Himeji-jo

Yesterday, we took a day trip from Osaka to Himeji with the purpose of visiting Himeji-jo and the surrounding grounds. We left early enough to join the commuters on a local JR Train going to work. It was packed, but again, you would never know this based off of how quiet it was. Our original plan was to eat our breakfast on the train like we did when going to Miyajima, but we couldn’t get a seat. So, we ate upon arriving in Himeji while waiting for the local Tourism Information Center to open. We finished our breakfast, grabbed a couple of brochures, and set off for the castle. It was a short walk and we could see it in the whole time from the station and the walk.

In my opinion, Himeji has been the most impressive castle we’ve seen. It’s definitely the biggest of the three we’ve gone through. Once you enter the grounds it’s impossible to see the castle at certain times because of the walls that surround it. The walkway up to the castle is maze-like, and was designed this way to confuse enemy soldiers if they chose to attack. Upon getting to the entrance, you are given a plastic bag to put your shoes in. The stone steps leading into the castle are the original ones and date back to the early 1600s when the castle was completely rebuilt by Ikea Terumasa. 

Himeji-jo is not set up like the previous two castles we visited. There is not a museum contained within it. There are information plaques located around the floors to explain the significance of certain elements. I enjoyed getting to see the castle as it would have been, and not cluttered with displays and technology like Hiroshima Castle and Osaka-jo. I did enjoy learning about the history of those two castles, but I really liked getting the feel for what Himeji-jo would have actually been like when it was being used to run a kingdom.

The stairs from one floor to the next were quite steep and reminded me of the temples in Bagan and at Angkor Wat. We saw weapons racks located all around the castle where swords and guns would have once hung. The fourth floor had windows to allow better ventilation when guns and cannons were being fired. There was also a walking deck by the windows to allow for surveillance. There were also little rooms higher up in the corners of certain floors that samurai used to hide in for a sneak attack if the enemy ever got up that far.

Himeji was covered with black cloth during WWII, which allowed it to survive the bombing. There is a captivating photo that shows Himeji Castle standing while the rest of the city lies around it in ruins.

After touring the castle, we make our way to Koko-en Garden. This was not Scott’s cup of tea, so after exploring a couple of the gardens, we made our way back to the train station by passing in and out of a few gift shops. We are currently hunting for different cloths and fabrics that have depictions of the castles we’ve been to. We were able to find a beautiful one amid a lot of interesting items for sale.

After getting back to Osaka, we went on a bit of a wild goose chase looking for different stores and restaurants. First, we went in search of Tower Knives a store that specializes in Japanese made knives. They are incredibly expensive, but beautifully made. Scott and I ended up purchasing an all-purpose knife from a different location later on in the evening. Our second wild goose chase for the day was looking for a place called Beer Belly. We did find it, but unfortunately it was closed. Instead, we found a different little bar to sit and relax in for a minute.

For dinner, we headed to an udon spot in Dotombori recommended by Lonely Planet. I was the only one who liked their dish, and the only part I enjoyed was the noodles. The duck that came in it was very strange. Since Scott didn’t eat very much at the restaurant, he decided that he wanted to try Tako-yaki, an Osaka dish. They are doughy dumplings stuffed with octopus. We watched them make them as Scott ate his and it was a fascinating process. They have these giant cast iron plates that have round holes. It looks like they wipe it down with oil, add batter, the octopus, and more batter. Then they use a chopstick looking thing to continuously stir and spin them without even looking like they are moving their hands or arms. Scott claimed that they were delicious and Lynsey agreed, but I was not brave enough to try them. I have my line of things that I will not cross, and this was one of them.

The last part of our night was spent on the biggest wild goose chase of them all. We took the wrong exit out of the subway station by our hotel and got completely turned around and lost. We stopped to ask for directions twice. The first time I could not understand the man, and the second person sent us in the totally wrong direction. By the time we made it back to our hotel, I was quite cranky. I did get over myself rather quickly and sent myself straight to bed for some much needed R&R.