Japanese Treehouses - The Only Jessica Cantlope

Are you addicted to Toxel? I am. It posted about treehouses, and there are a couple of interesting ones in Okinawa.

The Beach Rock Treehouse was designed by Takashi Kobayashi. What’s best is this is the thing in which we’ll likely make first contact!

Kobayashi, a leading treehouse-maker, also made this:

One speculates that because of this skill, he would be the ultimate father.

The Naha Harbor Diner is a fun idea. It certainly sticks out. Unfortunately (but for obvious reasons), the tree is fake. Certainly looks real, though.

Now I want to visit Okinawa even more.

I loved treehouses when I was a kid, but didn’t have enough friends or siblings to warrant having one of my own. The thought of having a small house all to myself was absolutely titillating, however — I loved miniature versions of things, as I suppose some girls do, with doll houses and such. (That was back when Polly Pocket was good, and yes, I loved and collected those, too.)

Having seen fine examples of crazy treehouses from around the world, I decided to see how many notable treehouses are in Japan.

I found another cool one by Terunobu Fujimori, one that looks a bit structurally unsound and is all the cooler for it:

I’m not sure if I’d like to stay in a treehouse that can be regarded as “an extension of one’s body“, but it’s still really, really neat. It’s the kind of private getaway I could appreciate as an adult. It’s actually a teahouse built in the style of a treehouse, which makes it even more brilliant. Watch a video about it!

There is a Tree House Village called Gankoyama in southern Boso, Chiba. If you’ve been waiting to refine your forest survival skills, it’s the place for you!

Apparently it is a wholesome and organic experience, and all the energy used is renewable. Cook organically, practice archery, hike, and build your own shelter (that is, build an entire treehouse). I’m a big softy, but I’d like to try.