Cities of Sisterly Love
They are the Mile High City and its aptly named Japanese sister city.
What are Denver and Takayama?
This prefecture, Japan's largest, is famous for its unique Ainu culture, world-famous ski resorts, and abundant natural beauty.
What is Hokkaido?
This prefecture in Japan has been sister states with Colorado since 1986.
What is Yamagata Prefecture?
Water in Japanese AND a person who works at a park with animals in English.
What is mizu(oo)keeper?
This famous Tokyo neighborhood is home to the renowned Kabuki-za Theater and is a hub for high-end shopping.
What is Ginza?
These two historic cities, one in Japan known for its temples and traditional culture, the other in the U.S. known for its universities and sports teams, have been sister cities since 1959.
What are Kyoto and Boston?
This prefecture is home to the Amano Iwato cave where the goddess Amaterasu hid in legend, the Takachiho Gorge, and is famous for its chicken nanban and beef.
What is Miyazaki Prefecture?
On August 7, 2016, this Miami Marlin became the first Japanese player to collect his 3,000th career Major League Baseball hit at the hitter’s paradise of Coors Field in Denver.
Who is Ichiro Suzuki?
A lightweight jacket worn at festivals in Japanese AND a savory Italian pie in English.
What is ha(p)pizza?
In 2009, this political party won a historic victory in Japan’s general elections, ending more than 50 years of near-continuous rule by the Liberal Democratic Party.
What is the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ)?
Talk about sibling rivalry! These two “Motor Cities” have shared a close sister city relationship since 1960.
What are Detroit and Toyota-shi?
This prefecture is home to Japan's largest torii gate (Kumano Hongū Taisha), its highest cascading waterfall (Nachi Falls), and the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage route.
What is Wakayama Prefecture?
At the closing ceremonies of the 1998 winter games, the mayor of this Japanese city passed the Olympic flag to the mayor of this American city.
What are Nagano and Salt Lake City?
"Island" in Japanese AND what a young child calls its mother in English.
What is shimama?
This Japanese island is home to one of the world’s largest producers of pearls, and is known for its pearl-diving women, called "ama."
What is Mikimoto Pearl Island? (located in Toba, Mie Prefecture).
Don’t underestimate these “Second City” sisters. One was named Bon Appetite’s Restaurant City of the Year in 2017. The other was dubbed “The Culinary Heart of Japan” by Anthony Bourdain.
What are Chicago and Osaka?
This prefecture, located on the island of Shikoku, is known for its production of citrus fruits and has a long history of paper production (known as Ozu Washi) dating back to the Heian period.
What is Ehime Prefecture?
This city was home to the U.S. Navy Japanese Language School from 1942-1946 and is currently home to the American Association of Teachers of Japanese.
What is Boulder, Colorado?
A feeling of unexpected upsetness in English AND a business card in Japanese.
What is dis-meishi?
These three sacred objects, said to symbolize the divine right of the emperor to rule, are known as the Three Imperial Regalia of Japan.
(Bonus: Earn 100 additional points for each object you can name in Japanese.)
What are the mirror (Yata no Kagami), the sword (Kusanagi no Tsurugi), and the jewel (Yasakani no Magatama)?
This saintly U.S. city has a twin, but it also established the very first U.S.-Japan sister city relationship with this Japanese city in 1959, the same year the famous Urakami Cathedral was rebuilt there.
What are St. Paul and Nagasaki?
Despite being home to the celebrated Kairakuen Park and scenic Fukuroda Falls, this prefecture has ranked last in Japan’s annual prefectural attractiveness survey 12 times since 2009.
What is Ibaraki Prefecture?
Norman Mineta, a Japanese American who was interned at Heart Mountain Internment Camp in Wyoming as a child, was the government official who oversaw this massive ad-hoc operation as the U.S. Transportation Secretary on September 11, 2001.
What is the operation to immediately ground all civilian aircraft?
“Warm“ in Japanese AND a disastrous event in English.
What is atatakai-tastrophe?
This 10th-century Japanese author is often credited with writing the world's first novel, "The Tale of Genji."
Who is Murasaki Shikibu?