Himeji - The White Castle

I guess this could be what the famous brand is named after? We visited a few weeks ago on our wonderful Japan holiday.

You may have seen my post on the 'Last Samurai' Temple a couple of days ago, well that is in the same city as this awesome Castle.
Built around 1300 AD. The Himeji Castle is immense, sitting on a small hillside, and it's the largest Castle in Japan on huge grounds, it is also a World Heritage listed site. It was rebuilt around 1600 AD. and has managed to remain intact all that time, even though it is mainly made of wood. It somehow survived the massive bombing in the area during WW2, as well as a powerful earthquake in 1995.
The White Castle contains many defensive design features but was never attacked, so the layers of moats and archery positions have never been tested. It features steeply rising pathways that become very narrow and so can be defended at keyhole points by just a couple of warriors.

I feel lucky to have seen this Castle - it was apparently ordered for demolition between 1870 and the early 1900s but somehow it has been saved. The Himeji Castle is one of the most spectacular Castles in Japan and covers over 500 acres in the heart of Himeji city, it brings millions of tourists to Himeji every year.
Next to The White Castle there is an amazing Japanese garden. We where lucky with excellent weather on the day we visited and got fit walking over 10 miles around the 2 sites.

I feel super lucky to have visited Japan and have a lot of pictures to share, if you follow me please comment so i can follow you too.
Love and Light,
David