A postcard from...Hikone Castle, Shiga

Hikone Castle's main keep

 

Sitting atop a rocky plug near the shore of Lake Biwa, is the superbly proportioned Hikone Castle.

I got there in the evening, and found a delightful light show being cast onto an outer wall. I had trouble photographing it because I did not have a tripod with me and my hands were really cold - a biting November breeze.

I was virtually alone, as I stumbled up the path - lighting was adequate/inspired, but made for awkward shadows! As usual, the approaches to a Japanese castle means 90 degree corners designed to create choke points/killing zones in defence. Hikone no different. Impressive ramparts would have been very difficult to attack.

Part of the serene lighting

The light show on the castle keep itself was pretty, with an interesting sound track; rather than enter the keep I stumbled around in the shadows trying to be creative...I totally failed to catch the beautiful full moon rise through the broken clouds, which was breath takingly "Japanese" as it climbed behind this medieval fortification.

I returned next morning, with a couple of hours to walk briskly around the grounds. Although it sits on a prominent hilltop, the castle is not easy to see from relatively close up, nor are there any other hills nearby to look down at it from. Instead, you can catch glimpses of it through the trees as you circle around it.

The main keep, from the west side

The autumn colours were fading, but still obvious and delightful. I would put Hikone Castle on my 'go to' list; it's an easy walk from the town's train station and not thronging with tourists. It's a lovely, quiet detour which is very well worth the effort.

I'll post again with the history part of the story, in the New Year.

southern entrance