Have you ever visited Washuzan Hill?
Even among people living in Okayama Prefecture or Kurashiki City, many have never been to the Washuzan and Shimotsui area.
Climb to the Washuzan observation deck, and you can take in a sweeping view of the Seto Inland Sea and the Seto-Ohashi Bridge connecting Shikoku and Honshu.
Working to help more people discover the charms of Shimotsui is Shimotsui Community Revitalization Cooperator Nakadomi Sakura.
The writer was curious about why she chose Shimotsui as the place to move to, and what kind of work she does.
I went to hear about her work.
The information presented was current when this article was published in April 2024. Please note that it may differ from current information.
Drawn to the experience of interacting with people, she entered the food-service industry
Nakadomi Sakura spent the 22 years up to her university graduation in her hometown of Osaka Prefecture.
When deciding where to work, she thought, “I’d like to live in the capital at least once,” and joined a Tokyo-based restaurant chain specializing in alcoholic drinks.
“I didn’t realize it at the time, but perhaps even then I was drawn to interacting with people,” Nakadomi says.
After joining the company, she transferred between locations mainly in the Tokyo metropolitan area every year to year and a half, and was also involved in opening a new location in Sendai.
However, Nakadomi had always thought, “I probably won’t stay in Tokyo until I die.” About five and a half years after starting work, when she had become a store manager in Tokyo, she took on a new challenge.
Shimotsui: a place for a new challenge
Nakadomi’s next dream was to open a restaurant near the sea.
She began looking for a place to move to where she could take on a challenge.
The deciding factor was the people of Shimotsui
As she searched for “an area near the sea,” her experience living in eastern Japan for her previous job had shown her that the warmer climate of western Japan suited her better. She also wanted to make time to see her parents, who lived at her family home, so her search naturally narrowed down to Okayama Prefecture.
Nakadomi considered where to move while visiting areas in Okayama Prefecture that offered relocation support from local governments.
What ultimately led her to choose Shimotsui, she says, was meeting people.
The first was Masada Junya of Nanba Kenchiku Kobo.
While attending an online relocation information session, she was impressed by the passion with which he spoke as a representative of Kurashiki City.
The second was Yoden Yoshie of Yoshimata Shoten, which sells Shimotsui wakame seaweed.
When Nakadomi visited Shimotsui, she met Yoden and heard her passionate feelings about Shimotsui.
When Nakadomi mentioned Masada to Yoden, Yoden called him right then, and afterward Masada showed her around town.
Having experienced the kindness and warmth of the people of Shimotsui, Nakadomi felt it was a wonderful place and decided to move there.
As a Community Revitalization Cooperator
Nakadomi was drawn to the people of Shimotsui and decided to move there.
However, she says she had not originally decided to move there as a “Community Revitalization Cooperator.”
Her first visit to Washuzan—and the sense that it was “such a waste”
While considering a move, she used a guidance service as part of relocation support.
The first place Nakadomi visited was the Washuzan Azumaya Observation Deck. It is a spot where you can see the Seto-Ohashi Bridge, rising from the Seto Inland Sea, directly ahead.
She was amazed by the beautiful scenery, but at the same time, seeing that almost no one was looking at it, she felt it was “such a waste.”
As she wondered, “Is there something I can do for Shimotsui?” she happened to see a recruitment notice for a Community Revitalization Cooperator in the Shimotsui area and applied.
She took up the position in April 2022.
Shimotsui’s first Cooperator placement: connections lead to work
As a Community Revitalization Cooperator, Nakadomi carries out activities such as the following:
- Attending regular meetings
- Holding a monthly workshop at the Washuzan Visitor Center and helping with social media
- Taking part in local festivals and events
- Serving coffee at the Washuzan Visitor Center
- Organizing Shimotsui Sakaba
- Hosting “Ganbaryoru de Kojima” on FM Kurashiki
- Relocation support
The activities of Community Revitalization Cooperators vary by municipality.
Some municipalities set specific activities, while in others the Community Revitalization Cooperator decides from scratch what to do, it seems.
Shimotsui is the latter. Since Nakadomi was the first Cooperator to be accepted there, her first activity after taking up the position was to decide what exactly she would do.
Here, too, Nakadomi’s work was driven by two key aspirations:
- To open a restaurant near the sea
- It was a shame that people didn’t know about the scenery at Washuzan Hill
So she began serving coffee at the Washuzan Visitor Center on an irregular basis.
Although Nakadomi had worked in restaurants, at the time (2022) she had no experience making coffee.
She bought coffee beans from the owner of the cafe Toki no Kairo in Shimotsui. As she continued serving coffee, the connections she made led to her next activities.
One of these was creating a map introducing shops in Kojima.
It began when Kuroshita, the owner of Toki no Kairo, introduced Nakadomi to others.
Nakadomi reached out to shops in Kojima and interviewed them.
By visiting the shops and talking with their owners, she learned not only how they had started their businesses, but also heard many say, “I’m a newcomer here too.”
When she took up the position, Nakadomi had worried, “What if there’s nothing for me to do…?” But her activities expanded through connections with people, and her initial anxiety quickly disappeared.
Passing connections on to the next person
Nakadomi has continued various activities based on her connections with people, and in April 2024 she entered the third year of her term (that is, her final year).
Her recent activities seem to be focused on “passing things on to the next person.”
Connecting people and sharing Shimotsui’s delicious food
The connections Nakadomi has made through her work have spread beyond her own activities, extending to the work of others who support Shimotsui’s industries.
After she posted a photo of Shimotsui wakame seaweed on Instagram, she received a DM asking if she would like to set up a stall at the Setouchi Farmers Market, held in Okayama City.
This event is usually attended mostly by vendors selling agricultural products, but
“I want more people to know about Shimotsui’s seafood. I want people to buy locally produced food.”
With this in mind, Nakadomi made connections so that Shimotsui’s fishermen could set up stalls.
One who began setting up a stall there was Okamoto, a Shimotsui fisherman with the boat Buhomaru.
Okamoto, who mainly fishes for octopus and hijiki seaweed, had been looking for buyers from scratch.
Nakadomi connected him with places to set up stalls, such as farmers’ markets, and from there he was able to start selling seafood himself.
Nakadomi says, “I think it’s important that the connections I’ve made don’t depend on me being there, but continue and grow even after I leave.”
When you want to share something or create something new, connections with new people and places are essential.
On the other hand, if people can only connect through an intermediary, then it cannot be said that a connection has truly been made.
I could see Nakadomi’s commitment, as a Community Revitalization Cooperator, to connecting people and places so they can build self-sustaining relationships even without her.
Starting a restaurant from scratch through connections made as a Community Revitalization Cooperator
Community Revitalization Cooperators have strong ties with former members, centered around the “Community Revitalization Cooperator Network.”
Nakatomi is currently helping launch a “sake bar” inside a facility for inbound tourists scheduled to open in the Bikan Historical Area.
Although Nakatomi had previously worked at a restaurant serving alcohol, they say, “It’s completely different from back then.”
In their previous job, everything about the restaurant, including the interior and menu, had already been decided, so the focus was on things like how to train the staff.
However, the restaurant scheduled to open in the Bikan Historical Area is being built truly from scratch.
Together with the team, Nakatomi has been discussing what the menu and interior should be like and how many people will run the restaurant, as well as visiting sake breweries. Step by step, they are getting closer to their dream of “owning a restaurant.”
A place where tourists and local residents can connect—toward the next goal
What are your goals for the future?
Nakatomi (honorific omitted)
I want to open a brick-and-mortar shop in Shimotsui—a place where people can connect through sake. I’d like to open it somewhere with beautiful views and an open feel, and I’m currently looking for a property.
“Shimotsui Sakaba,” which we currently hold as a place for people to connect, is an occasional event.
There is no permanent place where visitors and newcomers can connect with local residents, so I’d like to create one.
That’s true. I’ve felt that even when visiting Shimotsui as a tourist, there aren’t many opportunities to connect with local people.
Nakatomi
By creating that kind of environment, I hope more young people, especially those in their 20s, will come.
I think that if more shops open, more people will move here.
There’s no single right answer to community development, but I believe that it’s important first for me, as a resident, to enjoy the activities I take part in.
We hope you’ll visit the Washuzan Hill and Shimotsui area
Finally, do you have a message for our readers?
Nakatomi
I hope you’ll visit the Washuzan Hill and Shimotsui area. More and more delicious restaurants are opening there.
I’d also love for you to visit not only Washuzan Hill and Shimotsui, but the Kojima area as well. There are lots of interesting places to visit, such as Betty Smith and the Kojima School Uniform Museum.
New Connections Bring New Attractions to Shimotsui
As someone who lives in Shimotsui, I’ve seen more and more wonderful shops open in the Shimotsui and Washuzan area, and their appeal increasingly shared on social media.
Through the interview, I strongly felt that this was possible not simply because more shops were opening, but because of people like Nakatomi, local residents, and newcomers who are forging new connections between people and places and taking on new challenges.
Why not visit and experience for yourself how the Shimotsui and Washuzan area is changing and being renewed while preserving its timeless appeal?
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For updates on Sakura Nakatomi’s activities, check Instagram.