Community
Pick Up Stories
Day of Naha: Immerse Yourself in the Cap… [Community CURRENT ISSUE]
July 8th is Naha Day in Okinawa. This special occasion originated from the use of play-on-words or rather, a play-on-numbers. Naha’s two syl...Read More
Hamauri ritual purifies body of evil spi… [Community CURRENT ISSUE]
Hamauri is one of Okinawa’s oldest customs, a time when people cleanse themselves of evil spirits. On Mar. 3rd of the lunar calendar (April ...Read More
Day of Naha: Immerse Yourself in the Cap… [Community CURRENT ISSUE]
July 8th is Naha Day in Okinawa. This special occasion originated from the use of play-on-words or rather, a play-on-numbers. Naha’s two syl...Read More
2015.10.05
POPs to perform smash-hit musical comedy [Community]
The Pacific Okinawa Players introduce their next production as the wildly funny and entertaining Broadway smash musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, October 15th-24...
2015.09.21
Viva Mexico party to celebrate Mexican Independence Day [Community]
The Mexican Independence Day is celebrated on Sep. 16th. It commemorates the day in 1810 when Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a priest in the small town of Dolores, Guanajuato, rang the...
2015.08.28
Kadena Eisa Festival has samurai roots [Community]
Kadena Eisa Festival is a town event that takes place every year on the day after the last day of Obon. Six local Junior Chamber of Commerce groups and youth organizations in the t...
2015.08.25
Obon is time for family gathering to remember ancestors [Community]
The three-day annual observance of Obon started Wednesday, and with the exception of Eisa, a form of ‘Bon Odori,’ the event is mostly held inside homes and in front of home altars....
2015.07.02
Weekend Dive & Boating Forecast’s Ed Dunn signing off island [Community]
By Wendy Brandon Ed and Kathy Dunn, are celebrating the 4th of July a little early at today’s Thursday July 2nd Independence Day BBQ reception hosted by Consul General Alfred...
2015.07.01
Shirahama Candle Night is local community effort [Community]
Local residents who live at and love Shirahama area facing the Shioya Bay started the Candle Night event in 2011 in order to conserve their natural environment and promote the Shir...
2015.06.18
‘Minnano Hondana’ is public bookshelf at your service [Community]
By Tony Nakamoto When you finish reading a few books, what would you do with them? Put in your mini-van and sell them at the weekend flea market? That’s a good idea. But why ...
2015.05.02
Games, classes provide kids fun during Golden Week [Community]
Okinawa Comprehensive Athletic Park Kids Festival 2015 is being celebrated May 4th and 5th during Golden Week, offering plenty of fun for youngsters, and best of all, it is free. T...
2015.04.24
Emergency helicopter service seeks to expand [Community]
By Bill Charles Saving lives that would otherwise be lost is the goal of the Medical Evacuation Service with Helicopter, which is now waging a fund-raising campaign to purchase a f...
2015.03.15
Hanami Spring Festival is all Japan occasion [Community]
By David Higgins Surely, you have heard the buzzword around Okinawa that is ‘Hanami.’ Most likely, you have already been a festive participant in these events since th...
2015.03.08
Okinawa’s best snack from hot sweet potato truck [Community]
By David Higgins During the fall and winter months in Okinawa you may have heard a dull moan calling from a slowly passing truck and wondered what was happening. This slow rolling ...
2015.03.01
On White Day ladies get treats back three times over [Community]
By David Higgins One of the great advantages of living in Japan is not having to worry about remembering Valentine’s day. In fact, if you’re a man living in Japan, you will ...
2015.02.26
Global Culture Festival draws attention to diversity [Community]
A Global Culture Festival is slated for Saturday afternoon to provide people in Okinawa with a perspective of other cultures present on the island. The 1 p.m. festival at the Uraso...
2015.02.26
Kokoro Tsunagaru Project focuses on handicapped [Community]
Professional entertainers, handicapped sports figures and people involved with the Kokoro Tsunagaru Project will be leading the afternoon Saturday at the Ginowan City Gymnasium. Ad...
2015.02.16
Youths from Asia-Pacific unite in fight against corruption [Community]
This week, I would like to introduce JU readers to the pioneering work of Transparency International. Later this year an Okinawa meeting is planned with the hope to empower local ...
2015.02.15
Itoman welcomes Lunar New Year in traditional style [Community]
By Bill Charles The sheep becomes king next Thursday as the Lunar New Year begins. Old calendar traditions are both common and popular in Okinawa, where fishermen will hoist specia...
2015.02.09
Okinawa City completes giant wall paintings [Community]
Huge scale wall paintings are now decorating the outer wall of Gintengai Mall at Koza Crossing in Okinawa City, heralded as the new symbol of Okinawa City. The city government has ...
2015.01.16
Mochi-making festivities held Saturday at KIP [Community]
Koza International Plaza is the venue for Saturday’s New Year’s Mochitsuki Taikai, a traditional rice cake pounding. The rice cakes, known as Mochi, are created by the literal poun...
2014.12.15
Machigwa illumination set to catch holiday revelers’ eyes [Community]
The biggest shopping arcade on Okinawa, Naha’s Makishi Kosetsu Ichiba, is aiming to dazzle visitors through the end opf January. The so called ‘Machigwa’ shopping district is ready...
2014.12.15
Onna Industry Fair focusing on local produce, unique foods [Community]
The 17th Onna Village Industrial Festival is putting the final touches on its program for Dec. 20th and 21st, when the village, which is surrounded by rich nature, showcases its lo...
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