Join us at our mountain land & home in rural Nara, Japan

Details

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  Description

  Hello, and thank you for reading our profile!
  - Important Update About Fall/ Winter Availability-
  We wanted to let you know that we’ll be taking a break from our regular WorkAway hosting for some time. (During this time, we’re focusing on our work with clay and take a brake form projects.)
  We plan to resume our volunteer hosting program in late winter or early spring. Thank you for your understanding, and we look forward to welcoming volunteers again once we’re back!
  
  About Us
  We are potters, builders, and land stewards living in a quiet mountain village in Nara, Japan. Over the past few years, we’ve been renovating and restoring a 300-year-old home by hand—while building studios, tending the forest, and shaping a daily life rooted in care. Most of it has been done by just the two of us, with occasional help from friends and volunteers in our community.
  Now we’re in a season of transformation. It’s time to seek more support, so we can make real progress on long-term projects while also returning our focus to being potters and teachers—which was our original intention in moving to this place. Francis is a passionate and creative pottery teacher; Yufu has a long-standing practice in Japanese tea ceremony, flower arrangement, and yoga/meditation. We are both deeply involved in clay, glaze, and firing research.
  Our next steps include a major house renovation and a landscape-scale reforestation effort. The house renovation will help us welcome more guests and create a better rhythm for shared life. The reforestation project is a gift—to the land, the village, and the future. It might sound wild for a small household, but this isn’t a business. It’s a response to where we are. It will offer slope protection, biodiversity, and beauty over time. Our vision is to shape a multi-layered landscape between wild and cultivated, centered on native species and adapted to our steep forested terrain—our version of 里山 (satoyama).
  Alongside these larger efforts, we carry the daily responsibilities of rural life: firewood, garden paths, meals, repairs. These steady, small acts are the foundation of our larger vision.
  
  What We're Looking For
  We’re preparing to welcome a wider circle of support: people who care about this house and land and want to be part of both the visible changes and the quiet work beneath.
  We’re not just looking for labor. We’re looking for people who want to share in the unfolding of a place and a way of life. Whether through action, attention, or presence—there’s space for meaningful contribution.
  We’re not looking for the most skilled or the most eager. We’re looking for people who can sense the shape of a place and step into it with care. People who:
  Find meaning in contribution itself, even when it’s quiet or unseen
  Can let go of expectations and stay present with what actually unfolds
  Are grounded, steady, and respectful in shared space
  Notice what needs doing and offer help without performance
  
  Before sending your message, please read our profile carefully. This place calls people with strong alignment to our vision. The tasks require adaptability, independence, strength, and maturity. We know this isn’t for everyone. But if something here feels real to you, we invite you to reach out. And please be patient with our slow reply. We’re a small household.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Help with Eco Projects

  Gardening

  DIY and building projects

  Help around the house

  General Maintenance
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  Interests

  

  Sustainability

  

  Self development

  

  Culture

  

  Plant care

  

  Photography

  

  Languages

  

  History

  

  Gardening

  

  DIY & crafts

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Carpentry

  

  Art & design

  

  Nature

  

  Mountain

  

  Hiking
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  We aren’t event-based hosts. Much of what we offer is slow, place-based, and relational. We live a handmade life: restoring our home, making pottery, researching wild clay and glazes, building things from scratch—all grounded in Japanese traditions and aesthetics.
  If you’re present and engaged, you’ll find many chances to learn—through observation, shared meals, informal conversations, or joining the rhythm of the day. Moments like tea breaks, quiet dinners, board games, watching the moon, or a soak at the onsen—these are the heart of why we’re building this place. We invite you to find joy in them with us.
  
  Our village is home to a growing community of artists and craftspeople. Within walking distance, you’ll find a natural dye and weaving studio offering workshops, and a local taproom run by a fermentation enthusiast. Our friends include woodworkers, designers, furniture makers, and a professional lumberjack with deep knowledge of afforestation. Nearby villages are home to a washi papermaker and one of Japan’s oldest medicinal plant gardens.
  
  We’re not actively teaching classes at the moment, but if something overlaps with your stay, you may be welcome to join with a small local fee. We’re not here to perform culture—we live it.

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  Help

  Tasks may include:
  Reforestation (planting, weed-cutting, digging, trail-shaping)
  House renovation (clearing storage, demolition, carpentry, tool care, organizing)
  Ongoing work (firewood, tidying, seasonal repairs, shared space upkeep)
  We especially welcome people who are happy doing strong physical work. We also value contributions to house rhythm: tidying, maintenance.
  During more active times, we especially appreciate people who enjoy working alongside others, can help orient newer volunteers through shared tasks, and who enjoy large-volume communal cooking.
  Once oriented, you’ll work mostly on your own. Start after your own breakfast unless we’ve made a plan to meet. We ask for about 5 focused hours per day, mostly in the morning—with flexibility depending on weather and flow.
  Quiet initiative is appreciated. When in doubt, check in. We’re always happy to clarify or guide.
  
  Who We Can Host
  We usually welcome 1–4 thoughtful, grounded volunteers at a time—people drawn to either tangible or subtle forms of contribution. We typically host new volunteers for 7–10 days. After a few days, if both sides feel a good alignment, we can talk about longer arrangements.
  Our home and land are always in motion. Sometimes it’s peaceful, sometimes chaotic. Your help makes this place feel held, even as it changes.
  We value presence more than experience. You don’t need special skills. You do need attention, physical awareness, and the ability to begin without needing to be watched.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Japanese: Fluent

  This host offers a language exchange
  I previously taught Japanese language and culture at colleges and universities in the US. My husband loves doing researches with creative mind. Language and culture study is part of our life. When we have time, we can share our cultural study projects. It would be great if we have a chance learning new culture in person.
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  Accommodation

  We have two private rooms in the traditional house. Each can host up to two people—shared only with your travel partner.
  During the reforestation project, some guests may also stay in tents on the campground, depending on availability and preference.
  Wi-Fi throughout the house and garden
  Shared bathrooms
  Local onsen (hot spring) is a five-minute walk away
  Our house is rustic but well cared for, with no air conditioning. If you appreciate natural air and enjoy living in rhythm with the environment, you’ll likely feel at home here.
  
  Meals
  All meals are included on your work days. Breakfast is self-serve. Lunch and dinner are cooked by us and shared together.
  We care deeply about food and prepare it with passion. Participation in meals is part of the cultural exchange. That said, sometimes, when energy is low or projects are intense, lunch or dinner may be taken separately. This is part of our rhythm—thank you for flowing with it.
  We cook with passion and care; your extra help with kitchen clean-up is the response to our extra offering. We hope to welcome people who won’t see this as a burden.
  Please let us know in advance if you have any dietary needs. If you can share good recipe, or help us cook vegetarian meals, we are happy to host vegetarians.
  
  Your Day Off
  We follow the Workaway guideline — two days off for every five full working days. Sometimes that looks like one day at a time, sometimes two days together, depending on the flow of projects and coordination within the group. We try to have everyone take the same day off, though arrivals and schedules may not always line up exactly.
  On these days, we also take a break from cooking. Although simple food is available, we encourage you to explore the village—dine at local places, meet the neighbors, support the local economy. We provide a bus schedule and list of dining options.
  If you’d like us to prepare something extra or help with food that day, just ask. We’re happy to help if we have the energy.

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  What else ...

  Safety & Well-being
  We want your time here to be meaningful, joyful, and safe. You are responsible for your own well-being during your stay. Please carry valid travel or volunteer insurance. We are not liable for injury or property loss.
  We keep a basic first-aid kit on hand. The nearest clinic is 20 minutes away; the nearest hospital is just over an hour.
  Work safely. Rest when needed. Let us know of any health concerns in advance.
  
  We appreciate good communications
  If you’re ever unsure what to do, how to help, or where to be—just ask. We’ll do our best to keep things clear. And we appreciate your patience with our own imperfect rhythm.
  There are no bad questions. Sometimes, just checking in helps everything flow.
  
  Please note that while our life is centered on pottery, and conversation around pottery is our favorite one, the volunteer work is focused on our house and land projects. We are not offering pottery training for volunteers at this time.
  
  And thank you!
  Thank you for reading our profile.The help we receive here supports not just our land, but our spirits. We offer our time and space with joy—even in brief, quiet ways.
  
  A kind note before you write: We are grateful for every message we receive. Because we are a small household managing large projects, we can only reply to applicants who seem to be a strong match for our vision and needs. If you feel a deep connection to this place, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the questions below. It helps us understand if we are a good fit for each other. We may not be able to reply if these are missing. We read every complete application with care and appreciate your patience.
  Please write simply in your own words. Just because we use English to communicate, doesn’t mean you need to be fluent. We are a Japanese–American couple—we understand what it means to meet across language.
  
  - In a shared living space, small things often make a big difference. What is something you often do—even something small—to help others feel comfortable or supported?
  - Tell us about your past volunteer work, especially where physical labor was involved. What made that kind of work feel good (or not good)? What kind of tasks make you feel happy or useful?
  - What makes you interested in this place—not just Japan, but this house, this life in the mountains? Is there something you hope to learn, or a way you hope to contribute?
  - Is there a cultural or personal ritual you’d like to share with us?

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Can host digital nomads

  This host has indicated that they love having digital nomads stay.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  More than two

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  My animals / pets

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