dailygaelley

A couple of weeks ago we cruised aboard Star Cruises’ Superstar Virgo. The experience was all sorts of fun. One of the things that we enjoyed were the shore excursions. We had two destinations: Miyakojima, Okinawa, Japan & Keelung, Taiwan. For this post, I’ll be focusing on Miyakojima.

Being the thrill-seekers we are, my grandparents, sister and I opt to skip the ship’s tour and went on an adventure on our own. This allowed us to travel freely within the time allotted for shore excursions.

Miyakojima, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan

Miyakojima is an island located south of the Okinawa Main Islands (which was the original destination of the cruise). Due to a last minute change, Star Cruises’ shore excursion was moved to Miyakojima. It is the fourth largest island and is known for its beautiful beaches but because we were already tired of the sea, my family and I opted to just go shopping and have lunch there.

My first impression of Miyakojima was how beautiful and clean the air was. Gillian & I had breakfast outside and were greeted with the fresh breeze of Miyakojima.

Technically, the ship didn’t even dock. We had to ride a boat to shore. We experienced the strong albeit beautifully seagreen waves of Miyakojima. Upon disembarking, we went through immigration and then an area was assigned for tourists.

My sister Gillian knew how to speak basic Japanese but was afraid of hearing the replies because she might not understand it. Regardless, we braved the eerily calm streets of Miyakojima. A cab was already waiting outside for us.

We decided to go to Don Quixote and shop. All for us immediately separated in search of individual hunts for our target items. Gillian & I made sure to try their ice cream. One sad thing about Davao is how we don’t get the best Haagen Dasz products. Upon seeing their crispy ice cream sandwich, I immediately got it. Gilly had a strawberry japanese ice cream. While waiting for our tax refund, it was what we munched on. I swear, Japanese ice cream is 100% amazing.

We mostly bought food and snacks to bring back home as pasalubong. Their actual items weren’t something I honestly found super appealing (mostly because I’m more willing to spend on food than clothes or etc. lol). My grandmother, however, found some of the essential oils she was missing and bought a stash. My sister bought facial cleansers and creams.

After shopping, we went to a restaurant called Miyakojima Soba, which sold soba of all kinds. I was too busy translating and talking to the saleslady to take photos. It was located in a small grocery store. We got the special Miyakojima Soba and Buta Soba, I think.

I took videos but wordpress won’t let me upload so here are some awkward photos of me eating, instead:

That’s it for the Miyakojima blog post. I’ll upload the Keelung post as soon as I finish it. For the videos of the trip, visit my nextbeat: https://nextbeat.co/u/gaelleyyy

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