Okinawa, Japan

Roughly 640 km south of mainland Japan is the small island of Okinawa, formerly the Ryukyu Kingdom. It was crazy to read of the island’s history and warring factions, when the island is only three times bigger than Singapore (I’m going to keep these Singapore comparisons going forever!). Okinawa is roughly 2200 km², whereas Singapore is roughly 750 km². Both of those pales in comparison to Maryland, the ninth smallest state in the Union*. How could there have been entire warring factions? How could the temples and kingdoms burn to the ground so many times? Though, I suppose that last question may have more to do with grass and bamboo construction than nation size.

David and I ventured south to Okinawa for a break. We’re on vacation, you say, a break!? Well, I have been running us ragged with goshuin hunting, Buddha battles, unintentionally stumbling upon World Heritage sites, actual work, catching cabs in the middle of nowhere because I can’t read a map – AGAIN – and so we planned a week away from it all, doing nothing. Okinawa lacks the public transportation that mainland Japan has in spades. In fact, when we were booking our accommodations, we were warned not only to rent a car but to rent an off-road car. The warning was heeded. Without further ado, David and I drove an hour and a half north of Naha, the capital of Okinawa, to a little enclave in the tropical jungle that overlooked the pristine waters below.

That's allllll cheese~

We found ourselves next to Kangaroo Burger, a local burger joint, where they took their cheeseburgers quite seriously and I think my burger may have ended up being actually one third grilled cheese, and it was delightful. We spent most of our days in a little cabin, and I could not recommend that choice more. Sure, we had to drive anywhere we wanted to go, but honestly it wasn’t any worse than home. The grocery, coin laundry, and 7-Eleven were all fifteen minutes down the road, just like civilization would have been in southern Maryland. All of the cafes had beautiful turquoise ocean views, even the ones hidden up in the jungle themselves. With the hilltops, there was always a week to peak out at the beautiful, endless Pacific.

Now, my biggest gripe with islands and beaches is first, Sand. It’s course, it’s rough, it’s irritating, and it gets everywhere. I see why Anakin hated it. Second, somehow David and I always adventure to these places on the cusp of winter melting into spring. For our Dry Tortugas trip, it was a lovely seventy or so degrees most of the time we were there, making for pleasant walking and reading on the beach, but not the most pleasant snorkeling. As we flew into Okinawa, in March, this became a reality again. The temperatures were lovely, a nice sixty to seventy degrees, but not warm enough for braving the frigid Pacific (for you Atlantic folks from Maryland, the Pacific is always vengefully cold). We also did not pack our snorkeling gear. Nor are we certified divers with wetsuits. And so, we did dip our toes in the crystal-clear waters and lament that we could not enjoy them further, but absolutely 100% enjoyed the serenity of the island.

I am glad we were not confined to Naha, as Motobu (the town nearest our lodging) ended up being the perfect spot. I swear I plan things guys, it just looks like I drunkenly point at a map and yell, “LET’S GO!” Fukuoka was a spiritual choice, and Okinawa was a relaxing choice. Motobu put us in the perfect spot next to a little gem called Ocean Expo Park. The park is full of tourist attractions and has its own parking garage. What had called to me were two things – the whale shark at the aquarium and a giant sandcastle looking structure that I wasn’t entirely able to identify what it was. On one of our lazy afternoons, we went to the aquarium and were told if we hurried we could watch them feed the whale shark – so we bypassed the majority of the place to ooh and aahh at Jinta, the resident shark, and his beautiful stomach as he stretched vertically to feed (which is how they do in the wild!). Not only that, but they have a café situated at the end of the tank, and you can spend 500 yen (or almost four dollars) to sit at the café for fifty minutes and make googly eyes at Jinta and hope he loves you back. They also serve seafood curry dyed blue with rice in the shape of a whale shark… hmm, I wonder if that’s why Jinta didn’t return my feelings.

When we visited later, to find that amazing sandcastle, we discovered that it was part of an orchestrated Japanese garden. The gardens were full of blossoming orchids and hanging vines, beautiful sculptures and plants. I didn’t plan for the trip there per say, but it was definitely one of my favorite parts of Okinawa. Not only that, but directly north of it was an ancient Okinawan village, reminiscent of the Korean Hanok villages. This is where I learned about the warring factions and the common weaved grass construction.

It's a fancy rock

On our one big travel day during our week there, I planned a mini road trip for us. We ventured to Cape Manzamo, the Southeast Botanical Gardens, American Village, and Murasaki Mura. Now, maybe this was throwing darts at a map. I had seen pictures of Cape Manzamo, and its location kept us off of Japanese toll roads, so I figured it was worth a shot. I thought it would just be a big rock and we would say “Oh, shiny” and then continue on. Well, it is just a big rock overhanging the Pacific, but it also has its own tourist center, equipped with special photo booth, and its own little walking trail. Inside the center, they also sold local delicacies, like Okinawa style donuts. It was honestly a 10/10 road stop. The Southeast Botanical Gardens were lovely, but David and I have been spoiled by the likes of the flower gardens of Singapore. If I returned, I would probably wait for their night light show – they have an entire lake covered in giant luminescent lily pads that just look okay in the daylight. American Village is a shopping area that butts up against the American base and living areas of Okinawa; it reminded us heavily of a gentrified Ocean City. And finally, we happened upon Murasaki Mura.

I’m not sure what Murasaki Mura is exactly, I think another area like a Hanok village, but it looked cute in the brochures, so we went. I had tried to stuff a lot into our day and with low Japanese speed limits, things were hours apart. I had also not planned on Cape Manzamo being quite as big a deal as it was, so by the time we arrived the sun was getting low. It was the best mistake we made all trip. I had been avoiding being out at night. Between David and my early bed time and things closing early, we rarely made a point of doing anything night related. But it turns out Murasaki Mura has a lantern festival going on. Showing up at sunset was perfect. We were able to take beautiful pictures of the lanterns, enjoy the village, have dinner at the restaurant there (which was bizarrely super affordable, had buns, and Spam musubi**). And then afterwards, we strolled through the lanterns again in the full darkness of night. It was absolutely magical.

I absolutely want to go back. I didn’t get to do any of the jungle hiking I would have liked to or snorkeling (since I cannot dive). If I could dive, I’d fly back tomorrow because I found out you can dive with the whale sharks! Maybe someday I will become a master diver just to dive with them. David found it to be an interesting mix of Japanese and Pacific Islander cultures (the latter being more laid back, slow paced). He seemed to prefer New Zealand, and with their well-manicured hiking trails and very camping friendly driving culture, it was an easier country to visit to be sure. However, I do hope to someday return… when it’s warm.

8/10 – Beautiful beaches, wawesome whale sharks, remarkably relaxing time!

*Canada is not and will never be part of the union (and threatening our neighbors is disgraceful); however, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and the Virgini Islands would love to be and we can split California while we’re at it (and absorb Rhode Island into another state) and look mom – we can add a whole new column of stars to the flag! Then Maryland would be like the fourteenth smallest state.

**I would also like to mention that the Kingdom of Ryukyu’s national food is Spam, ignoring the fact that Spam was invented almost 60 years after the fall of that kingdom… Stopped by a pork and eggs place – nope, Spam. Familymart’s fried chicky? Also try fried, breaded Spam. Spam musubi, spam sandwiches, spam burgers, spam stickers, and would you believe it, spam flip flops. Yes, I got a pair. Like I said, I hate sand.