Today, I went for some sightseeing; first the castle of Shuri.
Shuri-jo is a rather small castle, the former palace of the Ryukyu Kingdom. Since it was destroyed in 1945 during the Okinawan battle, they rebuilt it in 1992 while trying to stick to the original plans as they possibly could.
The result is a nice place to visit, with some interesting artifacts and a nice way to spend a morning.
After lunch, I went to visit the Okinawa Prefectural museum near Omoromachi station.
I visited the permanent exhibition they have there, displaying the Okinawan history, its nature and wildlife, ancient pottery and much more.
Also a decent portion of recent history, with the arrival of the Americans, life after the war and the current situation.
The Okinawans are kind of pissed, since the Americans take up 20% of Okinawan soil, and are representing 75% of the American bases in the whole of Japan.
Also the continuing dragging of Japanese governmental feet has the Okinawans ticked off.
After some hanging around and almost deciding to see Hachi in the local cinema, I had some Ramen and went back to the hotel.
That night, I went to a local bar across the street; Live Station. This bar is a small, cosy izakaya with a live house band.
Their repertoire consists of about 40 classic songs from the USA and the UK, and you can submit a request.
The only catch; he who does the request, has to sing!
So I found myself singing a very off-key version of Hotel California (it's easier when you've downed a few pints first), but it was fun. :)
Tomorrow is a busy day; I signed up for a tour of the west coast of Okinawa, with Churaumi Aquarium as the top attraction.
Stay tuned.
Cheers, K.