Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
primarily from south to north, of most of the attractions or memorials that a visitor might
wish to see.
1 OKINAWA PEACE PRAYER PARK AND MEMORIAL HALL 沖縄戦跡国定公園;奄美大島
Although commonly said to be the southernmost point on Okinawa, Cape Kyan and its light-
house and peace/memorial monument are actually located at the center of the southernmost
end of Okinawa, not quite at the very end. From this vantage point there are some great views
over the Kyan cliffs to the southeasternmost, and most southern, point on the island, Cape
Ara ( 荒崎 ; Ara-zaki). If you're flying into Naha on a clear day, you'll also get a good perspect-
ive of this end of the island from an even higher vantage point. The usual air approach to
Okinawa, due to prevailing winds, is from the south and most flights pass right over this final
terminus of the island.
About 5.5 miles (9 kilometers) by road to the east of Kyan-misaki, at Okinawa's south-
eastern end, is the very large Okinawa Peace Prayer Park and Memorial Hall ( 沖縄戦跡国
定公園 ; Okinawaken heiwakinen kōen shiryōkan). Construction of the Okinawa Prefectur-
al Peace Museum, as it is formally known, began in 1978 in the town of Mabuni ( 摩文仁 ;
Mabuni), the area of the last fighting of the Battle of Okinawa. The exhibits give an overview
of the battle and the island's subsequent reconstruction. The Peace Art Museum displays Ok-
inawa art while the Memorial Hall is a contemplation chapel, within which is a great lacquer
image of Buddha.
There's some interesting architecture in the park, including an enormous horseshoe-
shaped cenotaph and a fountain with an eternal flame—a “fire and water” theme. Without
question, however, the park's most sobering monument is the Cornerstone of Peace ( 平和
の礎 ; Heiwa-no Ishiji), a vast collection of stone plaques engraved with the names of the
fallen. It was completed in 1995 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the battle. Some
240,000 soldiers, sailors and civilians, Japanese, Koreans, Taiwanese, Americans and Britons,
men, women and children are recorded here. The sheer volume and magnitude of the dead
is overwhelming. This truly was a battle to end all battles, yet it did not. The madness that
was Bushidō ( 武士道 ; “Way of the Warrior”) Japan did not end until it was extinguished in a
cloud the shape of a mushroom.
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