Himeji - West Japan Tour Part III

After about an hour ride on the Nozomi Shinkansen, we arrived at our final destination of Day 1, Himeji City, on April 4Th.We taxied it to our hotel, Claire Higasa, (which by the way, I recommend if you're in the area) and freshened up for dinner. We found a family restaurant close to Himeji-jo (Himeji Castle).

Daddy wiped out as Markus enjoys the shinkansen ride.

Amidst the darkened sky, the elevated Himeji Castle was illuminated from bottom to top. A truly magnificent site.

After a satisfying Japanese-style dinner, we mustered up our last string of energy and strolled over to the castle to take a look at the view during the evening. At that point, it was shortly after 9:30 in the evening and I was surprised to see the large crowds when we entered the main gates. Several groups of people were partaking in their ohanami celebrations eating, drinking, and singing Karaoke (see photo right).

Enjoying the nighttime view of Himeji-jo

Some final photos before heading back to our hotel to call it a night. The castle's reflection in the moat

Just a quick recap of our travels, which started at the wee hour of 4:30 A.M.: we flew 1 1/2 hours to Hiroshima from Tokyo, then travelled by short ferry ride to Miyajima Island, back again to Hiroshima to catch a shinkansen to Himeji City. It was indeed a very long and full first day of our West Japan Tour and we were all desperate for rest.

Himeji-jo

The next morning we started off with a fantastic Japanese/Western breakfast at the hotel and left early to take on the sights at Himeji-jo. We had amazing spring weather. Again, the crowds were rolling in as early as 8:30 A.M., reserving their spots under the beautiful sakura trees, which they will again continue with their ohanami partying. Obviously, this area was a very popular attraction during the infamous ohanami season. There were various types of sakura trees with the most beautiful blossoms I've yet to see. Just about everywhere in the Himeji-jo perimeter could be a photographers' dream. It was interesting to learn that in 2003 epic movie, The Last Samurai, starring Tom Cruise, many scenes were filmed at this location.

A young man carries two koto, a 13-string zither Japanese musical instrument

The main courtyard

Signature eave medallions made of ceramic

Himeji Castle was originally built in 1346 by Akamatsu Sadanori as protection against local shoguns. It was never actually used in battle, thus it remained in its present condition. Restoration work began in 1956, after it was bombed twice during WWII, and was completed in 1964. In1931, it was designated as one of the country's national treasures, and is also known to be the best preserved castle in all Japan.

We all walked to the base of the castle then Tita Jasmin and I went ahead and decided to climb up as far as we could. Rodney stayed back with Markus and Mom and managed to make it to the main courtyard. Tita Jasmin and I zipped up as fast as we could bypassing people though only made it to the 4th floor. The first two floors are hidden behind the 84 foot stoned wall. Five floors of the main building are visible from the outside, for a total of seven floors. We thought for sure we made it up higher as we walked through the spiral-like maze, which was Himeji-jo's important defense element. Even with the clearly marked routes, I'm sure it would be easy for any visitor to get lost.

Upon entering the first level, all visitors must remove their shoes and put on slippers or go bare foot. No electrical source of lighting was being used, only natural sunlight coming in from the windows. Himeji-jo was also nicknamed "White Heron" because of the white fireproof plaster covering its' exterior. The interior of the castle was essentially all wood from floor to ceiling. As you roam within, each floor exhibited facinating memorabilia from the Muromachi period such as ancient shuuji (caligraphy) scripts, armour, weaponry related to the battles. The starwells were extremely narrow, and the wood smoothened by wear and tear, so I was sure to be careful climbing up and down. As we continued, it was amazing to think that we were walking through the same small passages and secret corriders where feudal lords once lived 660 years ago.

A view from the 4th floor keep of the castle overlooking the courtyard and Himeji City.

We perused quickly since we were pressed for time. We were scheduled to catch another shinkansen early afternoon bound for Kyoto.

After descending, we caught up with the rest of our group and took some final photos of the castle grounds and more of the beautiful sakura trees.

One last look of the castle as we exited the grounds. Off to our next stop...Nara.