The breakfast at Marine Palace Guesthouse was as impressive as the dinner we'd been served last night. The tray contained miso soup, rice, potato salad, pickles, fruit, meat cutlet, fresh fish, ham and eggs. An impressive spread for sure and combined with coffee it set us up for the day nicely!
Having eaten so much for breakfast we decided to walk it off by crossing the island to Tomari Port, this time armed with umbrellas which we did eventually need. The road across the island was steep in places and occasionally we'd stop to admire rice fields or this cute little goat.
When we arrived at Tomari port everything was closed and nobody was about. We only had a few hours left on the island so decided it was best spent back on Aharen beach where we returned to next.
The views as we crossed back towards Aharen beach were breathtaking and the clouds started to break up allowing the sun to finally make an appearance.
We were looking for somewhere to have some lunch when Ella reminded me that the perfect spot would be on the beach. We picked up some food and drink from the shop and found a good spot to have a picnic on the beach.
The tempura veg and pork was delicious but I was really chuffed to find the local shop selling spam and egg onigiri.
I'd read about how popular spam was in Okinawa after the Americans introduced it during the Second World War. I'd not eaten Spam in years but who'd have thought it could be so delicious with egg and rice wrapped in nori seaweed, I was impressed!
As I explored the beach for a final time Ella captured it's beauty in a sketch.
The kind guesthouse owner who had looked after us so well during our stay dropped us off at the port in time to catch our ferry back to Naha. If you visit Okinawa I'd strongly suggest visiting Tokashiki as it's such a beautiful paradise. Some people visit for the day but I recommend at least spending one night on the island so you can experience it at night time too.
A couple of hours later we were back in the busy city of Naha, we checked into Hotel Pesquera where we'd be spending the next three nights. A double apartment here with kitchen, washing machine, and private balcony overlooking the city cost £68 per night.
It was good to be finally staying somewhere for a few nights. This would give us a good opportunity to properly explore Naha.
We wanted to return to the indoor shopping streets we'd found a few days ago. On our way there though we were distracted by a promotional event offering free samples of Awamori. It's a very strong alcoholic drink made from long grain indica rice and is very popular in Okinawa. It's often served with water and ice and is pretty strong. We were given a ticket to have two drinks each but one was enough for us!
As the tram passed us overhead we were almost back on Kokusai Dori where the entrance to the indoor shopping streets could be found.
Once there we spent a long time looking around it's many shops, sampling biscuits and becoming aware of just how popular Spam was here.
This restaurant caught our eye as we passed so we decided to eat here.
The menu was extensive and offered a decent selection of meat free options for my wife. We sat beside the kitchen counter and ordered a few dishes.
I couldn't resist another Awamori and with it some deep fried cheese arrived, beautifully garnished with a flower.
The fried chicken here was excellent!
Ella ordered tofu with mixed vegetables and a beer. The prices were really reasonable and the environment was lively and friendly, definitely a great spot for some dinner!
Late night snacks from Family Mart on the way back to the hotel included a banana cake and bar of crunky.
Click here for Day 7
Fuzhou Garden and Shurijo Castle
Zamami Island is also great if you go back - check it out
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