FOUND IN THE TRANSLATION

In October of 2008, Naomi visited Hokkaido for the first time to learn about the Ainu, the indigenous people of northern Japan. Less than a year later, the following August, I went with her. It was her third trip there, and my first to Japan.



Aside from Hokaido, an island where the language, agricultural practices, and ritual knowledge have survived, the Ainu inhabited areas that are now considered part of Russia. Ezo, the old Japanese name for Hokkaido, was invaded by the shogunate at the end of the Edo period, about two hundred years ago.



Forced assimilation policies nearly destroyed the culture in the hundred years that followed.

Like Nasa, the word Ainu means "person," or "human being."



But before heading to Hokkaido we spent a few days in Tokyo.



Peach and his wife Pe were our hosts there. Peach, as he likes to be called, is Naomi's friend. He is a filmmaker currently working on a narrative feature based on the real-life stories of the members of Ainu Rebels, a music and performance group based in Tokyo. Sato-san, his given name, is also an excellent cook; he has a fine taste in music, and is a bamboo expert.



On August 7th we met with Go-san and Aonishi-san, agronomists who work with indigenous peoples in Latin America. They are part of a non-profit organization called Agua y Tierra- Centro de Acción para el Desarrollo y el Derecho (Water and Land- Action Center for Rights and Development)



They had found out about our work through the internet, and offered to set up a screening in Tokyo. They speak spanish and were perfect gentlemen, it was a pleasure to meet them.




The following morning we visited the daunting offices of Kyodo News, Japan's prime news supplier, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography.




After seeing some of the exhibits, we had a nice macrobiotic lunch with Tasaka Hiroko-san, who works at the Museum and curates its yearly Yebisu International Festival for Art and Alternative Visions.

more to come...