"A House Alone" (ABC TV/TV Asahi, Sundays 7:54 PM) is a variety show that uses satellite photos to find a remote house. The January 18th broadcast will focus on the life of a couple in their 70s who run a dairy farm in the deep mountains of Ibaraki Prefecture. The guests are actor Tae Kimura and TV personality Ami Kikuchi.
The satellite imagery shows a large building on a cleared plot of land, with no rice paddies or fields to be seen. The unusual building looks like a warehouse, but... The search team arrives in a peaceful village surrounded by tea fields. When they show the satellite imagery to a resident, he replies, "I think this is a compost shed." The owner's home is in a village at the foot of the mountain. The search team first heads to the house to confirm.
When they arrived at the house, they found a row of cow stables nearby. A couple, aged 77 and 72, and their son (45), who was working in the stables, welcomed the search party. Guided by the husband, they crossed the mountain from the village, and a huge factory-like facility appeared in the deep forest around the ridge. According to the husband, this area was once a horse-breeding area, but the demand for horses disappeared after the war.
The husband started a dairy farm about 50 years ago and has been supporting the livelihood of his family of eight. He spoke to the search party about his life so far, including what led him to start his own business, and expressed his gratitude to his wife, saying, "Whenever I look back, you're always there with me. That's why I was able to move forward with peace of mind." Kimura, who was watching from the studio, seemed impressed, saying, "What a wonderful family!"
