Day 6 - Pharmaceutical town

---

(Blogged on December 14, on the train en route to Matsumoto, posted on 15 December - dates have been adjusted.)

We arrived in Toyama from Takayama via train. Took us about two hours. I realized that we have been visiting all the towns with mountain names in them. “Kama” means mountain. The first town was “Inuyama” meaning “Dog Mountain” in literal translation. Not sure why, there were not many dogs as far as I could tell (and I am not even being lame here. Hachiko the famous loyal dog was also not from this town.) “Takayama” means “High Mountain” and “Toyama” means “Wealthy Mountain”. So we were in a wealthy town I suppose? Probably have to read more about the histories of these towns.

Apparently Toyama is a pharmaceutical area, hence my interest in stopping by this town en route to Tokyo. This is the town where we saw the most breath-taking views – so beautiful in fact that initially I wondered if this was some brilliant technology that the Japanese invented to create an illusion. Also because it was a medical area, I sort of expected Pfizer, Smith and all the other pharmaceutical giants to have small factories here. Gleaming white buildings and people rushing around in starched white lab coats. It was the exact opposite to be honest. Toyama is a cross between Nagoya and Inuyama. Whilst Nagoya was full of modern buildings, a laid-back version of Tokyo (or for another analogy, Nagoya is to Melbourne as Tokyo is to Sydney), and Inuyama was sleepy town; Toyama has many tall buildings but they were all tired-looking and it lacked the bustle and hustle of a modern day city. But true to its reputation as a pharmaceutical area, there were many pharmacies and medical shops, practically one on every corner! Just for a comparison, I probably saw only one in Takayama, none in Inuyama and a posh chemist in Nagoya.

In Toyama we had a meal at Yakuto, a restaurant that prepares meals using medicinal herbs and we also visited the Toyama Municipal Folkcraft Village, where you will see the most awesome views and where there is a cluster of museums - 7 to be exact – making it our most educational visit so far.

Yakuto
Yakuto was recommended by the Lonely Planet Guide and I was starting to have my reservations because all the locals we approached for directions, including the hotel staff, had no idea where it was located. A few very kind Japanese customer service personnel (we basically just strode into any shops to ask for directions) even made phone calls to the restaurant for us and conversed in Japanese requesting for directions. By the time we arrived at the restaurant, the restaurant boss was expectantly waiting for us at the entrance. Somehow, our meals has already been prepared for us. Apparently along the way, one of the people whom they conversed with on our behalf had unwittingly selected a meal plan for us – fortunately the cheapest one at 2200 yen. Anyway, if you intend to go to the restaurant, there are no signs indicating its presence. Instead, it is located opposite a rather plain-looking bank and above a medicinal shop (they are linked – the medicinal shop is quite popular). The shop has black outlines.

The meal was interesting – a very unique experience – but like the Hida beef steak prepared in French cuisine the day before – this will probably be a one-off thing, certainly try it once but not a second time. It is not the usual Japanese food we will normally expect. This meal was really dainty and came in courses – first an appetizer (vinegar sauce with a radish crab ball? and a small portion of beef, ginger and walnut), then a soup which was served in a wok that we had to fry ourselves. It actually came just as a small wok of vegetables, but as it was heated up by a small flame, the moisture seeped out of the vegetables to form a soup, which was really kind of ingenious. Do not ask me what kind of vegetables went into that dish because aside from broccoli and cauliflower and carrots, I cannot identify most of the other species. For a vegetable-shy person like myself, that vegetarian dish (oh yes, there were two oysters too) was easy to consume. It was quite tasty. The main dish was a purple glutinous rice served with a side dish of vegetables, miso soup and a wrapping of unknown meat/vegetable content. I do not know what gives the rice its purple colour but it was fantastic. All in all, I enjoyed the meal and I would recommend it to friends.

When we were paying, the owner asked us about the guide book – she was confused. I produced the Lonely Planet Guide Japan and pointed out the section that featured her restaurant. She was thrilled and asked politely if she could make a copy of it. I don’t think she understood much of the English but it was nice to see we made some one’s day in the most likely of circumstances. I read previously on one of the Lonely Planet magazines that they only feature places that they themselves have personally tried and certainly did not include any places that paid them a fee. I had my uncertainties but after this meal, I knew what they stated in their disclaimer is true.

Toyama Municipal Folkcraft Village
The next place we visited was the Municipal Village. We only managed to visit six out of the nine museums because we ran out of time. There is a free bus that runs quite frequently that you can catch from in front of the Tokyo Excel Hotel. It is a mere ten minute ride. It costs 800yen for a pass that allows you to visit all the museums, or you can buy individual passes. We visited the Museum of Archaelogy, the Museum of Ceramic art, the Folk Art Museum and the Thatched Roof Folk Art Museum, all of which did not interest me much. It was a lot of pottery, and traditional home-living decorative items. It will probably be more interesting for someone with a greater sense of appreciation. The other museums that we visited were the Memorial Art Gallery of Gyujin Takamura and the Museum of Medicine Peddlers, and these were fascinating for me. The former was a museum commemorating the artist who started the technique of Sumi drawing – painting using ink with a dry brush. I bought two art prints, only 200yen each! The next museum probably appealed to me because I could identify with it. It was interesting looking at the various tools and medication packages used in the past. They employed a use first pay later system, an efficient system that is ironically more humane that many of our current medical systems. I bought another art print there – one depicting a Japanese medicinal store, almost for 200yen. I believe my house may look very Japanese soon, what with all the prints that I intend to frame and hang up.

Chokei-ji
The temple you should really visit is Chokei-ji, which is a five minute walk up the hill from the Municipal Village. The most dazzling view will unfold itself in front of you, and you will find yourself stopping unconsciously as you take in the magnificent backdrop of the Japan Alps. The temple also features a large cemetery (possibly the largest I have ever seen) and they all face this view. Whoever who gets buried here must come from very wealthy families. I also cannot foresee such prime land being used for such purposes in a Western country. The temple also features 500 statues of Buddhist disciples and apparently this the place when Buddhism first landed in Japan. Visit this place and skip the museums would be my advice if you are really pressed for time.

Comfort Hotel Toyama Ekimar
As for accommodation, we stayed in Comfort Hotel Toyama Ekimae which is literally a two minute walk from the train station.. For 8500yen per night for a queen bed and a private bath with free cable internet and included breakfast, and free printing; it is a good deal. However, during our one night stay there, the internet got cut off abruptly. I am not sure whether it is due to construction works being conducted outside the hotel or whether it is because the internet itself was unstable. There is also a fax machine on site but I don’t recommend using it if you need to fax anything outside of Japan. I tried and it resulted in disaster and a very frustrated hotel receptionist and a very annoyed traveler. The hotel tried to charge me 910yen for my fax that did not go through (the fax keeps dialing but the documents never feed through!) but when I politely explained to them what had happened, they immediately waived the charges. So that’s all in Toyama, onto Matsumoto next!

---