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A Snowy Day in Asago


Yesterday, February 11th, was "Foundation Day" in Japan, which meant that there wasn't school that day. A few of us Phoenician ALT's got together and split money to rent a car, and we drove out to Asago to see the Takeda Castle Ruins.  When we left Himeji at 6:30am, it was just starting to snow; by the time we had driven north to Asago, the snow was falling much more heavily, with easily several inches sticking to the ground.

We could see the Takeda Castle at the top of the mountain, and I could have sworn I could see what looked to be the specks of people walking along it, but due to the snow the route was closed. However, we did climb up as far as we could go, and saw a few shrines and a temple along the way! The snow was well worth it, though none of us were overly prepared for it, considering the forecast had said it would be sunny.

We didn't stay in Asago long, and ended up driving to Kobe to go shopping at the Costco. Japanese Costco's aren't too different from American ones, in that they carry many of the same products. The parking lot was on the roof, so that was definitely interesting (and the views were fantastic!). I enjoyed a slice of pizza and a churro, and am officially set for life in terms of my sticker supply--Costco was selling a box of 2,800 of them for only 1,284 yen (approximately $12.00)! The seafood section was gigantic compared with the ones you'd see in Arizona Costco's, and they didn't have tamales (though they did have frozen burritos and tortillas, as well as chips and Pace salsa). It was the most crowded Costco I have ever seen!

Anyways, onward to all of my better photos!


The view from behind the JR Train Station at the Takeda Ruins. (The ruins are behind me, but I couldn't quite get an angle to see them via the camera.)


The photos below are from some of the areas near the start of the (closed) trail to the Takeda Castle Ruins.







These red gates and the stairway led to a small shrine at the top. We had hoped it might be an alternate route to the castle... but no such luck. 





This shrine was guarded by two dog spirits. 





Another small shrine we came across while trying to find a way up to the castle. 




After giving up on reaching the castle, we went back down and went inside this temple area that was next to the station. Behind these gates was a very big graveyard, which seemed to stretch halfway up the mountain. I wish I could have explored it all! The snow just added to the deep quiet and serenity of the atmosphere of this beautiful place.






Finally, the view from on top of the Kobe Costco's roof. Notice the sheer lack of snow, and this was only an hour's drive away from Asago. The view looked a lot of San Francisco, with the bay stretching out in the distance. It was extremely windy and cold, despite the beautiful blue sky!

Comments

  1. dianejApril 1, 2014 at 4:48 PM

    I walked up the trail to the ruins. It was difficult, to say the least, but the ruins are enormous and incredible. Maybe you can go back again in the spring. The Japanese film "Heaven and Earth" was filmed there, and an early episode of the Kuroda Kanbei Taiga Drama.

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