Free Land, Want Some?
I recently read a news story about a small town in Northern Japan that was giving away Free Land. The town’s name is Shibetsu, and is located in Hokkaido, the northernmost island in Japan, in fact the very same island that I live on. Shibetsu is north of the town that I live in and is about an hour and a half drive from where I live now.
The population of this town is a little over 23,000 people, and has been on the decline since 1995, loosing citizens to death by old age and citizens moving to the city. “Land is cheap in Hokkaido,” said Akira Kanazawa, the mayor of Shibetsu, adding that many communities on the island were trying to attract new residents by offering rebates on land. “But free? That’s highly unusual.”
I know that when most people think of Japan, they get a picture of Tokyo in their mind, but Hokkaido is much different. You can compare the surroundings to the Great Plains area in the United States. It really is not that far from where I am at now and is basically composed of open fields and farm lands as far as the eyes can see, surrounded my mountains.
The population is much larger in Shibetsu than in the town that I live in, although I am nearer to Asahikawa, the 2nd largest city in Hokkaido than they are, but not by much. It is interesting to see the contrast of thoughts in different people, those who were raised and in the country moving away to the big cities, with it’s good points and bad points, vs those of us who were raised in the big cities wanting to get away from the hectic lifestyles to a more slower pace.
For me, I am exactly where I want to be and have not felt this satisfied living somewhere that I can ever recall. Yes it is a lifestyle change, and yes there are many things that are different than I am accustomed to, but nothing that can’t be dealt with and gotten used to. I encourage everyone who reads this, to pursue your dreams, if you are not happy with the lifestyle that you are in, only you can change it.
Life truly is too short to be living a lifestyle or working a job that we are not happy with. You will never be truly happy and satisfied until you are doing something that you have always longed to do. Take Care my friends!
Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.
Would love to retire in Hokkaido! How do foreigners get permanent residency in Hokkaido? How much would a couple need? Is the winter too hush? So many questions…maybe you should do a post on how to move to Hokkaido?