This was our first real free-and-easy day of the trip. We did not have a chartered car, so we got around by taxi. Taxis, of course, do not come with child seats, but thankfully all the rides today were short and did not involve the expressway.

Our first stop was Okinawa Zoo & Museum. Because of the typhoon, it was still hot, but there were more clouds and stronger winds than usual, so it felt a little cooler.

Right after entering, we were greeted by wooden animal sculptures. What a clever touch.

Besides the wooden animals, there was also a flowery elephant.

Before we saw any real animals, we first ran into the rides. This place felt like a zoo combined with a small amusement park. My daughter rode the mini train first, then played on the little electric cars several times for 100 yen per ride. On our way back through the area later, she also rode the carousel.

Some of the facilities looked badly weathered, probably from years of sea wind.

On the other hand, there were comfortable-looking Baby Care Rooms in many parts of the park, which made the place feel very family-friendly. Since our daughter is no longer exactly a “baby,” we did not go in to investigate.

My daughter said she wanted to see a real elephant, so after leaving the electric cars we headed straight there. After the elephant, we also saw nearby animals such as crocodiles, otters, and an alligator snapping turtle.

The lion exhibit had a lot of atmosphere, almost like entering a very fancy African safari lodge. The lions, however, were basically asleep the whole time.

After seeing the lions, I thought we could finally leave, but my daughter said she wanted to see the hippo. So we had to keep going down through the Satoyama maze. On the way, we saw a rope climbing structure for kids. We thought she would be scared, and half-jokingly asked whether she wanted to try it. To our surprise, she did. After finishing once, she was very proud of herself and said she wanted to go again.

Back near the entrance, we noticed a building called Wonder Museum and went in out of curiosity. It turned out to be a science hands-on exhibit area, a bit like the National Museum of Natural Science in Taiwan, and we ended up spending quite a while there.

My daughter became very interested in one of the craft activities and worked on it with her mom.

I took the chance to go outside to the food area and order Okinawa soba. Then it started pouring.

Wonder Museum turned out to be a good place to hide from the rain and pass the time.

There are animals on top of the zoo gate. I missed them on the way in, so on the way out I could only take a photo of their backsides.

Our next stop was the very large AEON MALL Okinawa Rycom.

My daughter fell asleep in the taxi. After we got out, we found a stroller for her to sit in, and then she woke up.

We browsed LOFT on the first floor, then tried to find something to eat but did not see anything that worked, so we just wandered around. When I took my daughter into a toy store, she saw a balloon and insisted on buying it. We did not want to keep buying things for her, so I carried her out. She cried in the atrium for half an hour. In the end, after she agreed that we would only look and not buy anything, I took her back for another look.

She fell asleep again on the ride back, so we carried her along while buying dinner from STEAK HOUSE BB. The more famous one is probably STEAK HOUSE 88? My daughter had Lawson chicken nuggets again. The steak was good, and it even came with hot white rice, which felt like a rare treat.

The wind and waves were stronger than yesterday, so the beach was completely unsuitable for playing.

At night, I tried the public bath on the 11th floor of the hotel. The water temperature was around 39°C, so it was not especially hot. One unusual feature was a mint bath, and the water was green. The sauna was extremely hot, but there was no thermometer, so I do not know the exact temperature. On the men’s side, there was a baby bed, a diaper-changing table, and a baby bathtub. It was very family-friendly.

After the bath, I used the carrier to take my daughter to the 11th floor to see the night view. She kept saying she wanted to look, so I turned around to let her see. She also kept asking what the dark area was. I told her it was the sea, and then she asked whether there were sharks in the sea, or fish with lots of teeth. I told her maybe, deep, deep down in the ocean.

I had originally thought about taking her out for a walk, but then it started raining heavily.

Note: This article is translated from Traditional Chinese.