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only
in japan welcome to iwaji shima or owaji
island and hyogo prefecture this behind
us
is the akashi kaikyohashi the longest
suspension bridge in the world
kobe city is on the other side of the
sea just about 20 minute drive
but we're here in iwaji shima because
over the last couple of decades
the population and the economy has been
going down in fact it's been like that
all over japan
especially when this bridge was built in
1998 it made it really easy for locals
to go across to the other side
a lot of them staying but over the last
couple of years this area has been
undergoing a regional revitalization and
it's been doing it in a pretty creative
way
using japanese pop culture japanese
characters like hello kitty
and to join me in this report is kanai
hello
and for the next 24 hours we're going to
be investigating if this regional
revitalization is working
crossing the world's longest suspension
bridge is the usual way to get there
from osaka or kobe
you're basically leaving the urban area
behind for rice paddies and farm fields
when you get to the other side
the kansai region is one of the most
diverse in japan
in the sea between kyoto osaka and
himeji is iwajishima
part of hyogo prefecture as is kobe city
the island is a place a lot of people
have been driving to to get from honshu
japan's main island to shikoku another
island
we're going to focus on the north part
of the island where all those solar
panels are
down in the middle is a t-shirt shaped
patch which is something else today
this is our first stop driving in we
could see a lot of younger people
hanging out around the building
a short drive up brings us to one of the
island's newest attractions
hello kitty showbox
this really is a unique building quite
stunning
in the middle of a farm field here but
it's when you go on into the air
that you really start to see things take
shape it's one of those only in japan
moments when you see the natural world
mixed with pop culture one of japan's
most famous ambassadors greets everyone
from all directions
honestly did anyone expect to see kitty
chan hanging out in the middle of a farm
field
the contrast is so striking and you can
see the community really challenging
itself to attract more visitors
people who'd normally drive by on the
way to somewhere else
or tour buses of visitors who want to
experience both the non-touristy
countryside with
well a theme park it may be what a lot
of hello kitty fans are looking for
let's have a look inside
it's not too big basically a building
for dining and entertainment
a stop for a couple of hours to enjoy
boat
it sure seems classy but how is the food
it's 100 vegan
some of it looks like it could be meat
but it's not like this tofu meatball
or this fish looking item
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it came in beautiful lacquerware and
visitors eat it while watching a show
on the massive screen or live
performances
but why hello kitty and why owaji island
is this the answer to revitalizing the
countryside
i talked with one of the managers in
charge of helping with the regional
revitalization program here
the hotel we stayed in had hello kitty
themed rooms
it seemed out of place but maybe it
isn't
it sure would seem fun to stay in one
hello
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one of the first revitalization projects
here was transforming an old school into
a restaurant with shops
rather than building new shopping malls
they're making a unique experience
without
changing much of the landscape utilizing
what they have
pop culture is at the heart of the plan
famous shonen jump manga characters
naruto and boruto
have a theme park here as well as crayon
shinchan
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we drove to another hello kitty
attraction not too far from the last one
along the seaside
this one is called hello kitty smile
you can see it down there in white
the big white hello kitty head is hard
to miss
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let's ask kanai her thoughts on these
iwajishima attractions
this building really makes me curious to
stop and see
and probably spend more time on
avatishima
i think it's fun and a little weird here
in the middle of nowhere
but i like it they do seem out of place
but that's really what makes them both
unique and fun
and very only in japan
it's a cafe restaurant with a store
that's more like a museum
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hello kitty bling and social media photo
snappers will love what they have on
offer here
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kanai and i really enjoyed the beautiful
views of the sea
but is this enough to get you to stop to
visit iwaji island
and is this a recipe for revitalizing
the countryside
only time will tell but one thing is for
sure owaji island is really trying their
best to challenge themselves
and revitalize a beautiful out of the
way island between some of japan's most
visited cities
let me know your thoughts below