Odaira Juku is simply an incredible place! Located deep in the heavily forested mountains of southern Nagano pref., it started its life as a post town of an ancient road, the Odaira Kaido, which connected the Nakasendo of the Kiso Valley with the Chuma Kaido of the Ina Valley. Travellers moving around the country could take refuge as they made their way through the mountainside. As times changed and new roads were built, this tiny remote village began to struggle. It remained inhabited all the way until 1970, when one winter night, the entire village was abandoned, left behind not so much by its residents but by the times that befell it. What remained was an empty village of ancient houses. A village lost in time.

In the following years and decades Odaira Juku has gone through stages. From total abandonment, to a short lived attempt at commercialising it into a holiday resort village, it is now preserved and maintained by a local NPO and the broader area’s tourism bureau. The grass is cut. The houses are maintained and fixed when necessary. They are basic but absolutely beautiful! For a fee, they can also be rented and used by people wanting to experience life from an ancient time. These houses provide a base for this cookery experience.

Using a genuine ancient Japanese kitchen, together with a guide, you will cook gohei mochi, a kind of rice dumpling with a sweet and salty sauce eaten as a celebratory food in central Japan. You will be doing this entirely from scratch and will need to work for your lunch. From getting the fire going and cooking the rice, to making the sauce and grilling the food over an ancient hearth, this is VERY hands on and cooking lunch will take most of the day! You will end up smelling of smoke and powdered with ash. So dress appropriately. When you finish cooking and eating, you will clean the place up, take stroll along the ancient Odaira Highway and come back down the mountain.

For those willing to rough it, overnight stays are also possible but be warned that the facilities are very austere, without cell service, running hot water, drinking water, food, etc. Some things can be rented and if this sounds exactly like what you want, Really Rural Japan can help you make it happen and help you buy your supplies to get through the night.