TRAIN FROM TAKAYAMA TO TOKYO

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Day 11: TAKAYAMA - TOKYO

Monday, December 30, 2013

Today we woke up a little later because at this stage of the trip to Japan, early morning has been a constant and the truth is that it was already taking its toll and today especially that we have to take a train from Takayama to Tokyo, we prefer to rest .
So today, that we are in Takayama and we have all the morning and part of the afternoon to visit the city, we have used the futon of our temple in Takayama, the Takayama Zenkoji Temple Inn.

After putting everything in order and visiting the temple in Takayama Where we are staying, we start up to the station under a good snowfall.

Takayama Accommodation Temple

Interior of the Takayama Accommodation Temple

We did not want snow, because it takes snow!

Snow in the Takayama Accommodation Temple

To avoid having to return to our accommodation in Takayama, after check in we have already taken our backpacks, to leave them at a ticket office at the station for 300 yen.
The first thing we do after leaving the backpacks is to enter a cafeteria on the side of the station to stop for a couple of very hot coffees for 600 yen.
It is clear that in this area of Japan It is necessary to warm up every little while.
While we have breakfast, we review the planning we have in Takayama and we verify that we have a very relaxed day in which we will visit the city and at 16.44 in the afternoon we will take the one that will take us from train from Takayama to Tokyo, passing before Nagoya and that we booked the other day in Kyoto, with the JRP of 14 days.
Today ends the second part of this amazing travel to Japan for free and we started the third and last ... Tokyo.
While we drink coffee and finish preparing today's route, we look out the window and see the sun rise in the snow that has welcomed us since we arrived at Takayama.

Having breakfast in Takayama

After this morning stop to charge energies we begin our tour of Takayama by the Hida Kokubunji temple.

Hida Kokubunji

Hida Kokubunji is the oldest temple in Takayama. It was built in the eighteenth century, lost in a fire and rebuilt. The oldest of the current buildings dates from the 16th century.
In the courtyard there is an impressive three-story pagoda and a gingko, full of knots, although if you take into account that this tree is attributed 1200 years, it is in very good condition.

Hida Kokubunji

All the visits we have to do in Takayama They are quite close to each other, although at this time, with the snow, we must say that we walk much slower because of the fear of slipping.

Takayama streets

And although it seems silly, that makes us waste a lot of time 😉 Although it also has its positive side and we can enjoy the environment and everything around us with much more peace of mind.
Takayama It is a spectacular city, but with nine it is amazing.
It is from those cities, that without knowing very well why, it seems that they are associated with snow.
Something similar to Tallinn, another one of those cities that seems to see them without snow is not "knowing" them in depth.
From here we continue walking along a Takayama It starts to wake up and we arrive at Miya-gawa Morning Market, where we walk quietly between craft stalls and food stores that give us to try their items at every step we take.

Miyagawa Market

Fruit in Miyagawa Market

Miya-gawa Market is the largest in the city and is on the east bank of the Miya-gawa River, between Kaji-bashi and Yayoi-bashi.

Miya-gawa river in Takayama

This area on the banks of the river Takayama, with the sun and snow in the background is amazing.
It makes you want to stay here for several days, enjoying only the pleasure of walking aimlessly.
From here we continue to Kitayama, where we make a walking circuit that marks the map that we took in the tourist office and that takes us through the most important points of Takayama.

Takayama

We pass by Takayama Matsuri Yatakaikan and visit a spectacular temple, which looks much more incredible if it fits with snow.
From here we continue to the Takayama Betsuin temple.

Takayama Betsuin

The time has come to head towards the area of the ancient city of Takayama.

Road of the Ancient City of Takayama

Sanmachi-Suji It is the center of the old town of Takayama. It has three main streets, Ichi-no-Machi, Ni-no-Machi and San-no-Machi.

Shops in Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

Sanmachi-Suji It is full of traditional shops, museums and private houses.

Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

We meet a lot of people. Shirakawago Y Takayama They have been the places where we see more tourism and the truth is that it is normal, seeing what we have seen. No doubt there are two essential visits in Japan in winter.
Roger takes the opportunity to try the sake in a distillery and we go through the streets of Takayama full of shops and food shops that we understand are here more than traditional.

Sake in Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

Roger takes advantage of the moment and buys a pair of sushi pieces in a stand Hida Meat premium for 800 yen! And what are we going to say ... great!

Queuing to try Hida Meat in Sanmachi-Suji. Takayama

A sushi of meat from Hida? Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

Very good !!!! Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

Takayama We are very surprised, although there is so much tourism, but the atmosphere is very cozy and not at all overwhelming, upside down super calm, something that makes us enjoy every step we take on this walk through the old part of Takayama.

Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

Details of the houses of Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

We continue walking with an ideal temperature and a sun that seems not to want to hide, something that makes us this morning on December 30, a quiet morning, different from the rest of the days we have been in this incredible Trip to Japan.
We are not going to deny that we are used to carrying a fairly high travel rate, but from time to time we also like to have more relaxed days.
After this walk through the old area of Takayama, we go to Jhinya Market, where they are almost starting to pick up, so we don't have time to see too much. We take this path to go through the Takayama Jinya Temple.

Jinya Market in Takayama

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Takayama Jinya Temple

Interior of Takayama Jinya Temple

The day is still very sunny and without realizing it, we look at the clock and see what has happened all morning and it is almost time to eat.

Takayama

Definitely Takayama It deserves a minimum visit of one morning, to be able to walk through its streets, which is perhaps the most recommended “activity” in this city.

Takayama

When we see that it is just after 1 pm, we go to Maruki, the best Takayama restaurant to try Hida Meat and try our luck to see if we have a table ... and ... we just have to wait half an hour to try the famous Hida Meat.

Butcher shop in Takayama

Restaurant in Takayama

We ordered a premium meat menu for two people and a plate of grilled vegetables, plus water for 5930 yen.

Interior of Maruki in Takayama

And what about this: great! We know we sound repetitive, but we can't say anything else about Japanese cuisine. We are loving it!

Hida meat in the Maruki in Takayama

Here in Maruki you cook yourself on the plates that are on the tables, the hida meat And the vegetables.

Cooking Hida Meat at Maruki in Takayama

It may seem expensive at first sight, but knowing that it is the best meat in the world, things change.
And being in TakayamaHow not to try it? It would be a crime!
We left after 2 in the afternoon and seeing that we still have a couple of hours left for our train from Takayama to Tokyo, we return to the part of the old quarter of Takayama to take another turn and continue enjoying the atmosphere in its streets.

Sanmachi-Suji in Takayama

About 3 in the afternoon and before taking the train from Takayama to Tokyo, we decided to stop for a couple of coffees for 550 yen ... you have to warm up!

Cafeteria in Takayama

And we also take the opportunity to review tomorrow's planning in Tokyo and make some time adjustments ... tomorrow is New Year's Eve !!
We leave the cafeteria when it is almost 4 in the afternoon, so we have to say goodbye to Takayama and go to the station area, where we stop at some more stores, to make time until our exit train from Takayama to Tokyo.
In the Station of Takayama They don't let you on the platforms before the train arrives, so we get in line a few minutes before our train arrives train from Takayama to Tokyo, with a stop in Nagoya that leaves by platform number 1 at 16.44 in the afternoon and will arrive at 19.03 in the afternoon to Nagoya by platform 3.
But first we will have to make a transfer in Nagoya and change to platform 14 because at 19.24 in the afternoon the shinkansen leaves that will take us to the third part of our trip to Japan: Tokyo !!
The journey in train from Takayama to Tokyo We do it again among spectacular landscapes covered with snow, although this time with the charm of seeing them dusk ...
We have had the great luck of doing this same tour in both times of the day and thus we have been able to enjoy both perspectives.
We arrived 10 minutes later than expected, as happened yesterday and we intuit that this is the only train of Japan that does not respect the schedules 🙂
We make the change of platform with enough time to look at a couple of shops of the many that sell bentos and different sweets in the Japanese stations.
This last part of the train journey from Takayama to Tokyo becomes a bit heavier and we arrive at 9:10 p.m. Tokyo Where we just leave the shinkansen platforms, we look for the JR subway, we have to take the Sobu line to Shin Nihombashi that will leave us very close to our hotel in Tokyo.
When we start to walk and see that it is almost 9.30 pm, we encourage you to take in a 7Eleven some gyozas and a plate of pasta plus drinks and some more sweets to make our dinner today.

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This was one of the gastronomic options that we had to try and today is the ideal day to do it.
We heat the dishes in the microwave, they give us chopsticks, napkins, spoons for yogurts ... it's nothing, but that's not bad!
We arrived at our Hotel Horidome Villa, hotel in Tokyo, and after checking in and informing us that our bags are already in the room, we have almost no strength left to take the elevator and begin to settle in what will be our accommodation for the next 7 nights.
Tokyo it is waiting for us!!
While we review the planning of these days in Tokyo we dined our particular dinner 7Eleven, which by the way is very good and when we look at the clock and see that it is after 11 pm we get into bed ...
Touch to review the snowy landscapes we have seen these days ago and start dreaming about the days in Tokyo that we have ahead ...