Welcome to our channel, where we share our journey of restoring a traditional Japanese minka, which we bought as a cheap abandoned house in the countryside of Japan. Join us as we breathe new life into this former akiya, exploring the beauty of traditional architecture and the challenges of renovating a house in Japan. As foreigners living in Japan, we've embraced the opportunity to restore this minka, a symbol of Japan's rich cultural heritage. Learn about the craftsmanship involved in minka construction, from bamboo and earth to straw, and discover how these materials create a harmonious living space. Our journey began with purchasing this akiya for 5 million yen (approximately $35,000 USD), including not just the minka but also a guest house, storage building, and a generous plot of land with trees. We'll share tips and insights into the challenges and rewards of renovating a traditional Japanese house in the countryside, showcasing the unique blend of history and modern living.
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Dude, great video. glad the rose is doing great brother. Loving all the progress that you have made on the property. Keep it up brother, as much progress as you are making you equally learning as much. Keep it goin
Thanks! That’s y’all’s red rose loving Miwa 😀
Great visit today! Thanks for taking time out of your busy day preparing for traveling and suggestions for a lunch break before heading back out in the bike. Looking forward to more great Coco Lencho content!
Good seeing you, safe riding
Kiwis are looking ripe
They are getting there!
I wish to live in such place...but moving with alot of cats is impossible.
I have many feral cats running here :-)
Soy sudamericana, pero mi familia cuando se corta el pasto y recuerdo en la chacra de mi abuela, años 90s, era de izquierda a derecha. Siempre era "de acá para allá".
De acá para allá, lo recordaré! Gracias
where is that house of yours located....do still know akiya for sale in that location?
Hi it is in Iwakuni, yamaguchi Prefecture. There are many Akiya everywhere, but many not for sale or not widely advertised. My best advice is to find a location you like and just explore the area and let people know you are looking for a property to buy.
you need to use agrotextiles. take off a layer of gravel, get rid of weeds, put agro textile and put the gravel back. The same you can do with your vegetables. Get rid off weeds, very well cultivate a patch of land, make nice beds, put agro textile, cut holes, and plant your vegetables. You will get less problems with weeds. Tomatoes need tall construction to tie, don't cut it, you can share it with neighbors. I am watching channel Niki Positano, they have nice compact garden and you can get some ideas about how they grow up veggies and how they preserve tomatoes for a winter. (their channel is not about farming, but just adds clips about it.
Cool I will check them out. Yeah I definitely did not plan well, but hoping to do better next year!
Them kid's gon' grow up to be upstanding citizens~ Not like these iPad kids I've had the misfortune of dealing with.. most of them are gonna grow up to become American NEET's if they don't go out into the sun. God that car was amazing! They don't make em like they used too... newer cars got sensors in weird places... like on top of the fuel tank under the back seat that can make your car not start. augh! I know.. I'm one of the few in my family that isn't a packrat when it comes to things. I've picked up a "If it don't bring me memories and happiness.. it gets tossed out." mentality. Only got a small hoard of toys (Legos, Nerf, Dolls) in a corner of my room to make sure that my future kids have toys to play with. (Was one of those "Have to make your own toys out of trash or had to dumpster dive" type of childhoods.)
Yeah awesome cars!
“I think I underestimated my gardening ability.” 😂 I hear ya. But actually, I think you got things moving in a good direction. And I KNEW you’d have some cilantro growing. (As do I.) Keep up the good work!🍻
Thanks! The struggle is real without good cilantro!
I've always wanted a pair of those rain chains, but it seems to not work very well when it rains hard, or is it dependent on the design?
🫤 kinda, but it looks cool! Actually if it’s not pouring it’s okay. I added the little extension hoping it would reduce the splash, but not optimal. Hopefully I can think of something else. I still recommend getting one.
@@cocolenchojapan I need at least a pair. I'm thinking maybe just make my own because online, it's sold per link, if I'm not mistaken. 🤔
@@arghentrock that would be cool!
hehe, Was showing my dad your videos and is now encouraging me to learn Japanese and wants me to immigrate over. He's like "I could have bought 3-4 houses in japan with the money I sent to Mexico...(Guadalajara) and you are telling me I can just fix up one? ...I'm not sending anymore money to my family. All they've shown is dirt and one wall with 10 years worth of funding." He's sent over like.. 30k. He dreams of owning a ranch.
Haha funny you say that. I grew up near Guadalajara and know exactly what you are saying. It was sad to see people send money to have their house built just to have their money blown on dumb stuff.
@@cocolenchojapan OH IT WAS BAD! Our aunt went full on Sugar Momma with the money he sent. It was meant to keep his mom happy n' healthy and build the house. She spent the cash on a getting a big house, a young BF and when she was cut off .. she fell HARD. Begging everyone in the family to help her keep her lifestyle. Now she's staying at another sisters house... with nothing but the clothes she kept and didn't sell. XD
@@Executordee yup seen it over and over!
I'm getting a little ticked off with you and others who talk about all the akiyas and have absolutely no advice on getting one. Stop already.
There is no one size fits all. Have cash. Be prepared for possible delays and red tape you normally do not encounter in the west. Don’t be a jackass westerner coming to Japan expecting to change their ways.
Great for the plants!
Yup, they are loving it!
Beautiful
Thank you
Property looks great, keeping up with the never ending growing season here is a chore for sure, there's always a fine line between trying to keep things natural looking but not overgrown looking (more work daily/weekly) and nature taking over completely. Glad to see the plants you're putting in the ground seem to agree with location and soil. Keep the videos coming! Very inspiring and at least for me, (I hope most viewers agree) what you've done is something everyone CAN do as long as you're willing to put in the time and effort to reap the reward of a good life being lived.
Thank you very much, that means a lot to me!
if they dont like you they wont sell to you . there is more than onlly having money . too many rules (must live for 15 years must commute etc ) and prices are high bc you need to renovate littarlly everything bc of rotten wood..
There are many factors for sure!
Your neighbors probably think you are going cucú taking to yourself
Haha so the grandson (maybe 8 years old) found my channel somehow. She brought him over to meet this “famous” wanna be KZreadr. I was surprised and impressed. Have no idea how he found me.
Thanks for the great video!
Glad you liked it!
Japanese Chayotillo
Haha yup!
Not even retired guys can keep a large property looking 100% year-round here. You are doing pretty good!
Yeah I am trying to lower my expectations 😂 thanks! A lot of your advice has helped a lot!
Use all the spare wood and build a box frame and put the screen over it
Thanks, yup that’s part of the plan. Let’s see how I do next year!
Everything looks really good but yes you're right, you definitely need to spread them out juuuuust a bit haha. It's all part of learning buddy!
Haha juuuuuuuuust a little bit for sure :-:
I agree, living in the contrey side is better than living in a big town/city, I don't mind the 40-45 min commute to work.
I am right at 40-45 minutes, so not bad in my opinion. Thanks for watching
Yeah idk, I like Japan a lot but the culture and language is a bitter pill to swallow if you want to live there. Also, rennovations are tempting for would be homeowners, but I already own and did one where I live, and I swore to never do it again. It's a hassle. Also, for example, i hunt. Japan is notoriousy hard with convoluted legislation so for me that would be a significant obstacle, not to mention other inconveniences like high taxes, visa requirements, stringet social order (seniority, work culture...), not to mention xenophobia and so on... For example... Italy, Spain and Portugal are about to experience the same sort of population decline, theyre just in the earlier stages, but these places too are emptying out. Even Germany will get there. Italy has 1EUR homes right now. So, this phenomenon is happening globally and has only just started and frankly, why would I choose Japan over say Italy that also has cheap homes (right now, and getting cheaper every year), great culture, great food, but has significantly lower barriers to entry in every way? I'd be closer to family. Flights are cheaper. Language isn't as much of an issue. It's more relaxed... Japan will really have to contend with these questions if they want to attract people. As of now it may look tempting, to some, but there's a long list of contenders that will emerge in the next few years. I'm looking personally and Japan is a hard sale compared to some of these other places.
Thanks for the comment. Japan is definitely not foreigner friendly to live in that’s for sure. I don’t work for a Japanese company so I don’t experience other issues you mention.
Are there folks you can hire to help you maintain your garden like how we have gardeners come biweekly to mow our lawns?
Hi! I am sure there are, but not ready for that yet 😀
Congrats on your new “toy!” Curious where you bought it - seems like they have a large selection of camping cars in that warehouse. I’m in Japan for the summer and considering buying a camping car next year when I return. Thanks!
Thanks! I bought it from Fuji Cars Japan, Hiroshima branch. They have multiple branches. Here is the website, hopefully you can get one soon! www.fujicars.jp/
You think avocado trees would do good in your area?
I don’t think so, but I am trying to grow some from seeds
Living the dream! Enjoy the nice weather over there👍
Thanks, starting to get pretty humid :-) good thing I am bald 👨🦲 no bad hair days for me!
Maybe if Inheritance Tax was lowered, children would be happier to inherit parents properties
It’s definitely a tough situation…hopefully it improves!
So many dream cars in that garage!! I'm in love with that place now hahaha. Just a few weeks before I get back to Japan and I'm super excited! Maybe we'll see you up there ;) Your garden is looking fantastic also! Everything is filling in so nicely!!
Thanks! Probably can't make it this time, but for sure in the future. I am sure you will have a lot a of work to do! Yeah my garden has gone nuts growing crazy!
Those taco socks are the best! 🌮
Haha thanks!
During your renovation, did you have to rebuild the foundation? Thanks for any info. Nice video
Hi thanks for watching. Not the foundation itself, but we did decide to pour a concrete slab to reduce the risk of termites in the future. Hope this helps
@@cocolenchojapan Thanks for the info and nice job with your home.
You look like a little kid on Christmas Morning !
haha I guess so!
Wow, great job! You really did it! We've got some stumps to remove as well.
Well you’ve learned from the best haha
Awesome!!! Love to see it! The van looks amazing. I see a lot of great camping trips in your future :)
Me too! Very excited
You are just missing the TV for the grandkids ☺️ you gave me an idea on that ac unit!! Saludos!
Saludos Ruth. Haha now days you can just give them the iPad with headphones. Glad I gave you some ideas!
Nice van 👍
Thanks!
Great! Looking forward to seeing all your adventures! Safe travels and have fun :)
Thank you very much, looking forward to making trips ourselves!
Your car reminds me of my childhood cos one of my dad’s cars was hiace when i was a child. It is a big car that time for me and there were lots of option to attach inside of the car.
Everything seems so much bigger as a kid!
This is awesome, Lawrence. I've been waiting to see the video of your new "Shag"-wagon as you've been teasing about it for a while now. I think you made a great choice with the Hi-Ace based RV & hope that it's a nice compromise in size between being too small or being too large. Like you mentioned, the roads in Japan are not like in other parts of the World & cannot accommodate the large RV's like we have in the US. I look forward to following your adventures around Japan as it is such a pretty country. I rented a car last year in Tohoku & loved being able to explore areas not as easily explored by public transport. I'm thinking I may try to rent an RV on my next trip to Japan as I generally shun the large cities anyway & love to explore. Now your most important task is to name the new beast. Might I suggest - 探検家 (Tankenka-san)?
Thanks! Yeah definitely need a cool name. I need to put together the video of our trip to Awaji shima last weekend. Really looking forward to many trips around Japan!
Wow man that it is great setup! Looking forward to your arrival!
Thanks! I should be able to stop by on my way back!
Finally up !!!! Was getting anxious
Haha thanks! Hopefully I have many more to share!
thanks for the content brother! I can't wait to live there!
You are very welcome, hopefully you can make it soon!
The absolute skill of the carpenter and assistants - wow Truly awesome Loving these videos, only discovered your channel a few days ago, so gone back to beginning. So enjoying it Our son has lived in Tokyo for 25 years now, we love it there He would LOVE to do what you’re doing but his wife’s family lived in Nikko, but she lived with Grandfather in Tokyo since she was 10 and doesn’t’t like rural.
That is too bad! Thanks for watching and hopefully you enjoy. Our next stage in life is traveling in a camper van. We are on our first trip around Shikoku right now.
Great job
Thank you so much!
Cut through 4:11 minutes of this video. This guys face sucks up that time
When i saw the eggshells i thought you were going to scatter them on the roses my mom used to do that with her roses.
I should! I hear banana peels are good too
@@cocolenchojapan yes and rise water my sister does that 😊
Ohh I miss the video of the van!! It looks nice!! Saludos
Gracias! Going on our first trip this weekend!
How is your internet service at home and around town? Is it fast and inexpensive?
Hi Steve, yup fast my wife pays the bill but I think around 70 ish dollars
Thanks Lawrence,, I really enjoy your videos and I admire your style. My brother Steve speaks highly of you and I can see why. Your videos are very well produced and getting better and better. Great editing, xlnt narration, wonderful footage. Very inspiring.
Looking good Lawrence 👍
Thanks! How’s the new gig? Miss you over here
I visited my brother Steve in Iwakuni last year and I was amazed . He told about your renovations and your channel. I'm very impressed. Thanks for sharing the great content.
@@DavidoEsqueleto haha you got me there! Are you twins? I just figured Steve was using a different name. Thank you very much for the kind words and encouragement. Sometimes I wonder if I am too annoying :-) Steve and I always talked about him visiting my house, but never did. Unfortunately he left Iwakuni. Telling I said hello and thanks for watching!