An earthly paradise!
I don’t know if you have had the pleasure of visiting Japan but it just may well be the greatest nation on earth. The people are polite and kind, the fashion is without parallel, the food is out of this world and, as if things could possibly get better any better, coastal towns are being built around a new strategy called “Surfonomics.”
What is Surfonomics?
A great question and we must turn to Japan’s Kyodo News for answers.
(The town of Ichinomiya) has created a “surf street” along the beach dotted with surf shops and restaurants. An information center that opened in April 2018 rents surfboards and bicycles for people to carry their gear.
Hyuga in Miyazaki Prefecture on the southwestern main island of Kyushu has pursued an initiative dubbed “Relax Surf Town Hyuga” since December 2016.
Boasting a warm climate, the city has one of the nation’s most popular surfing spots. In 2017, the latest year for which figures were available, it attracted more than 300,000 surfers and beachgoers, up from 200,000 in 2012.
It regularly releases promotional videos on a special website and uploads images of the Hyuga coastline on social media. It is working hard to attract surfing events as it looks to capitalize on surfing’s Olympic debut.
Makinohara in Shizuoka Prefecture, central Japan, lost out to Ichinomiya in the bid to be selected as the Olympic surfing venue, but it was chosen to host pre-games training for the U.S. and other surfing teams.
The city on the Pacific coast organizes surfing lessons for elementary school students to familiarize people with the sport from an early age.
Another spot known for the quality of its waves is Niijima Island. Part of the Izu Islands, Niijima takes about two and a half hours to reach from Tokyo by high-speed jet ferry or 35 minutes by air.
Niijima used to host international surfing competitions and is trying to boost the remote island’s economy by wooing back surfers.
“The beautiful ocean is the pride of the island,” an official said. “We hope more people will come and enjoy surfing.”
Do you ever wish Imperial Japan won World War II?
Well?
Japan – weird samurai man boy love culture, repressed feelings and emotions until death, cold beer in vending machines, good food. It is the land of he wo hitte, shiri tsubome. NonJohn has spoken.
No. I don’t wish that Japan had won WWII. The Japanese people were led by a racist rat bastard bunch of militaristic fascists who ordered the Japanese Army to rape and slaughter their way through China in the 1930’s and 40’s (You Tube the Rape of Nanking and try not to vomit – the Japanese Army being so proud of what they did they filmed it for prosterity) leaving 20+ million dead. The evil they did to Korea beggars description. A couple of nukes on the head at Hiroshima and Nakasagi was humane compared to what they did in China and Korea. The brutal slaughter they inflicted on the Philippine people – particularly in Manila – is infamous. The Filipinos remember it to this day. The Japanese have earned their way back into the good graces of civilized nations over the last 75 years. No problem there. But again – NO – the entire world is glad they didn’t win WWII – except maybe an historically ignorant writer for a surf tabloid writing in poor taste with what he thought was a clever last tag line.
You got it right Geezer. Although I think you might have gone a little too easy on the Japanese. I assume that Chaz was being his facetious self and was just attempting to elicit responses such as yours. Notwithstanding the Germans genocidal fervor in Europe, we should never, ever, forget the atrocities and behaviors the Japanese committed prior to and during WW2.
If anything, you may have understated the depth and severity of the merciless and barbaric acts Japan committed in the many countries it hoped to conquer. The sheer unmitigated and unnecessary brutality throughout their reign of terror upon innocent citizens and the incredible evil and murderous treatment of POWs just makes your head spin.
And no doubt about it, if not for the US Navy in the Pacific theatre destroying the Japanese fleet, Australians and Kiwis would currently be speaking Japanese, using chopsticks and tending rice paddies under their Japanese masters. That famous Japanese politeness is often devious subterfuge and don’t think for a second that they would’ve let you intermarry either. Their renowned xenophobia, insularity and strict devotion in keeping their bloodline pure still exists to a large extent here in Hawaii where pure Japanese still constitute about 25% – 30% of our population.
Don’t get me wrong. Even though USA saved the Antipodes from Japanese domination and subjugation, loyal Aussies, Kiwis and the brave Maori soldiers fought honorably and courageously during the Pacific war and suffered high casualties. The resultant ANZUS treaty between the US, Aus & NZ was, and still is, a measure of security in the Pacific despite its tenuous nature as it concerns NZ’s nuclear-free doctrine. Some Americans view it as being somewhat of a betrayal but I applaud the Kiwis for keeping the current US industrial war complex in check.
Don’t get me started on the French bombing of the nuclear protest ship, Rainbow Warrior, and Francois Mitterrand. That’s a whole ‘nother story
Concur in totality.
sad news about Niijima , it doesn’t work anymore as the Tokyo took all the sand to reclaim more land…was one of the most epic surf spots on the planet!
What was the wave like? Beach sand mining sucks, such a shame
Surf Journalist: “What’s your stance on Surfonomics?”
Hyuga Local: “It socks.”
You telling me General Tojo wasn’t a Surfonomics man?
Surf-Imperialists AND Surf-Nazi’s?!
Miki Dora’s board art would have been more mixed message than message.
Just need Il Duce to round out the axis