This shot was taken by zooming in on the village banner flapping in the breeze attached to about a 30-foot bamboo pole. Hearty, young, strong men hoist the pole and dance around with it prior to the start of the tug. MORE ABOUT POLE DANCING AT OKINAWAN TUG-O-WARS HERE.
In addition to my normal dereliction of duties, there are some big events I'm getting ready for this weekend. One is a 1st birthday party for about 3 grandkids. We do stuff differently, in Okinawa, Japan than in the rest of the world. So, I have to make sure I document this event in photos for all to see. I may even have to bring along some assistant cameramen or, (groan) let the wife use the Canon G12, again.
Then, in the wee hours of Sunday morning, I'll be headed up to the village of Ada for the Shinugu Matsuri. This is special because the hike up the mountain only happens every other year. A breaking rumor just came in. It may really be special, this year, because it's (maybe) the 35th anniversary of the event being declared an official intangible cultural asset. REF: An undisclosed source.
At any rate, getting wired up to go online may be spotty this weekend. I'll attempt to stay in touch. I'm even going to pack a 50-foot extension cord along with a laptop and battery chargers so, I can up and download humongous photo files while attempting to get online from the village of Ada in Okinawa, Japan.
If things don't work out and we lose contact for a few days blame it on my undisclosed source.
That's what I'll do. Hah!
Meanwhile, you can get an idea of what I'm up to by visiting THE SHINUGU MATSURI HERE
