Amit,Kirill and Richard Go To The White Castle

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  Himeji, Kinki, Japan
Sunday, October 5, 2008

We had our first night out in Japan last night and spent it drinking non-specified local beer in a cool little cellar bar called Vivahaus.  It was our second choice but the first one we tried, The Frog and Flower, was on the sixth floor of a dodgy high rise and when we stepped out of the lift to find a sterile staircase we pooped ourselves and ran out before the yakuza cut our heads off with samurai swords like Andy Garcia in Black Rain.  Do they still do that or was that just in the 80s?

You'll be pleased to know we tried the tokayaki last night and the good news is that they're octopus tentacles not testicles.  The even better news is that they taste like prawn cocktail flavour skips.  That may be because they were cold by the time we'd run for the train and got back to the hostel just before curfew.  Or it may be because those Osakans really know their food.

On a side note there's something wrong with the toilets over here - they have Western toilets too but the 'local' ones are just strange.  Apparently crouching is the optimum position and that's why.  I'm too scared to try it so I unfortunately cannot report back on the validity of this comment.  There are also Australians everywhere.

Today was spent in Himeji - a fairly small place but with a lot of "cultural world heritage", their words, not mine.  The journey was pretty uneventful except that we saw the world's biggest suspension bridge near Kobe.  Brunel would be proud.  Unfortunately he'd be less proud of the fact I didn't get a picture of it.  I did draw one though.

Himeji-jo is an amazing white fortress from some awfully long time ago.  The weather was crap but the castle itself was extremely impressive stuff and we went all the way to the top where the warriors used to commit ritual suicide if they were overrun by enemies.  Happy days.

We then saw the Koko-en gardens, nine differently themed gardens next to the castle.  There was a bamboo one, a traditional teahouse one and a coi carp pondy type one among others.  They were beautiful and lots of photos were taken - mostly by Kirill and his macro obsession, but in fairness he did get some good ones.

We're in our youth hostel in Hiroshima now just getting ready to head out and sample the nightlife so I'll check back in later.  Mostly because I want my little pin map to show everywhere I've been.

Post your own travel photos for friends and family Pictures

Cheese!!	Godzilla Attacks The Suspension Bridge	Himeji-jo	Koko-en Gardens
Octopus Balls Of Death	The Suicide Room	Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong

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