Minatogawa Stateside Town

In the 1960s the bases could not house all their personnel, and local landlords built rental homes for Americans around them. At Minatogawa a hill was blasted flat and nearly 70 houses went up in rows. Many now hold cafés and shops, including the bakery Ippe Coppe at Kissa Niwatori and the shops Proots and Portriver Market.

Before the houses, a stream here fed the village, and a prayer site from that water source survives in one corner of the area. Urasoe's tourism association suggests a small bow if you pass it. The lanes double as a school route, so cars should crawl.