I look forward to returning to Japan every year. During my stay in Nagoya in 2026, I decided to make a trip to neighbouring Gifu Prefecture after reading that the long-term future of the section of the Nagaragawa Railway between Gujo-Hachiman and Hokuno was under discussion. Like many rural railway lines across Japan, the Nagaragawa Railway faces an increasingly difficult operating environment. I realised that if I continued telling myself that I would travel on it “someday,” the opportunity might eventually disappear. With that thought in mind, I began planning a journey aboard Nagara, the railway’s sightseeing train, which I had wanted to experience for some time. Since I was … Continue reading Nagaragawa cormorant fishing: a 1300-year-old tradition