Deep Blue Adventures

Hey all,

     Hope you enjoyed a happy and relaxing Labor Day weekend.  We decided Monday would be a good day to finally make the trek up to Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium; it’s on the northern end of the island, about an hour and a half drive via the expressway.  We headed off just as Logan was ready for his first nap and he slept the whole way up!  When we got there we were greeted by this absolutely stunning view . . .

According to the brochure, this tank is roughly 30 feet deep, 115 feet wide and 90 feet long.  It was enormous!  Among its residents are three whale sharks—the largest fish in the world!  The aquarium itself was the largest in the world at the time it was built and still holds several world records.

We ate lunch at a cafe next to the giant tank where we could enjoy the stunning and unusual view of manta rays flying by.  Then we headed off to see if we could find any mermaids among the other fabulous sights that the aquarium offered.

Logan says “hey Mommy, look at the fish!” 

Unfortunately about this time I noticed that my camera battery was about to die (poor planning, I know) so we had to conserve shots through the rest of the aquarium.  (That’s why I wasn’t able to get a picture of the mermaid--sorry!)

Outside the aquarium they have several other features including a dolphin show . . .

A turtle tank (Logan loved the turtles; I guess he takes after me in that respect J) . . .

And manatees!  Unfortunately none of them were named “Barbara”. 

The overall park complex also includes the Oceanic Culture Museum, a native Okinawan village, a nice stretch of beach, a large children’s park (ocean-themed, of course) and an enormous botanical garden and arboretum—none of which we had time for during this trip but, rest assured, we will be back!  (And I’ll have my camera battery charged next time!)