Taketomijima - ”Parlor Ganjuya”A quick break at a cafe surrounded by red bricks and white sand

A break while touring the island

Abiding spirit from ancient times, at Taketomijima, surrounded by red roof tiles and white sand, time seems to flow slowly. This island has been designated as an Important Traditional Buildings Preservation District by the nation in 1987. Authorization is necessary when building a new house, and it must be a single-story house with red tiles. Since the island is made of coral reef, the roads are covered with white sands of crushed corals. Islanders clean up the road every morning, and if the sand becomes decreased, they bring new sand from the beach, so the roads are always kept in beautiful condition. To admire the island which is so beautifully kept, Nakata decided to hop on the ferry boat from Ishigakijima.
On arrival at the island, everyone heads to the village first. If you go past the rental bike and rental motorbike shops to the sea or to the inns, you will find ”Ganjuya” cafe on the way. It looks more like someone’s house, but it is a stylish cafe with tables set up inside and in the garden. It is nice to see they have many variations of sweets such as the famous Blue Seal ice cream, shaved ice, and the parlor’s original cakes and sundaes.
As written in the Staff Diary of this trip, Nakata enjoyed vanilla ice cream and herbal tea here.
There are many magazines, so it is a good idea to have a nice rest while touring around the island.