Welcome to Obama City ★ ONLY in JAPAN

Only in Japan Welcome to Obama City Japan yeah, I know what you're thinking Why didn't in the city after the former president right actually they didn't this city's been around for generations, centuries and there's a lot of history before 2008 when the former president became the president like the fact that Obama was the original gateway to Japan a place of trade and commerce And the first place an elephant stepped ashore in the country The mackerel or Saba is famous here and Obama was where the road from the sea to the Imperial City Kyoto started Mackerel Road is 70 kilometers long and had loads of activity back and forth then they did take advantage of the name recognition situation there's Obama which written here in Japanese means small Beach, and then there's President Obama, which means President Obama But in 2008 this city was thrown into the international spotlight because of its relationship with the president phonetically Before we look around let's see exactly where this little city on the sea sets It's the innermost point from the Sea of Japan to Kyoto Mackerel road goes around the mountains The city itself is well protected by Wakasa Bay and follows the Kita-gawa and Minami rivers to the sea. Most of the shore area is urban and quickly turns to farms and countryside inland Obama's nicknamed "Nara by the sea" and that sea is beautiful I stayed at the hotel "Sekumiya" because I heard that I'd be greeted by VIPs in the lobby I didn't have to go far to find them Yeah, I know, but they're there as life-sized cardboard cutouts The lobby is filled with stuff from the former president's political career. The story goes that when he visited Japan in 2006 as a senator the immigrations officer looked at his passport and said that he was from Obama, Japan This left an impression on the senator and the mayor of Obama followed up by sending gifts, thus starting a special friendship with the town Obama City cheered him on as his political career blossomed into the White House. Obama citizens especially loved the president's Hawaiian ancestry Although he hasn't visited Obama city as of 2017 the ambassador at the time John Roos made a trip to the city and even invited the mayor to the Embassy in Tokyo Putting aside politics, it's nice to see this unique international friendship based on a surprising coincidence Some souvenirs made its way here Local artists also added to the hotel's collection. The gift shop sells Obama confections The sweet cookie with the president pressed on it The top seller of the Manju sweet red bean cakes wrapped with the former president of course You can grab a coffee at the vending machine outside with the leader himself The mayor promised a statue of the senator one he did and well here it is It exemplifies Obama's skill as an orator talented at public speaking. In a way, he kind of looks Japanese What do you think? It's always nice to see other Americans in a far away place on the other side of the world Bipartisan appreciation for the moment at hand but I got the funny feeling that it was time for me to go Obama has a happy and aging population Nearly everyone I met was in their silver years including this dog in dog years of course The town is clean and much of the town feels retro Reminders of a couple generations before are everywhere Shops closed early in the city center stores lower their grades and the city gets quiet by 5:00 p.m. At night well you'd better know where to go This is 8 p.m.. On a Friday night in Obama. Did I mention it was Friday night? I? Don't know what people do on Friday night in Obama obviously cuz it's not here in the center of the city Let's just say Obama is a fishing village where people wake up early really early the city may be small But it has a lot of charm and history as I said before it's the NARA by the sea And it's the sea that shines bright here if you have a clear day. You'll be treated to a beautiful sunset over Wakasa Bay It's just as good from the Sekumiya hotel The next day I went to the sea. Obama has a nice boat tour of the surrounding coasts It gives you an idea of how clean the sea is here, and it also reminds you that Obama has some amazing seafood So I've come to the Obama Ichiba, fish market see if I can find some food let's have a look around this fish market is open early, and yes it closes early too and This mural sums up the city well Life on the sea, flowers, temples and mackerel and countryside and Well it's Obama City what can I say Aloha? The market is much smaller than "Tsukiji" but much more inviting The best place for breakfast is here inside the market The "Sashimi Teishoku" for 1400 yen is a fantastic deal It came with a fisherman sized portion of rice and miso soup. The Sashimi cuts are fresh and fantastic but I had to try the area's most delicious fish, Sabah. That's mackerel grilled to perfection Super soft and tender meat that just falls off the bone One of the city's most recommended restaurants was "Kanematsu" near the City Hall. Their "Kaisen-don" was real sea treasure Squid, maguro, shrimp Ikuta Uni or sea urchin Topped with soy sauce mixed with Wasabi A good "Kaisen-don" will make you happy for the rest of the day And this one was enough to keep me smiling throughout the entire stay So it's just a little city by the sea a place where you can sort of chill With a former world leader its citizens. Do hope that he visits them someday, but to me. It's just one of those things That's just only in Japan Next time we highlight some amazing stories from the far side of Japan far for anyone living in Tokyo Mt. Daisen and the area of Tottori prefecture is really special to me, and I'm going to show you why? If you liked it hit that subscribe button and check out another one of our shows Don't miss my second live streaming channel only in Japan go and check out location photos on Instagram Madonna

Channel: ONLY in JAPAN

Views: 160,179

Rating: 4.8775077 out of 5

Keywords: Only in Japan, Japan, Obama, Summit, Visit, Statue, Obama library, Kyoto, Trade, politics, Abe, Obama city, Fukui, Mackerel, Mackerel Road, Sushi, Sashimi, Fish market, Wakasa, Jiro sushi, John Roos, embassy, USA, president, trump obama, trump, trump visit, immigration, trump tower, hotel, restaurant, 小浜市, 鯖街道, オバマ, トランプ, vacation, best of japan, kaisendon, seafood, safe, north korea

Id: d7ifb-aEW7Q

Length: 9min 10sec (550 seconds)

Published: Tue Oct 31 2017