On Mar 26, 2024 we docked at Naha, the capital city of Okinawa Perfecture, the southernmost perfecture of Japan. Naha is a city with a long history. It was the onetime capital of the Ryukyu Kingdom and has been a seaport since the 1400s. The Ryukyu Dynasty was abolished in 1879 and the former Ryukyu Kingdom came to an end, as it was fully annexed by Japan as Okinawa Perfecture. An imperial decree in Jul 1899 established Naha as an open port for trading with the United States and the United Kingdom. During the Battle of Okinawa in World War II, Naha suffered extensive damage from the fighting. The entire center of the city had to be rebuilt. Today, Naha has a population of over 300,000 people.

We took an excursion that began with a trip to the most sacred site of the Ryukyu Kingdom, Sefa-Utaki, an outdoor Shinto shrine. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Sefa-Utaki is a place of natural wonders, and it has an especially calm and contemplative atmosphere. Ceremonial altars were created from the natural stone outcroppings, ledges and caves. This has been a sacred site since the earliest period of Ryukyu and Okinawan history, and people still come here to pray and meditate.

We then went to a local restaurant where we were served a very traditional Okinawan lunch. The food was all very good, usually delicacies that we had never tried before.

Our excursion continued with a drive to the Gangala Valley. We went on a walking tour that started through a cave and continued on a path with striking rock formations, dramatic large plants, and unusual trees. The rustic beauty of this unusual forested park was unrivaled. On the way out we saw the Ufushu Gajimaru banyan tree, estimated to be more than 150 years old. After leaving the Gangala Valley, we headed back to our ship in Naha.