Ever go to a place and think, "I should tell other people about this place?" or, "I should save this location so I can find it later." Well, I do. So I started logging the spots I visit. Below you'll find a global map of the pins I've dropped so far, as well as a feed of all my latest spots.
(Hint: because the global map contains a lot of closely-clustered pins, you may need to zoom in significantly to select individual spots. Try going full screen!)
Every American who has an opportunity to visit the peace exhibits in Hiroshima and Nagasaki should, in my opinion.
So Aaron and I spent a couple days touring Okinawa after RubyKaigi 2024 wrapped. In particular, we were both eager to escape the urban environments of Naha on the main island, so we hopped on the fastest ferry out of town, the Queen Zamami (whose reservation website evokes some real Angelfire nostalgia).
Once you get there, you probably want to rent a bike or an electronic scooter (referred to as kickboards here) to get around the island, because the island's a bit too large to comfortably walk around—especially on a warm day in direct sunlight. To the east and west are beautiful beaches—though we both preferred the tranquil blue waters of Furuzami beach. On every corner of the island, there sits an observation deck (希望台) atop the nearest mountain, and they offer some truly breathtaking views.
Speaking of, here are some of those views:
I also cut a quick one-minute video of the island, for your audiovisual enjoyment:
Anyway, if you're ever on Okinawa's main island, you really should save a day to ferry out and back to Zamami. Definitely worth seeing. 🏝️
Overall, I'm not sure that Naha is my cup of tea, but if you're going to visit Okinawa, Hotel Collective is a pretty phenomenal hotel compared to the surrounding options.
We had a brief stop in Kagoshima, so we took full advantage to get ourselves some Kurobuta (黒豚) pork. The pork is like "black angus" in that despite having "black" in the name, it is still the just-barely-cooked-enough-to-be-safe pink color we know and love.
The shioyaki is great, with lots of variety. I had the isaki, which was my first time trying it. Vegetable dishes were solid too.
Here is my Tabelog check-in
This place had a ludicrous happy hour deal, essentially boiling down to $2 whisky highballs and lemon sours, sub-$2 for five grilled homemade gyoza, and just a wee bit over $2 for a draft beer.
Naturally they were as good as any gyoza I've had in my life.
Here is my Tabelog check-in
