After a three-day voyage from the Philippines we arrived in Ishigaki, Japan. Ishigaki is very close (131nm) to Taiwan and is the most southern Japanese Island that you can check into. I have never been to Japan before, so I was super excited to finally explore a new country outside of SE Asia.
We spent most of our time in Ishigaki exploring the town, doing boat work, and eating yummy soba, or noodles. We stayed at a marina (a rarity in Japan) that was very close to the main town, so It was very easy to do shopping, go out to eat, etc. Checking into Japan wasn’t that much of a hassle, all the customs, immigration, and coast guard guys came to your boat. All of them were friendly and very helpful, and if you had a question of where buildings were, they would point it out to you on a map.
While in in Ishigaki, we made friends with an Australian couple, David and Robyn, on Maaji Re. We got to now each other pretty well and it was fun going to a local noodle shop for dinner with David. While we were eating, the TV was showing a baseball game. I hadn’t seen a baseball game for 5 years. I had to have Dad teach me how baseball was played again. Base Ball is HUGE in Japan. I think it is the main sport, and a lot of Japanese play on the US teams.
Okinawa, the biggest island In the Ryukyu Islands is located just South of mainland Japan. This island has seen many conflicts from when Okinawa itself was a kingdom in the 14th century, and being the last major conflict during the Pacific War. Okinawa now is a sprawling urban island with most of the cities in the South end. On the North end there are still mountains covered with forests. There are many US military bases on the island because all of the Japan’s southern islands are under threat from China. I have wanted to go to Okinawa for ages and ages.
The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium is the only aquarium on the island and is located at the far Northern end of the island. Since we at the Southern end of the island it took a 2 hour drive to get there, which means a 4 hour round trip. We met a guy named Pat and his son, Kairen, who live on another boat in the marina, and they offered to take us to the aquarium. Dad couldn’t rent a car because to drive in Japan you must be qualified as an international driver. It would only take a couple days to get but we didn't have the time to do it.
The aquarium on Okinawa is unique because it is the first aquarium to house an incredibly big animal. It houses whale sharks, and not just one, but three whale sharks! The tank that holds them is humongous and apart from holding whale sharks also holds manta rays, sharks, and stingrays. It was the first time I had seen whale sharks in person.
We spent most of our time in Ishigaki exploring the town, doing boat work, and eating yummy soba, or noodles. We stayed at a marina (a rarity in Japan) that was very close to the main town, so It was very easy to do shopping, go out to eat, etc. Checking into Japan wasn’t that much of a hassle, all the customs, immigration, and coast guard guys came to your boat. All of them were friendly and very helpful, and if you had a question of where buildings were, they would point it out to you on a map.
While in in Ishigaki, we made friends with an Australian couple, David and Robyn, on Maaji Re. We got to now each other pretty well and it was fun going to a local noodle shop for dinner with David. While we were eating, the TV was showing a baseball game. I hadn’t seen a baseball game for 5 years. I had to have Dad teach me how baseball was played again. Base Ball is HUGE in Japan. I think it is the main sport, and a lot of Japanese play on the US teams.
Okinawa, the biggest island In the Ryukyu Islands is located just South of mainland Japan. This island has seen many conflicts from when Okinawa itself was a kingdom in the 14th century, and being the last major conflict during the Pacific War. Okinawa now is a sprawling urban island with most of the cities in the South end. On the North end there are still mountains covered with forests. There are many US military bases on the island because all of the Japan’s southern islands are under threat from China. I have wanted to go to Okinawa for ages and ages.
The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium is the only aquarium on the island and is located at the far Northern end of the island. Since we at the Southern end of the island it took a 2 hour drive to get there, which means a 4 hour round trip. We met a guy named Pat and his son, Kairen, who live on another boat in the marina, and they offered to take us to the aquarium. Dad couldn’t rent a car because to drive in Japan you must be qualified as an international driver. It would only take a couple days to get but we didn't have the time to do it.
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| Ever seen a manta made out of flowers? |
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| Poor Dory. |
The aquarium on Okinawa is unique because it is the first aquarium to house an incredibly big animal. It houses whale sharks, and not just one, but three whale sharks! The tank that holds them is humongous and apart from holding whale sharks also holds manta rays, sharks, and stingrays. It was the first time I had seen whale sharks in person.
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| One of the three manta sharks |
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Other then the whale sharks, there was also a huge room dedicated to sharks. In the shark room, there was a reconstructed jaw skeleton of a Carcharodon megalodon, a mega shark that existed 12 million years ago. The jaw was so big that I could stand in it. Each tooth was as big as my hand. By the way, Carcharodon megalodon are thought to have mainly fed on whales! Also in the shark room was a tank that held all different types of sharks such as the Sicklefin Lemon Shark, the Copper Shark, the Bull Shark, and the Bowmouth Guitarfish, that is actually a ray but looks like a shark.
The dolphin show at the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium was amazing. The Bottlenose dolphins and the false killer wales jumped so high out of the water, that I couldn’t believe my eyes. Besides jumping they also splashed the Asian tourist, which I always enjoy watching.
I got to know these nice US cruisers, Larry and Peg with their crewman Drew, who were on a yacht at the marina. Through them we got to make friends with their grandchildren, George and JT, who live on a USMC base on Okinawa. Because we knew them they invited us on the base to go swimming. How could I refuse, I have wanted to go on a US base forever. It was my first time on any US base, and it was weird to see so many Western people again. To go swimming you had to pass a test, which I passed easily. Swimming was very fun and the pool was deep, so I could do dives, cannonballs, etc.
Before we left Okinawa we had the chance to go to the Okinawan Natural History and Art Museum with George and JT. The museum is huge and we only had enough time to do the natural history part. The natural history area was divided into six sections.
Section 1: A people embraced by the sea
Section 2: Social translation from shell mound era to ancient Ryukyu era Section 3: Prosperity of the kingdom
Section 4: Satsuma control over the Ryukyu Kingdom
Section 5: Decline of the empire
Section 6: Modern era of Okinawa
Section one was about the early days of Okinawa. There was a lot of pottery, earth ware, and skeletons of the early inhabitants. One of the skeletons is 22,000 years old! Not a lot in the section because there written language has not been developed yet.
Section two was a lot like section one except for people started building forts. There were models of the different kinds of forts they had found around the island. Some of them had just been dirt mounds, but others had stonewalls. I think you can go see one of these very old forts on Okinawa, but we didn’t have the time. There was also fine craftsmanship on display.
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| The mega shark jaw! |
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| The shark tank. |
The dolphin show at the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium was amazing. The Bottlenose dolphins and the false killer wales jumped so high out of the water, that I couldn’t believe my eyes. Besides jumping they also splashed the Asian tourist, which I always enjoy watching.
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| Check out how high the dolphin jumped! |
I got to know these nice US cruisers, Larry and Peg with their crewman Drew, who were on a yacht at the marina. Through them we got to make friends with their grandchildren, George and JT, who live on a USMC base on Okinawa. Because we knew them they invited us on the base to go swimming. How could I refuse, I have wanted to go on a US base forever. It was my first time on any US base, and it was weird to see so many Western people again. To go swimming you had to pass a test, which I passed easily. Swimming was very fun and the pool was deep, so I could do dives, cannonballs, etc.
Before we left Okinawa we had the chance to go to the Okinawan Natural History and Art Museum with George and JT. The museum is huge and we only had enough time to do the natural history part. The natural history area was divided into six sections.
Section 1: A people embraced by the sea
Section 2: Social translation from shell mound era to ancient Ryukyu era Section 3: Prosperity of the kingdom
Section 4: Satsuma control over the Ryukyu Kingdom
Section 5: Decline of the empire
Section 6: Modern era of Okinawa
Section one was about the early days of Okinawa. There was a lot of pottery, earth ware, and skeletons of the early inhabitants. One of the skeletons is 22,000 years old! Not a lot in the section because there written language has not been developed yet.
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| The 22,000 year old male found here in Okinawa. |
Section two was a lot like section one except for people started building forts. There were models of the different kinds of forts they had found around the island. Some of them had just been dirt mounds, but others had stonewalls. I think you can go see one of these very old forts on Okinawa, but we didn’t have the time. There was also fine craftsmanship on display.
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| A bunch of earthenware pots. |
Section three was very interesting. A written language had been developed so there were ancient scrolls, paintings, and even ink seals! I never knew that Okinawa had been at the heart of a kingdom. The modern Ryukyu Islands used to be a quite prosperous kingdom called the Ryukyu Kingdom. The kingdom was in an ideal trading spot. It was in the middle of Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan, and Philippine trading routes. A lot of money flowed into the kingdom’s treasury from trading taxes.
The Ryukyu Kingdom traded with everybody from Japan to Indonesia, but the wealthiest and most prosperous trading partner was China, at the time controlled by the Ming. To trade with the Ming you had to pay tribute to the Ming Emperer. Envoys that brought the tribute were called Shinko shi and the tribute was called Shinko. About two to four tribute ships were in each tribute fleet.
Section four was about the beginning of the Ryukyu kingdom’s decline. Another kingdom called the Satsuma Kingdom invaded Ryukyu Kingdom 1609 with only 3,000 troops. Ryukyu Kingdom actually lost and became Satsuma subjects, ceding the Amami Islands and incurring a large tax fund to Satsuma. After the take over disasters, famines, droughts, huge taxes, and financial difficulties all started to weaken the empire.
All empires or kingdoms eventually fall, and section five explained that. Europeans started to visit the Ryukyu Kingdom and demanded trade, permission to send in Christian Missionaries, and other demands. The kingdom did nothing but refuse while continuing “negotiations” in order to avoid war. When the British defeated the Qing Dynasty in 1842, a severe economic shockwave hit the Ryukyu Kingdom.
Eventually the Meiji government disbanded the Ryukyu Kingdom, establishing the Okinawa Prefecture in its place. However the people of the Ryukyu Kingdom did not want to be part of Japan, so the Meiji government sent in police and military forces to force them to be part of Japan. The Ryukyu Kingdom fell after its last king, Sho Tai, and his ministers abandoned the Shurijo Castle.
Section six was about WW2 and modern Okinawa history. Okinawa was the last major island to be invaded in the Pacific War and the battle was brutal. The fighting lasted well over 3 months, and the island was literally a hellhole. After Japan surrendered the US controlled Okinawa until 1972, when the US gave Okinawa back to Japan.
The Ryukyu Kingdom traded with everybody from Japan to Indonesia, but the wealthiest and most prosperous trading partner was China, at the time controlled by the Ming. To trade with the Ming you had to pay tribute to the Ming Emperer. Envoys that brought the tribute were called Shinko shi and the tribute was called Shinko. About two to four tribute ships were in each tribute fleet.
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| A model of a tribute ship. |
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| A fine painting of a tribute ship coming into a port in China. |
Section four was about the beginning of the Ryukyu kingdom’s decline. Another kingdom called the Satsuma Kingdom invaded Ryukyu Kingdom 1609 with only 3,000 troops. Ryukyu Kingdom actually lost and became Satsuma subjects, ceding the Amami Islands and incurring a large tax fund to Satsuma. After the take over disasters, famines, droughts, huge taxes, and financial difficulties all started to weaken the empire.
All empires or kingdoms eventually fall, and section five explained that. Europeans started to visit the Ryukyu Kingdom and demanded trade, permission to send in Christian Missionaries, and other demands. The kingdom did nothing but refuse while continuing “negotiations” in order to avoid war. When the British defeated the Qing Dynasty in 1842, a severe economic shockwave hit the Ryukyu Kingdom.
Eventually the Meiji government disbanded the Ryukyu Kingdom, establishing the Okinawa Prefecture in its place. However the people of the Ryukyu Kingdom did not want to be part of Japan, so the Meiji government sent in police and military forces to force them to be part of Japan. The Ryukyu Kingdom fell after its last king, Sho Tai, and his ministers abandoned the Shurijo Castle.
Section six was about WW2 and modern Okinawa history. Okinawa was the last major island to be invaded in the Pacific War and the battle was brutal. The fighting lasted well over 3 months, and the island was literally a hellhole. After Japan surrendered the US controlled Okinawa until 1972, when the US gave Okinawa back to Japan.
Thanks for reading!!!
Special Thanks to David, Robyn, Pat, Kairen, Larry, Peg, Drew, George, TJ, George’s and TJ’s Mom, and of course Jacob and Dad for making my stay at Ishigaki and Okinawa so much fun!!!
Defend Okinawa!
Joshua
Special Thanks to David, Robyn, Pat, Kairen, Larry, Peg, Drew, George, TJ, George’s and TJ’s Mom, and of course Jacob and Dad for making my stay at Ishigaki and Okinawa so much fun!!!
Defend Okinawa!
Joshua
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