On the southern hillside behind Shuri Castle lies Kinjo-cho, historically a castle adjunct area where high class samurai families resided. In this area previously called Kanagusuku-cho (same kanji, former pronunciation) one can find the Ishi-datami-michi, paved during the time of King Sho Shin in 1852.

In Japanese, eishif means stone, edatamif(etatamif) are the straw mats which many westerners find uncomfortable after sitting on for a long time, and emichif means street or road. Put them all together and they refer to the long, narrow, stone-paved path that once ran from the gate of Shuri Castle through Kanagusuku to the Shikina-en, which was the second residence of the Sho kings. Previously its paved length was 5 kilometers, but most of that was destroyed during the war, presently leaving 340 meters of actual pavement with a width of two meters.

Along the route of the Ishi-datami-michi, small springs can be seen. Water still runs from the Kanagusuku Hijaga, Usukuga, and Nakanoega springs as in times past. One may also come across a tall, venerable, old tree with large, wide leaves. Called akagi in Japanese, this is one survivor of the many that used to populate the area before the war. This old tree was designated a Natural National Monument in 1972.

Naha City hall preserves this town with municipal funds because of its historical significance.

During the Ryukyu Kingdom Era, young samurai and ladies used this walkway as a place to take strolls, sing songs and have dates. Even today, the route is popular with both young and old. As visitors travel this ancient path, they may feel its serenity and perhaps capture in their imagination scenes from the distant Ryukyuan past.