In a coastal hut in Mie Prefecture, a charcoal fire burns at the center as ama — "sea woman" in Japanese, who make a living by free-diving for seafood — warm their hands, or grill fresh catch for ...

The Ama are female freedivers who have gathered pearls, lobsters and shellfish in Japan's coastal waters for millennia, and who feature heavily in local folklore. There were some 6,000 of these "women ...

The woman preparing my barbecued seafood lunch is dressed all in white cotton. Her name is Miyuki, which means beautiful and happy. She appears to be both. On the menu today: tender squid, juicy ...