BHUBANESWAR: The family members of four Japan players were all praise for Odisha’s heritage sites while they follow their sons’ performances at the ongoing FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup.They are the family members of Yoshikawa Takashi, Ohashi Masaki, Takade Taiki and Fukuda Kentaro.
“Odisha is one of world’s richest Buddhist heritage states and we are mesmerised by the extraordinary sculptures of the Dhauli International Peace Pagoda (Shanti Stupa). We came to know that this historical monument was made by Japan Budhha Sangha and Kalinga Nippon Budhha Sangha. This is the oldest rock cut sculpture of India built in 3rd century BC ,” said Takashi, father of Yoshikawa.
“Many of our group members do not speak English or understand, but during our stay in Bhubaneswar we never faced any problems, people are really very cooperative here. We visited the 12th century Puri Jagannath temple and the 13th century Konark temple. The beauty of the temples speaks about the ancient story of Odisha,” he added.
Apart from the heritage and culture of the state, the Japanese guests too are enjoying the matches along with the Odia cuisine.“We are visiting Bhubaneswar for the first time and it is a nice city with a very good climate. The cuisine here is very delicious and it is wonderful to watch the hockey matches with a packed stadium cheering,” Takashi said.