baked up in wonton wrapper pie crust. It is heaven!

We also took time to love on some stray puppies. Don't worry, they both have homes now. The yellow one looks a lot like my old dog when she was a baby.

And yes, Chris is the reason why I am not already the crazy dog lady beacuse I would have taken these sweeties home in an instant. However, his rationalness is a good thing.
We made it over to Pineapple Park where we ate our weight in Pineapple Wine Cake. Oh so yummy!

Chris took us for a tour of the island and I'm happy to say I didn't need my motion sickness bags. YAY!
This was the day I was really wishing we had more sun because a cloudy day just doesn't do justice to how beautiful the water is.

We took advantage of a dry morning and made a quick run to Forest Adventures. It is so much fun and a pretty good workout too!

After playing Tarzan and Jane we stopped for lunch at a Hawaiian restaurant that had a blue jean wearing dog.
After the long President's Day weekend Chris had to go back to work so Mary and I were on our own for Okinawa World. Mary was convinced that this Japanese man looked like her dad so I took a picture:

You might remember our first trip to Okinawa World with Chris' Mom and friend, Sharon. On that outing the seasnake won the race with the mongoose. Let's see if the results were any different this time:

On Mary's final day we went to the aquarium. It might be my favorite thing on the island. It is a great facility and I could watch the whale sharks swim for hours. Plus, they've added some new topiaries and statues onto the beautifully landscaped grounds. I think the puffer was my favorite.

I guess that rounds up MaryBrown's trip to Okinawa. It was great seeing her and I missed her before I even got home from the airport after dropping her off. Thanks for visiting Mary! Come back any time or just move in with us!