[JAPAN] WHITE DECEMBER!

“Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home.”
― Edith Sitwell

[JAPAN] SHIRAKAWAGO

Shirakawago, which located in Gifu Preference become so famous because of its traditional house, Gasso-Zukuri that has been built for more than 250 years ago. This oldish made itself as Unesco Heritage site in 1995. If you see from distance, it's looked like there are lots of triangle houses. Gasso-zukuri constructed like a triangle  and not too high to windstand the large amounts of heavy snow because it located in the middle of mountains, so people can easily remove the snow. Gasso-Zukuri means "constructed like hands in prayer, as steep thatched roofs resemble the hands of Buddhist monks pressed together in prayer. It always built facing north and south to minimize wind. And magic! This house built without any nails WUU. Here same like Indonesia, to build it need "Gotong royong" to do it together or in Japanese " Yui" just for making the roof, and for the foundation, they have given to carpenters. The roof consists of 3 layers and have to done in a day. Can you imagined how hard to built it? HAHA 

Almost 80% people still live in here, so not all houses can't be entered by tourists. But there are some local people that make it for business and tourists can enter like " example house" with pay ¥300 per person.

 

SNACK TIME!

hungry attack! Across "example house", there is a smaller house that sold cute souvenirs of Gasso-zukuri, drinks, and hot snacks. Here I bought A PAO ( STEAM BUN ) ¥200, with hidagyu soy sauce inside, sweet and salty tasted from soysauce and tender shredded hidagyu is so nomnom :9

dinner restaurant

SHIROJIMA

TEMPURA SET MENU

The best meal to end up a day. So pretty set :3 All about seafood. (1) Super cruncy tempura, 2 pieces of shrimp tempura, 1 piece onion tempura and 1 piece yam tempura. (2) Sashimi, so fresh and well-cut, not so big, fit to your mouth haha, from shrimp, squid, tuna, seabass, and salmon, I loved tuna the most <3 (3) Chawanmushi, so soft yummy suprisingly found scallop and shrimp inside (4) HotPot, warm my body with hot seafood soup, so savory and yummy.

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つづく

[JAPAN] TAKAYAMA SANNOMACHI

After Mt Fuji, I have visited other Japan traditional site and it amazed me! TAKAYAMA SANNOMACHI, which is located in Takayama area is a small traditional village known as central of samurai or samurai town ( Samurai is not a sword, samurai is man who devotes their live to their lord and using a sword called katana) during Edo period. This place is quite big so if you too lazy to explore it by foot, you can rent a ricksaw ¥5000 for 30 minutes. 

 

Beside their traditional buildings, here also famous with their local products that has been quite big business in centuries, such as house hold goods, crafts, local arts, and the most popular one is SAKE, japanese traditional alcoholic liquor. How to find Sake house in the middle of other traditional house? It's easy, if you see a house with a Sugidama ( a big ball made from Ceddar tree leaves) like picture below, it must be Sake House. Fresh hung Sugidama is made to tell customers that new sake is brewed. Psssss, here you can buy a traditional sloki glass ( shot glass) for only ¥100 and try all sake samples in the refrigerator without limit YEAH!!! get drunk get drunk HAHA ( indonesian logic) You not only can buy sake for drink but here they are also sell sake jelly, sake powder, and other processed sake.

Other famous local product is MISO PASTE. Miso is made from fermented rice, barley, soybean with salt and other ingredients. There are many kind of miso depending on the production area in Japan. Here in Takayama, Gifu prefecture, is famous with Soybean miso ( Mame-Miso). As you can see picture below, The darker one is Mame-Miso, it's darker because it contain pure soybean without any other ingredients, it takes a long fermented time, domained with astringency and savory tasted. And the brighter one is White Miso (Shori-Miso), This is the most widely produced miso, made in many regions of the country. Its main ingredients are rice, barley, and a small quantity of soybeans. If a greater quantity of soybeans was added, the miso would be red or brown like Mame- Miso. Compared with red miso, white miso has a very short fermentation time. The taste is sweet, and the umami is soft or light (compared to red miso).

SUSHI CRAVING!

when I took a walk along the street, I found one small stall that sell HIDAGYU RAW SUSHI. Hidagyu or Hida beef is popular in Gifu Prefecture.It seems legit with wagyu :P I ordered the complete one with 2 pieces of hidagyu sushi and 1 piece of hidagyu egg sushi. It prices ¥900, quite pricey but you will never regret it! And taa-daa, it was so cute!!!!!!!! They served it one a rice cracker ( you can eat it), and for sushi(s) that not raw but... medium rare crazy! For Hidagyu sushi, rice topped with hidagyu slice, and then burn with blowtorch and sprink it with green onion. And for hidagyu egg sushi, it is the same but added a quill egg

2 PIECES OF MEDIUM RARE HIDAGYU SUSHI & 1 PIECE OF HIDAGYU EGG SUSHI ¥900

lunch restaurant

MATSUNOMORI

hidagyu hobamiso

After trying Hidagyu processed as sushi, At lunch time, I ate hidagyu again yey! but in more traditional way and this is the most popular dish of hidagyu, HOBAMISO, It looks like yakiniku but different because It laid over a magnolia leave and roasting on it miso, onions, shiitake mushrooms,and hidagyu, with some oil. Traditionally using charcoal or modern way with small stove. Eat it with sake or a side dish like pickle or cold soba. Increadible taste! Unique smokey taste from magnolia leave, perfectly cooked shitake and bean sprouts ( still crunchy) and super tender hidagyu, but tasted a lil bit too salty so you have to eat it with rice.

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