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| The Seemingly Innocuous Blue Float Boundary in the South China Sea at Moon Beach Palace |
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| Bad Things That Can Happen if you Get Bitten |
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| The Deadly Habu Snake |
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| What Those Puffy Plastic Blue Floats are REALLY For - - Stinger Resistant Enclosures |
A visit to Okinawa will provide cautious (as well as neurotic) travelers good reason to be nervous about nature's threats. We stayed at Moon Beach Palace, a safe-enough looking place with a lovely beach resort on the South China Sea, with soft sand, chaise lounges separated by beach umbrellas, and a waterfront fully stocked with kayaks, jet skis and big boats for skippered outings.
The swimming area is outlined by rope punctuated by blue foam floats. The scariness evolves when you approach the water's edge and read the signs. Fortunately, the signs are in both Japanese and English so that English-speaking tourists can take in the gravity of the warnings. The Notice starts predictably enough, with routine reminders like: Children Must be Accompanied by an Adult, Do Not Swim When the Flag is Red, and No Pets. Then, it was endearing to read the awkwardly translated manners-controller, "Prohibit Any Conducts That May Embarrass Others". But finally, the safety warning was simply, "Swim Only in the Authorized Areas". Upon closer inspection, what had appeared to be an ordinary roped-in area was actually a protective net. The rope on the water's surface was actually the top of an enclosure-like cage formed from soft netting, anchored around the perimeter of the safe-swim area.
The reason for the protective cage became evident when we read the next sign, "Venomous Marine Life in Okinawa". There were detailed instructions what to do when bitten or attacked by various nefarious sea creatures. The instructions were hilarious -- unless, of course, you actually needed to heed them. Photos of the offending creatures accompanied the first-aid steps. For an injury by one creature, you must use vinegar. For a different one, no matter what you do, don't use vinegar. Seek medical attention at once. Use cold water and ice. Whatever you do, don't use ice; use heat. (Right!) My takeaway was to seek medical attention for everything, disregarding all of the detailed directions, since you probably wouldn't know how to match what bit you with the pictures of what to do about it.
We decided to get away from the potential terrors of the beach. (Not really -- we had our fill of swimming and were ready to go out touring). We visited the cultural center at Ryuku Mura, where we encountered the deadly habu snake. The habu is a venomous pit viper snake unique to the Ryuku archipelago, of which Okinawa is the largest island. To visit the habu snake theater, we had to pay an upcharge beyond the general admission fee to the cultural center. As we entered the theater, we passed by photographs on the wall showed disgusting injuries from habu bites, which are often fatal. A demonstrator pulled a habu out of a box, placed it on a stick, and waved it across the front row, where I was sitting. A little too close for my comfort. But I did snap a picture. The habu show ended with a silly 3D video of a habu encountering and succumbing to its natural enemy - the mongoose, which was imported from India about 100 years ago. The video was anamatronics of the hokiest kind, where the mongoose and the snake joust and parry in jerky motion until the mongoose strikes and crushes the snake. Upon leaving the theater, we passed by a sign of apology. "Notice: Habu and Mongoose fight show has been forbade by the law of animal protecting. Now, we introduce and present the show on 3D screen with explanation in Japanese. Thank you very much for your understanding". It was OK with me not to see that gory fight in real life.