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Shirakawa-go

Recently I went to a place called Shirakawa-go it is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Gifu. It is about 2 and a half hour drive from Nagoya. Shirakawa-go is very deep into the mountains and is on the highest peak of Mount Haku in the Ryōhaku Mountains. They are home to a special style of housing called Gassho-Zukuri (がっしょうづくり or 合掌造り) to survive the heavy snowy season in the area.

It is a truly gorgeous site especially in the winter.

Shirakawa-go is a great place for a day trip if you live in one of the surrounding Prefectures and also a great spot to stay over night as well as they have several Ryokan Gassho-zukuri.

Hida Takayama is another area about an hour from Shirakawa going back towards Aichi, Gero Onsen is also on the way as well! It is a great place for a weekend vacation.

For more information on Shirakawa-go you can go here!
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/734

 

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These houses are called Gassho-Zukuri. It is a style of housing called Minka. The roofs are built to sustain heavy snow fall and can hold large amounts of it.

 

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Close ups on how thick the roofs are.

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The Shō River.

 

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Shirakawa used to be famous for raising silk worms and producing raw silk. These are some old cocoons on display.

 

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95.7% of Shirakawa is covered by forest.

Sarah Fukui
I am from South Carolina, USA. I came to Japan for the first time in May of 2009 to meet my fiancee's family and moved here permanently in 2010. Read more »