Tag Archives: 沖縄 (Okinawa)

Enjoy Japan's nature & 4 seasons

Iriomote to Yubu island: Cross the sea with a water buffalo!

During your stay on Iriomote island, a water buffalo with large circular horns can quickly take you across the sea to visit the botanical garden of Yubu island! It is great fun the first time and there is no way to get sea sick :)

Travel photo 1: Water buffalos ready to go to Yubu island.
Water buffalos on 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) ready to go to 由布島 (Yubu island) on 01 November 2008.

Travel photo 2: Tourists crossing the sea in a cart pulled by a water buffalo :)
Tourists in a cart pulled by a water buffalo crossing the sea between 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) and 由布島 (Yubu island) on 01 November 2008.

Travel photo 3: Iriomote island seen from behind a water buffalo!
西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) seen from behind a water buffalo on 01 November 2008.

During my autumnal trip in Okinawa, the driver even played an Okinawan musical instrument “sanshin” during the crossing :) Will you be that lucky too?

USEFUL LINKS

 

USEFUL JAPANESE
  • Water buffalo = 水牛 (Suigyu).
  • Iriomote island = 西表島 (Iriomote-jima), Yubu island = 由布島 (Yubu-jima).
  • Okinawa prefecture = 沖縄県 (Okinawa-ken).
Enjoy Japan's nature & 4 seasons

Canoeing & trekking for exciting landscapes at Iriomote island’s jungle

Active travellers with a guide can witness beautiful and exciting landscapes at Iriomote island’s jungle, as I did during my second stay in Okinawa in 2008. A helicopter tour would give you great views of the island but you would miss the unique sights of inner Japan enjoyed while canoeing or trekking in the jungle!

Ecotour photo 1: River partly covered by trees seen from a canoe.
View from a canoe on a river in the jungle of 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Ecotour photo 2: First sight of Pinaisara waterfalls while canoeing.
ピナイサーラの滝 (Pinaisara waterfalls) seen from a river in the jungle of 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Ecotour photo 3: River seen through dense foliage while trekking in the jungle.
River seen from the jungle of 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Ecotour photo 4: Best panorama of Iriomote island from the top of Pinaisara waterfalls… See the top of the waterfalls, lively jungle, barely visible river, multi-coloured sea, and bright sky!
ピナイサーラの滝 (Pinaisara waterfalls) above the jungle of 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Ecotour photo 5: Sébastien Duval with a smile at the bottom of Pinaisara waterfalls after trekking.
Sébastien Duval at the bottom of ピナイサーラの滝 (Pinaisara waterfalls) on 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Adventurers, nature lovers and travellers trying to find inner peace, your visit at Iriomote island may be your only chance to see such landscapes… Make the best of it!

USEFUL LINKS

 

USEFUL JAPANESE
  • Iriomote island = 西表島 (Iriomote-jima), Okinawa prefecture = 沖縄県 (Okinawa-ken).
  • Pinaisara waterfalls = ピナイサーラの滝 (Pinaisara-no-taki).
Enjoy Japan's nature & 4 seasons

Meeting wild cats, piranhas, vipers and lizards on Iriomote island!

Beautiful wild animals inhabit the jungle and rivers of Iriomote island. Some are cute and friendly… some are scary and dangerous… as I could witness during holidays in Okinawa in 2008.

Ecotour photo 1: Friendly lizard accepting my invitation to come on my sweaty arm. Admire its right eye, scales, yellow and dark tail, claws… What a good surprise! What an experience!
Lizard on Sébastien Duval's arm on 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Ecotour photo 2: Colourful lizard featuring black, yellow and blue stripes. Open your eyes in the jungle, look on the ground, on trunks, between leaves…
Colourful lizard in the jungle of 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Ecotour photo 3: Venomous Habu viper. Be careful with such snakes and listen to your guide’s instructions!
Venomous Habu viper in the jungle of 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Ecotour example 4 (no photo due to fast movement and reflections): Ferocious Minami-kurodai piranhas in Nakama river.

Ecotour example 5 (no photo due to fast movement at night): Iriomote-yamaneko wild cat (endangered species).

Meeting wild animals while trekking or canoeing in a jungle really changes one’s vision of life, nature and humanity. I can only recommend it, with a good guide on Iriomote island or elsewhere in the world!

USEFUL LINKS

 

USEFUL JAPANESE
  • Iriomote island = 西表島 (Iriomote-jima), Okinawa prefecture = 沖縄県 (Okinawa-ken).
  • Nakama river = 仲間川 (Nakama-gawa).
  • Habu = 波布, Minami-kurodai = 南黒鯛, Iriomote-yamaneko = 西表山猫.
Enjoy Japan's nature & 4 seasons

Mangrove & Sakishima-suo trees in Iriomote island’s jungle

Exceptional trees live in the jungle of Iriomote island. Some look thirsty… some look prehistoric… as shown on these photos of my trip to Okinawa in October/November 2008 :)

First example reached by canoe, a mangrove with long roots plunging into a river:
Mangrove on 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

Second example reached on foot after canoeing, a Sakishima-suo tree with impressively tall but thin roots. Just grab one like a plank!
Sébastien Duval with François between the roots of a Sakishima-suo tree on 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

These exciting sights of Japanese nature were only two of the many good surprises of Iriomote island! Ready for some ecotourism in Japan?

USEFUL LINKS

 

USEFUL JAPANESE
  • Iriomote island = 西表島 (Iriomote-jima), Okinawa prefecture = 沖縄県 (Okinawa-ken).
  • Sakishima-suo tree = 先島蘇芳木 (Sakishima-suo-no-ki).
Learn about Japan

Any famous hot spring in Okinawa prefecture?

Okinawa prefecture has no famous hot spring. Still, Okinawa lets you relax in the water: you can swim in the sea at beautiful beaches or e.g. in the fresh pool at the bottom of Pinaisara waterfalls on Iriomote island! This is inner Japan :)

ピナイサーラの滝 (Pinaisara waterfalls) above the jungle of 西表島 (Iriomote island, Japan) on 31 October 2008.

USEFUL LINKS

 

USEFUL JAPANESE
  • Hot spring = 温泉 (Onsen).
  • Okinawa prefecture = 沖縄県 (Okinawa-ken), Iriomote island = 西表島 (Iriomote-jima).
  • Pinaisara waterfalls = ピナイサーラの滝 (Pinaisara-no-taki).
Learn about Japan

Japan’s 47 administrative areas: list and map in English

Japan is administratively divided in 47 complementary areas listed in English below by big region from North-East to South-West:

  1. Hokkaido
  2. Aomori
  3. Iwate
  4. Akita
  5. Miyagi
  6. Yamagata
  7. Fukushima
  8. Ibaraki
  9. Tochigi
  10. Gunma
  11. Chiba
  12. Saitama
  13. Tokyo
  14. Kanagawa
  15. Niigata
  16. Toyama
  17. Ishikawa
  18. Nagano
  19. Gifu
  20. Fukui
  21. Yamanashi
  22. Shizuoka
  23. Aichi
  24. Shiga
  25. Kyoto
  26. Hyogo
  27. Mie
  28. Nara
  29. Osaka
  30. Wakayama
  31. Tottori
  32. Shimane
  33. Okayama
  34. Hiroshima
  35. Yamaguchi
  36. Kagawa
  37. Tokushima
  38. Ehime
  39. Kochi
  40. Fukuoka
  41. Saga
  42. Nagasaki
  43. Oita
  44. Miyazaki
  45. Kumamoto
  46. Kagoshima
  47. Okinawa

Any specialist of Japan should know this basic list and should be able to place the 47 names on an administrative map of Japan. Do not wait if you plan to be an English-speaking tour conductor, tour guide or travel agent in Japan like Sébastien Duval :)

Map of Japan with the names of the prefectures in English. (Public domain via Wikimedia thanks to Tokyoship)

Learn more about Japan – Nihon – Nippon on Inner Japan…

Explore the Japanese cuisine

Delicious goya omelette & surprising pork rolls at Nago café (Tokyo)

Eating delicious Japanese food was a great way to end a busy successful week of work so I ate twice at Nago café (Tokyo) this Friday!

For lunch, NASHIRO Tsugumi cooked a delicious omelette containing goya (from Okinawa) and cheese, topped with a spicy tomato sauce. The set also included a soup with sesame oil, seaweeds, white rice, hot coffee, and a tiny slice of tankan (orange) pound cake.

Goya omelette with a soup, seaweeds, and white rice at なごかふぇ (Nago café, Tokyo, Japan) on 07 March 2014.

Omelette containing goya from Okinawa and cheese, topped with a spicy tomato sauce at なごかふぇ (Nago café, Tokyo, Japan) on 07 March 2014.

Coffee and a slice of tankan pound cake at なごかふぇ (Nago café, Tokyo, Japan) on 07 March 2014.

For dinner, Tsugumi cooked a potato potage topped with banno-negi (onion) and surprising pork rolls containing bell pepper, green beans or okra.

Potato potage topped with banno-negi at なごかふぇ (Nago café, Tokyo, Japan) on 07 March 2014.

Pork rolls containing bell pepper, green beans or okra at なごかふぇ (Nago café, Tokyo, Japan) on 07 March 2014.

I learn new things about Japanese food and/or international cooking every time I go to this restaurant; these dishes are perfect examples!

USEFUL LINKS

 

USEFUL JAPANESE
  • Banno-negi = 万能ネギ, Goya = ゴーヤー, Tankan = タンカン.
  • NASHIRO Tsugumi = 名城・嗣巳.
  • Nago café = なごかふぇ, Tokyo = 東京.
  • Okinawa archipelago = 沖縄諸島 (Okinawa-shoto).
Discover the Made in Japan, Meet Japanese people

MIYAGI Sanami’s seashell decorations at Nago café (Tokyo)

Having lunch at Nago café today, I had the good surprise to meet for the first time a sympathetic Japanese girl named MIYAGI Sanami who made seashell decorations for this Okinawan restaurant in Tokyo. Freelance artist, Sanami just spent a few hours on her creation but doesn’t it add a great touch to the place? These cute Made in Chiba decorations reminded me of artworks I saw on several islands of Okinawa archipelago… Big success!

宮城・沙奈美 (MIYAGI Sanami) with her seashell decorations at なごかふぇ (Nago café, Tokyo, Japan) on 13 February 2014

Seashell decorations by 宮城・沙奈美 (MIYAGI Sanami) at なごかふぇ (Nago café, Tokyo, Japan) on 13 February 2014

Note: I enjoyed as usual the delicious Okinawan food cooked by Mr. NASHIRO Tsugumi :)

Special thanks to MIYAGI Sanami for the nice chat in Japanese and for allowing me to use her photo.

USEFUL LINKS

 

USEFUL JAPANESE
  • MIYAGI Sanami = 宮城・沙奈美, NASHIRO Tsugumi = 名城・嗣巳.
  • Nago café = なごかふぇ, Tokyo = 東京.
  • Okinawa archipelago = 沖縄諸島 (Okinawa-shoto).