Meiji Mura (\u660e\u6cbb\u6751<\/strong>,) means \u201cMeji Village\u201d. This open air museum features buildings that were built in the Meiji (1867 – 1912), Taisho (1912 – 1926) and Showa (1926 – 1989) period. The Meiji Period was a time of rapid modernization in Japan. These buildings all have some historical importance in Japan. Other items (not including the buildings) include locomotive steam trains and horse drawn carriages.<\/p>\n Nihon Minka-en (\u65e5\u672c\u6c11\u5bb6<\/strong>\u5712<\/strong>) is a Japanese village that preserves the old style of Japanese houses called minka (\u6c11<\/strong>\u5bb6<\/strong>). These houses date from the 17th<\/sup> to 19th<\/sup> centuries. These houses contain tatami (\u7573<\/strong>) mats. Tatami mats are mats made out of straw or grass. The roofs are made of similar materials as the mats, but in addition to the straw and grass, clay baked tiles line the roofs.<\/p>\n The Edo T\u014dky\u014d Tatemono En (\u6c5f\u6238\u6771\u4eac\u305f\u3066\u3082\u306e<\/strong>\u5712<\/strong>) or Edo Tokyo Buildings Garden includes residences that were once the home of powerful and wealthy individuals to the humble homes of the middle class. The photo above is the entrance to the Edo Tokyo open air architectural museum. The name Edo was the former name used to refer to the capital city of Tokyo.<\/p>\n The Historic Villages of Shirakawa-g\u014d and Gokayama are both UNESCO World Heritage sites. UNESCO World Heritage sites are places of cultural or physical significance. The villages of Shirakawa (\u767d<\/strong>\u5ddd<\/strong>) and Gokayama (\u4e94\u7b87<\/strong>\u5c71<\/strong>) contain houses that were built in the Gassho-zukuri (\u5408\u638c\u9020<\/strong>\u308a<\/strong>) style. Gassho-zukuri houses are characterized by steep slanted roofs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Museums are not all enclosed spaces with objects in them. Some Japanese museums are in the open air. Here are some great Japanese open air museums : TheHida Minzoku Mura (\u98db\u9a28\u6c11\u4fd7\u6751) or \u00a0Hida Folk Village is a museum of traditional Japanese houses. The houses are hundreds of years old and are typical of the type…<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/japanese\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2010\/12\/Shirakawago_Japanese_Old_Village_003-350x263.jpg\")