Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Tuesday 15th April 2014- Back to Takayama Old town

 We had free breakfast in the Hotel of cold scrambled eggs, bacon and noodles, with no apparent attempt to keep it warm. It was probably warm when it left the kitchen but anyway it was free.
We caught the bus down to the Station at 10.00 and walked down to the old town and crossing the river and came across further events in the Spring Festival and we spent several hours walking around taking photos and the odd cup of coffee. We did try some Yakitori which was quite expensive and really not that good, bloody rip off actually.
The festival carried on with the carts standing around and you can have your photo taken with the guys, Jennifer needed to be persuaded and hence the result is here to see. The girls were playing a one or two note tune on their recorders and the young men were banging wooden mallets against bells. The puppet performance was quite good and it was done from the back of two carts and was quite high up really with lots of strange noises being made.
By about lunchtime the events were slowing down for the day and so we found a restaurant called Alice’s Place where we had large bento box containing Tempura, and thinly sliced beef and oinions in a great sauce on rice and together with Misu soup and for the two of us was Yen 3000 or around £ 18.00 and we were quite stuffed as they say.
The pulling of carts and the banging of drums and bells and unholy noises started up again and so we watched for a while but were getting a little tired after so much walking and then we thought we would have a train ride up to the town of Hida and when we got to the station it was totally packed out with queues of people and baggage waiting for the next train. There was not a Suica card entrance and rather than wait for what could be a long time to get a ticket we gave up the idea and returned to the Hotel on the courtesy bus around 16.00.
Noel spent the rest of the evening on photos and blogging whilst Jennifer checked out tomorrows route as we leave for the seaside City of Toyama for two nights but will take a long route via the mountains to get there as we have enough time and don’t need to go on expressways, should be great providing we don’t get too lost.
I hear the popping of corks so must be time for a glass of wine and some nuts, no dinner tonight as we are both still full from lunch.