I said goodbye to Okinawa and hello to Washington, D.C. a smidge over two weeks now. And what a couple of weeks it has been!
Continue reading “Leaving Okinawa, Part 5: Two Crazy, Busy Weeks”Now that I’m a week away from departing Okinawa, my home for the last two years, I’m reflecting on my time here and my experiences and adventures. (Missed Part 1? Catch up here.) I’ve been thinking about all the things I will miss about Okinawa and there are so many things I will miss. And so here are my top 8 things I will miss.
Continue reading “Leaving Okinawa, Part 2: Top 8 Things I Will Miss”All good things must come to an end. And just like that, my time in Okinawa is drawing to a close.
One of my friends asked me the other day if I had given up my blog. I realized, I hadn’t written anything since April! And here we are three weeks into July. How is it nearly August?! So much has happened in the last 3 months.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me back up and tell you how I got to this point.
Continue reading “Leaving Okinawa, Part 1”January first. Another new year. In some ways, 2021 seemed to last forever. Maybe it just seems that way because the days of 2020 and 2021 blurred together in seemingly endless restrictions and social distancing.
Then again, it seems like we just celebrated the 2021 new year, hoping for better days. In some ways, that did happen. In some ways, 2021 was more of the same. Regardless, while the days may have dragged, the months seemed to fly by as the weeks were marked off. And now here we are on the cusp of a new year.
For me, the first day of the new year means making plans for the new year as well as taking time to reflect back on the prior year.
Continue reading “Reflections and Aspirations on 1 January”Finally after months of being under a state of emergency due to the pandemic, Okinawa lifted its state of emergency on Friday. What this means is that parks, beaches, museums, and other sites are open again! And Sunday morning, I headed to Naha to visit Shurijo Castle Park & the Tamaudun Royal Mausoleum, two of the 9 Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu (a combined registered UNESCO World Heritage Sites).
I haven’t done a lot of exploring in the past couple of months. January had quite a few dreary, rainy cool days. January also saw a spike in COVID cases after the new year holiday. I do not want to be infected, so I tend to treat COVID like the zombie apocalypse and try to avoid as many people as I can.
But February has entered with magnificent weather. The past couple of days have seen sunny weather near 70° F/21° C. And COVID cases have gone down in the last couple of weeks. And I received my first vaccination this past week. So today I decided to have a mini-adventure to get out and enjoy the weather.
Continue reading “A Day at Heiwa (Peace)”Two thousand twenty. Twenty-twenty. 2020
I’m sitting here on the cusp of the New Year, looking back over the last 12 months. And what a year was 2020.
And in looking back, I decided to list my Top 20 of 2020 broken down into Top 5s in 4 categories.
I had a stellar reading year. I read 235 books. Yes, some of these were rereads, but I always have some rereads. I always have a hard time choosing any fave, but I highly recommend these 5 (in no particular order).
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune – a young adult urban fantasy about a group of orphaned magical youth and their case worker. I found this story so enchanting and whimsical with beautiful prose. The book has great character development, wonderful world-building, and imaginative characters. I fell in love with each and every one of the orphans. And as lovely and wonderful as the story is, this story is also a timely read. Because this is a story about being different, about living authentically, about fighting prejudices and stereotypes, and about changing the system by changing the minds of one person at a time. This is a story that asks tough questions. That demands us to question our preconceived notions. That examines what it means to be a family, to be our authentic self, to be alive instead of just living. This is a story to be read and reread. To be cherished. And to be shared.
Becoming by Michelle Obama – I always liked Michelle Obama. Now I even respect her even more. What an amazing and inspiring story. I listened to the audiobook while following along with the physical book. I loved hearing Michelle read her own story. I particularly enjoyed hearing about her early life growing up on the South Side of Chicago. I understand her desire to not be in politics, but I think she would make a great political leader. And then I recommend following up with the Netflix documentary about her book tour.
The Library of the Unwritten by A.J. Hackwith – an intriguing premise and from the first chapter, I immediately loved Claire:
Claire lived by the firm moral philosophy that one could never have too many pockets, too many books, or too much tea.
The idea that unwritten stories exist in their own library that’s in hell, but not completely a part of hell. And that librarians are normally deceased mortals who once were these unwritten stories authors. So imaginative with fantastic world-building and character building. I loved it so much I read it in one day. This is truly a book dedicated to stories.
Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race by Reni Eddo-Lodge – this book provides an eloquent discussion on race and institutional racism in the UK. While it is UK-specific, the broad discussions about racism, structural racism, feminism, and class are applicable anywhere. Ms. Eddo-Lodge clearly did an immense amount of research and is a testament to the book’s truth. This book is an important read and a great resource to start the hard discussions. Racism is a real and persistent problem. And it’s going to take voices like Ms. Eddo-Lodge to help facilitate the tough dialogue to find solutions
The Wolves at the Door by Judith L. Pearson – a nonfiction book that reads like a fiction spy thriller about America’s greatest female spy. She did so much important work during WWII that THREE governments honored her with their highest civilian honors. This was such an incredible read. Not only did she have to overcome the challenges of gender (which funnily enough she faced more after the war), but also disability. Her story is one that should be a must-read.
As an avid jigsaw puzzler, I completed a lot of puzzles this year. I don’t keep track of numbers (haven’t found a puzzle tracking app yet).
The Season Tree by Schmidt Puzzle
Rebel Girls by Gibsons Puzzles
Waiting for Our Humans by Better Co.
Garden Peacock by SunsOut
Sleepy Time by Vermont Christmas Co.
And that’s my Top 20 for 2020.
What were some of your top 20s in 2020?
I haven’t been venturing out much. Like many places, COVID has been on the rise out in town. Okinawa is a tourist destination for mainland Japan, much like Hawaii. So even though Japanese do wear masks, I have opted on the side of caution and have just stayed home.
Staying home has never been a problem for me. As an introvert, I prefer being alone than to be in public with strangers. Also, my home has all sorts of fun activities, including books, jigsaw puzzles, and crafts. You will never hear me say that I’m bored.
But Wednesday was a U.S. holiday but not a Japanese holiday. Since most locals were working, I decided to take a day trip to Yomitan. And while there were people out and about, there weren’t many and it was easy to keep my distance.
Yomitan, on the western coast of central Okinawa Island, is approximately 16 kilometers north of where I live. Yomitan is known for its incredible beaches and abundant nature. If it wasn’t for the commute, I would have liked to live in Yomitan.
In addition to the gorgeous beaches, Yomitan has several attractions—the Yomitan Pottery Village, Zakimi Castle Ruins, and the Cape Zanpa Lighthouse.
maps of Yomitan (left) and the Pottery Village (right)Yomitan Pottery Village looks just like a residential area, which it is, just filled with artists. Not every studio was open, but most were. I had a lovely time browsing and found so many beautiful pottery pieces. I can’t show what I bought because most will be gifts.
After I spent all my yen at the Pottery Village, I headed to the Zakimi Castle Ruins, which is a Ryūkyūan gusuku (castle or fortress). The castle was built between 1416 and 1422 by a Ryūkyūan general. Okinawa is part of the Ryūkyū Islands, which were unified as the Ryūkyū Kingdom in 1429 until 1879.
While the castle is in ruins, the walls and foundations have been restored. In 2000, Zakimi Castle was designated as an UNESCO World Heritage Site, as a part of the Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu. Read more about the castle here.
The views from the castle walls are stunning.
From the castle, I then headed toward Cape Zanpa, which has a 30-meter tall lighthouse. As I walked from the parking area to the lighthouse, I saw a statue of a man pointing towards the sea. After I got home, I learned the statue honors Taiki, the first man from Okinawa to be sent to Ming China in 1372 to establish tribute trade.
The lighthouse sits on the point of the Cape. And for 300 yen, you can climb its 99 stairs to the top for magnificent views, which I did. As I climbed (and counted), I estimated the diameter of the stairwell to be maybe 10-12 feet.
I only met one couple coming down the lighthouse stairs as I went up. So I had the top of the lighthouse to myself. The day was super windy as the video below will attest, and I almost lost my hat a couple of times. But the view was totally worth it.
Turn down your sound before watching the video as the wind is really loud.
The Cape also has a couple of stunning beaches and a food bus that serves Blue Seal, the ice cream of Okinawa. I had Ube (purple yam), also known as beniimo in Okinawa. I don’t know how to describe it. Some liken it to a cross between vanilla and pistachio, with hints of coconut mixed in. Whatever the flavor, it was pretty yummy.
Overall, a fun day trip. The views were incredible and I got to mark a few more items off my Okinawa to see list. Plus, any day that ends in ice cream is a good day.
おげんきですか。(O-genki desu ka = How are you?)
Today I ventured north to find Sea Glass Beach.
I was excited to get outside today and have a mini adventure. We were on restricted movement for the last two weekends (basically nothing off-base), plus it was rainy both weekends. And so with gorgeous weather this weekend and lifted restrictions, or at least slightly lifted to “exercise outdoors off-base,” I decided my “exercise” would be walking on a beach and bending over to find sea glass.
That totally counts, right?
I googled “sea glass beach” and the first location google maps attempted to navigate me to resulted in me driving on narrow gravel roads. (I wish I had thought to take a photo of one of those roads, if one could call a narrow gravel path a road.) And while I did see a sign for “Sea Glass Beach,” I never found the supposed trail to the beach, and anyway, I couldn’t find a place to park even if I had seen a trail.
After another search on the map app, I found a second beach called Sea Glass Beach. I found this one with no problem as it didn’t involve narrow gravel roads. I easily found parking nearby and then had a short walk across a bridge to get to the beach.
Within 2 seconds of stepping on the beach, I found sea glass.
The pieces I found aren’t large. The largest one is approximately 2.5″ long and maybe 1″ at its widest point. The colors range from dark brown to white. I found a few teeny cobalt blue pieces, but most were green, white, and brown.
I also found some pretty sea shells, sea rocks and dried coral.
So many sea shells.
I love collecting shells. I have shells from some other travels and when I lived in SoCal. (Shout out for SoCal! I loved living in Long Beach.) So my new Okinawa shells will be a nice addition to my other shells. I just need a new display bowl.
But I did have to be cautious picking up shells. Some of them were already taken. I found quite a few mini critters. So I moved my hunt away from the water and back to the high tide line so I wouldn’t disturb these guys more than I did.
a mini crab and a teeny critter in a shell
I only stayed on the beach about 30 or 40 minutes. First, it’s summer and even at 8:30 am it was already 82°. Combined 80+% humidity and pale skin, even covered with 50 SPF sunscreen, I am super cautious about being in direct sunlight too much.
The drive took me over an hour one-way. Although the drive was only 52km (approx. 32 miles), the maximum speed limit was 50 km/h (approx. 31 MPH). So I had a lovely, leisurely drive.
On the way back, I stopped to take some photos of some incredible views. I can’t get over the amazing ocean color. So blue and clear. It would be nice to have a chauffeur so I could sightsee instead of focusing on driving because the views are amazing! Oh well.
the absolutely gorgeous water views I (safely) stopped to take
Once I got home, I laid out my haul. I collected some pretty shells, sea glass, dried coral, and some sea rocks.
size perspective
Next time I’ll try to find the other Sea Glass Beach because as I understand, if you walk down a bit from that sea glass beach, there is another beach with sand dollars.
Until next time, 立ち寄ってくれてありがとう (tachiyotte kurete arigatō = thank you for stopping by).
ようこそ！ (Yōkoso! = Welcome home!)
Friday I moved into my new apartment. I arrived around 8:15 am and much to my surprise, the movers arrived at 8:30 am.
Japanese movers are super efficient. They had all my things moved (up 6 flights of stairs to boot) and put together all the furniture that had been taken apart in about two and a half hours.
Can I just say how great it was to sleep in my own bed Friday night. Ahhhh….
Continue reading “Yōkoso! (Or Moving Abroad, Part 4)”
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