Okinawa Fruits Land

Seems I'm not the best blogger in the world... not that this news should surprise anyone. I think it's been over a month since my last post, and this particular post is about an outing that took place... well... over a month ago. I can't keep up with myself. Oh well... better late than never, right? It's doubtful that my 1 or 2 faithful readers have been on the edge of their seats awaiting news of the most recent Smith Family Adventure anyway, but if you have been eagerly anticipating our next installment... well then... here goes.



Our plan was to head to Ocean Expo Park on this toasty July day. We would end up at Emerald Beach to see what was sure to be a spectacular fireworks display. The only problem with this plan was that approximately 60,000 other people had planned the same thing. I occasionally exaggerate for effect, but I'm not kidding. I read this fact a few days later in a publication covering the event. Sheesh! If I'd known that, we never would have bothered. When we realized we'd have to park, like, 10 miles from the beach (OK, NOW I'm exaggerating), we decided to switch gears. We were not schlepping all our beach stuff, snacks, diapers, dry clothes, etc. PLUS two small people with short legs all the way to the beach from our car. In the heat. In the humidity. Can you imagine the crankiness? And I'm not even talking about the kids. So, we headed back in the direction from which we had come and arrived here... at Okinawa Fruits Land... pictured above.

These kids LOVE to feed carp any chance they get.




Noah wasn't the least bit interested, but EJ decided to feed the goat as well.



I love this little guy... er... gal?


There was a big fenced-in area where we could observe and even feed some birds.



Feeling confident after feeding fish and goats, EJ attempted to befriend a bird.


Yep, she got bit. No worries though... she was startled... but unscathed.


For a couple hundred yen, I decided to buy some sugary liquid to join in the fun.



And here's another failed attempt to get both my kids together for a cute picture. "Noah, Emerie... come sit right here and let me take your picture!" I said excitedly... like it was something so super-fun to do.


"Come on guys, smile for Mommy... look at the camera..." I said... still excited, but a bit more intense...


"Say 'Cheeeeeeese'.... please...." At this point, I'm near begging.


(Sigh) It wasn't gonna happen. So I went for single shots... and bribery... "Noah, some sit here between the shisas and let Mommy take your picture... I'll buy you some ice cream!" Works every time.


I'll admit it. I'm not above bribery.


And as I bring this post to a close, it occurs to me that we went to Okinawa FRUITS Land, and I don't believe I took a single photo of the fruits growing there. But don't worry... there were fruits... and more importantly, there were delicious desserts to buy which contained fruit. And yes, we ate some. And yes, Noah got his ice cream.

July 4th Fun

July 4th! A beautiful day ahead... a full day of family fun and adventure! (I sounded like Clark Griswold there for a second...) First stop, Nago Pineapple Park!


The first thing you do (after posing in front of the giant pineapple) is load your party up on one of these pineapple golf carts and "drive" through the gardens. You can't see it in the photo, but the cart has a giant pineapple on top.


Noah LOVED getting to "drive" the cart. It really was great. Of course, the whole thing is automatic, but we wouldn't dare tell Noah. He was so happy and so very proud of himself!


And yes, they really do grow pineapples here... all different sizes... even some tiny ornamental ones that are so cute.


After the "drive," you enter straight into the (surprise!) gift shop! Souvenirs and trinkets of every kind! Then there was a kind of seashell museum of sorts... lots and lots of seashells on display. I really have no idea what seashells have to do with pineapple, but they were pretty. It's kind of like the indoor "mini" zoo that's near our house that's also an egg farm and a cream puff bakery...but I digress...

Anyway, after the seashell rooms come the tasting rooms... not seashell tasting -- I'm back to pineapple. Please try to keep up. First up, a view of the winery and samples of pineapple wines. Then come pineapple vinegars, pineapple jams and jellies, pineapple cakes, pineapple cookies, pickled pineapple (which, I'm sorry to say, tasted much like fish for some reason...), dried pineapple, pineapple chocolate, pineapple ice cream ... are you understanding what I'm saying? There were pineapple bath and body products like "Pineapple-Charcoal Soap" (not for tasting, of course). Not to mention, stuffed toy pineapples and pineapple figurines. (I bought a miniature pineapple golf cart for my shadow box to remember our trip.) Oh yeah, and for the purists like myself, there was actually diced fresh pineapple for sampling. My personal fave!!!!


We had a great time, spent some money, and enjoyed the ocean view as we headed off to our next stop...



The Ryogujo Butterfly Gardens.


You guessed it! Butterflies!!!


They love bright colors, and we really weren't wearing any that day. But this one found the bag of wipes in the stroller.



The most predominate variety was this... the Paper Kite Butterfly (AKA Rice Paper Butterfly).








I had joked with Noah before we went in about the butterflies possibly landing on his head or his arm or maybe even his nose. Little did I know that this thought would be a point of concern for him. He walked through much of the garden with his hand over his nose to make sure no butterfly would land on it.




I love my family!

Shisa water fountain on the grounds of Ocean Expo park. This is near where we sat and enjoyed ice cream following the presentation at the planetarium.


Noah enjoying his Beniimo ice cream... his choice... he loves it...



When should we tell him that a beniimo is a purple sweet potato...



I'm not tellin' him... YOU tell him...


Lovely view of one of the surrounding islands from Ocean Expo Park...


A full day of fun!!! And you would have thought that some people would've slept the whole way back home... but you'd have thought wrong. ;)

Kokusai Street

Kokusai Street... You can shop 'til you drop here... literally. And it's not just a street... as in one street. There's the main street, sure, but then there are all these sort of alleys that branch out in all directions. If you're directionally challenged, take your GPS 'cause you can easily get turned around in this labyrinth of shops. Oh, and take your wallet. With money in it. A lot of money. Or a credit card, if you're into that sort of thing. It kinda reminds me of a cross between the 16th Street Mall in Denver and Pike Place Market in Seattle... except... really, it's not like either of those places...


We started off at Starbucks, 'cause... well... it's Starbucks. I know you can go to Starbucks any ol' time, but I try to make it a policy to go whenever I see one. There's for sure a clean potty and a refreshing beverage awaiting.




The sweetest barista ever treated Noah to a complimentary chocolate milk. Good to the last drop and so refreshing for my sweaty little guy. Devin had a delicious bitter dark chocolate frappuccino thing, and I chose a Matcha/Green Tea frappuccino which was my favorite shade of green and quite tasty.



Emerie is pumped and ready to shop!


A pig in a Ryukyu red lotus hat... of course.


There's so much to see here, I doubt if you could cover all the real estate in just one day. There's the Starbucks, of course, and the McDonald's... of course. Then there's a great Birkenstock shop that I'd like to get back to, an awesome Coach outlet, and several other recognizable stores. But when you venture off into the covered alley ways, there's oh so much more. Bingata, Ryukyu glassware and laquerware, my favorite sugar cane dyed fabrics, smelly foods, unrecognizable eats, fresh fruits, sundresses, t-shirts... you name it, it's here. Everything from tacky souvenirs and stuff that looks like it's from someone's yard sale... to beautiful handcrafted textiles and Okinawan crafts.


Pineapple everywhere! And passion fruit, mangoes, bananas...



If it has Snoopy on it, I'm a sucker for it. 200 yen for this trinket...


Noah digs for his treasure... It was a tiny china plate with Snoopy and Woodstock on it. Hilarious! Sorry, no picture...


And of course I loved these little Snoopy dressed as Eisa dancer figurines... The Okinawans love Snoopy! He's everywhere!



A cute little shisa with chopsticks...

A blurry photo of one of my new favorite shops with bright, colorful textiles, wall hangings, and purses... loved it!


McDonald's are plentiful.


As are beniimo treats... I had to get Devin to pose with this beniimo tarte. They're pretty tasty, but I prefer the ice cream.


And then I zoomed in and realized there was this guy behind Devin. Love it.


Emerie's exhausted.


I'm sure this was our first of many visits to the colorful Kokusai Street.


Last stop... lunch.

Tempting as it sounded, I did not choose the "Ishigaki Beef Guts Set." I went for bibimbap instead. Pretty tasty... and never pass up on gyoza.