Monthly Archives: July 2019

Travelling to the Rockies

26 Friday Jul 2019

Posted by in Travelling through the Rockies

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It was an early start leaving from Canada Place at the waterfront in Vancouver for our trip to the Rockies. Although it was raining we were all excited for our adventure.

Our first stop for coffee and wash rooms was the delightful little town of Hope. We quickly noticed the many chainsaw carvings proudly displayed around the town centre and learned that Hope has been appropriately tagged as the Chainsaw Carving Capital. The carvings often feature local wildlife such as eagles, mountain sheep, bears and cougars to name a few.

We drove for another few hours through magnificent countryside. Although it was very overcast and wet, everywhere was beautiful so I was very happy sitting back in my comfortable seat taking many photos.

We stopped for lunch at the very pretty lake town of Kelowna. Kelowna is a city in the south of Canada’s British Columbia province. It is in the Okanagan Valley, on the eastern shore of Okanagan Lake, surrounded by provincial parks, pine forest, vineyards, orchards and mountains. Its downtown area incorporates waterfront City Park and a lakeside cultural district.

After leaving Kelowna we travelled to Revelstoke.

Travelling through the Rockies felt like a dream as the beauty was endless

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Old, Real, Beautiful, Matsumoto Castle

19 Friday Jul 2019

Posted by in Matsumoto Castle, Matsumoto, Japan

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Matsumoto Castle, which is also known as “Crow Castle” due to its black exterior, is one of Japan’s premier historic castles. Unlike other castles, which are built on a mountain or hillside slopes; this flatland castle was built on a plain.

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Matsumoto Castle is blessed to be not only one of Japan’s twelve castles to have survived since the feudal era, but one of the largest and most distinctive-looking. Its six-storeyed keep is now a museum showcasing its military history, in particular weapons and Armour from centuries ago.

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It was a pleasure to walk around the surrounding grounds and the beautifully maintained gardens. While we were there Samurai warriors walked around and we had fun posing for photos with them.

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This castle has it all. From our arrival we were taken back in time to the ancient times. The interior is fantastic too see. Matsumoto Castle is the real thing. It is built of wood — you can see and feel the solid old timbers, smooth and shiny from over 400 years of use. Built for war — more precisely, for defense of a feudal lords headquarters — this building was never for anyone’s luxurious living. This may explain why the decoration is sparse compared to other Japanese castles. It may not be obvious from the outside, but every level of the castle is designed for archers to shoot from. Our tour of the inside of the castle revealed placements for cannons facing every direction.

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The grounds are free to visit, but to enter the castle there is a cost. We needed to take off our shoes to enter the castle and we were given plastic bags to put our shoes into which left some of us without 2 free hands to aid in the climbing. Some of the stairs inside are narrow and steep.

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From the highest floor, the views are wide and sweeping of the city and surrounding mountains. The stairs to the fifth floor are exceptionally steep. This is normal for Japanese castles, but even the regular stairs will be a problem for those with mobility needs. We were warned of the steep climb and of course descent but we still were not prepared enough. In our socked feet some of the floors were very slippery.

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No one lived here, but probably many samurai died here.

We really enjoyed our few hours here at Matsumoto Castle – I am so happy that we visited it.

Matsumoto Town

10 Wednesday Jul 2019

Posted by in Matsumoto Town, Japan

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This charming and historic city which is cradled by the Japan Alps is Matsumoto. To me this is one of Japan’s finest cosmopolitan cities that still has a rural feel. It has so much to see with its stunning castle, captivating districts and enchanting vistas and could keep me occupied for hours or in fact days.

 

Matsumoto town is the gateway to the Japan alps for skiing and hot springs in the winter and walking in the mountains in the summer. For us, it was a morning at one of Japan’s best preserved famous castles, lunch in the centre of town and the afternoon exploring its surrounding streets.

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After our exciting morning at the Matsumoto Castle, we visited Nawate Street, in Matsumoto town, a small pedestrian zone with lots of small shops and restaurants along the river and then Nakamachi Street which is famous for its old houses with a beautiful white tone.

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20181014_164239As we were wandering around this charming town we met up with many locals out walking their dogs. We soon learned that this activity is a big part of their everyday pastime. They are happy to stop for photo opportunities; in fact they encourage it which is very fine with me being a big dog lover.

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We thoroughly enjoyed our few hours in this lovely town with its beautiful gardens and water features, exceptional architecture and general overall feel of calmness. This location offers a magnificent scenic view of the Northern Japan Alps and a unique cultural experience.

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