Rounding a corner on the lilting road that leads from the port in Tokashiki to Aharen Beach ¡ª Route 186, bisecting the island of Tokashiki, the largest of the Kerama Islands from northeast-to-southwest ¡ª my 50-something driver, Koji Yoshida, notices me craning my neck as the island¡¯s namesake beach comes into view.

¡°You wanna stop for pictures?¡± he asks in Japanese.

¡°Is that all right?¡± I ask him, revealing in my tone that I do.