Takayama

Takayama, famous for its nearby hot spring or onsen towns, stunning traditional residences, and as it turns out, its pristine canals and rivers which accommodate the towns koi fish during the warmer months, was a breath of fresh air after the albeit wondrous but fast paced and somewhat cramped Tokyo.

Now I can’t talk about Takayama without mentioning the journey to get there. The Limited Hida Express is a large windowed train, designed to show off one of the most beautiful parts of the country as it travels through it, boasting views of snow capped mountains, winding rivers and deep valleys as far as the eye can see. It was such a stark transition from Tokyo, where all that can be seen on a clear day is urban city for miles and miles. As experiences go, I would have been happy with just these sights alone. Saying that, i’m glad Takayama was at the end of the line, as it only added to the magic.

Our stay was in Hotel Kaya, positioned close to the old town, where you could see houses dating back to the 1600s, with shallow canals running down every street. It really met the picture I had in my head of traditional Japan. A large river runs through the city near the old town, and I have to say, wandering down the banks with the bustle of the morning market in the background, Hannah by my side and stunning mountains as a backdrop, was such a tranquil experience, it cemented itself in my head and won’t be forgotten.

One of our days was spent in the next town to the North, Hida. I was particularly intrigued by Hida as despite being a relatively small city, it featured in animated form in one of my favourite films, “Your Name” or “Kimi No Na Wa” in Japanese. I wanted to know what inspired the creator to create such beautiful imagery of the city. Needless to say, I understood immediately. Somehow Hida made Takayama, the already peaceful place, feel like Central Tokyo, it’s like time slowed around us. We wandered the streets, feeding the koi in the canals, no real plans, just enjoying the atmosphere. At some point we stumbled into the Museum of Carpentry, and learned that this city was famous for its extremely talented carpenters. We were shown various techniques of joinery with no need for nails or screws, and where these techniques had been used in Japanese buildings over the years, as well as incredible scale models of buildings made by local carpenters and architects. We took a risk with Hida, where all other buses seemed to Shirakawa-Go, an incredibly famous and picturesque village in the mountains. All i’d heard about it however, was that you could barely enjoy the town due to bus after bus of other tourists. Hida on the other hand was seemingly empty, and yet the risk paid off with a magical and unforgettable day.

Now there was one more lovely experience I can think of in Takayama, involving a Japanese Izakaya, a small pub or eatery in Japan, the classic place for a salaryman to go after work to enjoy drinks, but i’ll save that for another day!

Thanks for reading! Onto the next adventure! Ed