Okinawan women not only have the longest life expectancy in the world, but the extra years are usually healthy, happy and productive. The reason is more nurture than nature, so eat your veggies, get some exercise, cherish your friendships, and remember to smile.
The Okinawa Rail ( Gallirallus okinawae ) know locally as the Yanbaru Kuina is a small flightless bird that is endemic to the forests of northern Okinawa. There are less than a thousand birds remaining on Okinawa, and numerous factors both natural and manmade are keeping the population small. Various animals kill the birds including jungle crows, mongooses and cats. The crows are a natural part of the forest ecosystem, but mongooses were introduced to try and control the habu snake population, and feral cats are discarded strays and their progeny. Signs are now posted telling people not to discard their unwanted pets, and for several years there has been a program to try and eradicate the mongoose from the northern part of the island. Another common killer of the Okinawa Rail is motor vehicles. The local government has tried to reduce the frequency of accidents by posting warning signs for motorists informing them to slow down, phone numbers if you should find (or be the cause of) an injured bird, and mini exit ramps …
After photographing Seiei Nakaza sensei, I took a few shots of his senior student, Brian Hobson. It might seem strange to call a 7th dan black belt a student, but even those who have studied karate for decades often visit Okinawa to learn from the masters of the art.
Beautiful small white flowers growing near the lighthouse at Cape Zanpa, but does anyone know their name? Pentax 645DHD PENTAX-D FA645 MACRO 90mmF2.8ED AW S
Rainy season in Okinawa, but at least some people are still smiling. Pentax 645D HD PENTAX-D FA645 MACRO 90mmF2.8ED AW S
No recent diving pics, so I thought I post one from last year I hadn’t got around to uploading. There is quite a lot of backscatter from debris in the water, but still nice to have found Nemo and friends. Pentax K5 SMC Pentax DA Fish-eye 10-17mm Ikelite Housing with two Ikelite DS-161 strobes
One of the great things about the new 90mm lens for the 645D is that it can focus very close to the subject. Although not a 1:1 macro, it does allow you to get some great detail shots with what has become my standard walk-around lens.
Took a 30 minute ferry ride from Motobu across to Ie Island. I’d never been to the island previously, which is amazing considering I’ve lived on Okinawa for over a decade. It also looks to have some great shore diving. Ie is famous for beef, togan, and brown sugar, but surprisingly the main crop on the island was tobacco. Ie island was heavily bombed during the Battle of Okinawa. The local population hid in caves to try and survive the typhoon of steel. In one cave called Niya-Thiya, around a 1000 locals waited out the battle. US war correspondent Ernie Pyle was killed on Ie Island on April 18th 1945. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1944, and covered the war in Europe, Africa and the Pacific. The main event on Ie Island is the Lily Festival that takes place from the end of April to the beginning of May. There are fields of white lilies, and also several rows of the more colorful varieties of Lily.
Another No Osprey protest took place last week outside of Torii Army Base. It was much smaller than the event I’d previously photographed near the Ginowan Convention Center. On Friday, there were around 100 protestors (and a couple of bulls), and it only lasted for around 30 minutes. There were several short speeches by leaders of the group about not wanting Osprey helicopters and military bases on Okinawa. Then as a group they faced the gate and shouted their demands. They chanted in Japanese that they didn’t want the helicopters, they didn’t want bases, and they didn’t want military on Okinawa. Then after a brief pause, the chant became “Yankee go home, Yankee go home, Yankee go home.” This was the last thing shouted, and then the protest ended and the gathering broke up. The presence of military bases in Okinawa is a contentious and complicated issue. The Okinawans have every right to voice their opinions and try to effect change on the political situation. However, to end a demonstration repeatedly chanting “Yankee go home,” …
Here are a few snorkeling and scuba diving images that I shot both for Leia’s modeling portfolio, and for potential use in travel magazines. You could argue that scuba divers wouldn’t be wearing as much makeup, or that a wetsuit might be more sensible when diving in April. This is true, but as I’m not shooting this as a news story, a photographer can use a little artistic license.
TRAVEL 67 : Chris Willson Photography 