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TAKAOKA AND TOYAMA |
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Head northeast from the Gokayama valley and you'll reach the modern
coastal cities of Takaoka and, further west, the prefectural capital of
Toyama. Neither city is worth stopping over in and you'd do well to
press on south along the Japan Sea coast to Kanazawa and the more scenic
Noto Hanto peninsula .
The only thing TAKAOKA is famous for is its Daibutsu, a large statue of
Buddha, cast in 1933, about ten minutes' walk north of the station, and
only worth seeing if you have time to kill while waiting for a train.
This might be the case if you're using the JR Johana line which starts
in Takaoka and goes part of the way towards Gokayama . You can pick up a
map of town from the tourist information booth (daily 10am-6pm; tel
0766/23-6645), beside the ticket gate at the station where the friendly
assistant speaks a little English and can make accommodation bookings if
you're stuck for somewhere to stay.
Some 17km further west, straddling the mouth of the Jinzo-gawa, is the
workaday prefectural capital TOYAMA , a good starting point for
excursions along the Alpine Route to Nagano-ken. The city's castle, 1km
south of the station, is a replica of the original and houses the
missable Museum of Local History (Tues-Sun 9am-4.30pm; ¥210); if you
have time to spare the best place to head is the Toyama Municipal
Folkcraft Village (Tues-Sun 9am-4.30pm; ¥630), where eight museums
highlighting local arts, crafts and industries are gathered together at
the foot of Kureha hills. Beside the museums you'll also find the
atmospheric temple Chokei-ji , with its Gohyaku Rakan, terraces of over
500 stone mini-statues of Buddha's disciples. To reach the village, take
a bus from stop #14 in front of the Hokuriku Bank Building opposite
Toyama Station to Anyobo, and then walk for five minutes.
The tourist information booth (daily 8.30am-8pm; tel 0764/32-9751),
beside the central exit at Toyama Station, has a good selection of
leaflets on local attractions and English-speaking staff who will help
book accommodation. You should also be able to get here a copy of What's
Happening , a monthly English newsletter (with parts in Chinese,
Portuguese and Russian), put out by the Toyama International Centre (tel
0764/44-2500). Toyama's banks, main post office and shops are all within
easy walking distance of the station.
The Toyama Youth Hostel (tel 0764/37-9010; under ¥3000) is several
kilometres north of the city, beside a pine-fringed beach which would be
lovely if not for all the rubbish on the shore. The hostel itself is a
pleasant place and serves meals. If you want more convenient
accommodation for the city centre, there are plenty of business hotels
around Toyama Station; a good option is the Dai-ichi Inn Toyama (tel
0764/42-6611, fax 42-8153; ¥10,000-15,000), at the east end of the
station, with singles from around ¥7000.
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