Gassho Houses in the Winter

I think I'm fond with the charm of Gassho Villages in Japan. My three times in these villages have been taken in three different seasons: Summer, Autumn and, this time, Winter.

After spending some much time at Kenrokuen, we took a local road passing through Gokayama of Toyama Prefecture before taking a brief stop at Shirakawa-go for Gassho Tsukuri House Light Up. They prohibited privately-own cars from entering the bird-eye viewpoint, making us have to detour to the parking lot and take the shuttle bus to the village instead. My goodness, Shirakawa-go has completely turned into a tourist destination and it completely lost its local charm to me.

Shirakawa-go light up

We agreed to go back and enjoy our dinner at a more distance Gassho Village 'Ainokura' of Gokayama.

It was definitely a right decision to stay at Ainokura as the village is still able to maintain its adapted local life. Maybe because we reached the village in the evening when there were no longer any tourist but those who were there for an overnight stay. The place was quiet and peaceful.

Originally, I intended to book a room at another Gassho house toward the far end of the village, but it was booked. So we ended up staying at "Cho-yo-mon　長ヨ門" Gassho house instead. (btw, one house can probably holds 20 people max.)

Dinner Time

The owners knew we were hungry by the time we reached the house. So they prepared our meal right away.

the famous IWANA grilled fish
Part of our dinner
(that beans tempura was REALLY good!)
Nagano girls
Grandma is already 82, but she is sooooo healthy!
During our dinner time, she showed us how to play this instrument called "SaSaRa"
(ให้อารมณ์เหมือนเล่นกรับพวงบ้านเรา แต่พวงใหญ่หน่อย)
our rooms
part of our breakfast
Ma-me-tan (豆炭), what kept us warm all night under the futon. -- amazing!!
This is what I meant by an adapted local life. While the structure of the house is well maintained both the exterior and interior, modern stuff such as TV, heater, and the likes, are added for convenience. Btw, the house we stayed was built more than 400 years ago. And the grandma above is the 8th generation living in this house!
Cho-yo-mon from the outside. Too bad the warmth melt away all the rooftop snow pile.
The heat is coming off the roof.
I was so happy getting to mingle with the real locals
Poy and the Gassho house

After spending nearly the whole morning wandering around the village, taking photos, writing postcards, and talking to the Gassho house owners, we proceeded our way to Takayama. We stopped for a brief photo taking @ Suganuma, another Gassho Village of Gokayama.

Suganuma Gassho Village

The very first time I came to Takayama, I spent a night at one of a very memorable Minshuku style accommodation, MIZUNO-SO (みづの荘), recommended by Jill, my sister. Riding on a chance of passing through the city to our next destination, I called up an auntie, the owner of this Minshuku and asked if we could stop by for lunch. They were very, very kind to have prepared the meal for us because usually they only cook dinner and breakfast for their overnight guests.

We were VERY stunned by the volume and selection of the meal.
part of our lunch @ Mizuno-so
(most of the ingredients used including rice are from their own fields.)
This looks like a simple rice soup, but it is very tasty and healthy! According to the auntie and uncle, this is a local Takayama food, only available during winter.
chatting time
the uncle now make his own rice sake called "Doburoku"
(Too bad I was a driver, so I didn't get to taste it on spot. But I was given a bottle of this sake, so I'll get to try it VERY soon!)

for our great memory!

Our last stop for this trip was to dip into an onsen at Gero Onsen town.
All I can say is that this trip has marked as one of my favorite trips in Japan. I really love to mingle with the real locals and always feel overwhelm with the charm of the local touch. If I have a chance, I'll definitely make my way back to check out how these families are doing!

p.s. thank you my trip members for the surprise birthday cake too! :)