Takayama

This weekend I headed inland to Takayama with Laura, Scott, and Alex. Takayama is pretty much in the center of Honshu (the largest island of the archipeligo). The highlights of the weekend included staying at the Tensho-ji Hostel (a hostel at a temple, first picture), hiking through the woods, walking through the old town center, and visiting Hida-no-sato, an open air museum with traditional houses. I was also pleased that we found an organic restaurant which served curry rice vegetarian! This is a dish I have desired to try since I have arrived in Japan, but it is almost always served with meat. There are many sake breweries in Takayama as well (see photo with round cedar fronds hanging above the door to the shop), so we enjoyed a sampling of local product. :)