Of Course, You Have to Visit Himeji Castle
Walking from the Hotel to Himeji Castle
Since no trip to Himeji would be complete without Himeji Castle, I headed there on foot.
This building we passed on the way, which looked very much like a redevelopment project, is called Egret Himeji. Apparently, its facade is meant to evoke stone castle walls.
And then Himeji Castle came into view!
But even after walking and walking, I still didn't seem to get any closer to the main keep. The castle grounds are unbelievably vast.
Inside Himeji Castle!
The interior requires an admission ticket, so I bought one and headed for the main keep. By this point the sky was already looking pretty ominous, but… oh well, I went for it anyway!
Even after entering the paid area, the winding paths inside the castle grounds just kept going. If you had business with the keep from down below, it must have been quite a task… at least, that's how it felt from the perspective of a low-ranking office worker.
And then, just a few minutes later, the rain came down in sheets. A sudden heavy rainstorm.
Because the weather outside was so bad, the inside of the castle was incredibly dark.
I was amazed by how warped the wooden stair handrails were…!!
Then I made it to the top floor of the main keep.
The rain was so intense that I could barely see the view at all.
I waited on the top floor for a while to shelter from the rain, but there was no sign of it letting up, so I ended up heading back to the hotel completely soaked. Seriously, what was that?
On the way back, the water had overwhelmed the drainage system and was shooting up like a fountain.
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