Nature, Nature, Everywhere!

There are so many beautiful places in Okinawa, some of which are a bit hard to find. The beauty here is not the kind I think of when I think "subtropical island". It is more rugged than your typical island getaway. Over the past decade or so Okinawa has increased its presence as a travel destination, especially for Japanese from the mainland. After being here for the last four months, I can see why.

I wanted to take the Dolbows to someplace a little more off the beaten path, and so we headed to Maeda Flats. I had been here with the girls shortly after we arrived, so was prepared. Like many destinations on Okinawa, getting there is half the fun. The roads in some places barely seem wide enough for one car, let alone two. And the "parking" was really just pulling over on a road side across from a field of sugar cane, hoping I was far enough over not to get side-swiped if another car came along.

Zoe was brave for a few minutes, as long as Grandma Maggie was with her. But once she started to see sea creatures, she wanted to bolt. Fair enough.  She found a spot on the sand next to Poppy and was happy burying her feet. Maddox, on the other hand, led the way and can never quite understand why I won't let her go snorkeling on her own in an out-of-sight cave. The water here is so clear, and the sea life is amazing to watch. If we had planned to be here for the year, learning to scuba dive would have been on the bucket list.

On one of the last days that the Dolbows were here, we wanted to go somewhere close by that all could enjoy. I had heard about the orchids at Bios on the Hill, and knew this would be a good bet with my mother-in-law, the Master Gardener. Bios was absolutely perfect - fun for the kids and adults, and a cafe that served shave ice and Blue Seal ice cream, an Okinawan staple.

We spent most of our time watching the girls climb this amazing play structure, and bailing them out when they got stuck in a precarious spot. Can you imagine this play structure in the States? It was really well-constructed, but not exactly loaded with safety features. No shredded rubber "mulch" here. An occasional water buffalo turd, yes, but that wasn't a part of the safety measures.

The girls were playing American Girl, which involved Zoe playing Kit Kittredge and Maddox pretending to be her BFF Ruthie. They thought this play structure looked like what people lived in during old-fashioned times. True, if you consider the waaaaaay old-fashioned times when people were not yet people, and still lived in trees.

Bios has lots of hidden spots for relaxing, and giant swings that the girls loved. Sitting in the swing together was a rare moment of sisterly harmony. I thought about setting up camp and just letting them enjoy the love. If it weren't for venomous Habu snakes at night, I might have tried it.

Poppy was deemed the best swing-pusher. I am apparently not. This meant that I had to lie down in a nearby hammock. Talk about needing to rethink incentives. I am gunning for the World's Worst Swing Pusher. Don't even try to compete.

There is much more to explore at Bios, which I will write about in a future post since we returned for John's birthday. But for now, let me close with the photo below. The former Cheshire County Fair sheep show participant in me loved watching Maddox battle the goat. She named him something like 'Speedy' which made it that much more enjoyable to witness.