Episode 233 - Fairy Tale Wonderland - the Shirakawa-go Area

Shirakawa-go is a small village situated at the foot of Mount Haku-san in northwestern Gifu Prefecture. It was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995.

We started our journey from Takayama City.  It took us about one hour's drive to arrive at the car park of Shirakawa-go.

With the green rice fields scattering in the front, the huge trees in Mount Haku-san form a dramatic backdrop to the antique village houses.

Walking along the paths in this picturesque village, I felt as if I was entering the wonderland in where the totoro was living.  The beauty of the village appeared to be flawless through the lens of the camera.

I compared what I actually saw with what's recorded in the old photos of the village as posted on the internet.  I found that the village should have been substantively renovated and refurnished in recent years. Whilst the old hardware was still there, I would say that what I saw amounting to a brand new village.  It was no longer a "real" village which people earned their living from farming - whilst they still raise their crops, the same should no longer be their main income source.  

I am not sure if such renovation work meets with the approval of a naturalist. 

For me, the renovated village looks good.

Episode 232 - Koi Fantasy

These photos were taken at such part of the Setogawa Stream near Enkoji Temple at Hida-Furukawa.

In addition to the antique Japanese structures erected along the banks of the stream, the teams of colourful koi living in the waterway are one of the major tourist attractions of this district - that's why we were there.

In the early days, the Setogawa Stream was once designed for fields irrigation.  Now it is also used for the purpose of fire extinguisher and for cooling of the pavements of the city during hot seasons.

The waterway which runs through the city, as modified / modernized through out the years, was slightly widened at this particular section (as shown in the photos above), making such section an excellent spot for koi watching.  Teams of colourful koi are set free to swim along the waterway during warm seasons.

I guess that such wonderful idea of keeping the koi in the outdoor, and let them swim freely along the waterway of the city, came from a koi fanatic.

Koi lovers should note that the koi will be kept indoor when the weather becomes too cold.  So they may not be able to see the koi if they visit the city in winter.

Last but not least, the white plaster walls lining along the stream bank, as shown on the right side of the first photo, belong to a three hundred-year-old sake brewery.