Okinawa pt 3

The mum update: Mum is at home and doing well. The swelling in her leg is going down and she is walking on her own again. In fact she says she's taken the dogs for some short walks and she can drive by herself again.
Now to continue with the Okinawa report. Hopefully I can finish this up soon because at this rate I'll finish by mid summer.

Okinawa, day 4: January 1st. Due to our wimpiness the day before we promised our diving guide we would go diving this day. So we woke up early and headed off the dive shop for 2 more dives. The water was a little rough on the surface but everything was fine "under the sea."

Our diving guide Shu-san

Which mask would you like Mr. Henwood? Why the biggest, ugliest, gaudiest pair of course.

Live long, prosper and maintain equal buoyancy.

A 100% genuine, no-substitutes, Okinawan rainbow. You saw it here first true believers.

Great view from the back of the boat. The ocean and sky are beautiful too!

Back on dry land

Unfortunately I was disappointed by our diving company. Most of the coral I saw during our dives was dead. And I can guess why. At each dive locating the crew on our boat threw their anchor directly into the coral reefs. This is a huge no no for diving operations as anchors just smash away the coral. During our dives our guide was constantly kneeling in or standing on the coral. At one point his wet suit was covered in dirt because he had been literally lying in the coral. I'd never seen such utter disregard. Every other dive shop I've been with in other countries was very protective of the nearby coral (which is good for their business) but this shop was just awful. I hope this shameful behaviour is limited to only this dive shop but judging by all the white coral I saw I guess it's more widespread. Too bad. At least the fish were beautiful.

After 2 dives and hot lunch we went back to our hotel where the beautiful weather afforded us some great pictures.

Pitch & Putt course at our hotel.

Swimming pool with main lobby & restaurant in the background.


Our hotel wing.

After a quick change of clothes we rented bicycles from the hotel activity desk and whisked off on mini-tour of Kumejima island.

What we saw on our bike tour. Although we didn't see the snorkel-equipped dolphin. Maybe next year.

Our hotel is the big building on the left.

Sand spits like this must be great when it's warmer.

Tatami Ishi this way.

The 'Tatami Ishi', natural tatami mat shaped rocks.

Statue outside of a Turtle Aquarium. I've seen how tiny the tanks are in Japan so I wasn't interested in seeing these poor fellows. Nothing beats seeing turtles swimming free when you're diving!

Traditional Kumejima house. Made from wood. Taller houses all had flat roofs with railings which probably served as balconies in the summer.

Shisa guarding someone's house.

The backup unit.

That evening Yukiko & I tried on some traditional Okinawan clothing in the hotel lobby.

Japan's newest crime fighting duo.