clear skies at last, then to 35.73N, 139.65E

April 5 - Last day in Okinawa, and the Makishi public market was the only thing on our agenda. So we took our time with breakfast and didn't leave the hotel until around 9:30. Other markets we've seen in Japan - especially those selling fresh seafood - typically open in the wee hours of the morning. And since Makishi was only a 5-minute walk away, we figured it'd be bustling well before we arrived. But this is Okinawa, where people operate on a clock that is more Mexico than Tokyo. Fewer than half the shops along Chuo-dori had opened for business, and it seemed like the shopkeepers of many of those were chatting with neighbors two or three doors down. By this time, Rie and I are realizing just how uptight living in megalopolis has made us. We could get used to this, we agree, were it not for the humid 6-month summers. A few hours remained before our rental car was due back - enough time to drive around the perimeter of Kadena Air Base and swing by Jef for a goya burger. Then it was off to the airport, for a 7 pm flight that would return us to an 8 degree (C) cooler Tokyo.