Uchiko

Walking the cobbled hills of Uchiko feels like traveling back in time. Along the old shopping street, Yokaichi, the only change in centuries has been the height of plants against the beige-orange walls. Go straight out of the station and follow a wooden sign pointing left. You won't need more than a morning to poke through the fun shops, full of good, cheap omiyage: straw pinwheels, tea leaves, sour tsukemono, and local sake. The highlight is a waxworks, where an old man and his sons hand-make distinctive candles (the smaller ones are as surprisingly inexpensive as the larger are surprisingly costly).

There are a few sights—old merchant houses and an impressive turn-of-the-century kabuki theater, Uchiko Za —but Uchiko is more of a meandering town. A path between houses reveals a hillside of peach trees and wildflowers; open doorways lead to secluded gardens with men playing shogi, or the occasional restaurant. One thing is not to be missed however: at the very end of the road you'll crest a final hill and see a mountainous statue of the sleeping Buddha reclining across the lap of enlightenment. It's the last thing you'd expect to find in this sleepy town—especially since it isn't marked on a single tourist map or guidebook anywhere else.