[Back Post] Japan with Peko-chan 2017 #4/9 - Hida Mountains III: Hida Furukawa

Peko-chan at Setogawa canal, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The next part of our journey in the Hida mountains was the small town of Hida-Furukawa飛騨古川, a short drive from Takayama (Part 3). The town is smaller than Takayama, but has the same atmosphere of days long gone by. Hida-Furukawa also has a well-preserved old town, especially the historic storehouses lining the Setogawa canal (more below).

View from the Imamiya-bashi, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The town was originally founded as a castle town around Masushima Castle増島城 when Kanamori Yoshishige金森 可重, the adopted son of Kanamori Nagachika金森 長近 (who founded Takayama, Part 3), became the 2nd daimyo of the Hida-Takayama Domain飛騨高山藩初. The town, as it is now, was first established in 1875, and was subsequently merged with various surrounding towns in 2004 to become Hida City飛騨市.

Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

During the Edo period, Hida-Furukawa was prosperous due to its timber resources and skilled Hida no Takumi, like Takayama (Part 3). Today, its main industry is agriculture, with rice as the primary crop, as well as vegetables, fruit and beef.

In terms of sights, there aren't many that would fascinate. There are 3 Buddhist temples Honkouji, Enkouji and Shinshuji (below). The Takumikan Craft Museum (below) and Furukawa Festival Hall (below) were both educational and interesting, to me anyway. And one mustn't forget the sake breweries too!

On some random street, a stray sarubobo, a Hida mascot

For something of a quiet rural town in the Hida mountains, the town shot to crazy levels of fame both in Japan and abroad due to Shinkai Makoto's Kimi no Na wa. Several scenes from the anime, when Taki passed through while seeking for clues of Mitsuha's hometown Itomori, were supposedly modelled on real spots in Hida-Furukawa.

Onsen ryokan stay at Yatsusankan

While at Hida-Furukawa, we had a one-night stay at Yatsusankan八ツ三館, an established onsen ryokan in Hida-Furukawa, situated near the Arakigawa. Getting there was a little difficult because the roads leading to it were extremely narrow, and there was no driveway to park our car. So we had to park it on the street and unload our baggage.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Upon arrival, we were showed into a room that had early Showa period decor. I confess I initially found it quite disconcerting because of the stark contrast between the traditional Japanese reception area and this room. But I don't mean that in a bad way.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

When I commented about the vintage Western decor of the room, the staff told me that the ryokan was established in the Meiji era (in the early 1800s), and that the main building dates back to around 1905 (also Meiji era). One of its wings, the Shogetsuro wing, is the oldest wing. It was constructed by the famed Hida no Takumi and was registered as a National Tangible Cultural Property in 2004. In fact, the ryokan's heritage is like a point of pride for the ryokan staff.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

It didn't actually feel like we were in an onsen ryokan at all. It felt like we were in someone's home, albeit a large, old one with vintage decor and fixtures. There were several spacious lounge rooms with homely, vintage sofas, cushioned benches and stools, scattered with knick-knacks, scrolls, and so on.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The decor of the whole place had an interesting and eclectic mix of vintage Western and traditional Japanese elements...possibly reflecting the aesthetics of the Meiji, Showa and Taisho eras. In the main waiting lounge, where we had our pre-dinner cocktail, the green vinyl sofas, paisley-patterned tablecloths, glass-shaded lamps, framed Western artworks simply sat there together with Japanese cushions, traditional Japanese ink paintings and ceramics, traditional Japanese screens, and traditional Japanese wooden cabinets and shelves.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Of the antique items in the main lounge, besides the entire room itself, which is in traditional Japanese style, there was even a vintage cast-iron fireplace.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

I found the eclectic decor both bewildering and fascinating. If I had to decide between like and dislike, guess I came down quite firmly on the "I like this!" side of things.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu.

The hallways were equally eclectic. Traditional Japanese art and calligraphy on the one hand, and abstract modern Western style art on the other.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The rather wacky vintage East-West mix was also evident in our suite. A traditional Japanese sitting room with the tokonoma, shoji screens and all... And...

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

...the room next door, a completely Western-styled room with stone-paved flooring, massage chairs, a huge flat-screen TV and modern fireplace.

Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The bedroom was mostly Western in format. I say "yay" to the canvas blockout screens at the windows. Although I love shoji screens, they're traditionally paper so they don't keep out the morning sunlight very well.

The private onsen bath in the suite at Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu.

The bath was an awesome stone bath with glass sliding doors that opened to a small traditional Japanese garden.

The garden in the suite at Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu.

Autumn had mostly gone from the small and simple Japanese garden outside. But there some of the shrubs were still clad in fall foliage.

Late fall foliage at Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Enough to imagine how lovely this little garden would be in peak autumn.

Late fall foliage at Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Before dinner, we headed to the main lounge area for our pre-dinner cocktail, which was included in our stay. It was some alcoholic cherry-flavoured cocktail that was not too bad.

During dinner proper, Hubby opted to try a sparkling sake called Janpan, which is locally produced in Hida-Furukawa using soft spring water from the Japanese Alps and locally produced Hida-Homare rice.

Janpan, a local sparkling sake made with local Hida-Homare rice and natural spring water from the nearby mountains

We enjoyed dinner immensely, and were actually quite surprised by its, uh, modern elements. Also didn't quite expect the slight Western fusion elements to some of the traditional dishes. No criticism here.... And it's not the first time we've seen some fusion of Western or modern elements into traditional Japanese ryokan meals. I guess it just felt unexpected because, well, this is a really old, established ryokan with well-preserved vintage decor and nostalgic atmosphere.

As always with traditional ryokans in Japan, dinner also featured locally produced ingredients and specialties. For the main dish was Hida beef, and our rice was served with a dab of hoba miso, though the hoba miso here was somewhat different from the hoba miso we had at Takayama (see Part 3).

Hoba miso on rice to finish up dinner at Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu.

Dessert was a pumpkin and chestnut Mont Blanc, with marinated apple, persimmon and yoghurt. Which I forgot to take a picture of, oops. All very autumnal.

After dinner, we wandered around the ryokan, which was a lot larger than it looked from the outside. In-keeping with the Kimi no Na wa. craze, the ryokan also some Kimi no Na wa. paraphernalia in the souvenir shop.

Kimi no Na wa. paraphernalia... Okay but the Hida cow sarubobo mascot is cute.

They ryokan also ran a nightly screening of the movie in one of the lounge rooms. Oddly enough I didn't feel the urge to watch Kimi no Na wa. at the ryokan. But that may be because I've already watched it thrice.

I found some adorable and pretty handmade glass beads at the ryokan's souvenir shop. Being a sucker for glass beads, I bought a few.... The flushed faced monkey and watermelon beads made me think of Hubby.(๐˃̶_ᗜ˂̶๐) Now I wonder what I shall do with all of these glass beads that I've picked up here and at Lake Suwa (Part 1).

Got some cute and pretty glass bead charms from the Yatsusankan souvenir shop!

Morning breakfast was a fairly simple affair. Simple but delicious. Also with locally produced ingredients.

Breakfast, Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

On the grill was dried sweetfish, the fish itself was caught from the nearby Miyagawa.

Local sweetfish on the grill, Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

We were also served a full portion of hoba miso, complete with dried magnolia leaf on the grill. In terms of flavour, this version was a little sweeter and more pungent than the hoba miso we had at Takayama (Part 3), but equally enjoyable.

Hoba miso again at breakfast, Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

After breakfast, Hubs paid a visit to the public onsen, while I explored the ryokan's other facilities. So I stumbled on the other lounge, a really large hall with couches, massage chairs, and a large carpet (a tapestry?) depicting an ancient Chinese scene of courtiers, scholars, and Chinese beauties in a traditional Chinese garden. Yeah, I know...another eclectic oddity of the place.

One of the many lounges at Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

This lounge also overlooked the ryokan's traditional Japanese garden which had artfully arranged rocks and stone lanterns. From beyond the fence I could see Honkouji本光寺, the Buddhist temple that was across the Arakigawa.

An outdoor garden at Yatsusankan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The lounge was deserted, so I had it all to myself and was able to slowly wander around, and just look at the gardens and the various objects around the place.

Shinshuji

Shinshuji, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Of the 3 Buddhist temples in the town, we briefly stopped at Shinshuji真宗寺. Shinshuji is a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist temple. In January each year, Shinshuji is one of the 3 temples that people visit as part of the Santera Mairi三寺参り (literally "three temple visit"), an event held on the Buddhist holiday Houonkou報恩講 to commemorate Shinran Shonin親鸞 聖人, the founder of the Jodo Shinshu school.

Hondou of Shinkshuji, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The temple was supposedly founded in the 1500s. Apparently, part of the temple's properties were destroyed in a large fire in 1904, and the current hondo was built in 1912. Originally covered in gold leaf, the hondou本堂 features works by the Hida no Takumi.

Watanabe Sake Brewery

Watanabe Sake Brewery, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Of the 2 sake breweries in town, we briefly stopped by Watanabe Sake Brewery (Watanabe Shuzouten渡辺酒造店), the maker of the sake Hourai蓬莱. Can't miss the distinctive sugidama杉玉 hanging over the entrance. The sugidama (or sakabayashi酒林) is a ball of Japanese cedar needles displayed under the eaves of sake breweries. The needles gradually turn brown as the brewing season progresses, and traditionally a new sugidama is hung to announce that new sake was ready.

Watanabe was founded by the 5th generation of the Watanabe family in 1870 (Meiji period), and is today in the hands of the 9th generation. The sake's name, Hourai, came from a verse from the Noh song "Crane and Tortoise" (Tsuru Kame鶴亀), after the mythological earthly paradise Hourai, the Chinese mythological island of immortals. The building itself is a Registered Tangible Cultural Property.

Setogawa Canal

Setogawa canal, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

We next went to one of the Hida-Furukawa's famed sightseeing spots, the Setogawa canal (Setogawa yousui瀬戸川用水). The canal runs for about 400m through the old part of Hida-Furukawa. This is probably the town's most picturesque scene. The crystal-clear water swiftly running past the backs of the town's well-preserved Edo period white-walled storehourses, called shirakabe dozo白壁土蔵.

The canal was originally named Horikawa堀川 but its name was changed to Setogawa, after its builder Setoya Genbei瀬戸屋 源兵衛. It was built in 1585, during the Azuchi-Momoyama period, when the 2nd daimyo Kanamori Yoshishige金森 可重 ordered the moat of Masushima Castle増島城 to be extended. The canal was made by drawing water from the moat to irrigate new fields.

Setogawa canal, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The Setogawa canal is also known for the koi in it. When we came, it was almost the start of winter, so the koi had already been moved to their winter abode. They are returned to the canal in spring. The koi are the canal's more recent residents however. Apparently, up until 1955, the waters of the Setogawa canal used to be so clean that the town residents used the water to drink, wash their vegetables, as well as other household and agricultural purposes. However, it became polluted with litter, so in 1968, koi were released into the canal in a bid to keep the water clean again. As for whether the water is clean again to wash vegetables with, I shall not here speculate....

Furukawa Festival Hall

Festival float, Furukawa Festival Hall

We next visited the Furukawa Festival Hall (Hida-Furukawa Matsuri Kaikan飛騨古川まつり会館) which quite obviously revolves around the Furukawa Festival.

The Furukawa Festival (Furukawa Matsuri古川まつり) is held on 19th and 20th April annually. It is a festival with a 400-year-old tradition dating back to the Edo period when ceremonial Shinto rituals such as the procession of the o-mikoshiお神輿, took place from the Keta-Wakamiya Shrine気多若宮神社 (below).

The festival is designated as an Important Intangible Folk Cultural Property of Japan and is UNESCO Heritage listed as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The festival's highlight is the okoshidaiko起し太鼓 procession, where a parade of loincloth-wearing men carrying a very large drum on which 2 men sit and beat (the okoshidaiko), amidst a jostling horde of equally barely clad men carrying smaller drums. This is followed by the parade of 9 ornately carved and decorated festival floats, all of which are displayed in the Furukawa Festival Hall.

A Furukawa Matsuri festival float, Furukawa Festival Hall

Frankly, I think the Furukawa Festival floats don't lose out to the floats used in Kyoto's Gion Matsuri (here). True, they're not as large or grand as the ones used in the Gion Matsuri, but the floats here are also as beautiful and intricate in their details and decorations.

These floats were carved by Hida's famed wood craftsmen, the Hida no Takumi. Each float has a name and a detailed record of the artisans who created the float, including the names of the craftsmen who carved, painted, and created the embellishments, etc.

Karakuri demonstration at Furukawa Festival Hall, Hida-Furukawa

On top of some of the floats are karakuriからくり, wooden puppets or automata that move when physically manipulated by people. We watched the 3-minute karakuri display, which demonstrated how the karakuri are moved during the festival itself.

A post shared by little world of yotsuba & clan (@yotsub4) on Nov 28, 2017 at 5:51pm PST

I was quite fascinated by the 3-minute performance, which consisted of a male karakuri in Heian period dress putting on a mask (a Tengu mask?) and performing a Kagura神楽 with a folded fan and a set of kagura suzu神楽鈴. The museum guide explained that this puppet was manipulated by a computer programme for the purposes of the museum display, but during the actual festival itself, the puppets are moved by people who manually manipulate the strings. We also watched the museum's 3D movie of the highlights of the Furukawa Matsuri, which was very interesting, and somewhat gave a sense of the festival's lively atmosphere.

Furukawa Festival Hall, Hida-Furukawa

There were other displays on the 2nd floor, such as the various costumes and props used in the festival, as well as the o-mikoshi. Many of them had beautifully made details... Oh gosh, the embroidery, the gold thread couching, the designs...

Okoshidaiko Square, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Outside the Furukawa Festival Hall, not far away, is the Okoshidaiko no Sato起し太鼓の里, where the okoshidaiko procession departs from during the Furukawa Festival.

Takumikan Craft Museum

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

We next stopped by the Takumikan Craft Museum (Hida no Takumi Bunkakan飛騨の匠文化館) which focuses on traditional Hida craftsmanship and carpentry. The museum building itself was constructed by local Hida carpenters (Hida no Takumi) using local wood and traditional carpentry techniques, such as traditional Japanese joinery. The entire building was constructed without nails.

According to the museum, Hida wood craftsmen were known for their skills since the Nara period (710-794 AD). During that time, these craftsmen were sent to the capital Heijo-kyo平城京 (today, Nara) as well as Kyoto to construct important buildings such as shrines and temples.

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

So elite was their expertise that Hida's carpenters became known as the Hida no Takumi飛騨の匠, and the traditional skills were passed down from generation to generation, for e.g. the Mizuma clan, who is said to have constructed the haiden of the Higashiyama Hakusan Shrine in Takayama (in Part 3). On an unrelated note...the beautiful cursive Japanese script in the historical documents on display makes me feel embarrassed with my hiragana handwriting.

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Other than the various tools and machines among the exhibits, there was also a sample board showing the various types of wood that are (were?) found in the Hida region and which were traditionally used by the Hida craftsmen.

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The 2nd floor of the museum displayed the tools used by the Hida craftsmen for carpentry and plastering.

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Among the displays of tools were samples of wood carvings that were used in the old festival floats. There were also display pieces showing traditional clay plastering techniques for clay walls.

Contemporary wood carving, Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The museum also had contemporary wood carvings, some of which I found quite humorous...like the wood sculpture of Daikokuten大黒天 carrying carpentry tools. Since he is considered a god of commerce and prosperity, the piece was an amusing reference to the town's historical prosperity and industry (timber & carpentry).

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

But I have to say that the display that we found most impressive was a to-scale architectural model of the wooden foundation of an actual modern house.

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

The awesome part is...I think it's scale suits the size of Blythe dolls.... (ᕑᗢूᓫ∗) I tried to get in closer to have a closer look but that set off the alarm that was placed around the display. Awww dang! Apparently they don't want people getting too close, in case it causes accidental damage to the display.

Hida no Takumi Bunkakan, Hida-Furukawa, Gifu

Also saw this small scale Lion dance costume which would be perfectly Blythe sized!!! Argh, does anyone know where I can get one.... (-｡-)ゞ

Some Kimi no Na wa scenes

Of course, being fans of Shinkai Makoto's works and of Kimi no Na wa, we went to visit some of the spots that inspired the various scenes of Kimi no Na wa. In the anime, Taki brings his sketches on his trip to the Hida region, searching for Mitsuha. One of the towns that he looks for clues is modelled on Hida-Furukawa. Although the connection wasn't confirmed by the film distributor, the similarities are simply too close.

One of the spots is the taxi rank outside Furukawa Station. In the anime, Taki asks a cab driver for clues with his sketch of the lake at Itomori town.

Taxi rank outside Furukawa Station.

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

There's the scene where Taki gets annoyed with Okudera and Tsukasa because they're having fun taking pictures with the Hida cow mascot at the train station, instead of helping him search for Mitsuha's town. The interior of the real life Furukawa Station doesn't exactly look the same though.

Furukawa Station. By the way, this Hida Cow (Hida-gyu) is really the area's mascot.

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

It would be awesome if there was an actual Hida cow mascot instead of a cardboard one. (˃̶_ᗜ˂̶๐) The reason for the Hida cow mascot is because Hida beef is the region's best known specialty (see Part 3). A fact that we were constantly reminded of throughout our stay in Hida, as every ryokan dinner included it. And when it tastes so good, it's clear why the people of Hida take such pride in their regional produce.

The scene with the train tracks looks exactly like the real life location. Unlike me, Hubby is geeky enough to wait until the time when the train going in the right direction comes. And he made me wait for it, ohmygawd.... It's not like the trains here are frequent, you know!

Furukawa Station

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

The library building in the anime looks almost like the Hida City Library. Photography wasn't allowed inside, naturally...since it functions as a library. But there is a guest book at a quiet corner for Kimi no Na wa fans and visitors to sign. I wonder what the library staff and town residents think of the attention their library is getting....

Hida City Library, Hida-Furukawa

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

The store where Okudera and Tsukasa eat gohei mochi五平餅 seems to be modelled on the shop Ajidokoro Furukawa味処 古川. The shop is a teishoku restaurant that serves regional produce, e.g. soba, hoba miso, Hida beef, and Hida jidori chicken. On a side note, why does it seem like every other region in Japan has a specially produced wagyu or jidori chicken? That said, miso and soba from the Nagano Prefecture, particularly from the mountainous areas, are always highly popular and recommended. Something about the pure springwater from the mountains.

Ajidokoro Furukawa, Hida-Furukawa

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

Makes sense that Okudera and Tsukasa would be munching on gohei mochi as part of their sightseeing fun, as gohei mochi is also a local dish of the mountainous areas of the Chuubu region, of which Hida is a part. But I had a quick glance at the menu of Ajidokoro Furukawa, and it does not seem to have gohei mochi.

Ajidokoro Furukawa, Hida-Furukawa

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

One the scenes is supposedly inspired by the Keta-Wakamiya Shrine. Besides the long flight of stone steps and the stone lanterna, I don't really see as much similarity.

Keta-Wakamiya Shrine, Hida-Furukawa

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

The shrine though is of some significance in Hida-Furukawa, being the shrine of the Furukawa Matsuri. The main kami of this shrine are Okuninushi大国主神 and Kinomata-no-kami木俣神. The latter is the child of Okuninushi and his first consort Yakami-hime八上比売, according to Japanese mythology.

And of course, the bus stop...which is actually around a 30-minute drive from Hida-Furukawa, and in the middle of nowhere.

Peko-chan at The Bus Stop, Hida-Furukawa

Scene from Kimi no Na wa.

Japan with Peko-chan, Chubu-Kansai-Kyushu, Nov & Dec 2017 🚗 Suwa, Nagano • Lake Suwa • Suwa Glass Museum • Seiko Shiojiri 🚗 Hida Mountains • Shirakawa-go • Takayama • Hida Furukawa 🚗 Tokyo • Nakiryu & Kagari • Akihabara • Nippori Textile Town • Wadakura Fountain Park & Kokyo Gaien • Gundam Unicorn, Odaiba • National Art Centre (Kimi no Na wa. exhibition) • Nezu Museum • Kimi no Na wa. ✈️ Nagasaki Part I & Part II • Glover Garden • Old Chinese Quarter • Chinatown • Dejima • Sakamoto International Cemetery • Oura Cathedral • 26 Martyrs Memorial & Museum • Atomic Bomb Museum • Hypocentre Park • Nyokodo • Sanno Shrine ✈️ Osaka • Atelier to naniIRO • Junie Moon Osaka 🚗 Awajishima • Yumesenkei Besso Amahara • Senzan Senkoji • Izanagi Jingu • Onokorojima Shrine • Sumoto Castle • Eshima • Hokudan Earthquake Memorial Park (Nojima Fault) • O-naruto Bridge & Naruto Whirlpools • Akashi Kaikyo Bridge • Awaji beef & Awaji Burger 🚗 Kobe • Kobe Luminarie 2017 • Port of Kobe Earthquake Memorial • Kitano Ijinkan