In Japan - Himeji

"Children play a game in front of Himeji Castle in Japan, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008."

I am up way past my bedtime, and while I want to put my thoughts into another great day in southern Honshu, Japan, this is going to be a brief post.

Arriving in Osaka earlier this morning, I headed to see the famous Himeji Castle by JR train.

Unfortunately it was closed, so I couldn't go inside. Go figure, Monday and Tuesday were the only two days it was closed for unknown reasons. From what I understand it’s used a lot in samurai movies, so I am willing to bet that’s what it is. OK, maybe not.

It was still a breathtaking sight. I took way too many pictures of this static, white fortress from close and afar.

Following that, we headed for a pork cutlet lunch in the train station before speeding nearly 200 mph back to Osaka by the amazing JR train.

These bullet trains got their nickname perfectly. I’ve never traveled this fast (on land) before in anything, and I am known to have a lead foot when running late on the highways.

Since we are traveling up the country, the week pass is a perfect way to travel.

Anyways, to finish the night we went to Umeda Sky Building, a large infrastructure that overlooks all of Osaka and more. It was a perfect time to get up there as the sun set slowly behind the mountains.

And finally, any night in Japan wouldn’t be complete without a introduction to a new food. While we started the day off with a traditional Japanese breakfast, one could say we also finished off with a classic Japanese breakfast. Well, sorta.

The food of choice was a okonomiyaki, otherwise known as a Japanese pizza. It included all my favorites: bacon, scallop, shrimp, flour, mayonnaise, a thick, sweet brown sauce, mustard, and some other delicious ingredients. They mix all of these together and fry it up right in front of you and then top with the sauces.

I was so full, but it was one of my favorite dinners thus far into the trip. Mmm.

Well, heading to Kyoto again today to see some more of this great country.