Okinawa, Japan 15: Kokusai-Dori

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Take a walk with James Knott down the most famous street in Southern Japan – Kokusai-Dori.

without a doubt the most famous street in southern Japan is koksijde dottie currently on koksijde dodi whether you’re interested in eating shopping or going out this street has it all this is the main drag for tourists and oki nylons alike koksijde doggy means international street and cuts through the heart of central naha it got it start when the widows of World War two began setting up small shops to sell handmade goods fruits and vegetables today this mile long strip of shops and restaurants sometimes called the miracle mile is a top tourist destination as well as a hub of Okinawan culture on a daily basis thousands of Okinawans come here to take care of their day-to-day business surrounded by the constant buzz of traffic pedestrians and colorful sides and statues several times a year the street is shut down for festivals and parades and people from around the island show up to celebrate if you are looking for something to eat then there are options for many different cuisines and price ranges there are even a couple of options for people who miss their fast food at french vanilla lattes for visitors there are no shortage of souvenir shops selling all sorts of Okinawan goodies like she said dogs and the island’s famous distilled rice liquor our muddy one tip you can buy the same al-ahmadi at a local carry out for a fraction of the price although you could spend an entire day just walking through the cheesy souvenir shops like here and here and here there are many other cool places to shop like the famous meat sukoshi department store and other shops that sell traditional oki down goods like the three stringed Okinawan San Shi I for instance was able to find several cool pieces of pottery while shopping on koksijde dottie the street does not shut down at sundown and for the night owls there a variety of clubs available and hotels to crash in I’d recommend stopping here at least once to soak up the vibe koksijde dotty is a punch street and a great starting point for exploring other places in naha in our next episode we explore some of Okinawa’s proud musical traditions for more videos about Okinawa and beyond at the stray compass com a travel adventure website thanks for watching I’m James not goodbye you