(Shimogo, Fukushima prefecture)
We visited this old postal station, which is located between Aizu Wakamatsu and Tokyo, at the end of the day. At that time, it transformed from a frenzy of busy souvenir shops that were catering to the crowds of tourists to a quiet Edo period village.
From Tokyo, it takes approximately four hours to reach the Ouchi-juku by car. Consequently, most of tourist groups leave the village by approximately 5 pm to return to their homes or hotels. The life in the village slows down, shops and restaurants close. One can really feel suddenly transported back in time.
Our friends wanted to give us an authentic Japanese experience of eating soba noodles in an old restaurant located in a period building. Although that particular restaurant had already closed, the owners accommodated us and prepared a wonderful dinner of cold soba and tempura. The building itself was fascinating, with its straw roof, hibachi in the middle of the room, and centuries of black soot covering the wooden beams under the ceiling.
The thatch roofs in Ouchi-juku deserve a special note. A typical roof is very thick. It provides excellent insulation and keeps the house warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It takes a great skill to maintain a traditional roof, and people carrying this disappearing trade are highly regarded in Japan.
Later, when we returned to Canada, we saw a program on NHK about the Ouchi-juku, featuring the very same restaurant where we enjoyed our soba dinner. Apparently, the current owners of the restaurant are descendants of the original owners, who settled in Aizu area in the 17th century.
Please follow the link to see our photographs of Ouchijuku.
Photography Notes
This particular trip demonstrated once again the difficulties of combining photography with conventional sightseeing. Our non-photographer friends, at times, had different pace and sightseeing priorities compared to us.
Here are some suggestions on how to manage to take a few useable photographs while accommodating other people in the group:
1. Take every opportunity to shoot. There might not be a better angle, light, etc. than the current moment.
2. Have the camera ready at all times: on your neck, turned on, lens cap off.
3. Use a zoom lens (wide-to-short tele or normal-to-short tele).
4. Use the aperture priority mode with f>=5.6 to ensure large depth of field and a relatively high ISO setting to reduce motion blur (unless the blur is intentional).
Please share your experiences/suggestions of combining photography with vacation travel.