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This page explains the overall story and ideas from when I built a vacation house in Nasu.

Start of the project

別荘リビングイメージ
In this section, I, Kaori, share my story of building a vacation house in Nasu.

I tell the story from the first idea, through land search, meetings with the architect, construction, and daily life after completion. You can follow the process over several years.
▼ About this story

This content shows my experience of building a vacation house in Nasu from 2001 to 2003.
At that time, I had worked only a few years at my company.
Looking back, I still feel it was a bold and maybe reckless decision to build a vacation house.
When I read this now, I worry a little, but I also feel proud that I still use the house today.
I describe what happened and what I learned, from the start of planning to the end of construction.

▼ Owning, renting, or a vacation house
別荘新築_管理人2
The role of a vacation house depends on each person’s lifestyle and values.

People often talk about whether it is better to own or rent a home.
This is a question about where we live for most of our time outside work.
I would like to add a third choice: having a vacation house.
A vacation house where you can live like at home is an attractive option.
It can be a third place where you spend part of your life.
It also fits very well with remote work and a dual-base lifestyle.

From my own experience, I can say this: if you want a vacation house, it is better to get it as early as possible.
Life has many stages: childhood, early working years, starting a family, raising children, and old age.
The best timing for a vacation house depends on which stage you choose.
The earlier you start, the longer you can enjoy it.

If you get a vacation house early, it can become an emotional base where you can relax away from busy daily life.
You can enjoy this essential part of your life for many years.
However, if you are still young, you must be careful when dealing with real-estate and building companies. Some may try to use your lack of experience.

Even if you are young, you can cover your lack of experience by learning.
I hope this site helps you get basic knowledge and choose a vacation house that satisfies you.
When you build a vacation house, you will visit Nasu many times for meetings.
Please also check my sightseeing pages and enjoy Nasu while you work on this big project.

As a side note, some wealthy people receive houses or vacation houses from their parents through inheritance, without using their own money.
For them, it is natural to think, “A house or vacation house is something you get from your parents.”
If you have children, a house or vacation house that you obtain, even with some effort, can become a gift to the next generation.
It can help them live with less financial stress and with a richer heart.

▼ Think for yourself and take action
別荘新築_管理人3
Building a vacation house is also practice for facing questions without fixed answers.

Last, I want to share one important message.
It is important to think for yourself and act by yourself in any situation.
In the past, school education focused on learning one correct answer from a teacher.
Now, active learning, which builds the power to live, is seen as more important.

We now face new problems such as natural disasters and pandemics that we could not predict.
People understand that we must learn how to survive and build strength to live.
To face questions without fixed answers, we need broad education and liberal arts.
We must train ourselves to see things from many angles, not only from common ideas.
Building a vacation house is very good practical training for these skills.
There is no manual, and you must keep making suitable choices one after another.

My own choices are not the only correct answers.
I hope you will think, “This is how I would do it,” and make your own plan.
Please find your own right answer, which exists only for you in this world.

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I want to keep making choices that match my own sense of beauty and values.

Building a vacation house needs both money and time, and these are not unlimited.
You must keep choosing what seems best under some limits. This is similar to many choices in life.
Instead of saying, “This is good enough,” please aim for, “This is what I truly want,” after careful thought.
Try to decide based on your own sense of beauty and values and make high-quality decisions.
I think it can be interesting to try this project as a way to test yourself.

We all live by making choices every day.
Like choosing right or left at a fork in the road, each choice and its result lead to our later life.
Sometimes people blame others when things go badly, but the result usually comes from our own past choices.
To make better choices, we need training to think hard.
I believe that building a vacation house is very good training for this.

How to read this story

Each page shows one step of building the vacation house in Nasu, such as land search, meetings with the architect, construction, and daily life after completion.
You can start from any part you like, but reading in order may help you understand the full flow more clearly.

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