Thoroughbred Ginza A bite of green pepper soft serve with the pasture hills in view

On a spring day, my friend and I drove to Niikappu, then stopped at the car park at Thoroughbred Ginza with the green pepper soft serve I’d bought in town. I left the car in a marked bay and stepped onto the stone-paved path. Looking at the pale green soft serve in my hand, I got curious about how it would taste compared with my usual vanilla and wanted a bite before even taking in the view.

Green pepper used to make me think of a side dish, but this is a Niikappu specialty soft serve. It’s cold, and a gentle peppery aroma comes after the sweetness. I told my friend, “It’s so refreshing,” and took another bite. It made me happy to have a little treat in my hand as part of today’s detour, too.

I left my white jacket open and looked at the hills beyond the fence. Spring grass spread across the slope, with another gentle rise beyond it. I was only taking a break at a spot with a gazebo and car park, but time seemed to move differently here than between the town’s buildings. As I ate my ice cream, I slowly let my gaze travel into the distance.

Thoroughbred Ginza is a road lined with horse farms of all sizes for about 8 km. This is the car park at its entrance. I’ve heard you can spot mares and foals here from spring into early summer. I caught myself wondering whether the horses we hear about at the races grow up on pastureland this wide, picturing what lay beyond the hill.

My friend said, “There are more farms farther up the road,” so I nodded with my ice cream still in hand. It’s especially fun on a drive to wonder what the road ahead will bring. I wanted to take my time here until I’d finished my soft serve, then head out along the road lined with farms.

You can get green pepper soft serve at Roadside Station Thoroughbred Road Niikappu. The car park is about a 3-minute drive from there. I like picking up a local treat before stopping by the hills. Even a short detour feels like a little treat. When I think back to spring in Niikappu, I’ll probably remember the pasture hills and that very first bite together.