Enoshima, Kanagawa Pref. ¨C Sunday starts early at Japan¡¯s busiest beach, Katase Nishihama in Kanagawa Prefecture. By 5:30 a.m., when Ryo Ueno arrives there by motorcycle, surfers are already floating offshore, eager to catch a wave while the wind is still calm. Enoshima Island¡¯s Sea Candle tower stands tall in the background, along with an impressive outline of Mount Fuji that¡¯s sure to fade as the day¡¯s heat sets in.
Ueno, 28, is director of the Nishihama Surf Lifesaving Club (S.L.S.C.), the oldest of its kind in Japan. He leads a team of lifesavers of a variety of ages, and who number around 15 on weekdays and 30 on weekends and holidays.
The difference between lifesavers and lifeguards is that the latter are employed by a specific entity ¡ª public or private ¡ª to keep people safe. A lifesaver is a member of the public who volunteers to do the same thing. And since lifeguarding isn¡¯t considered a proper career in Japan, it is often lifesavers, in distinctive red-and-yellow uniforms, coming to your aid at the beach.
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