Okinawa

This photo of Kin Kannon Temple was taken in 1966 by photographer Donn Cuson. Here is a photo of Kin Kannon Temple taken yesterday afternoon. Other than Coca Cola and Pepsi vending machines, a cell phone tower and a satellite dish antenna (far left) for the Buddhist Monks to watch TV, the place hasn't changed all that much in the past 46 years. This temple was built sometime back in the 16th Century as the result of a Buddhist missionary being rescued from a typhoon-wrecked ship by the people...Read Full Story

Sometimes, these Then and Now series photos just sneak up on you. This shrine photo was taken last Friday in Itoman Okinawa, Japan. It was just one of those days, I was riding around with the MAP IT OKINAWA DUDE and shooting pictures of whatever happened to be in front of my lens. Here I was sitting in my office during beer drinking hours when an email came in, sounding all excited about something. It said, "Guess What ?!!!!!!!!!!" "YOU WERE HERE TODAY !!!!!" Attached to the email were these...Read Full Story

The Ryukyu Green Pigeon (Treron permagnus) is sometimes called the Whistling Green Pigeon.  This one was found in northern Okinawa today. There is one other pigeon with green colors on it that used to inhabit the Ryukyu Islands called the Ryukyu Wood Pigeon (Columba jouyi) which was last recorded on Okinawa in 1904. If I run across any, I'll take a photo of them, too. You got any green pigeons in your neck of the woods ? PHOTO OF THE DAY:  IRIS FLOWER AND BUD Read Full Story

Here is a photo taken from an area known as Suicide Cliff to most Americans. It was taken sometime between 1963 and 1967 from Peace Memorial Park on a hill in Mabuni Itoman Okinawa, Japan. This photo was taken in March of 2010 from a slightly different viewpoint. Then and Now photos show that the key terrain features on the island of Okinawa haven't changed all that much over the past 45 years. As we continue with this series, getting into some areas around villages, cities and places where...Read Full Story

Today's report on the Cherry Blossom (桜) situation up in the northern mountains is a little brighter.  Looking at Mt. Yadake crews could be seen setting up the festival tents for the Sakura Matsuri ( Festival ) and that's a good sign the place will get busy this weekend. This photo with just a few Sakura (桜) blossoms on it was taken in Nago, before even heading up to Mt. Yadake.  So, I expect to see lots of Cherry Blossoms on Mt. Nago by the end of the month. The reason I went north today...Read Full Story

This Mangrove Flower (Bruguiera gymnorrhiza) photo was taken along the banks of the Okukubi River in Kin Cho Kin Okinawa, Japan during the month of October. Birds help pollinate plants to start the seed growing process. Inside the flower are what you could call little zipper bags of pollen. When birds go poking around in the flowers, the zipper bags open and give the bird's head a good dusting.  The birds go from flower to flower pollinating without even knowing it. The results of all this...Read Full Story

By LCDR Joseph D Haines, Medical Corps, USN Only the Normandy D-Day invasion surpassed Okinawa in its scope, preparation, and forces employed. More than 548,000 Americans participated in the Okinawa invasion on 1 April 1945, an Easter Sunday. Curiously, there was virtually no resistance as they stormed the beaches. They soon discovered that the Japanese Imperial Army and Navy had literally gone underground, having spent a year forcing Okinawan slaves to dig their underground defenses. Eighty...Read Full Story

Here is a different view of UNESCO World Heritage Site Katsuren Castle. This photo was taken to give an idea what the view someone attacking from the sea would be looking at.   The Castle is at least 150 meters above sea level and you'd have had to go over some fairly rough terrain to get up there to attack them if you were coming from a ship back in the old days. JUST TO GET SOME BIG ROCKS DROPPED ON YOUR HEAD ! TOP FIVE CASTLES IN OKINAWA: IN MY ARTICLES FOR GUESTS PHOTO OF THE DAY...Read Full Story

Hello Refashioners! Hope you're having fun making things into other things! Here is a photo of me in the kitchen at university ( New Hall , if you're wondering). Do you like my trousers? I did... but they didn't fit me very well and the excessive amount of fabric made them difficult to wear if it was raining or muddy or dusty or... you get the picture. Several years later, I decided to make something of them. I had a skirt pattern based on Design-It-Yourself Clothes by Cal Patch, which I had...Read Full Story

Hi ladies! Today I wanted to show you my "new" refashioned jacket. I've had this denim jacket for a long time and although I did wear it every now and then it needed a little something. So I went to the thrift store and purchased a leather skirt and refashioned my jacket. I should have used synthetic leather (easier to wash) but I was too impatient and I didn't find any good looking synthetic leather so I used real leather instead. Before After Turorial here ^-^Read Full Story