Military Officer - February 2008 - (Page 84) encore Dress-Up Fun For this Navy spouse and her sister, playing dress-up has never been so intriguing. But fun quickly turns into a lesson learned about dressing up in a foreign country! D uring the Vietnam War, my late husband was on the admiral’s staff at Yokosuka naval station, Japan. We had quarters on base, and because he was the transportation officer, we received a lot of information about sights to see and places to visit. We took advantage of them as often as possible. There is one trip I will never forget. My sister and brother-in-law were visiting us from Washington, D.C., and we wanted them to experience as much as possible during their short visit. My husband made reservations at a Japanese-style hotel at the base of Mount Fuji, which was quite some distance from our base. We hired a Japanese chauffeur to drive us. We arrived at the hotel midday, and our chauffeur escorted us to our rooms. The rooms were large and shared an entryway that contained a large closet fitted with shelves, a refrigerator, and a bathroom. Both rooms had fantastic views of Mount Fuji and looked down on the golf course beside the hotel. We enjoyed watching the Japanese guests while we nibbled on our goodies and drank toddies. Several couples were playing: The men, dressed in Western attire, would hit the ball, and the ladies, dressed in the typical kimono with wooden clogs on their feet, would toddle off to retrieve the ball and return it to the men. Not exactly the way Americans play golf, but they seemed to be laughing and enjoying themselves. It soon was time to dress for dinner. My sister and I had noticed several layers of 84 MILITARY OFFICER FEBRUARY 2008 fabric folded on the shelves in the entryway. We were interested to discover two different kinds of kimonos. Some were very lovely and lined with silk. Others were made of cotton and had a flowered design. My sister and I thought it would be fun to wear the kimonos to dinner. We chose the lightweight, flowered kimonos and suggested the men wear the heavier silk ones. The men declined and chose to wear their Western suits instead. My sister and I took an elevator downstairs, and upon our exit in the lobby, we were met with much gasping and shocked looks from employees and guests alike. With much excitement and flurry, two Japanese women rushed my sister and me down the hall to another room where, chattering constantly but unintelligibly (to us), they placed the silk kimonos on top of the flowered ones, arranging them according to Japanese custom. When we exited the room, our embarrassed husbands explained to us we had entered the lobby in our underwear! We learned a good lesson about cultural differences that night. MO — Betty Lyberg is the widow of Cmdr. Robert N. Lyberg, USN. She lives in San Diego. ILLUSTRATION: ELWOOD SMITH
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