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Strolling in Takayama

Sorry! I did not manage to write anything last week.
I was in Fukuoka, doing research and stuff.

I’m going to write about Takayama today!

Takayama is located in Gifu prefecture and could be reached by bus or limited express train from Nagoya.
But, since March 2015, the Nagano shinkansen will be extended until Kanazawa that makes the journey to Takayama will be more comfortable (and fast).

What’s around Takayama?

1. The Old Town of Takayama

The old town preserves buildings from Edo Period.
The sannomachi street is pretty, and you could find restaurants, sake breweries, and other things.

 

Or you could enjoy a rickshaw ride.
Omiyage (souvenir shops)

 

Sake breweries

 

You could find a lot of Sake omiyage, including a Sake Cheesecake

 

The shops are open 9 to 5. But some restaurants open until late.
A lot of high school students in the old town.

 

It was so cold, so we entered one of the cafe. We tried their specialty.
Apple juice and mochi!

2. Takayama Jinya

Takayama Jinya is former local government office. It was put under direct control of the Tokugawa clan.
You could see the symbol of Tokugawa on the gate

Now the building is used as a museum.
The entrance fee is 430¥ (adult)

 

A snow cat bus from Totoro is ready to greet you at the entrance
You have to take of your shoes at the entrance. The building itself does not have a heated floor.
So it’s very cold (I came during the winter)
There is a garden inside the building. However, during the winter, it was terrible.
The snow was so thick; around 1 m.

 

This is the torture room to torture a criminal so they’ll admit their crime.
There are storage rooms with tons of history of Hida. We are not allowed to take picture there.

3. Hida Folk Village (Hida no Sato)

In Hida Folk Village, you could find more than 30 traditional houses from the Edo Period.
You could buy a set ticket (bus ticket and entrance ticket)
to the Hida Folk Village in Takayama Station.
It costs 930¥ (adults)

 

Totoro in the entrance of Hida Folk Village

 

This is the famous photo spot.
The staff can take picture of you (for free), or you could pay around 1000¥
if you want them to print it for you

 

This is actually a lake, but it’s frozen during the winter.

 

There are around 30 houses, but the inside are pretty much the same.

 

You have to take off your shoes if you want to get inside the house.
I can’t be bothered about taking off my shoes (it’s cold, baby!).

 

I think this is a mill.

 

The closeup view of the house.
You could do a stamp rally. In some of the houses, there are stamps.
You could collect all of those stamps (for fun only, no rewards)

 

Miniature of the house.

Where did we stay?

We stay in a Ryokan (Japanese style inn) called the Senbee Ryokan. It is located near the station.
Our dinner : Mikado Restaurant in the old town.
 Croquet and Miso

 

Hida Beef

 

The room was great. Our room’s capacity is 3 person.
However, you have to share the bath and the toilet with the other guess

 

The breakfast is Japanese style,

 

With Hida Beef, of course!
Hida beef is the specialty of Hida, Takayama.
The price of the inn is not that bad. I spent around 11000¥ for 2 nights (including breakfast).
The owner and the staffs do not speak English, but they are very kind and helpful.

Souvenirs?

These are the common souvenir from Takayama
Sarubobo (baby monkey) is the mascot of Hida, Takayama.
You could find a lot of Sarubobo plushies, keychain, phone strap, and many more.

 

The miniature of the traditional houses.

 

Food! Senbei, Miso, Hida Beef, and Japanese Chestnut.
Personal opinion:
It was a good place to visit. The winter might be too harsh, but Takayama is easily accessible.

 

 

25 Comments

  1. The snow looks amazing here! I wish it looked like that where I live, but it just looks really plain… I especially love the totoro snow sculptures! they are so cute ^^

    • Thank you 🙂
      It's super cold but it's beautiful too.
      Have a good day

  2. You took amazing pictures!! I haven't been there and I hope to be one day. It would be awesome if we could follow each other.

    Follow my adventures!
    oncejapanatime.blogspot.com

    • Thank you Mikie,
      I saw your blog already ^^
      I will follow you as soon as I got a stable internet connection

    • Thank you Rebecca ^^
      I'm still learning how to take a good photograph
      Have a good day

  3. Love all the pics.,i say you're lucky,travelling around Japan is a dream 🙂 Have fun Angel san.

    • Thank you Seema,
      you too! I hope your dream can come true.
      Have a good day

  4. Amazing post and really beautiful pictures, hope to see snow so pretty myself one day x3!

  5. G'day What a lovely post that brightened my day
    Cheers! Joanne
    #ibabloggers

    • Thank you Joanne!
      I hope we could keep in touch!
      I will check out your blog as soon as I get a stable internet connection

  6. Every post you make, I'm going to comment how jealous I am that you get to experience seeing such great scenery. It's so flat, dry, and humid where I'm from.

    • Thank you Nicole,
      Japan is also very humid during summer (I can't stand it) LOL
      Have a good day

  7. Beautiful pictures!

  8. Hi Angel, I think that it is Totoro not Pororo >.< in the entrance of Hida Folk Village.
    Beautiful photos and how I envy you experience snow everywhere. 🙂

    Best, Albert | http://www.palmingpebbles.com

    • LOL!!! I just realized that! Thanks Albert. I guess I just too excited

  9. This was amazing, and such beautiful pictures! I wish I was there in Japan! You are so lucky!

  10. This was amazing, and such beautiful pictures! I wish I was there in Japan! You are so lucky!

  11. I have enjoyed this post immensely! Thank you very much! This is much more interesting and feels more real than official tourist guidebooks. And I must show the snow figures to my daughter, we love Miyazaki!

  12. Very beautiful Takayama! I'm glad to have found your blog. I read several articles on your blog and I think it is useful for the tourists =)

    Let me introduce myself, My name is Sam Wong, a HongKonger who love travel. Two months ago, I had created a travel site which aims to connect the bloggers and the tourists. Bloggers can share the link of their articles and let tourists find the useful travel articles more easily. I know you love travel and write a lots of articles about travel, so I would like to invite you to share your articles, let more tourists can know more about your story. Look for your reply, hope you all the best!

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    Sam Wong

  13. karen karen

    Nice Photos!
    Did you visit Takayama in March 2015? Is it still snowing?

    • Hey Karen! Sorry for late reply.
      If it’s early March, probably you still catch a glimpse of the snow 😀

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