places to visit in takayama

*back dated entry*

actually other than my lucky bag shopping trip in tokyo, takayama is the next place that i really want to visit.... because i want to go shirakawa-go!!!! i have seen so many pretty pictures online so i MUST visit that place!!! both places are in the hida area & the easiest access to takayama is train from nagoya then you can join bus tour group to shirakawa-go... let me share more pictures about these 2 pretty places......

Takayama:

takayama town map, photo taken from here....

takayama literally mean high mountain, it's a small town but you can pretty nice attractions there....

1. old town area

old town area, photo taken from here....

old town area map, photo taken from here....

higashiyama walk, photo taken from here...

morning market, photo taken from here....

in the old town area you get to see those old buildings whereby you can get the traditional japanese feel.... pretty interesting experience.... if you reached takayama early you can check out the morning markets.. i think they are something like the farmers markets in the US where you can get fresh local products... after that you can take a walk along the higashiyama walk where you can overlook the town from high land....

2. hida folk village

hida folk village, photo taken from here....

the place just looks so lovely in this picture but that was probably taken during spring.... so this fold village is located the opposite side of the station, away from the old town area.... from the map, it looks pretty far from the station so i probably wont attempt to walk there in the winter... my lab mate told me that it's not really worth the visit since you will only get the see the folk house which is a museum... i shall see how's my schedule is like before deciding to visit this place or not

shirakawa-go

winter look, photo taken from here....

summer look, photo taken from here....

winter light up, photo taken from here...

doesnt this place just look pretty!?!??! especially during spring with all the greenery... it really give you the relaxing village feel... due to its unique gassho houses, shirakawa-go was declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1995.... sadly, i wont get to see the winter light up since it will happen around end of jan =( nonetheless, this is a MUST visit place for me =)

we intend to join the bus tour to shirakawa-go from takayama, information can be found here.... you can also just opt for normal bus ride at a cheaper price.... but i foresee having difficulties finding food in shirakawa-go since it's such a small town, i rather pay abit more & join the tour to get my meal covered ... on top of that, you get an english speaking guide =)