If you follow the mountains of central Japan all the way up to its northern coast, you’ll find a prefecture whose name literally means “rich with mountains”. Toyama Prefecture is where I am today. It’s the prefecture on the northern coast of Japan, just in the middle. Many of the magazine-ready, picture-perfect, historic sights that you know and love from Japan are easily accessible from Toyama prefecture. One of those deep, cultural artifacts is what brought me here to Takaoka, in Toyama: the Takaoka Mikuruma-yama Festival. This is the 3rd festival on my quest to discover Japan through the route of festivals. So today again I’m going to ask another expert to tell me not only about the festival, which happens on May 1st of every year, but I’m also going to learn how it effects the entire Takaoka City as a whole!

One of the things that Takaoka is known for is its metalcrafts. Especially little, intricate creations where metal is bent and shaped. Sometimes they’re made into objects and images that you may recognize from Japanese culture and history. Right now I’m walking down the local, old-time streets in the area. It’s still kind of quiet now, but these long row buildings here are actually stores! Let’s check out inside.

For the foodies out there, if you’re wondering what to eat in Takaoka one dish you’ll definitely want to try is called Kombu-jime! It’s actually less of a dish, and more of a technique. You take any type of ingredient and press it between kombu kelp!

Alright! I made it to Craftan! Meat, sashimi, vegetables…. These are preserved in an actualy kombu leaf so it brings out the best flavors, the juiciness, the richness, all of it squeezed into little compact bites. I’m so excited to get in!... and of course, paired with a craft beer! I am all over the craft beer I don’t get enough of this so cheers, to the chef! And cheers to you all! Ahhh… OK. Pale Ale is 100% amazing! Oooooo! We have the steamed dishes here… and this ADORABLE platter! If you look closely it resembles the kombu, the kelp that the food was preserved in. I’m starting with my favorite, the pumpkin!

Perfect bite! Not too tough, not too soft, just perfect! Like BUTTER! It just melts in your mouth. Mmmm. To go with everything we have soy sauce for the sashimi, but we have a special dipping broth for the vegetables and the meat. Boop! Mmm, that really brings out that Japanese flavor. It’s not just steamed foods, its really traditional, authentic flavor but together in a fresh, modern, elevated way. Time for the steak! Ohmygosh… I’m going to try some sashimi … with this light shoyu. Just a bit. Boop! Just a bit… Its really soft!

Ten out of Ten! This is a must-try if you visit Takaoka!

As you can tell this temple is very vast, it has perfectly manicured grass and wide open space that isn’t really typical? Its kind of surprising when you walk through the temple. When I was walking through the town one of the locals explained that when you come to Zuiryuji the whole atmosphere changes… and I really feel that! There are golden emblems all over as well as wooden carvings that, if you look really closely, you’ll see they have the plum blossom mark. For those of you who are history buffs and really into the old-school history of Japan you’ll probably recognize that this is the famous mark of the Kaga Maeda Clan. When you think about Takaoka’s downtown historic streetscapes, for example in Kanazawa they have the beautiful geisha and the tea district, all of that really art-rich culture started because of the Kaga Maeda clan and their work to make these really gorgeous, art-forward cities. See there’s the plum symbol throughout the temple. So I’ve made it here to the Amaharashi Beach, a coastal escape for many of the residents here in Takaoka. It’s cloudy today so the mountain line maybe hard to see. But just like the head of the museum told us, you can go to the museum at any point in the middle of day just to check if the view is clear for you to take a picture.

Look at this, we’re sitting on the edge of Toyama Bay! This is one of the most northern parts of the coast up here. So thank you for coming along my journey in Takaoka! Its just a taste of what there is to offer here. For now I will breath in the ocean air and then get ready to get back on the road to our next city! Believe it or not, I’m going even FARTHER north! I’ll see you next time, bye!