Takayama - Day 11

---

Firstly, apologies for the delay in the blog, it is just that for the first time on our trip we were unable to get an internet connection, but then again that may have something to do with our location - high in the Japanese Alps!

We started Day 11 (Monday 28th May) in Nagoya catching an early train to Takayama, the main town in the northern Japanese Alps. The two hour train ride was on a local train service with widescreen windows designed for sightseeing and it didn't take long to understand why they had provided them, as the countryside soon opened up spectacular view after spectacular view.

Despite the fact that it wasnt the Shinkansen and that we were on a mountain trail the timings remained perfect to the minute, a very impressive attribute of the Japanese rail system.

We arrived mid morning in Takayama and made our way to our hotel, a very pretty and pleasant ryokan, with a simple Japanese style room that was delightful. We dropped off our bags and made our way to explore the town. The town is split into two, old and new, but is still small enough to walk through in an hour or so.

In the centre of town is the Takayama Jinya, a national historic site, which was a local government building for administration, finance, police and court trials dating back to 1603. The majority of the building was reserved for the Shogun when he visited to collect taxes and administer the area; however one room was frightening in the extreme. That room was the Shirasu (law court) where criminal cases were investigated. The floor was made of small stones, on which suspects were seated and questioned. However, some were severely tortured by being suspended from the rafters suspended by their wrists tied behind their back, beaten with bamboo or knelt down on angled wooden slats with stone slabs placed on their legs.

We then wandered through the rest of the town, seeing what they local craft shops had to sell and admiring the local scenery. After the hustle of various Japanese cities we always intended to use Takayama as a chill out before heading to Hakone (for Mount Fuji) and Tokyo. On the first day it certainly provided that.

---

Photos

Japan's northern countryside opens up
On the train from Nagoya to Takayama

Japan's northern countryside opens up
On the train from Nagoya to Takayama (part 2)

The remains of winter!
The waters from the melted snows make their way down the mountain

Japan's northern countryside opens up
On the train from Nagoya to Takayama (part 3)

Japanese rail bridges don't have always have railings!
Sometimes you felt as though you were just floating on air above the scenery!

As we said, there's not always a barrier
How to feel as though you're hovering over a ravine

Downtown Takayama
Our ryokan is the white building in the centre of the picture

The Shogun's garden
This garden was exclusively for the use of the Shogun on his visits to Takayama

Ow!
Instrument of torture from the times of the Shogun

Takayama Jinya
Local authority building dating back to 1603

Land of the setting sun!
Sunset on May 28th 2007, taken from our hotel window in Takayama

Another look at the sunset over Takayama and the Japanese Alps
Taken from our hotel room windo

Comments

[Janice]

Looks great wish i was there don't eat too much raw sushi - yuk!

[liz]

Takayama
It looks really beautiful and a little more isolated than the other places you have visited.