A Hawaiian theme park that has propped up the economy of a rural town in Fukushima Prefecture for 45 years was forced to shut down after the March 11 disasters, but a little less than a year later the hula girls have returned.
Spa Resort Hawaiians in Iwaki has opened its indoor pools and will start hosting wedding parties and luaus in a new hotel.
The resort — a half-covered complex six times the size of Tokyo Dome and surrounded by rice fields and hot springs — closed due to structural damage from the 9.0-magnitude temblor and concerns about radiation leaking from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant 60 km to the north.