Hubby got home near midnight, we talked about going to Ogaki the following morning! I love to go not only for a friend’s visit but want to walk through and see Ichiyajo castle (hubby told me a brief story about this and awakes my interest of this castle) and Tanigumi Temple which was introduced by a couple friend living in Ogaki..
I thought we can’t make it the next day. We made a truce, if we woke up early then off we go!
Luckily, we woke up just the right time, the weather went fine and we are bound to Ogaki for an hour and a half drive. Not bad, I thought.
The first stop was Sunomata Castle, ruins of “Ichiyajo”which means “one night castle “Founded by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, according to history, he built this castle in his siege of Odawara castle. It was called this because Hideyoshi built the castle in secret. And gather the materials in one night. It actually took him 80 days to build the Ichiya Castle with 40.000 workers. And despite how rapidly this castle was built, the foundations was well constructed that even stand out even during wars. He employed the skilled stone artisans from western Japan that also worked on Azuchi and Osaka Castle. This was the first castle in Kanto Region to seriously make use of stone walls. (source jcastle.info)
When I go to a castle, I am after the wall stones. I am so thrilled and wondered how perfectly crafted by the ancient workers. Although many years had past, the grandeur of this ancient structures made me feel good and being on that place was like I was being brought back and was like there, during that ancient time. Just marvelous being there!!
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| Upclose |
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| old man sitting at the gateway |
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| a grand pose with my little man |
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| the moats around the castle to protect enemies to enter the castle, built in Nagara River |
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| my two boys
NEXT FEATURE:Tanigumi Kegon Temple
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 and Tanigumi Kegon Temple: A Must See in Ogaki Gifu){kind=link}