The Legendary Dojo Bar in Okinawa #karate #martialarts

We really miss the Dojo Bar. It was a mainstay of the foreign karate community, whether you were visiting or a local in Naha, Okinawa. James Pankeiwicz, a British ex-pat opened the Dojo Bar after living in Okinawa for many years. Sadly the bar was forced to close due to Covid-19. Today James teaches Matsubayashi and Shorinryu karate at his Asato Dojo in Naha, and runs BujinTV, a streaming Okinawan martial arts channel.

Two things to watch for in this short video - our good friend, the artist Baptiste Tavernier (sitting at the bar) and all the visitors from karate who signed the walls ... and our Empty Mind signing on the bar walls!

[Randoman]

The way he was hitting the makiwara.

I have no words to properly describe how cool it was

[UkuleleDude]

Thanks for providing a central point for practitioners of all styles! I had the opportunity to chat with a group from Europe one evening. Found them on transit the next day and it was like having long lost friends! __

[jamesbarry]

You seem like the perfect personality for both the sport and to be an innkeeper😅

[michaelmorris]

I wish it had been open when I was there. Definitely on my to do list.

[utubes]

I’ve always loved the traditional Japanese style. So I am a fan.

However, there’s a part of me that is also troubled because I know it has deep roots in the repressive Samurai feudal system, and then again somehow infused in the absolute atrocities committed by Japanese army in World War 2.

So while I respect and am personally drawn to such things as this, it is tainted by knowing such strict control has a darker history.