Inside Japan's 'scarecrow village' (Credit: Instagram) If 2001 cult hit classic Jeepers Creepers freaked you out beyond belief, Nagoro probably isn't for you. When people think of visiting Japan, there are a few things that come to mind. The Cherry Blossoms are a given, as is the Shibuya Crossing. A hot bowl of ramen, a distant view of Mount Fuji and spick and span cleanliness pretty much sums up the typical associations people not building a travel vision board around Japan come up with. A blooming but barren village 'dressed' with life-size dolls then, typically doesn't make the cut. But it exists. And if you can look past the eeriness of it all, you will realise that no doll living on in the remote village of Nagoro, is without a story or a reason. Now Nagoro was always remote and sparsely populated to begin with, the highest population that was logged in its name being about 300 or so residents. Fast forward to 2015, and Japan's declining population hits Nagoro hard, which now has only 35 inhabitants left. The last check done on the village was back in 2019, when the number of residents in the village was logged at 27. That being said, there's no dearth of personhood in Nagoro. Inside Japan's Nagoro village (Credit: Shikoku Tourism) In the early 2000s, Tsukimi Ayano, a brief part of whose childhood was in the village, returned to the nearly-abandoned nook to care for her father. In honour of him, she hand-made a life-sized doll and placed it in the field to commemorate his association with what is essentially, her hometown. That was the gateway to Ayano turning Nagoro into a living memorial of sorts. She has since, hand made about 400 dolls (including replacements) commemorating her village folk who either moved away, or passed. Some of these are also invented people, speaking to her creativity. And this effort, in its own, very odd way, has the village living on, even if not in souls, but definitely in seams. Take the village school for instance. It shut down in 2012, but still has a classroom full of 'students', two of whom have been dressed by the last two real students to have studied there. Inside Japan's Nagoro village (Credit: Shikoku Tourism) Besides this, there are three male dolls by a telephone pole, a man fishing in the river, a group of 'people' waiting for the bus under a shelter as well as a 'crew' performing roadwork. Inside Japan's Nagoro village (Credit: Shikoku Tourism) If the curious part of your brain now feels itchy, the obvious question in your mind is of course, if you can visit Nagoro - and the simple answer is yes. The closest city to the Nagoro village is Miyoshi - specifically its Ikeda area, located 56 kilometres north of the Tokushima Prefecture. Now unlike the endless expanse of emptiness that the photos translate - which honestly feels more of an energetic impact than a literal one - Nagoro actually registers good footfall. Turns out, there's quite an audience for the scarecrow village! As a matter of fact, Miyoshi serves as the main gateway for visitors entering the Iya Valley - another remote spot in Japan - to eventually make their way into Nagoro. From the Tokushima Prefecture, Nagoro is about a 1.5 to 2 hour drive, if setting out from the centrally located Oboke Station. Other spots in Japan to reach Nagoro from include Tokushima City - about a 100 kilometres east of the village - which makes its way through winding and narrow mountain roads; and Takamatsu in the Kagawa Prefecture - 90 kilometres from the village, and located along the norther coast of Shikoku Island. Inside Japan's Nagoro village (Credit: Shikoku Tourism) While people have over the years, dubbed Nagoro as a 'haunted' village, there's no real evidence pointing towards it. So if anything odd and eerie happens to interest you, a brief to visit to Nagoro should definitely be on the cards for when you make it to Japan. Travel News - Find latest news and tips based on Indian and World travel including top 10 travel destination, tourism information, how to reach visit and more at Times Now. Aalokitaa Basu is a writer and Senior Copy Editor whose work explores the intersection of lifestyle, culture, beauty, wellness, and self-possession. H... View More