On a village house trapped in snow, icicles sparkle as they catch the light - nature's artwork! (Photo: Masayoshi Hirose)

Winter in Small Village of Toyama

World Heritage Site Gokayama Ainokura Village

Takako Sakamoto   - 1 min read

On February eighth in 2015, I visited Gokayama Suganuma, a small village designated as a World Heritage Site, then moved to Ainokura, where I stayed for the night.

The weather forecast on this day was snow after rain. As expected, it got cold in the late afternoon and snow started to fall. This village is designated as a World Heritage Site as part of the 'Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama', but unlike famous Shirakawa-go in Gifu Prefecture, it's rather compact and deserted. In this village, people were isolated from civilization for a long time due to the location. The people made a living by producing washi (Japanese traditional paper), gunpowder and silk. I enjoyed a delightful interlude listening to the story of this small but fascinating village.

Takako Sakamoto

Takako Sakamoto @takako.sakamoto

I was born in and grew up in Tokushima prefecture, and have lived in many places since then: Nishinomiya, Kyoto, Nara, Mie, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Fukuoka and Fukui. I am currently living in Yokohama City. All the places I lived, all the places I visited, I have loved dearly. The histor...