Anime store Ani-Mall (アニマール) on Kokasai Street

This store is located on the 2nd floor of a Kokasai street shop. On this day after lunch we were wandering down the street and found it quite by accident when we noticed their large signboard facing the street:

A photo of the Ani-mall Okinawa front sign on Kokasai street in Naha Okinawa. The photo shows a anime style drawing of a lady wearing traditional Ryukyu wear.
Spying the Ani Mall store sign

The Japanese writing on the large picture says “Ani Menso-re” which is a clever pun on Anime and Mensore, Mensore means welcome in the Okinawa language (Learn some Okinawan words: Uchinaaguchi ) . We had been to the Animate store down the street many times, but never to this new one, and one that calls it self a mall!? We went to cross the street and investigate closer. As we waited to cross the street, a side view of the building shows an arrow pointing to the back, oh and it seems there is always a huckster out here trying to get you to try a steak restaurant, we had just eaten at the new Ramen Street down the way, and have never tried the restaurant. The sign on the street says “Anime” (アニメ)and has an arrow to the back of the building.

A side view of the Anima-ru anime store sign showing arrows pointing down an alley

We’ve been in Okinawa long enough that we don’t have any trepidations about going down random alleys, there are all kinds of legitimate businesses down them, quite often they turn out to be better than something on the main street, as they have to be to stay open. About 10 meters down the alley we are greeted by this definitely-not-JigSaw looking fellow inviting us upstairs. Hmmm, this seems less like a mall, and more like the stairs to Comic Book Guy’s apartment.

The entrance to Anima-ru (anime mall) off Kokasai street, showing a small mannequin with a slightly terrifying rubber mask.
Would you like to play a game…er buy some Anime Merch?

We had already walked those 10 meters from the street and felt committed, so started to climb the stairs… (I mean we’re writing this article, so you know we made it out alive) The trip up the stairs continued to feel like we were going to someone’s apartment…

The stairway up to Anima-ru in Okinawa
Heading up the stairs…

At the top of the stairs turn right and you are at the store!

The Anima-ru (アニマール 沖縄 )store
No food or drink, Jigsaw will be watching 24hrs!

Once inside it was a decent sized shop of anime merch, they had shirts, posters, tapestries, figurines, buttons, and all the stuff you’d expect in an anime merch store. Some of the merchandise seemed a littler seedier than Animate, but we didn’t notice any actual hentai or NC-17/R-rated material. One thing they didn’t have much of is actual manga, they were focused on the merchandise. I would say the store is about a third of the size of the Animate store down the street, but if you are into Anime and Manga and in Okinawa it’s worth visiting both. Let us know your thoughts in the comments, and if anyone visits that steak house.

Info Block:

Anima-ru Website (Japanese)

Google Maps link : https://goo.gl/maps/3SWCS1z2ZLWSjL2g9

Apple Maps link: アニマール

See also: Our write up on the Animate store

Nuchigafu: Afternoon Bukubuku tea set

Another bukubuku-cha post! Sorry, I cannot help myself, I love tea culture.

So one afternoon I set out on a mission, and asked if my husband would join me. We headed for the Tsuboya yachimun (pottery) district of Naha. Specifically to the popular Ryukyu-style restaurant, Nuchigafu ぬちがふう(命果報).

This place gained much popularity after the Jimami Tofu movie came out; the owner collaborated with the movie showing and prepared a special lunch set that included all the foods that were found in the movie. Many of my friends raved about it (I forgo due to the copious amounts of pork in most Okinawan cuisine). However, recently, they started offering an afternoon tea set with bukubuku cha, so… of course I most check it out.

The restaurant is located off a quiet back street, but it is easy to find. The architecture is beautiful, and one of the resident cats greeted us. The atmosphere inside is quite nice and relaxing. We ordered one “simple tea set” which included 8 treats (savory and sweet), 3 traditional cookies, and bukubuku tea, and one bukubuku tea set (which comes with 3 traditional cookies). The bukubuku cha was prepared at the table so you could watch the magic happen. Everything on the plate was delicious of course. Overall I highly recommend this place for an afternoon stopover while you are visited the pottery district!

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address: https://goo.gl/maps/Tx4a2zMePG22

Shuri Kannondo & Gassho Conan: 首里観音堂&合掌コナン

In Japan, it is still the New year holidays so I decided to take a small venture out. In Shuri area, there are 4 popular temples that enshrine guardian gods assigned to all 12 of the zodiac animals. While I should have gone to Daruma temple because it enshrines the deity of the year of the dog (戌 is my zodiac year), I instead decided to visit Shuri Kannondo. By the way, Shuri Kannondo enshrines several zodiac deities: Dragon, Snake, Mouse, Ox, Tiger and Horse.

Hatsumode 初詣 is still going strong, even here in Okinawa, so traffic was a mess. After all, there are a lot of temples and shrines in the Shuri area, more so than the rest of Okinawa.

The temple was busy, but overall not as crowded as some of the others in downtown Naha. I was able to get around easily and the lines were short. I was able to pick up some omamori as well.

What was most notable about this temple was the cute little dog character. The year of the dog deity is not enshrined here, so who is it? Well, it is Conan, a very adorable long-haired chihuahua. He is the mascot of the temple. He is called a 合掌犬 gassho-inu, a “praying dog.” He mimics his master, a priest, and joins in the daily prayers the temple, sitting up on his hind legs and putting his front paws together before the altar. Gassho 合掌 means “pressing one’s hands together,” usually in prayer or reverence (though it can also be in greeting, gratitude, apology, etc.). The priest taught the dog from a young age the worshipping posture; he quickly caught on and now the dog does it very naturally every day with the priest.

The temple was very busy, so I did not see the celebrity himself, so perhaps next time I will go in the morning when it is quieter. However, I did purchase an ema 絵馬 (prayer board) with Conan’s likeness on it to write wishes of good health and hang up at the temple.


address: https://goo.gl/maps/RsQe5Un5qS22

Gongfu cha (Chinese tea ceremony) 工夫茶 in Okinawa

工夫茶 (Japanese spelling: kunfuucha): gongfu tea ceremony


As a tea “enthusiast,” I am always interested in trying any type of tea available. While in Taiwan and Shanghai, I have enjoyed gongfu “tea ceremony” on a few occasions. Recently, I began to discover that Okinawa has a few cafes that specialize in this type of tea ceremony. So while I am currently taking Japanese tea ceremony (茶道,  or 茶の湯) lessons, I love a good cup of tea wherever I can find it.

This post will not get into all the specifics of how to perform gongfu cha, etc., but I will give an insight into where you can try this here in Okinawa. Honestly, the tea purveyor of the shops will be able to demonstrate and give a much better explanation for you.

Most of these cafes are in Naha. First up is Ryukyu Chakan 流求茶館, located not far from Kokusai-dori. It is in one of the neighborhoods, along a back street, where you come to a small shop. Inside is gorgeous! There is counter area, and tables, so choose your preference. They offer light meals, in addition to tea and tea drinks. As for the tea, they have many different varieties (at different prices) to choose from; they also have a nice little picture system to indicate which are used for the tray (tea ceremony), mugs, and pots. For gongfu cha, be sure to choose a tea with the tray icon. As a word of warning, the menu is entirely in Japanese and I do not believe they have any English available; that being said, if you do not know much Japanese, just bring some patience and your smart phone translator. The staff is very friendly and kind, and will demonstrate how to prepare your tea when it comes out. Oh, and the tea sets are more than enough for 2 people! In addition to the tea, they will bring out some small dish of chinsukou and dried fruits. Overall the price was reasonable for an afternoon tea for 2 people, and my husband and I had a fabulous time.
address: https://goo.gl/maps/zD7m4QMz5AD2

The next place is  Camellia Sinensis カメリア・シネンシス (yes, the name means tea plant!). This place also has gongfu cha, in addition to many teas such as “flowering” teas (blooming teas). Another nice place to check out in Naha.
address: https://goo.gl/maps/gF6V8349qot

In Naha there is also the Taiwan Teahouse 台湾茶屋; I have not made it here yet, but they appear to also offer gongfu cha.
address: https://goo.gl/maps/uYfcTnAcUBM2

And lastly, there is a teahouse located in Nanjo area; I wrote a blog post about this place earlier (though at the time I wrote it, I hadn’t realized she offered gongfu cha): Tea house Ichiyou: 茶房一葉. I highly recommend this place, it has several types of Japanese, Chinese, and Taiwanese teas. The last time I was there, I had gongfu cha, in addition to a delicious light meal. Again, like the other places, everything is in Japanese, but the owner is quite kind, so bring your patience and do your best.
address: https://goo.gl/maps/NwkYkiHFFUu

**At all of these shops, you can also purchase various types of tea to take home.

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Uchinaa Days: Celebrating Okinawa Culture

うちなー uchinaa: belonging to Okinawa


Okinawa has created some “special days” in the calendar to celebrate different aspects of Okinawa/Ryukyu culture and industry. Based on the sounds of the words or some other special meaning, they choose a day in the calendar to represent it. Please keep in mind these are not serious holidays, just “fun” holidays.

Here is a list of some of them (they sometimes add new ones and probably I have forgotten a few); I will slowly be adding descriptions for each day:

February 6: taanmu ターンム (田芋), English: taro

February 22: Yaeyama kamaboko 八重山かまぼこ, fishcake from the Yaeyama islands

March 4: sanshin 三線, traditional Okinawa 3-string instrument

March 5: sango サンゴ, English: coral

March 8: sanba 三板, traditional wooden Okinawa percussive instrument

March 14: sata andagi サーターアンダギー, Okinawa donut

*March 2 LUNAR CALENDAR: sannin サンニン (月桃), English: shell ginger

April 3: shisa シーサー, guardian lion-dogs

April 10: shibui シブイ, English: winter melon

April 15: mozuku もずく, a type of seaweed popular in Okinawa

Fourth Sunday in April: satoukibi さとうきび, English: sugarcane

May 4: minsa みんさー, type of Okinawa weaving pattern. A traditional minsa pattern consists of four and five small rectangles. These rectangles represent eternal love.

May 8: goya ゴーヤー, English: bitter melon

May 10: kokutou 黒糖, English: brown sugar

May 12: acerola アセロラ

May 30: Lord Gosamaru 護佐丸, a famous Ryukyu Lord of Nakagusuku

July 8: Naha 那覇, major city of Okinawa main island

July 10: Ultraman ウルトラマン, famous super-fighter character who comes from Okinawa

July 15: mango マンゴー

October 17: soba そば (suba すば)

October 25: karate 空手

November 1: awamori 泡盛, local Okinawa liquor

December 23: umibudou 海ぶどう, sea grapes


*after each word comes の日 (-no-hi), meaning “__ day.”

Example: “goya-no-hi” is “goya day”

Setsubun festivals in Okinawa: 節分祭

節分: Setsubun
祭: festival


In a previous post, I talked a little about Setsubun, the bean-scattering ceremony. This year, I went to the setsubun-sai (festival) at Naminoue Shrine, which is held on February 3rd. It was a grey and cloudy day, with a bit of a chill. My husband and I parked the car a few blocks away from the shrine and stopped at a conbini for coffee.

We walked up to the shrine a bit before 10am (the starting time), and with the overcast weather, it was busy but not as busy as New Years hatsumode. It started promptly at 10am, with some prayers and rites of various sorts. Next came the shishimai (lion dance), which is always a lot of fun. Finally it was time for the bean-throwing!

Now what surprised me about this festival was that they didn’t just throw beans… they threw oranges, candies, and little bags of snacks/toy as well! It was crazy, but entertaining. Again, like the Naritasan fukusenji festival, some people had bags and baskets, or used their hats, to help catch the flying prizes. After everything was thrown, the local news interviewed kids to see what all they caught. They also handed out hot zenzai (sweet red bean soup) at the shrine window~~ so as soon as the throwing is done, get in line before they run out of zenzai!

Overall, it was a lot of fun and not as crowded as I feared. So if you are in Okinawa during Setsubun, be sure to check out Naminoue Shrine’s festival!

You can also wait until Feb 11th (public holiday in Japan) for Naritasan Fukusenji’s bean-throwing festival. Since Naritasan fukusenji is my local temple, I typically attend the events there; this setsubun festival is a lot of fun too, though not as big as Naminoue shrine’s, and they only throw beans at this one. Plus at Naritasan, the sakura are usually blooming well, so the temple looks very pretty this time of year.


Narita-san Fukusenji (temple) holds their festival on Feb 11th, 2pm: 〒901-2403 沖縄県中頭郡中城村字伊舎堂617  https://goo.gl/maps/r1YFXQDMQVE2

Naminoue Shrine 波上宮 in Naha has a large Setsubun festival held on Feb 3rd, 10am, every year; it is shown on the news: https://goo.gl/maps/sLP2LHodzT92

Gokokuji Shrine 護国神社 also has a Setsubun festival, Feb 3rd, 9am:   https://goo.gl/maps/KayHk5KVwWo

New Year’s Eve in Okinawa : 大晦日

大晦日 oomisoka: New Year’s eve

**in Okinawa language it is pronounced “toushinuyuruu” とぅしぬゆるー


New year’s eve in Okinawa is a bit different from the mainland. Overall, there are less temples and shrines in Okinawa than in the mainland (not only, this but historically there are some differences in religion), so visiting at the stroke of midnight is not nearly as common. Some people do it, but it is much less of a thing here than mainland Japan. Mostly only the big ones like Naminoue Shrine in Naha, or Futenma Shrine in Ginowan, are crowded. I have a list of some temples and shrines in Okinawa in a previous post, as well as a description of hatsumode. I described some of the Okinawa New Year’s customs in another post.

As far as countdown fireworks, there are some, mostly at the resort areas. Again, mostly for tourists rather than the common folk, these shows are only about 1 minute; typically the resorts also host live music shows or dance parties as well. Outside of the resorts, Itoman Peaceful illuminations by the Peace Memorial Park and the ChuraSun Beach illuminations in Tomigusuku have fireworks. There are also some fireworks by the Nakagusuku Port/Awase area (by the Comprehensive Park) that I can see from my lanai, and then some to the south in Nanjo at the Yuinchi Wellness resort that I can see as well. The Peace Memorial Park has some solemn ceremony as well, to pray for a peaceful New Year.

Many people stay at home for New Year’s eve. Young people, Americans, and tourists often go out to all-night events, so some areas around Naha, American bases and resorts hold various types of music and party events.

In terms of food, year-end (or year-crossing) soba 年越しそば (toshikoshi soba) takes the form of traditional Okinawa soba rather than mainland style buckwheat soba. Although toshikoshi soba is not that popular here, you will find that the Japanese soba and Okinawa suba places are very busy on New Year’s eve anyway. Rather, typical celebratory foods also used in other Ryukyu feast days are more common. So those feast boxes, usanmi ウサンミ, are the typical; you can buy them at any grocery store during this time, though it is better to pre-order. In addition to usanmi, hors d’oeuvres オードブル trays are commonly purchased (or pre-ordered) from grocery stores and restaurants. But don’t let the name fool you, it is not what many westerners may consider hors d’oeuvres… but rather lots of fried foods and meats. In Hawai’i it is similar to the idea of “heavy pupus.”

Red vs White (Kouhaku uta Gassen 紅白歌合戦) is one of the New Year’s eve TV programs that I am familiar with; there are others, but this is the tradition for my husband and I. Probably because Arashi 嵐 (boy band of my generation) has hosted it a few times, I insist on watching it. This year, Okinawa’s own Namie Amuro 安室奈美恵 will be singing.

Anyway, there are different options on how to spend the eve of the New Year in Okinawa… choose what you like best.

*I will try to add a little more info to this post with some more traditional customs over the next week or so.

 

Christmas Tea Ceremony: クリスマス茶会

茶会 chakai: a tea “gathering,” a more informal tea ceremony.

クリスマス kurisumasu: Christmas


Recently I had the good fortune to attend a chaikai 茶会 here in Okinawa. The location was at Shoufuuen 松風苑 in Haebaru 南風原 (southern part of the island), the birthplace of Ultraman ウルトラマン (hometown of Tetsuo Kinjo, scriptwriter)! The theme of the chakai was Christmas, and of course, with a little Ultraman thrown in the mix.

Anyway, I dressed myself in kimono and met up with some fellow foreigners at the event venue. Of course, as a foreigner who dressed themselves in kimono and speaks some Japanese, many people found their way to talking to me. I don’t think it is so impressive for me to do these things, but Japanese people are often overly kind and complimentary regarding these things. It was a little embarrassing for me as I did not actually have time to do my hair and make-up properly due to oversleeping, so I had rushed to get ready.

The venue consists of some beautiful buildings and gardens set away from the main road; it is one of the few places here in Okinawa where I felt more of the Japanese atmosphere (rather than Ryukyu or Chanpuru cultures).

In general, a chakai is a little less formal than a proper tea gathering ceremony, called a chaji 茶事. This particular event was a 3-part event (lasting a little less than 3 hours total): tea ceremony outside, light meal, and an indoor tea ceremony. For the first tea we were seated at a table outside and served tea with 2 types of wagashi. Afterwards met with a famous potter here in Okinawa; he made the giant shisa that sit on either side of Kokusai-dori area in Naha. He also made the small pottery cups that were used (and we got to take home) during our light meal.

The light meal was held inside the banquet area. It was tatami seating, so properly one should sit seiza 正座, but as a foreigner that is a bit difficult for long periods of time so… I did not, despite the awkwardness of sitting in kimono. The little pottery cup we received as a souvenir has a design for the New Year… the year of the dog! This made me very happy as coming new year, the year of the dog 戌年 (inudoshi) is my zodiac year. The meal was beautifully and carefully prepared, as well as quite filling. I cannot remember everything in it, but the only meat was the chicken (which I did not eat); there was of course fish/seafood, which I ate on this occasion (though admittedly I am not a huge fan of fish in general).

Anyway, next was the last tea ceremony held in one of the more formal tea ceremony rooms. It was beautifully decorated. Again, this time we sat seiza for the whole time and admittedly I need practice as my feet became a bit painful. But overall I enjoyed the entire thing.

After the last ceremony, we found ourselves going up to the small “museum” dedicated to Ultraman. It is only 2 small rooms, but very cute and interesting. When not used as an event space, Shoufuuen is also a restaurant… I definitely recommend trying it sometime for a nice kaiseki (traditional multi-course Japanese/Okinawan meal) experience!

Posted below are a few pictures from the event; I could add so many more, but tried to choose some of the better and more relevant ones. Hopefully everyone who spends time in Okinawa or Japan will take the opportunity to attend a chakai!


address: https://goo.gl/maps/8wKb1rhbLBx

Sogen-ji Temple Ruins in Okinawa

Recently, I came upon a rather interesting place in Naha, just above the north side of Kokusai-dori 国際通り. It seemed like mysterious entrance gates from the outside… so I decided to look further. It is on the site of a public park, Sogen-ji park.

Sogen-ji 崇元寺 (perhaps also written as Sohgenji, Sogenji, or Sougenji) was a Buddhist temple and royal mausoleum during the Ryukyu kingdom era, built during the reign of King Sho Shin in the 15th century, but unfortunately like many other important landmarks it fell victim to the ravages of the Battle of Okinawa (WWII) and was destroyed.

You can see in the picture some info about “dismounting tablets.” Apparently stone tablets with instructions for anyone entering the temple grounds (including the king himself) had to dismount to enter the temple on foot out of respect for previous rulers. On the temple grounds, stone gates, foundations, and walls are pretty much all the remain. Of the two stone tablets set outside on either side of the gates to warn visitors to dismount, only one is still remaining.

Though the royal memorial tablets were enshrined in Sogen-ji for many centuries, the actual royal remains were entombed in the Tama-udun mausoleum, just a short distance from Shuri-jo (castle). Spirit tablet of three royalties were placed here: Sho Shoku (尚 稷), father of King Sho En; Sho Kyu (尚 久), father of King Sho Ho; and Sho I (尚 懿), father of King Sho Nei.

This spot has an interesting history, and within the ruins is sort of a spiritual feeling. This is likely contributed by the large “Gajumaru” (banyan tree) ガジュマル, that it is said the Kijimuna (tree spirits) キジムナー live. Some people burn incense and pray under these types of trees, which you can see at this location as well… just take a peek where there is a small altar nestled among the branches. Overall, it is not a very large area, but if you are near Kokusai-dori, it is an interesting and peaceful yet quick stop to check out.


address: https://goo.gl/maps/5u2onsANt422

Culture Day: 文化の日

文化 bunka: culture

文化の日 bunka-no-hi: Culture Day


In Japan, on November 3rd is “Culture Day,” a national public holiday.

In our village, there was a culture celebration held the following weekend. Various village products were promoted, and people did various types of performances at the local auditorium. Not just our village, many many surrounding towns and villages also held culture festivities similar to this one the same weekend, so if you live in Okinawa be sure to seek them out this time of year.

We did not go see all of them (the program was several hours long), but we did go see the final act, a kumiodori 組踊 (traditional Ryukyu musical play/dance) put on by the local village people. The piece they enacted was the age old story of Lord Gosamaru 護佐丸; Lord Amawari’s betrayal, Lord Gosamaru’s suicide, and his son’s revenge. The performance is in uchinaaguchi うちなーぐち (Okinawan language), so it is a little difficult to understand all the dialog/singing. But it was fun and interesting nonetheless. Another chance to immerse ourselves in local culture and get to know our neighbors.

We also ate little taiyaki たい焼き in the shape of Gosamaru before the performance, sold at one of the small stands as part of the culture celebration.

 

Beaujolais Nouveau Day: 3rd Thursday of November

ボジョレー・ヌーヴォー Beaujolais Noveau in katakana.


In 2017, Beaujolais Nouveau Day was November 16th.  It is a red wine made from Gamay grapes in the Beaujolais region of France. It is the most popular “vin de primeur,” being fermented for only a few weeks before being released for sale on the third Thursday of November.

Beaujolais Nouveau is an extremely popular wine in Japan. Perhaps it is due to its “exclusive” release date? I really don’t know, because I consider it typically not a very good wine… and this year my husband was swayed by the colorful marketing of ボジョパ Bo-jo-pa (translation: it is a shortening of “Beaujolais Party”) in stores, forgetting past attempts to drink this years ago and my admonishments regarding drinking this wine. So he ended up bringing home a half size bottle, and was reminded why we never purchase it. If you would like to find it, just go to any grocery or liquor store in Japan.

In Hakone, the Yunessun onsen (hot springs) has a special wine bath, possibly inspired by the Japanese obsession with this wine… errrr, interesting, right?

Well, anyway, you will see this wine being marketed heavily in Japan during November near its release date. Some people even pre-order it. I have seen event flyers for “midnight release” parties. I fail to understand, as most of it seems to come in the plastic bottles with screw tops. And not to be judge-y, but that typically does not signal a fine quality wine. The labels are often very floral and colorful, kind of reminding me of girly shampoo bottles. But, to each their own… if you like it, enjoy it, and maybe check out Yunessun in Hakone?

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Yuinchi Hotel: Onsen and Buffet

This blog post is long overdue… it has been sitting in my drafts folder for many months, so here it goes. It seems foreigners are interested in trying out onsen while in Okinawa, so here is a continuation of my Okinawa onsen posts.

Yuinchi Hotel and Spa ユインチホテル in Nanjo is home to Enjin-no-yu 猿人の湯, a.k.a. “Bathing Ape” spa (or “Ape-man” hotspring). The adult entrance fee to the onsen is 1,650yen (elementary age is 750yen, 6 and under is free). Overall, it is a fairly nice facility, with sauna, jacuzzi bath, ocean onsen bath, waterfall bath, etc (but no outdoor bath!). Since the hotel and spa is perched atop a hill, you also have some nice views as you bathe. While it may not be my personal favorite onsen or sento in Okinawa, it is certainly a worthwhile experience and a very nice facility.

This onsen does not allow tattoo in the public area, however, you can reserve private baths (you may enter these as a couple or a family!) for guests with tattoo. I have never reserved a private bath here since I do not have any tattoo, but I have heard others do so with good experiences. **Private bath prices PER PERSON (depends on size of group):  alone 5,000円, 2 people 4,000円 each, 3 people 3,000円 each, 4 people 2,500円 each.

After your bath, be sure to make you way over to Restaurant Sunpeer サンピア, undoubtedly one of the top hotel buffets on island– with plenty of healthy EM options and top-notch cheese from the island’s only real cheesemaker. Everything is superb, and I was totally impressed as it exceeded my expectations. It is a little bit more cost than other buffet restaurants, but well worth it.


pictures coming soon.


address: https://goo.gl/maps/hHa7fyQmWM32

website: http://www.yuinchi.jp/hotspring/

Fire-walking ritual in Okinawa

Recently, I was able to attend the Futenmanzan Jinguuji 普天間神宮寺 matsuri (festival) at the Futenma temple (next to Futenma shrine).

The fire-walking ritual 火渡り神事 (hiwatari shinji) is the main draw. Unfortunately some heavy rain showers led to the event ending early, so perhaps next year I can see it in the entirety and get some interesting pictures of the monks walking through the fire.

So, to explain the process: you buy a wood board and write your wish/prayer on it. The monks will start to chant and light a large sacred fire. When it is time, you throw your wooden prayer board into the fire!

First the monks will have some more ceremonial rituals, and walk through the fire; it is supposed to be a powerful cleansing and purifying experience. This portion was cut extremely short due to the heavy rain, and so the fire couldn’t exactly keep on.

Now it is time to walk through the fire…! Well, it isn’t too scary I think, since it at this point they stamp out the flames and it is mostly just hot ashes. Many people lined up and removed their shoes/socks in order to process through the “fire.” At the end of fire area was and altar and when you reach the altar, they gave you an orange.

Really it was quite interesting and not at all what I expected to see in Okinawa, as this is more of a mainland Japan ritual.

Wauke Juugoya Matsuri: 和宇慶十五夜祭

In a small neighborhood of Wauke 和宇慶, located in Nakagusuku town here in Okinawa, there is a Juugoya (15th night) celebration 十五夜祭 held the Saturday after Juugoya/Tsukimi (15th day of the 8th lunar month).

We rode our bicycles down to the Wauke community center where the festivities were just getting started at about 7pm. Like many small community events, we were welcomed kindly by the local Okinawans and given drinks (cans of beers and green tea), as well as a plate of local foods. We settled onto our mat and watched shishimai (lion dance), fan dance, karate demonstrations, Ryukyu dance, and more throughout the evening. All the performances were very fun and interesting.

At the end, there is what is known as “community dance” called カチャーシー Kachaashii… where basically everyone gathers by the stage of the celebration and dances. As you may guess, beers had been drunk and being the only foreigners (besides 1 guy who was of Okinawan descent from Hawaii on a local government exchange), we were of course shuffled to the stage to participate, as well as our new-found Hawaiian uchinanchu friend. And, well, I guess our elderly community friends here seem to really enjoy these 外国人 who come to and participate in local events, so we indulged them. Some were surprised that I knew “open the door, shut the door,” an integral part of local dance here (this probably sounds a bit strange, so I will need to explain perhaps in a post later about local dancing).

Anyway, a good time was had by all… if you happen to be in Okinawa, I recommend you seek out these small Juugoya festivities in your neighborhood and spend some time getting to know your neighbors. I find making memories such as these much more rewarding than the bigger, well-known events. I forged bonds with my neighbors, and got to understand little deeper about Ryukyu and Okinawan culture/traditions.


Pictures coming soon.

Okinawa All-island Eisa and Orion Beer Festival

One of the most popular natsu matsuri (summer festival) 夏祭り is the All-island Okinawa Eisa and Orion beer festival held the weekend following obon— at least with Americans that is. Held at the Koza Sports Park, I have seen more Americans at this festival than any other. It is actually 2 festivals, coinciding with each other: the eisa festival itself and the Orion Beer Festival.

*In 2018, this will August 31-September 2.

To reach the festival, there are free shuttle buses, as there is no parking at the venue. You can park at Aeon Rycom Mall, as well as some other areas to catch the free shuttle buses. Otherwise, there are some paid parking areas near Koza.

On Friday evening, in the Koza area, there is the Eisa parade. The parade is actually pretty nice; bring a leisure sheet to sit on and some dinner to relax and watch. Next to us, there was a family with a kid (who could not have been more than 3 or so) and he played his pint size drum, dancing around in his eisa outfit as the groups played on the street. He was quite entertaining.

On Saturday and Sunday, is the actual eisa festival and beer festival; the festivals, though both are at the Koza Sports Park, is divided into 2 sections. On one side is the Orion Beer festival, with outdoor tables and chairs, music stage entertainment, Orion Beer girls, tents selling nothing but Orion draft beer, and of course, loud drunk Americans (well, and locals too, if we are being honest). When you enter, they give you a wristband if you are of drinking age and you MUST have it to buy alcohol. I usually don’t spend more than about 5 minutes there, as it really isn’t my scene. But I think the beer is usually cheaper on this side than the eisa festival side, so…

The other side where the eisa festival is, however, more family friendly. There are pay seats in the bleachers, but for free you can just bring a sheet and sit in the field to watch. It is all eisa performances, so it can get a bit repetitive, but can be a fun evening out, especially if you have never been to a natsu matsuri before. You will likely see many girls (both local and foreign) wearing summer yukata or jinbei.

Of course, lining the entire area is typical summer festival food tents. A lot of these are what I refer to as generic “yellow tent” food (due to a majority of them using a basic yellow tent), a company that comes in and sells mediocre food in large volume.. often times it is not really hot when you get it. I try to find the more local vendors, who are usually hawking piping-hot fresh food. Over here, you can still buy beer and are away from the drunk scene.

At the end of the night, there are fireworks to finish off the evening. While it is not my favorite festival on island it can still be fun, especially for new-comers, and you can experience a lot of eisa all in one place. Plus, I have to admit, all the lanterns strung up with happy festival goers in yukata, drums and fireworks gives a nice ambience on a hot summer evening.


address: Koza Sports Park, https://goo.gl/maps/qXA6QUxsdyT2

official festival website: https://www.zentoeisa.com/

Rikkarikka-yu: りっかりっか湯

Located in the middle of Naha, at the Naha Central Hotel, is a charming sento (“onsen“) called “Rikka Rikka Yu” りっかりっか湯. It does not have quite the same atmosphere as a natural outdoor Japanese onsen, but it does have a quaint feel of a community bathhouse. It is not quite as “retro” as some of the public bathhouses I have seen on the mainland, and some people may think the features are a bit out-dated (or perhaps some people may think slightly run-down), but I didn’t mind it.

The full name of this place is “Yuntaku ashibi onsen Rikka Rikka Yu” ゆんたくあしび温泉りっかりっか湯; “yuntaku ashibi” means “fun while talking” and “rikka-rikka” means “let’s go together” (these come from Okinawan language).

*Signs indicate very clearly no tattoo of any kind are allowed– they are plastered all over, with English, so there is no misunderstandings.

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Anyway, first things first: the parking… well, it is in the middle of Naha, but there are several pay parking lots right next to the building. It is also nearby to a monorail stop (Miebashi station).

Approaching the building, it has a cute little whale graphic on the wall. At the entrance are shoe lockers, so go ahead and stow your shoes (by the way, the desk attendant will not take your shoe locker key, so just hold on to it). Through the next door, there is a cafeteria, a vending machine, and the front desk. Go to the vending machine and purchase your ticket; it is all in Japanese so be prepared in advance. For the type of facility, perhaps the fees seemed a bit high (at least compared to the mainland), but as Okinawa does not have many of these type of sento or onsen, I was willing to give it try anyway.

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Price list:

Just entrance fee to bath and sauna, no towels (adults/elementary/ages 3-6)
weekdays: ¥1,000 /¥500 /¥300
weekends and holidays: ¥1,250 /¥650 /¥400

Entrance fee to bath and sauna + 1 small towel, 1 large towel
weekdays: ¥1,400 /¥800 /¥600
weekends and holidays: ¥1,550 /¥950 /¥700

  • “relax wear” (samue 作務衣):¥500

Bedrock bath (ganbanyoku 岩盤浴) + baths and sauna + towels + relax wear course (adults only)
weekdays: ¥2,100
weekends and holidays: ¥2,250


Once you purchase your ticket from the vending machine, hand it to the attendant at the desk. If you chose to borrow towels, they will hand them to you, otherwise they will just point you up the stairs to the bathes. I chose just the bath and sauna entrance, no bedrock bath but maybe I will try it next time. You could also purchase other small bath amenities at the front desk as needed.

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There are 2 baths, one side for women and one side for men; they rotate on a daily basis so you may have the opportunity to try both at some point. Today the men’s side was “shiunsen” 紫雲泉 and the women’s side was “tougensen” 桃源泉. I think for the most part they are fairly similar, with various jetted baths, an onsen-like bath, and 3 types of saunas (dry, salt, and steam).

Inside, there was a small vanity area with mirrors, hairdryers, and hairbrushes (UV box), but no amenities. Next were rows of lockers; these require a 100yen coin in the slot to release the key, but it is refunded in full when you put the key in and unlock it, so it doesn’t actually cost anything. I changed out of my clothes, and headed to the baths. All over they had these types of signs showing “proper bath use,” I suppose to assist foreigners…

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The cleaning stations were abundant, so there was no waiting around to find a free station. There was only shampoo and body wash, so if you have long hair like me, be sure to bring conditioner or treatment. As promised, there were many different types of baths to dip into, and the 3 different saunas to sweat in. I rotated through until I felt thoroughly cleansed, massaged, sweated, etc. Overall the cleanliness was okay, though as I mentioned, maybe a tad out-dated. It was clearly a popular place despite this, with many locals and even a few tourists.

Once I finished up and changed back into my clothes, I went back down the stairs and purchased a cold milk from the vending machine to refresh myself (when you finish the bottle, be sure to open the drawer at the bottom of the machine and deposit the bottle inside). I settled into one of the massage chairs, 10 minutes for only 100yen. After this I was finally ready to call it a day and head home.

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Overall? My impression was decent: though the facilities were a bit old and there was not much in the way of amenities, there was a decent selection of baths and saunas, with lots of room for many people. The price tag seemed a bit high considering I think the Aroma onsen in Ginowan is much nicer for basically the same price (and has free parking). I probably won’t be in much hurry to return, but if you happen to be staying in Naha, it might be a nice diversion to check out after a long day touristing.


address: https://goo.gl/maps/e9xcJVMWMq92

Where to see eisa during Obon…

If you are in Okinawa during Obon, then likely you will hear eisa drums in the distance. I previously wrote a tiny bit introducing about Okinawa’s bon dance, eisa エイサー, in another post. You can hear eisa pretty much year-round, and especially at summer matsuri (~July-October), but it is most important during Obon. Neighborhood Obon eisa can occur anytime in the 4 day interval from the first evening (unkeh ウンケー) usually until the day after last day (uukui ウークイ). The act of eisa parading around the neighborhood is called 道じゅねー “Michi Junee.”

So I know many people just keep their windows open and listen for the sounds of eisa, following it when they hear it. But, honestly there is a better way to find out when and where they will be performing near you… there are likely signs in your neighborhood, though if you don’t read Japanese, you might not realize that is what they are for. I have passed dozens upon dozens of simple painted wooden signs indicating when eisa will be performed for various neighborhoods, so just keep your eyes out; occasionally you will get some modernizing areas post it on the official village/town/city website or even on a Facebook page. So what do these signs looks like?

 

key words that you might see on signs:

旧盆 kyuubon 
お盆 obon
エイサー eisa
盆踊り bon odori/bon dance

ウンケー unkeh, the first day of obon
中日 nakanuhi, the 2nd day of obon
ウークイ uukui, the 3rd day of obon

月 month
日 day
時 hour

場所 place/location
区 ward/neighborhood
公民館 public hall
広場 open space/wide space

Usanmi ウサンミ: Okinawa Feast Boxes

ウサンミ (kanji: 御三味): usanmi.

Usanmi are Okinawan feasts typically prepared during holidays such as shiimii 清明祭 and Obon 旧盆. It is packed into lacquered multi-tiered boxes. The amount of food should be in odd numbers, usually 9. Usanmi seems to be a mixed custom, with origins in China and with Japanese influence… after all, Okinawa is a “chanpuru culture” (mixed culture).

These foods are nearly always some combination of the following, I have noted 7 items which are required, and the other 2 depend on family/region (I will slowly add pictures of each of these):

castella kamaboko カステラかまぼこ: fishcake “cake”; it is similar to “datemaki,” though datemaki is usually a more rolled shape where you can see layers. It is yellow with minced fish and eggs, resembling a castella sponge cake. Optional.

kouhaku kamaboko 紅白かまぼこ: red and white fishcake. Required!

age-doufu 揚げ豆腐: fried tofu. Required!

tenpura 天ぷら: various fried things, such as shrimp, squid, fish. Required.

konbu 昆布: kelp, boiled and tied into knots. Required

gobou ごぼう: burdock root, cut into long sticks and boiled in a broth. Required.

konnyaku こんにゃく: konjac, turned into a twisted shape and boiled. Required.

sanmainiku 豚三枚肉: boiled pork meat ribs, usually cheap and popular with Okinawans. Required.

taimo (tanmu) 田芋: taro, usually fried. Optional.

daikon nitsuke 大根煮付: boiled daikon (radish). Optional.

mochi 餅: usually just plain white rice cake is used for offerings, though if it is for eating there will usually be red bean paste (anko) inside. Mochi are put into a SEPARATE box, and not mixed with the others. This second box is required!

Display of Usanmi at the Okinawa Prefectural Museum

I read some recipes on how to make all of these… at some point I shall put them up for those interested in challenging to make this and become and Okinawa cuisine master.

To be traditional, you should use umeshi (special Okinawa chopsticks) to eat it.

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easy prep packages in the grocery store.

Uchanuku: Okinawa mochi for offerings

ウチャヌク uchanuku comes from the Japanese 御茶の子 (ochanoko). It is a plain rice cake made without sugar, typically used as an offering (供え物) for the hinukan (火の神) or altar (butsudan 仏壇).

It comes as 3 tiers of 3 pieces, as well as a “bonus” one for making a “new offering,”  which you can remove the top piece from stack and replace with the bonus one. It is a frugal way to extend the life of your offering.

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The taste is not so great, so it is recommended if you want to eat this thing, you should heat it in the oven for about 2 minutes and then add honey or a sweet shoyu mixture to it. I have also heard people say to add a little red bean paste (anko 餡子) and a strawberry, then wrap it to make similar to an ichigo daifuku 苺大福.

There is something else different and unique, called tanna uchanuku タンナウチャヌク. It is made from a simple brown sugar cookie called tannafakuruu タンナファクルー. Tannafa is “Tamanaha” 玉那覇, the name of the family who made it, and kuruu is “black” 黒 as in brown sugar 黒糖 in uchinaaguchi.

All of these are easily available at grocery stores in Okinawa, especially around important times of year where offerings are needed.

*more pictures coming soon… sorry this photo is just of regular Tannafakuru!

Kusatsu Onsen 草津温泉

Kusatsu onsen 草津温泉 in Gunma prefecture 群馬県 is one of the three famous ancient hot springs in Japan (called 三名泉 “sanmeisen,” in addition to Arima Onsen in Hyogo and Gero onsen in Gifu). These hot springs are renown for healing properties, supposedly to cure a wide array of ailments.

Because I am an onsen junkie, I decided to head to Kusatsu onsen for the long weekend (Mountain Day public holiday, 山の日). In retrospect, this was not the most brilliant idea as: a) Japanese schools are on summer vacation, b) Japanese holiday weekend, and c) Obon in parts of the mainland began the same weekend. So… travel was busy. Very, very busy. I don’t really recommend traveling in Japan during this time if you can avoid it.

Anyway I did make it to my destination with almost no issues, and ended up having a fantastic time even though it was a little crowded everywhere.

We flew from Okinawa into Haneda airport on Friday afternoon; we stayed the night in Hamamatsu-cho 浜松町 with plans to leave for Kusatsu early the next morning. In Hamamatsu-cho, we returned to the restaurant we discovered last time, DevilCraft (this time with reservations!) and enjoyed Chicago-style pizza with craft brews.

There are a few ways to make your way to Kusatsu onsen; we chose to take the limited express from Ueno Station to Naganohara- kusatsuguchi station (~2.5 hours) followed by the JR bus to Kusatsu onsen (~20 minutes). Since we also got a reserved seat on the green car (it has more room), the total travel cost was about 6500yen one-way, from Hamamatsu-cho all the way to Kusatsu onsen. If you are willing to forgo the green car, your costs will probably be about 4500yen one-way.

On Saturday morning we hustled from the hotel to the train station for the 9am train. We arrived early enough to get tickets and breakfast, as well as some snacks and drinks for the train. The train ride itself was rather uneventful, and passed peacefully enough. Arriving at Naganohara-kusatsuguchi station, though, was a bit crazy. Luckily JR had prepared extra buses for the crowd this weekend. The bus went direct to Kusatsu onsen bus terminal so overall the trip out there was very easy.

It was only noon, so though it was too early for check-in, the hotel held our luggage for us so we could go explore the area. Our hotel for Saturday night was right outside the famous Yubatake 湯畑 (steamy hot water fields, provides the main source of hot spring water for the town), called Yubatake Souan 湯畑草菴. We wandered the touristy streets and shops, while enjoying the foot baths and the scenery. Not only this, but the weather was quite pleasant and not too hot or muggy since it is located in the mountains. Some people may complain about the smell of these hot spring towns, but personally I don’t mind it.

As it neared dinner time, we went to the hotel and soaked in the hotel onsen for a bit before changing into yukata for a night-time stroll around the town. The hotel provided basic bathing yukata but I had decided to bring my own (cuter) yukata for strolling. As a note, if you do not own a yukata, you can either use the hotel bathing yukata for walking around or you can even rent a cute yukata at one of the shops in town. One of the reasons I chose this onsen was because it was listed as one of the top onsen towns to walk around in while wearing yukata. I have been to many onsen towns before, and sometimes you may see people strolling wearing yukata in the town, but it is not always very common. Kusatsu is a well-known for being a beautiful location (especially at night) to relax and enjoy wearing yukata.

Anyway, so as we strolled around at night, the Yubatake was lit up and the steaming field created quite a nice atmosphere. We walked around in our yukata, ate some snacks and drank some local beers (Karuizawa 軽井沢 is nearby, as well as some other beer branded for Kusatsu onsen). There was some sort of candle light up near the Kosenji (temple) 光泉寺 and a live music show. Overall, the evenings in Kusatsu were pretty magical!

The next morning, we woke up fairly early, this time changing into our bathing yukata provided by the hotel to walk around the town in. Surprisingly, many people were up and about, even though it was about 6am or so. My husband and I went to the 7-11 to get iced cafe lattes to enjoy while using the foot bath. Since the hotel breakfast was not until 8am (so late!), we decided to wander around for a bit. **As a side note: surprisingly, the Souan hotel provided yukata that was actually big enough for my husband (194cm)!

First, I tried out the Shirahata onsen 白旗の湯, which is one of the FREE public onsen that the town keeps up. Warning: it is hot! But I was able to tolerate it for a short time anyway, so I think it is very much worth a visit. Also I should note, at many of the free bath houses in town, you do not use soap to rinse off because the water is so acidic! Simply undress, splash some water on you using the bucket or ladle and rinse all over your body, then enter the bath. Just look around you when you enter– if there is no shower station, then don’t worry about soap just rinse with the onsen water, but if there are shower stations with soap then be sure to clean your body well before entering the bath.

Next we wandered down to Jizo-no-yu onsen 地蔵の湯, another free public onsen, though it was not open for the day yet; but there is a foot bath there that is always open. What was interesting was that we heard them performing the traditional singing and paddling to cool the water inside! So while we did not get to watch, we got to hear it.

Finally, it was time for the yumomi show 湯もみ at Netsu-no-yu 熱乃湯, one of the things Kusatsu is famous for. Yumomi is the traditional way of cooling down water with large wooden paddles; the town character, named Yumomi-chan, is bathhouse lady dressed in yukata with one of the large wooden paddles. The water needs to be cooled down since it comes out between 50-70 degrees Celsius, much too hot to bathe in.

I got in line to get tickets for the earliest show; it is 600 yen, but discounted to 550yen if you just show the coupon on your phone or print it out from the webpage. We sat in the front row on the side. There is a second level which may have some better photo-ops, it depends on what you prefer. It started with some dance, then the emcee and ladies with paddles came out to perform. Partway through you can try experience for yourself; it is surprisingly difficult to maneuver those paddles. Then they finish the show with a final dance and lots of impressive splashes. It was quite fun.

From here, I made my way to Sainokawara onsen 西の河原 in the park. Again, I received discount ticket, this time from the lady in the visitors center, so stop by there first! This onsen is a large outdoor bath. It was very relaxing… bathing in nature is the best.

While I was finishing my bath at the park, my husband got in line at a popular soba restaurant, Mikuni-ya 三國家. It opens at 10:30 for lunch. Luckily, we were seated around 11:15. I ordered the Maitake (mushroom) tenpura soba 舞茸天蕎麦 and my husband ordered the regular tenpura soba 天ぷら蕎麦. It was indeed very delicious and worth the wait.

After lunch we got on a bus for Mt Shirane 白根山 (active volcano) and Yugama lake 湯釜. We took the bus straight to the trail area and visitor center; to see the beautiful emerald lake in the crater you will need to walk up a rather steep path of about 800m. Also, it is chilly up here, so you may want a long-sleeve even in summer. To return to Kusatsu, we decided to walk down to the top of the ropeway, ride the gondola down to the bottom station, and catch the bus. This was not a fantastic idea. Why? Well, first the pathway down to the ropeway is not really great for walking, though it is only 800m. Not only this, the buses do not frequent the ropeway station… we ended up missing the bus by 2 minutes and then waiting an hour for the next one. Which might not have been too bad, but there is really NOTHING at the ropeway station. It looked like the restaurant may be open for ski season but not during summer, so we couldn’t sit and enjoy a coffee or anything. We spent a rather boring hour waiting around for the bus to arrive. By the time we reached town again, we decided to head to the hotel, relax, and change.

Due to not booking early enough for the crazy holiday weekend, we ended up staying at a different hotel on Sunday night. Futabaya was not quite as nice or close as Souan, but it was a fine room and we did not really have any complaints.

After changing into my own yukata, it was time to hit the town again for some evening strolling. First we tried Jizo-no-yu onsen (where we heard the paddling and singing in the morning) as it was free… it was truly scalding hot! Be careful. I did not last long. Next we went to Goza-no-yu onsen 御座之湯, which had an entry fee. It was a much more reasonable temperature, so I took my time and enjoyed it.

Finally refreshed, we walked around town, just taking in the atmosphere. Again, we had beer and snacks until we decided to crash for the evening. Kusatsu really is a romantic and relaxing place.

On the last day, we checked out and stored all of our luggage in a locker at the bus station (500yen), then walked through the zoo, which had a baby capybara (it was so adorable) and then tried out the Otaki-no-yu 大滝乃湯, famous for its increasingly hot bathing. Otaki-no-yu has a fee, which I found a little steep (900yen) but since it is quite well-known I wanted to try. Now, if I was smarter, I would have purchased the discount pass for 1600yen that included all 3 of the famous onsen (Sainokawara, Goza-no-yu, and Otaki-noyu) instead of paying the individual fees (600yen/600yen/900yen, though with other discount tickets you can get 50 or 100yen off). I guess I didn’t know if I was going to go to all 3, so I didn’t want to buy the ticket in case it went to waste, especially since there were quite a few free ones maintained by the community. My husband only went to 2 of the 3, so he wouldn’t have saved any money. So my advice… plan wisely!

Otaki-no-yu was very nice: there were some indoor baths, a waterfall bath, an outside bath, and then on course, the 4-tiers (5-tiers on the men’s side) of increasing temperature baths called 合わせ湯. Challenge time! I started at the bottom, a mild 41 degrees C; the lady came in to measure and record temps on the white board while I was there. Next I moved up a tier to 42.5 degrees C; again, not too bad. Tier 3 was 45 degrees C… this was hot. I cold tolerate it, but it was very, very hot. I started to dread what the 4th tier, 47 degrees C, would be like. I watched as 2 or 3 other ladies tried the water and immediately jumped out. I carefully tested the water with my hand, then foot. Holy s***. Well, time to buck up. So I reluctantly lowered all the way in… only to jump right back out. I think I lasted about 2 seconds. Out of everyone, I only saw one lady who seemed to be capable of challenging this 4th tier bath. So I guess I did pretty well. After my challenging bath, I drank a cold coffee milk from a glass bottle, and it felt so refreshing.

Finally it was time to purchase omiyage before heading to the bus station. The bus to the train station left at 12pm, and the train back to Tokyo was scheduled for 1pm, with our return flight to Okinawa scheduled at 5:20pm. Just as a word of warning: both the bus station in Kusatsu and the train station in Naganohara-kusatsuguchi had almost nothing for snacks and bento… I definitely recommend getting something at one of the shops in town or even just from 7-11 before walking up the hill to the station to catch the bus! If you don’t happen to stock up before leaving town, there is a snack/drink trolley on the train, though. After all, I think it is almost impossible to go on a long train ride without snacks, bento, or even a beer.

Overall, Kusatsu onsen is a great destination to hit up while in Japan, with good food, beer, hot spring baths, culture, and atmosphere. Pictures coming soon!


I will make a separate post specific to the food of Kusatsu onsen next!

Summer Festival Food: 夏祭りの屋台

夏祭り natsu matsuri means summer festival (I wrote a little about this before).

Of course, no summer matsuri is complete without the food tents, called 屋台 yatai. Most popular are probably the fried and grilled foods; some of the more “traditional” ones that I have seen in Okinawa are listed below. Just be careful not to stain your yukata…

**I will try and add some more pictures of all the foods as I have time.

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Yakisoba 焼きそば : fried noodles. Usually at summer matsuri, I see Japanese sauce yakisoba rather than Okinawan salt yakisoba, but it depends on the festival.

Takoyaki たこ焼き: fried octopus balls. Round dough balls with bits of octopus mixed in and fried, then topped with sauce and usually katsuobushi.

Okonomiyaki お好み焼き: cabbage “pancakes,” topped with sauce, as well as usually mayo, nori, and katsuobushi.

Pote ポテ: potato fries.

Yakitori 焼き鳥: grilled chicken skewers.

Ika yaki イカ焼き: literally, squid grilled on a skewer. Squid-on-a-stick.

Jaga bataa じゃがバター: baked potato with butter.

(Yaki) toumorokoshi (焼き)とうもろこし: corn; in this case it will be grilled and slathered with butter.


Recently we went to a matsuri in Nago and split a mega-combo メガコンボ, which came with a mix of potato fries, yakisoba, takoyaki, and yakitori. It was a popular food tent, and everything was cooked piping hot on the spot. It was nice because it came with a small(ish) serving of a bunch of different foods for variety, and a good compromise for my husband and I to split.

Some food tents are starting to offer some more western choices, like “meat pies” which I think are kinda like empanadas. Often you also see アメリカンドッグ  “American dog,” which just means a corn dog.

You might also see some “local specialties,” which in Okinawa typically means soba. Each festival has its own wide array of foods to try, and we enjoy trying as many as possible. On the mainland I have seen way more variety of matsuri food, and some really interesting looking ones. So keep in mind since this list is mostly applicable to Okinawa, I have only included the ones most common in Okinawa.

And of course, there is more than just savory foods… plenty of sweets as well.


Wataame わたあめ: cotton candy.

Choco banana チョコバナナ: chocolate covered banana on a stick.

Taiyaki たい焼き: fish-shaped bean pastry.

Dorayaki どら焼き: round pancake-like bean pastry.

Sata andagi サーターアンダギー: Okinawan fried “donuts.”

Kaki-gouri かき氷: Shave ice!


In Okinawa, the drink selection is typically some canned soft drinks (though don’t expect much variety beyond water, green tea, and coke), draft Orion beer, and of course, the local booze, awamori.

 

Okinawa Pottery: やちむん

yachimun やちむん (焼き物): ceramics/pottery in Okinawa language. In Japanese, this would be read as “yakimono.”


There are many pottery areas in Okinawa; in Naha, is a district called Tsuboya 壺屋 which has a street lined with ceramics shops. There is also Nanjo (south), Yomitan (north-central), and many other smaller areas scattered about.

Tsuboya yachimun street is a lovely walk on a nice day, and you can see many examples of Okinawa pottery and visit various artists, as well as a museum. Especially featured are the Okinawa shisa dog statues. You can also find ishigantou in addition to plates, cups, bowls, and more. If you get tired of looking and shopping, there are some cafes to have lunch or bukubuku-cha.

Over the years, I have collected quite a few pieces: mostly mugs, plates, and shisa. Every year, areas like Yomitan, Nanjo, and Tsuboya hold yachimun a “festival” where you can find a lot of discount pieces from artists.

 

 

Kochi Gusuku: 幸地グスク

Kochi gusuku is another small castle ruins site that I came across, like Tanabaru gusuku, also located in Nishihara. Again, not really interesting enough to make it onto the original post about the gusuku ruins in Okinawa, but a nice hidden location on top of a hill with a view. Mostly just another attempt at me escaping the ennui of lab work and trying to get some fresh air this summer.

Kochi gusuku also located off a back road, which you may suspect is not actually a road, but I promise you it is indeed the road to reach this castle ruins. It is narrow, and turns a little bumpy. When you reach the top, it is mostly just an open looking field.

There are some remains of stones, and if you walk up to the highest point, you will see w place of worship. Walking around the paths you can also see some gaa ガー (wells). Many places were overgrown, but it was clear enough to see the view at least. There was even a placard in both English and Japanese describing some of the history here (photo below where you can read the interesting “tidbits”).

I didn’t get the same eerie sense as I did at Tanabaru gusuku ruins, thankfully. But oddly enough, at this lookout on an off-beaten path seemingly in the middle of nowhere there were some ojiisans hanging out in their cars…

 


address: https://goo.gl/maps/4Tg5SKBRMbT2

Tanabaru Gusuku: 棚原グスク

グスク gusuku: in Japanese, it is actually 城 (shiro), meaning “castle.” Though I have recently learned that the entomology of the word “gusuku” is controversial, and could have come about several ways. Anyway, if you see the word “gusuku” in Okinawa, it typically refers to a stone castle or fortress type structure (in ruins these days), surrounded by stone walls. The famous ones remain somewhat intact whereas these smaller ones rarely have anything but traces of stones and foundations.

In Okinawa, most of these gusuku are just the ruins. I previously made a post about some of the more common gusuku ruins sites. Tanabaru gusuku, however, is not well known and quite hidden away in Nishihara. Thought to be honest, there is not much to see.

On a whim, I decided to follow the map to where these supposed ruins were near to the university. So I got in my car and followed the directions… I started to doubt that the GPS was taking me to the right location. The last road I turned onto was not really much of a road, even for Okinawa. I started to feel a bit concerned.

But then… ! I seemingly reached a fielded area and a sign post! Some success already. Apparently, GoogleMaps was correct after all. As to where to park… well… it is an empty field, so just pull over I suppose is fine.

The were only very few trace remains of the gusuku itself, and following the path I was able to find a place of worship. The location was high on top of a hill, but was fairly overgrown, so the view was a little bit difficult to see. To be honest though… this place had a strange feel, and I am not normally superstitious. There were a few tombs around, but that is common in Okinawa… it had sort of an abandoned feel to it I guess (despite the signpost proudly proclaiming the site name looking new). I think there may be rumor of a ghost story in this location, but I am not sure yet. I will update if I find it.

It seems that some excavations of the ruins (finding items like pottery, etc.) have been done in the past according to the Nishihara town website. It originally was built by the brother of one of the lords, as a fortification. During and after the war, many of the stones were removed for quarry to be reused elsewhere, so there is very little remaining of walls and foundations that can be observed. If I have time, I may come back and do some more exploring of the area. I read on a Japanese site that there is some sort of trail nearby.


address: https://goo.gl/maps/XYc5pQrPcay

Kin Kannonji (temple) & Awamori Cave

In Kin town 金武町 (Northern part of Okinawa), there is a temple and limestone cave where a shrine is located as well as bottles of awamori 泡盛 are stored for aging.

The first thing you need to know is that there are 2 entrances to the cave: the one at the temple is FREE, but is blocked off from the awamori storage. You will still be able to see pretty stalactite and stalagmite formations and descend into a portion of the cave BUT you will not see the area where the awamori and tofuyo 豆腐よう are aged. The temple itself is not very grand, but it is one of the typical old temples in Okinawa (of which there are very few).

If you want to see where the awamori is stored, you will need to pay the fee for the tour (adults are 400yen, the tour is only offered 3x per day). To do this, head to Tatsu no kura 龍の蔵, awamori and tofuyo store (you can also try yummy samples here) which is located just across the street from the temple. Tatsu 龍 means “dragon,” another reference to the importance of the dragon god in the Ryukyu kingdom. The shop is named this since the cave is known as the auspicious birthplace of the dragon god faith. We bought tickets for the tour, which started at 1:30 that day. I would post a schedule for the tours, but honestly it seems to change randomly and the tour times available when we arrived were completely different from what it said on their website, so I would call ahead unless you randomly are lucky like we were.

The cave is a chilly 18 degrees Celsius and the tour is offered in Japanese. But you can still join and enjoy the scenery if you do not understand Japanese. Bottle storage services are offered for 5, 12 and 20 years; many customers store bottles here to commemorate a wedding or birth of a child. A lot of the bottles are decorated with messages.

Normally aged for just 3 months, the tofuyo here is aged for a year or more! It is pricy here, but really delicious… I recommend sampling it all. We bought some to take home. I have previously visited their branch store in Naha and ate their tofuyo, but it was the first time for my husband. It was interesting being able to see the cave where everything is aged and stored.

check out some pictures here: https://imgur.com/a/qJET5


address:

Kin Kannonji 金武観音寺: the parking lot is across the street from the temple.  https://goo.gl/maps/5f94bKcMJXQ2

Tatsu no kura 龍の蔵: https://goo.gl/maps/dPy3C2BeQoF2

Ryukyu Onsen Senaga-jima Hotel

South of the airport is the small island of Senaga-jima which is connected the main island by bridge. A very luxurious hotel with an onsen, Ryujin no Yu 龍神の湯 (translation: dragon-king bath; Ryujin is the dragon god believed to lived under the sea near Okinawa), is situated there. The rooms to stay overnight are very expensive (so I have never stayed there), but luckily the onsen and spa is open to the public. The entrance fee for the onsen is also reasonable (middle school and older, weekdays: 1,330円, weekends and holidays: 1,540円, elementary school: 720円, preschool and under free). There is even a foot hot spring for free next to the resort hotel, if you just want to relax your feet for a bit.

Like other onsen in Okinawa, you go to the spa desk to check-in and receive your towels and spa clothes. The onsen has indoor baths as well as some very lovely outdoor baths. I didn’t spend a lot of time in the indoor baths or sauna; mostly I cleaned myself at the shower stations and went almost directly to outside. Outside you have some different choices; there are a few individual rotenburo 露天風呂 and then some large baths (1 is a standing bath, so you stand up in it but it is quite comfortable) that overlook the ocean. I enjoyed all of these and the view was really quite nice, it made it all the more relaxing. The water is a bit salty– it is a unique seaside hot spring for sure! If you stay overnight, half of the hotel rooms even have private outdoor baths…!

The spa treatments offered here are quite nice for some pampering. When I went for my birthday, I got a body scrub, a seaweed-mud wrap, some sort of facial, and a massage… it was not cheap, but it was a birthday present from my husband. I felt amazing afterwards… maybe one day I can return.

As far as food, I have only eaten at the Mediterranean-inspired restaurant inside the resort, which was so-so. Some people really like it, and it was okay, but I probably recommend just going over to Umikaji Terrace うみかじテラス (the small shopping/cafe area on the island) and checking out the food there. There are several options from happy pancakes to food you can eat while sitting in hammocks, each of them with just as nice a view as the resort.

 


address: https://goo.gl/maps/9fsrcNESWES2

website: https://www.hotelwbf.com/senaga/

Tanabata 七夕 & Somen そうめん

七夕 Tanabata: Japanese Star festival on July 7th (read more here).

そうめん (素麺) somen: a type of noodles made of wheat flour so they are white and very thin. It is a very popular dish during summer.


I wrote previously about Tanabata and how it is not really celebrated the same in Okinawa. But with ever-changing populations, you see a little more each year.

A traditional food for Tanabata is… somen! Not only is it perfect as a summer dish, but the noodles represent the Milky way and Orihime’s threads (she was a weaver).

This type of somen dish is served chilled with a a tsuyu つゆ dipping sauce (mix of shoyu and dashi). If you want to be fancy, you can slice up okra and serve on top (they look like cute little stars). Or you could cut other veggies into star shapes, but that sounds like too much work for me, although there are many Japanese kitchen gadgets used for bento to aid with this. Perhaps you could even find those cucumbers grown into star shapes here in Japan.

Some places in Okinawa will have a nagashi-somen 流しそうめん event (translation: flowing noodles) around this time of year. A bamboo “slide” is set up and you grab them as they go buy with your hashi 箸 (chopsticks). It’s a lot of fun, so I recommend trying it.

(photos coming soon).

Hyakuna Beach and Nanjo Cultural Properties

Nanjo 南城 meaning “southern castle” is unsurprisingly located in the southern area of the island. In Nanjo, there are many cultural and historical properties, most famously, perhaps, the Seifa Utaki 斎場御嶽 (also spelled Sefa Utaki).

**utaki 御嶽 is a Ryukyuan term for “sacred place,” oftentimes a water spring, mountain, woods, cave, etc.

The area I went to today qualifies as another “power spot” and it is quite close to Seifa Utaki. It is another spot related to the goddess Amamikiyo.

ヤハラヅカサ Yaharazukasa is the name of the monument submerged at full tide, and is totally revealed at low tide. It is located within the Hyakuna beach 百名ビーチarea.

The meaning is broken down into ヤハラ yahara, which can be soft, healed, gentle (柔らかい yawarakai, 癒されるiyasareru, 優しい yasashii in Japanese). The second part ヅカサ zukasa means mound, 塚 zuka in Japanese. So the meaning is something like a mound to receive gentle healing.

Amamikiyo touched down at yaharazukasa through Hamagaa utaki 浜川御嶽 (utaki means sacred spot) after Kudaka-jima; 浜川 Hamagaa would be normally be pronounced Hamagawa in Japanese (beach + river). Hamagaa utaki is a small “shrine” area with a spring (gaa 川, river/spring in Okinawan language) running through the Ryukyuan limestone cliffs. It was happily burbling as I explored the area. This utaki area was also supposedly a location where the goddess would rest and heal. She came from the sea kingdom Nirai-kanai, the home of the gods and created the Ryukyu Islands.

The Hyakuna beach is free; same with parking if you go all the way down to the end of the drive. If not, you can also pay for parking in a lot about halfway to monument area, more by the beach sports access area.

I did not check the tides since I was just wandering about so, alas, I ended up here at nearly high tide. Sometime I shall go down just for low tide to see the monument in its fullest.

Later we went to the parking and cafe area for Seifa Utaki to enjoy some cool treats at the 2nd floor cafe. I had a mango float and my husband had shikwasa (Okinawan lime citrus) kakigouri (shave ice). The view was quite beautiful and we chose to sit outside and enjoy.


address for Hyakuna Beach: https://goo.gl/maps/TJeUAGAzutK2
*When you park at the end of the road, you can see a sign pointing into the wooded area. That is where Hamagaa utaki is. From the utaki, there is a rock step path down to the beach directly in front of the yaharazakasa monument. There are some well-worn signage with both English and Japanese information.

Seifa Kitchen cafe せーふぁキッチン: https://goo.gl/maps/MhHZRJhzjMv

Apo-gama: アポガマ, a.k.a. “Mermaid’s Grotto”

First off, the name of this place is Apogama, not Mermaid’s Grotto… some cute nickname given to it by presumably an American who does not know any Japanese or Okinawan language. To be honest, I feel like probably very few foreigners know it by its’ Okinawan name “Apogama”; I only ever hear them call it “Mermaid’s Grotto” as if this is the official name… which it isn’t. Funny enough, the name Apogama actually comes from the the English word “appointment,” shortened to “apo” アポ, and the Okinawan word “gama” ガマ meaning “cave.”

アポイント appointo: appointment => apo アポ

ガマ (洞穴) gama: cave

This was known to be a secret spot for lovers to meet, hence the name “appointment.” I guess I find it kind of funny that a location already using an English name (well, Japanglish, really if I am being honest) was given some different name in English. While the name “Mermaid’s Grotto” sounds cute and whatnot, it is some made up name by Americans in recent years and not an official name. I am not sure many Japanese/Okinawan people would even know that this place was nicknamed Mermaid’s Grotto by foreigners… and just as I said before, probably most foreigners would not recognize it by its Okinawan name. I am sure there is some crossover of folks who know it by both names (and probably feel a tad confused by it, wondering if it is 2 separate places or in fact the same place like I did initially), but there seem to be a lot who don’t know the other side of it.

Anyway, located in Onna (North), this is another beautiful spot to check out in Okinawa, as well as a very popular for diving. It is even designated as a special cultural property or sightseeing or something like this of the town of Onna! However there is some serious undertow here, and there is even a sign in English cautioning against this, so swimming is NOT recommended. It is a nice place to explore the tide pools (with water shoes, felt boots for diving/snorkeling). Just use caution.

(pictures coming soon).


address: https://goo.gl/maps/7n3bjMXECi22