Snorkeling @ Maeda with Amanda

On a hot & sunny Friday afternoon (the day before Betsy's birthday) after Amanda & Betsy had a yummy lunch together at Hama Sushi, I joined them for an excursion out to Maeda Point (Maeda-misaki) in Onna-son for some snorkeling fun. Normally, we've found that Fridays are much less crowded than Saturday & Sunday at Maeda, but that day it was SLAMMED (as much if not more than the Sunday we went with Tito & Ana)! There were crowds of snorkelers & divers all over the place. Nonetheless, we squeezed in with them & enjoyed the waters & wildlife!

A dozen squid just hanging out, despite the dozens of snorkelers & divers about:

Surgeonfish & Wrasse thriving on the coral:
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Tiny juvenile Sergeant Major Damselfish near the entrance to the cave:

Parrotfish gliding around gracefully:

Anemone & all kinds of fish around it:

Needlenose Fish swimming just below the surface of the water:

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Maeda with Tito y Ana

After checking out Zanpa Royal Misaki Hotel's beach & then the Zanpa lighthouse cliffs (where a sea turtle surfaced directly below us to say hello; the many fishermen that witnessed it with us didn't seem nearly as impressed as we were), we then made our way to Maeda Point. The first order of business was some snorkeling off what turned out to be uber-crowded steps (not surprising for a weekend, especially a Sunday). Tito received his first taste of Okinawa's wonderful underwater life & seemed to truly appreciate it. It was our first time staying shallow at Maeda & we were pleased to discover the big cave (east of the steps; go right), despite its VERY crowded status.

After the swim, we made our way to the nearby Maeda Flats beach area, where we grilled a yummy lunch & enjoyed an afternoon on the beach. The rain held off until just the right time, right after we'd packed up to head home.

Despite our readiness to get home & clean the salt water film from our bodies, we had to make one final stop when we spotted this gorgeous rainbow & had to pull over to snap a few photos:

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