It's a bit of an arduous journey to get to Takayama from Tsumago. Both are deep in the mountains of the Gifu prefecture. We had to travel all the way back east to Nagoya and then venture west again on another line again to get to Takayama. The scenery made the troubles worthwhile. Takayama is a bit of a Japanese hillbilly town. If rednecks are in Japan, they live around the hills here. But it is also a town of craftsmanship, history, cooking and Japanese pride. Here is where some of the finest lacquerware is made. And here is where the finest carpenters were sourced to build the temples of Kyoto. We had the chance to visit the Yoshijima House. The owner, a wealthy sake brewer and money lender, commissioned a local carpenter to build a
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