ON ISLANDS TIME

Far removed from Japan’s main bulk, Okinawa offers coral-rich waters, paradise beaches, unique culinary traditions, and intriguing history

Although Japan is more famous for its super-charged cities and hotbeds of traditional cultures, it is not lacking in outstanding coastal destinations.

And serious sun-worshippers will be bewitched by the options in the country’s southernmost prefecture Okinawa. Known for its friendly, sub-tropical, climate and string of beaches the province is Japan’s premier spot for beach bums.

Okinawa is also highly regarded for its diving, with coral and marine species as varied as that of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

Here, visitors will find average temperatures of 74 degrees and more than 100 islands stretched over 700 kilometers of ocean – roughly equivalent to the distance between Singapore and Penang. Given all this scope it is no surprise that options for kicking back are plentiful.

Located in the southwest corner of Miyako Island, Yonaha Maehama Beach stretches for six and a half blissful kilometers and has clear, shallow water for swimming and water sports.

Other killer beaches can be found on the starfish-shaped island of Amami-Oshima and the Keramas, a group of 22 little outcrops located just north of Naha, the prefecture capital and main transport hub.

One of the most popular islands to visit in the Keramas is Zamami. The island is popular with whale watchers from December to early May. In the summer, beaches like the stunning, half-crescent Furuzamami attract holidaymakers from across Asia and divers looking to swim with sea turtles. Today, it’s a slow, sleepy place with a population just under 1,000 people.

In 1945, however, it was an important war theater – a prelude to three months of attacks on Okinawa.

The invasion of the Kerama Islands marked the beginning of the Battle of Okinawa. On March 26, 1945, Allied forces reached Zamami, meeting stiffer resistance than they anticipated. The three-day battle that ensued left hundreds dead, including 404 civilians, about half of whom committed suicide to avoid capture.

On Tokashiki, the largest of the Kerama chain, the landscape is no less stunning and a legacy no less complex. On March 28, 1945, Japanese Imperial Army forces ordered over 300 islanders to commit suicide, a moment solemnly commemorated each year.

Visitors might it hard to reconcile that dark chapter in history with the friendly locals they run into at the tiny local izakayas. Or with the brilliant turquoise waters, tranquil hikes, and abundant scenery.

Okinawa isn’t just about glorious seascapes. The prefectural capital Naha is underrated. Historians consider Shurijo to be the Ryukyu Kingdom’s most important castle. It was abandoned in 1879, after the Japanese empire annexed the Ryukyu Islands. During World War II, the Imperial Japanese Army had set up its headquarters underneath it, and so American forces shelled it relentlessly. They set fire to it and left it in ruins.

The castle was nearly destroyed sever al times, but today it still proudly overlooks Naha.

Next to the castle is Zuisen. Operating in the shadows of Shurijo since 1887, the stone-walled distillery still produces tradi tional awamori – the fiery rice-based spirit that has become a symbol of Okinawan culture.

The capital is a good place to sample Okinawa’s unique cuisine, like goya chanpuru (stir-fried bitter gourd with egg), (sweet-salty pork belly simmered with bonito stock and awamori), ice cream and snacks made from beni-imo (purple sweet potato), and, a byproduct of the postwar American military occupation, spam mu subi, and taco rice.

All along the Kokusai Dori—“Inter national Road,” Naha’s main tourist and shopping street, named after the former Ernie Pyle International Theater that was built here after the war—people eat, drink, party, and buy souvenirs like shisa wa’s lion-dog figure) ornaments and aloha shirts. Modern Japan meets island life.