A mountain village of red walls and red roofs
Fukiya, in the hills of Okayama Prefecture, grew rich making bengara, a red pigment made from iron oxide, and its main street is still lined with houses with red-brown roof tiles and walls of the same deep red. Walk the street, look inside a pigment maker's house and an old wooden school, and see how the pigment was made. It is about an hour by bus from Bitchu-Takahashi Station, which is about 35 minutes from Okayama by limited express, and buses run only a few times a day, so check the times first.
A street where the houses on both sides have red-brown roof tiles and walls colored with bengara, the red pigment the town made. The color was used not only for its look but because it protects wood from rot and insects. Park at the village entrance; the street is easy to cover on foot.
The home of a family that made and sold bengara for generations, now an Important Cultural Property. You walk through the living rooms and on to the storehouses at the back. From December to March it opens only on weekends and holidays.
A merchant house from 1879 with red latticed windows, where you hear the story of the house and see its hidden room and hidden corridor. From December to March it opens on fewer days.
A rebuilt factory from the late 1800s that shows each step of making bengara, from the raw mineral to fine red powder. It explains why the whole village is red, so it makes a good first stop.
A wooden school building from the Meiji era, used until 2012 and reopened in 2022 after years of restoration. Walk its long corridors and classrooms freely. There is no parking at the school, so leave your car at the village and walk.