Okinawa is about 400 miles (640km) from the Japanese mainland (bottom left on the above map). It is situated in the East China Sea, and is actually closer to Taiwan than it is to Tokyo.
We said farewell to Hiroshimah on a beautiful, blue-sky day, which was a little frustrating given that we were 535m up, yesterday, atop Mt Misen, on Miyajima, umbrellas open.
We enquired about a taxi to the airport: no problem, £80. Given our positive experience yesterday, we made further enquiries with regard to other options. The bus to the airport – the bus station being a 5 minute walk from our hotel – £7.50 each. Of course we did…
So, why Okinawa? Meet a few Okinawans (courtesy of National Geographic, see link below).
84-year old Fumiyasu Yamakawa’s ikigai (reason for living)? Daily exercise, including yoga (see below), to train for an annual decathlon; his favourite events being high-jump and pole-vault.
For 88-year old Zen-ei Nakamura, “fishing is his life”. He immerses himself in his work, often skin-diving to usher fish into his nets.
103-year old Ushi Okushima grows her own food, seeing gardening as her daily exercise. Her daily long-time daily rituals include: morning prayers to her ancestors, tea with friends, lunch with family, an afternoon nap, a sunset social hour with friends, and before bed a cup of sake infuse with the herb mugwort.
When she’s not watching sumo wrestling on TV, 100 year-old Yasu Itoman, gets her own exercise by growing onions, tomatoes, carrots, and other herbs and vegetables in her garden. They give her natural antioxidants that may help prevent cancer.
Our interest in the ‘Blue Zone’ areas of the world – of which Okinawa is a prime example – has been long-held. It was likely sparked by my wife’s reading of Dan Buettner’s The Blue Zones Secrets for Living Longer: Lessons From the Healthiest Places on Earth.
According to Buettner, ‘Scientific studies suggest that only about 25 percent of how long we live is dictated by genes… The other 75 percent is determined by our lifestyles and the everyday choices we make. It follows that if we optimize our lifestyles, we can maximize our life expectancies within our biological limits’ (p. xxii).
Gradually, over the years, driven by my wife’s passion for research on such matters, we have taken many positive steps, especially with regard to diet. We have both always recognised the value of good exercise, and maintained a good regime. Although, all too often, a busy work life compromises our ideal.
So, why Okinawa? I suggest you have your answer. We simply want to be there, get a feel for the place where people, generally, live longer and healthier lives – and hopefully extend our learning along the way. Added to that, our base is at the sea’s edge (as is the case for our next leg, Bali); we love being by the sea, anywhere in the world.
A short walk from our hotel is America Village. We thought we would get that one out of the way first!
We reckon that Fumiyasu, Zen-ei, and Yasu do not owe their good health and longevity to their frequenting such areas?
Although, as the light dropped, the area filled up and took on quite a different feel.
And then, one of the highlights of the two weeks so far, a superb little cafe, with truly first rate coffee – not to mention the baked cheesecake.
A little further down the road, we came across their roastery.
All is well when you know where to go for a good (great) coffee don’t you think!
The beach we are by is renowned for its sunsets. No words needed here…
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