Kumamoto Castle

After Abby left, I was left with one extra Ju-Hachi-Kippu (the special JR ticket that allows me to use any local train for a whole day).  So I was looking to go somewhere new and kind of far so as to get the best use of my ticket.  Since nobody else had one of these tickets, I decided to save Nagasaki for a little later (possibly with friends) and instead go to one of the last remaining fully constructed castles in Japan, Kumamoto Castle.

I was just catching the tail end of the cherry blossom season and was lucky enough to see some sakura mixed in with the castle.  The castle itself was built in 1607 but was reconstructed in 1960 accurately replicating historical Japanese construction methods.  The coolest part for me wasn’t the castle as a whole, but rather the fine details in the castle.  Halfway through the museum, I decided to take a break and sit in a tatami room and watch a short video documentary about the reconstruction process.  At first I was merely there to take a break, but then I got really into the video actually.  It described the incredible lengths (whoever specializes in and was contracted to rebuild a freaking Japanese castle) went into faithfully doing things as they were done.  This means every wooden joint construction used no nails, adhesive or screws.  How is that possible you might ask?  I’m not entirely sure even after watching the video and playing with the diagrammatic toy:  

All I can figure is that they employed an infinite number of genius puzzle makers and master craftsman to somehow design every piece to perfectly fit into each other relying on wooden pegs and gravity to make sure this massive structure stands and doesn’t end up crushing those for whom it was built to protect. 

Other really awesome notable parts of the castle include a highly ornate room that was hand crafted out of gold.   Well, it wasn’t all gold, they just hand chiseled out gold casings and paintings out of huge sliding gold doors, but still impressive.  I’m really glad I watched the video because I really think I might have easily passed this room had I not understood the incredible amount of time, energy and effort somebody took to build it.   

So after standing there in awe for a while, I closed my jaw and moved on.  I talked to a nice lady who was very eager to practice her English and was more than happy to recommend me a good place for a bowl of Kumamoto ramen.   

I thanked her for her “osusume” and wandered the city a bit.  One of the best lines from the Kumamoto city brochure guide is, “We believe the water in Kumamoto makes three things: good rice, good food and pretty girls.  The first two are true, what do you think about the last?”  Not bad.

A Better Question: Would you eat here?