The most surprising thing about this postcard-perfect destination – and its 160 neighbouring islands – is that it remains beyond most tourists’ radar.
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“They’re called Happiness Trees,” my guide, Junku, tells me as we stroll through the towering and soothing canopies enveloping the streets of Bise, a small seaside fishing village on the Motobu Peninsula on Okinawa Island.
We’d been traversing narrow farm roads at dusk a few minutes earlier, barely big enough for our miniature Toyota. The sweet smell of sugarcane and itobasho (local banana fibre plants used as a weaving material) fill the air, and the orange hue of hundreds of filament light globes dangling in the fields is meditative. These artificial lights fast-track the blooming of chrysanthemum flowers.
When I’d arrived at Naha Airport earlier in the day, I’d been pretty happy just being back in Japan, but arriving in Bise and seeing its 20,000 fukugi (garcinia) trees helping to protect the village from typhoon winds, my happiness turns to pure joy.
All of the sandy roads in Bise lead to the sea and tonight we’re not the only ones beelining for the beach; with a golden sunset over the East China Sea fast approaching, dozens of young Okinawans rush to glimpse the disappearing sun.
The water looks like glass. The air is breathless, and the crowd claps in almost cordial unison just as the sun disappears behind the horizon.
The calm belies its history.
Not only is most of this island postcard-perfect, it also has a cultural texture forged by its isolation, foreign invaders and war. The region should only be described in the context of its past. People here are more than just Japanese. Instead, they project themselves as equal parts proud locals, resilient warriors (Okinawa is the birthplace of karate) and sweet hosts. Most importantly, they believe in a greater purpose for their lives and guests.
FULL STORY VISIT HERE: https://www.escape.com.au/destinations/asia/japan/okinawa-island-stunning-japan-island-is-seriously-underrated/news-story/387bedc12f86db9d4c73674a4f8bebb8