Himeji (姫路市)

Our first stop after dropping Karen off at the Osaka International Airport, was a town in Hyogo Prefecture called Himeji. Himeji is especially famous for its castle (called Himeji Castle), which was first built in the 14th Century and then significantly remodeled and enhanced in the 16th Century by Toyotomi Hideoyoshi (a famous Japanese warrior and feudal lord).

About Himeji Castle

http://www.himeji-castle.gr.jp/index/English/

As soon as you exit the train station, you can see the castle up on a hill in the distance, and the main street of the city leads straight too it. Unfortunately, however, we immediately realized that the castle was under preservation construction, and so we were unable to see or enter the main building of the castle. (It turns out that this work won’t be finished until next spring.)

But you can take a “virtual tour” of the castle here:  Virtual Tour of Himeji Castle

Although we couldn’t enter the main castle structure, we were still able to walk around the castle grounds, which were lovely, and enter some of the secondary buildings that connect to the castle and were once occupied as living spaces and look-out points, which have now been converted into a museum of sorts.

One of the most fascinating parts about visiting Himeji Castle for me was learning about the history of Princess Sen, the granddaughter of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate who ruled Japan from 1600 until the Meiji Restoration of 1868. Princess Sen lived in Himeji Castle for several years, and the story of her life both before and after she moved to Himeji Castle is fascinating. If interested, you can read a brief description of it the legend of Princess Sen here: Princess Sen

This is a really neat site hosted by Google that I just discovered. It has a detailed historical explanation of the importance of the castle and some great photos:  Google “Cultural Institute” Himeji Castle

Next stop: Hiroshima