Hello,
I was looking at the Okinawa site, but there are no posts, so I am going to ask here.  I am going to Oki for a medical procedure at the end of the month and I wanted to ask ya'll what there is to do there.  I've heard it's very Americanized.  Can someone please explain this?  Are there stores there that we don't have here, etc?  I'll be there 4 days and I thought I'd do some site seeing, but wasn't sure what there was to see there.  Any help would be appreciated. Thanks a lot.
Brooke

Wow...where to begin where to start... First the "Americanized" portion of your question...probably orignated because Okinawa has the majority of the military forces for Japan. Everywhere you go in Okinawa you will see a "Y" plate and a military person (or dependent/civilian/contractor who are all there because of the military). About the only store that I know of that is readily available there and hard to find here (it is still here though) is Tony Roma's restaurant.

Places to go see... I love Kokusai Dori and could spend hours there walking down the street/eating at the restaurants (best selection in Okinawa) and even enjoy a few cocktails at the many nice bars/pubs. I would definitely recommend Shuri Castle (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuri_Castle) it is near Kokusai Street and has a ton of history. There is also the Japanese Cave Nurse's Memorial, Peace Memorial Park (a personal favourite)...this is kind of far off the beaten path, but well worth the ride. South of Naha in a town called Itoman. Okinawa also hosts one of the best Aquariums in Japan (personal opinion), but this is way up north... I would suggest you do a Google search for "Okinawa Battle Sites" to see a wealth of knowledge of places to go & see. If you are looking for a good meal check out Herb on Nakanomachi Dori (out gate two of Kadena Air Base)...he is a good friend and makes some killer food. Also a visit to Okinawa isn't complete without a Yakisoba plate from Miki's (near Nakanomachi Dori or where a lot of people call "four corners"). If you enjoy good music make sure you plan a very late night out at the "Jet" club. The owner is an Okinawan Man married to an American woman and they are both GREAT PEOPLE! They play very classic rock (70s)...take ear plugs as the place is small and the sound is HUGE.

Thanks Wilson! I'm glad that you are able to point me in the right direction. I will write all of this down and get busy planning my days while I'm there. Thanks so much.

The Okie site needs to get the word out about the Japanbases.com, I am sure it will grow sooner or later and be as good as Yoko but it looks like there is little known about it...

Folks on Okinawa tend to use okinawahai.com for their information.