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The Akiya Project

The Akiya Project

Leverage local knowledge to supercharge your Japan travels, make big akiya purchases, or even plan a move to the land of the rising sun. Learn about restoring abandoned properties in rural Japan and gain lessons from paperback reads and formidable builders who set the example 🇯🇵 https://akiyaproject.substack.com/ akiyaproject.substack.com

arts design

All Episodes

57:05

#61 Living as a Shepherd in the Modern World

The Akiya Project ·

2025/09/09

Books Mentioned In This Episode:When you purchase a book (or anything on Amazon) with the links below, you support me and the podcast at no extra cost to you:* The Shepherd's Life: Modern Dispatches from an Ancient Landscape by James Rebanks* Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa* The Trouble With Wilderness by William Cronon* One Up On Wall Street: How To Use What You Already Know To Make Money In The Market by Peter Lynch* Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter IsaacsonLinks to More Resources:* James

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90:18

#60 Wendell Berry & The Art of the Commonplace

The Akiya Project ·

2025/06/28

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit akiyaproject.substack.comThe past month has been filled with gatherings with friends and family. First, my best friend from high school traveled to Japan with his family for a vacation. He made the trip up the mountain to my place and I had some tough work prepared for him! We completed a pretty big pour of concrete for the kitchen floor. I made sure he carved his name into the wet concrete for safe keeping. It meant a lot for him to

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74:50

#59 The Trouble With Wilderness and Modern...

The Akiya Project ·

2025/03/31

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit akiyaproject.substack.comIf you believe that America’s national park system is one of the greatest achievements in the country‘s history — and is for the betterment of mankind — you’d find yourself in the company of the majority, including me. However, Cronon articulates a fascinating history of post-Civil War America and the winding down of the Indian wars. At this time, many native Indians were forced off their land to establish the

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70:46

#58 The LA Fires and After Virtue

The Akiya Project ·

2025/01/31

In this episode, I walk through my observations upon returning to the US from Japan and share what I witnessed after the outbreak of the LA fires, which have filled headlines worldwide.Commenting on current events is a bit out of the norm for the podcast. However, I offer a quick history of 13 years of life to help illustrate the personal perspective I have on the disaster. I also briefly mention Alasdair MacIntyre’s After Virtue.For those of you who would like to get into the weeds with me about

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151:08

#57 The Story of America’s Greatest Architect: Frank...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/12/30

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit localjapan.substack.comMy brother and I finished demolishing the entire kitchen by hand, including the stone foundation, brick stove, ceramic tile bathtub, and wood framing. (Here’s a YouTube short of the demolishing of the kitchen.) Upon clearing the site of debris, we dug deep footings around the entire perimeter and placed rebar inside. We were working against the clock because our flights home to California for the Christmas break

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56:58

#56 Revitalizing Japanese Crafts with Steve Beimel of...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/10/31

The first concrete has been poured beneath the previous foundation! The process will continue several more times, which will ensure that the house does not heave or shift unevenly over time or fail during an earthquake.In other news, we have running water on the property thanks to a deep well cleaning and the installation of a brand-new pump. The well now has a capacity of 2.5 tons of water per day! I am in the middle of editing a video about the cleaning process for the YouTube channel, so I will

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42:23

#55 Kengo Kuma's Life as an Architect in Tokyo

The Akiya Project ·

2024/09/30

In an episode last summer, I covered my first autobiography about the story and works of Yoshihiro Takishita. Looking back at my catalog of podcasts, I found this to be one of the most insightful and enjoyable to listen to.For a few months now, I’ve been dwelling in the realm of ideas — about beauty, tradition, modernism — and have been itching to bring them down to a more practical, human level. There’s no better place to start than to re-explore the genre of biography. The practitioners of

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81:22

#54 How Architecture Lost Its Magic and How to Get It...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/09/01

With a month-long trip back to California, I took time off from the project and enjoyed reading The Old Way of Seeing by Jonathan Hale. I first heard about the book from Brent Hull, a master craftsman who wrote an article titled “Books Every Builder Should Own” for the wonderful magazine Fine Homebuilding.In a democracy, equality is among society’s highest ideals. One drawback, Hale argues, is that we tend toward mediocrity. As the Japanese saying goes, “The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.”

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69:21

#53 Harness the Art of Japanese Joinery For Your Next...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/08/08

As opposed to removal work like throwing out trash, cutting bamboo, and organizing storage, my brother and I have finally completed our first tangible contribution to the property: a French drain. Below, I’ve listed the Japanese “netron” pipe product we used for the drain, which is quite unique from the typical perforated pipe you’d find in the United States. Unfortunately, I haven’t found a supplier of netron pipes for you in the US.The other major task that we completed this month was the removal

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56:40

#52 How To Save 25% By Being Your Own House Contractor

The Akiya Project ·

2024/07/01

It’s easy to get discouraged during these early phases when my brother and I are literally moving earth with nothing but shovels, a wheelbarrow, and our bare hands. We move forward inch by inch. On some days, it does not feel as though we complete much. But when I look back at the photos from one month ago, our progress becomes clear. I feel gratified with the hard work.This project has humbled me to the raw power of nature. We’ve exerted great energy in forcing the sprawling bamboo roots to

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77:11

#51 Learn to Speak the Classical Language of...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/05/31

My brother has arrived! He settled into his sharehouse, took a tour around the neighborhood, and began working on-site with me. We’ve already made great progress on excavating more trash, old furniture, and unneeded material. A more pristine work site is on its way. I’ve also met with my architect a few more times. As we wait for the 3D model to come in, I’ve been starting with tasks that don't need an architect’s blueprints. First up is digging French drains around the property. I’ll make sure to

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66:42

#50 Physical Work and the Revival of Timber Framing...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/04/30

Just a few days ago, a 3D modeling company brought over their cameras and tripods to scan the ins and outs of the property (my architect in California will use the data to visualize the site since he can’t visit in person). I’ll share more about this important step soon, but recently, I’ve been reflecting much more on the manual clean-up required to prepare for the scan.Whenever I would encounter other forms of life up there, like lizards, spiders, and even orange slime molds, my fight or flight

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82:08

#49 Another Kyoto: 9 Hidden Charms in Japan's Most...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/04/01

Back in the days when I was dying a slow death of boredom by bureaucracy, I would find salvation in books. After a few days of falling down Wikipedia rabbit holes and practicing the hiragana and katakana alphabets over and over again, I had an idea, “Why don’t I email PDFs of books to myself?” And so began my adventures to distant worlds, straight from the metal desk of the damp middle school staff room.One of the books that completely enveloped me, and remains on the top of my all-time list of

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54:16

#48 Passive House Details You Should Know Before...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/03/01

The contract, payment, and legal documentation all went through successfully this month — officially making me a homeowner and landowner in Japan! Frankly, there is a good reason why I was able to acquire the property for the price that I did. It seems that the structure was hardly ever updated in its 100+ year life to meet modern standards of the day. To make matters more extreme, for the past 30 years, its previous owners left it abandoned to degrade into the mountainside. But no matter, this is

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97:31

#47 Greene, Wright, Huntington, and the Art of...

The Akiya Project ·

2024/01/29

Happy New Year everyone!In today’s episode, we are going to gain a great, fundamental understanding of not just Japanese architecture, but also Japanese history, religion, politics, and more — and how these many factors play into the built environment that constitutes the country today. The Art of Japanese Architecture written by David and Michiko Young will be our guide through Japan’s story of architecture.It begins with the ancient people who found their way to the archipelago from the continent

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36:10

#46 Why Beauty Is Not In the Eye of the Beholder

The Akiya Project ·

2023/12/30

I have a big announcement to make about the start of what we've all been waiting for. I found it fitting to revisit the foundations and ask myself why I am doing all this. Why am I trying to restore buildings that I think are beautiful? To help me through this question, I’ll be reading through a few sections of "Beauty: A Very Short Introduction" by Sir Roger Scruton. In short, Scruton argues that beauty is a moral endeavor. It is not up to subjective taste. Instead, beauty embodies both a rational

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83:09

#45 Create Streets: Building Better with Nicholas...

The Akiya Project ·

2023/11/27

Nicholas Boys Smith is the founder of Create Streets, a social enterprise based in London that works with neighborhoods, communities, landowners, councils, and developers across the United Kingdom. Its mission is to help create and manage beautiful places, defined by gentle density, stewardship of nature, and public well-being. Boys Smith is also the author of many books, including No Free Parking, a history of London’s streets, out now in paperback.It was a pleasure to speak with him, in no small

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52:20

#44 The Genius of Japanese Carpentry

The Akiya Project ·

2023/10/27

Born in the United States, Azby Brown is an architect and accomplished author of Japanese design and architecture who embarked on a transformative journey to Japan. He recalls his story in today’s book, The Genius of Japanese Carpentry: Secrets of an Ancient Craft.In this episode, I go through his writings about a traditional pagoda construction at Yakushiji Temple in Nara, which took place throughout the 1980s. We learn about the guidance Azby received under master carpenter Tsunekazu Nishioka

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67:50

#43 How to Find Value in Real Estate and Companies in...

The Akiya Project ·

2023/09/25

Today, I sit down with Rei Saito, the author of the Konichi Value newsletter. On Substack, Rei publishes insights into Japanese companies, real estate, and market trends with the goal of finding untapped value. With fluency in Japanese and English (and Swedish!), Rei has the added edge of being able to research Japanese news, reports, and sources. He brings this to you so that you may better understand the potential value that lies uncovered in the rising Japanese environment.We discuss Warren

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14:32

#42 Why All Japanese Public Schools Look the Same

The Akiya Project ·

2023/08/31

Today, I revisit a story that I wrote back in 2019 when I was still an English teacher in Kyoto. Disgruntled by the ugly school buildings that defined my day-to-day work life, I wanted to get to the bottom of the question: Why do all Japanese public schools look the same?I give a little backstory and read the script, which you can also follow along in full below (To see the photos, subscribe to the Local Japan email:The click-clack of wooden sandals rings through the bamboo grove as an elder

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