After a scenic bus ride through winding mountain roads, we arrived in Takayama—our next stop another charming town, full of beautifully preserved traditional buildings.
First priority: food. We wandered through the old streets, letting our noses lead the way, and the first thing to catch our attention was the smell of sizzling wagyu beef. We couldn’t resist. For £2.50, we got a tiny skewer of A5 wagyu—not much more than a single mouthful, but it was bloody delicious. After that little treat, we went looking for something a bit more substantial (and budget-friendly) and found a lovely local bakery. I had a round of bread topped with cheese, leek, and onion, while Grace had a crusty roll filled with potato and cheese. Both hit the spot.
Since we’re now down to our last ten days in Japan, we’re making the most of every treat—so next up was ice cream. We’d seen this particular brand advertised all over, first in South Korea and now in Japan, so our hopes were high—and it didn’t disappoint. The ice cream was amazing, and even the cone was good enough to eat on its own, like a crisp sugar-snap biscuit. It was quite brittle, though, and poor Graces collapsed and dropped her ice-cream halfway through! But it was so good that neither of us wanted to share the rest of mine, so she simply bought another.
Fuelled by sugar and dairy, we headed off to explore the town. Most of the old buildings in the centre have now been converted into shops, so we had a leisurely browse and picked up a few souvenirs. Grace bought some beautiful hand-painted porcelain coasters, and I picked up a pair of chopsticks and a small porcelain crane in an origami-style design for my travel shelf. Shopped out, we followed a walking trail through the surrounding area, which led us past more traditional houses and a few quiet Shinto shrines. At one of them, we were tempted by the amusing protection charms, but decided we should probably save our precious bag space for more practical gifts. Instead, we bought some fish food and spent a while feeding the resident carp.
We headed back to the hostel in the early evening for a quick sit-down… which turned into an accidental nap. By the time we woke up and got ready to go out for dinner, most places had already finished serving or were sold out. Thankfully, a kind woman at a Tex-Mex place said she could still feed us—as long as we were happy with burgers, because that’s all she had left. No complaints here—at least we got fed!
The next morning, we were up early to catch the first bus to the nearby village of Shirakawa-go, a UNESCO World Heritage site famous for its thatched-roof farmhouses, rivers, and green fields, all set against a dramatic backdrop of snow-capped mountains. It really was picture-perfect.
What we hadn’t realised, however, was just how small the village actually is. You can easily walk around the whole thing in about half an hour—maybe an hour if you dawdle. Unfortunately for us, our return bus wasn’t for another seven hours.
So, we made the most of it. We walked every path, twice. Visited every shop, every shrine. Took a little detour to a hilltop observatory for panoramic views. We even explored the village museum. Then we stretched out a very long lunch of Hilda beef noodles, followed by an extended stay at a tea and ice cream café. And still, two more hours to go!
At the time of writing, we’re sitting on some grass by a river next to a car park. At least it’s a scenic car park, and the weather’s lovely. Hopefully our next stop, Kyoto will be have a bit more happening! I’ll let you know all about it soon, love Alice x
