Corrugated metal - curse of the country side

This weekend again I went searching for a house. I drove up west towards Suwa-ko, and just checked out small villages for something that could fit our profile. Many houses in that area are dilapidated, but it looks like they are still occupied. Its a shame that they leave their houses to fall apart, or fix them with ugly corrugated metal sheets. I think corrugated metal is the true curse of the country side - its versatility and ease of use has made it tempting for people here to use it for anything: clad the sides of houses, sheds. Repair roofs, build garages. It looks so alien on a traditional building, and quickly turns into a rusty eye sore.

Nevertheless I had also a nice experiences today: In a small village I saw a bunch of kids and adults planting some flowers near the roadside, to make their village more beautiful. You can imagine their surprise when a foreigner stopped to take a photo! Its nice to see that such community spirit exists.