New Years in Nago

We sorted out our dilemma regarding New Year’s…what to do about crazy prices during the holidays, things being closed over the New Year week, and of course…the weather. We had already booked 3 nights at Green Rich for the New Year stretch and we had thought we would camp until we checked in New Year’s Eve…but as is the way of nature lately, nature has the final word. Rain is coming once again. Of the two days we thought we would camp before checking in, one day is rain all day and the other is a mixed bag. So, plan B, find a place to stay in the interim The most reasonable price we could find was ironically next door to Green Rich Hotel…at least moving on will be easy.

Hotel Peace Island is, and it feels like, a budget hotel. Nonetheless, it offers us what we need…an Onsen on the top floor, a washing machine in the room (and free dryers that are nearby), a spacious room that is spotless. A good choice.

New Year is an auspicious time in Japan. Bamboo arrangements like this are found at the door of every business, hotel etc.

We are intrigued about visiting Nago Castle Park and the site of the Castle ruins. We understand that the extensive grounds, over 175 acres, are beautiful and offer much to see. One could, and perhaps should, spend a day here. There is a network of paved routes to walk or drive, recreation areas, special gardens, a suspension bridge crossing a chasm in the middle of the jungle in the hills. There are two levels of playgrounds for children, plus there are rest areas and picnic tables throughout the park. It sounds special and unique. Knowing the gradient we will be riding, it is a relief that Barry got his brakes fixed by Yazi at Sunset Bikes in Chatan.

One can climb about 500 steps or one can drive (or ride a trike) up the steep roads through Nago Castle Park. We’ll ride! An auspicious start in meeting a black cat at the bottom of the stairs.

The road surface is excellent and a decent width. Lots of room for us with the cars, significant as the terrain is very steep.

Glad we aren’t walking up. We are at a shrine.

We are very impressed by the infrastructure that is provided for walkers. It is very atmospheric….you can feel the history of the place.

The Shrine is quite charming. The route winds its way up the hills and there are many roads leading off the main route which take you to sites like this.

These stairs (and the road for trikes and cars) is not for the faint of heart. It is quite steep in areas, but already, we know that the effort is worth it.

Serendipity offers wonderful moments that one cannot explain. This man, Tan from Malaysia, was walking up the stairs to the shrine as we were about to leave. He asked me if we had ridden from Hokkaido. I was startled by his question and then I had a flash of recognition…we met this fellow in ,Hokkaido on our previous trip. We stayed at the same hotel and I met him and his family when they checked in. We had a wonderful visit with him and we shared our disbelief at the odds of this having happened. To meet him, literally in the middle of nowhere and up a mountain. He had almost not continued to the shrine as it was such a steep climb…but he did and we were delighted he chose to make the climb.

A last look at the shrine - a place of good memories for us.

The Japanese Fern Tree has a distinct pattern on the trunk. Eye catching.

The cherry tree grove of 100’s of trees is a special place. This area is one of the top 100 places in Japan to see cherry blossoms. As we are quite a distance south in Okinawa, cherry blossom season is very soon..Jan/Feb.

The growth of ferns with fiddleheads on this Japanese Fern Tree are very beautiful. We are in a jungle environment deep in the hills of Mt. Nago and the flora and fauna are exquisite.

Love this image of the fiddleheads at different stages

Beautiful - fiddleheads are at least a foot long and are a nutritional source of food. We have read that the area north of here gets more annual rainfall than the Amazon rainforest. We are enjoying the results.

And then the day got even better. This tabby is looking pretty chill and well fed.

The Okinawa Shisas are standing guard…keeping the good in and repelling the bad.

The swan shaped sun dial is a feature at one of the rest stops. Liked its whimsical design.

A fabulous view as far as the eye can see…or as far as the haze allows. Rain is coming later….we feel it coming in the humidity.

The infrastructure is top notch in Nago Castle Park. There are so many details, like this gazebo and tables built in to this park and enough space that you often feel like you have the grounds to yourself.

There was a display of all the birds known to dwell in this forest….and there are many types. We were intrigued to read about the bats and wild boar living here as well.

The western coastline is beautiful with white sand beaches, aquamarine water and coral reefs.

This spider is immense and suspended mid air in a huge web.

…and then the zoom on my iPhone showed us the beauty of this spider. Thank you Bill for possibly identifying this spider…an Orb weaver spider, possibly some species of giant wood spider.

If you haven’t climbed enough yet, well, this lookout will solve that. So we did, and it was worth it.

I could hear a scooter coming up the hill and noticed that cats were running from everywhere to a spot near me. Now I think we understand why they all look so well fed. This fellow on his scooter is doing a wonderful thing. We also noticed that most of the cats have the tip of one ear missing…this must mean that they are spayed or neutered.

See the bin on the back of his scooter…it is full of food.

The shared affection and appreciation the cats show is lovely to witness. At times it seems like all of the cats are trying to rub against him or cuddle in gratitude and recognition.

As I was watching the man feed the cats, this fellow, 80+ young, stopped to chat with me. We had a wonderful conversation and I marvelled at his vitality and good health. There is something very credible to the legend of long living and healthy Okinawans. Rarely do you see canes or walkers…people garden, walk (like this man) and live an active life..

A happy, well fed cat who is thinking…I may be wild but humans aren’t so bad. What a lovely cat.

The cats have had their meal and now are ready to cuddle. Barry was the recipient of this cat’s affections.

The cat is loving his beard…good for nuzzling.

It is so tempting…couldn’t we take him home?

The suspension bridge is quite spectacular, spanning a chasm, with beautiful dense tropical foliage.

The bridge is very decorative with metal panels of cherry blossoms under the railings and mosaic images of native animals and plants in this area.

Walking across this bridge is quite magical. It feels like you are walking above the forest, away from it all.

There are 3 types of owls on Okinawa. We think this is a depiction of the brown hawk owl.

Liked how nature has taken over and added a decorative touch to the roof of this shelter.

We are having a great day exploring the Castle Park and its many treasures. We imagine that if we returned here, that this vine would be covering most of the trunk.

Orion Brewery creates fine beer which we have been enjoying. Their tour is considered to be an activity you mustn’t miss when visiting Nago. It is said to be a very good tour, plus they give you 2 beer to drink at the end. If driving a car, there must be a designated driver for your group. We, and many others we met, were disappointed that they closed early for the New Year. Oh well…they did themselves proud with their Kadomatsu (New Year decorations).

We rode to a supermarket at an Aeon Mall to get supplies in for the holidays. It was very festive with families shopping for gift boxes of food, rice etc to give at New Year. We watched what people were buying for their festivities and took our cue from their selections.

Nicely packaged luxury fruit are a special gift…the quality is very high, as is the price. Apples, strawberries, melon seemed to be quite popular.

The quality of the sushi and sashimi is high and reasonably priced….compared to at home.

Blue Seal ice cream proudly offers Okinawan ice cream. Hokkaido also had ice cream unique to their island. Hokkaido and Okinawa are very different in many ways, but they share a distinction of being unique from the rest of Japan.

Our selections for NewYear’s - shrimp tempura on a bed of veggie tempura…we observed that every shopper bought these. Also a meat tray…duck, deboned citrus chicken, sausages, karaage chicken and a selection of salads. It will be a feast.

Not a huge fan of tempura, however in Japan we love it. Very tasty.

Barry surprised me with these local chocolates. Delicious

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Scott AndersonWhat an extraordinary way to start the year!
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4 months ago