The Sanmachi-Suji district
We never did find a bakery, just gift-shop after gift-shop in the old part of town, until we eventually stumbled upon a Family Mart which sold a variety of convenience rolls and - our old favourites – rice cakes wrapped in seaweed. The rickshaw riders were busy mid-morning carrying eager tourists around the Sanmachi-Suji area of town, notable for its traditional shops, restaurants, museums and small-scale sake breweries. The coach parks were already doing brisk business, ferrying in parties of trippers from hither and thither, this being a long holiday weekend in Japan.
As we had the whole day, we decided to return to the central part of town later in the afternoon and try out some of the walking trails around town. Takayama is really quite a compact little town (pop. 96,000) so it is not difficult to find greener bits with hillside shrines away from the crowds.
Takayama is famous for its spring and autumn (harvest) festivals, the Matsuri, which attract visitors from far and wide. Ancient three-tiered floats, known as yatai, decorated with carvings, dolls, colourful curtains and blinds, are paraded around town during the festival. The guide-books don’t mention it, but who knows, after the cavalcade, the local population might even descend on the bars and izuyaki in fancy-dress and get totally blotto, but even with my limited knowledge of the Japanese, I’m sure even they are too cultured and civilised to try anything so debauched as that.
Festival float
You’re perhaps thinking, why on earth is he even mentioning these festivals? It's summer after all. Well, the reason is that a selection of these ornate yatai are on display in the Yatai Kaikan (festival floats museum) which we visited. Apparently, these floats are so revered, that they have been placed under a national preservation order, so if they ever get damaged, the government will foot the repair bill.
Paper cranes in a temple
Part of the "Higashiyama"walk
The walking route eventually took us to the edge of town on a winding road that led uphill and offered some fine vistas of the heavily forested countryside in the surroundings (so much so, that Raph commented that it looked like Germany). Takayama has its own temple route which is modelled on the Higashiyama district of Kyoto. The comparison hardly sticks, but it made for a pleasant route in what was now a very hot and sunny day, punctuated by some welcoming cotton-wool clouds overhead. The temples were by no means remarkable, but this was Higashiyama without the crowds (or the rain), and we chanced upon some delightful little corners of Takayama that the average day-tripper would never see.
A delightful corner of Takayama away from the crowds
Views across town
The castle ruins
Shiroyama Park provided us with some refreshing shade and at the top of the hill lie the ruins of an old castle and below some splendid views across town, which we could see was filling up with even more sightseers. We ran across a nostalgia museum which was exhibiting all kinds of bric-a-brac from late 20th century Japan (no Western technology in sight) – vehicles, film posters, cameras, household appliances, recreated storefronts, etc. etc.
Tea and crackers in the Yoshijima merchant house
Perhaps the most laid-back experience of the day was at the Yoshijima merchant house, a museum which allows you to see the living quarters and a commercial warehouse at the rear, all tastefully designed with cool and spacious rooms and miniature gardens. Included in the price of the ticket was a cup of green tea and a rice cracker.
Heron waiting for the kill
River view
By now, downtime at the hotel was due, so we headed off by way of the riverbank to chill out in our room for two hours before heading out for a dinner of noodles and a final walk around the now empty historic quarters.
The Sanmachi-Suji area of town after dark
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