🏝 Okinawa
🏝 Okinawa 4 Days, 3 Nights, Day 2 | Cape Manza, Kouri Bridge, and a Blue Afternoon of Sea Urchin Rice
☀️ Early Morning Giving Up and Turning Around
At 9:30 AM, after renting a motorcycle from Omoromachi Station, we began our day's itinerary.
My husband had originally planned our first stop to be A&W's bitter melon burger.
But when we arrived,
the long line had already snaked out the door.
I hadn't expected Okinawa to be as bustling even after the October holiday.
Seeing the crowds, I gave up immediately.
I took a photo with my husband to show my "I've been there" as proof of my presence.
Without wasting time, we drove straight to Cape Manza.
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🌊 Driving Around Cape Manza: Blue Skies and Elephants
I love driving around Okinawa. It doesn't really matter where I go; just driving along the road by the sea makes me happy.
The sea outside the window was a washed-out blue, the sky dazzlingly clear. Just sitting in the car, I felt a sense of tranquility and healing.
Sometimes I feel like I could just buy a bottle of sparkling water, grab a bento from the convenience store, and find a shady beachside spot and just sit there all day.
The entrance fee to Cape Manza is only ¥100, which feels like a "toilet cleaning fee," but it buys you a priceless view.
My husband, worried I'd be hungry, suggested eating first.
I ordered Okinawa noodles, and he had a sashimi set.
The pork belly cartilage was tender and flavorful, but the broth was a bit salty.
As I ate, I thought, if the world could display salt content, allowing people to choose a few grams of salt and sugar.
How wonderful would that be?
After eating, we bought tickets to enter Cape Manza.
The most captivating thing was the rock that resembled an "elephant on the seashore."
Groups of tourists, vying for the perfect angle, rushed to take photos. I suddenly thought of Taiwan's Elephant Trunk Rock—
I wonder how many "walruses" like this one are around the world.
Maybe someone is actually traveling the world to collect them.
The only downside here is the crowds.
It turns out that even after the October holiday, the crowds are still thronging.
But in a foreign country, hearing a familiar language feels like a kind of homecoming.
I accidentally brushed past someone at Manzamo Beach and couldn't help but say sorry.
A middle-aged man nearby immediately replied, "We're one family!"
I smiled.
At almost every popular spot on this trip, I could hear Taiwanese voices.
Feeling familiar in the unfamiliar.
🚗 The Romance of Movement: From Manzamo Beach to Kouri Bridge
For an Aries man,
travel is a mission of "constant movement."
Staying still seems like boredom.
But he says he enjoys "static movement," so driving is his romance.
Sitting in the car, watching the scenery pass by is his ideal rhythm.
The sea at Kouri Bridge is like a dream of unreasonably blue.
The sky, the ocean, the light and shadows,
all are as pure as a newly born world. #Manzamo
I wonder if everyone loves Okinawa so much because
they share our fascination with a clean ocean.
Perhaps this sea is special because its air doesn't smell of thermal power plants.
I miss this blue so much.
Before I was fourteen, the western sky was also this clear.
Then the west gradually became dusty, leaving the east still clear.
So, we couldn't help but plan a few days a year to visit Okinawa, teeming with Taiwanese people, in pursuit of pure cleanliness.
For this trip, my husband specially brought slippers.
He had been wanting to hit the waves for a long time.
We wanted to soak in the sea.
I was too lazy and just sat on the shore to enjoy the breeze.
But Aries are quick to react.
He was out in less than two minutes.
If it were me, I'd definitely soak for 30 minutes to be completely satisfied. But I was lazy, so I watched him get up.
Then I suggested we walk across the Kouri Bridge.
As we walked, he complained about the fine sand on his feet,
while I admired the color of the sea.
The sea was beautiful, but his soles must have felt uncomfortable.
As we walked along the Kouri Bridge,
my attention wasn't on the sky,
but on my feet.
Finally, we took a photo on the bridge to commemorate our visit.
Then we looked for a place to wash our feet.
At the footbath, a Japanese gentleman considerately offered him his last twenty seconds.
He offered money as a token of his gratitude, but
he casually waved, "No thanks."
That moment of kindness made the trip even more beautiful.
🍤 An afternoon of bad eating luck
After washing my feet, I bought a smoothie, but after taking a sip,
I was shocked to find it was jelly, incredibly sweet.
Not wasting is my motto, so I forced myself to finish it.
It seems like traveling is all about stopping, eating, and drinking.
Before we left, my husband's daily pleasure was reading travel guides.
He'd already found quite a few restaurants, and he'd been excitedly discussing this one, "Three Ways to Eat Shrimp."
He said it was a must-try recommendation from netizens.
When we arrived, the small space was packed with seven groups of waiting customers.
Looking at the crowds and the limited dining space,
after our morning visit to A&W, we were unable to get a table at another restaurant.
I helplessly thought, "My food luck just isn't good today."
Finally, my husband brought out his plan B and took me to eat sea urchin seafood rice near Kouri Bridge.
Luckily, at 2 p.m., there was only one car parked outside.
It was a seemingly unassuming little place,
with ample seating inside.
We ordered a ¥5,000 sea urchin seafood bowl for the two of us,
planning to share this bowl of the sea's flavor.
There was only one table of Taiwanese tourists left in the restaurant.
They were discussing whether this bowl of sea urchin rice was worth it.
My husband took a bite and said, "Not bad."
I, always liking a comparison, asked, "How does it compare to the sea urchin at Ye's Seafood?"
But I added, "The sea urchin at Ye's Seafood in Taitung is sweeter and creamier."
Regardless of the taste, we'd already found another restaurant.
For me, travel isn't just about eating delicious food.
It's about leaving a mark on a map, time and again, that I've been there.
I looked out the window at the sun-drenched street scene and thought—
Next time I come to Okinawa, I want to find a B&B where I can cook.
I'd buy ingredients from the supermarket and cook a home-cooked meal myself.
Next time I come, I'll experience the joy of cooking at a B&B.
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