Replanting Roots in Rural Japan: Benton Homestead’s Journey on Ōmishima Island; Akiya Renovation

Replanting Roots in Rural Japan: Benton Homestead’s Journey on Ōmishima Island; Akiya Renovation

Hey good morning from the country side of Japan this tad bit chilly this morning we’re getting ready right now to head on over to onomichi and we’re going to visit uh the Ben in Homestead folks uh I have been following the channel here for a while and uh if you have not

Followed them uh please check them out because they’re one of the first that have uh Broken Ground with the business uh I I should say with the startup visa and then the business manager visa and the way they went about doing that is is uh by purchasing two

Aias and uh turning one into an Airbnb so we’re going to be staying there so if you interested in how you can also do that now please uh follow along and I think it’ll be kind of interesting the meanwhile I need to get rid of scraps

I’m working here on my little garden if you have been following me you know what I’m talking about but we cleared out this area right here and uh working on some garden beds and whatnot excuse me because it’s a little bit cold and um as

I kind of mentioned so to today I have to go to work for a while of course and uh then after that we’ll be heading over to to their place said in the shimanami kaido area and if you’re not familiar with the shimanami kaido it’s a

Beautiful uh uh I guess a string of uh bridges that go from the mainland to shikako the island of shikako and and the really really really nice gorgeous Bridges connecting them across I think it’s seven of them and one of the main things that I guess uh

Uh shimanami kaido shikoku offers is the where you can bike across and I was just looking on Facebook this morning as a matter of fact that October 27th is when they were going to close it down for uh several hours so that people can bike

Across uh people do it all the time they have marathons or uh bike races whatnot across it and that is one of their main uh I guess targets for the bons the the tourism that comes across where they have a place to stay so again check them

Out uh support them if all possible uh if you’re heading over to Shoku is really nice place we have been there many many times uh one of them was I I should say it took multiple trips the um 88 Temple pilgrimage where you go through these different series of 88

Temples and you could collect ghost rings and the stamps that you uh get from each Temple really cool it’s really nice experience you can also go to Dogo onen which is in Matsuyama and is supposed to be one of the oldest onen in Japan so it has a lot to offer and also

I I mentioned that I have to go to work so uh currently I work under sofa stat is was basically you work for the US government uh earning US Dollars and there’s a different way of uh living in Japan and there many pros and cons to it

And uh I have a video of it so it’ll be at the end of this video so please check it out if you’re interested in how you can also work and live in Japan and if you uh cannot or do not want to go through the typical immigration process

All right folks uh please enjoy Thanks

Join Evan + Dani Benton on their inspiring journey from an urban farm in New Orleans to the tranquil countryside of Ōmishima island, Japan. After traveling and house-sitting in Mexico, they received a Startup Business visa and are now transforming abandoned ‘akiya’ houses into a beautiful guesthouse while building a honey bee business and embracing a homestead lifestyle.

Explore the Benton Guesthouse, a lovingly renovated Shōwa-era vacation rental just minutes from the Shimanami Kaido. Experience slow life in the Japanese countryside, surrounded by traditional charm and modern comforts.

Location: Imabari, Ehime, Japan
Neighborhood: Ōmishima island, Kamiura-cho Inokuchi
Address: 2290 Kamiura-cho Inokuchi, Imabari-shi, Ehime-ken 794-1402

Book your stay: https://abnb.me/MaAOGKxccIb

Subscribe to Benton Homestead on YouTube for more insights into rural living and sustainable entrepreneurship: https://youtube.com/@bentonhomestead?si=yIzaCFFFV8y1hVGY

#japan #japancountryside #japanesevacanthouse #akiya #traditionaljapanesehouse #ruraljapan #japanesegarden

Join this channel to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKyYYQp1L5t4GTOTfs780SA/join

Other videos of our Akiya traditional Japanese house renovation:
https://youtube.com/@cocolenchojapan

Contact:
cocolenchojapan@gmail.com

Social Media:
Instagram: @cocolenchojapan
https://www.instagram.com/cocolenchojapan/?fbclid=IwAR1vdzJZbQd5I1V7kv2ho0Imz2sb6BL_vc5mZq5wd4DJQPVL4SSVBWvDw3A

Facebook:
Coco Lencho Japan
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088736035119

****Recommend using “Chrome” as a browser for Japanese to English translation.****

Akiya Bank for my area near Iwakuni City and Hiroshima City: Miwa Town in Yamaguchi
https://iwakuni-iju.jp/akiyajoho

Miwa Town Information:
https://iwakuni-iju.jp/miwa.html

Dave Olson’s website:
Dave provides many links and information Akiya and Komika purchase.

“Akiya” abandoned, cheap/free* houses in Japan / annotations, resources, riffs, musings, stories

At Akiya Sumai you can search for vacant houses around Japan.
https://akiya.sumai.biz

At Ie Ichiba there is a Bulletin board to search vacant houses / Akiya Houses and old buildings in Japan
https://www.ieichiba.com

Other Useful Links:

Can A Foreigner Buy Property In Japan?

https://www.athome.co.jp/
https://www.kurasapo.net/
https://www.koryoya.com/
https://www.homes.co.jp/akiyabank/
http://www.inakanet.jp/index.html
https://www.akiya-athome.jp