Okinawa, the island of the centenariesIn the south of the Japanese archipelago, the Ryu-Kyu islands.

Among them, Okinawa. Far from the usual vision of the crowded super-urban Japan, we are here in a quiet Japan, close to the sea, almost Polynesian.

Known for one of the most terrible battle during the Pacific war, this island is also famous because of this record : the bigest number of centenaries in the world.

So, what is exactly the cause of these incredible statistics ? Is it the way they eat, the way they live, the way they practice exercises ?

The food is of course very specific : a lot of vegetables (some of them only exist in this part of the world), fresh products (fruits, fish), low fat meals…

There is also some rituals, a tradition about food. Is it still true today for the new generation of Okinawa ? What about sports ?

Even the elderly practice at least one hour of exercises every day, a lot of people practice martial arts daily or weekly (Karate was born in Okinawa).

Maybe the solution is also related to the relationship with others. The sociallife is very developed, specially for the elsdest.

There is no word in this Japanese dialect for  “retirement”, even if you’re 85 years old, you can continue to work if you want to.

Finally, maybe it’s also the geographic situation of the island, the climate (verymild) and thesea…This story is about the discovery of another face of Japan.