Day trip!

After orientation broke for the day and after picking up my books for class tomorrow, a group of us CJS students hopped the subway to Nagoya Castle. Pinkthulu went along for the trip as he was easy to stuff into my pocket. I'm planning a second trip when the tree and flowers begin to bloom, and Prussia and Gilbird can go, too. ^_^
Here's a couple shots for you to enjoy!

A quick little blip about the castle from our handy little map: Nagoya Castle was constructed on the orders of Tokugawa Ieyasu in order to secure an important position in the middle of Japan and to ward off attacks from the direction of Osaka. Construction was completed in 1612, and the castle is typical of those built on flatlands. Unti the Meiji Restoration, Nagoya Castle flourished as the castle in which the Owari lineage of the Tokugawa family, the foremost of the family's three lineages, resided.
In May 1945, during the air raids on Nagoya in World War II, most of the buildings, including the main and small donjons, and the Hommaru Palace, were burned down. Fortunately, however, three corner towers, three gates, and most of the paintings on the sliding doors and walls in the Hommaru Palace survived the fire, and have been handed down as important cultural assets.
The main donjon that I'm standing in front of with Pinkthulu was reconstructed in 1959. In 2009, restoration of the Hommaru Palace began, and we're waiting for its completion in the future!