Okinawa Day 4: To Poncho or Not To Poncho

That was the question many years ago when I first arrived in Okinawa.  I was green, and unschooled in the ways of the Okinawan climate.  A few Mormon missionaries get assigned to serve in areas that include special packing instructions.  Mine, curiously, recommended I pack a poncho (not an overcoat).

So, sometime during my first week on the island the rain clouds came, and I put my poncho on. A few minutes later, I realized the conundrum faced by anyone on a bike in Okinawa.  If you wear some sort of waterproof barrier, you'll be wet from sweat.  If you don't, you'll be wet from rain.  Either way, you'll be wet, but with rain, at least, you don't stink as much.

As I flew down the hill on my bike (those many years ago), the poncho flapped so violently behind me that it ripped off and faded into memory, I really didn't think much of it because I already knew I'd never wear one again.  So, why on earth did I pack my gore-tex cycling jacket for this trip?

I don't know, but I had it stuffed in one of my panniers today as I climbed the Shuri hill (the easier route, this time), and blitzed back down the other side through Higashi to the back door of the Heiwa Dori shotens.  It dripped throughout the day, and when it got a bit heavy, I just ducked under the nearest awning and waited it out.  But, I think I came out of my ride today dryer than I did yesterday.  Today it was rain, yesterday it was sweat.

So, to the food.  Had some Okinawa Soba today on Kokusai dori.  That's where my wife and kids and I met up, and we had a good time there.  The Soba was righteous, of course, so I was quite pleased with that.  Earlier, while waiting for the fam to find me, I grabbed some sort of berry/chocolate cruller donut creation from Mos Burger.  The burger joint with the worst name ever came up with something pretty good.

Today also included some good wandering time through Shuri, Higashi, and Naha proper.  The Shuri apartment (lo, these many years later) appears to have been vacated by the missionaries.  Will have to look into that.  The hole in the wall (literally, just a closet) of a bike repair shop just down the road from the Okii Mart in Shuri where I got my chain replaced by a hammer swinging blind man (at no charge) is also gone (the Okii Mart, by the way, is now a Kanehide).  The building is gone too, I think, to make room for a widened road.  The Miwa Mansion (the name of the Higashi Apartment, and also, coincidentally, name of my wife - Miwa, not Mansion) is still there, and I also, almost by use of the Force (but aided a skosh by my iphone's GPS) found the back door to Heiwa Dori.

All good things.  So, too, was swinging by the Bridgestone shop on 58, and it's little annex a few blocks off the highway (which is a better shop than the main one).  Sogenji is still there, and so is the miracle behind it.

So, today was a nice contrast to yesterday.  Wet and a little cool.