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Friday, August 19, 2011

"Ogimi Village, and a Waterfall of Longevity?"

Ogimi Waterfall


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Ogimi Village and a Waterfall of 'Longevity'?

     GPS
     LatitudeLongitude
     N 26 41.402E 128 06.476





Ogimi Village, and a Waterfall of Longevity?

The waterfall you see in the above picture is the Ogimi Waterfall. It resides along Highway 58 several miles south of the 'Okuma' recreational resort. If you are not looking, you may fly right past it. Perhaps not as impressive as the Hiji Waterfall several miles north, but it offers good picture moments for you and the family.

Ogimi Village is perhaps more well known for its populace holding the highest longevity record in all of Japan. There is a stone next to the waterfall with a poetic inscription on it translated as best as possible:

"The Elders of Ogimi seek nourishment from the blessings of nature. We live to the fullest by following the traditional culture of how we gather our food.

At age 80, we are "sarabarabi" a child,
When you reach 90 and if 'They' came to take you up... Send 'Them' away by saying 'Wait till we're 100!'

As we age, we grow in high spirits. When we age, let's not depend on our children.
If you wish to talk about aging, visit our village. We shall talk about the blessings of the nature and secrets of our longevity.

We, the Elders of Ogimi Village, declare with pride that we rank number one in longevity of all of Japan."


Could the source of longevity be from the Ogimi Waterfall? Who knows? But it's worth the 10 minute stop. There is a large sign of an Okinawa jungle boy (See picture album) that serves as a good landmark. But there is also a food market adjacent to the waterfall if you wanted to get some 'nourishment' (hint, hint).  There is plenty of parking. Definitely have a camera. Note: There is a man-made walkway to allow you to get closer to the waterfall safely for picture moments.

Other places of interest nearby: Scenic View from the Shioya Hilltop, Ogimi War Memorial.

Other waterfalls of Okinawa (沖 縄 滝). Azaka Falls, Fukugawa Falls, Hira Falls, Meoto Falls, Taa Waterfall, Todoroki Waterfall, Nameless Waterfall (Fukugawa II), Kijoka Falls, Nameless Waterfall (Kunigami).

2 comments:

  1. I know where I'm heading for a vacation when I turn 80, thanks for the insightful post.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ha ha, sounds like a great idea Ryan.

    Lou

    ReplyDelete