Himeji Castle

Since I didn’t have a blog till recently, I’ve decided I’d write about some of my previous highlights in Japan. Around this time last year(or earlier), I went to Himeji to visit a few friends of mine. They figured that for someone who has never been to Himeji, the best place to visit would of course be, Himeji Castle (姫路城).

Got off the train and this was the first thing I saw. I’m so bad at taking pictures… At the entrance, 4 of my friends were already there. Since it was around lunch time, we decided to get some food from the konbini and have a picnic at the castle.

Took this picture from the streets leading up to the castle. I first found out about Himeji Castle from watching Akira Kurosawa’s Ran many years back. It was also featured in Gatekeepers, an anime I watched in high school. Other than that, it frequently appears in many Japan period dramas and also popular films like The Last Samurai, Kagemusha and one Bond film from the Connery era (I forgot the name).

Entrance into the area surrounding the castle.

After lunch it’s off to the castle grounds!

Entrance however, is not free T_T 600 yen for a ticket.

Good advice…

Map of the area.

Simply breathtaking. My mediocre pictures do not do it justice.

View of Himeji city from the castle grounds.

Don’t climb a stone wall!

Shoes aren’t allowed inside the castle, you have to wear these slippers instead.

No toilets in the castle.

Map of castle. On the 2nd floor.

I took heaps of pictures of the ancient weapons and tools on display in the castle but decided against uploading them all to decrease page load time.

Whoops…

Framework of the castle’s structural system.

Finally reached the top floor. Stairs were steep and there were a lot of people walking up and down, pretty dangerous. There was a log book on the top floor where you could write your name and where you came from. You could also get a huge stamp proving you reached the top of the castle. I stamped my castle pamphlet. I wonder where that went….

I put my hand outside the window and took this.

View from the castle’s top level.

You can see quite a number of these on the roof of the castle. These are tiger-headed fish statues known as kinshachi (金鯱), they are a charm that prevents fires.

Apart from the castle, a few gardens and a temple, there really wasn’t much to see or do in Himeji. But the trip to castle is totally worth it, especially during the sakura season. After the castle, we just walked around town, had some coffee and then headed over to another friends place for dinner.

Had a break at this open field in the middle of the city. Won’t find anything like this in the middle of Tokyo or Osaka.

Picture of the castle from the field.

Homeless?

Miyuki doori.

Miyuki doori at night. Deserted.

Not much of a night life in Himeji, went home on the last train. Himeji castle was the first castle I visited in Japan and in my opinion also the most beautiful. I would highly recommend anyone to go visit it if you’re in the area.

Related Posts