Sakurayama Hachimangu Shrine

We stumbled upon the Sakurayama Hachimangu Shrine one sunny Saturday morning as D and I walked further along Miyagawa River and past a grand Shinto shrine. What I liked about the road leading up to Sakurayama Hachimangu Shrine were the well-preserved and neatly lined up of wooden houses. Even the wooden lamp posts were rustic.

Known as  Takayama’s oldest shrine, Sakurayama Hachimangu Shrine was built sometime during the 4th century when writing down history was not yet widely done in Japan. Today, this garners at least a million visitors per year during the Takayama Autumn Festival in October, where large floats with mechanical dolls are lit up by lanterns and paraded through Takayama.

The atmosphere in the shrine’s grounds was pristine. The sound of crows echoed in the background as I contemplated on the simplistic beauty of the wooden structure, surrounded by tall, strong trees.