here, there, everywhere

For the other half of our vacation way back in August, Iain and I went to touristy, pretty Takayama, where the menus come in English, French and Japanese. A few hours away was the World Heritage site of Gassho-zukuri, but, because Iain and I are the lamest (and cheapest) tourists ever (and because we only had a day and wanted to see more things), we went instead to the much closer and much cheaper Hida-no-Sato, an open air museum featuring models of the similar old-fashioned houses. Though not in their original location, the house are, I think, the real things, rather than models, which made us feel a little less lame.


Hida-no-Sato is filled with different kinds of traditional Japanese houses (most of which are assigned imaginary owners, like "The Tanakas' House") that you can explore:


I felt a little silly skipping over the World Heritage site, but I'd still recommend the Hida folk village for anyone interested in a glimpse of old Honshu who doesn't want to spend $90 getting themselves to and in Gassho-zukuri. At the very least, that way you can save some money to try some of Takayama's famous Hida beef, back in town.