After the brief refresher on left hand driving last night, today was largely spent on the road in our rental car (which of course is a Toyota). After a Japanese breakfast (Jay really loves having miso soup every morning) we set off to visit the ruins of Nakagusuku Castle which helped us getting some morning exercise as we went up to, around and over the castle in the muggy, post typhoon, air. The castle is one of the best preserved examples of Okinawan castle architecture and as a result is on the UNESCO World Heritage list. So many of the castles on the island, including Shuri Castle (which we saw yesterday), were badly damaged during the US invasion of the island during WWII. Nakagusuku Castle was a bit different because it has not been the subject of major restoration efforts and, as a result, the remaining ruins are original from the 15th century. Through the visit we got to explore the layout and construction of the castle as well as take in sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean.

We then hopped back into the air conditioned car (Stephanie would have preferred to keep the AC off…) to head further north. Our next stop was the first of many beaches of the day. Apogama has turquoise waters, wide beaches and an onshore cave system to explore. Within the cave we watched the tide come in through the openings that had been eroded over thousands of years to create small pools which supported a variety of multicolored fish. Since we had the cave to ourselves (Apogama is off the tourist maps) we observed the fish go about their routine while listening to the sound of the crashing waves.

From Apogama it was a short drive to our next step which was Cape Manzamo. The cape is famous for a rock formation that bears a resemblance to an elephant and as we soon found out, in contrast to Apogama, this brings many people to this location every day. Around the vista are expansive parking lots and a large visitor center complete with multiple grab and go food options and, of course, a gift shop. The views were great but the aroma of the food court was making us hungry, so we found a local eatery nearby that featured a variety of shrimp dishes – The Garlic Shrimp. The restaurant was playing the sort of pop music that you would find anywhere in the US which had the effect of temporarily transporting us back home, that is until our food arrived and we snapped out of it and expressed our appreciation in Japanese.

We continued about our driving between beaches to explore Sesoko, Gushiken, Oyadomari. Sesoko is a popular sunbathing and swimming beach which draws large crowds due to its softer sand, gorgeous water and calmer waters. We enjoyed sticking our feet in the water to cool off in the hot tropical air. Gushiken and Oyadomari are quieter beaches which feature interesting rock formations. Okinawa has a very wide variety of beaches which means that there is something for everyone.

Our last adventure before arriving at our resort (our last accommodation in Japan) was to drive around Kouri Island. To get to Kouri you take a series of bridges which offer sweeping views of the ocean and surrounding bays while the island itself has a relatively short road which loops the entire island and has its own picturesque viewpoints.

For the rest of our time in Okinawa we are staying on a relatively secluded beach (Okuma) from which we will enjoy time on the beach along with adventures to explore the nearby national park.