A Day in Miyama

The thatched roof village of Miyama

I enjoy taking little day trips out of the city on my holidays, just so as to see something new and different.  We were a little uncertain on what to do this time round, but liked the suggestion of our "Travel Angel" to go to Miyama, a little village which he likened to the more famous Shirakawa-go. (Our "Travel Angel" was assigned to meet-and-greet us at our apartment; he also helps orientate us, and gives  suggestions on what to see and do).

It wasn't easy trying to figure out how to get to Miyama and even the Kyoto Station tourist information lady had to hunt around for the bus guide to get there.  In the spring, there is a tourist bus, but in the off-peak period, it was not so straightforward.  We had to take first a train journey, then a bus journey. Over two hours!  Anyway, after the train journey, we boarded the bus and went round through the hills and valleys till we reached Miyama.

Thatch - underside

Miyama is written "美山" which translates as "Beautiful Mountain".  And indeed, it is a charming little thatched roof village, amidst the mountains, by a river, way out into the countryside.  It is probably very isolated in winter, but in late summer, when we were there, it was a picture-postcard

We walked around the little village - it didn’t really take that long - and took photos of the quaint thatched roof houses.  The thickness of the thatch was quite amazing - it's a thick and deep layer and I can see how this really helps to insulate the houses from the cold.

We also visited the little Indigo Museum, housed in one of the traditional thatched roof cottages.  This museum was set up by Mr Hiroyuki Shindo, to share his passion for indigo dying.  The first part of the museum, on the ground floor of the cottage, covers the traditional indigo dying process - you see his dye vats, loom and of course the indigo plants.  There's also a little shop on the ground floor where you can buy some indigo-dyed products.

Kimono with indigo pattern

The second part of the exhibition is on the second floor of the cottage.  It is just a single room above, covering the entire floor - you can see the high pitched roof overhead.  It showcases beautiful indigo pieces from all over the world including this very lovely kimono (on the right), batik prints, etc.  There was even some scraps of cloth and threads which had been dyed from indigo salvaged from an ancient shipwreck!  What I also enjoyed looking at was the indigo dying techniques, including the way in which they can develop patterns from tying and then untying the fabric.

After visiting the museum, we found a charming little cafe where we had a simple snack comprising of mochi, ice cream and tea (yes our dessert was our lunch).  After that, we could have gone to visit the little village temple/shrine but we were too lazy to do so.  So we sat outside the cafe, looking at the view (below) and enjoying the sunshine.  I found a Pokemon gym in the middle of the little village where I planted a Pokemon.  And we wandered to a little shop near the bus stop where we bought a postcard or two.  And then it was time to take the bus back.

It is really very pleasant to just take it easy this holiday, seeing just a few major sites each day and lazing around the rest of the time.  We bumped into a Hongkong lady on the bus on the way to Miyama and chatted to her whilst we were waiting for the bus for the return journey.  She was travelling for about 10 days, covering Kyoto, Tokyo and Osaka!  I am glad that I have the good fortune of coming back again and again, to not just glimpse but absorb the rich culture and history of Japan.

More photos will be put up when ready.

The charming village of Miyama