Specifically, the 3rd Medical Battalion's celebration of the 237th Marine Corps Birthday Ball. There are so many Marines here in Okinawa that the birthday ball is celebrated many times over. Ryan was invited to attend two: one for the officers and one for his battalion. I flew into Okinawa on the same evening as the officer's ball, so Ryan's attendance was cut short. I'll let him say if we was disappointed about this. Darn; I was not able to stay at a stuffy ball, wearing a dress uniform, sitting next to the Chaps (no offense to the Chaps, but their presence tends to squash some of the better jokes and limit your intake of alcohol), in order to go get my wife...
We attended the 3rd Med Battalion birthday ball together. For me, it was my first opportunity to meet some of the people Ryan works with and their families. The only problem with meeting someone for the first time at a formal is that you may not recognize them the next time you see them, but that's another post.
Anyway, there was an official ceremony and presentation by the Marines. This birthday ball was unique in that it celebrated the Marines and the support they get from the Navy. The speech included some accolades and jabs for both branches, and the Marine's Hymn featured an introduction of "Anchors Aweigh." There is a fantastic cake to celebrate the birthday, and the cutting of the cake is an important part of the ceremony. The first piece goes to the oldest member of the battalion, and the second piece goes to the youngest member. Ryan and I were much closer in age to the oldest member, and when the birth year of the youngest member was read (1993!), there were audible groans from most people in attendance! I was most excited about the cake, and crossed my fingers for a corner piece.
All in all, it was a great introduction to military ceremonies, and a fun change of pace for Ryan and I. I assembled collages of the evening, but after a camera SNAFU I am limited to those photos taken by the host club, The Palms on Camp Hansen. It would be silly of me to try to explain everything, because I didn't know what was going on most of the time. I've been here six months and I still dont know whats going on most of the time. That said, perhaps it's better to showcase the evening with photos.
We cleaned up nicely for the event:
We took advantage of the one slow dance opportunity:
The first song of the evening was "Gangnam Style," and it seems to be some sort of anthem for the men out here. Is it different in the states? We may be the only people not to have seen the video, and I've only seen the parody that Mike and Mike of ESPN fame did for Halloween. At any rate, my favorite part of the entire evening was when the dancing kicked off. It was something to see Marines and Navy in their respective dress uniforms having a good time and just letting go:
The 3rd Medical Battalion:
I've saved the best for last: the Cigar Lounge!
We attended the 3rd Med Battalion birthday ball together. For me, it was my first opportunity to meet some of the people Ryan works with and their families. The only problem with meeting someone for the first time at a formal is that you may not recognize them the next time you see them, but that's another post.
Anyway, there was an official ceremony and presentation by the Marines. This birthday ball was unique in that it celebrated the Marines and the support they get from the Navy. The speech included some accolades and jabs for both branches, and the Marine's Hymn featured an introduction of "Anchors Aweigh." There is a fantastic cake to celebrate the birthday, and the cutting of the cake is an important part of the ceremony. The first piece goes to the oldest member of the battalion, and the second piece goes to the youngest member. Ryan and I were much closer in age to the oldest member, and when the birth year of the youngest member was read (1993!), there were audible groans from most people in attendance! I was most excited about the cake, and crossed my fingers for a corner piece.
All in all, it was a great introduction to military ceremonies, and a fun change of pace for Ryan and I. I assembled collages of the evening, but after a camera SNAFU I am limited to those photos taken by the host club, The Palms on Camp Hansen. It would be silly of me to try to explain everything, because I didn't know what was going on most of the time. I've been here six months and I still dont know whats going on most of the time. That said, perhaps it's better to showcase the evening with photos.
We cleaned up nicely for the event:
We took advantage of the one slow dance opportunity:
The first song of the evening was "Gangnam Style," and it seems to be some sort of anthem for the men out here. Is it different in the states? We may be the only people not to have seen the video, and I've only seen the parody that Mike and Mike of ESPN fame did for Halloween. At any rate, my favorite part of the entire evening was when the dancing kicked off. It was something to see Marines and Navy in their respective dress uniforms having a good time and just letting go:
The 3rd Medical Battalion:
I've saved the best for last: the Cigar Lounge!
Happy Birthday, USMC!
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