Takayama

I did not have a restful sleep (stupid crazy bed bug dreams!) and remembered why I dislike camping. Mats on the floor are not great for people that sleep on their sides. 

I got up bright and early before 7 to go for a walk to a park on the adjacent hillside while it was cool and smelled of cedar. Sasha and I set out and followed a winding road up the hill to reach a small  park and some barely discernible castle ruins. 

The view if the town was great and I will try to remember to post a picture when I get them off my camera card. 

We were due back at the ryokan for a traditional Takayama breakfast at 8. The local speciality is a sweet miso paste, habu, served on a magnolia leaf and cooked table side on a hot grilling surface. It was delicious! I bought a small set to bring home and will be visiting T&T Supermarket at home to try to find a traditional grill. 

After breakfast the group was off to the morning market to sample a variety of local foods. On the way we passed a small Buddhist temple and stopped in to catch a glimpse of the rare angry incarnations of Buddha.

The market was full of salty, pickled and sweet things to try, but also many local handicrafts. One creature we saw everywhere is named Sarubobo (happy monkey baby). Traditionally made for children by their grandmothers, Sarubobo brings good luck to its owner. 

Next it was on to a heritage park called Hida No Sato. If you've ever been to Calgary, it's like Heritage Park in that the park patrons recovered and moved a number of historic buildings to a central location to preserve the culture and tradition of Takayama. The buildings sport traditional thatched roofs and demonstrate heritage occupations. In parts of the folk village, you can see artisans demonstrating their craft and even try a few activities yourself.

One of the highlights of my trip awaited our entrance to the park. A group of local teens demonstrated traditional drumming and a physical art I missed the name of. 

We left the folk village and hopped the bus back to town to check out the historic district and craft shops of Takayama. 

In search of lunch, I have learned that the local speciality is a fancy type of beef called Hida beef. Everyone claims it is better than Kobe. I have yet to see a cow around here though... Also, I am having a hard time finding things to eat.

On the bright side, they have Dragonball Z pop in vending machines!! It is surprisingly bad.

We stopped in many shops, picking up some great souvenirs, but also discovered that the shops here seem to close in the early afternoon. I did not get a calligraphy horse print I had been eyeing or the handmade wind chimes I was also covering. :(

The horse prints are to bring luck and protect the home and stables from fire. They are everywhere around Takayama except wherever I was...

Along the way JD and I stopped to visit two more temples: one with a huge ginkgo tree and pagoda, the other with a number of fascinating auxiliary shrines. At one shrine, students leave worn out writing brushes as offering to do well in writing exams. In another, there were a pair of fox statues, the messengers of the gods, guarding the main hall. My favourite was the Kotohira shrine. Kotohira is worshipped as the god of physical strength. According to tradition, if you chew paper well and throw it to the ceiling with the picture of a long-nosed goblin, you will recover from physical illness.

After a long day, I returned to the ryokan for a long soak in the onsen before dinner. In Japanese onsen (baths or hot springs) there are a couple cultural considerations to keep in mind. The baths are divided between men and women as you bathe nude. In your room, you change into your robe, which you first fold to the left and the to the right. The reverse is for the deceased. You then tie your belt in a bow a little of centre and step into your slippers.

(Yes, he is a ghost.)

With your robe on and your birthday suit underneath, you proceed to the gender-specific portion of the bath where you disrobe and cover yourself with a very tiny modesty towel. It makes sense for men, but does not quite do the job for the ladies. Anyway, moving into the bath part, you thoroughly wash yourself (usually seated with a handheld shower head and bucket) before leaving your modesty towel some place dry and out of the way. Then it's into the baths! At our ryokan there was and indoor sitting pool and a covered outdoor soaking tub. It was very relaxing and refreshing.

Clean and fresh, I was ready for dinner. The crew was going out for Hida beef grilled individually at the table, so I was hesitant to join the excursion to the restaurant but was assured there were other options. I did find something to order and had a large steaming bowl of buckwheat soba with tempura vegetable patty on top.

With plans to visit the morning market for breakfast before our series of train rides, I turned in for the evening. Not before adding every possible blanket to my tatami mats though...