September 29 / A Village that Modernity Forgot

There is a small village called Odaira-juku with only 12 old houses along Nakasendo, a 533-kilometer inland route that connected the cities of Kyoto and Edo (present-day Tokyo).

In the Edo Period (1603-1868), travelers from all walks of life - samurai, merchants, pilgrims and lords with their clans - passed through this area, a post station as they journeyed along this Nakasendo road.

Odaira-juku is located at 1,150m elevation where heavy snow shut the village activities during severe winter months and even in other months rice and other products had not suitably grown.

People gradually started moving to other places.

In 1970 there was a fire in the village made 4 houses burnt down.

(The used-to-be shrine at left and elementary school at right)
That was their high time to move to the other place but it was already another severe winter, they had to leave the houses as they were.

The village now is not abandoned at all, instead an NPO volunteers preserved the area and from March until November most houses are open to public lodging at a very nominal cost.

p.s. However, due to recent media coverage the village is now widely known and not quiet anymore.