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Himeji Castle
Although Himeji is a nice, livable, medium-sized town in the Kansai,
that's not the reason to go there -- you're going because of the castle.
Himeji castle is probably the most famous castle site in Japan, and one
of the few to survive WWII in its original state (most Japanese castles
were destroyed either at the Meiji restoration or by American bombing
during WWII). It is totally worth all the fame.
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| The castle totally dominates the town, sitting
on the largest hill in sight. |
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Getting there is no problem; come out of Himeji-eki
and head down the biggest street. On the way, you'll be treated
to lots of awesome stained glass in the shop windows along Otemae St. They
don't want to let you forget about the castle! |
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After you enter the grounds, you'll be treated to awesome views of the
castle. It's a World Cultural Heritage site, as well as receiving any
number of Japanese government honors. What this means to you is this:
there's a lot of tourist information available in English. Of course,
just because it's been officially translated into English doesn't mean
there won't be some gems of Japanese English inside. My favorites were:
She was tortured to death
on the charge of missing the dish.
[part of the legend of Okiku,
see below]
and
The base of the east one
was replaced with new stuff.
[discussing restoration efforts]
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One of the neat things about Himeji castle
is that it really was built with defense in mind (Okayama castle, for instance,
was clearly built after the wars had mostly ended). The photos at left show
some conventional gun/arrow slits, above, and a cool triangular one below.
The doors (right) were definitely built to keep out the unwelcome salesman! |
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There are lots of stories connected
to the castle. The building shown at left is called the Long Corridor, and
ends at the chambers of "sen-hime" (Princess Sen). This child
of politics was married at age 7 (yes, seven) to Toyotomi Hideyori, then
widowed via post-losing-battle harikari at nineteen.She fell in love with
Honda Tadatoki and came to live here in Himeji castle. But she lost a son
and then her second husband by the age of 30, and lived out the rest of
her life (until age 70) here in the castle. |
| Another of the good stories concerns a well within
the castle grounds. A maid named Okiku overheard a plot by a retainer to
overthrow the lord. She informed the lord, who took steps to prevent the
uprising. But the retainer found out that Okiku was the one who had ruined
his plan. |
photo © Himeji city
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The retainer removed a valuable dish, then accused Okiku
of stealing it. On that charge, she was killed by being thrown in the well.
For many years, castle residents then heard the wronged woman's sobs coming
up from the well. |
| Mostly, though, you just appreciate Himeji castle
for its beauty. The construction and the attention to details and to the
angles formed by the views in every direction is amazing -- especially for
a building with real military purpose. |
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These are the views from the top of the main tower of the
castle, looking back down the main drag of Himeji (otemae). The photo on
the right is sticking the camera through the window in the photo on the
left. The main JR station is at the other end of the street. |
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It's well worth poking around the castle hunting
for unique views. Also, it's a good excuse for having a wide-format camera. |
