The second of four cities we visited on our Japan trip this spring was Takayama. After starting in Tokyo, we were happy to get out of the big city and into the countryside. We took the bullet train, which covered 205 miles in about one hour and 40 minutes. We changed trains in Nagoya, which has a very large train station. While there, we explored the food courts on the floors below the station. They were nothing like food courts in American malls, they were bustling and crowded and offered so many options of food, including a whole section that was nothing but desserts. Katelyn introduced Rick to bento boxes, and we grabbed some food before catching the next train. The next train ride was only about 100 miles but took 2.5 hours. The train ride itself was pretty interesting, looking out at the small houses in the countryside, many of which had gardens, even in the early springtime. We traveled through a river valley and the views were amazing. Unfortunately, my photos didn't turn out very well as it was raining and the windows were spotted, but take my word for it, it was scenic! In case you're not familiar with the location of Takayama, you can see it on the map below.
We arrived in Takayama in the late afternoon and took a shuttle bus to our hotel, which was located about 10 minutes away at the base of a mountain. The views were initially obstructed by the dark, and later by fog, but once I could see out of the hotel the view was amazing. You can see in the distance the snow-covered "Japanese Alps", but the weather in Takayama was very pleasant. Our first day we explored the town, starting with a traditional breakfast at a small restaurant. We visited a small market along the clear Miyagawa River that runs through town, and I was amazed to see large koi.
The market served food and produce and provided crafts, much like a farmer's market would here. I was interested to see the woman cooking octopus dumplings using a technique much like I do when making aebleskivers, pouring in batter and then constantly turning them to make them round as they cooked.
The river itself was beautiful, and they had benches and bridges that gave us many views of it. The mountain water was clear, and in addition to the koi there was a grey heron we saw as we were leaving.
Katelyn found her matcha at the market so she was a happy girl. Given she had spent weeks in Japan she was already a "matcha snob!" Not only do you drink matcha in Japan, but many of the restaurants we saw served soft-serve ice cream, and in addition to vanilla, matcha was the most common flavor. This store front demonstrated matcha grinding in addition to serving it on ice cream.
I greatly enjoyed the variety of craftsmen we found. We encountered a store that sold fabric, and since that is one of my favorite souvenirs (useful and easy to pack), I made a point to go back since they were closed the first time we were there. This was one of many times that Katelyn showed me a useful trick. When you take a photo of something on an IPhone, it's easy to get that photo to tell you where it was taken in google maps, so that made it easy to go back to the shops we had earmarked for later.
Eventually, we found the store open but no one was inside. Given we were leaving the next day, I only hesitated slightly before taking the fabric I wanted (already precut) and leaving money and a note. What trusting people they are to just leave their shops open! I plan to make a top for Katelyn out of her favorite fabric, but am open to suggestions on what to do with the rest! A small quilt? Wall-hanging?
One of the other shops I found fascinating had hand-made wooden furniture upstairs. The downstairs was also a variety of crafts, and we would have missed the upstairs all together except Katelyn and I needed the restroom. Amazing what cool things you discover by accident sometimes! Here were some of the beautiful products they sold there.
There were so many interesting things to notice as we walked the streets. For instance, there was clear water running in open below-ground ditches everywhere, which eventually emptied into the river. There were little bridges across the ditches to access the stores, and there didn't seem to be any concern about people falling into them. Can't you just see that here in the U.S.? There would be lawsuits all over the place! In later places there were actually fish in these ditches!
The other thing I noticed was the care taken by shopkeepers for the appearance of their shopfront. In many places were little pots of flowers, and I never saw any that were dead or even thirsty! Here is a gallery of my favorites. Even the train station had pots of flowers!
Katelyn suggested we might like to "hike" to Takayama Castle, which was near the top of a hill in the middle of town. After shopping in the morning and a satisfying lunch, we set off.
Along the way, we searched for a pharmacy because Katelyn was experiencing a bit of nausea and was out of the medication she had brought. This was one of the most interesting experiences of the trip for me! I had downloaded Google Translate, but never used it in any meaningful way. This was my chance to see it in action. We found the pharmacy, and as you can see, it's a hole in the wall. Katelyn had brought her old package, and showed it to the pharmacist, but they didn't have that particular product. It was apparent that neither of the pharmacists spoke English. So Katelyn takes her phone, pulls up Google Translate, types in "nausea?", and Google Translates it into Japanese.
The two pharmacists read the Japanese, nod, and go off into the store and bring back two boxes. Katelyn takes the boxes, which were all in Japanese, points her phone at them, and reads the instructions, ingredients, and other information on the box. Based on that, she chose one and we were done! It was a liquid that she took in drop form, made of all natural ingredients. It worked so well that she later went back and bought more to take home!
I had fallen just before our trip and had bruised ribs, and Katelyn told me there was a salve she had bought that really helped her bruised shoulder, so we tried again with my issue. First, I pointed to my ribs and made an "ouch" face. The pharmacist types in Japanese and then translates it to say "eczema?" I shake my head no, type in "bruise" and translate it. They sold me some cream, but when I tried it, it was super HOT and really irritated some abrasions I had on my skin, so my search wasn't as successful as Katelyn's. But it was a good lesson in how you can get along with no shared language!
As we made our way along the path for the Castle, we were treated to some gorgeous views of the city. One of the things I had noticed was azaleas growing wild everywhere. As we stopped to rest partway up the trail, I was able to frame this photo of the city in them.
There were also the BIGGEST BUMBLE BEES I had ever seen. I tried taking a video of them but it ended up missing the bee most of the time. So when we reached the crest of the hill I was able to take more photos of them on the azaleas.
The trip up to the castle was pretty uneventful other than getting slightly lost. There were several paths and the signage wasn't great. I noticed that at the entrance to paths there were these gong/bell things. Do you suppose they could be used if someone was lost?
When I looked it up just now I read they are actually to scare bears off! I had seen warning signs but didn't make the connection. Luckily we didn't encounter any bears. Once we reached the top of the hill we were a bit disappointed to see the "ruins" were basically nonexistent. However, the azaleas, bees, and view of the Japanese Alps made it all worthwhile. Plus we weren't able to do much "hiking" on this trip so this was the closest we got to elevation.
We wrapped up the day with a very nice dinner. Katelyn had educated us that Hida beef is one of the specialties of the area, so we had to try it. As usual, Katelyn had researched a restaurant for us to try, and we got there right at opening time, having worked up an appetite from our hike to the castle. Katelyn and I split pasta with bolognese sauce, which was the best I've ever tasted, while Rick had a more classic steak. It was amazing! Even more fun, Katelyn spotted the brand of Tequila her friend Nikki's family makes on the shelf behind us, imagine that making it all the way to this small village in Japan!
The next day we made a side trip to the mountain village of Shirakawa, but that's worth it's own blog so I'll skip it for now. To wrap up Takayama, after returning from there we fit in one more item Katelyn had on her checklist, sake tasting! In case you're wondering how big sake is in Takayama, here was the view on one of the side streets we took while walking around town. Those are full of sake bottles!
I didn't partake of sake tasting since I didn't think I would like it, but Rick and Katelyn had a great time. The place had an outdoor patio in the back, and in addition to sake sold a wide variety of crafts and souvenirs, so I entertained myself shopping while they picked their sake. The process was you bought a cup and tokens, then you could use the tokens to serve yourself different types of sake in your cup. I tried a sip and actually liked it, so maybe next time I'll get my own cup!
The next morning Katelyn and I were able to enjoy a soak in the hot springs at our hotel before packing up and departing. This was my first exposure to hot springs in Japan, so I was a bit apprehensive, but again Katelyn's knowledge of the customs was very helpful. No cameras are allowed in the hot springs, so I grabbed this picture off the web to give you a feel for what it looked like.
We had a lovely view of Takayama while taking our soaks. There were a number of pools to choose from, with different temperatures. There was a separate room to shower before and after, and cubbies to store your clothes or belongings. There were few people on this weekday morning, so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. That's good, because it was my first experience bathing in public in the nude! It was only women, though, and it was interesting to see women of all ages, from little girls to old women, bathing and sharing this time together. I could imagine if you grew up with this experience, it would seem completely natural.
The next day we were off to Gero!
Comments