Takayama

We have to catch an early train, so with our bags we await breakfast at 0700 in the hotel lobby.

2014.05.25.0625 Ryokan Futarishizuka Hakuum, Takayama, Japan

We schlepped our bags to the station, located the proper track, and boarded the express train to Takayama (and beyond). The train left Nagoya the same direction we entered, but soon veered inland. This wasn’t a bullet train, but advertised large windows. Eventually the urban sprawl gave way to smaller cities and towns as the train followed the Kiso River up into the Japanese Alps. I had a seat on the river side of the train a goodly way as stands of bamboo seemed to bow to the river in reverence. Groves of pine trees looked like fish scales on the steep mountainsides. There was much agriculture interspersed between the houses (even close to the city) with numerous rice paddies, rows of what Jonathan guessed were tea bushes (they looked like hedges), and each house seemed to have its own vegetable garden – the onions were easily recognizable.

As we continued into the mountains, the tracks would duck in and out of tunnels and begin to cross the river with increasing frequency, putting me on the inland/hill side of the train where the homes and gardens were visible. Tucked into the deep shade of the pines, a cemetery was nestled peacefully.

We rolled into Takayama about lunchtime, so we stowed our bags in lockers at the station and found lunch in town at a Japanese curry place and had a surprising good meal. The curry is a rich dark brown and was very tasty served with rice and a hard boiled egg.

After lunch we went back to the station to catch the tourist bus to Hida no Sato, the Hida Folk Village. The village is an aggregation of traditional structures typical of the area. All made of wood with thatched roofs with a number of artisans demonstrating traditional arts and crafts. The interior of the buildings were accessible, although there were areas where you had to remove your shoes. I was wearing my lace-up hiking boots and opted to peer into those rooms from afar, except for the largest house where I did shuck them to explore the building. There are over 30 structures on the ground and I reached saturation at about 15.

Hido no Ema (Kami-sei)
Paper Ema in Hida

Ema are pictures of horses presented to temples and shrines when praying or making vows, which started to be dedicated instead of real horses. Ko-Ema are drawn on wood, the upper part of which has a roof, and Gaku-Ema are the big sized one and so on.

Still now, many Ema which show motif of “Success in the examination” or “Well-being of family” could be seen in shrines.

Ema in Hida are reare across the country as they are made of paper. They are found not only in shrines but also in the main entrance of each house. In old days they were used when praying for the safety of cattle and horses. In a farmer’s house, Ema were of the places with horse facing outside as horses and cattle worked outside.

In a merchant’s house, Ema made of paper were place with the horse facing inside, and were believed to bring good luck. Nowadays this way is quite common to place Ema.

Hida Folk Village
Yesterday, Today, & Tomorrow

During our people’s long history, their lifestyles have greatly changed, especially during the two years of 1959 and 1960 at the time of the appearance of television sets, washing machines, and refrigerators which were called “Shanshuno-jingi” (three miracle apparatuses).

Television sets shortened the distance between urban areas and the countryside and made it possible for people to get many kinds of information happening in Japan the same day. Washing machines decreased women’s daily labor, and in addition, we began to produce thinner clothing so that we could wash it in the washing machines. Thanks to improvements of house heating we can spend winter more comfortably in thinner clothing. Refrigerators changed our taste for food and beverages as well as prolonging their quality.

As a result of these trends, people in the countryside left their towns or villages and moved to cities.

At that time, several huge dams for hydroelectric generation were built and villages were sacrificed and many houses were sunk in deep water, some specific houses shuch as “Gassho Zukuri” in Shirakawa village were moved and rebuilt in other regions. Takayama city emphasized the importance of preserving these old houses, and we first moved this Wakayama’s house here, which is the origin of the Hida Folk Village.

Then we moved and rebuilt Nokubi’s house which was believed to be one of the oldest houses in the central Hida region. By doing research on these houses, we found that houses located near different regional borders interacted with each other, and traditional annual events and customs had been handed down in the central Hida region.

Even in the Hida region, one can see diversity in its culture, and we though it was important to gather old houses of the Hida region in one place as an open-air museum in order to preserve these cultures.

Now we are trying to make this museum more vivid by growing rice and vegetables, and showing local folkcrafts and traditional annual events to visitors.

July 1990

Hida Folk Village
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Passing rice paddies on the train ride to Takayama.

Heading up the river, through the valleys.

Hida Folk Village.

Hida Folk Village.

Primative stone lantern at pondside.

A red maple supplies a spash of color.

One of the multitude of buildings on the grounds.

The fire pit - a nervous operation in a house made of wood and paper.

One of a couple of looms - the artisan must've been on break when we walked through.

Cindy climbing the stairs with Jonathan in the background.

A colorful iris that caught my eye.

An 'Ema' drawing.

Mason pausing to take in the view.

Cindy approaches the next house.

Cindy at the woodcutters hut.

The bell at the local shrine.

A view of the Japanese Alps.

Mike contemplating the landscape.

A magnolia bloom (and my wrist).

One last shot of the village.

Returning to town we went looking for the sake breweries in town. There were four identified for us, all located in the preservation district, where the traditional architecture and buildings have been preserved. We navigated up the crowded narrow street, easing by a pair of modern rickshaws, to the brewery. The tasting was only 100¥ for unlimited tastings plus you got to keep the little porcelain cup. I must confess sake is not my cup of tea, although some were more palatable than others. On the first tasting, which was self-service (!), I had to implore Mason to back off the volume he was pouring into that cup, the potential for self-anesthesia was a bit high. We poked into the brewery across the street briefly, but had to return to the station to collect our bags and catch the hotel shuttle up the hill.

We walked back down the hill looking for supper that we found at an “Italian” restaurant that did indeed have room for us. The meal was one of the better ones we’ve had so far. Jonathan was especially impressed with the dessert – a catalana – crème brulee topped with orange slices and homemade orange sorbet. I was attracted to the bacon salad that had five thick cut pieces of bacon (not heavily smoked).

Jonathan and I returned directly to the ryokan while Cindy, Mike, and Mason went looking for the tea house Mason spotted earlier to see what their hours were so we can go back there before boarding the train.

Sake Tasting
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One of the streets in the preservation district - Mason in blue shirt, Mike in red hat.

The selection of sakes for purchase at the tasting.

Cindy, tasting one sake, contemplates the next selection.

Heading on to the next tasting room.

A sugitama, a globe of cedar leaves, is hung outside - when the leaves are no longer green, the sake is ready.

Jonathan pauses outside the tasting room.

Mason checks out Cindy's photos while waiting for the shuttle to the ryokan.

Our room was set up for us when we arrived.

A wooden bathtub in the wood paneled inner sanctum of the bathroom.