Close to our last days in Japan, Tim-sensei, Mako-sensei, and the girls (minus Jordan and Taylor) visited Odawara Castle located in the Kanagawa prefecture. It was built in the 15th century for feudal lord Odawara Hojo and his clan. As time passed, Odawara castle became bigger due to the growth of the Hojo clan. It was reconstructed several times until, eventually, it was considered the largest castle in medieval Japan. The castle was abandoned during the Meiji era and then later destroyed by the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923. It wasn't until 1960 that Odawara Castle was reconstructed. Today, much of the surrounding area within the castle walls has been made into a park, Odawara Castle Park.
To get there, our group traveled via the Shinkansen, which was truly a treat for me at least. Below are two shots of the exterior and interior:
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| Exterior of the Shinkansen |
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| Interior of the Shinkansen |
Unfortunately, we couldn't take pictures inside the castle, but we were welcome to take as many outside photos of it as we wanted. There was a balcony on the top most floor of the castle overlooking Sagami Bay and the surrounding area. Here are just a few of the shots that I managed to get during our visit:
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| Odawara Castle |
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| Some sort of flower wall and a garden, where originally, a moat used to be...it was very pretty. |
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| On the highest level of Odawara Castle looking out at Sagami Bay and the surrounding area. |
I have way more pictures of Odawara that will, with the rest of the trip, appear on facebook in the near future.
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