My entry ticket to Kumamoto Castle was a combo with the residence of one of the feudal clans nearby. It was quite a walk getting over as the grounds of the castle and surrounding areas are quite large. It was like the residence in Kyoto I had visited where photos were not allowed. This time there was no problem taking photos. The house is made in a zig-zag design around sculpted gardens. They used dark wood for an English Tudor style look again but the rooms were...

Next on the afternoons agenda was Kumamoto Castle. I'd been to Osaka Castle before and saw Hiroshima Castle from the outside the other day. Kumamoto is famous as being quite old and a large complex. It was a centre of some of the feudal lords during the Shogan period. You can buy a single entry ticket for 300Y ($3.75) or a combo ticket. I bought the one for the Governers residence for 640Y ($7.50). There was another combo to another history museum, which I decid...

As Fukuoka continued to be covered in dark cloud I headed south to my next destination of Kumamoto. This is more centrally located in Kyushu Island and home to a famous large castle complex. There was a train to Kumamoto at 12.49 but as I rushed to the platform the doors shut. The next train was 1.18. As I was eating my sandwich I heard announcements for other trains running thru Kumamoto. So I realized I can take a train passing thru Kumamoto instead of one goi...

Happy Birthday! Today was my birthday, only when I got up to leave the capsule hotel the storm that was forecast had finally hit. It was pouring with rain outside so I had to put my jacket and cap on and walk with my umbrella to Hiroshima Station. I was gambling that as I take the train back south to Kyushu Island I could avoid the storm. Hiroshima is on the south side of Honshu island while Fukuoka is on the north side of Kyushu Island. This gamble could also b...

My hotel in Hiroshima was going to be in a capsule hotel. I was excited about this as I've stayed in capsules in Tokyo and Kyoto before and enjoyed the experience. For those that dont know, in a capsule you dont get your own room but instead just a sleeping compartment in a communal area with others. The capsule hotel was a bit tricky to find despite having a map from there website. It said to take the first turn off the main road and I counted six streets down o...