Sometimes different is good and sometimes it's...

"Better to see something once than to hear about it a thousand times." - Asian Proverb

I couldn't agree more.

And today I feel like I accomplished just that. Two things I've been putting off but have heard about at least a thousand times have been shooting the cosmo fields up in Kin Town...and Zumba. I know what you're thinking, Zumba and cosmos? Well, if those aren't two of the most uninteresting things on the planet and they surely couldn't be any more different from each other if they tried. The truth is, I've photographed cosmos before and I've worked out to music before...BUT I haven't shot Kin's cosmos and I certainly haven't Zumba'd. Is that a word? I may have just made it up!

So, in reviewing my day today, I've decided I kinda sorta like Zumba...but ask me again in a month after I've mastered the moves, my opinion could change. And although I'm bummed I waited too long for cosmos, I still got a couple decent shots. Here are a couple shots from up in beautiful Kin Town, Okinawa.

Hope you like.

Wanted to add a couple iPhone pictures as well.

My Southeast Asia "Bucket List"

Remember, I want to see everything twice and Southeast Asia is a good place to start!

Taiwan

1. Taipei 101.
2. Taroko Gorge.
3. Night Market.

Vietnam

1. Ha Long Bay.
2. Sailboat Ha Long Bay.
3. Take the train over night.
4. Ho Chi Minh City.
5. Day Go Cave.
6. Bai Tu Long Bay.
7. Cao Dai Temple.
8. Bui Vien Street.
9. Hanoi.
10. Hanoi Hilton.
11. Eat Pho
12. Mekong Delta.
13. Cu Chi Tunnels.
14. Drink snake wine.
15. Bike the mountains of Sapa.
16. Opera House in Saigon.

Cambodia

1. Siem Reap and the temples of Angkor Wat.
2. Phnom Penh and the silver pagoda.
3. Battambang.
4. Angkor Thom. The Bayon.
5. Tonle Sap Lake
6. Apsaras dance performance.
7. Eat at New Hope Restaurant in Siem Reap.
8. Take a tuk tuk.
9. Night Market.
10. Eat a tarantula - a delicacy in Cambodia.
11. Stay at The Plantation in Phnom Penh.
12. Visit and pay respect to the killing fields.

Thailand

1. Bathe and ride an elephant.
2. Chiang Mai.
3. Bangkok.

Singapore

1. Little India.
2. Little China.
3. Singapore Zoo.
4. Sentosa.
5. Haji Lane.
6. Singapore Flyer.
7. The White Rabbit.

Hong Kong

1. Kowloon Bay.
2. Avenue of the Stars.
3. Tian Tan Buddha.
4. Ten Thousand Buddhas Monastery.
5. Victoria Harbour.
6. Victoria Peak.
7. Central.

My Okinawa "Bucket List"

Traveling the world is awesome, but exploring your own back yard is pretty amazing, too...especially when your backyard is a sub-tropical paradise. My list grows daily. Here are the things I must see and do before I leave this beautiful island.

Okinawa

1. Snorkel/dive with the whale sharks.
2. Whale watching.
3. Zakimi Castle at night.
4. Nago cherry blossoms.
5. Naha cherry blossoms.
6. Bios on the Hill.
7. Naha Tug-o-War.
8. Traditional Okinawa dance show.
9. Drink habu sake.
10. Okinawa World.
11. Maeda flats and snorkel Maeda Point.
12. Dragons Baseball game.
13. Yomitan Pottery Village.
14. Fukushen Gardens
15. Botanical Gardens.
16. Hedo Point.
17. Tadake Falls.
18. Mt. Katsudake.
19. Okinawa Aquarium.
20. Butterfly Park.
21. Christmas lights at the zoo.
22. Itoman lights.
23. Peace Prayer Park.
24. Shuri Castle.
25. New Year Festival at a castle.
26. Higashi Village Azalea Festival.
27. Bull fighting in Ishikawa.
28. Murasaki Mura.
29. Make sushi.
30. Make soba.
31. Camping on the beach.
32. SUP around the island.
33. Watch a sunrise and a sunset on the beach in one day.
34. Photograph a sunrise.
35. Photograph a sunset. 
36. Tulip Fair at Ocean Expo Park.
37. Sunflowers in Kitanakagusuku.
38. Okinawa Santa Run.
39. Yomitan Festival.
40. Okinawa Food Flea.
41. Chinese New Year Bull Fighting Tournament.
42. Orion Beer Fest.
43. Orion Beer Factory.
44. Nago Castle.
45. Visit and abandoned hotel.
46. Kitanakagusuku castle.
47. Nakijin castle ruins.
48. Buddha.
49. Aha Falls and rope swinging.
50. Take a class to learn Japanese.
51. Release baby sea turtles.
52. Aka Island.
53. Henoko Festival.

My Ever Wanderlusting Heart...

"We are all wanderers on this earth. Our hearts are full of wonder, and our souls are deep with dreams." -Gypsy Proverb

Sakura's, Birdie Butts, and Butterflies!

It's that time of year again! Sakura's are beginning to bloom here on Okinawa. Make sure and head up north if you want to catch a glimpse of these beautiful blooms. 

Mt. Yaedake, Okinawa. January 23, 2015

Birdie Butt.

White-eyed Japanese bird.

White Sakura's on Mt. Yaedake, Okinawa.

Butterfly Park in Nago, Okinawa.