Day 5 - Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium

We rented a car and drove over two hours to get to the well known aquarium.  The star attraction was the incredible whale shark!  The aquarium is one of the better ones we had visited.  Well worth the drive to get there.  We planned to visit the tip of the island as well but ran out of time and was only able to stop mid way at the light house park. The traffic coming back to the city was a nightmare.  It took more than a hour to drive 15 km!

We had a very nice lunch at an authentic Japanese restaurant and sat on their traditional tatami table.  Not the most comfortable sitting position. Not sure how pregnant women can sit at such seating to eat in the past.

Day 4 - Naha, Okinawa

The rain was pouring down heavy all day and made it challenging to enjoy the city, even with embrellas! The high humidity made things feel very sticky, especially the skin after applying the sun screen. The only good thing was that the temperature was quite warm so even with the rain, it was manageable.

We visited the market and walked the International street this evening. There were many tourist from China and Taiwan. Actually, Okinawa is closer to Taiwan than Tokyo. You may not believe it but it took 3 hours to fly from Tokyo to Okinawa.

We bought local pineapple and papaya from the fruit stand and ate them right there after they cut them up for us.

The sashimi and sushi were quite good - much cheaper than the ones in Tokyo 😋.

Day 4 - Okinawa

Naha city's morning travel is worse than our wildest expectation- traffic crawls inch by inch!  It was quite ironic - we expected heavy travel in Tokyo but there were hardly any and while we didn't expect any traffic delay on the island but ended up almost missing the sailing. We took the taxi from our hotel to the ferry terminal to Tokashiki island to snorkel. We had to exit the taxi halfway and ran the remainder distance to catch the 9:00 am sailing, in pouring rain!  So far, lots of drama (Mei made it last night, in the nick of time for us to catch the flight to Naha city ), adrenaline and vigorous exercise as expected, typical of Commander Wu's style. 

Snorkelling at the Aharen beach was not ideal today due to the poor weather. The life guard said he will not be responsible for us should there is danger due to the heavy rain and possibility of thunderstorms (two people were killed and two injured last year due to thunderstorms). We did it anyway and saw many fish not far from the beach. Not as colourful as the ones in Hawaii, though. 

We sampled the Okinawa soba noodle for lunch. Quite yummy. Now taking the slow ferry back to the hotel.  The rain is still pouring down  😪.

Day 3 -Tokyo and Okinawa

We went back to the fish market this morning but in a decent hour as our sister-in-law arrived last night and wanted to see the market. We sampled many seafood and other local delicacies.  It was a ton of fun. No wonder it is one of the major attractions in Tokyo. 

Our other companion, Mei, was sick on the day of departure and wanted to cancel the trip. We did not learn of the emergency till much later as she was coming a day later than us.  She felt better the following day and still wanted to join us so she bought another ticket and we now meeting her at the airport and then immediately taking another flight to Okinawa.  The timing will be very tight and we just hope that her flight is on-time and that she knows her way out.  This is her first time traveling on her own with very limited English 😅.

Day Two - Tokyo - Part Two

Due to the haziness, not much can be seen from the top of the tower except the landmarks near by (Mount Fuji was supposed to be visible).  The tower is not as high as some of the ones we had visited before, only 150 meters with the observation deck.

We also visited Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden and Shibuya crossing.  The National Garden was a bit disappointed with not much to show on the famous Japanese horticulture. The Shibuya crossing was most well known for the number of pedestrians crossing at the intersections all at the same time, literally thousands of them. Quite an unique place to participate and observe.

The Meiji Shrine is quite well known in Tokyo with its largest wooden toris in the world. The inner shrine is under construction. Most people would cleanse their hands with the spring water and bowed at the entrance before entering. They also sell wooden squares for people to write down their prayers so that these requests will be sent to the deity by the priests at the end of the day.

Day 2 - Tokyo Downtown

Woke up at 3:30 am due to jetlag and we were at the Tsukiji fish market by 5:30 am. Unfortunately, we weren't planning to be at the fish market that early so did not reserve a spot to tour the tuna auction. The market would not allow for visitors till 10:00 am but the neighborhood stores were getting ready to open for business. We sampled the famous sweet egg omlette, sea weed rice rolls and local pastry while leasurely exploring the downtown at early hours before the crowd of office people heading to work.

We had to wait for 30 mins before Tokyo Tower opens at 9:00 am. Felt like we had been out for a long time. Not sure if we could last till the evening when we meet up with our sister-in-law who arrived a day later.

First day in Tokyo

The flight was uneventful (the type that all travellers wish for) and arrived on time. The Narita airport was not as busy as I had imagined but it may have to do with the fact that Air Canada was parked at a gate that was very far and we had to walk quite a bit of distance before arriving at the custom clearance where the line up was more evident.

We have booked two nights at the Grand Nikko Hotel in Odaiba area (a man made Island). Much nicer hotel than I expected. Was worried because area appeared deserted from airport bus. Very scenic touristy to walk around. Our first dinner is Sushi!

Maple Leaf Lounge YVR

Getting ready for our adventures in Japan. Relaxing at the Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge and enjoying some of the hospitality food and drinks, thanks to Richard's golden status with Air Canada. Wanted to enjoy the limited previleges before it expires soon as he has switched his loyalty to United.