"The House in the Middle of Nowhere" (ABC TV/TV Asahi, Sunday 7:58 p.m.) is a variety show that uses satellite photos as a clue to search for a remote house. In the February 16 broadcast, the search team visits a log house deep in the mountains, far from the village of Kochi Prefecture.
The search team drives toward the destination shown on the satellite photos. They ask the residents of the nearest village to look at the satellite photos, but they are puzzled and say, "It's impossible to tell at all when it's so far into the mountains." Meanwhile, the 73-year-old district chief volunteers to guide them. Leaving the village, the car heads deep into the mountains. Grass and trees grow on both sides of the narrow road, and the cliff road continues with many curves. As they proceed along this rugged mountain road, they come across a stately log house on a site carved into the valley.
The search team was greeted by the 80-year-old husband, 77-year-old wife, and 50-year-old second son who live here. This is the place where a warlord who was defeated in the Onin War during the Muromachi period ended up, and on the premises there is a shrine dedicated to that warlord. The husband's family home, which still stands today, is 120 years old. They live in a log cabin, but it is their daily routine to pray at the Buddhist altar in the family home.
At the age of 25, the husband, who worked as a teacher in Kyoto, married his wife, who is from the same hometown. He continued to live in Kyoto after he retired, but after his parents died, he returned to his hometown about 10 years ago, saying, "It's sad to see my hometown fall into disuse," and built a log house and began living here while protecting his childhood home.
When talking about life in the mountains, his wife says with a smile, "We have a lot to do every day and we're busy, but it's also full of fun." The story is filled with stories of a family living happily together in the great outdoors.
The guests are actor Masu Takeshi and Taniguchi Aiki, a member of the idol group Sakurazaka46.
