Heroic Dreams - All Things Medieval

I am in Japan and I am really having a wonderful time. There is so much I have done and seen and there is still much more for me to experience here. I am currently on the island of Okinawa which is the birthplace of Martial Arts. And I am on a quest to find myself a real samurai sword. - It has proven to be a bit of a challenge though for a couple of different reasons.

Getting a tourist type samurai sword has proven to be quite easy. These swords are nice and usually in the 100 -200 dollar range. But this is not the type of sword I am looking for! I am looking for something more than that and it is proving to be quite elusive.

First let me give you a little insight into Okinawa and the legend of Samurai Swords.

If you are a fan of the Kill Bill movies you might know that Uma Thurmon goes to the island of Okinawa to get a sword from the famed sword maker Hattori Hanzo. There is a bit of truth in this adventure that Uma takes because on the island of Okinawa there is actually only one licensed sword maker and where he is located is a bit of a secret. He really exists and his name is Kiyochika Kanahama.He only makes one sword at a time and he does it for private clients. And they are extremely expensive, but of course worth every penny!

But there is a basic irony to the art of sword making on the island of Okinawa and that is that for just about the whole history of the island they have been under the rule of various other countries like Japan or China. And this means that they have not been allowed to make swords or bladed weapons of any type. And it is in this fact that we discover the birth of martial arts with such weapons as the Kama and the Nunchaku. They were common tools that were used by the residents and they were also the centerpiece of secret martial arts.

So, it looks like I will not be getting a sword from the island of Okinawa and my quest to find one will continue as I adventure over to the mainland of Japan and visit Tokyo, Kyoto and some other places. I will try to keep you posted on my progress but my access to my blog and website is limited.

Some other Japanese related things I have coming.

I have hundreds of pictures and quite a few videos that I will be using here on the blog and on my website. These include a legendary medieval japanese castle and a whole host of other amazing stuff ranging from Bonsai to Origami. 

About the elusive samurai sword and the culture of Okinawa -

I find myself wondering about the difficulty I have been having in getting myself a good sword. And I think that part of this is due to the culture of Okinawa. This is an island that has created secret and potent martial arts hidden in things such as the kama which is the handle for a mill and the Nunchaku which is a grain threshing tool. This makes me think that they do have a potent and vibrant underground and secret culture of sword making that has been hidden from prying eyes for hundreds of years. Anyway, the chances that I will crack into this secret subculture are pretty slim so I will probably not be buying a sword until I hit the mainland of Japan. I will keep you posted.

Lots of pictures of castles, swords, samurai, and other stuff coming soon.