NAGASAKI (Kyodo) A group of inn proprietresses, known as "okami," and others in the Obama hot spring area of Unzen, Nagasaki Prefecture, have made happi coats for U.S. President-elect Barack Obama and his family to celebrate his inauguration next week.
The group will bring the coats to the U.S. Consulate in the city of Fukuoka and ask that they be forwarded to the Obama family.
The coats are blue, the color of the Democratic Party. "President Obama" is written in white on one side of the collar and "Nagasaki, Obama Hot Spring" is on the other.
Members of the group determined the sizes of the coats for Obama, 47, and his wife, Michelle, 44, by gathering information from the Internet. They also made coats for the Obama girls, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7.
A dog leash was added to the goods because Obama promised his daughters they could keep a puppy in the White House.
"It is encouraging for us that the person we have supported will become president," said Yumiko Kusano, 53, the okami of the Iseya inn and head of the group. "We hope to serve as a bridge between the two countries by having Mr. Obama know about Japanese culture."
