Japan Day 11: Gokayama & Kanazawa Castle

​Today was an optional special trip to visit the world Heritage site in Gokayama.  We had a busy day and lots of interesting and fun activities.

The 90 minute bus ride took us through a huge valley with many traditional houses surrounded by rice or wheat fields, and then up into the mountains, with beautiful vistas and many tunnels! At last we arrived in one of two of the UNESCO villages in that area which have been so identified because of the unique grasso style (thatched and sharply peaked) roofs.  Only about 180 of these traditional mountain houses remain intact.

Ainokura is a functioning village with at least 20 of the traditional houses remaining.  Most of them were museums or shops, but many just housed people living their normal lives.  We wandered around the village, appreciated the many spring flowers, and visited the gift shop.  

A few of us walked up the steep hill on the side of a mountain to see the view from an overlook, which was lovely.  We also saw lots of signs and bells on the path about avoiding a bear attack!  We had heard before that more people in Japan die from bear attack than from drug overdose, so we were ready!

After leaving the village, we went to a community center in another village where we learned how to pound mochi - the rice and bean paste treats we have been enjoying since we arrived. Hot sticky rice was put into a large wooden bowl, and we took turns pounding it with a wooden sledge hammer while everyone chanted to establish a rhythm. That was necessary so the woman who repositioned the rice in the bowl after each blow didn't get her hand smashed. We then sampled the results of our efforts.

We also had a Japanese paper making experience.  After watching a video about the process, we did a modified version ourselves, with a lot of help from the staff.  We each made three postcards with different iconic symbols.  It was really fun and interesting.  We also spent productive time in the gift shop! We are pretty serious about doing our part to support local economies, especially if they have dolls.

We had an interesting vegetarian lunch with three different kinds of tofu, which is a local speciality.  Then we crossed the street to visit the largest gasso roofed house in Japan - designated as a national cultural treasure.

The owner of the house (19th generation) danced a traditional kokoriko hunting dance for us, including playing the sassara, a local instrument.  Then he and his wife told us all about the house and its history. The first owner was able to gain the favor of a  samurai lord, which allowed him to build the house out of wood normally reserved for palaces and temples.  The charming couple showed us around the house which was really beautiful and interesting.  We especially liked all the old farm equipment on the second floor, which used to be the dormitory for

After the bus ride back to Kanazawa, and a nap, we went out to Shogun Burger for a Wagyu beef cheeseburger!  Yum!

Then we went to a sound and light show in one of the gardens at the Kanazawa castle.  It was peaceful and beautiful.  A few of us went to the other side of the castle to see a drone show telling the history of the castle and the Maeda family.  It was a fun evening.