Okinawa Memories Part VIII

View of the Town of Koza From Roof of BOQ #400
Main Street in Koza

See the little Okinawan girl wearing plastic shoes.
The Benji Ditches (open sewers) ran next to the sidewalks.
That was a very unpleasent smell in the warmer months!

Side street in Koza

Here they are making bingata dye fabric.

Another Craft Shop in Koza

These ladies are creating lacquerware.
Koza Children

Two little girls in uniforms heading home from school with backpacks on their backs.
The first time I ever saw school children with back packs was on Okinawa.
Now all American kids head off to school with back packs that must weight 10 pounds at least.

Market Scene in Naha, The Largest City On Okinawa

Notice how the one lady is carrying her packages wrapped in yards of cloth that is tied
to make a handle for carrying.
Notice how the other lady is carrying an open umbrella to protect her skin from the strong sun.
No wonder people on Okinawa live a very long time. They don't expose themselves to the sun's
strong rays.

Black Market in Naha

(I don't know why it was called the Black Market unless you could find stolen items?!)
This lady is purchasing tea.
By the way, the movie Teahouse of the August Moon starring Marlon Brando and Glen Ford, was the story of the Americanization of Okinawa after the end of the Battle of Okinawa and World War II. This movie was filmed on Okinawa. To learn more click here:
http://www.answers.com/topic/the-teahouse-of-the-august-moon-play-2
Another Photo of Naha's Black Market

Again the school girls have on their blue school uniforms.
Notice the fresh oranges, grapefruits and watermelons.

Flower Lady At Naha's Black Market


This is one of my favorite photos of Okinawa.
The old lady is sitting serenely under the umbrella waiting patiently for someone to come along
and purchase some of her flowers.

You could find anything at Naha's Black Market: dried fish lying on the street, kitchenwares,
fabrics to take to your tailer, live animals like mongooses and habus (snakes), electronics, etc.
believe it or not I once was taken on a date to see an Okinawan mongoose and habu fight. This was a common sport on Okinawa and the habu which was a python snake usually won the fight.
The Okinawans would bet on who would win.
And the Okinawans also had their own version of bullfights using water buffalo.
I wonder if this still occurs today on Okinawa.