Welcome to our Youth Island Blog.

In this issue, us, high school students from Hiroshima Global Academy will introduce a pottery café on the island of Osakikamijima.

The cafe is located in Higashino, Osakikamijima. It is run by the owner, who is a ceramic artist.

In addition to the works created by the owner, Mr. Morikawa, there are many beautiful vessels such as Arita-yaki, Kutani-yaki, Bizen-yaki, and Wajima-nuri-nuri (Wajima lacquerware) lined up inside the pottery store. The menu includes four types of coffee (Tanzania, India APAA, Panama Berlina, and Magdalena Blend, all 500 yen for two cups) and handmade cheesecake.

The owner, Mr. Morikawa, began making pottery after he turned 60, not as a professional but as a hobby.

In fact, Mr. Morikawa has an anagama, a rare kiln on the island. Anagama kilns date back to the Azuchi-Momoyama period, 500 years ago. There are not many of these in Japan, and many professional potters come from overseas to see anagama kilns.

We made cups and bowls in a small hut outside where his pottery apparatus lies, not in the café.

It was refreshing and pleasant to touch the clay and move it as we shaped it to our liking. Mr. Morikawa made the base for us at the beginning, so it was easy to make even for beginners like us. Touching the clay with a mindless atmosphere is akin to the Zen spirit. It was a wonderful opportunity to experience a glimpse of Japanese culture that I would not normally had the chance to experience.

Address: 4604-1 Higashino, Osakikamijima-cho, Toyota-gun, Hiroshima Prefecture

Open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays

Hours: 10:00-17:00

For inquiries, call: 090-8243-0707