Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Okinawa's Churaumi Aquarium and Ocean Expo Park (Photo-essay)


In deciding where to go on vacation, I usually do some internet research and also consult a guide book or two with regards to the place I have in mind to visit -- and to see what attractions there I should prioritize checking out. For Okinawa, I went through the additional step of comparing my "places I wanted to visit" list with that of the two friends I'd be meeting up with there.

As it turned out, all three of us had on our lists the Churaumi Aquarium that is part of the very large Ocean Expo Park located in the northwestern section of Okinawa Honto. So no prizes for figuring out where we went on our first full day in Okinawa. And suffice to say that the following photos give only a small taste of the many delightful sights on offer at those seaside facilities:- ;b

Puppet Ponyo (who of course went with me to Okinawa)
posing near the Ocean Expo Park's north entrance :)

Should I be nice and suggest that I spotted a frog
hugging -- as opposed to humping :O --
another frog inside the Churaumi Aquarium? ;b

Some of the smaller -- and cuter -- of the
critters spotted inside the Churaumi Aquarium

View of the aquarium's awesome Kuroshio Tank
inside which several creatures, including
giant whale sharks and manta rays, swim

A view from above of the same Kuroshio Tank --
and yes, it really was cool to have access to
this alternative view of that magnificent facility

At the vegetation rich beach near the manatee pool
looking eastwards towards sandy Emerald Beach

One of the high points of the free dolphin show
at the Okichan Theatre near the aquarium

The incredible dolphins made many splashes,
got people laughing with glee and won many hearts :)

2 comments:

Horsoon said...

It must have been an incredible experience exploring the the magnificent aquarium! The underwater is always a mysterious part of the world to me :)

YTSL said...

Hi Horsoon --

The aquarium certainly was magnificent but, if truth be told, I preferred the one in Okinawa. Also... there were a couple of aquatic experiences that I had in Okinawa that I thought was better than a visit to the aquarium. Stay tuned to find out what those were! ;b