Newcastle and Ube continue 'sister city' legacy

Representatives from Ube City have spent almost three days meeting with councillors and touring Newcastle.

The two places have been sister cities for 43 years. Newcastle's first female lord mayor Joy Cummings and the mayor of Ube signed an agreement in 1980.

Since then, the cities have hosted exchanges for high school students, cultural fairs and language learning.

"Despite being 7700 kilometres apart, Newcastle and Ube have developed strong connections in education, youth exchange, economics, sport and art, with Newcastle Art Gallery holding one of the largest collections of Sodeisha ceramics outside Japan," lord mayor Nuatali Nelmes said.

"There's an event called the Newcastle Fair in Ube, where visitors can experience the cultural aspects of Newcastle," she said.

The visit was marked with a tree planting ceremony at Blackbutt Reserve, where Cr Nelmes and Ube mayor Keiji Shinozaki turned the soil together.

"I'm proud to represent City of Newcastle and continue the legacy of Joy Cummings," Cr Nelmes said of the event.

A symbolic exchange of gifts took place 43 years ago when Newcastle gave Ube officials a plaque with the city's coat of arms. Ube gave Newcastle a kabuto, or samurai helmet.

That tradition continued when mayor Shinozaki and the Japanese delegation attended a welcome reception on Monday at City Hall and more gifts were exchanged.

A treaty was signed to recommit the sister city relationship.