Gokayama (Japanese: 五箇山) is an area within the city of Nanto (南礪) in Toyama (富山) Prefecture, Japan. It has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List due to its traditional Gasso-zukuri (合掌造り) farmhouses. Choumeizai will talk about Ainokura (相倉) here.
Ainokura has 20 Gasso-zukuri houses, most of them are 100 to 200 years old, and the oldest is said to have been built some 400 years ago.
Some of the Gasso-zukuri houses have been revamped as guest houses, so tourists can stay in Ainokura overnight.
There are some restaurants in Ainokura, serving local foods such as vegetables and tofu.
Perhaps the water here is extremely pure and fresh, the tofu here is very delicious, Choumeizai also likes soba, a kind of Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour.
Gasso-zukuri, literally means house prayer-hands construction style, is characterized by a steeply slanting thatched roof, resembling two hands joined in prayer.
The design of Gasso-zukuri is exceptionally strong, which allows the houses to withstand and shed the weight of the region's heavy snowfalls in winter.
There is a lookout on the slope, you can enjoy the panoramic view of the whole Ainokura.
