Blogs from Himeji, Hyogo, Japan, Asia - page 2

Himeji Castle is often described as the prettiest castle in Japan and, although we haven't seen all the others, it's not difficult to believe. We are so lucky to have seen it. Nicknamed 'White Heron' or 'White Crane' because of its gleaming exterior and delicate architecture, it has been closed for restoration for several years and only reopened a couple of weeks ago, in time for cherry blossom season. So significant is this fact that the finale of the Miyako Odori dances we attended celebrated the blossoming of the 1000 cherry trees at Himeji. The survival of the castle is in itself quite miraculous. It was sold to a private buyer in the Meiji era (late 19-early 20 C) for the equivalent of $2500 in today's money and was slated for redevelopment but the project was ... read more

March 19, 2014 Himeji Himeji is famous for its castle, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, however the castle is currently undergoing renovation and is surrounded in a massive steel scaffold, which is itself impressive in a way. It reminded me of the last time I was in DC and the Washington Monument had scaffolding around it, making it look like somewhat futuristic. The outline of Himeji Castle could just be seen through the scaffold rising above the castle grounds, but it doesn’t quite have the same effect. It’s not quite nodokana. However, having already been warned about the castle by the Polish man I met in Miyajima, my goal was to visit Shoshayama and the temple there. The bus ride takes just over a half an hour from the train station, and ... read more

We started the day with a well earned sleep in and slow bike ride to the shops. It was great to be away from the tourist hype. We rode our bikes from home to the busy shopping streets and malls, each mall branched off the main street withmore shops and more malls as far as your eye could see. We went to a large honya , book shop, where we bought a series of basic bilingual manga to bring home. Kate bought Doraemon, Riley bought the Tale of Genji and Lori bought a manga about a kuruta game we have played the last few nights. We rode to the shops to buy ingredients for a home cooked meal of bolognese and rice, yummy ! The girls watched a movie and ate chocolates and chips while the ... read more

Thursday’s mission was to head to Himeji on the Shinkansen. I was up earlier than Wednesday, but when I got to Kyoto station I had to wait almost an hour for the next train where I could reserve a seat. It was worth the wait though, because the rail pass allows me to reserve a seat in “Green” class, which is much nicer than the regular class, which is what I travelled in from Tokyo on Sunday. The trip took under an hour and I was in Himeji. Once again I started off with a trip to the tourist information centre. It was a bit more difficult to find than Hikone though, because Himeji station is much bigger. It was also signposted with a big question mark and looked like a fancy shop, so I walked ... read more

Another Timewarp, precious details remind me of the similarities and differences between Japan and China. Schools are institutions that shape and mould future citizens. Teaching other peoples children is such a priviledge, and a way of getting to know so much about a country. Meet the kids from Kotogaoka Senior High School. Students regularly report that After School Clubs are their favorite part of school. Most kids are involved with one club, and will stay back until late, or come in early, and participate for hours on the weekends and holidays in their chosen Club Activity. Baseball, archery, softball, kendo, band, choir, cooking, athletics, and English are amongst the clubs run at the school. The kids always go to and from club in full school uniform, with fantastic aprons, sports gear and ... read more