The Real Far East（Japan）

23/02/2021

Odawara Castle, Kanagawa Prefecture

It is said that there was a residence of a powerful clan in Odawara in the 12th century.
After that, it seems that the castle was built as the residence of Hojo clan in the first half of the 16th century.
In 1590, when Hideyoshi advanced the army to Odawara with the aim of unifying Japan, the lord Hojo decided to surrender without blood after three months of siege.
Inside the castle, Hojo side dispute over Hideyoshi, they couldn't choose between war and peace over three months.
They were in a state of stupidity that they couldn't draw conclusions no matter how long it takes.
The term "Odawara Hyōjo (Fruitless discussion in Odawara)" still remains today and is used as a metaphor among the Japanese people.

After Hojo left, the castle became the property of Ieyasu Tokugawa, who was to occupy the Kanto region (today's Greater Tokyo area) at the behest of Hideyoshi Toyotomi.
But Ieyasu resided in Edo Castle (now the Imperial Palace), and assigned his subordinate warlords to the Odawara Castle.

After the Meiji Restoration (1868), many buildings in the castle were demolished.
One of the watchtowers was survived (Ninomaru Osumi-yagura), but it collapsed in the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923.
In 1930, the watchtower that appeared in the video was rebuilt (at half the actual size due to lack of budget).
After 1950, the entire castle ruins were designated as a park, and in 1960, the reconstruction of the castle tower was completed.
From 2015 to one year, the castle was renovated as a seismic retrofit, and the contents of the exhibition were changed, making the tower attractive.
From the tower, you can see the city of Odawara and the Pacific ocean, and can feel a pleasant atmosphere.

(日本語は後ろ)It is said that there was a residence of a powerful clan in Odawara in the 12th century.After that, it seems that the castle was built as the residen...

29/01/2021

Lake Nojiri is a part of the area designated as "Myoko Togakushi Renzan Mountains National Park" that straddles Nagano and Niigata prefectures. It is the second largest lake in Nagano prefecture after Lake Suwa. Its transparency is famous and there are differences depending on the time, but There is a survey that the transparency of the lake is 7m or more.
The lake is surrounded by Mt. Kurohime, Mt. Myoko on the marina side, and Mt. Madarao on the opposite bank.
The magnificent appearance of the mountains is one of the real pleasures of the cruise. Cruise boat operates from April to November and is closed during the winter season. There are many villas on the shore of the lake, those are privately owned and inaccessible. You can find Biwa-jima island (also known as Benten-jima) in the lake, and Uga Shrine is set up. There is also a statue on the south side of the island to commemorate a child's water accident. In 1948, a local resident accidentally found the molars of the Naumann elephant. After that, full-scale academic research began, and many fossils of Naumann elephants and large deer were discovered. At the same time, stone tools from the Paleolithic era were also found, and it seems that humans and large mammals once coexisted here. Currently, there is the "Lake Nojiri Naumann Elephant Museum" near the lakeside, where you can observe the excavated materials

19/12/2020

Osaka Castle
(The Castle Tower)
As you can see from the fact that Naniwa-no-miya Palace （7th century) was built nearby, the place was also a natural fortress that used the flow of the Yodo River.
Osaka Castle was built on the site of Ishiyama-Hongan-ji Temple, which was destroyed by fire in 1580, over a period of about 6 years from 1583 to 1589.
As is well known, the ‘Toyotomi era Osaka Castle’ was buried under the new Osaka Castle built by Hidetada Tokugawa after 1620.
Everything that remains today is from the Tokugawa period. The remains of Toyotomi have been completely buried.
During the Tokugawa period (1603-1868), it was repeatedly damaged and repaired by fires.
The castle tower, rebuilt in 1845, was burnt down again in 1868 during the turmoil following the Meiji Restoration.
In 1928, the Mayor of Osaka proposed the construction of a castle tower with donations from citizens, and it was completed in 1931.
During World War II, the castle tower was able to survive the air raids while many architectures on the premises were burned down.
Inside the castle tower is a museum where you can see valuable historical materials.

(Followed by English Translation)古くは近くに難波宮が造営されたことからも分かるように、淀川の流れを利用した天然の要害でもあったこの地。1580年に火災で焼失した石山本願寺の跡地に、1583年から1589年までおおよそ６年をかけ...

15/12/2020

箸蔵寺（Hashikura-ji Temple), Tokushima

(followed by English Translation)
箸蔵寺は、はしくらじと読み、徳島県三好市池田町にあります。 箸蔵山に続く尾根の宝珠山の南山腹に伽藍が配置されています。 通常は箸蔵山ロープウェイで方丈のある山頂駅まで、標高にして約300メートル分を一気に上がります。８８箇所の霊場の一つにはなっていませんが、 こんぴら奥の院としての別名を持ち、金比羅山との深い繋がりがあります。本殿では仏寺でありながら、柏手が認められているのもその一つです。神仏習合の名残とも言えるかもしれません。ロープウェイで登ると本来徒歩で登る際にくぐる山門（仁王門）とそれに続く鳥居を下に眺めることになります。脚力に自信のある方は徒歩での登山をされてはいかがでしょうか？ 伽藍は江戸中期以降のものとなり、重文クラス以上の建築などはありません。しかし、紅葉の時期出なくとも美しい境内は一見の価値があります。 方丈までロープウェイで来ても、本殿までは200段以上の階段が待ち構えます。本殿の左手奥にはミニ88箇所巡りができる石仏が設置されています。

Hashikura-ji Temple is located in Ikeda Town, Miyoshi City, Tokushima Prefecture.The temple is on the southern flank of Mt Hoju on the ridge that leads to Mt Hashikura. Normally, people take the Hashikura-san Ropeway (Cable Car) to the temple.
Although it is not one of the temples designated as ’Shikoku Pilgrimage, the 88 temples', has another name as 'Kompira-Oku-No-In'. The temple has a deep connection with Kompira (Kotohiragu Shrine) in Kagawa.
If you take the cable car, you can see the Sanmon Gate (Niomon Gate) and the torii gate on its way.
Those architectures on the premises date back to the latter half of the Edo period, and there is no building above the Important Cultural Property class. However, the beautiful precincts are worth a visit even if the autumn leaves are not in season.
After getting off the cable car, you must climb the stone stairs for more than 200 steps from Hojo to the Main Hall (Hondo).

(followed by English Translation)箸蔵寺は、はしくらじと読み、徳島県三好市池田町にあります。 箸蔵山に続く尾根の宝珠山の南山腹に伽藍が配置されています。 通常は箸蔵山ロープウェイで方丈のある山頂駅まで、標高にして約3...

04/12/2020

（followed by English)
Japan, The Real Far Eastは毎週１本、YouTubeに日本の景色をアップロードしていきます。ぜひ、チャンネル登録ください。
今週は、東近江「永源寺の秋」そして奈良「皐月・霜月 依水園」
の２本です。
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◆スタビライザーなどアクセサリーなしの撮影（スマホ一つ）
にこだわっています。
※車載動画にのみOsmo Pocketを使用します。

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Already uploaded "Autumn of Eigenji Temple" and Nara "Isui-en on May and November".

Concepts
◆ Expressing Japanese Beauty with only an iPhone
◆ Shooting without accessories such as stabilizer

(Followed by English translation↓）1361年開創の禅寺、総本山永源寺です。滋賀県東近江市に位置します。往時は50を超える坊があり栄えましたが一時廃れました。しかし17世紀に天皇や彦根藩の庇護を受けてのち再興された経緯が.....

22/02/2019

The best time to see cherry blossoms here in Himeji Castle, would be different from year to year. Check weather forecast (Sakura-zensen) before you go.

12/02/2019

This is the second tallest structure in the world after the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.