the retarded sweet potato cousin

Holidays are meant to be fun. Obviously, it's a time to relax and take a break from your regular life. AND, for me, one other important thing:

Marimokkori.

As sad as it is, part of the reason I get so excited about travelling in Japan is discovering new Marimokkori from a different part of Japan. So, counting down the days to my trip to Okinawa in April, I was pumped to see what new well-endowed green dude phone-strap was waiting for me. Sure, there isn't a Marimokkori in every single prefecture in Japan, but I was heading to Okinawa, one of the more famous places in Japan. There was bound to be like a dozen different ones available, right?

Unfortunately, searching the numerous tourist souvenir shops along Kokusai Doori resulted in nothing but this:



Beni-imokkori aka Sweet Potato dude. Apparently, the people of Okinawa had conspired to remove the semi-famed green character for this substandard, local one. Sure, Marimokkori's namesake, the Marimo, or moss ball, was nowhere to be found in Okinawa, but that hasn't stopped him from being found everywhere else in Japan! Why did they decide to replace him with his lame cousin? Who, might I add, is a lot less gifted than his more popular cousin.

So sure, I had an awesome, unforgettable time in Okinawa, but I left Okinawa a little disappointed. Fingers crossed that my friend's search for the beloved green dude went a little more successful than mine!