Hotel Ascent Fukuoka

... ducks that were living in the carp pond. It is amazing how sometimes the simplest things can bring the greatest pleasure -- I really enjoyed feeding those animals.

We then proceeded to the ocean and a cliff-filled area known as Manza-mo. There were some spectacular sights here. It was a very windy and rainy day but this did not dull the spectacular view. No wonder this was a favourite place of Ryukyu kings.

The Churaumi Aquarium was indeed a sight to ...

... was only completed during the early 1990's. This was another interesting spot to take in. Okinawa was for centuries influenced by both China and Japan. Before becoming a vassal of feudal Japan, Okinawa was largely a vassal of Imperial China. The influence of both cultures can be seen in the castle -- there is definitely lots of Chinese influence here from the layout to the colours.

The Gyokusendo Cave was another stop along the way. Unfortunately I don't ...

... the US invasion forces landed near the end of the war. Apparently this was one of the most difficult and bloody battles of the Pacific War. It is hard to believe that this beautiful place was once a WW2 killing ground. Thousands of Americans died here and hundreds of thousands of Japanese died. I'm sure that the war memorials here will be very sobering.

It will definitely be an interesting couple of days.

... a walk to the playground in her extreme stroller. She and another very little girl played on the slides as we and the girl's parents raced around trying to keep them from falling. It was actually not a very toddler-friendly playground, as we had to scale a hill to get up there and navigate the stroller down a staircase to leave. Back at the house, we packed up everything, getting ready to say goodbye to Okinawa in the morning.

... from the Chinese Fu dogs. They are a pair or lion-like dogs that sit on top of houses or in front of them. The one on the left, the female, has its mouth shut to keep in all of the good things. The one on the right, the male, is roaring to scare away the bad. Shisa dogs are everywhere; many of my souvenirs are shisa-themed.

After walking through the village, we made a pitstop at the Oceanic Cultures Museum, which ...

... but very beautiful and worth a visit.

After leaving Seifa-Utaki, we visited Okinawa World with Gyokusendo Cave, which has one of the largest limestone cave system in the East. There were some strange shaped stalactites and stalagmites. The ticket for the park was the second most expensive, 1200 yen, but we had had a coupon of ANA beforehand, so we couldn't miss it. At first, I thought the cave was too long to my mom who has ...

... wasn't much to write home about. At ¥7000 (€44, $56) a night it wasn't expensive either, certainly not by Japanese standards. However, on this occasion it was a case of 'you get what you pay for'. The Inn itself wasn't bad. It was just a tad small... and cold. Our room had an air conditioner with a handmade '¥100 - 2 hours' sign pasted on it. We didn't take much notice of air-conditioner (it's only used in summer, right?) or the ...

... videogames. The other foreigners I found weren't all that accommodating either, so I decided to try an experiment. It was my hypothesis that if I stayed in one spot long enough something was bound to happen. Choosing a busy place where there was a lot of people and action, I sat down with my book and kept my Canadian flag visible to passing eyes. I forced myself to stay for an hour or so, hoping that somebody would stop and say hello... and I got nothing but "Hello!"s from Japanese ...

... around, just surveillance cameras - apparently you just pay at a vending machine thingy in the hall way. Go Hawks!! I've yelled that out a few times...but this time we were at the baseball. A nail biter - the Hawks bring it home in the last innings. Next stop Korea - all the way on a Beetle..... PS Happy Bithday to the Davies girls!

... to the right. Upon approaching the street. Then going the few steps to the street the elevations are once again straight 10 cm lines, but once the street curb is reached, the yellow stripe changes to circled elevations. The bus usually stops more or less with the main door right on this path, so that the blind person does not have to search for the door. A similar system is used in the subway stations, but even better and more ...