Himeji

I woke early on my first full day in Japan. I washed quickly and took the train around Osaka to Osaka station. There, I transferred to a train bound west to alight in Himeji, site of one of the few original castles extant in Japan.

As we approached Himeji, I could see the ancient castle rise up on the horizon. It cast an ancient shadow above the modern city.

In the stations, all signs pointed towards the castle. I needed no encouragement. I walked north up the main street, and then wandered east to a covered arcade which ran almost to the edge of the park surrounding the castle. Restaurants and souvenir shops lined the road. The leaves had begun to change, and they framed the white walls (its other name, Shirasagi, or the "White Egret" takes its name from these walls) of the castle beautifully.

I wandered around the grounds and along a building running along the edge of the inner castle walls. The town itself had risen along the lines of the ancient ramparts; when the train station was planned, it was only allowed to be built outside the outer walls.

The castle itself was a revelation. Lacking the reconstructed displays, I walked in slippers along the wood floors. Signs pointed to windows through which archers could shoot arrows, and slots in the floor where burning oil could be poured to thwart attacking armies. From the top of the building, there were sweeping views of the city. Below, I could see a legion of schoolchildren lining up to enter the castle.

Back on the ground, I decided to eat lunch in town and then visit a series of mountain temples nearby. I wandered into a restaurant recommended in the guidebook for its kaiseki cuisine. I asked the waitress what she recommended, and she pointed to a set lunch that she said was very popular. The woman seated beside me was eating it and another woman sitting along the wall had ordered the same. The food was tasty, but I saw the women on the other side of me had ordered a set lunch with fish, and I wish I had waited so I could have pointed to their set and ordered that.

At the bus station I asked about the bus to the temples. The woman told me that the cable car leading to the top was out of service. She motioned with her fingers. "Climb mountain." She held up one finger. "One hour." With the time it would take to bus to the base of the mountain and climb, I would have to return just as I reached the temple to return to town before dark. I decided it wasn't worth it. I walked back to the castle to tour the neighboring garden. It was plesant, the autumn leaves were reflected in the pools fed by waterfalls. But as I wandered the grounds, I longed for Kyoto. The next day, however, I headed in the opposite direction, for the city of Hiroshima.
Posted by eku at November 30, 2007 8:26 AM