This project was funded by a grant from the Kyoto City, Nishikyo Ward Office.<\/p> In 2023 oharano.jp teamed up with Kyoto Nishiyama Oharano Hoshokai Association and received a grant from the Japan Tourism Agency to bring native English writers to Oharano and its surrounding areas to research and write for the website. Our thanks to the JTA and those involved in the project.<\/p> Member profiles<\/p> Duncan Brotherton<\/strong>: Born in Australia, moved to Japan in 2001. Studied Visual Communication at university. Graphic designer, thinker and writer. In addition to design work, also teaches design and editorial design at arts universities. Board member of the Japan Typography Association. Text: Tomoko Okaku Before the two came to live in the traditional Japanese house we were chatting in, they were living in Osaka. A trip to Oharano on a day off inspired them to eventually move here in December 2013.<\/p> Asako: \u201cIt was the first time we\u2019d visited, but I felt relaxed by the calm, quiet scenery. We\u2019d been to visit Shoji-ji Temple, and on the walk back I suddenly said, \u2018I reckon I could live here.\u2019\u201d<\/p> They spoke nonchalantly about their first walk through the area.<\/p> At the time, Duncan was working on designing a couple of free papers introducing art in Osaka and design in Kobe. He\u2019s currently teaching design and editorial design at universities in the Kansai region. Asako was initially employed at a translation agency when they moved, but she only does freelance work at the moment, in order to spend more time in Oharano.<\/p> Asako: \u201cI go for strolls and stare out the window between work; every day I remind myself what a good idea it was to live here. When we take our friends and show them the neighborhood, they always tell us how good it is, and leave with a nice impression. This got Duncan and myself thinking that we wanted more people to know about Oharano and come see it themselves. Those born and raised here might not notice how good it is, but we see it with fresh eyes.\u201d<\/p> This led to the two making use of their skills and starting their free paper, Hirake! Oharano<\/em>, which showcased the area from 2015 to 2017.<\/p> Hirake! Oharano<\/em> also made space for the voices of local residents, such as a farmer selling vegetables in a self-made veggie stand, and a local resident caretaking a park with an enormous tree.<\/p> Asako: \u201cWhen you take a trip, the experience is enriched through meeting locals. We moved here right at the end of the year, and straight away our neighbors invited us over to pound rice cakes together. The closeness and connection was unlike anything we\u2019d experienced when we were living in an apartment. Thanks to all the relationships we\u2019ve built with the people around us, Oharano feels irreplaceable\u2014that\u2019s why oharano.jp is not just about the sights but the wonderful people here too. We hope visitors do more than just visit; we want them to chat with the locals and have a good time too.\u201d<\/p> The free paper they started has now moved to a new level.<\/p> Duncan: \u201cAt first, we started with a free paper that was designed around a map. The paper medium has its good points, but for the next stage I wanted to try to reach people in places we couldn\u2019t send the paper out too. Hirake! Oharano<\/em> is bilingual, but we had no idea if anyone from abroad was actually reading it. With a website, the whole world could have access.\u201d<\/p> This led the two to start evolving ideas for the paper to become a website.<\/p> oharano.jp is built around the idea of introducing Oharano and the locals that Duncan and Asako know.<\/p> Asako: \u201cThe most important thing is being aware of and respecting the people who have lived here and made the place what it is; Oharano would not be the same without them. We hope that this website leads to lots of different people meeting each other.\u201d<\/p> Duncan: \u201cAlso, we\u2019re not out to create a sight-seeing area flooded with tourists. We want to show what we think is worth seeing. If that resonates with even a few people and it makes them want to visit, then great! Our job is to give people a nudge that will make them think, \u201cYou know what? I might pop over to Oharano,\u201d and come spend a relaxing day here. There must be someone out there in the world who likes Oharano as much as we do.\u201d<\/p> The site oharano.jp might make you a fan of the area, just like Duncan and Asako have become; give it a browse and see what you find.<\/p> Profile: Tomoko Okaku About OharanoOharano can be found in Kyoto\u2019s Nishiyama, Rakusai area. Making up …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":111,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":309,"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2\/revisions\/309"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/111"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/Nishikyo-ku-Chikiryoku_logo.png\"){kind=logo}
<\/figure>Managed by: Hirake! Oharano<\/h3>
Asako Matano<\/strong>: Freelance translator (JP\u21d4EN), teaches English at university. Became a Kyoto Certified Interpreter Guide (Kyoto City Visitors Host), in order to introduce Oharano to international guests.<\/p>Before oharano.jp<\/h2>
In 2021, I got a message from Asako, an acquaintance I met 10 years ago at a writing workshop in Kyoto City. She asked me if I\u2019d like to write something for a website she was making about Oharano. I went to visit the area to visit her and her husband Duncan, and to interview them about the story behind it.<\/p>![\"\"](\"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1405.jpg\")
<\/figure>How it all started<\/h2>
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/oharano.jp\/en\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/DSC_1406.jpg\")
<\/figure>Vision<\/strong><\/h2>
Born in Tokyo, raised in Kyoto. After graduating from university, has engaged mainly in editorial work.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"