On the third day of one of the most memorable fam trips I’ve ever taken part of, Travel Agent made its way to the World Heritage Site of Ainokura, where we learned to make paper and saw some more historic homes. Durable and elegant Japanese paper from Gokayama, together with Japanese paper from Yatsuo and Birudani, has been designated under the name Etchu as traditional craft industry products by the Japanese government.
I can’t tell you the technical aspects of it but basically it was a surreal arts and crafts class where you place your own designs in a tray dipped in a wax-like formula until it hardens. It is then placed on a hot, iron-based slab where it dries, becomes thin paper and is peeled off and given to participants as a souvenir.
We then took a stroll along some incredible, traditional thatched roof houses that are maintained every 10 years or so. Following, the alpine route, this was a great day for some light activities and site seeing. Stay tuned as we tell you about our fourth and final day of our fam trip.