Ufuya Field Trip

A small but significant cadre of 3rd Med Battalion wives took a trip to Motobu today in search of a local restaurant called Ufuya.  On the way, we stopped at the home of a woman who is known for bringing antiques from Mainland Japan to Okinawa.  I know nothing of antiques, but was looking forward to seeing traditional Japanese furniture.  Unfortunately, the antiques dealer was not at home, so we wandered around the grounds of the house admiring (or questioning) the artsy/crafty pieces generated by the dealer’s husband, who is an artist.  At first, it was fun to look around and see something peering out at you from the shrubs or the wall or the roof!  Then, it took a turn at Creepyville and headed towards Frenzytown.  

We piled back into the car and headed off for Ufuya when suddenly our eyes caught a huge splash of purple off to the side.  That is really the best way I could describe it – splash or spread of purple.  We turned in to investigate and found a hydrangea garden.

One of the best ways to explore Okinawa is to turn down a road and see where it leads.  Ryan seizes every opportunity to do this, especially when the road isn’t paved.  I like to think I’m an adventurous one, but turning down an unnamed road (they are all unnamed) in an unknown town can be hairy.  The major roads are wide enough for any vehicle, but Ryan and I found out the hard way on Zamami that some roads are not meant for SUVs.  In today's case, we were fine.

We paid our 300 yen each and walked among hydrangeas.  I was reminded of a friend’s wedding in which I was a bridesmaid and our dresses matched our hydrangea bouquets.  Other flowers in full bloom among the hydrangeas let us know that spring was still present in Okinawa:

After walking around, we enjoyed some shaved ice at a little stand near where we entered.  You don’t realize how loud a group of five Americans can be until you place those five Americans among 30 Okinawans.  We were having such fun, talking about the gardens and our day so far, just laughing and carrying on!  It was like a weekend for us, but we were aware of our volume and didn’t linger too long.  The shaved ice was refreshing, but our stomachs let us know that it was not a substitute for lunch.

We headed off to Ufuya once again and were delighted that it was not very far away from the garden.  A quick lesson in Japanese pronunciation for you: when you see an “f” in the romaji presentation of a Japanese word, it is pronounced as an “h.”  “Ufuya” sounds like “ooh-hoo-yah.”  The grounds of the restaurant were as peaceful as the previous gardens, although with more elements: a waterfall, a man-made stream, and perfectly placed benches for sitting and reflecting.  Sadly, the only photo worth showing here is the one of the sign:

The food was excellent and we all agreed that this would be a wonderful place to bring our husbands if we ever needed/wanted a romantic dinner.  We ate, savored, and chatted about all things between here and the sun.  Before heading home, we walked around the restaurant grounds again, which felt especially good after sitting indian-style for so long.  I indulged in some pineapple pound cake on the way home, thinking of how my favorite part of the day was the unplanned visit to the hydrangea garden.  That seems to be more common than not for me since moving out here: the things I enjoy the most are the things I never saw coming.