WHEN YOU HAVE TIRED OF BUDDHIST/SHINTO TEMPLES and shrines there are actual Japanese castles to visit. These aren’t the wanna-be castles of Ireland or the fairytale castles of the Rhine, but walled fortresses in the Japanese style, complete with layercake like pagodas. And while most are total reconstructions, two pretty much keep their 16th Century integrity.
Hikone Castle from the Moat
Hikone Castle is the smaller, more intimate of the pair, about an hour north of Kyoto by train. The view of Hikone from the moat on Friday was framed in autumn colors with narry a hint of the approaching typhoon. Climbing the five storeys of the central pagoda-like keep in stocking feet is like a real-life Oriental version of “Shoots and Ladders,” where one misstep could put a nasty end to your holiday. Our advice is to descend facing inward to the stairs.
Fall colors and Hikone Castle
This is not a problem in the much larger Himeji Castle; the keep is closed until 2015 due to a long-term construction project. Himeji isn’t really a day trip from Kyoto. We stopped at Himeji on our 300 kilometer train ride to Hiroshima, stored our bags at the friendly Nikko Hotel across from the station and walked to the “White Heron,” as the castle is known. Since we couldn’t enter the keep we again admired the views from the outside only.
Persimmons and Himeji Castle
After a picnic lunch, we reclaimed our luggage and boarded the regular JR train onward to Hiroshima, or rather three local trains. Besides being less expensive, the regular train gave us time to see the scenery and watch the rice harvest. Sometimes we were packed in like sardines and other times we had the entire car to ourselves. The entire six-hour trip to Hiroshima cost $60 as compared to $150 for the two-hour shinkansen, the so-called “bullet train.” Train travel in Japan is convenient and can be fast, but it ain’t cheap!
