Opened an old folk house café in the mountains of Kawauchi Village in Hamadori, Fukushima Prefecture|Introduced by the prefecture on YouTube channel

Fukushima Prefecture today released the activities of the owner "Kaze Shiga" who opened the old folk house café "café &gallery Akifusha" in October 2022 in Kawauchi Village in Hamadori, Fukushima Prefecture on the prefecture's official YouTube channel (in the article).

The title of the video is "I started an old folk house café ~The challenge of a young owner living in Kawauchi Village~". Shiga was born in Kawauchi Village in 1994. After the Great East Japan Earthquake, he left the village and returned to the village in 2017. Feeling the need for a place where young people can gather, he decided to create a café. The old house that used to be his home was renovated and pre-opened in October 2022. A space that makes use of local craftsmanship and furniture left by parents.

The first visitor, a villager who has known Shiga since he was born, eats curry made with village ingredients and says, "I want to come every day." Shiga says, "I want to make it a place where people gather and start something new, and where conversations can be held between people from the village and people from outside." The café is scheduled to have a grand opening in the spring after the winter holidays.

The café is currently closed for the winter season. Check the official Instagram for information on the spring opening. Local access is about 40 minutes from the Joban Tomioka IC or the Ono IC on the Bandoshi Expressway.

Kawauchi Village is located on Hamadori Street in Fukushima Prefecture. After the evacuation of the entire village in 2011 due to the impact of the Fukushima nuclear power plant accident, the evacuation of the entire village was lifted in June 2016. Currently, there are about 2,300 villagers (3,100 in 2009).
Sightseeing spots are " Iwanano Sato A fishing pond, a restaurant, and a BBQ on a site that makes use of the Narau River that flows through the village. Cottages and camps are available. There is also a hot spring facility "Kawauchi no Yu" nearby. The map shows the location of the café.