An American expat wanted people unable to come to his adopted city of Sapporo to see the Tokyo Olympic marathon races. So he made a series of videos introducing points of interest along the course that he hopes will entice future visitors.
"I want to convey the beauty of the city both in Japan and abroad for those who couldn't come to Sapporo due to the coronavirus," says Hawaiian-born Dennis Kawika.
The 40-year-old Kawika, who moved to Sapporo in 2008 after marrying a Japanese woman born in the city, started uploading videos on his YouTube channel, called "Foreigner in Hokkaido Japan," in March this year.
In addition to introducing interesting spots along the marathon route, there are about 60 videos showing a range of places that foreigners might be interested in, from Sapporo TV Tower to izakaya Japanese-style pubs accepting cashless payments.
Each video is about five to seven minutes long, but because of repeated rehearsals, took as long as three hours to shoot. He shoots and edits the videos himself.
Born on the island of Kauai in Hawaii, Kawika studied Japanese while in university. He now works for a company that mainly manages international conferences.
"I get to experience the four seasons of Japan, and I especially like Sapporo where I get a strong sense of winter," Kawika says.
The Tokyo Olympics did not allow any spectators from abroad in Sapporo, and eventually all fans were asked to refrain from lining the course.
"I hope the videos will be useful for travelers after the pandemic is over," Kawika says. "I want to keep introducing places here."
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