Chinami is a former student who is living in Tokyo now. I have done photo shoots with her before, so when I heard she would be in Nagoya for a few days around New Year's I asked if she wanted to slip in a quick photo session. She said, sure, and suggested the Shikemichi (四間道) area in Naka-ku in Nagoya, near where she used to work. Originally, it was a merchant's district where, according to Wikipedia, they traded in rice, miso, sake, salt, charcoal and wood. After a fire in 1700 destroyed many of the buildings, the street behind the buildings was widened to four ken (shike) and plaster walls were erected on the east side of the buildings to protect against future fires. Most of the houses still standing there date to 1740. When Chinami suggested that area, I thought it was a great idea. From photos, I could see that the dark wood walls were a feature of the area, and would make a nice backdrop. I was surprised, however, at how small the area is. Mostly, it is confined to about three blocks of houses. Also, it was VERY cold that day, with a biting wind. Still, we managed to get in photos from a few different locations before my fingers became too cold to work my camera, and we retreated to a coffeeshop to warm up.