I have been to Naha once so far, and had a really cultural, interesting and delicious day.

I started in the Fukushen Gardens, and spend about 20 minutes waling around this small, but very pretty excellent example of a Japanese flower garden, complete with coy carp ponds, which also had turtles in them, shrines and plenty of pagodas. At just 200 yen for the entry ticket, it is very reasonable. We continued the stroll towards Kokusai-Dori and on the way found a local bakery that made a desert delicacy we’d heard of, called Mont Blanc. This Parisian treat was discovered and made popular in Japan in the 1970s, and then Japan put its own twist on it. My friend Jonathan, who was with me on this outing, had told me about it, so we walked to Edelweiss Bakery to sample it. The Mont Blanc has several layers of fun, with a delicate merengue layer in the centre with chocolate cream, topped off with many layers of delicately piped chestnut cream. The chestnut flavor danced on our taste buds and it became very clear why this is a favourite. Nick and I shared one, and Jonathan tackled one solo after having had a longer build up of excitement about the treat. From here, we walked on to Kokusai-Dori, and briefly looked at the souvenir stores, and restaurants while on a mission to find the local Makishi Market. While slightly misreading the map, we accidently stumbled upon a small, but quirky ‘Cat and Dog Festival’ instead, which was being held to raise awareness and money for local animal shelters, with stalls of pet paraphernalia for sale beside stall of jewelry and clothes hand made, and food trucks, along with many live animals ready to be adopted, while a film crew got footage for the local news channel. It all felt very Japanese and quirky and fun, the way it was organized. This is where I sampled Ryuku chicken curry. From one of the food trucks at this somewhat bizarre event I had the most incredibly tasting curry of my life. My only regret here is only having one between the three of us (myself, Nick and friend Jonathan), as we were still not lunch-hungry after our Mont Blanc. From here we found Makishi Market, which was the original goal, and browsed it’s souvenirs and handcrafts, as well as fresh fish and meat sections, where you can even purchase a pig’s face. Pork and beef, wagyu, are popular and famous in Okinawa, and are of very high quality and taste. Upstairs from the market are small restaurants with local Ryuku dishes, noodles and rice favourites.

We decided to continue our food tour or Naha stopping at a small café just outside the market in the small winding streets behind it. Nick ad I shared a lunch special menu, which consisted of a fatty pork and pickled vegetable soup, noodles in broth, the local sun fish cooked with a lemon glaze and garnished with seaweed and carrots, and a small dish or soft tofu (which was the only one I didn’t actually enjoy, it being the fermented soft tofu and me not knowing the fermented part before sampling due to our not perfect menu translating skills). We topped this off with a coffee, and Nick and I shared this. I tasted each part of the dish and my stomach was sadly done, but content having thoroughly enjoyed the various tastes of Naha.

After this final food tasting of the day, we followed the map towards the Tsuboya District, where the famed Okinawa pottery is made. On the way there, we passed the world’s largest tug of war rope, took the obligatory photos, and found the artists area. There are several streets filled with small artist’s studios/shops with the actual artist selling his fine wares to tourists. This is not the place for a bargain, this is the place for real art. I fell in love with the beautifully painted clay pots, cups, and plates, particularly admiring the famous Okinawa fish designed ones, which is to pay homage to the fishermen of the island and how its success has always relied on the sea. After convincing Nick, we purchased two Okinawa fish cups for our home, which I am very much looking forward to using.

From Tsuboya, we ventured back to Kokusai-Dori on the way walking back to the ship. It was Easter Sunday, so there were more celebrations and events happening. Upon reaching the start of the East end of the street, we saw the last few minutes of a televised seaweed eating contest, and a street festival going on with families everywhere enjoying the toys laid out in the street for the children to play with, giant bubbles being blown and street performers amusing everyone. I really felt again, like this could only be in Japan, and loved every minute of it, before I had to scarper back to the ship for all aboard time.