Onna / Nanjo / Naha

Day Six

It rained heavily in the morning. After hotel breakfast, we then borrowed umbrellas from the concierge and took bus number 120 from the bus stop near our hotel. After about an hour's ride, we reached Ryukyu Mura-maei (琉球村前) bus stop. The cost of this bus journey was JPY 1,020 per passenger.

Ryukyu Village (琉球村)

Ryukyu Village, or Ryukyu Mura in Japanese, is a theme park in Onna located in the centre part of Okinawa Island. Entrance building was grand of two-storey height covered with red tiled hip roof (left photo below). Cost of admission was JPY 1,200 (right photo below). Opening hours from 0830 to 1730 hours during Oct to Jun period and 0900 to 1800 during Jul to Sep period.


Reassembled Traditional Houses

Ryukyu village contains ten traditional houses from different parts of Okinawa and some were registered as National Tangible Cultural properties in 2007. Each was disassembled for transportation and reassembled at the park.

Built in 1808, the old Nakasone House was a common residential house in Yomitan Village of Zakimi (left photo below). Also built in 1808, the old Ooshiro House was relocated from Shuri belonging to the residence of Uehkata Yonabaru who was a prominent retainer of the Ryukyu Kingdom government (right photo below).
The old Shimabukuro House was relocated from Haneji of Nago City. It was built in 1861 as residential home of a successful farmer (left photo below). The Old elevated storehouse belongs to the old Shimabukuro residence. This storehouse was used to store grains and other items, and was a symbol of wealth (right photo below).

Habu Center

This center is dedicated to highly venomous snake named Habu that is native to Ryukyu Islands (left photo below). Daily performances are held inside the relatively small theatre which allowed only less than 50 audiences per show (right photo below).
At the back of the theatre were useful descriptions regarding the native Habu and some preserved specimens of them (left photo below). Habu (Protobothrops flavoviridis) can grow to an average length of 120 to 150-cm and has a light olive or brown ground color, overlaid with elongated dark green or brownish blotches. This species is terrestrial and mostly nocturnal. Interestingly, Habu can feed on each other and one of the specimens exemplified this (right photo below).


The Habu handler shared information on the snake's behavior and its habitats as well as demonstration on handling this venomous snake (photos below).


Under the careful supervision of the snake handler, there were photo opportunities for those brave audiences (photos below).

Naha Great Tug-of-War

The Naha Great Tug-of-War, of more than 500-years in history, is the highlight of the Naha Festival, which lasts for three days over a long weekend in mid-October (left photo below). This giant rope on display measures 200-meters in length, weighs 40-tons and was listed in the Guinness World Records as the world's largest rice straw rope used in a tug-of-war for 10 years from 1995-2005 (right photo below).

As it was raining occasionally, we did not get to see any outdoor performances such as the Okinawan folk dance known as 'Eisa' or the sugarcane milling by the water buffalo. Instead, we exited the park to have lunch.

Okinawa Station Chanpuru

This is a dome-shaped facility located besides the entrance that can be enjoyed even during rainy days (left photo below). There are "Experience Booths" where visitors can experience art and life culture, "Kijimuna Restaurant" to taste Okinawan cuisine, and "Chanpuru Market" where souvenirs can be bought (right photo below).
Kijimuna Restaurant was designed to allow patrons to enjoy meals under all-weather proof roof which seems to in an outdoor café (left photo below). Got myself an Okinawan noodle at JPY 700 and a fried vegetable at JPY 100 (right photo below). Honestly the taste of this authentic noodle was much better than the one I had in Ryugujo Butterfly Gardens.

After lunch, we took the same bus number 120 from the opposite bus stop back to the hotel. Similarly, the cost of this return journey was JPY 1,020. Subsequent to returning our umbrellas to the hotel concierge, we then explored the Kokusai-Dori again.

Makishi Public Market (第一牧志公設市場)

Makishi Public Market is a two-storey building located few minutes away from the centre of Kokusai Street and Market Main Street (left photo below). There are more than 700 shops in and around the premises and an excellent place for visitors to go to learn about everyday life in Okinawa (right photo below).


Fresh fish corner sells a lot of colorful fishes caught offshore in Okinawa, ranging from bulging fish eyes poking out from mounds of ice to clams and shrimps (photos below).
There were also sashimi sets sold that came with neatly plated array of super fresh fish, shellfish and prawns (left photo below). Bought a set at JPY 500 to try (right photo below). The sashimi was fresh and tasted great, and probably was one of the best meals I had in Okinawa.
Visitors can also buy their seafood on the first floor and have them cooked as per request at a small fee in the eateries on the second floor.

Dinner in a Fast-Food restaurant

Probably still not satisfied with the sashimi meal I had earlier, we then decided to take our dinner in a fast-food restaurant. The dinning area had a cosy atmosphere which was entirely different from most fast-food restaurants (left photo below). The decorative Christmas tree even added the festive vibe to the area. Bought a typical Coney Dog burger with fries and soft-drink that cost JPY 780 in total (right photo below). Taste was fulfilling.
We then had some window shopping before heading back to the hotel for a good rest.


Day Seven

After a satisfying breakfast at the hotel, we then took the Yui monorail to Asahibashi Station (旭橋駅). Walked to the Naha Bus Terminal and then took Bus Number 83 at about 9.23 am. This bus ride required about 45-mins and cost JPY 630.

Okinawa World (冲绳世界)

Okinawa World, or Okinawa wārudo in Japanese, is a theme park in Nanjo located in the southern part of Okinawa Island. The entrance building was grand with red pillars and tiled hip roof (left photo below). Cost of admission was JPY 1,650 (right photo below) and its opening hours from 0900 to 1800 hours daily.


Eisa Drum Show (太鼓舞表演)

Eisa Dance is a traditional drum dance of Okinawa and visitors will be captivated by the rhythm of the drums and the movement of the dancers. Several shows are held every day in a small theatre where each show lasts about 30 minutes. Though we missed this Eisa Dance in Ryukyu Village but managed to catch it in Okinawa World at 1030 hours right after our entry to the park. Do note that photos and videos are not allowed during the performance.

Habu Museum Park (HABU博物公园)

The museum is dedicated to the habu (left photo below) where can learn about the biology and habits of habu as well as the history of its interactions with humans in Okinawa (right photo below).
After the show we briefly visited the outdoor (left photo below) and indoor (right photo below) exhibitions of its reptile collections.

Snake Show

Managed to catch the snake show in the Habu Museum Park at 1100 hours where it feature demonstrations by handlers on how to control various types of snakes including the native habu snake (photos below).


One interesting show was the demonstration on the ability of habu to detect the prey based on its heat emission. White balloon with ambient temperature did not attract any attention from habu (left photo below), but when it changed to a green balloon of a higher temperature the habu then started to attack it (right photo below).

Gyokusendo Cave (玉泉洞)

This is the main attraction in the park and second longest limestone caves in Japan (left photo below). Only 850-meters of the path is opened to the public where the metal walkway runs left and right according to the walk of the cave. Interestingly temperature is around 21 Degree Celsius inside the cave regardless whether it is summer or winter, and has relative humidity of around 80%. Visitors would first have to take a long flight of stairs down to the cave (right photo below).


The cave has more than one million stalactites (on the ceiling) and thousands of stalagmites (on the ground) made of coral combined with limestone (photos below). These natural pillars were created drop after drop since 300,000 years at a growing speed of 1-mm every 3 years.

Underground rivers flow into the cave creating ponds and waterfalls (left photo below). One of the famous spots is the "blue fountain" (青泉) which is a pond divided in two levels and illuminated by blue light for a more magical atmosphere (right photo below).


The "ceiling of the spears" is a stunning area with a higher concentration of thin stalactites hanging from the ceiling like thousands of spears (left photo below). Another spot is the "toyoichido" which is a hall bigger than the main pavilion of Shuri Castle (right photo below).

Okinawan Food and Crafts

There are a variety of shops and restaurants where visitors can sample local Okinawa cuisine and purchase souvenirs and traditional crafts (photos below).
Saw a kiosk selling Ishigaki beef (石垣岛牛肉) among them and thus decided to try (left photo below). Besides Kobe beef, another high-quality Japanese beef, or "wagyu beef" (和牛) in Japanese, is the Ishigaki beef. These cows are reared in Ishigaki island on the Okinawa Archipelago and has a high fat content of at least 25% compared to a typical western bred red meat of between 5 to 15%. Bought a stick at JPY 700 to satisfy my curiosity (right photo below). It was slightly over-cooked and could not taste its tenderness, however I was still able to taste its oily texture and sweetness.

Okinawa Culture Center (王国历史博物馆)

The Okinawa Culture Center (left photo below) is small museum that exhibits detailing history of the island's iconic guardian deities, the fierce-looking 'shisa' (right photo below).
Shisa made in different materials and in various forms are exhibited in this center (photos below).

Nanto Brewery (南都造酒所)

This small brewery is located in the park where its beer production process could be seen (photos below). The water used in this production is pumped from the basement of the limestone cave which gives this beer a unique taste.
In addition to the beer, Habushu or Habu Snake Liquor was also sold in this brewery (photos below). The Habu snake is soaked in alcohol made from sugar cane and combines 8 or 13 types of rich aromatic vanilla liquor (Awamori standard).

We left the park and took the bus number 83 at about 12.50 pm back to the Naha Bus Terminal. After which we had lunch near the Asahibashi station.

Italian Tomato Café Junior

Decided to have our late lunch in this Italian Tomato Café Junior at about 2.15 pm (left photo below). The restaurant had a cozy ambience with a quiet environment (right photo below).
Ordered a cream mushroom spaghetti (left photo below) and almond coffee (right photo below). Total cost of this meal was JPY 1,120. Taste was typical of this western style meal.


Naha Domestic Ferry Terminal (那覇ふ頭 船客待合所)

After lunch we then walked for about 10-mins towards the Naha Domestic Ferry Terminal (left photo below). From the rows of cruise providers, we managed to find the West Marine that provides underwater sightseeing tour (right photo below). Booked this tour online and we paid JPY 2,500 per person on site at its counter.
Boarded the large underwater sightseeing boat named 'Orca' (left photo below) at 1530 hours. Probably due to the evening timing and the off-peak season, realized that we were the only customers on the boat which gave us the impression that it was our private cruise. When the boat reached the deeper part of the sea, we were then allowed to enter the glass-panel area at the bottom of the boat (right photo below).
Water was choppy and visibility was poor during our ride, thus could not take a good photo of the coral reefs (photos below).
However, I took a video to illustrate the fish varieties and abundance growth of coral reefs (video below).


The cruise ride was overall an interesting experience where we could sit comfortably to watch the coral reefs, however its cost was slightly pricey.

After the cruise ride, we then took the Yui monorail from Asahibashi Station (旭橋駅) to Oroku Station (小禄駅).

Ryukyu Shinmen ▪ Tondou (琉球新麵 ▪ 通堂)

Tondou (通堂) is a ramen shop that originated in Okinawa and can be reached by just a 5-mins walk from Oroku station (left photo below). Though looked small, the restaurant is capable of holding 49 customers and opens from 1100 till 2330 hours daily (right photo below).
The most distinctive features of Tondou Ramen are "men's noodles" (男味麵) and "women's noodles" (女味麵). The signature men's noodle soup is based on pork bone, while the women's noodle is based on salt-flavored soup. Similar to most ramen stores, ordering is done using the ordering machine near the entrance (left photo below). Got myself a "men's noodles" at JPY 980 (right photo below). The soup was excellent though the sliced pork was rather tasteless.
After the meal, we went to the nearby Aeon mall for some shopping before taking the monorail back to the hotel.


Day Eight

Had our final breakfast at the hotel before checking out. Took the Yui monorail to Naha Airport Station (那霸空港駅). Checked in our luggage at the airline counter at about 8.20 am and from there we were free to roam the airport terminal.

Eva Air

Boarded our flight BR 113 on time at 1015 hours. Soon after flight take-off, we were served with simple breakfast (left photo below) and coffee (right photo below) during this short journey.
Lunch at Taoyuan Airport

After arrived at Taoyuan airport, we had almost 5 hours to spend inside the transit terminal. Decided to have lunch at Hómee Kitchen (好饗廚房) located at Terminal One (left photo below). Ordered a braised beef brisket noodle set meal at TWD 260 and a cup of iced lemon tea at TWD 80 (right photo below). Taste was good but rather pricey as it was inside an airport.
Scoot Airlines

Finally boarded flight TZ 201 at 1545 hours after spending several hours inside the airport transit area (left photo below). Pre-booked a meal on board which consisted of some braised beef, a soft drink and a chocolate bar (right photo below). This meal could only temporarily satisfy my hunger during dinner time.
We landed on Singapore at about 8.15 pm. With this, it ended my 8-days trip to Taipei and Okinawa.