The setting for my first picture in this series was the grounds of Maizuru Castle Park. Shingen’s troops gathered here before heading off in their regiments for the “parade.” The atmosphere was very good. The weather was fine, Mt. Fuji loomed in the background, and the samurai were getting drunk before heading off to battle (the pavement of Kofu’s streets).

The Japanese guy above was enjoying the mood as well. I was merely taking an incognito picture of his group when he spotted me and performed this “charge.” It was actually more of a pose than a charge, but I appreciated his willingness to provide a nice action shot for my camera without actually impaling me.

Let’s not forget this was a festival and not a battle reenactment. Therefore, there was plenty of yakisoba, takoyaki, and the like to be had, as well as monkeys doing tricks and other matsuri standards.

The guy in the middle of this group, with the tall helmet, is the president of his company and represented one of Takeda Shingen’s generals on horseback later in the evening. I chatted with him for a while earlier and had my picture taken with him. Photos of people like me in regular clothes with those of Japanese in samurai gear don’t look right though.

As each of the 24 regiments left the castle grounds they gave a battle shout like the one you can see in the above video I took. Some groups were more serious than others. Applause at the end seemed a little… wrong.

Posted on April 25th, 2010 under Japan. Tags: castle, festivals, kofu, people, video. Comments: None

After all of the festivities at Takeda Jinja I planned to catch a bus down to the station to walk Kofu’s shopping district streets for the first time in ages. However, the bus was so loaded with people thinking the same thing that I opted to walk back down Takeda Dori. The other people at the bus stop went the sardine route.

I purchased a bento on Takeda Dori and ate it at a deserted shrine closer to the bottom of the hill. A bit farther along was an empty temple (pictured above) called Manzoin (満蔵院). Manzoin doesn’t appear to be well cared for at the moment.

The streets of Kofu seem to have changed in the past couple decades as I don’t remember the bridge that goes over the tracks being there. The top photo in yesterday’s blog entry is from the new bridge.

Instead of heading for the shopping area, I was drawn to Maizuru Castle Park (舞鶴城公園), just over the bridge, which is extremely different than it was in the 1980s. I remember the place as a fairly small park with some cherry trees. Now it is a partially reconstructed castle, sometimes called the Kofu Castle.

Most of the buildings and fortress walls are new, or at least I think they are new. I don’t remember them.

Great views of Kofu and Mt. Fuji can be had from the top. These banners are advertising the Shingenko Matsuri (信玄公祭り or Takeda Shingen Festival). The irony is that Kofu’s original castle was built after Takeda Shingen was dead. Shingen died in 1573. The castle was built in 1583 by Tokugawa Ieyasu after he defeated Shingen’s son in battle. Needless to say, Takeda Shingen never flew banners from the top of it. But they looked pretty cool on this evening anyway.

Posted on April 22nd, 2010 under Japan. Tags: buddhist, castle, kofu, signs, temples. Comments: None

Why are these two photographers pointing their camera at me and taking my picture? Have they never seen a gaijin before?

Actually they probably couldn’t even see me. They are taking pictures of Himeji Castle. I was in the top room taking pictures from quite a distance with maximum zoom. I didn’t even realize I had captured a couple of photographers looking my way until I offloaded the pictures onto my computer and cropped out much of the image.

Posted on April 3rd, 2009 under Japan. Tags: castle, cherry blossoms, himeji, sakura. Comments: 1

“There is one place in Japan where it is thought unlucky to cultivate chrysanthemums, for reasons which shall presently appear; and that place is in the pretty little city of Himeji, in the province of Harima. Himeji contains the ruins of a great castle of thirty turrets; and a daimyō used to dwell therein whose revenue was one hundred and fifty-six thousand koku of rice. Now, in the house of one of that daimyō’s chief retainers there was a maid-servant, of good family, whose name was O-Kiku; and the name “Kiku” signifies a chrysanthemum flower. Many precious things were entrusted to her charge, and among others ten costly dishes of gold. One of these was suddenly missed, and could not be found; and the girl, being responsible therefor, and knowing not how otherwise to prove her innocence, drowned herself in a well. But ever thereafter her ghost, returning nightly, could be heard counting the dishes slowly, with sobs…

Her spirit passed into the body of a strange little insect, whose head faintly resembles that of a ghost with long disheveled hair; and it is called O-Kiku-mushi, or “the fly of O-Kiku;” and it is found, they say, nowhere save in Himeji…

…the people of Himeji say that part of their city now called Go-Ken-Yashiki is identical with the site of the ancient manor. What is certainly true is that to cultivate chrysanthemum flowers in the part of Himeji called Go-Ken-Yashiki is deemed unlucky, because the name of O-Kiku signifies “Chrysanthemum.” Therefore, nobody, I am told, ever cultivates chrysanthemums there.” (Lafcadio Hearn, 1894, Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan, p. 363)

Posted on January 2nd, 2009 under Japan. Tags: castle, cherry blossoms, himeji, lafcadio hearn, sakura. Comments: None

Himejijo (姫路城) is probably the most impressive castle in Japan. The city of Himeji is a relatively short side trip from Kyoto, Osaka, Kobe, and Okayama. We went on a Saturday, which was a mistake, just before the cherry blossoms peaked. It was so crowded inside that we could barely move. In fact, we couldn’t move at times. But we still had a good time, especially on the grounds.

If you decide to visit Himeji, your best bet is to go on a weekday. If you must go on a weekend, be sure to get there before 11 a.m. The afternoons can get very crowded with people inside the castle.

Himejijo and the grounds are featured prominently in the Shogun miniseries. We had a good time watching it after having been there.

Posted on September 17th, 2008 under Japan. Tags: castle, cherry blossoms, himeji, japan pictures, sakura. Comments: None