Little Kyoto

Steet cafe in Takayama. [Photo provided to China Daily]

We proceeded to the mer-chants' streets. After we had looked into the traditional workshops and the breweries that line the streets, we settled down in a reconstructed Japanese wooden house that has been elegantly converted into a cafe and souvenir shop. I can't remember the name of the shop, but itwas there that I had the most delicious pumpkin pudding of my life. It had a soft and tofu-like texture.

There was also a lot of gourmet food, a high priority on my list wherever I travel. Like the other top wagyu brands, including Kobe beef and Mat-suzaka beef, Hida Beef from Takayama has been recognized as one of the leading wagyu brands in Japan.

We ate at Hidatakayama Kyoya, where we were told we could find the most renowned Hida beef in town. Although we had to wait for about half an hour for a table, table service was quick and efficient. We had great fun cooking our meal on the grill at the center of the table. Since I was on a budget, I didn't order the A5 grade Hida Beef set, but the standard set (5,000 yen with sake included). Still, it was like nothing I had eaten. The beef melted in my mouth.

The next morning at 8, while my cousin was still fast asleep as a result of too much sake the previous night, I hopped on a bus to the Miya-gawa Morning Market. It was a Saturday, and Takayama had attracted day visitors from neighboring big cities like Nagoya. They were mostly old people in groups. The morning market is along the left bank of the Miya River, and is not specifically set up for travelers but designed primarily for local needs.

Besides souvenirs, there were vegetables, potted plants and common house-hold items. Many vendors sold sarubobo. It is a Japanese amulet, a red human-shaped doll, with no facial features, made in a variety of sizes. Unique to the Gifu Prefecture, traditionally sarubobos are made by elderly women for their grandchildren as dolls, and for their daughters as a charm for a good marriage and good children. The market has a lot of street snacks too, such as Hida beef kebab, beef sushi, and fragrant Hida milk, which still tastes fresh in my memory.

Urban folks like us have got used to the brusque ways of the harried office workers.