Chiba Prefecture Charms - experiental Boso no Mura

Do you want to time-travel? Japan's many architectural heritage parks immerse you in history. You can imagine Edo-era life at dozens of museums with preserved manor houses. What sets Chiba apart is Boso no Mura, an experiential museum.

My companion and I walked in from Shimosa-Manzaki Station on the Narita line. It's an unmanned station where you can swipe your IC card. The walk takes you along country lanes, past gardens and farms, and leads you to Sakatagaike Park. The park has something for everyone - a roller slide, camping spots, a wide pond with hungry koi and water birds. We saw tonbi, black kites, flying overhead. The park is dotted with kofun, ancient burial mounds. After Hyogo Prefecture, Chiba has the second-highest number of these grave sites. And the park also has some legends. You can read more in my review.

The first of the Boso no Mura preserved buildings you meet is the former Gakushuin Main Hall. Decades before the establishment of the museum, this historic building in Tokyo was moved here. Many children of noble families, artists, and luminaries received their education in this hall.

Within the museum gate is a machi-nami, a village of shop houses, each one offering an experience. Visitors can sign up for culinary, craft, and farming experiences. One that I want to try next time I visit is the blacksmith. Visitors craft a farming tool at the forge. 

My companion and I visited on 文化の日 Bunka no hi, the national culture day holiday. On the day, admission is free, food trucks gather, and you can see many regional traditional performances. We marveled at daidogei, street performances, listened to wadaiko, and got pelted with mochi at the festival hall.

The visitors were intriguing, too. A middle-aged man pulled off his mask to ask us if we thought he looked European. It's true, some Japanese people have diverse roots. We shared a table with a woman who fed her Yorkshire terrier from her dish with chopsticks. What he didn't eat, she polished off with the same chopsticks. We took a break next to an elderly local guy who was all about baseball, professing admiration for the Blue Jays.

Does your prefecture offer an experiential period museum I don't know about? Share in the comments.