So far I haven`t use my Japan Rail Pass since I was saving it for when I really started travelling around. So today I put it`s ass to work and jumped on a train to Himeji!
Himeji is a town famous for the castle since it is the only castle in Japan which is still mostly the original building since it wasn`t hit by the WW2 bombings.
I started in the nearby Gardens so I could get a good look around. I`ve really been enjoying the thoughtful and elegant layouts of the gardens in Japan so spent quite a bit of time there. I even took in a Japanese Tea Ceremony which was kinda fun.
I then headed to the castle grounds and bumped into Matt, my friend I met in the Shin-Osaka youth Hostel. After we got over the intial "Oh... what you doing here?" surprise we headed to the castle together. As we walked through the gate I espied a free tour guide who was finishing up with another couple so leapt on her like a bird of prey. I think she may have been finished for the day but said she would take us round anyway which was awesome of her.
She gave us a very detailed and interesting tour of the castle, explaining the historical, social and tactical aspects of Himeji Castle. She even explained to us how to use Shinto Shrines and let us use the one on the top of Himeji Castle. Afterwards Matt headed to the gardens and I went to get some food. I bumped into the guide, Rie, who took us around so I bought her some waffles as a thank you and then headed off to the station.
I got back to the hostel to find my new roomate was a very talkative Japanese man and although Im sure what he was saying was very interesting and well-formed I still didn`t have a F**king clue what he was saying!
