This past long weekend I finally got to go on a trip I have wanted to do for months. Go to Kanazawa, the city of gold, which is on the west coast of Japan. Anywhere else I wouldn’t dream of crossing the country in a day but with Japan it’s was feasible. So off we went in this little piece of crap car (mine has been in the shop… for three weeks) north and then west through the Japanese Alps and the beginning of Autumn to Shirakawa and then Kanazawa by night fall.
We had to take these ridiculously windy mountain roams up through mountains that made us vow to take the tolled expressways back, but our reward was the famous Shirakawa village. The village is in this little valley and has the best preserved and oldest thatched roofed wooden houses in Japan. The best part about them is unlike other places in Japan, where buildings are moved within a park to make them more approachable and tourist-friendly, the Shirakawa village has a real feeling to it because all the buildings have been left where they are and they are. A lookout point looks down over the village and the mountains and our lucky blue sky with the warm afternoon sun. We had the most perfect weather and once down wandering through the houses and rice field the lighting complimented all of the sights so well it was like walking through a painting. It was very atmospheric with the breeze and a smell of sandalwood in the air, the purple and yellow flowers and rice like brush grasses and little red hot pepper lining small gardens, ponds filled with koi fish, (and little toy ducks) and a gentle blue sky caressing the landscape.
The rest of the afternoon was dedicated to making it to Kanazawa, finding some maps and dinner (delicious chicken katsu that was the size of both my hands and warm tea), settling down at the guest house (with its awkward angled walls and unfortunate taste in television XD) and having a soak in the common bath. Rhee and I had the unfortunate luck of both being a little sick so we called it an early night with plans for an early morning.
Morning found us leaving the hostel at just after seven so we could make an early start to the main attraction of Kanazawa; the famous _____ garden. It is the second of the top three in Japan that I have been to but is considered by some as the best in Japan! It was definitely gorgeous in the early morning light as we beat some of the larger crowds. What makes it truly unique is the two legged lantern standing in the pond, and to my luck, right beneath a maple tree that has eagerly begun to change colour already! That combined with its perfect reflection in the still pond made for a breathtaking sight! The rest of the garden was of course beautiful but it was the lantern that sets it apart. Also notable was the statue of the mythical prince Yamato Takeru, that was dedicated to the warriors who died in the Satsuma Rebllion in 1877.
After the garden we strolled into this quieter path of trees and sunlight where we found a sacred well, shrine and the remains of a samurai house. The shrine was beautiful and playing soft music for a baby’s christening. The well was where the name Kanazawa originated, the marsh of gold. We passed by what remains of Kanazawa castle but I believe they are working on reconstructing it. As late morning fell, we walked to the old quarters of the town which is a well preserved Edo style district. It’s where Kanazawa gets its other claim to fame as the Kyoto of the west. Lining the street are classy geisha houses and fancy shop that sell the prettiest gold I’ve ever seen. The city claims that 99 per cent of the gold leafing found in Japan comes from Kanazawa and to exhibit this one store has gold plated an entire building within the little courtyard of their shop. I overheard a store clerk say we were lucky for the good weather as it makes the walls shine even golder!
In the afternoon we collected the car, which had been taking a well deserved break at the hostel, and headed north up the Noto peninsula. There I got to go one of the coolest things ever in a car! Drive on a beach designed for such! It was so much fun! I parked eventually and we played on the beach and collected rocks and then drove a bit further and watched some fishermen pull in their catch. This was all interesting, although a little gruesome to watch, until the pulled in a manta ray and instead of freeing it, they pulled it from the net so the crowd could watch it die on the sand. I was disgusted and longed to grow enough courage to jump out of the crowd and throw the poor creature back to sea. It’s not like it is good for anything like the fish, it may be the one sea creature I haven’t seen served… Instead of being the hero I wanted to be I cowardly slunk back to the car and gave Rhee a chance to drive. In the end we parked at a series of shops and saw these amazing sand sculptures and enjoyed Blue Hawaiian ice cream floats as we watched a sports car attempt sand donuts. I decided I hadn’t quite had enough so I drove a bit further up the beach before turning around only to attempt a sand doughnut of my own and succeed where the shiny red sports car had failed! Good job piece of crap car!
We continued our way up the coastline and stopped only at a little shrine before coming across what I’d set my eye on! I rocky coast line with a hole in the giant cliff side! It was a marvelous place where one side of the bay had rocky tide pools so deep and clear not a fish could escape my glance and the other side a tunnel through the rocks gave way to a cave with an exceptional view of said hold in the rock. With the afternoon sun in our favour for a second time in a row I was able to snap some great pictures before searching for the perfect spot for sunset. I found it at another set of married rocks on the opposite coast of the first. But, the original married rocks do not have one with a hold in it and a little shrine on top! These ones were a little more magnificent in my books and with the brilliant gold setting sun there was little more I could ask for after a glorious day!
The next morning it was time to set back home but not before squeezing out one last amazing day out of the long weekend. On my last trip to Japan I was taken by this small city up in the mountains. It was where I believe both Nikki and I truly fell in love with Japan. Takayama is the a quiet city with a very peaceful air, a lazy river with herons and gold koi, a forest shine, many quiet roads lined with heritage houses, my favourite little shrine in all of Japan, with its own purifying fountain and soundtrack of the river from the bank it sits on, a morning market where I enjoyed freshly cut local apples from the same stall this time as last and one of the three most magnificent festivals of Japan which was its lure this weekend as if the rest was not enough for me to return. The festival marks the beginning of Autumn in Takayama as ten amazing floats are placed on display for the only time of the year to be admired on this particular day to a backdrop of blue sky and edo styled houses and to the sound of traditional music. We made our way through the market and the festival stalls: eating roast pita, a chocolate covered banana, little round honey donuts and coffee flavoured ice cream until we were swept into the crowd heading for the shrine. The shrine was as I remembered, tucked into the edge of the forest and a shrine higher up the hill provided a much need break from the crowds. We enjoyed the atmosphere just strolling circles around the town, sitting by the river and watching the parade of locals in old style garb as they paraded the god, Hachiman sama who usually resides in the main shrine, around the town. It was such a wonderful day.
The drive home was long as I weaved back through the mountains and their anxious fall foliage into the dark and nearly full moon until home at last I collapsed in bed and slept the rest of the night away. It was a fantastic weekend! I couldn’t have asked for a better time, or better weather or better anything! I’m so lucky to be living to the fullest! Ja ne!
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