Blogs from Gifu, Japan, Asia

1st February 2011: Singapore – Nagoya - Takayama I love Japan simply because the connectivity between cities is so convenient. We arrived in Centrair Chubu International Aiport, strolled to the Access Plaza, boarded the Semi Express Train which departed punctually at 8.45am. Caught the Hida Express JR and arrived at Takayama Station right on schedule. It is only in Japan where I can pinpoint exact arrival time despite having to change 2 or 3 different modes of transport. It is wise to pre-book the return bus ticket to and from Shirakawago as some of the scheduled times require prior reservation. We left our bags at Oyado Koto no Yume and hopped onto the Sarubobo bus which dropped us off at Hida no Sato – the open air Folk Village. We were completely taken aback at how ... read more

(This entry typed on 11th December but posted on 12th December - dates have been adjusted accordingly.) We traveled via the JR Takayama line to Takayama today. It was quite expensive, almost 4000yen. I think at this point I should point out that P and I are getting pretty good at navigating through the various train lines and companies. Basically we figured that there are two types of train service – the local service and the supposedly inter-state ones. The local service is called the subway, and the inter-state service is operated by several companies including the JR company, the Meiteitzu company and the Kinetsu company. The JR pass does not cover the Meiteitzu and Kinetsu lines, so unless you are pretty sure you will be traveling via the JR lines a lot, it probably isn’t ... read more

Ready to leave the city, we hopped on a night bus which would take us to Nagoya, where we would then catch a train to Takayama, arriving right around lunch time. We had a 3hr layover in Nagoya and after a sleepless night on a bus that had seats that were too small for even my legs (don't even ask Mike about how he enjoyed that ride!), we were exhausted and so we found a quiet spot in the train station to sit and rest. Before long, the "sitting" turned into "laying" on the floor, and the next thing we knew 2 security guards were poking us saying "No beachee. No beachee. Up." Oh, wait, you mean the beach and the train station ARE NOT the same place? Oh wow, good to know! I guess that ... read more

Takayama was the mountains. We should probably have figured it out before we got there, but we didn't expect even colder temperatures than we'd experienced in Kyoto. We got them. It was frickin' cold. Baltic. Canadian almost. But really that just made it seem all the more... mountainous. We got the train out from Kyoto and trudged uphill to the Youth Hostel at the top of the town. It wasn't your normal hostel, being an old temple. But there was a big area in it that was dedicated as a shrine and a predominant area that lacked heating. We checked in, coughing up a sizable cashball for a youth hostel room. The lovely lady led us through the icy corridors to our refrigerated room. It was fine, but we hadn't been so cold since we left ... read more

Observatory - Vantage point of Ogimachi Hamlet, it is the best place to overlook the traditional Japanese village with paddy filed and thatched houses. You can also see the Shokawa river and mountains beyond. There are professional photographers who are willing to take the memory photos for you. There are various souvenirs e.g. buckwheat tea, T-shirt, calendar, cosmetic goods sold at the Tenshukaku shop. There are two ways to access to the Observatory; one can be followed by the driveway starting from the Wada House, the other route starts from the foot of the former Ogimachi castle. The latter one is accessible by the walkers only. Gassho Zukuri House Museum - An open air museum at east of Seseragi Car Park of Shirakawa-go, which has become the Unesco Heritage Site recently. There are authentic residential houses, ... read more

Hida Folk Village - Situated on the foot of the mountains, Hida Folk Village presents as a heritage community with traditional Japanese farmhouses, storehouse for drying the rice crop, two mills, woodcutters hut, a sawmill, a fire lookout, and shrines, most of which have been relocated from the nearby villages and reconstructed for the exhibitions. Four thatched are designated as National Important Folk Cultural Assets. Visitors are encouraged to look round those houses and see 5,000 items of tools and devices which were used for local industries and agriculture. The volunteers demonstrate how the authentic product, e.g. wooden spoon was made and the past expertise was carried out, e.g. woodcutter slicing the timber, making the threads with the spinner. The silkworm industry’s exhibition includes the display of the alive silkworms eating mulberry leaves. The visitors are ... read more