Back to in-person format after 3-year hiatus, the 13th edition of the Sunshine City Okinawa Mensore Festival will take place from June 1 until June 5 at the Sunshine City complex.
With the goal of promoting Okinawan culture and food, the festival is organized by Sunshine city and the Onna Village tourism association.
The largest up-to-date total of 46 stores selling Okinawan and Okinawa-related goods will be present at the event.
A special Mensore Beer Terrace will be set up as a part of the outdoor venue where visitors can enjoy Orion beer, Okinawan food and a live sanshin (Okinawan traditional three-stringed instrument) performance.
In addition, the 2nd Orion Beer x Snacks Championship will be held to determine the grand prize winner out of the unique Okinawan snacks that go well with Orion beer, from among the products displayed at the festival.
A food and beverage area will be set up inside the exhibition hall.
In order to avoid the crowds, the number of tickets per time slot will be limited.
The number of visitors per slot will be determined in accordance with the venue size limitations.
During the exhibition period, various Okinawa-themed events will be held at various facilities within the Sunshine City complex, including live performances by famous artists from Okinawa such as Misako Koja, DIAMANTES, Ishigaki Yu and THE SAKISHIMA meeting.
On June 4, the NHK Service Center will host a talk show with Ryo Ryusei, one of the stars of the serial TV show Chimu-Dondon.
Another unique to Okinawa food-related special exhibit is Delicious and Amazing Creatures: Gastronomy, Oddities, and Curiosities.
The brightly colored himejakogai (Tridacna Crocea, also known as The Boring Clam) and the high-end gourmet semiebi (Scyllarides squammosus, also known as Blunt Slipper Lobster) will be on display, among others.
In addition, as part of the Coral Project – a coral conservation initiative, some examples of coral reefs will be on permanent display in an aquarium titled Coral Reef Restoration – From the Sea of Onna Village.