Narai-juku (奈良井宿 Narai-juku) was the thirty-fourth of the sixty-nine stations of the Nakasendō, as well as the second of eleven stations along the Kisoji.[1] It is located in the present-day city of Shiojiri, Nagano Prefecture, Japan.
Narai-juku had the highest elevation of all the spots along the Kisoji. Because of all the visitors going through the Torii Pass (鳥居峠 Torii Tōge), Narai flourished as a post town and was referred to as "Narai of 1,000 buildings" (奈良井千軒 Narai senken).[2] It has since become one of Japan's Nationally-designated Architectural Preservation Sites, so the buildings have been kept much like they originally were in the Edo period.[2]
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