22/10/2020 / Last updated : 22/10/2020 d.d Extra Edition-Okinawa

Ruined Shuri castle and izakaya 首里城

January 2020 Shuri Castle From the Naha airport, we take the monorail to Shuri Station and, after dropping our bags in a coin locker, walk to the famous castle. On the way we have a Family Mart. Picnic in a small park by a pond with many demanding ducks, snapping turtles, a mongoose? And a cat. It is hot, in January, much hotter than we expected but when we get to the castle hill there is a pleasant breeze. Even though it is not really tourist season and the main building recently burnt down, there are a surprising number of people at the castle but not crowded by any means. […]

03/06/2020 / Last updated : 13/09/2020 d.d Drive Kansai Area

Sasayama Castle and Okutsu Onsen　篠山城、奥津温泉

June 16th. Kyotamba Ajimu no Sato Kyotamba Ajimu no Sato is an excellent place for shachuhaku. It is one of those two faced affairs. One side is the michi no eki and the other a SA on the highway. Being perched on a hill, there are good views of the sunset. After 8 pm there is only one, multi-purpose toilet. As we were the only people staying overnight, it was a personal bathroom. Once the michi no eki becomes popular, and it is very new, this could be a problem. The access to the main restrooms on the SA side is open from 7 am so not a big deal. […]

12/08/2019 / Last updated : 23/08/2020 d.d Kyushu Circumnavigation December 2017

Tomioka Castle, Sakitsu Christian heritage 　富岡城、崎津

8th. December We leave michi-no-eki Ariake around 9am after a dark and stormy night. The morning is mainly dry with occasional rain or sleet showers. The wind is bitterly cold, so we abandon any thought of walking along the nice sandy beach by the michi-no-eki. Tomioka Castle The first stop of the day is Tomioka-jo, castle remains and a National Park visitors centre. Inside the visitor’s centre there are no English explanations and it is mostly a collection of sea-shells. The most spectacular are not local. There are some castle foundations and a view of the sea but not much that was of interest to me. The explanation of how […]

06/08/2019 / Last updated : 24/08/2020 d.d Drive Chugoku Area

Matsue castle, ‘plover castle’　松江城

October 28th. Matsue Castle We head for Matsue to visit the castle. The castle, or the remaining, very fine black tower, is original – built in 1611. This trip all seems to connect with Sekigahara as the previous one was all Meiji restoration. We wander the castle grounds but do not enter. We do go into the large, nearby Meiji era building that was built for a visit of the Meiji emperor that never occurred. The crown prince who later became the Taisho emperor, whom nobody wants to talk about very much, did show up. The building is empty of anything, including interest but it looks good from the outside. […]

27/05/2019 / Last updated : 24/08/2020 d.d Drive Kansai Area

Sanjusangendo and La Collina at Omihachiman　三十三間堂、近江八幡

14th. October Sanjusangendo After an uneventful and unexpectedly quiet night, being right on Route 9., we left Gareria Kameoka around 9am. for the drive into Kyoto.We follow R9 into the city and find the free car park in front of Sanjusangendo. This parking is for the temple and free for 40 minutes but although we stayed for an hour and a half the attendants did not seem bothered at all. The temple is one of the very famous Kyoto temples and is well worth a visit. A very long main hall houses the thousand Buddhist images flanking the main large seated Kannon. Of these 1000 images 124 were made in […]

08/05/2019 / Last updated : 18/08/2020 d.d Drive Kinki Area

Himeji, The White Heron Castle 姫路城

Days 87, 88 and 89 After 3 days in Kyoto visiting old friends and some of our favourite places – Kiyomizudera, Maruyama Park, Tetsugaku no michi and Manshuin to name a few – we headed out of Kyoto and followed R. 9 as the weather deteriorated. Finally we stopped at Yoka Tajima no kura michi no eki for a hot bath and to sleep for the night. We wake to weak sunshine, mist in the hollows and steam rising everywhere as we set off for Himeji. The views are wonderful with the mist rising and the sun trying to assert its supremacy; sumie scenes all around. Takeda Castle We take […]

13/02/2019 / Last updated : 17/09/2020 d.d Drive Chubu Area

Gujo Hachiman and Enku　郡上八幡

Day 74 During the night, I had to remove some layers of clothing and we were not using sleeping bags. The morning is damp and very warm. We look around the michi no eki ‘Kokindenju no sato Yamato’ which is a very pleasant place. It is laid out with small gardens and square ponds full of carp, linked by canals. There are large, flat stones placed here and there to serve as benches. The vegetable market is open and doing good business. On display are some odd vegetables that I have never seen before as well as the usual suspects. The temple museum that houses the Buddha images that D. […]

28/01/2019 / Last updated : 17/09/2020 d.d Drive Chubu Area

Matsumoto Castle　松本城

Day 70 A cold morning, and getting colder, with a chill wind blowing. The michi no eki ‘Alps Azumino Horiganenosato’ is busy with elderly people from small trucks delivering vegetables. Customers, buying large amounts, crowd the shop. There are signs requesting that people don’t buy too much of any one item, only 3 bunches of spinach, for example. Matsumoto Castle We set off for Matsumoto castle and park in the city parking. Then go to the bank, which somehow gives us a discount on the parking. The castle is interesting as castles go. It is at least original, not a concrete replica so, you can see how it was constructed. […]