Takayama - Kyoto: April 30

 Today was an eventful day, we started off by checking out and storing our bags at the hotel. We headed out to the morning markets by Miyagawa river. The markets were booming today because its a holiday week called golden week, four holidays from April 29 to May 5. April 29 is Showa day, the birthday of former emperor Showa. May 3 is Constitution day, the day Japan's postwar constitution was put into effect in 1947. The most significant part of the new constitution was that Japan removed the ability to wage war, but it does still have a self-defense force. May 4 is Greenery day, which is basically earth day, a day to appreciate nature and the planet. May 5 is Boy's day, when families pray for the health and success of their sons by putting up carp streamers and setting out samurai dolls, but don't worry there's also a Girl's day on March 3. On the way to the morning markets we saw this ginkgo tree that is apparently 1200 years old.

    At the markets themselves we ate some more hida beef because it was so damn good. After that we checked out the Takayama Showa-kan Museum, which displays memorabilia from the Showa period (1926-1989). I thought it was very interesting, but at first my dad wasn't too into it because a lot of the items on display were as old as he is. Eventually he got more into it because he was reminded of a tv show from his childhood called Thunderbirds and had a nostalgic moment that was fun to witness. Here are some pictures from the museum.

    Then we took a bus to the Hida folk village, which is a small neighborhood of old houses from the Edo period (1603-1868) that is an open air museum which shows what life was like in those days. It was an intriguing look into the past, with each structure telling it's own story. Here's some pics from the village.

    After taking a bus back to Takayama train station, we took a long train ride all the way to Kyoto. It was a four hour train ride, not a bullet train, and it had some incredible views of the mountains.

    Once we arrived in Kyoto we checked in at the hostel and took a bus to Gion, an old neighborhood known for its geisha shows and restaurants. The bus arrived right in front of Yasaka Shrine.

    Then we searched the streets of Gion for a restaurant to eat at, but everything close to that neighborhood was insanely expensive. Over fifty dollars for a meal is nuts when you can get something almost as good for a fifth of the cost. We ended up getting some yakitori at a spot a few blocks away from the end of Gion. Then we headed back to rest up for the next day.