Long before we came we decided to visit Himeji and Nara as two half day trips from Kyoto, what we didn't decide until today was the sensible thing and do them on the same day! We got the bullet train to Himeji at 8.20, arriving just after 9am. The weather was already hot, clear and sunny, just like we've come to expect from the weather each day - watch that change! We arrived at the grounds of the castle, a very imposing building at the top of the hill over the city and went in. The first part of the tour was through the western bailey building, taking us through the parts of the castle lived in by Princess Sen. The white buildings were blinding in the bright sunlight, but inside the wooden floors and
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