On the third day of our Okinawa trip, the three of us woke up in pain from sunburn. Looking back, it was clearly the right choice for others to wear rash guards yesterday. I applied some Sudocrem, which I had brought as a precaution, to the children’s shoulders and backs, which provided a little relief, but their skin still seemed to sting.
We finished breakfast in the dining area and took a lot of cucumber slices from the salad bar back to our room. The children were lying on the bed reading manga or looking at their mobile phones, and I stuck cucumbers onto their arms, shoulders, and faces. As the cucumbers warmed up, I flipped them over or soaked them in water to cool them down again. I was sunburned too, but I was more concerned about the children’s skin.
Before long, it was time to check out of the hotel, so we gathered our luggage and headed to the front desk. While I was checking out, the children were looking at items in the hotel shop, and when I joined them later, I saw many Okinawa-exclusive cup noodles that were not familiar from our usual supermarket, and many souvenirs.
Blue Cave Snorkelling Okinawa
After leaving the hotel, we set the car navigation to the snorkelling location at the Blue Cave. Although we arrived at the company where we had made our reservation, I hesitated about whether it was better not to snorkel because the children’s sunburn looked painful. However, since we couldn’t go to the aquarium we had planned to visit yesterday, I thought that if we did nothing here, it would defeat the purpose of coming all the way to Okinawa.
Though I thought it was a silly question, I asked, “Is it okay to wear a wetsuit with sunburn? Is the seawater okay?” They assured me it wouldn’t be a problem, so I decided to go ahead.
We borrowed wetsuits that fit our body shapes and changed in the changing room. When I came out, the children were already waiting, and it was the first time I had seen them in wetsuits, which was really cute, and I wanted to take a picture. Unfortunately, I had put everything in the locker, so I couldn’t capture that moment. Other participants in our group had waterproof disposable cameras, and I regretted not getting one.
We were taken to the beach by the company’s van, where we received our goggles and fins. Prescription goggles were also provided for the children who needed them. After a light warm-up, we finally entered the sea.
After swimming a little, the water became deeper, and thanks to its clarity, we could see the seabed and fish vividly. The child, with the snorkel mouthpiece in, told me, “There are so many fish!” and yes, I could clearly see that scene as well. The children, who had been in pain from their sunburn just moments ago, seemed to have completely forgotten it and were enjoying themselves. We swam slowly as a group into the cave.
In the dim light of the cave, we could already see several people inside talking with the guide, taking pictures, and diving to the seabed. The water was so clear that we could easily see the people below us.
We moved to a spot where the cave glowed blue and admired the beautiful sight. The children exclaimed, “It’s really blue!” I once again regretted not bringing a disposable waterproof camera.
A Little Incident
Afterward, as we slowly moved toward the point to feed the fish, I suddenly realized that the younger child was missing. I looked around the group, but I couldn’t find them, and I involuntarily called their name out loud several times.
I tried to ask the guide for help, but our group, including the older child, had already moved on ahead. As I called my child’s name again and looked back carefully, I saw my child, with their face submerged in the water (as wearing snorkelling goggles), swimming slowly and waving their hand in an attempt to get my attention. When I hurried over and asked what was going, my child said, ‘I lost one of my fins and got separated while looking for it.’
We had been informed beforehand to notify the guide if we lost a fin, but before my child could do so, the guide had already moved on, making it impossible for my child to seek the help.
A nearby group from another company noticed us and called out, so when I explained the situation, their guide loudly called our guide. However, it seemed that the message didn’t reach them, and kindly, that guide swam over to inform them. Thankfully, we were able to reunite with our original group, but I felt a little unsettled that there was no follow-up from our guide.
Fortunately, the younger child was all right with one fin, enjoying feeding the fish and was in a good mood, saying, “Look, the fish are eating!” But thinking about how I might have lost my child at that moment filled me with a mix of fear and anger. Since we had signed a document when booking, it seemed like the company might not accept complaints in case something happened. Furthermore, when we left the shop, there was no mention of the incident from the staff.
As for this incident, my child didn’t seem particularly bothered by it, so I didn’t pursue the matter deeply while we were in Japan. However, upon returning to England and reflecting on it calmly, I concluded that I should write a proper review regarding this experience. I believe that is the fair thing to do.
In any case, I had hesitated until the end about whether to sign up for this activity, but in the end, I was glad we did. The children were captivated by the beautiful world of the sea and were so engrossed that they forgot the pain of their sunburn.
After that, we returned to Naha City and returned the rental car. From there, we took the Yui Rail (ゆいレール: monorail) to the hotel where we would spend our last night in Okinawa. The hotel was located just a few minutes’ walk from the station and also close to Kokusai Street (国際通り). It was a business hotel, but the room was clean and comfortable enough for our stay.
Dinner and Accommodation on Kokusai Street
We decided to have dinner on Kokusai Street. The street was lively and bright in the evening, so I thought we would have plenty of time to buy souvenirs afterward.
As we walked along the bustling Kokusai Street filled with tourists, we were looking for a restaurant to eat at when a staff member from a restaurant called out to us. Since we hadn’t really decided what we wanted to eat, we decided to go into that restaurant and climbed the stairs to the second floor.
In that restaurant, we all ordered dishes unique to Okinawa. Just like yesterday, I ordered Orion beer (オリオンビール) and also ordered the Jimami tofu (ジーマーミ豆腐) that I had enjoyed at the izakaya yesterday. It was indeed delicious again. The restaurant also had several Ryukyu glass (琉球ガラス) lamp shades hanging, creating a very magical atmosphere. Even though we had just walked in because of the staff’s invitation, we had a wonderful dining experience.
Afterward, we bought souvenirs at several shops. We purchased a lot of Okinawan salt, island chili peppers (島唐辛子) , Jimami tofu, and small cups of Okinawa soba instant noodles. The older child bought a large amount of Shekwasha (シークワーサー) and Okinawa sweet potato (沖縄紅芋) snacks for friends, and the younger child bought a few small bottles of sand from Okinawa for friends.
I bought island chili peppers for an acquaintance in the UK. When I handed it to the person, I said, “This is really spicy, so use it a little at a time like Tabasco.” The person used it during a meal with friends, and one of them really liked the taste of the seasoning and used a lot of it. However, afterward, the friend experienced considerable discomfort in the stomach and had to go to A&E. It was clearly a case of overeating.
Fourth Day of the Okinawa Trip, Flight to Narita
The next morning, the sting from the sunburn had eased quite a bit, and we took the monorail to Naha Airport, boarding the bus from the place where we were dropped off.
Once again, we returned to the warehouse-like airport, checked in, and then moved to the area with food services and last-minute souvenir shops. I ordered Okinawa soba to eat one last time, even though I wasn’t very hungry, but the airport version was just okay in terms of quality.
We boarded Vanilla Air, an LLC airline, and while we were drawn back by the beautiful sea of Okinawa, we departed the island. The cabin was still bustling with the children’s chatter. When the in-flight sales cart passed us, the younger child exclaimed, “Ah!” as if they had discovered something. When I asked what was that, they said they wanted the Vanilla Air plush toy. This child hadn’t bought many souvenirs from Okinawa, but they really wanted this toy.
Thus, our wonderful trip to Okinawa came to an end as we returned to my parents’ house.
My parents were very surprised to see how sunburned the children were. Perhaps because they were young, the children’s sunburn began to peel the following day, which was a surprise for them as it was their first experience. My parents joked about using a hand carpet cleaner called “Koro-koro” to peel it off, and when we tried it out jokingly to see if it would actually work, a lot of skin actually came off, which surprised us even more!
