The variety show "Potsun to Ikkenya" (ABC TV/TV Asahi, Sundays at 7:54 PM) searches for isolated houses in remote areas using satellite photos as clues. The June 28th episode will feature an 86-year-old former carpenter who is building a "house where his beloved wife can bask in the sun" in the mountains of Kagoshima Prefecture. The guests will be entertainers Yuji Ota and Hinako Sakurai.
The satellite image shows three buildings on a triangular plot of land. There also appears to be a small field. Guest Ota says, "Kagoshima is home to the only active gold mine in Japan, so perhaps this is a 'golden isolated' place created by someone who struck it rich?"
As the search party made their way along the mountain path, fallen trees were scattered everywhere, blocking their path. Carefully steering to avoid the fallen trees, they continued onward and a building with a gate came into view. There were three buildings surrounding a field, and comparing them with satellite images confirmed that this was indeed the place, but there was no sign of people.
Later, when we revisited the isolated house, we were greeted by an 86-year-old former carpenter. He explained that he sometimes uses it as a gathering place for local friends and also as his own woodworking workshop. Currently, he is renovating the building for his wife, who is hospitalized with a fracture. He expressed his gratitude to his wife, saying that since marrying her, "both my work and private life have been truly fulfilling." The preview video shows the man sweating as he works on adding a terrace and enjoying a barbecue party with friends.
Guest Sakurai said, "I yearn for a lifestyle with two locations. I'd like to live somewhere surrounded by nature on weekends," describing her ideal lifestyle. Ota confessed, "I feel a sense of nostalgia for isolated houses," and watched the video intently, as if relating it to her own memories.
