All posts filed under: Okinawa

Peace Memorial Park

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Peace Memorial Park is located on Mabuni Hill where the Battle of Okinawa came to a close. The Peace Memorial Museum describes life during and after the war, the Peace Memorial Monument contains a 10-meter statue of a person praying, and the Cornerstone of Peace is line after line of granite blocks bearing the names of over 240,000 who died. Japan (Okinawa) 149,193,   Japan (other prefectures) 77,166,   USA 14,009   Republic of Korea 365,    North Korea 82,   UK 82,   Taiwan 34 As with the  Himeyuri Peace Museum this is an important place to visit, especially if you are living on Okinawa.

Himeyuri Peace Mueseum

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This month I’ve been updating the Okinawa chapter of a Japan guidebook. A huge part of this is fact checking, but I’ve also revisited most of the major attractions and landmarks on the island. Yesterday I stopped by Himeyuri Peace Museum and the Peace Memorial Park. Before the battle of Okinawa, the Japanese mobilized Okinawan junior high and high school students. One group of high school girls, the Himeyuri students, were assigned as nurses. 222 young girls and 18 teachers found themselves in underground caves dealing with the dead and the dying. Worse was to come. When their unit was dissolved they were left to fend for themselves in a Typhoon of Steel. Caught between the Japanese and American forces, 80% of the girls were killed. Japanese propoganda had told them that capture by American forces would result in torture and rape. Some girls threw themselves off  cliffs, others huddled around a grenade and pulled the pin. This is an important place to visit for anyone living on Okinawa. It’s not an easy experience, but as …

Kadena Gift Corner – October 23rd

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Next Saturday, October 23rd I will be selling prints and answering photography questions at Kadena Gift Corner  on Kadena Air Base. The Kadena Gift Corner will be open from 10am – 2pm so please stop by if you’re in the area. For those of you who don’t have access to the base, don’t worry. I will also be having an exhibition and print sales in December at Global Gallery in Plaza House. Hope to see some of you on Saturday!

Gyokusendo Cave, Okinawa.

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Gyokusendo Cave is located at the southern end of Okinawa Honto. At 5km in length, it is the second longest limestone cave in Japan. 890 meters of the cave are open to visitors and it’s well worth a trip. Gyokusendo Cave is located in the theme park Okinawa World. Once you leave the cave you can see various traditional Okinawan crafts including pottery, glass blowing, weaving and pickling poisonous snakes in alcohol. This shot was taken with the camera on a tripod and a shutter speed of around 15 seconds. The slow shutter speed means that all the tourists wandering along the walkway have magically disappeared.

Naha Tug of War – The Kids

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On Sunday I went to the annual Tug of war in Naha. This is one of the biggest events of the year in Okinawa, and the rope is humongous. Before the tug of war there is a procession down Kokusai-dori. I had my camera with me and got a few shots. I like these  two shots, but my favorite of the three is the third. There is something really cool at the way such a young kid stares fearlessly straight back into the camera.

Okinawa Tourism Video

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This is an interesting promotion video created by Okinawa Prefecture and the Okinawa Convention & Visitors Bureau. It’s nicely put together, it can be viewed by potential visitors both domestic and foreign, and gives a good intro to the islands. It would have been nice to have a list of the places seen in the video (along with time shown). For example I’m not sure if the islands shown at 1.30 are the Keramas or somewhere else. As a start of a list ….. 2.30  Manza Beach Hotel? 3.22 Southeast Botanical Gardens 3.25 Bios Botanical Gardens 3.26 Gyokusendo 3.28 Churaumi Aquarium The tug-of-war shown at 4.05 is the world’s largest and takes place this Sunday at 3PM!

Zakimi Castle – Film and Digital

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This morning I got up early and drove over to Zakimi Castle.  I decided to get a shot from the same place I took one of my favorite photographs of Okinawa. Although it was 7.30AM the sky was a little hazy, and even with a polarizer it didn’t pop. When I came home I compared the image to the “original” taken with the Pentax 67II, a 45mm lens, a polarizer and Fuji Provia. The detail in the first shot is fantastic but I prefer the wider angle and the saturation of colors in the original. Unlike today, I had managed to catch the castle under glorious clear blue skies. However, I did get an interesting new image of the stonework. It’s a simple “detail” shot that says a lot about the construction of the castle.

Kishiwada Danjiri – The Action

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It’s the job of some men to drag the danjiri through the streets, while other men get to ride along. The above photo is clear evidence that I was standing where I shouldn’t be standing! The large group of men in the left of the image are just about to stampede past. The man on the roof of the danjiri jumps from side to side and performs something similar to YMCA as they hurtle through the streets.