Help with gardening, restaurant; or artistic painting

Norway

5

My time in Kamigori has been phenomenal. I have felt very welcome in this town, both through the work and the activities. For the activities Hiring-san has been extremely generous and put in a lot of time and effort for me to be able to experience the culture: kendo, taiko, calligraphy, saori, tea ceremonies. The work is easy, and although knowing Japanese will make life easier, my extremely limited japanese was more than enough to get by. I am very grateful for the time I got to spend here, and for all the people I got to know. I feel like my time here has truly enriched my life

10 months ago

Switzerland

5

This was definitely one of the best and most unique volunteer i did so far. You get a deep dive into traditional cultures. You join classes every week. I even had the opportunity to play a little wadaiko concert with our group in front of some villagers. So you will get quite busy with you're experience there, but you will really get a lot out of this. Hiring-san brought me to all the classes and tried to give me a great experience. During my time i worked 2 days a week in the restaurant. On the other 3 days i had the opportunity to create two murals in the amazing garden of the restaurant.

11 months ago

United Kingdom

5

I had a great time at Hiring-San's place! The work was easy, I did weeding twice a week for a few hours and then worked in her restaurant over the weekend. It was such a unique opportunity to meet local people and experience Japanese culture. I got to take Kendo classes and go to a tea ceremony which were super fun. I would definitely recommend staying with Hiring-San, the town she lives in is really nice and the activities she takes you to are great. Thank you! :)

about 1 year ago

France

5

Was awesome ! Thank you Hiring-san !

about 1 year ago

United States

5

I absolutely recommend staying at Hiring-san's place! I had a wonderful time getting to explore a beautiful countryside town and finding its treasures. Kamigori Town is seriously underrated despite all it has to offer. During my stay I helped with weeding for 4hrs: 10am-12 then 2-4pm. Hiring-san is an inspiring individual who has many stories to share. Her husband, Susumu-san, is very funny and energetic. Despite Hiring-san being very busy, she always made time to talk to me. I felt very welcomed and at home. Those who are accepted by her and have this experience are truly lucky individuals.

over 1 year ago

United States

5

I've volunteered in a couple of places before and this is definitely the best so far. Hiring and Susumasan are very welcoming. Hiring especially takes a lot of time and effort to organize activities with locals that I wouldn't have been able to experience on my own. I painted a mural there and had a great time doing it. I only worked in the restaurant twice but the work was very simple. Volunteers also get their own section of the house which is very nice. I had a lot of time to work on my own projects as well. I really recommend this experience to anyone who wants to immerse themselves

over 1 year ago

Hirin replied

元気でやってますか？
あなたが描いた絵を見るたびにあなたの事を思い出します。
あの寒い中、笑顔で喜んで描いていましたね！
今では多くの人々に見て喜んでいます。

これからもあなたの夢に向かって頑張ってください。
影ながらも実現出来るよう応援します！

ありがとう！

France

4

My stay in Tousuibo was a very rich and authentic experience in Japanese countryside. Thanks to Hiring, I got to practice Kendō 3 t/week and Wadaiko 1t/week. I also experienced sadō, shodō and potery with the people of Kamigōri. They were extremely kind and I was very happy to practice my Japanese. Although communication was sometimes hard with Hiring -not related to language barrier- and sometimes made me feel uneasy, I believe she meant well and tried to take good care of us. The house she provides is very comfortable and she would always make sure we have enough food. I feel grateful 🙏

9 months ago

Costa Rica

4

I had a great time in Kamigori. Hiring-san's house is comfortable and beautiful. The work hours were respected and the work was easy: 3 hours working in the restaurant thursday - sunday and 3 hours weeding on two other days of my choice. The Kamigori town is quiet and small but very beautiful. However, if you do not know how to ride a bike you will likely be confined to the house in your free time. Hiring-san is very generous and kind but I did struggle with communication and understanding sometimes. All the activities she generously provided were fun and enjoyable.

9 months ago

Australia

4

Hiring provided a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in truly authentic Japanese experiences within the Japanese countryside.

over 1 year ago

Canada

1

Please do not stay with this host. After weeks of continuous verbal assult and belittlement, on March 25th 2024 myself and two other workers felt it was safest to leave this hosts house. I was targeted and shamed on a nearly daily basis for not living up to Hirings unreasonable expectations. Trying to work through the situation by talking hadn't worked and there was no option for me to talk freely about my feelings. I didn't see this comming and don't want anyone else to go through the same traumatic living experience of harassment and verbal abuse. Please steer clear of this host.🙅‍♂

over 1 year ago

Hirin replied

During your stay at my place, you were very difficult to host.

I felt that our relationship was strained, however, despite my attempts to try and make the situation more comfortable, you made little effort to try and communicate with me or try and understand each other better. I am still improving my English and was very offended when you purposely ignored my attempts to talk, even making fun of me when I made mistakes in English.
I try and keep the work light and not overbearing, however, you put in very little effort, and to such an extent you made things harder for me. I am very upset you felt harassed and found this experience uncomfortable as it was never my intent, what I want is for people to enjoy coming to stay with me and exploring a unique side to Japan and the Japanese countryside. I think that blaming me for your discomfort is unfair as you were very difficult, you had unreasonably high expectations, that I could not fulfill, and put me in multiple hard situations、even straining my relationship with people in the community.

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