My first early morning walk since moving into Kawamata, Kamibun.  Early mornings here in Japan are different to early mornings in the UK.  At just before 6am everyone is up and already busy doing something.

Kamibun has a long history.  For a place that’s so isolated (it takes 1 hour to reach Tokushima City Centre, even with the new faster road) a lot of the buildings are quite grand and most houses have a kura (Japanese safe/storehouse that can be associated with wealth).  Kawamata is an old shopping street by the side of the river.  It has two schools, a Junior high and a High school but both are no longer used (at least, in the traditional way, although various community events are held occasionally).  I would guess that the average age in Kawamata is 64.  Doesn’t bother us.  After all, youth is wasted on the young isn’t that so?  It’s an opportunity to absorb some wisdom.  Hell, it’s not like no one young visits Kawamata.  It just needs a night club building by the river and that’ll sort all the problems of the evacuation of youths.  I’m sure if everyone really wanted some youths back in the area England would be happy to deport a whole bunch of the hooded variety (they’re busy looting right now, but in a few weeks they’ll be free).  Nonsense.

Where was I?  History…wealthy…  So back when the trees around these parts were hundreds of years old and you could measure their girth in metres, the saw mills and wood merchants were doing a roaring trade.  People would travel to do business.  They needed somewhere to stay and to have some fun and do a bit of window shopping; Kawamata was it.  I’d like to find out more details though.  Kamibun is especially interesting because almost everyone we have met in Kamiyama has some connection to Kamibun.  The three degrees of Kamiyama.

Lots of dilapidation.  But since all the houses are mostly made of natural materials, it’s not ugly, it’s cute.  But of course it’s sad.  Very sad.

Above, an old pharmacy/chemist.  Accross the street, an old Doctor’s surgery (no picture).

Weird empty shops that might still be open for business but you wouldn’t know what to buy.

Later, I find the shrine and it’s in an elevated position.  Looking down I see the metal roofs and try to imagine everything being tiled.  I take some bad pictures of the shrine and a stone water trough that looked like a female organ.  Around the side of the temple there was a box with a goofy horse inside.

It was like a prop from a seafront amusement park.  I wanted to see it move but I didn’t have any cash.

Walking past all the shops and it all turns green and thick and woody.  The sun is spilling over the tree tips and I wonder how far I’ll continue to walk.  As I’m taking a photo of a ramshackle house and old man in a car pulls up next to me with a grumpy face and I say good morning in Japanese and he seems pleased and drives off.  I turn back and the sun is filtering through and the empty houses are glowing and healthy looking.

A tree with two herons.