Kitchen

Our kitchen is tiny! I've never really needed a big kitchen, so it'll work for us. The pros of the kitchen are that it's in a great location, there was room for a large fridge by Japanese standards, the sink is huge, tons of cabinet storage space, room for my kitchen rack, gas stove (my first - love it!) and there's a dishwasher. The cons are that there's not much counter space, the cabinets are either really low or really high, only 1 person fits comfortably and there is NO OVEN! Not sure how I'm going to live without my cheese manicotti for 3 years, but somehow we haven't starved yet. A friend on base has already offered to let me use her American oven to make cupcakes a couple times a year for the boys - so I was glad we'll still be able to have birthdays over here!

 

Here's a view from the dining table.

 

 

This is the counter top that I just call appliance hell. We have loved our conventional oven since we're missing the big one. Some of the wives have told me they've cooked whole chickens and lasagnas in theirs - we'll see!

 

 

Here are a few views from the kitchen looking out. You can see the raised tatami area behind our dining table that we haven't figured out what to do with yet. I think the Japanese use it for their tea tables, but we're not sure what to do with it yet. Any suggestions are appreciated!

 

 

 

It feels so good having the kitchen unpacked. Next up I'll post pics of the living room and playroom. They're both mostly done. I've been meaning to post pics for a few days, but somehow when I clean up the playroom it never stays that way long enough to get a pic!