Archive for April, 2014

Recent News

English tourist guidebook on Okinawa published

English tourist guidebook on Okinawa published

April 25, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

The Singapore-based Tuttle Publishing Company published an English tourist guidebook on Okinawa Okinawa and the Ryukyu Islands on April 24. The book targets foreign tourists visiting Japan and Okinawa. The company plans to publish 16 countries and regions around the world, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates.

An Okinawa resident American Robert Walker who has been living in Okinawa for about 15...

 

Late Deigo blooming heralds the eve of Summer

Late Deigo blooming heralds the eve of Summer

April 12, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

On April 11, the Okinawa Meteorological Observatory announced Deigo or tiger’s claws are in bloom in Naha. They have arrived 10 days later than last year. It was a summery day with a maximum temperature reaching 25.5 degrees Celsius. Last year, deigo bloomed on...

Golden week hotel bookings remain strong in Okinawa

Golden week hotel bookings remain strong in Okinawa

April 25, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

Hotels and travel agencies expect a bumper Golden Week this year, with an increase in domestic and international tourists.

According to JTB Okinawa, domestic customers’ bookings for hotels in Okinawa were up about 20 percent from the same period last...

Okinawan Peruvian begins sales of Peruvian liquor Pisco

Okinawan Peruvian begins sales of Peruvian liquor Pisco

April 17, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

A new bar serving the Peruvian liquor pisco has opened in the Adaniya district of Kitanakagusuku. Sixty-six-year-old Miguel Gusukuma, a second generation Okinawan Peruvian from Kitanakagusuku, is the only person of Okinawan descent in Peru who produces pisco, which...

Lily festival starts on Iejima Island

Lily festival starts on Iejima Island

April 20, 2014 Yukito Kinjo, correspondent of Ryukyu Shimpo

The 19th Lily Festival started at Lily Field Park in Ie Village on April 19.
The flower will be in full bloom by the end of the month when Golden Week holidays start. About 100 flowers will form a white carpet to fill the park....

Black tea harvesting begins in Kunigami

Black tea harvesting begins in Kunigami

April 17, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

On April 15, tea production company Kanegawa Tea Factory began harvesting Benifuki black tea at the tea farm in Sate district of Kunigami Village. Takayoshi Ota of the Kunigami Village Office who inspected the harvesting site, said, “I hope the tea will become...

Ryukyu Shimpo and University of the Ryukyus hold newspaper course

Ryukyu Shimpo and University of the Ryukyus hold newspaper course

April 16, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

On April 15, at the University of the Ryukyus in Nishihara, the Ryukyu Shimpo newspaper and the university’s Faculty of Education cooperated to launch a newspaper course. The course is a continuation from the last academic year. It aims to teach students the...

Okinawan sculptor to present a large-sized shisa to the Okinawa Association of Argentina

Okinawan sculptor to present a large-sized <em>shisa</em> to the Okinawa Association of Argentina

April 17, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

Seventy-five-year-old sculptor Minoru Kinjo, based in Yomitan Village, will present a pair of large-sized shisa to the Okinawa Association of Argentina. Shisa is a traditional Okinawan ceramic art. Shisa or lion-dogs are believed to ward...

[Editorial]Mr. President: Do not smother democracy in Okinawa!


President Obama,...

EVA Airways plans to launch flights between Naha and Taipei in mid-June

April 10, 2014 Wu Li Jun of Ryukyu Shimpo

EVA Airways, a major airline based in Taiwan, plans to launch new flights between Naha and Taipei on June 17 for the first time. The airline will use Airbus A321-200 with 184 seats, and it will operate one round trip per day. The new addition to the...

Plaintiffs claim landfill work for building US base will damage biodiversity of Henoko

April 17, 2014 Ryukyu Shimpo

The first verbal blows have been struck in a lawsuit challenging Okinawa Governor’s approval of the landfill to build a U.S. air base. On April 16 at the Naha District Court, plaintiffs and local residents asked the court to invalidate Governor Hirokazu...