Our visit to Matsuyama came about entirely by error. When trying to psych the kids up for places to see in Japan, I had looked up Matsuyama instead of Matsumoto. And it looked amazing! And the kids really, really wanted to go.
It's an original castle, one of around 12 remaining in Japan, so it ticked some boxes for me, as well. The downside was...it's on Ehime, an island separated from the mainland by the Seto Inland Sea. Getting to Matsuyama from Osaka is a minimum 4 hour trip. There wasn't really a feasible way to get to and from the castle in a single day and still explore the area.
Then, by stroke of fortune, I happened to win a bursary through my employment. It was enough to defray most of the costs of staying at a ryokan in Matsuyama. And had the added benefit of letting the kids experience the whole 'ryokan' experience, which we otherwise would not do with our month-long house rental. It was set!
And so Tuesday we packed an overnight bag and began our long journey to Matsuyama. The train ride was the longest of the trip for the kids, but after the flight, it seemed fast and luxurious. The scenery was gorgeous as we travelled along and we spotted some very interesting sites along the way.
Arriving in Matsuyama station, we stowed our bags in a locker, and began the hike up Matsuyama. First, we explored the third bailey - it features an elaborate garden in spring, but it was winter still. We saw the gardeners making preparations for planting. Regardless, it was an interesting spot to visit.
Then, we had to climb the mountain. There is a ropeway and/or chairlift option to the middle peak, but it was on the other side of the park. Because we had walked over from the station, we were on the wrong side of the mountain to use it. And so, we had the choice - walk around the mountain, or walk up it. We decided to walk up it.
It turns out reaching the ropeway top is the halfway point. So we walked some more. And some more. And some more. We eventually reached the castle gates. Whereupon we had another 15 minutes of walking to get into the castle. But it was totally worth it.
This castle is amazing. Soooo amazing.
In many ways, it was similar to Matsumoto castle, in that it's still largely in its original shape, so what is on display is the castle itself. There is the usual assortment of historical artifacts along the interior route: ceremonial robes, swords, paintings, rice scoops, and so on. But they were simply window dressing to the castle itself. The architecture itself, the woodworking details, the elaborate clay tiles, the fantastic stone drops and murder holes...all were very much at the forefront of the display.
No comments:
Post a Comment