WEDNESDAY 10TH MAY - TAKAYAMA

Having spent last night on the floor with a slightly softened brick for a pillow, I didn't sleep that well although Trish did a little better. But the experience was partially redeemed in that I had a before breakfast experience in the onsen. Fortunately at that hour of the morning, it was men only so my embarrassment was limited.

After a Japanese breakfast, (which meant that we ate very similar food to last night's dinner), we headed for the local Hakone Yumoto train station to catch a train to Odawara. At Odawara, we caught the bullet train to Nagoya. The experience of being on a station as a bullet train thunders through, two tracks away from you, at 300 klms per hour is absolutely awe inspiring. You don't get the same sensation of speed when on the train. Unfortunately the photos can't adequately do it justice.

From Nagoya, we caught a conventional train to Takayama where we now are. What was not stated was how scenic the train to here was. It should be promoted as one of the great scenic railway trips of the world because it is.

Rice paddies are more common than back yards and provide some great reflections.

 

The river that the railway track followed also provided some great reflections of the surrounding mountains.

After arriving this afternoon, Trish and I went for a wander through the town and found ourselves in a delightful back street cafe where we had to remove our shoes to enter and they didn't sell beer, only sake with crushed ice and cointreau, a different experience.

Tonight for dinner, we experienced one of the local Hida Gyu beef restaurants where the cooking was done at the table, initially by staff but subsequently by us. Great fun and a truly local experience. The staff spoke almost no English which seems to be the norm in this part of the country. We spend two nights here and are back on the move on Friday.