Garuda Indonesia Colours Magazine November 2016 | Page 145

Garuda Indonesia

143

© imacoconut / Shutterstock

The kingdom of the Shuri Castle was local
and independent but was close to the
Chinese dynasty. Today, the culture is the
result of assimilation between the local and
the Japanese cultures. Therefore, the
traditional clothing of Okinawa is somewhat
different from that of Japan in general.

THERE IS HAWAII IN JAPAN!
By Hermawan Kartajaya,
Founder and Chairman of MarkPlus, Inc.

Beautiful Ocean. Delicious
Food. Good People.
Unique Culture.
Do you know where the slogan is used?
It is Okinawa!
Okinawa is a prefecture, an island, as well
as a city in the southern part of Japan. It is
closer to Kaohsiung in Taiwan than to the
capital city Tokyo. It is also known as the
‘Hawaii of Japan’. A Club Med loyalist, I had
wanted to go to Kabira, a beach on the shore
of Ishigaki in Okinawa. However, when I had
the time, the Club Med was full so I had to
stay on the main island of Okinawa.
During my visit, I observed four main
attractions mentioned in the slogan that
made Okinawa the Hawaii of Japan.
I am not a diver or a snorkeller. That is why
I could only imagine the beautiful ocean at
the Churaumi Aquarium in the northern part
of Okinawa. At the aquarium, located in the
Ocean Expo Park, I spent hours watching the
gigantic showcase of a few large sharks and
many smaller fish swimming in the massive
tanks. I heard there are many beautiful diving
and snorkelling spots around the smaller
islands surrounding the main island.

Okinawa is also famous for authentic and
delicious food. The Okinawa soba was so
delicious that I ate it every day. Seaweed and
pineapple – both with soft texture – were
also my favourite dishes while I was there.
Many dishes of Okinawa are difficult to find
in other parts of Japan. The ‘Blue Seal’ ice
cream, for example, comes from Okinawa
and has many variants.
Like the people of Bali, the people of Okinawa
indeed rely on tourism and are hospitalityoriented. Higa-san, the driver of my
sightseeing taxi, was attentive throughout
my six hours with him. He never forgot to
remind me of important things even though
he was not a tour guide. There are many
good people like Higa-san in Okinawa.

Moreover, the influence of American culture
is also quite strong. Today, there are still
American military bases in Okinawa. I visited
the American Village in Mihama on the west
coast. The unique culture could be seen from
the products, souvenirs and food along the
Kokusai-dori, which is car-free on Sundays.
When I visited the Okinawa Peace Memorial
Park, I was reminded of the Battle of Okinawa
movie. It was based on a true story of how
the allies attempted to take over Okinawa
before attacking Tokyo during World War II.
At that time, many schoolgirls were told to
work in hospitals and take care of wounded
Japanese soldiers in caves. It was called
Himeyuri Gakutotai or ‘Lily Courps’ in
English. There were 222 girls and 18 teachers
in this unit. In the end, many of them were
killed when the allies attacked the caves.
Thus, there is still an emotional connection
between the locals and the Americans.
American music from the 1950s and
American brass band orchestras can still
be heard in Okinawa.
To get to Okinawa, I took a Garuda Indonesia
flight to Seoul and continued with a local
carrier. It was the best way to get to the
‘Hawaii of Japan’ from Jakarta.