KanPAI!!!

I woke up to the sound of the East China Sea pushing up against sea jacks again. It's the most soothing sound in the world to me. It was almost immediately destroyed by the sharp, high-pitched sound of Razz, the dog we're babysitting. I would say dogsitting, but Razz is like a child. A loud, shrieking child. The mama-san's back from her week-long departure of tending to other people's unfinished chores. She boggles my mind. It's this tiny Uchinanchu woman that takes care of laundry, mopping, sweeping, dusting, dishes, cleaning generally everything from the shoe-clad Japanese entranceway to the fountain-esque toilets in every bathroom. Her job would kill me, and I have tremendous respect for the Okinawans. I say Okinawans because they're entire history is centered around taking care of other invading countries. It's a kind of metaphor I suppose. She does all the dirty work around the house, and we all go out and enjoy the land we took from them. We force our language, our ideals, religion, and culture on them and they just take it. With a smile. The kicker, and it's sad to point out, is that if we didn't, Japan or China or some other big country would move in and do our "job". A link for unbelievers...:
http://www.okinawan-shorinryu.com/okinawa/history.html
The last couple days have shown me just how diverse this island is. Last night I went to a Persian-owned hookah bar, saw legitamite Arabian metal hookahs, and ate at a Nepalese restaurant where the owner cooked everything for us in what looked to me like traditional recipes and cookware. The kicker is that I went to a firmly Japanese ka-ra-o-ke bar afterwards. I used the hyphens to show that it fits into Hiragana (Japanese simple form alphabet) and to emphasize the Japanese culture that persisted there. This island has so much soul. How the locals are nice at all I cannot explain, as they get the short end of the stick in every draw. I love the Rock, AKA Okinawa. I've got myself excited and now must go skate the island.
Peace-U, ne?